Dr. Boozman's Check-up

In this edition of 'From the Mailbag' Senator Boozman answers a question from Rebekah in Star City about Israel and Prime Minister Netanyahu's address to a joint session of Congress.

President Obama’s misguided veto, meeting with Arkansas veterans and improving transparency in EPA rulemaking. Read about these and more in the “Week in Review.” 

  • Withholding funds for President Obama’s Executive Amnesty: After Senate Democrats filibustered four separate attempts to begin debate on the House bill that withheld funds for the President’s executive order, the Majority Leader brought forward a bill that funds the Department of Homeland Security without any conditions on Obama’s executive actions. The bill passed the Senate, but I voted against it.     
  • President Vetoes Keystone bill: This project has been studied for more than six years and has been given the green light at every obstacle. Arkansans and all Americans can see that President Obama is the real hurdle to Keystone. I will continue to support this project, and I urge the Senate to quickly vote to override this veto. 
  • Disaster Recovery Grant for Pulaski and Faulkner Counties: The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP) provided $96,000 to the counties to help with disaster recovery efforts form the 2014 EF4 tornado. The money will be used to remove debris from streams in order to prevent future flooding. 
  • Arkansas Veterans Visit: Veterans Service Organizations shared their priorities with Congress and the needs of their members. I met with Arkansas members of the American Legion, American Legion Auxiliary and the Disabled American Veterans as national commanders testified before the Senate and House Veterans’ Affairs Committees. 
  • Updating FAA’s Pilot General Aviation Regulations: Congress is working to reform FAA’s general aviation medical standards to maintain safety while supporting capable pilots and sustaining economic growth in the industry. Read about the legislation I introduced to accomplish this.

Calling it a development “that may be something everyone can support”, the Southwest Times-Record editors offered up their support for the APPROVAL Act, legislation I introduced with Senator Cotton to restore the right of states to approve or disapprove of electric transmission projects before the federal government exercises its power to take private property.

Read the full editorial:

Whatever Decision Is Made, Let’s Make It In Arkansas [Southwest Times-Record, 02/15/15]

Two new bills I introduced, The Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans (SAV) Act becomes law, my speech on the President’s flawed national and homeland security strategies and more in this “Week in Review.”

  • KASU Radio Show: I joined Jonesboro’s KASU radio to discuss some of the issues we’re working on in Washington. We covered a wide range of topics including fighting in Ukraine and the President Obama’s request to Congress to formally authorize war against Islamic State militants, improvements to veterans mental health services and constituent service. 

The Homeless Veteran Reintegration Program (HVRP) Clarification and Reauthorization Bill: For my first bill of the new session, I joined with Senator Jon Tester (D-MT), in an effort to fight veteran homelessness by reauthorizing current programs and clarifying qualifications for existing housing assistance benefits.

The APPROVAL Act: I joined with Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) to introduce legislation to restore the right of states to approve or disapprove of electric transmission projects before the federal government exercises its power to take private property.

Along with the legislation I introduced this week, I’ve lent my support to a handful of important bills that other Senators introduced this week including:

Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2015: U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) introduced the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2015. This bill would allow individuals with concealed carry privileges in their home state to exercise those rights in any other state that also has concealed carry laws, while abiding by that state’s concealed carry laws.

A Resolution Welcoming Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Visit:  I signed on to Senator Cornyn’s resolution welcoming Israeli Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United States for his address to a joint session of Congress next month.

A bill to Arm Ukraine: Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) introduced a bill that would authorize the President to arm Ukraine with lethal military aid. S.452 is currently the only bill in Congress that specifically authorizes the United States to provide Ukraine with lethal weapons, which would remove any ambiguity as to whether the U.S. should supply its ally with offensive or defensive military aid. This is the only bill to also require the President to deliver to Congress a comprehensive strategy for our nation’s support of Ukraine.

Stay on top of all the bills I am cosponsoring in the 114th Congress by bookmarking this page where I will keep a running list.

I took to the Senate floor this morning to raise concerns about the President's national and homeland security strategies, particularly whether the Administration is committed to taking action on radical Islamic terrorists like ISIS and the President's instance on requiring Congress to fund his unconstitutional executive order on immigration.

Highlights:

"Given the severity of the threat posed by ISIS, not to mention the continuing efforts of al-Qaeda to strike again, you would think a plan to take on radical Islam would be a focal part of the President’s national security plan. It’s not. In fact, there is no mention of radical Islam in the document at all." 

"They're holding up the entire bill, threatening to shut down DHS to protect the President's priorities. Not because the funding is too low, not because programs need reforms. Their complaint is that the President isn't getting what he wants. I encourage them to relent on their filibuster so we can debate the bill, make changes if the chamber sees fit and send it to the President. If the President truly wants immigration reform, then do it the right way and work with Congress to get it done. Don't go about it on your own unconstitutionally and then threaten to shut down a department charged with protecting Americans. It's out of touch but it's not the first time this Administration's priorities have been at odds with those of the American people."

"Preventing ISIS from achieving its goal takes a clear, forceful security strategy both abroad and at home. What the President has put forward is neither."

Watch my speech in its entirety below.

This morning I joined Jonesboro’s KASU radio to discuss some of the issues we’re working on in Washington. We covered a wide range of topics including fighting in Ukraine and the President Obama’s request to Congress to formally authorize war against Islamic State militants, improvements to veterans mental health services and constituent service. If you missed it you can listen to the interview here.

Connecting with Arkansans is an important part of my responsibilities as senator. I regularly host Facebook Q&As to talk with people in the state when I'm working in Washington. You can also find me on twitter and instagram to see what I'm doing on behalf of Arkansas. I joined 5News to talk about how my office uses social media to reach Arkansans. Watch the interview that aired on Sunday, February 8, 2015.