NewzIntel.com

Category: Trumpism

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Greenpeace USA slams PepsiCo for ditching reuse target 

    Source: Greenpeace Statement –

    WASHINGTON, DC (May 22, 2025) – In response to PepsiCo’s announcement that it will abandon its goal to deliver 20% of its beverages in reusable containers by 2030, Greenpeace USA Senior Oceans Campaigner Lisa Ramsden, said: “PepsiCo is the latest corporate polluter to abandon its reuse targets, a move that will undoubtedly force more plastic pollution into our environment and burden our bodies with more toxic microplastics. We clearly can’t trust corporations like PepsiCo to do what’s best for people and the planet, and this exemplifies why voluntary commitments by corporations have never been enough. We need a strong and binding Global Plastics Treaty that caps plastic production and ends single-use plastics.”

    PepsiCo’s decision follows its rival Coca-Cola’s similar abandonment of its reuse goal in  December 2024 and Coke’s recent announcement of plans to ramp up plastic production in response to the Trump Administration’s tariffs on aluminum. Both companies are among the world’s top global plastic polluters. 

    Plastics are not just a pollution problem; they are a public health crisis. Over 3,200 chemicals in plastics have been linked to a host of serious health conditions, including cancer, hormone disruption, reproductive problems, metabolic changes, obesity, premature births, neurological disorders, and learning disabilities. Toxic chemicals in plastic already cost Americans nearly $250 billion in healthcare expenses each year. 

    PepsiCo’s announcement comes as the ‘Make America Healthy Again’ report, released today, finds that Americans are exposed to these chemicals through many routes, including food and beverage packaging. Microplastics have been found in human breast milk, brain, lung, and heart tissue.

    Contact: Tanya Brooks, Senior Communications Specialist at Greenpeace USA , [email protected]   

    Greenpeace USA is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI USA: “We Will Not Forget:” Padilla Sends Strong Warning as Republicans Go Nuclear to Revoke California Clean Air Waivers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)

    “We Will Not Forget:” Padilla Sends Strong Warning as Republicans Go Nuclear to Revoke California Clean Air Waivers

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, blasted Republicans for their shortsighted revocation of California’s clean air waivers by overruling the nonpartisan Senate Parliamentarian’s decision and going nuclear on the Senate rulebook. Republicans defied their own promises and broke 30 years of precedent by moving forward with their cynical repeal of California’s Clean Air Act waivers with a 50-vote threshold under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), bypassing the filibuster and its 60-vote requirement by overruling the Senate Parliamentarian.
    Over the last few weeks, Padilla has spoken on the Senate floor repeatedly to sound the alarm on Senate Republicans’ revocations of these critical waivers.
    “Over the last 24 hours, Trump and radical Republicans have gone nuclear on the Senate rulebook, stopping at nothing to attack California for protecting the health of my constituents, for having the audacity to lead the clean energy economy. California became the fourth-largest economy in the world by leaning in to the clean energy transition, and we’ve proved that what’s good for the planet and our air is good for business. By denying California the ability to control our own toxic air and greenhouse gas emissions, Republicans are threatening the public health, environment, and economy for millions of my constituents and people around the country. And let me be clear: California has not and cannot force our emission standards on any other state in the nation.
    “It’s not just why Republicans are undermining California’s climate leadership. It’s how they did it. Republicans are effectively saying that whenever the Parliamentarian rules against them, they can simply disregard her to bypass the filibuster and pass legislation on a simple majority vote. So no, this isn’t some one-off change to the rules — this is throwing out the rulebook entirely — all to please Donald Trump and the Big Oil lobby. If they can ignore the Parliamentarian here, then why not on an upcoming tax bill, or to gut health care, or to revoke lifesaving vaccine approvals?
    “Republicans have crossed the red line and gone nuclear. As the saying goes, ‘what goes around comes around.’ And it won’t be long before Democrats are back in the driver’s seat again. When that happens, all bets will be off. Every agency action that Democrats don’t like — whether it’s a rule or not — will be fair game, from mining permits and fossil fuel projects to foreign affairs and tax policies.
    “We will not forget what happened here. History won’t forget. And California will not forget.”
    Senator Padilla has been a leading voice in pushing back against Republican attacks on California’s Clean Air Act waivers. Earlier this week, Padilla placed a hold on the four pending Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) nominees until Republicans stop their reckless attempts to overturn California’s clean air waivers. Padilla, along with Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) also led Democratic Ranking Members in strongly warning Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) of the dangerous and irreparable consequences if Senate Republicans overrule the Senate Parliamentarian’s decision on California’s waivers.
    Last month, Padilla, Whitehouse, and Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) welcomed the Senate Parliamentarian’s decision that the waivers are not subject to the CRA. Padilla also joined Whitehouse and Schiff in blasting Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s weaponization of the EPA after the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) similar finding. Padilla and Schiff previously slammed the Trump Administration’s intent to roll back dozens of the EPA’s regulations that protect California’s air and water.
    Throughout the past several weeks, Padilla has made clear that these reckless revocations of California’s clean air waivers will lead to disastrous public health, environmental, and economic impacts for millions of Californians and people across the country. Inaction against the climate crisis costs Americans an average of $2,500 a year in medical bills and over $820 billion in total, according to estimates by the Natural Resources Defense Council.
    Padilla has consistently stressed the extreme consequences of Republicans ignoring the Parliamentarian, effectively blowing up the filibuster. While he and other Democrats supported lowering the threshold to pass a bill in 2022, Republicans defended the filibuster relentlessly — a dramatic contrast from their revocation of California’s waivers under a simple majority vote.
    Now that they’ve taken the nuclear option, the Trump Administration could make a series of dangerous moves in bogging down Congress with reviews from the past 30 years on items including vaccine approvals, broadcast licenses, merger approvals, and more, enabling President Trump’s political retribution. Padilla has warned multiple times that a future Democratic administration could come after Republican oil and gas priorities, including mining permits, fossil fuel projects, foreign policy, tax policies, and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) disruptions.
    In case you missed it, Senators Schumer, Whitehouse, Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Schiff, and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) also all came out strongly against Republicans’ reckless effort and warned of the consequences of setting this new precedent.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Jayapal Statement on DHS Order Blocking International Students at Harvard

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (7th District of Washington)

    SEATTLE, WA — U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, released the following statement regarding the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) announcement that they are revoking Harvard University’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification, ending international students’ ability to study at the school.

    “This is a remarkably dangerous and unlawful action from the Trump Administration. The decision to revoke Harvard’s SEVP certification is solely to settle a score and shut down any dissent, not to protect our national security. This decision will now throw thousands of students’ lives into limbo as they face an uncertain future in a foreign land that had previously welcomed them and their talents. As a foreign student myself when I first came to America, I can only imagine the sacrifices, the planning and the investment that has already gone into the decision to come here — to revoke these visas now is outrageous. 

    “And to attempt to deny the ability of Harvard to take any foreign students is both unlawful and deeply detrimental to our country’s own ability to innovate and attract talent from all over the world.  For generations, this country’s universities have been the bedrock of learning, and a thriving place for free speech, learning and growth. Trump is now turning them into places of fear, uncertainty, and chaos.

    “This action simply deters talent from coming to the United States, and is nothing more than a wannabe dictator trying to bully people into silence. It will weaken our educational institutions and our ability to innovate and hurt America and Americans.”

    As the Trump Administration continues to target immigrant students, Jayapal has been a vocal leader in the effort to protect them. She led a group of 142 Members of Congress in demanding answers regarding the termination of students’ legal status at schools across the country earlier this month.  

    Issues: Arts & Education, Immigration

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Government Watchdog Concludes Trump is Illegally Impounding Funding—Senator Murray Responds

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray

    Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, issued the following statement on the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) decision released this morning, which concludes that President Trump is illegally impounding funding approved by Congress in violation of the Impoundment Control Act (ICA):

    “This legal decision affirms what we’ve long known: the President is breaking the law to block funding Congress passed on a bipartisan basis and that is owed to the American people—simply because he disagrees with it. This plain fact is unacceptable—and it cannot stand any longer.

    “Congress passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law by wide margins and specifically provided funding for every state to build out a network of chargers for the electric vehicles that families are increasingly turning to and that are being made right here in America. These investments should be getting out the door—creating new jobs and helping Americans get where they need to go without interruption—but President Trump has illegally choked this funding off.

    “These bipartisan investments need to start flowing immediately—as do the hundreds of billions of dollars in other investments President Trump is holding up. I don’t care about Russ Vought’s personal interpretation of our spending laws; the Constitution is clear, and President Trump simply does not have the power of the purse—Congress does.”

    Presidents do not wield the power to unilaterally withhold or block investments that have been enacted into law through what’s known as “impoundment.” This foundational principal has been affirmed time and again. The Impoundment Control Act (ICA) of 1974 makes this plain and establishes limited procedures the president can and must follow to propose delaying or rescinding enacted funding—procedures Trump has not sought to use.

    The Impoundment Control Act also charges the GAO with the responsibility to investigate and report to Congress when the president illegally withholds funding—as it has done today. In recent testimony to the Committee, the GAO acknowledged that it has opened 39 impoundment investigations and counting. Today’s announcement marks its first decision in one of those investigations. The ICA also authorizes the Comptroller General to file suit when the president illegally impounds funding.

    Since his first hours in office, President Trump has illegally blocked funding owed to communities across the country through a variety of different means. Senate and House Appropriations Committee Democrats have been tracking Trump’s illegal funding freeze and found that, as of April 29th, President Trump is blocking at least $430 billion in funding owed to the American people. More information is available HERE.

    In today’s decision, the GAO concluded the Department of Transportation (DOT) violated the Impoundment Control Act when it delayed expenditures for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program that were required by law to be spent. Its decision states in part: “DOT is not authorized under the ICA to withhold these funds from expenditure and must continue to carry out the statutory requirements of the program. If DOT wishes to make changes to the obligation and expenditure of funds appropriated under the NEVI Formula Program, it must propose funds for rescission or otherwise propose legislation to make changes to the law for consideration by Congress. …. DOT’s withholding of NEVI Formula Program funds violates the ICA.”

    The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provided $5 billion in funding from fiscal year 2022 through 2026 for NEVI. The program provides funding to states to strategically create an electric vehicle (EV) charging network, which is critical to meeting new demand from American consumers. A 2024 study projected the U.S. would need 182,000 direct current fast chargers to accommodate the growing EV market—nearly triple the current capacity of just over 55,000. But President Trump has blocked all new obligations of funding for the program—blocking states from using these investments and hurting communities across America.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murray Leads Entire WA Delegation in Letter Urging President Trump to Reconsider Denial of WA State’s Request for a Disaster Declaration for November “Bomb Cyclone”

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray

    Severe storms resulted in extensive damage to critical infrastructure, parks, cultural sites, schools, public buildings, and more, resulting in over $34 million dollars in damages across six counties

    Letter comes following denial of initial request, WA delegation urges President Trump to reconsider and approve WA state’s pending appeal

    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, led Washington state’s entire Congressional delegation—U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and U.S. Representatives Suzan DelBene (D, WA-01), Rick Larsen (D, WA-02), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D, WA-03), Dan Newhouse, (R, WA-04), Michael Baumgartner (R, WA-05), Emily Randall (D, WA-06), Pramila Jayapal (D, WA-07), Kim Schrier (D, WA-08), Adam Smith (D, WA-09), and Marilyn Strickland (D, WA-10)—in sending a letter last night to President Donald Trump urging him to reconsider the denial of Washington state’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration as a result of the devastating windstorms, heavy rainfall, flooding, and mudslides caused by a bomb cyclone that struck Washington state in November 2024.

    “As representatives of Washington state, we earnestly request that you carefully reconsider this decision and approve the state’s pending appeal without further delay,” the bipartisan, bicameral group of Members wrote.

    “From Grays Harbor, Pacific and Wahkiakum to King, Snohomish, and Walla Walla Counties, the storm’s impact was severe, far-reaching and well-documented. One of the most destructive storms in recent history, it overwhelmed public infrastructure, endangered lives, and left residents across the state grappling with long-term consequences. This is precisely the kind of catastrophic event for which the federal declaration process was designed. The state’s request outlines over $34 million in damages across these six counties—costs that local governments cannot and should not be expected to shoulder alone,” the Members wrote.

    “Disaster declarations are not symbolic, they are critical lifelines for communities in crisis. Washington state’s first responders, local governments, and emergency management professionals have done everything within their means to begin recovery, but the scale of the damage requires federal support through the Public Assistance Program and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Anything less unnecessarily places our communities, infrastructure and long-term stability at an unacceptable risk.”

    “We remain committed to working with you to secure the support our constituents urgently need,” the Members concluded.

    Previously, the full group of Members—led by Senator Murray—urged President Biden to grant the request for a Major Disaster Declaration in January.

    The full text of the letter is available HERE and below.

    Dear Mr. President:

    We are writing to express our serious disappointment and growing concern regarding the denial of Washington state’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration following the devastating bomb cyclone that struck between November 17 and November 25, 2024. As representatives of Washington state, we earnestly request that you carefully reconsider this decision and approve the state’s pending appeal without further delay.

    From Grays Harbor, Pacific and Wahkiakum to King, Snohomish, and Walla Walla Counties, the storm’s impact was severe, far-reaching and well-documented. One of the most destructive storms in recent history, it overwhelmed public infrastructure, endangered lives, and left residents across the state grappling with long-term consequences. This is precisely the kind of catastrophic event for which the federal declaration process was designed. The state’s request outlines over $34 million in damages across these six counties—costs that local governments cannot and should not be expected to shoulder alone.

    Disaster declarations are not symbolic, they are critical lifelines for communities in crisis. Washington state’s first responders, local governments, and emergency management professionals have done everything within their means to begin recovery, but the scale of the damage requires federal support through the Public Assistance Program and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Anything less unnecessarily places our communities, infrastructure and long-term stability at an unacceptable risk.

    Thank you for your attention to this matter. We remain committed to working with you to secure the support our constituents urgently need.

    Sincerely,

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murray Presses FDA Commissioner on Senseless and Inefficient Mass Firings, Conflicts of Interest at FDA & Trump Admin Laying the Groundwork to Rip Away Mifepristone

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray

    ICYMI: Murray Grills Trump’s FDA Nominee on Cancellation of Critical Vaccine Meeting, Upholding Science on Mifepristone, Contraception

    ***WATCH: Senator Murray Q&A with Commissioner Makary***

    Washington, D.C. — Today, at a Senate Appropriations Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies (Ag-FDA) Subcommittee hearing on the fiscal year 2026 budget request for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, grilled FDA Commissioner Marty Makary on the Trump administration’s reckless and chaotic efforts to fire thousands of critical employees at the FDA, conflicts of interest at the agency, and the Trump administration’s attempts to lay the groundwork to rip away access to mifepristone based on discredited junk science from anti-abortion activists.

    In opening comments, Vice Chair Murray said:

    “Commissioner Makary, the FDA has a really important job to do. Lives literally are at stake. And that work requires the utmost diligence, and care, and commitment to following the science and upholding FDA’s gold standard. We all expect to walk into the drugstore and know that what we are buying has passed a safety and efficacy standard. And we have to be assured of that, and we have to be assured that the work’s been done—that we don’t have to question that.  

    “So, I don’t think it’s careful leadership when one-in-five people across the FDA are fired, only to frantically then bring some back—because you didn’t stop and think two seconds about whether these jobs were actually important.

    “We really, Mr. Chairman, cannot cheap out on the FDA, and expect to maintain the gold standard that means that people know that drugs are safe.

    “We can’t just cut, cut, cut and hope no one gets sick when you’re slow to issue a recall, or hope no one needs that medicine that had its approval delayed, or hope there isn’t another infant formula issue while your staff are getting fired, or getting rehired, or wherever they are.

    “This work really takes investments, this Committee knows that, and it expects expert staff—like the people that have been shoved out the door. Drug approvals are already getting delayed. Food and drug safety inspections are lagging behind.

    “We are going in the wrong direction, fast. We still have yet to see from you a full budget request from you. That is unacceptable.

    “You are now testifying that the budget proposes to slash FDA by more than 11 percent. That’s actually news to all of us—and I will tell you right now, that is not going to fly. It is reckless, and it is not going to happen as long as I have anything to say about it.”

    [FDA STAFFING]

    Senator Murray began her questioning by pressing Dr. Makary on the harm and inefficacy caused by the Trump administration’s mass layoffs and efforts to push out qualified employees across FDA, which have resulted in more than 4,000 staff leaving the agency since the beginning of the Trump administration. “Commissioner Makary, when it comes to your mass firing of FDA employees, in April, you said, ‘I can tell you there were no cuts to scientists or inspectors.’ Well that is not true,” Senator Murray said. “I think Senator Ossoff covered that, and I think the point here is that all of this firing and rehiring—I don’t see how that’s efficient. Frankly, it kind of shows that you don’t know what you’re doing—and you’re breaking things in the process here. So, let me ask you a question, and hopefully it is an easy one for you. Does it save taxpayer dollars to fire staff who work in centers that are fully funded by user fees—not taxpayer dollars—yes or no?”

    “You asked me to do an assessment of the staff when I came here for my confirmation hearing, and I hear that you’re criticizing me for bringing back some individuals after the cuts that I was not a part of,” replied Commissioner Makary.

    “That’s good—I’m just saying in the long run, this has been very inefficient,” Senator Murray replied. “But my question to you is not about that it, and I know you’ve covered it with several other members. So does it save taxpayer dollars to fire staff who work with centers that are fully funded by user fees, not taxpayer dollars. Is that efficient?”

    “The cuts were to HR, IT, communications—,” Commissioner Makary said.

    Senator Murray pressed, “They’re funded by user fees, it is not saving any money.”

    “In part,” Commissioner Markey interjected.

    “But many of the staff you fired were in centers that are actually fully funded by user fees. You know that, correct?” Senator Murray clarified.

    Commissioner Makary continued to dodge.

    “I’m asking you a specific question about the centers that are fully funded by user fees,” Senator Murray continued.

    “That’s one center. That’s the tobacco center,” Commissioner Makary said. “You just said we can’t just keep cut and cut—we can’t keep hiring and hiring, the agency doubled since 2007. So, let me ask you, what is the right number of employees?”

    “No, you’re here to answer my questions here, and I’m going to ask some more,” Senator Murray replied. “Without critical support staff you fired, inspectors cannot plan their trips. They cannot do their jobs. I want to ask you, what percent of planned inspections has FDA missed since those April 1st firings?”

    Commissioner Makary said, “In the 12 labs that we have that evaluate food products in the food inspection realm, there are no—as of last week, I just did a check—there are no backlogs. They are running at 100 percent efficiency. There are no drug approval delays despite the—you know, what people want to attribute—”

    “That is not what I’ve been told. I have been told—and I would like you to go back and check and report back to us, because we know that some of the planned inspections… that were supposed to take place have been missed. And, to me, why that’s so important, if there is not inspections, the public doesn’t have the information that they need. I am going to run out of time, so I want to move on,” Senator Murray replied.

    “There are no cuts to inspectors,” Commissioner Makary said.

    “Will you go back and check for me, please?” asked Senator Murray.

    “Absolutely,” replied Commissioner Makary.

    [CONFLICTS OF INTEREST]

    Senator Murray continued by asking about reports of eyebrow-raising conflicts of interest at FDA: “I understand that the FOIA staff producing documents related to ongoing litigation by the Children’s Health Defense—Secretary Kennedy’s organization—was shielded from the RIFs, while other FOIA staff are responsible for FOIA responses at other FDA centers were targeted for termination. Is that true?,” Murray asked.

    “That’s not true, senator, we have our FOIA staff. They continue to work at the FDA. I’ve made sure that all the FOIA staff at the FDA are doing their job. We are also using AI to reduce the burden on that staff,” responded Commissioner Makary.

    Senator Murray pressed, “Well for the record, my understanding is that the Children’s Health Defense FOIA staff were not fired when other ones were… And that seems like a real conflict of interest to me, considering that the Secretary’s extensive history with that organization, Children’s Health Defense, and his goal to remove authorizations for vaccines. So, I just want that on the record—”

    “It’s not true. Well, all FOIA staff are in place,” Commissioner Makary continued to claim.

    [MIFEPRISTONE]

    Senator Murray moved on to her next question, pressing Commissioner Makary on the Trump administration’s attempts to lay the groundwork to restrict access to medication abortion based on junk science being pushed by anti-abortion extremists. Murray asked: “If a study came out saying that people who took a certain medication experience a certain rate of ‘serious adverse events,’ but the study’s authors refused to say what they were counting as an adverse event—would raise some serious questions about the study’s validity?”

    “Yes, senator. So I have the natural inquisition of a scientist that’s done a lot of research. So, I would want to see the underlying data, yes,” replied Commissioner Makary.

    “I am, of course, talking about the recent sham ‘study’ from the Ethics and Public Policy Center—it’s an anti-abortion group, it’s bank-rolled by extremists, they fought to overturn Roe v. Wade,” Murray said. “And this ‘study,’ if you can call it that, is unsound and has been widely panned by medical experts. But, days after its release, you and Secretary Kennedy are now suggesting we need a ‘complete review’ on the safety of mifepristone.”

    “Now, to be clear: mifepristone has been proven safe and effective in more than 100 studies over three decades. And the people that are now pushing that bogus ‘study’ and saying mifepristone is dangerous for women are the exact same people who think that abortion is never necessary to save a woman’s life, and that 10-year-olds should somehow be forced into childbirth. I believe that this administration is laying the groundwork to rip away access to medication abortion across the country,” Murray said. “This has not gotten enough attention. And I know you’d prefer to keep it that way, but I want you to know: I’m not going to let that happen.”

    “I have not seen that study, Senator, and you have not seen that study. So how can you call it a sham, bogus study? Neither of us have seen the study, the underlying data, or the methodology,” Commissioner Makary said.

    “Actually, that’s not true,” Murray replied. The Ethics and Public Policy Center is an anti-abortion advocacy group that was an advisory board member for Project 2025, has submitted amicus briefs to the Supreme Court opposing mifepristone, and does not believe in life-saving abortions—putting them far outside the medical mainstream. As the Washington Post fact-check of the ‘study’ points out, unlike most credible medical studies, the Ethics and Public Policy Center report did not undergo a formal external peer review before publication and “moreover, the report oddly does not reveal the database it used”—making it impossible for anyone to view the underlying data. That hasn’t stopped the anti-abortion Ethics and Public Policy Center from launching an activist campaign around the release of the data and even admitting the goal was to “eliminate” abortion pills.

    On May 14th in a HELP Committee hearing with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy (RFK) Jr. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) secured a commitment from Secretary Kennedy that HHS and FDA would review what RFK Jr. referred to as “alarming” new data on mifepristone—referencing the EPCC study alone. “It’s alarming, and it indicates that at the very least, the label should be changed,” Secretary Kennedy said. “I’ve asked Marty Makary at the FDA to do a complete review and report back.” Senator Hawley secured the same commitment from President Trump’s nominee to serve as Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services in a HELP Committee hearing on May 8th—again, based solely on the EPCC ‘study’ that has not been peer-reviewed or published in a medical journal and has attracted widespread scrutiny for appearing to dramatically overstate what it characterizes as “serious adverse effects” associated with the pill.

    ____________________________________

    As a longtime appropriator and former Chair of the Senate HELP Committee, Senator Murray has a long history of demanding accountability and careful oversight when it comes to the safety of products families use every day. At the end of 2022, Senator Murray passed legislation giving FDA new authority to, for the first time ever, regulate the safety of cosmetic products and force a recall when necessary—and she successfully fought to secure funding for this important work last year as Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. Senator Murray has also previously pressed FDA and industry for answers and action regarding asbestos in children’s make up kits, demanded answers from Johnson & Johnson regarding asbestos found in baby powder, and was a leading voice in holding FDA accountable and pushing for solutions following the infant formula contamination and shortage crisis in 2022.

    Senator Murray leads the Democratic caucus on reproductive health care and, throughout her career, has beat back countless Republican attempts to defund Planned Parenthood and other family planning services—and is widely credited with successfully pushing the Bush administration’s FDA to follow the science and make Plan B available over the counter. Senator Murray led the response in Congress to FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, a lawsuit brought by Republican anti-abortion extremists trying to rip away access to mifepristone, a safe and effective abortion medication that was approved by FDA in 2000—Murray led multiple amicus briefs, organized her colleagues, and raised the alarm at every turn. Last June, the Supreme Court dismissed the case on standing groups but Murray made clear that “the nationwide threat to medication abortion has not gone away—far from it. If Donald Trump and his anti-abortion allies return to power, they will do everything they can to rip away access to mifepristone and ban abortion nationwide.” Murray also spearheaded efforts in Congress urging the FDA to follow the science and review the application of Opill, the first over-the-counter birth control pill, after the FDA’s Advisory Committee voted unanimously to recommend FDA approval.

    In March, at Dr. Makary’s nomination hearing before the Senate HELP Committee, Senator Murray pressed Dr. Makary to commit to upholding the science on mifepristone and contraception—he refused to definitively answer her question.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cassidy Delivers Floor Speech Calling for Affordable Flood Insurance Ahead of Hurricane Season

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Louisiana Bill Cassidy

    [embedded content]

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) delivered a speech on the U.S. Senate floor highlighting the need for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to remain affordable and the danger that Risk Rating 2.0 poses to low- and middle-income families’ ability to be enrolled in the program.
    “With Risk Rating 2.0 driving up costs for low- and middle-income families, about a fifth of those enrolled in NFIP will be forced to drop their coverage altogether over the next ten years,” said Dr. Cassidy.
    “If we really want to put Americans first, we start by making NFIP affordable now and keeping it affordable 10, 15 years from now,” continued Dr. Cassidy. 
    Background
    In April, Cassidy delivered a speech on the Senate floor calling for the continuation of FEMA’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant program, which helps fund pre-disaster mitigation and flood prevention projects in Louisiana and nationwide.
    In March, Cassidy delivered a floor speech calling for a long-term extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and introduced legislation to extend the program through December 31, 2026. Cassidy also met with the Jefferson Business Council where he discussed his efforts to keep flood insurance affordable and extend NFIP long-term.
    In February, Cassidy introduced the Flood Insurance Affordability Tax Credit Act to give low- and middle-income households enrolled in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) a 33% refundable tax credit to combat rising flood insurance premiums. Cassidy released a report last fall outlining the current state of the NFIP and the issues that have led to skyrocketing premiums for millions of homeowners.
    Last year, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on NFIP at the request of Cassidy. The hearing highlighted the urgent need for Congress to act and featured a Louisiana witness. Cassidy also participated in a roundtable hosted by GNO, Inc. and the Coalition for Sustainable Flood Insurance to hear from community leaders and advocates on the issue.
    Cassidy traveled St. Bernard Parish in 2023 to talk with residents about their flood insurance premiums, recording the second episode of his Bill on the Hill series.
    Cassidy’s remarks as prepared for delivery are below:
    Mr. President,
    Folks in Louisiana are preparing for hurricane season.
    I just had a meeting with the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury who sent me some photos of a few Lake Charles homes.
    To reduce flood risk and their monthly flood insurance premiums, people are paying to have their houses raised.
    That costs anywhere between 25,000 and 40,000 dollars.
    If your foundation needs repairs, you’re looking at up to 25,000 dollars in additional costs.
    A full replacement of the foundation can cost 100,000 dollars.
    It seems like a worthwhile investment.
    Lifting your home lowers your risk of flooding and insurance premiums go down, saving you money in the long run.
    But unfortunately, that is not the experience people in Louisiana are having under Risk Rating 2.0—FEMA’s current risk assessment program.
    Here are just two instances in Calcasieu Parish in which homeowners invested in flood mitigation to lower their flood insurance premiums.
    These people did everything right!
    They did what they were supposed to!
    These people are not going to flood. And yet, after Risk Rating 2.0, this is what happened to their premiums!
    You’d feel like you got ripped off if that happened to you.
    One pre-mitigation premium nearly doubled.
    This is bad news for all Americans, particularly lower-income families.
    When the number of families getting a bill like this goes up, the number of people able to afford flood insurance at all goes down.
    With Risk Rating 2.0 driving up costs for low- and middle-income families, about a fifth of those enrolled in NFIP will be forced to drop their coverage altogether over the next ten years.
    The pool of policyholders shrinking at this rate will force the program into what’s called an actuarial death spiral.
    Risk Rating 2.0 is like termites eating away at the foundation of a house.
    If we do nothing, it’s going to collapse.
    I introduced legislation back in February to give low- and middle-income households enrolled in NFIP a 33% reduction in their NFIP premium in the form of a refundable tax credit that would go directly to their premium payment at the time it’s due. 
    Hurricane season will not wait on those who need flood insurance to get it. Americans in my state and across the country need relief now.
    If we really want to put Americans first, we start by making NFIP affordable now and keeping it affordable 10, 15 years from now.
    The issue is a pocketbook issue for many families, but when you flood like so many in Louisiana have, it becomes a personal issue—an issue of loss.
    Since the start of 2025, at least 21 Americans across 8 states have been killed as a result of flooding and storms hitting their communities.
    Millions have been without power or evacuated from their homes.
    When you hear “flood insurance” you might think, “Well I don’t live in a coastal state like Louisiana, for example. My house won’t get destroyed by a flood. I don’t need flood insurance!”
    I wish that were true.
    States hit the hardest aren’t the only states hit.
    This is not a one-state problem.
    This is a one-nation problem.
    All fifty states have NFIP policyholders.
    And there are many who don’t have flood insurance who, unfortunately, wish they did.
    When more rain comes—and it will—all Americans need stability.
    The National Flood Insurance Program can provide that certainty.
    Maybe you won’t see flooding as extreme as losing your house—I hope you don’t.
    But I’m not just talking about the worst-case scenario.
    Let’s say you get a couple of inches of water in your living room.
    You’ve got to pull up your carpets and replace the drywall. You’re going to wish you had flood insurance.
    And you probably would if it were affordable.
    The National Flood Insurance Program, often the only flood insurance option for many communities, is broken.
    Right now, the very program designed to help Americans is failing them.
    And when millions of Americans are impacted, Washington must act.
    Let me be very clear: NFIP is a federal program—meaning we can change and improve it. We just need to have the will.
    I urge my colleagues to join me in working with President Trump’s Administration to end Risk Rating 2.0.
    In 2019, my office worked with the Trump administration to successfully delay Risk Rating 2.0 because of the lack of transparency on how FEMA was calculating rates.
    President Trump understood then and understands now that Americans are tired of being ripped off.
    When rivers swell, Americans should not have to fear the cost of rebuilding without insurance.
    Let’s make NFIP affordable for the homeowner, accountable to the taxpayer, and sustainable for future generations.
    Severe weather is relentless. We must be too.
    With that, I yield.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Luján Calls Out House Republican Bill for Selling Off Spectrum to Benefit Billionaires Instead of Connecting Americans

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico)
    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Telecommunications and Media Subcommittee, released the following statement on the House Republican bill that proposes auctioning off critical spectrum to fund tax handouts for the wealthiest Americans and corporate special interests, rather than investing in expanding broadband access:
    “Tucked into House Republicans’ massive giveaway for the wealthiest Americans is a plan to auction off 600 MHz of spectrum — bypassing the committee process, ignoring bipartisan concerns, and doing nothing to connect more Americans to affordable, reliable internet.
    “There is strong bipartisan concern about handing over this spectrum. Yet House Republicans are moving ahead at President Trump’s directive, prioritizing billionaires over the urgent need to invest in broadband access.”
    Senator Luján has built bipartisan support to use spectrum auction proceeds to expand broadband access. Last Congress, Senator Luján led a bipartisan amendment with Senators Daines, Welch, Vance, Rosen, and Wicker to use $9 billion of spectrum auction proceeds to fund critical communications infrastructure and affordability. The Senate Commerce Committee passed legislation to do the same. Democrats in the House and Senate worked to include this policy in the National Defense Authorization Act for 2025, authorizing $3.08 in spectrum auction proceed from the AWS-3 auction and fund the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, removing security vulnerabilities from critical infrastructure.
    Radio spectrum (“spectrum”) is the continuum of frequencies used to provide wireless services, such as radio broadcasting, mobile communications, and satellite services. Since Congress first authorized the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to auction spectrum in the 1990’s, the FCC has raised over $250 billion in revenue. As Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Media, Senator Luján has jurisdiction over the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that conducts spectrum auction and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) that is responsible for managing spectrum for federal agencies including the Department of Defense.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Pelosi on the Republican Tax Scam: “One of the Largest Transfers of Wealth in our History.”

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi Representing the 12th District of California

    Washington, D.C. – Today, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi voted NO on the Republican Tax Scam bill: Donald Trump’s extreme legislation that will kick nearly 14 million people off their health care, take food out of the mouths of hungry kids and raise costs for health care and groceries across the board.

    For more than 29 hours, Speaker Emerita Pelosi and fellow House Democrats led sustained opposition to the Republican Tax Scam bill. Democrats offered hundreds of amendments to stop Republican cuts to health care and food assistance and to remove new tax breaks that Republicans are giving to their billionaire donors like Elon Musk.

    Watch Speaker Emerita Pelosi’s Floor remarks in opposition to the bill here.

    Watch Speaker Emerita Pelosi’s interview with Jen Psaki on MSNBC here.

    Watch Speaker Emerita Pelosi’s interview with Raj Mathai on NBC Bay Area here.

    Read the transcript of Speaker Emerita Pelosi’s Floor remarks below:

    Ranking Member Jim McGovern.  I’d like to yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from California, the Speaker Emerita, Ms. Pelosi.

    Speaker Emerita Pelosi. I thank the gentleman for yielding and for his exceptional leadership, and to all the members of the Rules Committee for your stamina and for your values.

    Mr. Speaker, the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health is the most shocking and the most inhuman because it often results in physical death.’ He went on to talk about access to health care as a right.

    But the inequality and inhumanity of this bill is exactly what Republicans have in store for the American people.

    I sat for five hours at the Rules Committee—some of you were there even longer. It was stiff competition to determine which provision was the worst. But let’s just talk for a moment about work requirements.

    They said, with great pride: ‘If you have a seven-year-old child, you have to go to work.’ A seven-year-old child is a little child.

    I recalled a conversation I had with some moms. One of them said: ‘If there’s a work requirement tied to Medicaid, this is what it means for me: If my child is sick, I can’t go to work because I can’t afford childcare. If I miss work, I miss pay—and I can’t afford to miss that pay. If I don’t go to work, I can be fired. So I’m forced to put my sick child on the school bus—because I need to go to work to keep my Medicaid.’

    And as we mentioned, about the silencers, it’s just beyond comprehension in terms of safety for our children.

    Because of the Republicans’ tax bill scam, millions of American families—seniors, veterans, vulnerable children, people with disabilities—will lose their health care. Rural hospitals will be closed. And millions of jobs will be destroyed across America.

    And all of this to give another massive tax cut to the richest people in America.

    It is a Republican Robin Hood in reverse: one of the largest transfers of wealth from working families to the rich that our country has ever seen.

    I urge a ‘no’ vote on the rule and the bill.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Klobuchar to Join Bipartisan Delegation to Ottawa, Canada

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Minnesota Amy Klobuchar
    WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) will travel to Ottawa, Canada as a part of a bipartisan delegation with Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), and Peter Welch (D-VT).
    While in Ottawa, the Senators will meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney, Foreign Minister Anita Anand, Minister of National Defense David McGuinty, Minister of Industry Mélanie Joly, the Business Council of Canada, and other leading Canadian companies and business groups. 
    “Canada is Minnesota’s neighbor, top trading partner and close friend. We share a deep bond grounded in trust and a shared commitment to democracy,” said Klobuchar. “I look forward to meeting with Canadian leaders to discuss how we can strengthen our partnership and bolster our trade relationship in the wake of President Trump’s across-the-board tariffs.”
    Senator Klobuchar is Co-Chair of the Canada-U.S. Inter-Parliamentary Group.
    This week, Klobuchar joined Cramer and Kaine in introducing a bipartisan resolution to recognize the U.S.-Canada partnership and its shared interests in economic, energy and critical minerals, and national security.
    In April, Klobuchar’s bipartisan resolution with Kaine and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) to reverse President Trump’s across-the-board tariffs on Canadian goods passed the Senate. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: May 22, 2025 Why I voted NO on Republicans’ Tax Scam Congress must do more to support working families. That’s why I voted NO on President Trump’s big ugly budget bill – because it hurts everyday Americans by taking away health care, food assistance, and economic stability, all so Republicans can… Read More

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Kevin Mullin California (15th District)

    Congress must do more to support working families. That’s why I voted NO on President Trump’s big ugly budget bill – because it hurts everyday Americans by taking away health care, food assistance, and economic stability, all so Republicans can give massive tax breaks to billionaires and corporations.

    Trump’s Big Ugly Bill Highlights:

    • 13.7 million Americans will lose health care coverage due to cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act
    • 18 million children will lose their school lunches and experience food insecurity
    • $3.8 trillion will be added to America’s national debt – bringing our already ballooning debt to $40 trillion

    According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, 13.7 million Americans would lose their health coverage under this plan, including seniors, children, and people with disabilities. It also proposes the deepest cuts to food assistance in our nation’s history, stripping SNAP benefits from at least 3 million people a month and putting 18 million children at risk of losing their school lunches.

    Republicans have decided to give benefits to the uber wealthy at the expense of the people who are already hurting the most. Under Trump’s plan, someone making over $1 million a year gets an $82,000 tax cut, while hard working Americans are left to pay more for groceries, health care, and energy. It’s a clear case of billionaires winning and working families losing.

    Despite cutting vital services, the Republicans’ budget still adds $3.8 trillion to the national debt, threatening our economic stability and driving up inflation. Our kids and grandkids are going to be paying for Republicans’ utterly irresponsible budget.

    For months, my Democratic colleagues and I have advocated against these proposed budget cuts. Last week, when Republicans jammed their Medicaid cuts through the Energy & Commerce Committee in the middle of the night, I fought to defend Americans’ health care for over 26 hours straight.

    The American people deserve better. That’s why I voted NO today. This fight is not over: along with fellow House Democrats, I will continue to oppose any budget that prioritizes the wealthy few at the expense of the many.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Statement from Governor Josh Stein on FEMA Ending Direct Assistance

    Source: US State of North Carolina

    Headline: Statement from Governor Josh Stein on FEMA Ending Direct Assistance

    Statement from Governor Josh Stein on FEMA Ending Direct Assistance
    lsaito

    Raleigh, NC

    Governor Josh Stein today released the following statement regarding FEMA’s notification that it will no longer provide direct federal assistance for the US Army Corps of Engineers:

    “I want to thank FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers for its hard work to clear debris all over western North Carolina. I am pleased that they will stay in North Carolina to finish existing missions, and my team looks forward to working closely with them to get those jobs done quickly. Together, we have removed more than 12 million cubic yards of debris from our roads and waterways. Unfortunately, there remains vast amounts of work yet to be done. Our state’s debris removal program is prepared to contract and execute the remaining debris removal and will work diligently and with urgency to complete those jobs as soon as possible.

    “We continue to ask President Trump to respond favorably to the state’s appeal for 100% FEMA reimbursement. This is a critical part of the state’s successful recovery. If not, North Carolina taxpayers will be responsible for a portion of the cost to remove the remaining debris, which could total hundreds of millions of dollars.” 

    May 22, 2025

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Booker, Hirono Introduce the Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Jersey Cory Booker

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) introduced the Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act (REAHYA), legislation to authorize federal grants for comprehensive sex education programs and youth sexual health services, and end funding for harmful Title V abstinence-only programs. U.S. Representatives Alma Adams (D-NC-12) and Pramila Jayapal (D-WA-07) will introduce companion legislation in the House. 

    Despite growing needs, young people across the country still lack access to comprehensive, evidence-based sex education and sexual health services. REAHYA aims to change that by creating federal grants that would fund programs at high schools, colleges, and organizations to support the sexual health and agency of students and young people. This legislation would also require program grantees to promote gender equity and offer instruction that is inclusive of young people with varying gender identities, gender expressions, and sexual orientations.

    “Young people need access to comprehensive sex education and sexual health services in order to make informed, responsible, and healthy decisions,” said Senator Booker. “Too many young adults are still receiving outdated and inaccurate information when it comes to making decisions about their sexual health, especially in underserved communities. This legislation aims to ensure sex education and sexual health programs are accessible and inclusive to everyone.” 

    “For too long, young people in our country have faced barriers to comprehensive, evidence-informed sex education and access to sexual health services, especially in underserved communities,” said Senator Hirono. “I am proud to reintroduce this legislation to help provide young people with the tools and knowledge they need to make informed decisions regarding their sexual health and to help them develop healthy relationships, while also promoting gender equity and offering education that is inclusive to people of all identities, expressions, and sexual orientations.”

    “For too long, our country’s sex education and sexual health resources have not met the needs of our young people, especially in underserved communities,” said Congresswoman Adams. “The Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act will arm our youth with the information and resources they need to make informed decisions on their bodies and their futures. Together we can work to reduce health disparities in our underserved communities and build a healthier future for generations to come.”

    “As the Trump administration continues to attack our reproductive rights and bodily autonomy and restricting access to scientifically accurate health information, this legislation is critical to protect and enhance young people’s access to comprehensive, culturally responsive, and equitable sex education,” said Congresswoman Jayapal. “REAHYA will equip young people with the necessary tools to make informed decisions about their relationships, sexual health, and overall well-being. This is an important step toward addressing disparities related to race, gender, and sexuality in current sex education programs, while also working to reduce rates of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.”

    Specifically, REAHYA would:

    1. Authorize funding for sex education programs at elementary and secondary schools, youth-serving organizations, and institutions of higher education;
    2. Ensure these programs are age-appropriate, medically accurate, and evidence-based;
    3. Provide grants for sex education teacher training;
    4. Establish grants for youth-serving organizations or health entities to deliver sexual health services for underserved youth; and
    5. Repeal the Title V Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Program.

    The Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act is endorsed by the following organizations: SiX Action, Equality California, Silver State Equality, American Humanist Association, Reproductive Health Access Project, AIDS United, National Council of Jewish Women, New Voices for Reproductive Justice, PWN-USA Ohio, Power to Decide, EducateUS, National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, Ipas US, Ibis Reproductive Health, NASTAD, SIECUS: Sex Ed for Social Change, Physicians for Reproductive Health, National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, Healthy Teen Network, Reproductive Freedom for All, The Arc of the United States, ACA Consumer Advocacy, National Partnership for Women & Families, ETR, National Network of Abortion Funds, Center for Biological Diversity, In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda, Advocates for Youth, Guttmacher Institute, Vivent Health, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity.

    The Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).

    To read the full text of the bill, click here. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Every Democrat Just Voted Against Tax Cuts, Pay Raises, and More

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    The One, Big, Beautiful Bill has PASSED the House of Representatives — without a single Democrat voting to cut taxes, secure the border, or protect taxpayer-funded benefits for Americans who need them.
    Here are only a few of the policies Democrats just unanimously opposed:
    The largest tax cut in history. This means $13,300 more for American families and wage increases up to $11,000 for workers with a double-digit percent decrease to their tax bills — plus NO TAX ON TIPS, NO TAX ON OVERTIME, a tax cut on seniors’ Social Security benefits, an expanded child tax credit, and a tax deduction on American-made vehicles. Americans making between $30,000 and $80,000 per year will see their taxes cut by 15% next year.
    Raising wages. American workers will see wage increases of up to $11,600; a typical family with two kids will see take-home pay rise by up to $13,300.
    Strong border security. This makes President Trump’s border crackdown permanent with the largest investment ever — funding AT LEAST one million illegal immigrant deportations per year, thousands of miles of new border wall and barriers, 18,000+ new immigration officials, and pay raises for our great ICE and Border Patrol agents.
    Protecting Medicaid for American citizens who need it. This ENDS taxpayer-funded benefits for at least 1.4 million illegal immigrants who are gaming the system and requires able-bodied Americans to work if they receive benefits.
    Pay raises for troops. This increases special pay for servicemembers and gives them higher allowances for housing, healthcare, and family assistance.
    Ending taxpayer-funded chemical castration and mutilation. It reverses the Biden-era mandate that Medicaid cover so-called “gender transition” procedures.
    Modernizing air traffic control. This will allow President Trump to act where the Biden Administration failed by completely overhauling the systems that keep Americans flying safely and efficiently.
    Revolutionizing the nation’s defense. This funds President Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense shield, restocks America’s arsenal, expands our naval fleet, and improves military readiness to meet the needs of a changing world.
    Protecting family farmers. The bill prevents the greedy death tax from hitting two million family-owned farms that would otherwise see their exemptions cut in half and cuts taxes on farmers by over $10 billion.
    Unleashing American energy dominance. The bill increases onshore and offshore oil and gas leases, spurs job growth, makes energy more affordable, and makes America less dependent on foreign adversaries.
    Reversing runaway spending. This delivers $1.6 trillion in mandatory savings  — the most in U.S. history and the largest deficit reduction in nearly 30 years.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: National Maritime Day, 2025

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    class=”has-text-align-center”>BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION
    More than 200 years ago, the American steamship S.S. Savannah set sail across the Atlantic, becoming the first vessel of its kind to complete the journey.  That daring voyage marked the start of American maritime excellence.  From that first crossing to the increasingly important shipping lanes of today, America’s strength at sea has always been driven by the United States Merchant Marine and the skilled merchant mariners who support our economy and readiness in times of peace, crisis, and war.
    Merchant mariners play a vital role in our national defense, standing ready to support military operations whenever they are needed.  As civilian seafarers, they deliver troops, weapons, and supplies through dangerous conditions to sustain our Armed Forces in times of conflict.  During World War II, more than 243,000 merchant mariners risked their lives to aid the war effort and help secure victory and freedom.  Their service came at a price as these merchant mariners suffered a higher casualty rate than all branches of the United States military during the war.  Their courage and heroism reflect a deep commitment to the Nation that we hold in the highest honor and shall never forget.
    Beyond their role in national defense, merchant mariners help drive American economic strength.  They operate the vessels that transport goods, energy, and raw materials to and from our shores, supporting global trade and connecting United States producers with international markets.  Their work supports key industries across the American economy, including shipping, shipbuilding, logistics, and energy.
    The United States is a proud maritime nation, and as President, I am bringing a renewed focus to reestablishing our dominance at sea.  Last month, I signed an Executive Order on Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance to spur investment in American shipbuilding, eliminate outdated regulations, and expand merchant mariner training and education.  These reforms are critical to securing supply chains, protecting key trade routes, and countering growing threats from foreign adversaries.
    Today, we celebrate the men and women of the United States Merchant Marine and all those who support our maritime industry.  Their dedication upholds our national defense, fuels our economy, and continues a proud tradition that has shaped our Nation since its earliest days. 
    The Congress, by a joint resolution approved May 20, 1933, has designated May 22 of each year as “National Maritime Day,” to commemorate the first transoceanic voyage by a steamship, in 1819 by the S.S. Savannah.  By this resolution, the Congress has authorized and requested the President to issue annually a proclamation calling for its appropriate observance.
    NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 22, 2025, as National Maritime Day.  I call upon the people of the United States to mark this observance and to display the flag of the United States at their homes and in their communities.  I also request that all ships sailing under the American flag dress ship on that day.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand thistwenty-second day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.                                 DONALD J. TRUMP 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: WHAT THEY ARE SAYING: One, Big, Beautiful Bill Clears House

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    President Donald J. Trump’s One, Big, Beautiful Bill — a once-in-a-generation opportunity to cement an America First agenda of prosperity, opportunity, and security into law — is one step closer to the finish line following its passage by the House of Representatives.
    Here’s what they’re saying about the One, Big, Beautiful Bill:
    American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall: “Farm Bureau applauds the House passage of H.R.1, which modernizes farm bill programs and extends and improves critical tax provisions that benefit America’s small farmers and ranchers. Updated reference prices will provide more certainty for farmers struggling through tough economic times. Making business tax deductions permanent and continuing current estate tax exemptions will ensure thousands of families will be able to pass their farms to the next generation. We urge the Senate to work together and swiftly pass legislation to deliver much-needed relief to America’s farm and ranch families.”
    U.S. Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice President Neil Bradley: “The House sent a clear message today—American workers and businesses want and need permanent tax relief. A competitive, pro-growth tax code doesn’t just grow the overall U.S. economy, it raises wages for workers and improves the lives of Americans. The legislation passed out of the House this morning contains critical measures that support main street businesses, enhance America’s global competitiveness, and bolster sustained economic growth. The Chamber commends Speaker Johnson for his leadership and commitment to ensuring the permanence of President Trump’s pro-growth tax reforms, and applauds the lawmakers involved in driving this effort forward. We encourage the Senate to continue to move the legislative process forward to deliver lasting benefits for American workers and businesses.”
    Airlines for America: “A4A commends the House for passing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act which includes a critical investment of $12.5 billion for modernizing the Federal Aviation Administration’s air traffic facilities, systems and infrastructure. ATC staffing shortages and antiquated equipment, such as copper wires, floppy disks and paper strips, have been a serious concern for years—we are past time to make meaningful change and ensure that the United States has a world-class aviation system. This funding is a vital down payment on updating the system that guides 27,000 flights, 2.7 million passengers and 61,000 tons of cargo every day. The legislation also makes smart, strategic investments in Customs and Border Protection personnel and training for the aviation workforce of tomorrow while supporting American energy dominance in aviation fuel production. We encourage the Senate to move swiftly to pass this bill and send it to the President.”
    National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Buck Wehrbein: “Cattle farmers and ranchers need Congress to invest in cattle health, strengthen our resources against foreign animal disease, support producers recovering from disasters or depredation, and pass tax relief that protects family farms and ranches for future generations. Thankfully, this reconciliation bill includes all these key priorities. NCBA was proud to help pass this bill in the House and we will continue pushing for these key policies until the bill is signed into law.”
    Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi: “Big news from DC—the House just passed President Trump’s tax bill, bringing No Tax On Tips one step closer to the finish line. While it still needs to clear the Senate, this is a big win for hardworking @Uber drivers and couriers across the country 👏”
    Job Creators Network CEO Alfredo Ortiz: “Congratulations to President Trump and Speaker Johnson for passing their reconciliation bill in the House. This bill offers historic tax cuts for small businesses and ordinary Americans. By making the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent and expanding key provisions, such as the small business tax deduction, which Job Creators Network was the loudest voice for, this bill offers significant tax relief for decades to come. It will allow small businesses, the backbone of the American economy, to expand, hire, raise wages, and reinvest in their communities, ushering in a new economic Golden Age. On behalf of all small businesses, JCN thanks President Trump and Speaker Johnson for their leadership in passing this bill, which the media said couldn’t be done on this aggressive timeline. Now it’s time for the Senate to follow suit and pass similar legislation, which includes the House’s key small business tax cuts, as soon as possible.”

    Click here to see how the One, Big, Beautiful Bill helps small businessesNational Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons: “Today’s House passage of this historic legislation marks a major victory for manufacturers across America. This pro-growth legislation preserves crucial tax policies that will enable manufacturers to create jobs, invest in their communities, grow here at home and compete globally. In short, this is a manufacturers’ bill … This is a pivotal moment. It’s time to double down on policies that encourage manufacturers to invest and create jobs in America and keep our industry strong and our nation competitive on the world stage—because when manufacturing wins, America wins.”
    Business Roundtable President and COO Kristen Silverberg: “Under Speaker Johnson’s leadership, the House has achieved a major milestone toward extending and strengthening President Trump’s historic tax reform. Business Roundtable commends the House on taking a giant step forward to protect and boost the economic benefits that tax reform delivered for American businesses, workers and families. By maintaining a competitive corporate tax rate and enhancing essential domestic and international tax provisions, the House budget reconciliation bill will help fuel U.S. investment, innovation and economic growth. As the Senate prepares to act, we stand ready to continue working with Congress and the Administration to pass the most competitive, pro-growth tax package possible.”
    American Petroleum Institute President and CEO Mike Sommers: “We applaud the House of Representatives for passing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to help restore American energy dominance. By preserving competitive tax policies, beginning to reverse the ‘methane fee,’ opening lease sales and advancing important progress on permitting, this historic legislation is a win for our nation’s energy future. We look forward to working with the Senate to strengthen pro-investment provisions and keep America at the forefront of energy innovation.”
    National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors CEO Eric Hoplin: “We applaud the House of Representatives for passing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and extend our sincere thanks to Speaker Mike Johnson, Chairman Jason Smith, the Ways and Means Committee, and House leadership for championing this pro-business, pro-worker legislation. This is a win for the people who roll up their sleeves every day to power our economy, entrepreneurs who build businesses from the ground up, and the workers who keep them running. We urge the Senate to act swiftly and send this bill to the President’s desk so America’s job creators and workers can keep driving our economy forward. The bill makes the 199A deduction permanent and expands it to 23%, helping millions of small businesses, including most wholesaler-distributors. It raises the death tax exemption, protecting family-owned businesses, and restores vital incentives that encourage investment, innovation, and long-term economic growth.”
    Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council President and CEO Karen Kerrigan: “H.R. 1 delivers a big, beautiful boost to U.S. entrepreneurship and small businesses. SBE Council applauds U.S. House passage of this critically important legislation. In addition to permanent tax relief and incentives that will help entrepreneurs and small business owners grow their firms, level up their businesses, and support their employees, various measures in the legislation correctly right-fit various federal programs and functions that have gone awry and consequently have undermined fiscal accountability and the private sector. Time is of the essence in getting the One Big Beautiful Bill to President Trump’s desk, and we urge the U.S. Senate to move post haste on the work that must be done to deliver the big benefits of the package to small business owners, all taxpayers, and the U.S. economy.”
    National Business Aviation Association President and CEO Ed Bolen: “We commend the House for recognizing the importance of improving ATC infrastructure and strengthening the controller workforce to enhance safety and efficiency in the National Airspace System. Business aviation’s ability to serve citizens, companies and communities is only possible because the U.S. leads the world in aviation … As the House reconciliation bill moves to the Senate for consideration, we look forward to working with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to advance these forward-looking provisions that bolster an essential industry, support countless workers and promote American competitiveness.”
    America’s Credit Unions President and CEO Jim Nussle: “Thank you to the U.S. House of Representatives for securing credit unions’ not-for-profit tax status as part of H.R. 1 and recognizing the industry’s importance to strong Main Streets across the country. More than 142 million Americans trust and rely on credit unions to achieve their American Dream, and this bill allows them to continue on their path of financial freedom. We will continue to advocate for policies that create more opportunities for credit unions to bolster our nation’s economic prosperity. We call on the U.S. Senate to continue to protect the credit union tax status as they consider this legislation.”
    National Taxpayers Union Executive Vice President Brandon Arnold: “The bill passed by the House contains growth-focused tax relief and some important first steps toward long-needed spending restraint. The Senate now has a strong package that it can build upon and further improve.”
    National Association of REALTORS Executive Vice President Shannon McGahn: “We appreciate House leaders for taking this important step with this tax reform bill, which supports hardworking families and strengthens the real estate economy. With lower tax rates, SALT relief, and new incentives for small businesses and community development, this proposal brings real benefits to everyday Americans.”
    National Electrical Contractors Association CEO David Long: “These provisions recognize the real-world needs of the electrical construction industry. Whether it’s power generation, grid modernization, cutting-edge data center projects, or clean energy installations, electrical contractors are at the forefront of America’s infrastructure evolution. This legislation gives our contractors the certainty they need to plan, invest, and grow.”
    American Hotel & Lodging Association President and CEO Rosanna Maietta: “This is a win for Main Street businesses. We commend lawmakers for including critical tax provisions in the budget reconciliation bill that will prevent a tax increase on American workers and the small businesses that are the backbone of America’s hotel and lodging industry. This is a critical step to stave off the expiration of important tax provisions that will provide our members, the majority of whom are small business owners, the level of certainty they need to effectively operate their businesses. We urge the U.S. Senate to swiftly pass this legislation and send it to President Trump’s desk.”
    National Pork Producers Council President Duane Stateler: “America’s pork producers are one step closer to more certainty with the House’s reconciliation bill passage, which includes necessary legislation to keep farms afloat during uncertain times.”
    Associated Equipment Distributors President and CEO Brian P. McGuire: “AED commends House Speaker Mike Johnson and his leadership team for securing House passage of the budget reconciliation bill. This legislation delivers pro-growth tax policies, streamlines energy project approvals and strengthens surface transportation infrastructure investments. We look forward to working with the Senate to ensure final passage of this comprehensive package.”
    American Federation for Children CEO Tommy Schultz: “We are grateful for the efforts of Speaker Johnson and Congressional leaders in both chambers who have stood up so far to ensure that President Trump’s goal of school choice for every family in every state becomes a reality. American parents deserve nothing less, and we will continue working to get school choice across the finish line as the Senate can deliver on a historic national school choice tax credit. Bringing school choice to every state will be a legacy item for the lawmakers who stand boldly behind parents. We will continue to stand with them to achieve this goal.”
    National Federation of Independent Business SVP for Advocacy Adam Temple: “The One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes the most important thing Congress can do to help small businesses and their workers – increasing and making the Small Business Deduction permanent. The bill also provides a tax cut for small business owners through lower individual rates, encourages new capital investments, and helps small business owners provide greater health care benefits to their employees. Members of Congress have a historic opportunity to provide over 33 million small business owners with permanent tax relief and NFIB strongly encourages them to do so.”
    Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor: “We’re grateful to our champions on Capitol Hill who have worked hard to preserve and extend rural priorities, like the 45Z clean fuel production tax credit. This budget reconciliation package would give farmers and ethanol producers the freedom and flexibility to deliver for the American people. It ultimately delivers on the President’s agenda—it’s good for rural communities, good for innovation, good for investment, and good for American energy dominance.”
    Americans for Prosperity Chief Government Affairs Officer Brent Gardner: “On behalf of our network of grassroots activists and small business owners nationwide, AFP congratulates Speaker Johnson, Majority Leader Scalise, Whip Emmer, and all the committee chairs for shepherding this legislation through the U.S. House of Representatives. Thanks to the efforts of policy champions across the House GOP conference, we are one step closer to giving Americans the pro-growth tax policy they voted for in November. Beyond cementing the foundation for a post-Biden economic recovery, we are poised to embrace an all-of-the-above approach to U.S. energy production, and finally secure our southern border.”
    National Foreign Trade Council Vice President for International Tax Policy Anne Gordon: “We would like to once again thank Chairman Smith and the Ways & Means Committee and staff for their tireless work on this bill and Speaker Johnson and the leadership team for their efforts to bring critical U.S. tax legislation one step closer to becoming a reality. We congratulate the House on passing the One, Big, Beautiful Bill and urge the Senate to take up work on it as quickly as possible.”
    American Land Title Association CEO Diane Tomb: “We commend the House for passing legislation that recognizes the needs of American small businesses, including the thousands of title and settlement companies ALTA represents. The expanded deduction under Section 199A is a welcome step that supports the long-term health of our small business members and the communities they serve. ALTA is especially pleased to see the preservation of Section 1031 like-kind exchanges, which play a vital role in fueling real estate investment, promoting property improvements and driving local economic growth. Provisions supporting homeownership, including those related to mortgage interest and capital gains exclusions, help provide certainty for buyers, sellers and lenders alike—strengthening the entire housing ecosystem. We urge the Senate to build on this momentum and protect the real estate and housing incentives that help Americans build wealth, promote generational stability and drive our economy forward.”
    NRA Institute for Legislative Action Executive Director John Commerford: “This morning, the U.S. House of Representatives passed President Trump’s One, Big, Beautiful Bill, which includes the complete removal of suppressors from the National Firearms Act (NFA). This represents a monumental victory for Second Amendment rights, eliminating burdensome regulations on the purchase of critical hearing protection devices. The NRA thanks the House members who supported this bill and urges its swift passage in the U.S. Senate.”
    RATE Coalition Executive Director Dan Combs: “Today’s vote is an historic step toward securing a tax code that rewards investment, supports job growth, and puts American workers first. This legislation builds on the success of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, preserving the policies that have helped drive wages up, unemployment down, and investment back into the U.S. economy. The House has done its part to move this forward. Now it’s time to keep that momentum going and get this across the finish line.”
    Independent Women’s Center for Economic Opportunity Director Patrice Onwuka: “BOOM. Tax cuts, welfare reforms, green spending cuts, and border strengthening. Major credit is due to @SpeakerJohnson for getting @potus @realDonaldTrump #OneBigBeautifulBill through the House. He has proven to be a quiet force for conservatives. Now onto the Senate.”
    Border Czar Tom Homan: “Thank you to the House and the leadership of President Trump in passing the Big Beautiful Bill. This Bill will add infrastructure and technology to make our gains on the borders permanent. It puts more boots on the ground to target cartel activity, alien smuggling, child trafficking and drug smuggling.  It will provide the needed funds and manpower to increase the great work of ICE on our deportation operations nationwide. We have many more public safety and national security threats to remove. This funding will allow ICE to vastly increase these efforts and keep the promise to America that we will enforce immigration law against those that are in this country illegally.  Now the Senate needs to step up. Border Security and National Security should not be a partisan issue. Let’s get this done!”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Golden Dome: An aerospace engineer explains the proposed nationwide missile defense system

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Iain Boyd, Director of the Center for National Security Initiatives and Professor of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder

    Posters that President Donald Trump used to announce Golden Dome depict missile defense as a shield. AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein

    President Donald Trump announced a plan to build a missile defense system, called the Golden Dome, on May 20, 2025. The system is intended to protect the United States from ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles, and missiles launched from space.

    Trump is calling for the current budget to allocate US$25 billion to launch the initiative, which the government projected will cost $175 billion. He said Golden Dome will be fully operational before the end of his term in three years and will provide close to 100% protection.

    The Conversation U.S. asked Iain Boyd, an aerospace engineer and director of the Center for National Security Initiatives at the University of Colorado Boulder, about the Golden Dome plan and the feasibility of Trump’s claims. Boyd receives funding for research unrelated to Golden Dome from defense contractor Lockheed Martin.

    Why does the United States need a missile shield?

    Several countries, including China, Russia, North Korea and Iran, have been developing missiles over the past few years that challenge the United States’ current missile defense systems.

    These weapons include updated ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, and new hypersonic missiles. They have been specifically developed to counter America’s highly advanced missile defense systems such as the Patriot and the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System.

    For example, the new hypersonic missiles are very high speed, operate in a region of the atmosphere where nothing else flies and are maneuverable. All of these aspects combined create a new challenge that requires a new, updated defensive approach.

    Russia has fired hypersonic missiles against Ukraine in the ongoing conflict. China parades its new hypersonic missiles in Tiananmen Square.

    So it’s reasonable to think that, to ensure the protection of its homeland and to aid its allies, the U.S. may need a new missile defense capability.

    Ukrainian forces are using the U.S.-made Patriot missile defense system against Russian ballistic missiles.

    What are the components of a national missile defense system?

    Such a defense system requires a global array of geographically distributed sensors that cover all phases of all missile trajectories.

    First, it is essential for the system to detect the missile threats as early as possible after launch, so some of the sensors must be located close to regions where adversaries may fire them, such as by China, Russia, North Korea and Iran. Then, it has to track the missiles along their trajectories as they travel hundreds or thousands of miles.

    These requirements are met by deploying a variety of sensors on a number of different platforms on the ground, at sea, in the air and in space. Interceptors are placed in locations that protect vital U.S. assets and usually aim to engage threats during the middle portion of the trajectory between launch and the terminal dive.

    The U.S. already has a broad array of sensors and interceptors in place around the world and in space primarily to protect the U.S. and its allies from ballistic missiles. The sensors would need to be expanded, including with more space-based sensors, to detect new missiles such as hypersonic missiles. The interceptors would need to be enhanced to enable them to address hypersonic weapons and other missiles and warheads that can maneuver.

    Does this technology exist?

    Intercepting hypersonic missiles specifically involves several steps.

    First, as explained above, a hostile missile must be detected and identified as a threat. Second, the threat must be tracked along all of its trajectory due to the ability of hypersonic missiles to maneuver. Third, an interceptor missile must be able to follow the threat and get close enough to it to disable or destroy it.

    The main new challenge here is the ability to track the hypersonic missile continuously. This requires new types of sensors to detect hypersonic vehicles and new sensor platforms that are able to provide a complete picture of the hypersonic trajectory. As described, Golden Dome would use the sensors in a layered approach in which they are installed on a variety of platforms in multiple domains, including ground, sea, air and space.

    These various platforms would need to have different types of sensors that are specifically designed to track hypersonic threats in different phases of their flight paths. These defensive systems will also be designed to address weapons fired from space. Much of the infrastructure will be multipurpose and able to defend against a variety of missile types.

    In terms of time frame for deployment, it is important to note that Golden Dome will build from the long legacy of existing U.S. missile defense systems. Another important aspect of Golden Dome is that some of the new capabilities have been under active development for years. In some ways, Golden Dome represents the commitment to actually deploy systems for which considerable progress has already been made.

    Is near 100% protection a realistic claim?

    Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system has been described as the most effective system of its kind anywhere in the world.

    But even Iron Dome is not 100% effective, and it has also been overwhelmed on occasion by Hamas and others who fire very large numbers of inexpensive missiles and rockets at it. So it is unlikely that any missile defense system will ever provide 100% protection.

    The more important goal here is to achieve deterrence, similar to the stalemate in the Cold War with the Soviet Union that was based on nuclear weapons. All of the new weapons that Golden Dome will defend against are very expensive. The U.S. is trying to change the calculus in an opponent’s thinking to the point where they will consider it not worth shooting their precious high-value missiles at the U.S. when they know there is a high probability of them not reaching their targets.

    CBS News covered President Donald Trump’s announcement.

    Is three years a feasible time frame?

    That seems to me like a very aggressive timeline, but with multiple countries now operating hypersonic missiles, there is a real sense of urgency.

    Existing missile defense systems on the ground, at sea and in the air can be expanded to include new, more capable sensors. Satellite systems are beginning to be put in place for the space layer. Sensors have been developed to track the new missile threats.

    Putting all of this highly complex system together, however, is likely to take more than three years. At the same time, if the U.S. fully commits to Golden Dome, a significant amount of progress can be made in this time.

    What does the president’s funding request tell you?

    President Trump is requesting a total budget for all defense spending of about $1 trillion in 2026. So, $25 billion to launch Golden Dome would represent only 2.5% of the total requested defense budget.

    Of course, that is still a lot of money, and a lot of other programs will need to be terminated to make it possible. But it is certainly financially achievable.

    How will Golden Dome differ from Iron Dome?

    Similar to Iron Dome, Golden Dome will consist of sensors and interceptor missiles but will be deployed over a much wider geographical region and for defense against a broader variety of threats in comparison with Iron Dome.

    A second-generation Golden Dome system in the future would likely use directed energy weapons such as high-energy lasers and high-power microwaves to destroy missiles. This approach would significantly increase the number of shots that defenders can take against ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles.

    Iain Boyd receives funding from the U.S. Department of Defense and Lockheed-Martin Corporation, a defense contractor that sells missile defense systems and could potentially benefit from the implementation of Golden Dome.

    – ref. Golden Dome: An aerospace engineer explains the proposed nationwide missile defense system – https://theconversation.com/golden-dome-an-aerospace-engineer-explains-the-proposed-nationwide-missile-defense-system-257408

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Marshall Joins President Trump, Secretary Kennedy, and Secretary Rollins at The White House for MAHA Commission Report 

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall
    Washington – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) today joined President Donald Trump, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins, and other Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) leaders at the White House today for a roundtable event to discuss the MAHA Commission Report.
    You may click HERE or on the image above to watch the full event.
    See the full transcript below from the White House event.
    President Trump: “I have to say we have the greatest farmers in the world, and we love our farmers, and we want to pay respect to our farmers, and we always will. And we won the farmers by a lot in the election, in all, every election, all three elections, and we won by a lot. And I will never forget that, and they are foremost in our thought and representing, I think, the farmers better than just about anybody can do is Senator Roger Marshall, could you say a couple of words, Roger, please…”
    Senator Marshall: “Mr. President, we’re not tired of winning yet. Congratulations. What a week you’ve had overseas, one win after another, One Big, Beautiful Bill across the House floor this morning. You’re the best closer in the game, and this is one of the greatest days of my life, professionally speaking, as well.”
    “And I just want to acknowledge my MAHA mom out here as well, that my wife, Laina, was a MAHA nurse and a MAHA mom and a MAHA grandma. Now, Laina, will you please stand up as well?”
    “Mr. President, you know, I spent 25 years delivering babies. Most every day. We saw a huge epidemic of diabetes of pregnancy, and this has exploded in so many different directions. Now we have an epidemic of mental health, in our youth, obesity rates, 20, 30% of our children on prescription drugs. 60, 70% of adults on a prescription drug. We can do better than this, and it does start with the farmer. It starts with soil health. And I just want you to know that our farmers are so committed to this as well, and so many of them are already doing great things. They’re making the soil healthier. They’re using less pesticides. They’re doing all the right things. It’s going to take a little bit more effort and time to get everybody with those practices, but the American farmer and rancher were the original environmentalists, the original conservationists, and they’ll be right here working beside us, and we appreciate your support of them as well.”
    To watch the full remarks, click here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Marshall Joins Charlie Kirk to Discuss President Trump’s ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ as it Heads to the Senate and the MAHA Commission Report

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall
    Washington – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) joined The Charlie Kirk Show today to discuss the status of President Donald Trump’s ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’, why State and Local Tax (SALT) deductions need to be re-evaluated, and the contents of the newly released Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission report. 
    Click HERE or above to watch Senator Marshall’s full interview with Charlie Kirk
    Highlights from the interview include:
    On what the Senate can do for the ‘One, Big Beautiful Bill’:
    Senator Marshall: “President Trump is the best closer in the country. Mike Johnson gave us the best bill that he could get passed over there. Think of the Senate as like a saucer and think of the House as a hot cup of coffee, and it’s spilling over. The job of the Senate is to take that bill and make it better.
    “I think for us over here, what I’m looking at is, where can we save some more taxpayers dollars? Where are the opportunities to cut some spending? What do we do with those SALT taxes? So, I think that’s the big thrust over here. How can we make this bill better? How can we deliver on President Trump’s promises, no tax on tips, overtime, Social Security, and make the Trump tax cuts permanent?”
    On SALT:  
    Senator Marshall: “In these big blue states, they have high taxes, and they’re able to deduct that from their federal taxes… What the House has done will still cost American taxpayers $300 billion over the next 10 years. They’re going to let people from these blue states write off up to $30,000 of their taxes, which will decrease revenue to the state.
    “It is that simple to the tune of $300 billion over 10 years. So, what else could we do with that $300 billion? We could deliver the president’s Golden Dome, that would be one simple thing, and more. We would take that money and make Medicaid and Medicare even better. There’s just better ways to spend that money. We can use it to secure the border, to help our military out, to give our troops more wages…”
    On the president’s ‘One, Big Beautiful Bill’:
    Senator Marshall: “What we did with Social Security since, by the law, we cannot touch Social Security, but what we did is we’re giving seniors a $4,000 tax credit, in addition… We increased the Child Tax Credit. Republicans doubled the tax credit in 2017 with this bill, and now we increased it another $500. So we increased the tax deduction for having children to $2,500 as well, so that would be another answer. A little second amendment, we’ve slipped in there. There’s some rules and regulations around what I would call a silencer, a muffler on guns, that type of thing. So, there are a whole lot of low-hanging fruit in here.”
    “The Golden Dome is in here, President Trump’s Golden Dome, the first down payment on some type of satellite system to help intercept nuclear warheads, that type of thing. Huge pay raises for our troops, for the border patrol officers, and funding to help get those illegal aliens out of this country. We have 400,000 violent criminal aliens in this country… Charlie, it may cost $100,000 per person to escort them out of this country. Thank you. Joe Biden.”
    “And we’ll take care of that for four years. We don’t have to go back to the Democrats every year and say, hey, we want money for the border. We want money for the military. We have significant money in here to take care of the military for the most part, for four years, and the president’s border security and the removal of illegal aliens.”
    On the MAHA Commission report:
    Senator Marshall: “Look, I think number one when I think about Make America Healthy Again is 60% of Americans have a chronic disease of some sort, most of it is nutritionally related or related to toxins. So, I expect this MAHA report to talk about the importance of soil health and the nutrient quality that we’re feeding to, especially our children… I’m especially concerned about the children getting them off on the right foot as well. The toxins that they’re being exposed to are probably in these ultra-processed foods.”
    “70% of the calories Americans consume are an ultra-processed food. I think that they’ll address that… Gold standard science. I really, as a doctor, can’t sit there and say, what type of oil is best to cook supper in tonight? Is it soybean oil? Is it tallow? What is it? So, we need gold-standard research, not influenced by commercial operations. Look, 50-60% of Americans are on a prescription drug right now, and I think we want to look into what that’s all about.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Trump admin blocks Harvard from enrolling int’l students

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    The U.S. Donald Trump administration on Thursday revoked Harvard University’s certification under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), effectively barring the institution from enrolling new international students.

    U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced the decision. “Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country,” Noem said in a statement. “Enrolling international students is a privilege — not a right — and that privilege has been revoked due to Harvard’s repeated failure to comply with federal law.”

    DHS said that in addition to barring enrollment of future international students, “existing foreign students must transfer to lose their legal status.”

    In response, Harvard issued a statement calling the administration’s action unlawful and harmful.

    “We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host our international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University — and this nation — immeasurably,” the statement said. “We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community. This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission.”

    The administration in April froze 2.2 billion U.S. dollars in federal grants to Harvard, after the university rejected demands that it eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, and evaluate international students for ideological concerns.

    As of the fall 2023 semester, international students made up over 27 percent of Harvard’s student body, according to university data.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Tuberville, Banks Call for End of Taxpayer-Funded Student Loans for Terrorists

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alabama Tommy Tuberville
    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) joined U.S. Senator Jim Banks (R-IN) in introducing the No Loan Forgiveness for Terrorists Act. This bill prohibits students from receiving credit for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) while working at organizations that engage in illegal activities. The legislation works to codify an Executive Order from President Trump that would end taxpayer-funded student loan forgiveness for students that participate in illegal, anti-American behavior.
    “Hard-working Americans should not be footing the bill for radical students who support and embolden blatant terrorism. No one should be rewarded for wreaking havoc on college campuses. The President has ended taxpayer-funded loan forgiveness, and it is Congress’ job to make his Executive Order permanent. I look forward to working with my colleagues to move this legislation along and stop funding college for terrorists,” said Sen. Tuberville.
    “Taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to pay student loans for radicals who aid terrorists, mutilate children, or promote illegal immigration. This bill codifies President Trump’s order to stop subsidizing anti-American extremism,” said Sen. Banks.
    Read full text of the bill here. 
    BACKGROUND:
    Sen. Tuberville currently serves as the Chairman of the HELP Subcommittee on Education and the American Family, where he has frequently spoken out against the antisemitism, riots, and lawlessness we are seeing on college campuses. He has expressed that people have the right to free speech in this country, but they do not have the right to riot or commit crimes. If these students – or paid activists in some cases – are breaking the law, they should go to jail.
    The No Loan Forgiveness for Terrorists Act would:
    Preventing students from receiving credit through the PSLF program while working at organizations that engage in the following activities:
    Aiding or abetting violations of federal immigration laws
    Materially supporting terrorism
    Materially supporting the castration or mutilation of children
    Aiding and abetting illegal discrimination
    Violating State tort laws, including against trespassing and disorderly conduct
    Last year, Sen. Tuberville also cosponsored the No Bailouts for Campus Criminals Act which would prevent pro-Hamas protestors convicted of a crime from having their student loans forgiven. 
    Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, HELP and Aging Committees.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Markey Introduces Legislation to Protect Public Sector Workers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts Ed Markey
    Bill Text (PDF)
    Washington (May 22, 2025) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today introduced the Public Service Worker Protection Act, legislation that would extend federal health and safety protections to public sector workers nationwide. The legislation is cosponsored by Democratic Leader Chuck  Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). Representatives Chris Deluzio (PA-17) and Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) introduced companion legislation in the House earlier this month.
    Specifically, the Public Service Worker Protection Act would amend the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970 to extend worker health and safety protections to public sector workers who are currently excluded. Nearly half of states and territories do not extend comparable health and safety protections to public sector workers. 
    “For too long, public sector workers across the country have been left vulnerable to unsafe working conditions,” said Senator Markey. “The Public Service Worker Protection Act would give public sector workers who tirelessly serve our communities the protections they deserve and ensure they are not taken for granted while the Trump administration continues to attack them and their rights.”
    The legislation is endorsed by the American Federation of State County and Municipal workers (AFSCME), American Federation of Labor & Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), Communications Workers of America (CWA), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), and United Steelworkers (USW).
    “For far too long, public sector workers have endured serious, job-related health and safety threats every single day on the job, simply because they do not have the basic, common-sense protections their counterparts in the private sector have under OSHA,” saidAFSCME Council 93 Executive Director Mark Bernard. “Many workers have come to accept these dangers as part of the job. Thankfully, we have leaders in Washington like Senator Markey who refuse to stand idly by and let this injustice continue. We are very grateful for Senator Markey’s support and look forward to what should be strong bi-partisan support for his legislation.”    
    “At MassCOSH, we believe that no worker should have to choose between their safety and their livelihood,” said Tatiana Begault, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety & Health (MassCOSH). “The Public Service Worker Protection Act represents a long-overdue recognition that all workers deserve equal protection under the law. We commend Senator Markey for his leadership and urge swift passage of this critical legislation.
    “Every worker deserves a safe workplace, whether they’re in public service or work in the private sector,” said American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) President Lee Saunders. “But nearly 8 million public service workers still aren’t guaranteed basic safety protections on the job. In 23 states, frontline workers like EMS responders, road crews, and corrections officers are excluded from OSHA coverage — even though public service workers report injuries at a rate 81% higher than those in the private sector. It’s time to fix that. On behalf of the 1.4 million public service workers of AFSCME, we thank Senator Markey for sponsoring the Public Service Worker Protection Act, which would finally extend OSHA protections to public service workers nationwide. And we urge Congress to pass this legislation without delay, because protecting our communities starts with protecting the workers who keep America running.”
    “Millions of public sector workers across 23 states are currently excluded from the Occupational Safety and Health Act, including thousands of USW members who serve as crossing guards, probationary officers, city workers and much more. Last month, we celebrated Workers Memorial Day where we recommitted ourselves to advancing workplace health and safety, we applaud Senator Markey for introducing the Public Sector Worker Protection Act to close this loophole and protect public sector workers,” said David McCall, President of United Steelworkers (USW) International.
    “More than 50 years after the introduction of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, too many of the workers who keep our cities and towns running are at risk of injury, illness, and even death on the job,” said Liz Shuler, President of the AFL-CIO. “The Public Service Worker Protection Act will ensure that these workers will finally have the full protections they are entitled to under federal law. This bill is an important step forward in our fight to make sure every worker comes home from work safe. We urge Congress to pass it without delay.”
    “The fight for workplace safety is foundational to why the labor movement exists and core to the AFT,” said Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). “No worker should fear for their safety on the job. We are proud to stand with Senator Markey as he introduces the Public Service Worker Protection Act. Far too many public employees are not covered by a state OSHA plan. This legislation would change that and be a meaningful step towards safer workplaces. Congress should take it up without delay.”
    “Public service workers have dedicated their lives to improving our communities, often putting their communities’ needs ahead of their own. Relying on individual states to implement their own health and safety plans is simply not enough. These workers deserve federal protections now. CWA proudly supports the Public Service Worker Protection Act, which extends OSHA protections to the public sector workers who keep our cities and states running. We commend Senator Markey for his leadership on this vital issue and call for the swift passage of this important legislation,” said Dan Mauer, Director of Government Affairs, Communications Workers of America (CWA).

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI: Senator Markey, Leader Schumer, Ranking Member Wyden Blast Republicans’ All-Out Assault on Clean Air and Climate

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts Ed Markey

    Senator Markey joined by Democratic Leader Schumer, Ranking Member Wyden, and climate advocates
    Washington (May 22, 2025) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), co-chair of the Senate Climate Change Task Force, Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, joined by climate advocacy groups, today hosted a press conference to blast Republicans’ all-out assault on efforts to combat the climate crisis, including unprecedented actions to revoke the California Clean Air Act waivers and repeal clean energy tax credits included in the Inflation Reduction Act.  
    “The Trump administration has made one thing painfully clear: They are putting Oil Above All—above the law, above the economy, and above the health and wallets of working families. The repeal of the Clean Air Act waivers is yet another historic example of the lawlessness of today’s Republican party; no rule, no norm, no standard is safe if it stands between them and what their Big Oil donors want. They’re breaking precedent, breaking Senate process, and breaking public trust. As a result, we will see more asthma. More heart disease. More early deaths. More cancer. That will be the Trump and Republican legacy,” said Senator Markey. “By repealing clean energy and environmental protection funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, Republicans are attacking clean air and clean energy with their tax bill. Republicans are seeking to destroy the tools and programs which are creating hundreds of thousands of jobs, easing costs for working families, and addressing air pollution in our communities. These attacks are dangerous and have far-reaching consequences for all.”
    “When it comes to clean energy and the Republican agenda, I don’t believe we’ve seen this kind of economic self-sabotage in modern American times. Republicans are raising Americans’ electrical bills, destroying thousands of good-paying jobs, and sacrificing our energy security all to pay for handouts to big corporations and ultra-wealthy Trump donors. Back in the campaign, Trump told a room full of oil and gas executives that he’d let them control the agenda if they helped put him back in the White House, and clearly, he’s delivering on that horribly corrupt promise,” said Ranking Member Wyden.
    “Congressional Republicans led a Big Oil-backed effort to circumvent their own rules in order to block California, and other states, from having stronger clean air standards for cars and trucks. This should not be a political or partisan issue, it’s about states’ ability to set standards – like the original tailpipe pollution limits set by Ronald Reagan – that deliver cleaner air for their citizens, said League of Conservation Voters’ Vice President of Federal Policy Matthew Davis. “At the same time, House Republicans have just passed their billionaire tax scam, the most anti-environmental bill in our nation’s history that will drive up families’ energy costs by hundreds of dollars per year. Right now, the Senate must stand up against the anti-environmental billionaire tax scam to protect our clean air and water, and cost-saving, jobs-creating clean energy.”
    “Today Congress has decided to fundamentally deny states their rights to reduce pollution and protect public health. In environmental justice communities, people of color and lower income face the greatest rates of asthma and cancer. This action enables a continued unjust assault on overburdened communities choking on diesel fumes. A clean transportation sector benefits us all and we will continue to fight for one that’s healthier, cheaper, and accessible to everyone,” said Yosef Robele, Federal Policy Manager, WE ACT for Environmental Justice.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Padilla, Stansbury Announce Bicameral Resolution to Join UN Convention on Biological Diversity

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)

    Padilla, Stansbury Announce Bicameral Resolution to Join UN Convention on Biological Diversity

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the world marks the International Day for Biological Diversity, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Representative Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.-01) announced that they will introduce a resolution calling on the U.S. Senate to ratify the United Nations (UN) Convention on Biological Diversity and bring the United States into the Convention as a formal party.

    The UN Convention on Biological Diversity is an international legal instrument that encourages actions by signatories to protect habitats and natural resources that sustain biodiversity. The United States is the only UN member state that has not ratified the treaty despite already legally complying with the obligations under the Convention.

    The climate crisis, habitat destruction, and other human-related causes have been linked to a 73 percent decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations from 1970-2020, while 30 percent of mammals worldwide are at risk of extinction. A total of nearly 1 million species are threatened with extinction.

    “The United States is home to a rich array of plants, animals, and ecosystems — but climate change, habitat destruction, and relentless attacks by the Trump Administration are putting our biodiversity at risk,” said Senator Padilla. “America cannot afford to stand on the sidelines while a million species are in danger of extinction. That’s why this International Day for Biological Diversity, we’re pushing the Senate to ratify the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity to give our country a voice and a vote to address this crisis.”

    “The Trump Administration has abandoned the United States’ world leadership on the international stage, especially in biodiversity conservation efforts, threatening to roll back decades of progress,” said Representative Stansbury. “It’s well past time we formalize our global commitment by ratifying the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and recognizing that we are all interconnected on this planet. I’m proud to co-lead this resolution to ensure the United States has a more active seat at the table—one that honors and integrates Indigenous knowledge, fosters global cooperation, and helps preserve the incredible ecosystems that sustain human life.”

    Despite being one of the top contributors in international conservation funding and biological diversity expertise, the United States is currently limited to being an observer during the deliberations and decision-making processes of the Convention on Biological Diversity. While the treaty was signed in 1993, the United States has never formally ratified it, which has limited the nation’s ability to fully participate in protecting global biodiversity. It has been ratified by 196 nations — everyone but Vatican City, Andorra, South Sudan, Somalia, and the United States.

    Full text of the resolution is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Padilla, Schiff, Murray, Cantwell Call Out Trump’s Outrageous, Partisan Decision to Slash Flood Protection Funding for Blue States

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)

    Padilla, Schiff, Murray, Cantwell Call Out Trump’s Outrageous, Partisan Decision to Slash Flood Protection Funding for Blue States

    Army Corps work plan zeroes out hundreds of millions of dollars for key California and Washington waterway construction projects, among others — steering hundreds of millions to red states

    WATCH: Padilla, Schiff blast the gutting of critical California water infrastructure funding

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.), members of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, joined the Washington state Senate delegation for a press conference calling out President Trump’s outrageous, overtly political decision to zero out critical funding for Army Corps of Engineers construction projects in blue states like California and Washington while steering hundreds of millions more to red states.

    Senators Padilla, Schiff, Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) criticized the Army Corps’ plan released late last week that announced their intention to zero out all Army Corps construction funding for California ($126 million), as well as cut $500 million for the Howard Hanson Dam in Washington state. This funding was included in the Corps’ Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 budget request, in the Senate’s bipartisan draft FY 2025 funding bill, and even in House Republicans’ draft FY 2025 funding bill. But the Trump Administration — using the new discretion afforded by the yearlong continuing resolution House Republicans drafted that was signed into law — ignored the draft bills and instead apportioned funding on a brazenly political basis.

    The four California flood control projects losing Army Corps funding include the American River Common Features Levee Improvement Project, the Pajaro River Flood Risk Management Project, the Lower San Joaquin River Project, and the West Sacramento Project. These projects will protect some of the most at-risk areas in the nation, including Sacramento County, which the Corps considers the most at-risk region for catastrophic flooding in the United States.

    “When anyone takes the oath of office, even Donald Trump as President of the United States, you become the president for all Americans — not just for red states or for blue states, but for every state and every community equally,” said Senator Padilla. “Yet, since the minute Donald Trump returned to office, he’s set out to politicize the office he holds, now trying to take hundreds of millions of dollars in flood prevention funding away from the states that happened to not vote for him and redirect them to projects in states that supported his election. It’s absolutely wrong. In California, that means cutting every last dollar of funding that was allocated for certain flood control projects. For a president so obsessed with fighting waste, fraud, and abuse, I know where he can find it. He just has to look in the mirror. Communities up and down California — including farmers and farm workers in the Central Valley and Pajaro — will now be at a higher risk of flooding because Donald Trump’s playing politics with federal funding.”

    “Natural disasters don’t discriminate based on whether a state is red or blue, and the administration and Congress shouldn’t either when it comes to protecting communities from natural disasters. This puts us on a very dangerous path, a path where anything can be on the chopping block for a partisan reason. Today, it’s funding for these projects. Tomorrow, it could be another form of funding meant to save lives. There will be a domino effect of threats aimed at blue states. When you’re elected to be president of the United States. You’re not a half president. You’re not president for only half of the country, not if you do the job right. These baseless attacks threaten millions of people from both parties whose lives are endangered by floods,” said Senator Schiff.

    Overall, the Army Corps’ plans would steer roughly $258 million more in construction funding to red states while ripping away roughly $437 million in construction funding for blue states, relative to the Corps’ FY 2025 request, which was fully funded in the draft FY 2025 bills that were produced on a bipartisan basis in the Senate and by Republicans in the House. These requests have historically been fully funded. Trump’s work plan steers two thirds of all Army Corps construction funding to red states while the budget request and House and Senate bills would have split that funding evenly to red and blue states.

    Padilla and Schiff voted against the continuing resolution earlier this year, which cut the Army Corps’ construction account by 44 percent.

    Senator Padilla has fought tirelessly for California communities devastated by atmospheric river flooding. Last spring, he urged the Biden Administration to prioritize sustained federal investment in the Pajaro River Flood Risk Management Project to protect disadvantaged communities along the central coast of California. In 2023, he met with families, small business owners, and farmers in Watsonville and Pajaro impacted by extreme storms after he and Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.-18) successfully led the California Congressional delegation in urging the Biden Administration to approve a Major Disaster Declaration.

    Additionally, Padilla successfully pushed for the inclusion of a study on the impact of extreme weather on Army Corps dams and levees in the Water Resources Development Act of 2024.

    Video of Senator Padilla’s full remarks is available here, and Senator Schiff’s full remarks can be viewed here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Padilla Statement on House Republicans’ Passage of Billionaire-First Reconciliation Bill

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)

    Padilla Statement on House Republicans’ Passage of Billionaire-First Reconciliation Bill

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), a member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following statement after House Republicans passed their billionaire-first budget reconciliation bill that will gut critical programs and devastate families in California and across the country:

    “After scheduling votes in the middle of the night all week, House Republicans voted to cut Medicaid, nutrition assistance, and other vital programs millions of Californians rely on. They will stop at nothing to jam through Trump’s billionaire-first agenda all so that they can fund their tax cuts for the wealthy while racking up our national debt. For them, it’s billionaires over hardworking families and fiscal responsibility — it’s that simple.” 

    Senator Padilla spoke on the Senate floor against the Republican budget resolution, and voted against advancing it in the Senate in both February and April.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Deaf President Now! traces the powerful uprising that led to Deaf rights in the US – now again under threat

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gemma King, ARC DECRA Fellow in Screen Studies, Senior Lecturer in French Studies, Australian National University

    Archival footage shows Tim Rarus, Greg Hlibok, Bridgetta Bourne-Firl and Jerry Covell, in Apple TV+ Deaf President Now! Apple TV+

    In March 1988, students of the world’s only Deaf university started a revolution that made national news. Now, the first film to document this historic uprising is screening on Apple TV+.

    At the same time, American universities are grappling with the consequences of President Donald Trump’s war on diversity, equity and inclusion.

    Gallaudet, home of the Deaf Rights movement

    By 1988, Washington DC’s Gallaudet University had been educating Deaf students in American Sign Language (ASL) for 124 years. But it had never had a Deaf president.

    For the first time, two Deaf candidates were in the running for the top job. One was Gallaudet’s own Irving King Jordan. The second was Harvey Corson of the American School for the Deaf.

    The third was Elisabeth Zinser, a hearing woman from the University of North Carolina Greensboro. She had no experience of Deaf community or knowledge of ASL.

    As the hearing board of trustees met to choose a new leader, the student body waited with bated breath. Self-determination in higher education – by the Deaf, for the Deaf – was finally a possibility. But once again the board chose a hearing person, Zinser.

    When chair Jane Spilman was questioned about the choice, she replied, “Deaf people are not ready to function in a hearing world.”

    Incensed, Gallaudet students barricaded the campus, gave impassioned media interviews and took to marching. First they marched around the university – Zinser effigies burning – and then all the way to the Capitol.

    The Deaf President Now protest became national news, leading to the resignations of Zinser and Spilman, and the appointment of Jordan as president. It also helped propel the Disability Rights Movement, contributed to the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act and inspired Deaf Pride movements around the world.

    Jane Bassett Spilman and Elisabeth Zinser resigned as a result of the Deaf President Now movement.
    Apple TV+

    Timely, vital and imperfect

    The 2025 documentary Deaf President Now! opens with footage of a political act: not from the 1988 protests, but from the present day, as the movement’s original student leaders – Bridgetta Bourne, Jerry Covell, Greg Hlibok and Tim Rarus – advise on their interview setups.

    One alerts the crew they can’t see the interpreter. Another explains how much signing space they need in the frame. A third asks, joking but incisive, “What’s the microphone for?”

    These aren’t throwaway moments; they show how inclusion and authenticity are only possible when Deaf people are in control of their own stories.

    The film excels in exposing the paternalistic attitude and tightly-held hearing power that has long shaped Deaf education.

    The film’s most powerful moments are when it contrasts the board’s dismissive rhetoric against the eloquent, impassioned arguments of the Deaf student body. Through intimate interviews and carefully curated archival footage, the documentary dismantles prevailing presumption that Deaf individuals need hearing oversight to succeed.

    At the same time, the film embodies a paradox that mirrors its subject matter, as it is co-directed by hearing filmmaker Davis Guggenheim and Deaf director Nyle DiMarco.

    DiMarco has been active in the screen industry for more than a decade, in acting roles and as a producer on Netflix hits Deaf U (2020) and Audible (2021). Though his involvement represents progress, Guggenheim’s raises an uncomfortable question: when will Deaf filmmakers fully own their narratives and be entrusted to lead projects?

    Nyle DiMarco and Davis Guggenheim co-directed the documentary, with interviews from several of the movement’s leading figures.
    Apple TV+

    The collaboration reflects how stories celebrating Deaf empowerment often require hearing endorsement to reach a mainstream audience. The film’s distribution on Apple TV+ offers unprecedented visibility, but comes through channels controlled by hearing decision-makers.

    This production context reminds us true representation extends beyond what appears onscreen, to who controls the storytelling process — a revolution unfinished in Deaf cinema.

    Using film for Deaf empowerment

    The industry may remain exclusive, but the camera itself can be a tool for Deaf power. Throughout history, Deaf individuals have harnessed film as a means of resistance.

    The extensive archival footage in Deaf President Now! shows how, by 1988, film was already being used by the Deaf community as a form of advocacy. Through the blending of this footage with present-day interviews in ASL, we witness Deaf individuals taking ownership of their history and recounting it in their authentic language form.

    The documentary also mirrors how media attention was integral to spreading the protest’s message back in 1988. This culminated in a national broadcast of a live debate between Zinser and Greg Hlibok, the then student body president.

    To understand the film’s profound importance for the Deaf community, we must recognise how sign languages have historically been undocumented in their true form, with speech and writing considered superior modes of communication.

    Deaf culture, language and community are powerful forces of resistance that have continually defied mainstream oppression.

    Trump: a step back for the movement

    While the film was long overdue, its arrival now is eerily relevant. Trump’s push for conservative policies – part of what he calls “Project 2025” – seeks to dismantle programs and funding that serve minority students, including disability groups.

    Many of the protections in the Americans with Disabilities Act are under threat as a result, including fundamental rights to sign language and interpreting access in higher education and beyond.

    According to the New York Times, hundreds of terms including “accessibility”, “disability”, “minority” and “inequality” are being limited or outright removed from official government materials. In some cases, grant proposals and contracts have been automatically flagged for including “woke” terminology.

    The spirit of the Deaf President Now! resistance has never been more vital.

    But if Deaf history has taught us anything, it’s that the Deaf community forges a deep sense of pride and connection in the face of such pressures. And films like Deaf President Now! show us how integral film is to this resistance.

    Gemma King receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

    Samuel Martin and Sofya Gollan do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Deaf President Now! traces the powerful uprising that led to Deaf rights in the US – now again under threat – https://theconversation.com/deaf-president-now-traces-the-powerful-uprising-that-led-to-deaf-rights-in-the-us-now-again-under-threat-257233

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Why Donald Trump has put Asia on the precipice of a nuclear arms race

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Langford, Executive Director, Security & Defence PLuS and Professor, UNSW Sydney

    For the past 75 years, America’s nuclear umbrella has been the keystone that has kept East Asia’s great‑power rivalries from turning atomic.

    President Donald Trump’s second‑term “strategic reset” now threatens to crack that arch.

    By pressuring allies to shoulder more of the defence burden, hinting that US forces might walk if the cheques do not clear and flirting with a return to nuclear testing, Washington is signalling that its once‑ironclad nuclear guarantee is, at best, negotiable.

    In Seoul, Tokyo and even Taipei, a once-unthinkable idea — building nuclear weapons — has begun to look disturbingly pragmatic.

    Nuclear umbrella starting to fray

    Extended deterrence is the promise the United States will use its own nuclear weapons, if necessary, to repel an attack on an ally.

    The logic is brutally simple: if North Korea contemplates a strike on South Korea, it must fear an American retaliatory strike, as well.

    The pledge allows allies to forgo their own bombs, curbing nuclear proliferation while reinforcing US influence.

    The idea dates to Dwight D. Eisenhower’s “New Look” military strategy, which relied on the threat of “massive retaliation” against the Soviet Union to defend Europe and Asia at a discount: fewer troops, more warheads.

    John F. Kennedy replaced that hair‑trigger doctrine with a “flexible response” defence strategy. This widened the spectrum of options to respond to potential Soviet attacks, but kept the nuclear backstop in place.

    By the 1990s, the umbrella seemed almost ornamental. Russia’s nuclear arsenal had rusted, China was keeping to a “minimal deterrent” strategy (maintaining a small stockpile of weapons), and US supremacy looked overwhelming.

    In 2020, then-President Barack Obama’s Nuclear Posture Review reaffirmed the umbrella guarantee, though Obama had voiced aspirations for the long‑term abolition of nuclear weapons.

    Barack Obama’s 2009 speech advocating nuclear disarmament in Prague.

    The Biden administration then embraced a new term – “integrated deterrence”, which fused cyber, space and economic tools with nuclear forces to deter potential foes.

    In recent years, however, North Korea’s sprint towards intercontinental ballistic missiles and the modernisation and expansion of China’s nuclear arsenal began testing the faith of US allies.

    Trump has now turbo‑charged those doubts. He has mused that his “strategic reset” ties protection to payment. If NATO’s Article 5 (which obliges members to come to each other’s defence) is “conditional” on US allies paying their fair share, why would Asia be different?

    Reports the White House has weighed a resumption of underground nuclear tests – and, under the Biden administration, even a more extensive arsenal – have rattled non‑proliferation diplomats.

    A Politico analysis bluntly warns that sustaining global “extended deterrence” in two parts of the world (Europe and Asia) may be beyond Trump’s patience — or pocketbook.

    A regional nuclear arms race

    Allies are taking note. Last month, an Institute for Strategic Studies survey found officials in Europe and Asia openly questioning whether an American president would risk San Francisco to save Seoul.

    In South Korea, public backing for a bomb now tops 70%.

    Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party is, for the first time since 1945, considering a “nuclear sharing” arrangement with the US. Some former defence officials have even called for a debate on nuclear weapons themselves.

    Taiwan’s legislators — long muzzled on the subject — whisper about a “porcupine” deterrent based on asymmetrical warfare and a modest nuclear capability.

    If one domino tips, several could follow. A South Korean nuclear weapon program would almost certainly spur Japan to act. That, in turn, would harden China’s strategic outlook, inviting a regional arms race and shredding the fragile Nuclear Non‑Proliferation Treaty.

    The respected international relations journal Foreign Policy has already dubbed Trump’s approach “a nuclear Pandora’s box.”

    The danger is not just about more warheads, but also the shorter decision times to use them.

    Three or four nuclear actors crammed into the world’s busiest sea lanes — with hypersonic missiles and AI‑driven, early‑warning systems — create hair‑trigger instability. One misread radar blip over the East China Sea could end in catastrophe.

    What does this mean for Australia?

    Australia, too, has long relied on the US umbrella without demanding an explicit nuclear clause in the ANZUS treaty.

    The AUKUS submarine pact with the US and UK deepens technological knowledge sharing, but does not deliver an Australian bomb. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese insists the deal is about “deterrence, not offence,” yet the debate over funding nuclear-powered submarines exposes how tightly Australian strategy is lashed to American political will.

    A regional cascade of nuclear proliferation would confront Australia with agonising choices. Should it cling to the shrinking US umbrella, invest in a missile defence shield, or contemplate its own nuclear deterrent? Any such move towards its own weapon would collide with decades of proud non‑proliferation diplomacy and risk alienating Southeast Asian neighbours.

    More likely, Canberra will double down on alliance management — lobbying Washington to clarify its commitments, urging Seoul and Tokyo to stay the non‑nuclear course, and expanding regional defence exercises that make American resolve visible.

    In a neighbourhood bristling with new warheads, middle powers that remain non‑nuclear will need thicker conventional shields and sharper diplomatic tools.

    This means hardening Australia’s northern bases against a potential attack, accelerating its long‑range strike programs, and funding diplomatic initiatives that keep the Non-Proliferation Treaty alive.

    The Trump administration’s transactional posture risks broadcasting a deficit of will precisely when East Asian security hangs in the balance. If Washington allows confidence in extended deterrence to erode, history will not stand still; it will split the atom again, this time in Seoul, Tokyo or beyond.

    Australia has every incentive to prod its great power ally back toward strategic steadiness. The alternative is a region where the umbrellas proliferate — and, sooner or later, fail.

    Ian Langford is affiliated with the University of New South Wales.

    – ref. Why Donald Trump has put Asia on the precipice of a nuclear arms race – https://theconversation.com/why-donald-trump-has-put-asia-on-the-precipice-of-a-nuclear-arms-race-256577

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Energy Department Designates Coal Used in Steelmaking as a Critical Material, Strengthening U.S. Energy and Manufacturing Security

    Source: US Department of Energy

    WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright today announced the designation of coal used in the production of steel as a critical material under the Energy Act of 2020, in accordance withPresident Trump’s Executive Order “Reinvigorating America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Industry.” This action affirms the Administration’s commitment to American energy dominance, manufacturing resurgence, and strengthening America’s energy and industrial security.  

    A Department of Energy analysis concluded that metallurgical coal, a key input for steel production, meets the statutory definition of a critical material. A robust steel industry is fundamental to U.S. manufacturing, infrastructure development, and economic resilience. Steel is essential to energy technologies, transportation, and defense systems, as the materials that enable steel production (including metallurgical coal and anthracite) are vital to American interests.  

    “Metallurgical coal is more than a fuel—it is a cornerstone of our industrial base,” said Secretary Wright. “By designating metallurgical coal as a critical material, we are ensuring that American steel, generated by American coal, remains the backbone of our manufacturing sector.”    

    Why Coal Qualifies as a Critical Material: 

    • Metallurgical coal possesses unique properties necessary for producing coke, the fuel and reactant required for steel production using the blast furnace–basic oxygen furnace method. 
    • Anthracite coal, concentrated in the Appalachian region, plays a key role in the electric arc furnace method, which accounts for approximately 70% of domestic steel production. 
    • The U.S. coal industry provides reliable, domestically sourced metallurgical and anthracite coal essential to supporting both steelmaking processes. 
    • There are over 150 metallurgical coal mines in the United States that employ tens of thousands of Americans.   
    • Shared infrastructure and workforce supporting both thermal and metallurgical coal production are under strain from declining investment and operational capacity. Without intervention, this erosion will jeopardize domestic steel dominance. 

    The designation underscores the multiple threats facing the U.S. steel sector, including foreign anti-competitive practices, unreliable supply chains, and underinvestment in critical upstream materials. In accordance with the President’s proclamation on adjusting steel imports, this determination supports strategic supply chain development and reindustrialization efforts. 

    The designation of coal for steelmaking as a critical material is inclusive of its supply chain vulnerability and its indispensable role in the energy sector. Steel is a foundational component of U.S. energy infrastructure, from our pipelines to transmission towers, linked to national energy security. 

    Learn more about critical materials and view the Federal Register Notice, here. 

                                                                                                    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Trump’s conversation with European leaders triggers controversy

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    What U.S. President Donald Trump told European leaders after his two-hour phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin has triggered controversy.

    Three days after the high-stake talks for Trump, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing senior European officials familiar with the conversation, that Trump told European leaders that Putin “isn’t ready to end the Ukraine war because he thinks he is winning.”

    The White House denied this account immediately. Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said that Trump “did say he believes Putin is winning the war, but he never said ‘Putin isn’t ready to end the war’.”

    During the call, Trump said several times that “he believes Putin wants peace and wants the war to be over,” Leavitt noted.

    Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov also dismissed the WSJ report, saying Russia was only aware of what was said during the phone call between the two leaders on Monday.

    “Look, we know what Trump told Putin. We don’t know what Trump told the Europeans after that phone call. We know the official statement by President Trump,” Peskov said.

    According to Trump, the afterward call’s participants included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

    The controversy came as European officials accused Trump of handing Putin a win after their phone call since he suggested abandoning being a mediator in ending the war and refused to impose fresh sanctions on Russia.

    “Several European officials said the message they took from the call was that they should not expect the United States to join them any time soon in piling additional financial pressure onto Mr. Putin,” The New York Times said in a analysis published Thursday.

    “The disagreement between the Americans and the Europeans over support for Ukraine will likely come to a head over two nearly back-to-back summits: the Group of 7 in Canada in mid-June and the NATO summit a week later in The Hague,” the report added. 

    MIL OSI China News –