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Recognizing National Bible Week
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Last week, America celebrated the 77th annual National Bible Week. God’s word means everything to me. It has shaped the way that I live my life, and has helped me serve the people of the 36th Congressional District of Texas through two terms. Each year on the week of Thanksgiving we give thanks for the many blessings God has bestowed on each of our lives, but none shine more brightly than the book that has continued to weather the test of time and lead Christians for centuries. I feel privileged I could speak on the House floor on Wednesday about how much the Bible means to me.
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Congratulating NASA on Mars InSight Landing
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Congratulations to the NASA Mars InSight Team for successfully completing the incredible challenge of landing on Mars! After traveling 300 million miles over the past six and a half months, this NASA robotic lander (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or “InSight”) will explore Mars’ crust, mantle and core. This is a giant step forward in our preparations to reach the goal of eventually landing humans on the Red Planet. Outstanding job!
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Illegal Immigrants, Not Asylum Seekers
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Economic migrants from Central America are abusing U.S. humanitarian laws, including our asylum policy. Many migrants are passing through safe areas of Mexico – where they have been offered asylum – to the U.S., where they can achieve their true goal of earning up to 12 times more than in Central America. We need constructive debate in Congress on how we can improve our humanitarian and immigration laws to truly aid those we can while keeping the interests of American citizens paramount.
“[w]hile they are often referred to as asylum-seekers, few of the migrants from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador — the chief sending countries — are likely to end up winning asylum in the U.S., according to the study… Adults are most likely to come for better jobs, the researchers said. They can improve their incomes by 1,200 percent in moving from Central America to the U.S… [f]ew people who leave their home country … will move to Mexico because the average wage increase is only 10 percent.”
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| Homeowner Assistance Program |
Is your home still in need of repairs from Hurricane Harvey? If so, the Homeowner Assistance Program is now accepting applications. This program was designed by the State of Texas to assist those eligible in reconstructing their homes after Harvey.
For more information, please click here or call one of my district offices.
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| Meeting with Secretary Azar |
I had a great meeting with Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar on Thursday to discuss a strategy to lower drug prices for consumers.
Being a member of the GOP Doctors Caucus provides a unique opportunity for me to work with fellow medical professionals to develop patient-centered health care policy that will improve the lives of the American people.
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| Photos of the Week |
I was happy to show Judge Jacques and Leeza Blanchette (pictured below on left) as well as Judge Monte and Betty Lawlis (pictured below on right) around the U.S. Capitol this week. Judge Blanchette is the current county judge for Tyler County, which is my home county, and Judge Lawlis served as Tyler County's state district judge for many years. These good men serve their communities well, and it was a pleasure to visit with them and their wives while they were in town.
The Kent Family (pictured below on left) and Dow Family (pictured below on right) from Houston were also in town this week. It is always great meeting folks from home, and I am glad my staff were able to secure several tours for them while they were in Washington.
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