Debbie's Blog
My First Blog: a Week in Review
Washington, DC,
June 20, 2015
Friends, as we begin the weekend I want to recap the past week in the House – the legislation we considered and the Michiganders who stopped by our office. It was a difficult week with very thought provoking votes and hard decisions to make. Three votes stand out. First #TPA...since coming to office, I’ve made one thing crystal clear – Michigan cannot afford another bad trade deal. For the past several months, a broad coalition of members of Congress, labor and business has been fighting to #StopFastTrack, and we’re not backing down. The House punted the bill to the Senate this week, but this fight is far from over and we will continue working to stop trade deals that fail to protect the American worker. Second...we considered a resolution that would require Congress to debate an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) in the fight against ISIS. We had very serious discussions among my colleagues, especially the freshmen members, several of whom are veterans. I voted in favor of the resolution because I believe we as a Congress have the responsibly to make these kinds of decisions. When you live in a district like ours, you understand the very real dangers faced by the people of Iraq and Syria every day. A story that haunts me is my neighbor and a local pharmacy owner who has much family left in Iraq. Last summer, extremists attacked their town and drove the Christians into hiding. Many she knew were being killed. And she sat with me sobbing about why no one cared and why someone couldn’t help her family and others from being senselessly murdered. We take for granted our freedoms and way of life more than we ever realize… Third, the Affordable Care Act…we voted on the 59th attempt to repeal or undermine the ACA this week, including an unpaid for, permanent repeal of the medical device tax. Every American deserves access to quality affordable health care, and the ACA is moving us closer to that goal. We cannot afford to move backwards. Finally, we love it when people from Michigan and the district come in to talk about the issues that are critical to them. This week brought the Ypsilanti FIRST Robotics team; Russel Branzell, CEO of CHIME - College of Healthcare Information Management Executives , which is based in Ann Arbor; Jim Bryum, President of the Michigan Agri-Business Association; Larry Alexander, CEO of Visit Detroit and Cheryl Ronk, Executive Director of the MSAE; and the National Employment Opportunity Network to talk about the Work Opportunity Tax Credit. I also emphasize to everyone we love seeing you in Washington, but if you are concerned about an issue, invite us to discuss the issue when I am home. We have more time, I can visit sites and there is more time to dig in. Wishing a very happy and relaxing weekend to you all. D2 |