Weekly Newsletter, 06.17.24

June 17, 2024

Last week, the House considered the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (FY25 NDAA) on the floor and a baseless resolution to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress. We also took some time for partisan competition for fun and a good cause with the annual Congressional Baseball Game for Charity. I also visited with students from George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government’s NEW Leadership Virginia program on women in politics, and student winners of the Virginia History Day preparing for the National History Day Competition.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court issued rulings in two major cases: Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA and Garland v. Cargill. In Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA, the Supreme Court rejected the plaintiffs’ meritless case and preserved access to mifepristone, a safe, effective abortion medication – for now. You can read my full statement on the ruling here. In Garland v. Cargill, the Supreme Court ruled that a federal ban on bump stocks was unlawful. This ruling hampers the federal government’s ability to keep deadly weapons of war off our streets. You can read my full statement here.

Here is an overview of what you may have missed.

THIS WEEK IN WASHINGTON

House Republicans Turn Bipartisan FY25 NDAA into a Vehicle for MAGA Culture Wars

As I shared in my last newsletter, the House Armed Services Committee advanced a strong bipartisan FY25 NDAA to address our national security priorities, support our service members and their families, and make robust investments in research and development. We voted the bill out of committee on an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 57 to 1.

Then the MAGA Republican dominated House Rules Committee got a hold of the bill and advanced 350 amendments to the floor for debate over two days. Once again, extreme House Republicans loaded this must-pass legislation down with a MAGA wish list of culture war amendments that they know cannot pass Congress on their own merit. These amendments include efforts to restrict access to reproductive and gender-affirming care for service members and dependents, undermine America’s commitment to NATO, restrict support for Ukraine, restore a Confederate memorial removed from Arlington National Cemetery, dismantle all Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives across the DoD, restrict DoD efforts to respond to climate change, and limit what can be taught in schools or what flags can be flown on military bases. I spoke against many of these amendments on the House floor, as you can see in the debate clips below or on my YouTube channel.

Once most of these extreme amendments passed, I voted against the House version of the FY25 NDAA. The U.S. Senate is in the process of developing its version of the FY25 NDAA, and I remain hopeful it will more closely align with the base text advanced out of the House Armed Services Committee. You can read my full statement on the House FY25 NDAA here.

House Republicans’ Hold Garland in Contempt of Congress

For nearly two years, House Republicans have pursued a sham, baseless impeachment of President Joe Biden. Despite millions of taxpayer dollars, 3.8 million pages of documents, and 80 hours of testimony from 19 witnesses, House Republicans failed to find a shred of evidence that President Biden committed any offense. President Biden also voluntarily agreed to a five-hour interview with Special Counsel Hur. Following the interview, the Department of Justice produced the entire interview transcript.

Desperate to save face, House Republicans decided to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for failing to produce the audio recordings from the interview. Hearing the President’s words rather than reading them will not change his words, and certainly will not reveal any new evidence. I joined every House Democrat to oppose this sham contempt resolution.

National Domestic Workers Bill of Rights

For more than 400 years, the American economy has been built on the backs of domestic workers – first through slavery, then through low-wage jobs lacking the worker protections that most Americans enjoy. As a result, domestic workers - most of whom are women of color and immigrants - face wage disparities and theft, discrimination, and lack of access to health care, paid time off, overtime, workers compensation, and more. As the daughter and granddaughter of domestic workers, I know firsthand the incredible contributions they make to families, communities, the economy and our nation. While in the Virginia General Assembly, I championed passage of the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights (SB 804 in 2020, SB 1310 in 2021), making our Commonwealth the first state in the South to extend worker protections to these essential workers.

Now in Congress, I am building on that progress and fighting to expand worker protections to every domestic worker nationwide. Last week, I joined Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-WA-01) and 121 House Democrats to introduce H.R. 8732, the National Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. The legislation extends common workplace protections to domestic workers, like paid overtime, paid sick days, and freedom from discrimination and harassment. I am excited to continue fighting for domestic workers at the national level and look forward to advocating for this bill in Congress.

Science, Space, and Technology Committee Markup

Last week, the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee advanced four bills on a bipartisan basis:

H.R. 8613, the NSF and USDA Interagency Research Act authorizing the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Agriculture to conduct cross-cutting and collaborative research and development to enhance agricultural sustainability through advanced technological solutions;
H.R. 8665, the Supercritical Geothermal Research and Development Act, directing research, development, demonstration, and commercial application activities at the Department of Energy to support supercritical geothermal and closed-loop geothermal systems in supercritical conditions;
H.R. 8673, the Expanding Partnerships for Innovation and Competitiveness Act, establishing the Foundation for Standards and Metrology at the National Institute of Standards and Technology; and
H.R. 8674, the Milestones for Advanced Nuclear Fuel Act, establishing milestone-based development and demonstration projects relating to nuclear fuels at the Department of Energy.

These bills will support cutting-edge research and development, promote interagency coordination, and strengthen our energy and technology sectors. You can learn more about these bills here.

REMINDERS

Congressional App Challenge

Calling all Fourth District students interested in STEM! We are now accepting submissions for the Congressional App Challenge. Students are tasked with developing an original application to address a problem in our state, country, or across the globe. The deadline to submit is October 24, 2024. For more information or to submit your application, visit my website

I look forward to hearing from you. Make sure to follow @RepMcClellan on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Threads to stay up-to-date on my work in Washington and Virginia’s Fourth and to catch the next episode of Moments with McClellan!

Sincerely,

Rep. Jennifer McClellan
Member of Congress