I do not think it is right that I will receive my salary while other federal employees, including the brave men and women keeping us safe at the Department of Homeland Security, will not be paid until normal operations are resumed. That is why I have requested that my salary be withheld just like other affected federal employees. The House passed a full funding package, and I will continue to work with the Senate to reopen the federal government.
The Peace Corps named Texas as one of the top volunteer-producing states in the nation. There are 351 Texans currently serving worldwide and over 8,000 Texans have served in the Peace Corps since the agency’s founding.
When President Kennedy launched the Peace Corps in 1961, he wrote to Congress and shared his vision for this new force of civilians, who would volunteer their time and skills to show underdeveloped nations the warm embrace of democracy:
“Our own freedom, and t...he future of freedom around the world, depend, in a very real sense, on their ability to build growing and independent nations where men can live in dignity, liberated from the bonds of hunger, ignorance, and poverty.”
Thank you to every Texan who showed an incredible commitment to public service and served our nation in the Peace Corps.
