The Founders envisioned that the capital of the newly created United States would serve as the hallowed ground where the states could come together and conduct the business of the people. It would be a neutral location, outside the confines of a single state, and would not be subjected to undue influence from individuals or entities from within a state. Now, you would think that their vision – and especially the Constitution itself – would carry a fair amount of weight on the minds of every elected Representative in Congress when business on behalf of the people is carried out. Unfortunately, that reality slipped further away this week.

On Monday, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee held a hearing on D.C. Statehood, and I can tell you that the Founders were most certainly rolling over in their graves. This Congress, Washington Democrats are using their razor-thin majority to entrench themselves in power, and by creating statehood for Washington, D.C., they would be adding two more Democrats to the Senate – further using Washington as a pawn to advance their own agenda. It’s interesting and especially troubling how the Left has convoluted the vision of the Founders and the spirit of which the Constitution is written. Where is the respect for the over 230-year-old document that continues to guide this great country? Where is the respect for the timeless wisdom of the Founders who laid out our blueprint for democracy and enduring prosperity?

Here’s the bottom line: I’ve always defended the Constitution from hack job attempts to dismantle it, and I will never stop. Some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle harp about their love for the Constitution, but the legislation they’re pushing suggests otherwise. Just like in school, Congress should have required reading. To start, I’d suggest a pocket copy of the Constitution and James Madison’s Federalist No. 43 be delivered to their offices. They could learn a thing or two from reading them.

Respect The Will of Voters

This week, I joined over 120 of my colleagues in both the House and Senate in sending a letter to Nancy Pelosi demanding that she uphold the state-certified election results in Iowa’s second congressional district. In case you have not heard, Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) won her election by six votes last November, and even after the votes were counted, recounted, and certified in a bipartisan manner, her Democrat opponent could not accept reality. She has now appealed to Nancy Pelosi and the Committee on House Administration to bail her out of her loss. This is an act of pure desperation, and it flies in the face of the principle of free and fair elections that are enshrined in our Republic’s history.

To read a copy of the letter, click here.

Undermining Title IX Protections

On Tuesday, Senator Burr (R-NC) and I sent a letter to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona urging the Education Department to maintain the Trump administration’s Title IX rules after President Biden signed an Executive Order demanding they be reviewed. In May 2020, the Trump administration undertook a formal rulemaking process to issue updates to the Department of Education’s Title IX rules that formally protected victims of sexual assault under the sex discrimination law for the first time and increased due process rights for the accused. On March 8, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order directing the Department of Education to review and “consider suspending, revising, or rescinding” the rule, putting the rule in jeopardy.

To read the full letter, click here.

Quote of The Week

“The challenge is always before us. Whenever we lose sight of the principles that mattered to our Founders, we run into trouble.”

-Senator Jesse Helms

Have a blessed weekend.

Sincerely,

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