Newsletters
Much has happened since my last newsletter. I will start with the bad news.
President Trump’s war in Iran continues as the tenuous ceasefire deal reached last week unravels, the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and gas and diesel prices remain high.
With many of you on Spring Break and celebrating the holidays, chaos continues to reign in Washington.
For over a month, the Department of Homeland Security has been subject to a partial government shutdown. Congressional Republicans let funding lapse for DHS rather than adopt common-sense reforms to protect individual constitutional rights and address the public safety crisis created by overly aggressive and poorly trained ICE and Border Patrol agents. While the Big Ugly Law provided nearly $200 billion to ICE and Border Patrol, the funding lapse means that Coast Guard, FEMA and TSA employees have now worked unpaid since Valentine’s Day.
During a short legislative session last week, Trump Administration officials provided a classified briefing to members of Congress that provided no clarity on the imminent threat to the United States, our troops or national security interests that justified strikes on Iran, the goals or long-term plan for ending the resulting war in the Middle East.
Over the weekend, the Trump Administration unilaterally authorized U.S. armed forces to join Israeli forces to launch a “massive and ongoing” military campaign in Iran without Congressional approval, killing Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran retaliated by attacking Israel and Middle Eastern countries that host U.S. military bases.
On Friday, funding lapsed for the Department of Homeland Security as Congressional Republicans refused to rein in out-of-control and poorly trained ICE and Border Patrol agents who have created a public safety crisis in our communities. As a result, we are once again in a partial government shutdown.
Last week, the House returned to Washington in the midst of a partial government shutdown — resulting from overly aggressive tactics by ICE and Border Patrol agents across the nation that led to the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.