NewzIntel.com

Category: US Senate

  • MIL-OSI USA: Grassley Works to Empower Patients, Boost Transparency Through Improved Data on Inpatient Psychiatric Facilities

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Iowa Chuck Grassley

    WASHINGTON – Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), a senior member and former chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, is pushing the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to provide clear and accessible information on inpatient psychiatric facilities (IPFs) to better support patients and their families. While CMS has supported web-based tools to find and compare providers, the agency lacks a tool for comparing IPFs so that families can make fully-informed decisions.

    “This is the kind of information that patients and their families care about…In all states, patients and their families deserve to have access to all IPF inspection/survey reports through a user-accessible website, no matter whether the survey was performed by a state or local survey agency, CMS, or an accrediting organization,” Grassley wrote.

    Grassley is an outspoken advocate for improved oversight and transparency at health care facilities that care for vulnerable Americans, such as nursing homes and IPFs. His past work revealed that inspection reports are completely inaccessible to consumers in most states. Grassley has previously called for improving the quality of information available to the public about nursing homes. He’s also pushed for greater transparency of financial relationships between drug makers and providers and of the misuse of psychotropic drugs in nursing homes and foster youth.

    “Currently, a search for an IPF on the Care Compare website yields little to no information that would allow a consumer to determine the safety of the facility…There is no information regarding assaults, abuses, suicides, and [unauthorized departures], particularly information regarding facilities that have had repeated and/or potentially preventable events. There is no information regarding Medicare Conditions of Participation violations, citations, penalties, or enforcement actions,” Grassley continued.

    Grassley requested the agency provide details on plans to improve public access to IPF data and any possible barriers to CMS’s progress.

    Text of the letter to Acting CMS Administrator Carlton follows:

    February 28, 2025

    VIA ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION

    The Honorable Stephanie Carlton

    Acting Administrator

    Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

    Dear Acting Administrator Carlton:

    I have long advocated for improved oversight and transparency at health care facilities that care for vulnerable Americans, such as nursing homes and inpatient psychiatric facilities (IPFs).[1]  My oversight has resulted in improvements to the Nursing Home Care Compare website, which has been found to help consumers find their way to higher quality nursing homes and encourage providers to improve quality.[2]  Yet, after more than twenty-five years of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) supporting web-based tools for consumers to find and compare providers, the mechanism for comparing IPFs is still lacking. [3]  Like nursing home residents, psychiatric inpatients are at high risk for abuse, neglect, and harm, and the public deserves to be able to readily access information regarding quality, safety, and regulatory citations at IPFs in all states.[4] 

    According to a recent report, it took weeks to compile information regarding safety and regulatory issues at two IPFs because there is no place to readily access that information.[5]  The report noted that, “the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has a robust database of hospital inspections, quality of care and staff ratings.  However, when you try to search many inpatient mental health hospitals, every category says information is not available.”[6]  In response to questions about the lack of information, the prior administration stated that “although CMS doesn’t give star ratings for psychiatric hospitals, consumers can still find valuable quality information by using [other] CMS resources.”[7]  However, a review of those resources found them to be insufficient.[8]

    Currently, a search for an IPF on the Care Compare website yields little to no information that would allow a consumer to determine the safety of the facility.  After searching for an IPF on Care Compare, the website launches a webpage showing that the facility’s “Overall Star Rating” and “Patient Survey Rating” are not available.[9]  Under a drop down, Care Compare primarily presents process measures, including COVID-19 vaccinations for providers, influenza vaccinations and body mass index screenings for patients.[10]  While there is information regarding potentially harmful mechanical restraints and seclusions, there is no data regarding physical holds and chemical restraints, which surveyors have also found to be used inappropriately and with incorrect technique.[11]  There is no information regarding assaults, abuses, suicides, and elopements (unauthorized departures), particularly information regarding facilities that have had repeated and/or potentially preventable events. [12]  There is no information regarding Medicare Conditions of Participation violations, citations, penalties, or enforcement actions.[13]  This is the kind of information that patients and their families care about.

    While Care Compare provides access to inspection reports for nursing homes, this capability is missing from the hospital section of the website.[14]  In all states, patients and their families deserve to have access to all IPF inspection/survey reports through a user-accessible website, no matter whether the survey was performed by a state or local survey agency, CMS, or an accrediting organization, such as The Joint Commission.  While some hospital inspection reports may be accessible through the CMS 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file, this is not a consumer-facing or readily accessible resource.[15]  Additionally, my past oversight work revealed that inspection reports from accrediting organizations are completely inaccessible to consumers in most states.[16]  Despite my advocacy on the issue, in 2017, CMS reversed course on a proposal to require accrediting organizations to post provider survey reports on their public-facing websites, but noted that, “CMS is committed to ensuring that patients have the ability to review the findings used to determine that a facility meets the health and safety standards required for Medicare participation.”[17]  Seven years later, it still doesn’t appear that patients, or even CMS, have the ability to readily conduct that review.[18]  There also still appears to be incongruity between safety violations and accreditation.[19] 

    For Congress to understand CMS’s current actions to increase the relevance of information regarding IPFs on the Care Compare website as well as any barriers impeding CMS’s progress, please provide answers to the following questions no later than March 14, 2025.

    1. Does CMS plan to take steps to improve how information regarding IPF quality, safety, and regulatory issues are displayed on Care Compare?  If not, why not?  If so, please describe.
    1. Are there any barriers to displaying information regarding patient harm, including abuses, assaults, suicides, and elopements with harm, for IPFs on Care Compare?
    1. Are there any barriers to displaying citations, safety violations, licensure suspensions or limitations, immediate jeopardy findings, Medicare program terminations, monetary penalties, enforcement actions, or any other remediation actions for IPFs on Care Compare?
    1. Are there any barriers to integrating the CMS 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file in a user-accessible way on Care Compare?
    1. What surveys are included in the CMS 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file and which surveys are excluded?  For example, does the data file contain surveys conducted by all state and local survey agencies?  Are there any circumstances in which the file would contain surveys conducted by accrediting organizations?
    1. Why are the findings from the following surveys/inspections not included in the 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file posted on the CMS Hospital website?[20]  What are the barriers to making the following reports accessible on Care Compare?
      1. The survey that corresponds with the nine patient rapes at Options Behavioral Health Hospital.[21]
      2. The February 2022 survey with immediate jeopardy findings for Brynn Marr Hospital.[22]
      3. The survey that corresponds with the sexual assault at Psychiatric Institute of Washington.[23]
      4. The survey conducted at Holly Hill Hospital after the escape of five children in March 2024.[24]
      5. The survey that corresponds with Aurora Vista Del Mar’s loss of permission to admit involuntary patients.[25]
      6. The survey that corresponds with the suicide at Morton Plant North Bay Hospital Recovery Center.[26]
    1. How does CMS assess the usability and relevance of the information regarding IPFs on the Care Compare website from the perspective of patients and their families?
    1. How does CMS validate the data currently contained in Care Compare for IPFs?  For example, what was CMS’s process for validating Harborview Medical Center’s 2022 restraint rate of 22.44 hours per 1000 patient care hours, when the national average was 0.32, and the 2022 seclusion rate of 81.73, when the national average was 0.36?[27] 
    1. How does the data currently contained in Care Compare for IPFs inform the survey/inspection process?  For example, have surveyors examined the restraint and seclusion practices at Harborview Medical Center?[28]
    1. How does CMS “ensur[e] that patients have the ability to review the findings used to determine that a facility meets the health and safety standards required for Medicare participation,” including when those findings come from accrediting organizations?[29]
    1. What role does CMS play in the accreditation process for IPFs?  How do the deficiencies listed in the CMS 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file factor into accreditation?
    1. How does CMS partner with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) on the Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Quality Reporting (IPFQR) program and ensure consistency between the IPFs listed on the Care Compare website and the IPFs listed on the FindTreatment.gov website?[30]  How does CMS use data collected through the National Substance Use and Mental Health Services Survey (N-SUMHSS)?[31]

    Thank you for your prompt review and response.  If you have any questions, please contact my Judiciary Committee staff at (202) 224-5225.

    Sincerely,

    Charles E. Grassley

    Chairman

    Committee on the Judiciary

    [1] Press Release, Warren, Grassley Lead the Call for Greater Transparency in Nursing Home Ownership, Off. of Senator Charles E. Grassley (May 19, 2023), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/warren-grassley-lead-the-call-for-greater-transparency-in-nursing-home-ownership; Press Release, After Year-Long Push for Transparency In Nursing Homes, Grassley Urges Improvements to CMS’s Care Compare, Off. of Senator Charles E. Grassley (June 21, 2023), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/after-years-long-push-for-transparency-in-nursing-homes-grassley-urges-improvements-to-cmss-care-compare; Press Release, Grassley Welcomes CMS Action Following His Decades-Long Push to Increase Nursing Home Transparency, Off. of Senator Charles E. Grassley (Nov. 15, 2023),  https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-welcomes-cms-action-following-his-decades-long-push-to-increase-nursing-home-transparency; Press Release, Grassley: Alarming Pattern of Conduct Reported at UHS Facilities, Off. of Senator Charles E. Grassley (Dec. 18, 2017), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-alarming-pattern-conduct-reported-uhs-facilities.

    [2] R. Tamara Konetzka, Kevin Yan, and Rachel Werner, Two Decades of Nursing Home Compare: What Have We Learned?, Medical Care Research and Review (June 13, 2020), https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1077558720931652?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%20%200pubmed.

    [3] Report, Nursing Homes: CMS Offers Useful Information on Website and Is Considering Additional Steps to Assess Underlying Data, Government Accountability Office, GAO-23-105312, (May 2023), https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-23-105312.pdf.

    [4] Morgan Shields, Maureen Stewart, and Kathleen Delaney, Patient Safety in Inpatient Psychiatry: A Remaining Frontier for Health Policy, Health Affairs (Nov. 18, 2018), https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2018.0718; Hospital Surveys with 2567 Statement of Deficiencies through 2024 Q3 data file, Hospital webpage, Ctrs. for Medicare & Medicaid Services (accessed Feb. 3, 2025),  https://www.cms.gov/files/document/hospital-surveys-2567-statement-deficiencies-through-2024-q3.xlsx, (Surveyors described findings of abuse, neglect, or harm during numerous surveys listed in the 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file, such as 6G7O11/October 16, 2023, 52U911/March 4, 2024, VN4211/June 13, 2024, QD1O11/January 6, 2021, ZX8G11/April 8, 2022, YMU211/June 7, 2021, SSIO11/February 23, 2023, 00IG11/June 10, 2022, P33211/April 10, 2024, RKRS11/October 5, 2022, and CYVY11/September 23, 2022).

    [5] Randall Kerr, WRAL Investigates why the truth about mental health hospitals remains hidden, WRAL News (May 7, 2024), https://www.wral.com/story/wral-investigates-why-the-truth-about-mental-health-hospitals-remains-hidden/21418636/.

    [6] Id.

    [7] Id.

    [8] Id, (As described by WRAL, “those resources included with the statement were a spreadsheet you could download, but can’t even decipher considering all of the categories, acronyms and codes that don’t necessarily reflect the actual quality of care.  The other resource was the same online database that again has no information about the hospital’s performance.”).

    [9] Care Compare entry for Aurora Vista Del Mar, Care Compare, Medicare.gov (accessed Feb. 3, 2025), available at https://www.medicare.gov/care-compare/details/hospital/054077?id=a96bf388-2fd6-460f-bca4-d70b1eeb862d&city=Ventura&state=CA&zipcode=.

    [10] Psychiatric unit services drop-down for Aurora Vista Del Mar, Care Compare, Medicare.gov (accessed Feb. 3, 2025), https://www.medicare.gov/care-compare/details/hospital/054077?id=a96bf388-2fd6-460f-bca4-d70b1eeb862d&city=Ventura&state=CA&zipcode=&measure=hospital-psychiatric-surveys. 

    [11] Surveys ZF7G11/June 4, 2024 and D0SD11/July 11, 2024, 2567 data file, supra note 4, (For example, during an inspection of Destiny Springs Healthcare in June 2024, surveyors found that “the Hospital failed to ensure staff did not utilize a chemical restraint as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience or retaliation for one (1) patient.” One month later, surveyors found that “the hospital failed to ensure restraints were conducted safely, resulting in Patient #1 suffering a fractured humerus.”).

    [12] Ross Jones, Congressman, local leaders want answers over Detroit hospital patient abuse, suicide, ABC WXYZ Detroit (Oct. 10, 2024),  https://www.wxyz.com/news/local-news/investigations/congressman-local-leaders-want-answers-over-detroit-hospital-patient-abuse-suicide; Surveys 366M11/June 6, 2024 and 31M611/July 3, 2024, 2567 data file, supra note 4, (In 2024, at Detroit Receiving Hospital, in the span of 73 days, two different female patients were sexually assaulted by two different male patients while sedated and confined to four-point restraints, which is a time when patients should be continuously monitored by staff, and another patient died by suicide in her room in the setting of missed safety checks.); Maddie Kirth, ‘Were they not trained?’ Family of missing Hammond Alzheimer’s patient demands hospital reform, Fox 8 (June 23, 2023),  https://www.fox8live.com/2023/06/24/were-they-not-trained-family-missing-hammond-alzheimers-patient-demands-hospital-reform/; Survey 1UQQ11/June 21, 2023, 2567 data file, supra note 4, (In 2023, a patient with severe dementia was able to walk out of a locked unit at Oceans Behavioral Hospital of Hammond in Louisiana and was found dead in a field one day later. It took nearly an hour for staff to realize that the patient was gone and another ninety minutes to call 911.).

    [13] Heather Catallo, ‘He didn’t deserve this.’ Patient dies after being restrained in psych ward, family speaks out, WXYZ (Dec. 19, 2024), https://www.wxyz.com/news/local-news/investigations/he-didnt-deserve-this-patient-dies-after-being-restrained-in-psych-ward-family-speaks-out; Medicare notice to the public regarding termination of Pontiac General Hospital effective November 24, 2024 (Nov. 8, 2024), https://www.cms.gov/files/document/michigan-pontiac-general-hospital-11/08/2024.pdf, (There is no information regarding Michigan’s Pontiac General Hospital’s termination from the Medicare program on November 24, 2024, after a patient died in the setting of improper restraint technique and a delayed and disorganized resuscitation effort.); Surveys R5UY11/March 22, 2024, 24E111/April 3, 2024, M4B411/June 6, 2024, QORQ11/July 31, 2024, and NB8H11/August 15, 2024, 2567 data file, supra note 4 (There is no information regarding the 30 deficiencies, including three condition-level deficiencies and two immediate jeopardy findings, listed in the CMS 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file for Oceans Behavioral Hospital of Hammond in Louisiana during the first three quarters of 2024.); Alex Lubben, State gives troubled Mandeville psychiatric hospital one last chance to stay open, NOLA (Apr. 19, 2024), https://www.nola.com/news/northshore/what-is-the-future-of-northlake-behavioral-health-system/article_e5218958-f90a-11ee-ab91-072e26520f37.html, (There is no information regarding Northlake Behavioral Health System’s reported agreement with the Louisiana Department of Health to “pay an $18,000 fine, hire a consultant, cover the cost of all future LDH inspections, and suffer additional penalties for any repeat deficiencies found in the course of those inspections” in order to maintain a provisional license.).

    [14] GAO-23-105312, supra note 3.

    [15] 2567 data file, supra note 4.

    [16] Press Release, Grassley Presses Agency On Statutory Changes Needed to Make Hospital Inspection Reports Public, Off. of Senator Charles E. Grassley (Sep. 20, 2017), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-presses-agency-statutory-changes-needed-make-hospital-inspection-reports.

    [17] Charles Ornstein, Secret Hospital Inspections May Become Public At Last, ProPublica (April 18, 2017), https://www.propublica.org/article/secret-hospital-inspections-may-become-public-at-last; Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long Term Acute Care Hospital (LTCH) Prospective Payment System Final Rule(CMS-1677-F), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Aug. 2, 2017), https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/fiscal-year-fy-2018-medicare-hospital-inpatient-prospective-payment-system-ipps-and-long-term-acute-0; Charles Ornstein, Accreditors Can Keep Their Hospital Inspection Reports Secret, Feds Decide, ProPublica (Aug. 3, 2017), https://www.propublica.org/article/accreditors-can-keep-their-hospital-inspection-reports-secret-feds-decide; Letter from Senator Charles E. Grassley to Administrator Seema Verma, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Sep. 18, 2017), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2017-09-18%20CEG%20to%20CMS%20(Joint%20Commission).pdf.

    [18] Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Proposed Rule, Medicare Program; Strengthening Oversight of Accrediting Organizations (AOs) and Preventing AO Conflict of Interest, and Related Provisions, Section G, Federal Register (Feb. 15, 2024), https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/02/15/2024-02137/medicare-program-strengthening-oversight-of-accrediting-organizations-aos-and-preventing-ao-conflict#footnote-4-p12000. 

    [19] Press Release, Grassley, Stark hold officials accountable for improper approval of specialty hospital in West Texas, U.S. Comm. on Finance (Mar. 6, 2007), https://www.finance.senate.gov/ranking-members-news/grassley-stark-hold-officials-accountable-for-improper-approval-of-specialty-hospital-in-west-texas; Letter from Senator Charles E. Grassley to Mr. Mark Chassin, The Joint Commission (Apr. 14, 2017), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2017-04-14%20CEG%20to%20Joint%20Commission%20(UHS).pdf; Stephanie Armour, Hospital Watchdog Gives Seal of Approval, Even After Problems Emerge, The Wall Street Journal (Sep. 8, 2017), https://www.wsj.com/articles/watchdog-awards-hospitals-seal-of-approval-even-after-problems-emerge-1504889146; Surveys 2DCB11/March 5, 2024, S6IC11/June 13, 2024, WKNI11/July 12, 2024, 7VB511/April 11, 2024, DICQ11/July 12, 2024, ZF7G11/June 4, 2024, and D0SD11/July 11, 2024, 2567 data file, supra note 4; Search for Mesa Springs, Crestwyn Behavioral Health, Del Amo Hospital, and Destiny Springs Healthcare on The Joint Commission’s “Find Accredited Organizations” webpage, The Joint Commission (accessed Feb. 11, 2025), https://www.jointcommission.org/who-we-are/who-we-work-with/find-accredited-organizations/#q=mesa%20springs&numberOfResults=25, https://www.jointcommission.org/who-we-are/who-we-work-with/find-accredited-organizations/#q=Crestwyn%20Behavioral%20Health%20&numberOfResults=25, https://www.jointcommission.org/who-we-are/who-we-work-with/find-accredited-organizations/#q=Del%20Amo%20Hospital&numberOfResults=25, https://www.jointcommission.org/who-we-are/who-we-work-with/find-accredited-organizations/#q=Destiny%20Springs%20Healthcare&numberOfResults=25, (For example, Mesa Springs in Texas is currently shown as having a gold seal on The Joint Commission website, while the hospital had 14 condition-level deficiencies across three surveys listed in the CMS 2567 Statement of Deficiencies data file for the first three quarters of 2024. Crestwyn Behavioral Health in Tennessee with four condition-level citations in the first three quarters of 2024, Del Amo Hospital in California with three condition-level citations, and Destiny Springs Healthcare in Arizona with three condition-level citations are also currently shown as having Joint Commission accreditation.).

    [20] 2567 data file, supra note 4.

    [21] Joe Ulery, Whistleblower exposes dangers at Indiana facility, Public News Service (Dec. 18, 2024), https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2024-12-18/mental-health/whistleblower-exposes-dangers-at-indiana-facility/a94122-1.

    [22] Letter from the Ctrs. for Medicare & Medicaid to Universal Health Services regarding notification of possible termination from the Medicare program (Mar. 27, 2023), https://www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Brynn-Marr-Hospital-CCN-344016-90-day-3-27-2023.signed-002-3.pdf; Taylor Knopf, NC psych hospital failed to provide ‘safe and therapeutic’ environment, feds say, NC Health News (May 10, 2023), https://www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/2023/05/10/nc-psych-hospital-failed-to-provide-safe-and-therapeutic-environment-feds-say/.

    [23] Peter Herman, Psychiatric health aide in D.C. charged with sexual abuse of a patient, The Washington Post (Dec. 21, 2023), available at https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/12/21/sexual-assault-dc-psychiatric/.

    [24] Heidi Kirk, WRAL Investigates: Holly Hill violated standards of care that could’ve prevented patient escapes, inspection says, WRAL News (July 15, 2024), available at https://www.wral.com/story/wral-investigates-holly-hill-violated-standards-of-care-that-could-ve-prevented-patient-escapes-inspection-says/21526230/.

    [25] Nick Welsh, Santa Barbara County’s Psych-Bed Pinch Tightens as Key Mental-Health Safety Valve Shuts Down, Santa Barbara Independent (Nov. 1, 2023), https://www.independent.com/2023/11/01/santa-barbara-countys-psych-bed-pinch-tightens-as-key-mental-health-safety-valve-shuts-down/.

    [26] Adam Walser, Florida grandmother outraged after 13-year-old dies by suicide inside mental hospital, ABC Action News (July 11, 2023),  https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/local-news/i-team-investigates/lutz-grandmother-outraged-after-13-year-old-commits-suicide-inside-mental-hospital.

    [27] “Inpatient psychiatric facility quality measure data – by facility” data set, Ctrs. for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Oct. 30, 2024),  https://data.cms.gov/provider-data/dataset/q9vs-r7wp; “Inpatient psychiatric facility quality measure data – national” data set, Ctrs. for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Oct. 30, 2024), https://data.cms.gov/provider-data/dataset/s5xg-sys6.

    [28] Id.

    [29] Fact sheet, supra note 17.

    [30] Mental health and substance use treatment locator website, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Admin. (accessed Feb. 11, 2025), https://findtreatment.gov/locator.

    [31] National Substance Use and Mental Health Services Survey, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Admin. (accessed Feb. 11, 2025), https://info.nsumhss.samhsa.gov/.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Welch Reintroduces the Digital Integrity in Democracy Act 

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)
    Bill will increase accountability for election-related disinformation 
    WASHINGTON, D.C. –  U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) led Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) this week in reintroducing the Digital Integrity in Democracy Act, legislation to increase accountability for social media platforms that knowingly host false election administration information. The bill aims to strengthen voting rights protections by carving out a narrow exception from existing legal immunity for social media platforms that intentionally or knowingly amplify election-related misinformation. 
    “Across the country, voting rights are under attack. We see that very clearly on social media, where carefully orchestrated campaigns target voters with false information in an effort to keep them from the ballot box. But social media platforms have been reluctant to intervene and remove this false information, letting these harmful lies live online. They need a reality check,” said Senator Welch. “Our bill seeks to hold social media platforms accountable for intentionally hosting false election administration information to ensure every voter can fairly participate in our democracy.” 
    “Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy. While election disinformation is not new, emerging technologies make it easier to deceive Americans about how to exercise their right to vote,” said Senator Klobuchar. “This legislation will combat efforts intended to disenfranchise voters by holding social media companies accountable for allowing false information on their platforms about voting like when and where to cast a ballot.” 
    “We must crack down on the spread of false information about our elections,” said Senator Merkley. “Preserving a government ‘of, by, and for the people’ depends on protecting voters from the quick, easy spread of misinformation on social media that can jeopardize voters’ ability to exercise their right to vote.” 
    “Falsehoods posted on social media about the time, place and manner of an election, and lies about voter eligibility requirements, are spread with the intent to suppress voter turnout,” said Senator Luján. “I’m proud to cosponsor the Digital Integrity in Democracy Act, legislation that would hold large-scale social media companies accountable for removing these types of election falsities. This is a reasonable, balanced approach to protecting voters and our democracy, while also protecting free speech online.” 
    “Disinformation about elections on social media platforms is a threat to our democracy and to the right of all Americans to make their voices heard in our elections,” said Senator Hirono. “I’m glad to join Senator Welch and our colleagues in introducing this legislation to hold social media companies accountable for election disinformation shared on their platforms.” 
    The Digital Integrity in Democracy Act is endorsed by Common Cause and Stand Up America. 
    “All voters deserve access to trusted information about our elections. However, when social media companies knowingly allow and amplify false election information on their platforms, voters are left in the dark,” said Ishan Mehta, Common Cause’s Media and Democracy Program Director. “Common Cause thanks Senator Welch for introducing the Digital Integrity in Democracy Act to ensure that voters can get trusted information about elections when making their voices heard, and we encourage Congress to quickly pass this legislation.” 
    “Recent decisions at Meta show that social media companies do not want to take responsibility for the content on their platforms. They don’t care if misinformation and disinformation flow rampantly – they’re profiting from it. Instead, they want to exploit users as unpaid labor to do the fact-checking without any real oversight (i.e. Community Notes on Twitter/X and Facebook),” said Dayanita Ramesh, Senior Social Media Director at Stand Up America. “The truth still matters, particularly when it comes to our elections and our freedom to vote. Senator Welch’s Digital Integrity in Democracy Act would finally hold social media companies accountable for spreading lies about election information and voting access. We applaud Senator Welch’s leadership in demanding accountability from these platforms and ensuring the American people have the accurate information they need to exercise their freedom to vote.” 
    Learn more about the Digital Integrity in Democracy Act. 
    Read a section-by-section summary and full text of the bill. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kaine, Klobuchar & Warner Unveil Legislation to Undo President Trump’s Senseless Taxes on Canadian Goods

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Virginia Tim Kaine

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine, Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, (D-VA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Mark R. Warner (D-VA) unveiled legislation to undo President Donald Trump’s wildly unpopular tariffs on Canadian goods, which amount to a 25 percent tax on goods imported from one of America’s top trading partners and closest allies.

    “Americans want prices to go down—not skyrocket, which is exactly what will happen if Congress lets President Trump slap new taxes on goods from one of our largest trading partners and closest allies,” said Kaine. “We don’t need to guess what kind of damage these senseless new taxes will do. During Trump’s first term, his trade wars spelled disaster for Virginians, particularly for farmers and foresters who were hit especially hard. Congress has a responsibility to stop that from happening again, and I urge all of my colleagues to join me in blocking Trump from destroying our economy.”

    “This Administration is igniting a reckless trade war and regular Americans are paying the price,” said Klobuchar. “Costs for everyone will go up and our farmers and businesses will suffer. Canada is Minnesota’s top trading partner and is a key U.S. ally. We must reverse these damaging tariffs before it’s too late.”

    “Virginians can’t afford the cost of President Trump’s tariffs, which will raise prices on everything from groceries to houses and cars,” said Warner. “Congress must step in before President Trump tanks our economy.” 

    In Virginia in 2024, Canada was the largest export market and accounted for 15 percent of Virginia exports. In Virginia in 2022, top goods exports to Canada included motor vehicles and transportation equipment, such as medium- and heavy-duty trucks. 56.1 percent of Southwest Virginia’s economic output is dependent on trade.

    Polls have overwhelmingly demonstrated that the American people do not support Trump’s trade wars. According to a recent survey by Public First, just 28 percent of American adults supported specifically applying tariffs to Canada, while 43 percent opposed.

    Specifically, the senators’ legislation would work by terminating the February 1 emergency that Trump used to launch his trade war with Canada, and thus eliminate the tariffs on Canadian imports implemented as a result. Trump’s order cites the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA), an unprecedented use of IEEPA in its nearly half century history. After an initial one-month delay, President Trump decided to move forward with the tariffs, with the import taxes starting to be collected on March 4, 2025. In total, President Trump’s IEEPA tariffs will cost the average American household up to $2,000 a year, with the Canada tariffs making up a significant portion of that. These IEEPA tariffs represent the largest tax increase on American families in recent history.

    Full text of the legislation is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kaine Statement on President Trump’s 2025 Address to Congress

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Virginia Tim Kaine

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) released the following statement after President Trump’s joint address to Congress:

    “President Trump’s address showed that he and his Administration have no problem turning their backs on middle-class Americans. In his first few weeks in office, President Trump has imposed steep tariffs that will raise costs and hurt businesses, fired thousands of federal workers who provide critical services to millions of Americans, illegally stopped the flow of federal funds that support programs Americans rely on, and cozied up to dictators like Vladimir Putin while abandoning Ukraine and our democratic allies. If the President, his Administration, and Republicans in Congress continue to go down the current path they are on, they should expect that they will be met with fierce opposition as more and more Americans will feel the impacts of Trump’s terrible policies. I know many Virginians are worried about the state of our country, and they have my commitment that I’ll continue to stand up against any efforts that will harm Virginians, hurt our economy, or make Virginians less safe.”

    Kaine brought Fairfax resident and veteran Jason King as his guest. Jason was fired from his position in the Federal Aviation Administration’s safety division as a result of the Trump Administration’s mass firing of federal employees.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NEWS: Sanders, Scott, Schumer, Jeffries, Murray, Bipartisan Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Protect the Rights of American Workers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Vermont – Bernie Sanders

    WASHINGTON, March 5 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, alongside Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Congressional and labor leaders, today reintroduced the Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act), comprehensive labor legislation to protect the rights of workers to stand together and bargain for fairer wages, better benefits and safer workplaces. The legislation was renamed in honor of former AFL-CIO President Richard L. Trumka.

    Joining Sanders, Scott, Schumer, Jeffries and Murray on the PRO Act are Sens. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), as well as 210 cosponsors in the House.

    “Never before in the history of our nation have income and wealth inequality been greater than today. Workers are falling further and further behind. In response, millions of Americans have expressed their desire to join a union,” said Sanders. “However, the billionaire class is fighting with all its might to put down attempts by workers to exercise their constitutional right to unionize. That includes the decision by President Trump to illegally fire National Labor Relations Board Member Gwynne Wilcox and effectively shut down the NLRB. Without a functioning NLRB, corporate bosses can illegally fire unionizing workers, flagrantly violate labor laws and render free and fair union elections near impossible. Supporting the immediate reinstatement of Member Wilcox and the swift passage of the PRO Act would be major steps toward building real worker power. The PRO Act is long overdue and I am proud to be introducing this bill in the Senate.”

    “Unions are essential for building a strong middle class and improving the lives of workers and families. Regrettably, for too long, workers have suffered from anti-union attacks and toothless labor laws that undermined their right to form a union,” said Scott. “As union approval remains at record highs, Congress has an urgent responsibility to ensure that workers can join a union and negotiate for higher pay, better benefits, and safer workplaces. The PRO Act is the most critical step Congress can take to uplift American workers. I urge my House and Senate colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in advancing the most significant update for workers’ labor organizing rights in over eighty years.”

    “As we speak Donald Trump and his billionaire buddies are stealing the American dream away from working families, rigging every lever of society in favor of the billionaire class,” said Schumer. “That’s why we need the PRO Act, to empower hardworking Americans to bargain for better wages, benefits, and safer working conditions. I’ve been involved in this fight for a very, very long time, and I will stay in this fight for as long as it takes – until every worker gets the wage they deserve, until the right to organize is protected and encouraged and secure, and until we finally make the PRO Act the law of the land.”

    “Right now, Donald Trump and Elon Musk are attacking workers, including mass firing people by the tens of thousands, left and right, regardless of how important that work is,” said Murray. “Reintroducing the PRO Act is more important now than ever. This is about making sure we are not just pushing back—but also pushing forward: charting a positive vision for workers and daring Republicans to make their actions match their words. Who do you stand with—the billionaires like Elon Musk and Donald Trump—whose favorite two words are ‘you’re fired?’ Or do you stand with hard working American women and men. People who just want fair pay, decent treatment, and a government that works to make their lives better, not worse? That should not be too much to ask! I’m going to keep fighting, come hell or high water, to make it easier for workers to join together and fight for the better pay and working conditions they deserve.”

    “When our unions are strong, the United States of America is strong,” said Jeffries. “While Republicans are focused on giving handouts to their billionaire donors, Democrats will continue to fight to make sure that every American worker can organize and thrive and fight for better wages, better pay, better safety conditions and better benefits. Thanks to the leadership of Ranking Member Bobby Scott, that is exactly what the PRO Act does and we will not rest until we get this legislation across the finish line.”

    “Billionaires know there’s no greater threat to their power than a union card,” said Clark. “That’s why they’re using miles of red tape to deny the American people their basic, constitutional right to organize. We can cut that red tape for good. The PRO Act is yet another chance for Republicans to show where they stand: with working people or their billionaire donors.”

    “The PRO Act will safeguard the fundamental right of American workers to collectively bargain and organize and will ensure workers receive fair treatment while holding their employers to just standards,” said Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.). “I am proud to lead this bipartisan effort to strengthen the right of our nation’s hardest-working men and women to organize and negotiate for better wages, benefits, and conditions. A strong workforce is the foundation of a strong nation, and I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to see this vital legislation through.”

    “Americans believe in the power of unions and tens of millions of working people would become union members tomorrow if they could. But American labor law is broken, weighted on the side of the bosses and against the workers. In too many workplaces, in too many industries across the country, big corporations and billionaire CEOs still retaliate against us for organizing. They refuse to negotiate our contracts, force us to sit through hours of anti-union propaganda, and engage in illegal union-busting every day. Now they have an unelected, unaccountable, union-buster trying to illegally fire tens of thousands of our fellow workers in federal jobs and an administration rolling back the workplace protections. The PRO Act is long overdue, and the American people agree. We urge elected leaders of both parties to move this critical legislation forward so that all workers have the chance to stand together and build better lives for themselves and their families,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler.

    Large corporations and the wealthy continue to capture the rewards of a growing economy while working families and middle-class Americans are left behind. From 1979 to 2023, annual wages for the bottom 90% of households increased just 44 percent, while average incomes for the wealthiest 1% increased more than 180 percent.

    Unions are critical to increasing wages and creating a strong economy that rewards hardworking people. Through the power of collective bargaining, the typical union worker earns 16 percent more than the typical non-union worker.

    The American people’s support for unions is surging. According to a 2024 Gallup poll, 70 percent of Americans approve of labor unions — remaining at near record highs. Despite growing support for unions, billionaire- and special interest-funded attacks on the rights of workers, unions and labor laws have eroded union density and made it harder for workers to organize. The share of American workers who are union members has fallen from roughly one in three workers in 1956 to a new low of 9.9 percent in 2024. The PRO Act restores fairness to the economy by strengthening the federal law that protects the right of workers to join a union and bargain for higher pay, better benefits and safer workplaces.

    The PRO Act would protect the right to organize and collectively bargain by:

    • Bolstering remedies and punishing violations of the rights of workers through authorizing meaningful penalties for employers that violate their rights, strengthening support for workers who suffer retaliation for exercising their rights and authorizing a private right of action for violation of the rights of workers.
    • Strengthening the rights of workers to join together and negotiate for better working conditions by enhancing their right to support secondary boycotts, ensuring unions can collect “fair share” fees, modernizing the union election process and facilitating initial collective bargaining agreements.
    • Restoring fairness to an economy rigged against workers by closing loopholes that allow employers to misclassify their employees as supervisors and independent contractors and increasing transparency in labor-management relations.

    More than 18 organizations endorsed the PRO Act, including the AFL-CIO, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), United Autoworkers (UAW), United Steelworkers (USW), Communications Workers of America (CWA), National Nurses United (NNU), International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO (DPE), National Postal Mail Handlers Union (NPMHU), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART), the American Federation of Musicians, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA), Transport Workers Union (TWU), International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) and the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT).

    Read the bill text here.

    Read a fact sheet here.

    Read a section-by-section summary here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Ricketts Introduces Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, President Trump’s Nominee to Lead NIH

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Pete Ricketts (Nebraska)

    March 5, 2025

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) introduced Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, President Trump’s nominee to lead the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in front of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Senator Ricketts said the following of Dr. Bhattacharya:

    “He showed great intellectual honesty and courage because he offered alternative suggestions about how to handle the pandemic…” Sen. Ricketts said. “Dr. Bhattacharya helped give me a perspective and certainly demonstrated that he was thinking not just about how does the virus impact people but if we do lockdowns and so forth how will that impact people’s health? And there were other impacts from doing those shutdowns.” 

    When he was Governor, Ricketts consulted with Dr. Bhattacharya to develop Nebraska’s highly successful response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Politico ranked Nebraska as having the best COVID response of any state considering health, economic, social, and educational factors.

    Print 

    Share 

    Like 

    Tweet 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kennedy explains how new natural disaster tax law could save Louisianians money this tax season

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator John Kennedy (Louisiana)

    Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
    WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) explained how changes to the tax code could affect how some Louisianians claim deductions related to damage from Hurricanes Laura, Delta, Ida and Francine in a speech on the Senate floor.
    Key excerpts of the speech are below:
    “I realize, Mr. President of the Senate, that you would probably prefer to be condemned to hearing O.J. jokes for the rest of eternity than to hear me talk about federal income tax filing, but it is important for Americans and my people back in Louisiana because we have a new deduction for people who have uninsured losses from natural disasters. It’s really important in my state because many of my people have suffered damages, for which they did not receive insurance payments, from Hurricanes Laura, Delta, Ida and Francine.
    “It is called the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act. What it does is the following: It changes the law. It now says that if you are a victim of a natural disaster like a hurricane and you have a loss that is not paid for by your insurance, you can now deduct off your income tax—dollar for dollar—any uninsured property damage in excess of $500.”
    . . . 
    “I know folks are thinking, well, I already filed my income taxes for 2021 and 2022 and 2023. You can file an amended return. It is very simple to do. You just file an amended return that says: There has been a change in the law, and I am entitled to have this higher deduction, and therefore the federal government owes me money, and therefore please send me my check. So, I wanted to make sure that Americans knew about this new tax provision we passed.”
    Background: 
    In Dec. 2024, Congress passed the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, which allows Americans who suffered damage as a result of a federally declared disaster—including some hurricanes, tornados, and wildfires—to deduct from their taxes certain uninsured property damage in excess of $500.
    Louisianians who suffered uninsured property damage during Hurricanes Laura, Delta, Ida and Francine may be eligible for the new deduction. Those who already claimed losses from those storms between 2021 and 2023 may be able to amend their previously filed taxes to claim the new deduction.
    Individuals and couples that receive the standard tax deduction—which is 90% of Americans—will still receive the full standard deduction in addition to any deduction they may claim related to storm damage under this new law.
    Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kennedy identifies 3 ways Congress can unplug the Biden admin’s “inflation machine”

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator John Kennedy (Louisiana)

    Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
    WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) detailed the three ways in which Congress can work with the Trump administration to address inflation in a speech on the Senate floor.
    Key excerpts of the speech are below:
    “I don’t want to dwell on the past, but President Biden’s administration was an inflation machine. . . . What the American people are wondering every single day as they sell blood plasma to go to the grocery store is: when am I going to get some relief from these high prices? And we do need to provide them relief. I want to talk about three ways that we are in the process of trying to reduce those prices that my Democratic colleagues caused.”
    . . .
    “Number one: reduce spending. You see it every single day from President Trump. He said he was going to audit federal spending, and that is exactly what he is doing.” 
    . . .
    “Number two: deregulation. The federal government wants to regulate every breath we take. . . . It is just amazing, and each one of these regulations has a cost. The cost of all of our regulations today is in excess of $2 trillion—not billion, not million—$2 trillion.
    “What does that mean? That means when a business produces a product or it delivers a service—and it has to comply with a meaningless, gnarly federal regulation which costs money—that extra expense is added to the cost of the product or the service. Duh. I mean, businesses have to stay in business. They can’t eat the cost so they pass it on, and that leads to higher prices.”
    . . .
    “The third way we are attacking these high prices is by trying to stimulate the economy to increase wages so that we actually can grow out of these high prices so that people will have more money to spend when they buy a car or go to the grocery store. We are not going to do that with tepid GDP growth. . . . We are going to do that through the tax code.
    “We have about $4.5 trillion worth of tax cuts that we implemented back in 2017 that caused the economy to grow and wages to go up until COVID hit. Those tax cuts are expiring here very shortly, and we are going to extend them.”
    . . .
    “We are well aware that high prices are gutting the American people like a fish, but by reducing spending, by deregulating the economy, and by designing a tax code that looks like somebody designed it on purpose, we are going to get those high prices down.”
    Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Warner, Kaine, and Klobuchar Unveil Legislation to Undo President Trump’s Senseless Taxes on Canadian Goods

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Commonwealth of Virginia Mark R Warner
    WASHINGTON– Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Tim Kaine, Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, (D-VA), and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), unveiled legislation to undo President Donald Trump’s wildly unpopular tariffs on Canadian goods, which amount to a 25 percent tax on goods imported from one of America’s top trading partners and closest allies.
    “Virginians can’t afford the cost of President Trump’s tariffs, which will raise prices on everything from groceries to houses and cars,” said Sen. Warner. “Congress must step in before President Trump tanks our economy.”
    “Americans want prices to go down—not skyrocket, which is exactly what will happen if Congress lets President Trump slap new taxes on goods from one of our largest trading partners and closest allies,” said Sen. Kaine. “We don’t need to guess what kind of damage these senseless new taxes will do. During Trump’s first term, his trade wars spelled disaster for Virginians, particularly for farmers and foresters who were hit especially hard. Congress has a responsibility to stop that from happening again, and I urge all of my colleagues to join me in blocking Trump from destroying our economy.”
    “This Administration is igniting a reckless trade war and regular Americans are paying the price,” said Sen. Klobuchar. “Costs for everyone will go up and our farmers and businesses will suffer. Canada is Minnesota’s top trading partner and is a key U.S. ally. We must reverse these damaging tariffs before it’s too late.”
    In Virginia in 2024, Canada was the largest export market and accounted for 15 percent of Virginia exports. In Virginia in 2022, top goods exports to Canada included motor vehicles and transportation equipment, such as medium- and heavy-duty trucks. 56.1 percent of Southwest Virginia’s economic output is dependent on trade.
    Polls have overwhelmingly demonstrated that the American people do not support Trump’s trade wars. According to a recent survey by Public First, just 28 percent of American adults supported specifically applying tariffs to Canada, while 43 percent opposed.
    Specifically, the senators’ legislation would work by terminating the February 1 emergency that Trump used to launch his trade war with Canada, and thus eliminate the tariffs on Canadian imports implemented as a result. Trump’s order cites the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA), an unprecedented use of IEEPA in its nearly half century history. After an initial one-month delay, President Trump decided to move forward with the tariffs, with the import taxes starting to be collected on March 4, 2025. In total, President Trump’s IEEPA tariffs will cost the average American household up to $2,000 a year, with the Canada tariffs making up a significant portion of that. These IEEPA tariffs represent the largest tax increase on American families in recent history.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Booker’s Joint Address Guest, Cameron McKenzie, Fired Federal Worker of Blairstown, New Jersey

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Jersey Cory Booker
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) will be joined by Cameron McKenzie at President Trump’s Joint Address to Congress this evening. Against the backdrop of increased and uncharacteristic forest fires in New Jersey, McKenzie abruptly lost his job in the United States Forest Service as part of wider DOGE purges across the federal government workforce. As a result of losing his job, Cameron is now planning to sell his home in Blairstown, New Jersey.
    “Cameron McKenzie believed deeply in the work he was doing with the United States Forest Service. He was taking care of our environment and serving as a steward to one of our nation’s most valued treasures. Unfortunately, Cameron’s post was part of Elon Musk’s wider effort to purge the federal workforce, and its impact extends beyond the void left in the Forest Service and every other federal agency. Cameron’s future is now uncertain, and he will have to sell his home in Blairstown. What Musk is doing is hemorrhaging our nation’s talented workforce and unduly harming people and communities nationwide, including New Jerseyans. It is my honor to be joined by Cameron this evening, and it is my hope that his courage and resilience are recognized for what they are: patriotic,” said Senator Booker.
    Cameron McKenzie is a graduate of Princeton University and Yale University and lives and works in Blairstown, New Jersey. Upon receiving his master’s degree in forestry, he successfully applied to the highly competitive and prestigious Presidential Management Fellowship Program (PMF), whereupon he was assigned to serve in the United States Forest Service as a Community Engagement Specialist. The position afforded him the opportunity to manage U.S. Forest Service outreach programs across more than twenty national forests in the midwestern and northeastern United States. Unfortunately, Cameron’s job with the Forest Service was terminated following wider DOGE purges across the federal government workforce. His story, and those of former federal workers, was featured in a February story in The New York Times.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Booker, Hawley Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Speed Up Labor Contracts

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Jersey Cory Booker
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) led a bipartisan group of colleagues in introducing legislation to speed up first contracts for new unions. The legislation would ensure that when workers vote to unionize, a labor agreement ultimately becomes a reality. U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Bernie Moreno (R-OH), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) joined as original cosponsors.  
    After workers vote to form a union, they don’t immediately reap the benefits of collective bargaining. Instead, they first need to obtain an initial agreement with management. But current law stacks the deck in favor of anti-union employers. While existing labor law requires workers and employers to bargain in good faith, the law currently doesn’t impose a negotiation deadline. Over the last few years, it’s taken longer and longer for new unions to secure first contracts. On average, it takes well over a year to get an agreement.
    “Americans deserve fair wages, safe workplaces, and good benefits in exchange for their hard work—and forming a union helps workers fight for fairness in their workplace,” said Senator Booker. “Workers who vote to join a union have the right to form that union quickly, instead of facing years of delays from big corporations. This bipartisan bill would ensure that workers are able to have their voices heard and more quickly enjoy the benefits of forming a union instead of facing uncertainty and prolonged stalling tactics.” 
    “The status quo hurts workers. Despite exercising their legal—and moral—right to bargain collectively, workers are often prevented from enjoying the benefits of the union they voted to form when mega-corporations drag their feet, slow-walk contract negotiations, and try to erode support for the union,” said Senator Hawley. “It’s wrong. We need real labor reform that puts workers first. I’m proud to introduce bipartisan and Teamsters-endorsed legislation that does just that.”
    “When unions thrive, working families thrive. Our bipartisan effort is an important step forward to support hardworking Americans by making it easier to form a union, leading to better wages and benefits for all workers. Senator Hawley and I will do all we can to advance this common-sense reform to benefit workers nationwide,” said Senator Merkley.
    “When employees stand together to organize their workplace, they deserve to get to the bargaining table as soon as possible,” said Senator Peters. “This bipartisan bill is a step in the right direction. It would help crack down on union busting tactics so our workers can fight for the wages and benefits they deserve, without interference and attempts to delay the process.”
    “Greedy corporations will stop at nothing to keep workers from getting a fair first contract. Their playbook is simple: stall, delay, and drag out negotiations to deny workers from securing the wages and conditions they deserve. Teamsters are proud to support the Faster Labor Contracts Act—real labor law reform that forces employers to bargain in good faith and holds them accountable when they don’t,” said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien. 
    The Faster Labor Contracts Act would:
    Amend the National Labor Relations Act to require that after workers have voted to form a union, employers must begin negotiating with the new union within 10 days.
    Provide that if no agreement is reached within 90 days, the dispute will be referred to mediation.
    Stipulate that if mediation fails within 30 days, or additional periods agreed upon by the parties, the dispute will be referred to binding arbitration to secure an initial contract.
    Commission a Government Accountability Office report on average workplace time-to-contract one year after enactment.
    Senator Booker has long championed workers’ rights, including by protecting their right to organize. Last Congress, he introduced the Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, a comprehensive proposal to protect the rights of workers to come together and bargain for higher wages, better benefits, and safer workplaces. While large corporations and wealthy individuals continue to capture the rewards of a growing economy, working families and underserved Americans are left behind.
    To read the full text of the bill, click here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Booker, Warren, Lawmakers to Trump: Fire Elon Musk, Reinstate Agency Leaders, and Federal Watchdogs

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Jersey Cory Booker
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), along with Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-MD), led 38 Members of Congress in a letter to President Donald Trump, raising concerns about his unlawful firings of dozens of independent agency heads and inspectors general (IGs), and calling attention to how many of these firings appear to benefit Elon Musk. The Members also demand that President Trump remove Musk from his government role unless he addresses his conflicts of interest, and immediately reinstate the illegally fired individuals. 
    “Nearly all of your decisions you made about who to fire appear to benefit Mr. Musk, and many target individuals and agencies that are currently investigating or prosecuting Mr. Musk or his companies for unlawful behavior,” wrote the lawmakers. “Many of these individuals have legal protections dictating why and how they can be removed from office.”
    Many of the firings appear to benefit Musk and his business interests. Musk and his companies were the subject of at least 20 recent government investigations or prosecutions, including for possible violations of federal safety and labor laws—until Musk dismantled those agencies. The lawmakers’ letter names several agency heads and watchdogs who were overseeing the investigations who and were improperly fired, including: NLRB Chair Gwynne Wilcox, FEC Chair Ellen Weintraub, EEOC Commissioners Jocelyn Samuels and Charlotte Burrow, and USDA Inspector General Phyllis Fong.
    “Altogether, these firings either directly benefit Mr. Musk and his companies or remove guardrails that would hold them accountable to the rule of law,” the lawmakers continued.
    Several of Trump’s orders violate the officials’ legal protections. For example, federal law requires the president to notify Congress 30 days before removing an inspector general, but Trump failed to do so before firing over a dozen IGs. He also didn’t provide the justification required to remove a leaders of independent agencies. 
    “The impacts are vast: in total, your removals of agency heads and career civil servants have affected at least eleven federal agencies with more than thirty-two ongoing investigations, complaints, or enforcement actions on Mr. Musk’s companies,” wrote the lawmakers.
    The lawmakers warned that failing to hold Musk accountable hurts American citizens and threatens the democratic system of checks and balances.
    “These firings have removed the exact individuals in our government who would hold Mr. Musk and his companies accountable for following the law and protect everyday Americans from threats to their health, welfare, safety, and economic well-being,” wrote the lawmakers.
    “We urge you to immediately reinstate the illegally fired individuals and remove Mr. Musk from his government role unless he addresses his massive and glaring conflicts of interest as required by law,” concluded the lawmakers.
    The letter is cosigned by U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Ed Markey (D-MA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).
    In addition to co-leads House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-MD), the following Representatives signed on: Balint (D-VT), Beyer (D-VA), Brownley (D-CA), Clarke (D-NY), Cleaver (D-MO), Cohen (D-TN), Davis (D-IL), DeSaulnier (D-CA), García (D-IL), Garcia (D-CA), Grijalva (D-AZ), Johnson (D-GA), Kelly (D-IL), Khanna (D-CA), Lee (D-PA), Levin (D-CA), Matsui (D-CA), McIver (D-NJ), Moulton (D-MA), Norton (D-DC), Olszewski (D-MD), Ramirez (D-IL), Scanlon (D-PA), Schakowsky (D-IL), Stansbury (D-NM), Subramanyam (D-VA), Titus (D-NV), Tlaib (D-MI), Tokuda (D-HI), Tonko (D-NY), and Waters (D-CA).
    To read the full text of the letter, click here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Tuberville Reintroduces Legislation to Expand Treatment Options for Veterans

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alabama Tommy Tuberville

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) joined U.S. Senators John Hoeven (R-ND) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) in reintroducing the HBOT Access Act to make Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) an available resource for veterans suffering from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) who have exhausted other evidence-based treatment options. Senator Tuberville previously introduced this legislation in the 117th Congress. 

    Senator Tuberville spoke about the need to expand HBOT for veterans yesterday in a U.S. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC) hearing and received thunderous applause from veterans in the room. 

    “Our veterans face many battles from their time in war—including those that we can’t see,” said Senator Tuberville. “We must do more to support them as they face these silent struggles, especially when it comes to mental health. For veterans that have exhausted other options, access to HBOT treatment could make all the difference in them living to see another day. We have nothing to lose, but we do have lives to save. I appreciate Senators Hoeven and Cramer joining me to introduce this critical piece of legislation, and will continue fighting for America’s veterans.”

    The HBOT Access Act is endorsed by the American Legion.

    BACKGROUND

    Senator Tuberville represents Alabama’s more than 400,000 veterans on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee and hasworked to make targeted, yet meaningful changes to how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) delivers care and benefits for veterans. He has introduced several pieces of legislation that have been signed into law, including the Supporting Families of the Fallen Act, Restoring Benefits to Defrauded Veterans Act, and legislation to streamline Post-9/11 benefits for service members and their dependents.

    The HBOT Access Act would require the VA to provide HBOT as a treatment option to any veteran suffering from TBI or PTSD and who has tried no fewer than two evidence-based treatment options. This legislation builds on the Right to Try Actsigned into law by President Trump. Currently, HBOT is an FDA-approved treatment option for 14 different illnesses, but is not approved for use by the VA for traumatic brain injuries, although evidence of beneficial HBOT treatment is documented within the veterans’ community.

    MORE:

    WHAT THEY ARE SAYING: Praise Mounts for Tuberville’s HBOT Access Act

    Tuberville Leads Effort to Provide Veterans Greater Access to Treatment, Introduces HBOT Access Act

    Tuberville Introduces Legislation to Ensure Community Care Access for Veterans

    Tuberville, Moran Introduce Legislation to Improve Access to Care for Veterans

    Senate Passes Tuberville Legislation to Restore Benefits to Defrauded Veterans

    House Passes Tuberville Legislation to Restore Benefits to Defrauded Veterans

    Tuberville Continues Fight to Protect Veterans’ Access to Community Care

    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: Duckworth Reacts to Trump’s Joint Address to Congress

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth

    March 04, 2025

    [WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) issued the following statement in reaction to President Donald Trump’s Joint Address to Congress, in which he outlined his harmful agenda that would benefit already-wealthy billionaires at the expense of middle-class Americans:

    “Donald Trump promised he’d lower costs for middle-class Americans, but clearly that was a lie he sold to get elected. In reality, we’re continuing to watch Trump and Elon Musk take a chainsaw to programs and services that middle-class families rely on—the same families Trump swore he’d protect—all while doing nothing to address the rising cost of eggs and groceries. Since day one, Trump has already damaged lifelines like Head Start, gutted cancer research, fired more Veterans than any President in our nation’s history and is making our country less safe by surrendering to Putin while abandoning our democratic partners and allies. Make no mistake: Trump and Musk will continue to ram through cuts to health care and critical programs that middle-class Americans depend on so they can fund tax breaks for already-wealthy billionaires. They don’t care about making government work better for families, they only want to make government work better for themselves. If Republicans won’t stick up for the middle class, Democrats will.”

    As part of her ongoing efforts to push back against Trump’s illegal funding freeze that continues to inflict needless chaos, confusion and financial pain on Head Start programs and the middle-class families they serve throughout Illinois, Senator Duckworth invited Lauri Morrison-Frichtl, Executive Director of the Illinois Head Start Association, as her guest to Trump’s Joint Address to Congress.

    “Leaders like Lauri Morrison-Frichtl are on the frontlines of Trump’s needless chaos—which is continuing to cause irreversible damage and jeopardize Illinois Head Start’s ability to serve thousands of children and families,” said Duckworth. “I was proud to invite Lauri Morrison-Frichtl to the Joint Address to remind middle-class Americans and this Administration just how critical Head Start services are—not only for working parents trying to make ends meet, but also for the next generation of students. We cannot let Trump and Republicans tear down this lifeline for families in order to fund tax cuts for billionaires—full stop.”

    With over 37 years of experience with Head Start, Executive Director Morrison-Frichtl is a steadfast leader and advocate for the wellbeing of the thousands of children and families in our state who face the most significant barriers to achieving success in school and in life. Additionally, nearly 70% of Illinois Head Start and Early Head Start parents are in the workforce and rely on Head Start’s programs in order to go to their jobs—allowing them to support their families and contribute to our economy. An official portrait photo of Illinois Head Start Executive Director Lauri Morrison-Frichtl can be found on the Senator’s website.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Duckworth, Cohen Renew Push to Help Improve School Bus Safety and Protect Our Kids

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth

    March 04, 2025

    [WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation (CST)— and U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) reintroduced legislation to help keep our kids safe as they travel to and from school. The School Bus Safety Act of 2025 would implement safety recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to make school buses safer by ensuring there are seat belts at every seat and buses are equipped with safety measures like stability control and automatic braking systems. The bill would also create a grant program to help school districts modify school buses to meet these important safety modifications.

    “No parent should have to worry about the safety of their children when they get on a school bus—but school buses often lack seat belts and other basic safety equipment that every parent demands,” said Senator Duckworth. “Nothing is more important than protecting our children, which is why I’m proud to be reintroducing the School Bus Safety Act with Rep. Cohen to help prevent school bus accidents, make accidents less severe and implement other commonsense safety recommendations that will save lives.”

    “There is no more precious cargo than children entrusted by their parents for a bus ride to school,” said Rep. Cohen. “The commonsense measures recommended by the NTSB and called for in this legislation will save young lives. I am pleased to reintroduce this legislation with Senator Duckworth to make school buses across the country safer while helping financially strapped school districts modify their school bus fleets to meet the new specifications. We’ve seen too many deaths and serious injuries in school bus accidents in Tennessee and elsewhere, and it is past time we act to protect young lives.”

    The School Bus Safety Act would require the Department of Transportation issue rules requiring all school buses to include:

    • A 3-point safety belt, which includes a seat belt across a lap as well as a shoulder harness to help protect passengers by restraining them in case of a collision.
    • An Automatic Emergency Braking System, which helps prevent accidents and crashes by detecting objects or vehicles ahead of the bus and braking automatically.
    • An Event Data Recorder (EDR) that can record pre- and post-crash data, driver inputs, and restraint usage and when a collision does occur.
    • An Electronic Stability Control (ESC) System that will use automatic computer-controlled braking of individual wheels to assist the driver remain in control of the vehicle.
    • A Fire Suppression System, which addresses engine fires.
    • A Firewall that prohibits hazardous quantities of gas or flame to pass through the firewall from the engine compartment to the passenger compartment.

    According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 1,082 people have died in school transportation-related crashes between 2013 and 2022, which saw a total of 976 crashes.

    Full text of the legislation can be found on Senator Duckworth’s website.

    Duckworth has long pushed for improving school bus safety, originally introducing this legislation in 2018 and again in 2023.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Duckworth, Durbin Meet with Illinois State Association of Counties

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth

    March 05, 2025

    {WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL)  yesterday met with representatives from the Illinois State Association of Counties to discuss the impact of the Trump Administration’s funding freeze on Illinois.  During this meeting, Durbin and Duckworth heard directly from county leaders about affected transportation and infrastructure projects.  Last week, Durbin and Duckworth joined Illinois leaders to send a letter to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought demanding the release of the approximately $1.88 billion in funding being illegally withheld from Illinois taxpayers despite the funding being appropriated by Congress and the U.S. courts intervening with the freeze.

    The Senators and county leaders also spoke about House Republicans’ proposed $880 billion in Medicaid cuts to compensate for President Trump’s tax cut for billionaires.  If congressional Republicans pass these Medicaid cuts, 3.4 million Illinoisans on Medicaid, including nearly 1.5 million children, could lose access to critical health care. 

    “Whether it’s illegally freezing funds or backing a bill to gut Medicaid, Trump is hurting the same families he swore to protect by jeopardizing programs they rely on,” Duckworth said. “Worse yet, Republicans are planning to put Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid on the chopping block in order to pay for tax cuts for billionaires.  I’m glad I had the chance to meet with the leaders of the Illinois State Association of Counties alongside Senator Durbin to discuss how Trump’s chaos is impacting communities across Illinois. We’ll keep pushing back and sticking up for families.”

    “The decisions made in the White House and on Capitol Hill have real impacts in Illinois.  The President’s decision to freeze promised federal funds to Illinois is jeopardizing critical transportation and infrastructure projects in Illinois, further harming our economy and threatening Illinoisans’ jobs.  Meanwhile, congressional Republicans are scheming to cut health care for 3.4 million Illinoisans on Medicaid to give tax breaks to billionaires,” Durbin said.  “Senator Duckworth and I heard directly from members of the Illinois State Association of Counties today about the impacts they’re seeing in their home counties.”

      

    Photos of the meeting are available here.

    Counties represented at the meeting included:

    • Cook County
    • Kane County
    • Lake County
    • McHenry County
    • Peoria County
    • Stephenson County
    • Will County

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sen. Moran Response to President Trump’s Address to Congress

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas – Jerry Moran

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) released the following statement in response to President Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress:

    “In his address to Congress, President Trump outlined his plans to bolster the economy, strengthen national security and protect our southern border. The President has already reinstated commonsense border policies to make certain our border patrol agents have the tools and authority they need to apprehend illegal migrants, arrest drug traffickers and stop fentanyl from entering our country. Congress must work to pass legislation that provides the resources needed to sustain a secure border through permanent infrastructure, increased manpower and cutting-edge technology.

    “Kansans and Americans are facing many challenges, and addressing these challenges will require us to work together to find solutions and make certain all Americans can achieve the American Dream.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Hassan Statement Ahead of President Trump’s Address to the Joint Session of Congress

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Hampshire Maggie Hassan
    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) released the following statement ahead of President Trump’s address to the Joint Session of Congress:
    “No matter what President Trump says, boasts, or promises tonight, the past six weeks have made the President’s priorities painfully clear. At a time when American families are struggling to keep up with high costs, the President has endorsed a budget that would end Medicaid as we know it and increase costs on Americans in order to pay for more tax breaks for corporate special interests and billionaires. I remain ready to work with the President and my Republican colleagues to lower costs. But the President has shown that his focus instead is on making families pay more for home heating oil, cutting veterans services, and appeasing brutal dictators like Vladimir Putin. It is long past time for this Administration to get serious and get to work on bringing down prices, bringing the country together, and delivering for the American people.”
    Senator Hassan’s guest of honor for the President’s address this year is Cheri Bryer of Lebanon. Eleven years ago, Cheri was battling addiction and other mental health challenges. Thankfully, Cheri was eligible for Medicaid, which allowed her to access residential addiction treatment and enter recovery. Because of the care that Cheri got through Medicaid, she was able to return to work and now gets her health insurance coverage through her employer. Today, Cheri works as a senior perinatal peer support educator and coordinator in the Maternal Health Innovations grant on Dartmouth Health’s Population Health team. The budget proposal from President Trump and Congressional Republicans, which guts Medicaid to pay for tax giveaways for corporate special interests and billionaires, threatens the care for 180,000 Granite Staters – care that helped Cheri enter recovery and re-enter the workforce.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senate Intelligence Vice Chair Warner on Move to Cease Intelligence Sharing with Ukraine

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Commonwealth of Virginia Mark R Warner
    WASHINGTON – Today, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following statement:
    “The Trump administration has followed its recent ill-advised and weak decision to cut off military assistance to Ukraine by now also callously shutting off intelligence sharing with the hard-pressed Ukrainians as they continue to defend their country against the ongoing military onslaught of Vladimir Putin’s army. Instead of standing up to Putin, President Trump has given away American power to Russia – from voting at the UN with Russia and North Korea and against all of our allies, to directly negotiating with Russia at the highest levels while excluding Ukraine, to refusing to condemn Vladimir Putin’s dictatorship while unjustly calling the democratically elected Ukrainian president a ‘dictator’ and ejecting him from the White House. And, all the while, Putin has not let up on his illegal assault against Ukraine. Allied intelligence support has been crucial to enable Ukraine to defend itself from the first days of the conflict in February 2022, to unmask Russian invasion plans and intentions, and to save countless innocent lives. Let me be clear: Cutting off intelligence support to our Ukrainian partners will cost lives.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sen. Warner on President Trump’s Address to a Joint Session of Congress

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Commonwealth of Virginia Mark R Warner
    WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following statement on President Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress:
    “Tonight, President Trump touted policies that are raising prices for Americans, draining our federal workforce, illegally threatening government programs and benefits, and terrorizing the immigrant communities that have shaped Virginia. The president bragged about his reckless plan to isolate America from its allies, turn our back on long-kept partnerships, raise taxes on hardworking families, and reverse historic advancements in U.S. innovation and competition. Our country can – and should – do better. I will continue doing everything I can to fight for Virginians.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Durbin Introduced Resolution Recognizing National Social And Emotional Learning Week

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin

    March 05, 2025

    WASHINGTON—U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced a resolution designating the week of March 3, 2025, as National Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Week.  SEL is centered on developing the self-awareness, ability to manage emotions, and interpersonal skills necessary for school, the workplace, and life.  Research shows that SEL promotes student academic outcomes, self-efficacy, and positive mental health, especially for students who have experienced trauma, by helping them cope and thrive.  A 2024 study found that 84 percent of employers say job candidates must demonstrate social and emotional skills—with the majority of employers stating that these types of skills were the most important. 

    “In 2025, kids are weighed down by significant stress at home, in their communities, and in school settings.  We are facing nothing short of a national youth mental health crisis.  It’s critical that we focus on social and emotional learning to help students succeed both inside and outside the classroom,” Durbin said.  “Teachers must have the tools to help students develop resiliency and life skills.  I’m introducing this resolution to designate this week as National Social and Emotional Learning Week and raise awareness around the need to support students’ social and emotional well-being.”

    The National Social and Emotional Learning Weekresolution would:

    • Recognize the role that social and emotional learning plays in promoting academic achievement, mental and behavioral health, and future career success for students;
    • Express support for expanding access to social and emotional learning for students and teachers;
    • Encourage the identification of opportunities among federal agencies to advance social and emotional learning to support the academic success and overall well-being of students, educators, and their communities; and
    • Recognize March 3 through March 7, 2025, as National SEL Week.

    The resolution is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Angus King (I-ME), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).

    Durbin has long been a champion for SEL and an advocate for improving services for youth mental health and mentorship.  Durbin has worked across the aisle to introduce the RISE from Trauma Act, which would dramatically increase funding for community-based efforts to prevent and mitigate the impact of trauma, and expand training and workforce development efforts to support health care, education, social services, first responders, and community leaders to foster resilience and deliver services to heal the impact of trauma.

    Durbin is also the author of the Mentoring to Succeed Act.  The legislation would provide competitive grants to school-based mentoring programs that train mentors in SEL and help at-risk students develop life skills.

    Full text of the resolution is available here.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI: Mullin Previews President Trump’s Joint Address with Laura Ingraham

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator MarkWayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma)
    “Promises made, promises kept, is what the President has been doing.”
    Washington, D.C. – Tuesday night, U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) joined Fox News’s Laura Ingraham on-set of The Ingraham Angle to preview President Trump’s Joint Address before Congress. The senator stressed the importance of using the president’s peace through strength message to end the war in Ukraine, echoed the need for Elbridge Colby to serve as Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, and pointed out the lack of leadership in the Democratic Party.

    Sen. Mullin’s full interview can be found here.
    On why Zelensky should have thanked President Trump:
    “Well, he messed up, and fortunately, it’s going to work out in our favor, especially with the mineral deal. Zelensky bit the hand that was trying to feed him, and when the President was ready to make a deal. Zelensky, unfortunately slapped the hand down, and now he’s going to he’s going to be negotiating from a point of weakness…
    “The President is right. Let’s make a mineral deal. Let’s negotiate peace and stop the killing. Promises made, promises kept, is what the President has been doing.”
    On the only reason for Elbridge Colby’s opposition is because of President Trump:
    “Bridge did a phenomenal job as he was sitting there, he showed that he was very capable of articulating the message that need to be said, but he also had a strong grasp on the issues. Anyone that’s going to oppose him is doing it just because of their hatred for President Trump. That’s it. You can’t get anybody more qualified than Bridge Colby, it doesn’t happen…”
    On the absence of leadership on the Left:
    “That’s why you’re having all these messages they try to resonate. Hillary Clinton, that didn’t work. Joe Biden was not cognitively there. Harris couldn’t lead herself out of a paper bag. And now you have a bunch of people, a bunch of Democrats, audition for 2028 and for some reason…”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: 03.05.2025 Cruz Resolution Overturning IRS Rule on Cryptocurrency Passes By Overwhelming Bipartisan Majority

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas Ted Cruz
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, the United State Senate passed a resolution authored by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to overturn a Biden administration midnight rule imposing regulations on software developers of decentralized financial (DeFi) technology. The resolution passed by an overwhelming bipartisan majority, 70-28.
    The rule defined those developers as “brokers,” even though they did not touch any of the cryptocurrency being exchanged. The resolution is the first crypto-related measure to pass the Senate this Congress, and will now head to the House of Representatives for consideration.
    Upon passage, Sen. Cruz said, “Last night’s vote was a victory for American innovation. In a midnight move, the Biden administration attempted to undermine American privacy and impose burdensome regulations on digital currency. Yesterday, an overwhelming bipartisan majority voted in support of my legislation to rescind this harmful regulation. I urge the House to pass this legislation expeditiously.”
    The resolution was co-sponsored by Sens. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Tim Sheehy (R-Utah), and Ted Budd (R-N.C.). Rep. Carey introduced the joint resolution in the House of Representatives.
    Read the joint resolution here.
    Blockchain Association CEO Kristin Smith said yesterday, “Today’s a bright day for DeFi – and all of crypto – in the United States. An incredible showing of bipartisan support passed Senator Ted Cruz’s Congressional Review Act resolution to roll back the DeFi-killing broker rule out of the Senate. It’s a hopeful sign that shows there is true bipartisan agreement in Washington that the American crypto industry deserves the freedom to grow and innovate here in the United States.”
    BACKGROUND
    The Internal Revenue Service rule that would be repealed by Sen. Cruz’s resolution in Gross Proceeds Reporting by Brokers That Regularly Provide Services Effectuating Digital Asset Sales. The rule was finalized on December 30, 2024.
    Sen. Cruz’s resolution was endorsed by:
    The Digital Chamber, Blockchain Association, DeFi Education Fund, Cedar Innovation Foundation, Uniswap, Paradigm, Cryptocurrency Council for Innovation, DCG, Stand With Crypto, Coin Center, Texas Blockchain Association, Crypto Freedom Alliance of Texas, Pennsylvania Blockchain Coalition, Ohio Blockchain Council, North Carolina Blockchain Initiative, South Carolina Blockchain, Virginia Blockchain Council, and California Blockchain Advocacy Coalition. The Club for Growth issued a “key vote” urging lawmakers to vote for the resolution.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Markey Statement on Trump’s Joint Address to Congress

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts Ed Markey

    Washington (March 4, 2025) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) released the following statement tonight in response to Donald Trump’s 2025 Joint Address to Congress. Senator Markey attended the address with his guest, Chrissy Lynch, President of the Massachusetts charter of the American Federation of Labor – Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO).

    “Instead of fighting for working people, Trump is selling them out to give billionaires tax breaks. He wants to gut Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act, and put that money in the pockets of Elon Musk and his ultra wealthy donors. Trump doesn’t stand with we, the people – he stands with we, the billionaires. Tonight, I brought Chrissy Lynch as my guest because she is a champion for workers in Massachusetts and throughout the country, and I will continue to be with her and the labor movement to fight for an economy that works for everyone.

    “Tonight, Trump promised to cut the environmental and climate programs that keep our communities thriving, healthy, and safe from polluters and lower energy costs – all to make good on his campaign promise to Big Oil. His ongoing illegal, unconstitutional freeze of federal climate funding meant to go to red and blue communities is an attack on working families, small businesses, and job creation across the country.

    “Trump used this address to attack immigrants and trans children. He traded American democracy for Russian dictatorship. He spread lies and hatred – all because he has no plan to make life healthier or safer for everyday Americans.

    “The American people are facing real challenges and want real solutions – lower costs, better health care, cleaner water and air, more affordable housing, safer communities. We need to stand up to Trump, Musk, and fight to expand the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security. Fight to protect rights to contraception and abortion. Fight for comprehensive immigration reform, for our Dreamers, and a pathway to citizenship. And fight for clean energy, environmental justice, and a Green New Deal to combat the climate crisis.

    “We cannot give in to the dark, hate-filled future in Trump’s address. Together, we must organize to protect our democracy and ensure a better, brighter future for America’s families.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senators Markey, Cornyn Reintroduce Legislation to Fund Sea Turtle Research and Rescue Assistance

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts Ed Markey

    Bill Text (PDF)

    Washington (March 5, 2025) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee and co-author of the Green New Deal resolution, and Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) reintroduced their bipartisan and bicameral Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act, legislation to establish funding at the Department of Commerce for the rescue, recovery and research of sea turtles in Massachusetts and across the United States.

    “Sea turtles are the canaries in the coal mine. Right now, every known species of sea turtles found in US waters is either threatened or endangered and faces extinction and environmental wipeout due to the human-caused climate crisis. We have the responsibility to act,” said Senator Markey. “I am reintroducing the Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance Act to financially support ongoing rescue and rehabilitation efforts of our shelled friends.”  

    “Sea turtle strandings are rising at an alarming rate along the Texas Gulf Coast,” said Senator Cornyn. “This bill would help identify the causes of these strandings and invest in rescue and recovery efforts to better protect Texas’ endangered and storied sea turtle population.”

    The legislation is co-sponsored by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Tom Tillis (R-N.C.). In January, Representative Bill Keating (MA-09) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

    In 2000, fewer than 50 sea turtles were found stranded on the beaches of Cape Cod; by 2022, that number had skyrocketed to 866. During the 2021 cold snap in Texas, more than 12,100 turtles were cold-stunned, and rescue organizations were able to save and return only 4,000 of the stranded turtles to the wild. Rescue efforts are predominantly volunteer led and underfunded despite sea turtles facing increasing environmental and human-caused threats that make strandings more likely, including rapid temperature changes, red tide events, and entanglement in marine debris. This bill would provide stability and support to efforts that rehabilitate and aid in the recovery of sea turtles along the coastal US. Specifically, the Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance Act would create a new grant program to fund rescue, recovery, and research of sea turtles in the U.S., and authorize $5 million annually for awarding of grants to further that purpose from 2025 through 2030.

    The Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act is endorsed by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the New England Aquarium, the National Aquarium, ABQ BioPark, Acadia Institute of Oceanography, Adventure Aquarium, Allied Whale – College of the Atlantic, Assateague Coastal Trust, Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, Aquarium of the Pacific, Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Audubon Nature Institute, Bird River Beach Community Association, Blank Park Zoo, Brevard Zoo / East Coast Zoological Park, Brookfield Zoo Chicago, Buttonwood Park Zoo, Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens, Chattanooga Zoo at Warner Park, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, Coastal Research and Education Society of Long Island, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo, Conservation Council For Hawaii, El Paso Zoo and Botanical Garden, Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, Georgia Aquarium, Georgia Sea Turtle Center / Jekyll Island Authority, Georgia Wildlife Federation, Gladys Porter Zoo, Gulf World Marine Institute, Healthy Ocean Coalition, Houston Zoo, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), Jenkinson’s Aquarium, John Ball Zoo, John G. Shedd Aquarium, Kansas City Zoo, Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue & Rehabilitation Center, Loggerhead Marinelife Center, Louisiana Wildlife Federation, Marine Education – Research & Rehabilitation Institute, Inc. (MERR), Marine Conservation Institute, Marine Mammal Alliance Nantucket, Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, Mass Audubon, Maui Ocean Center Marine Institute, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Mystic Aquarium, National Marine Life Center, National Wildlife Federation, Natural Resources Defense Council, Newport Aquarium, New York Marine Rescue Center, North Carolina Aquariums, North Carolina Wildlife Federation, OdySea Aquarium, Oregon Coast Aquarium, Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium, Racine Zoo, Roger Williams Park Zoo, Saint Louis Zoo, SEA LIFE Aquariums, Sea Turtle Recovery, Inc., Seattle Aquarium, Seatuck Environmental Association, SeaWorld Parks, Sociedad Ornitologica Puertorriquena Inc., South Carolina Aquarium, South Carolina Wildlife Federation, Sunset Zoo, Surfrider Foundation, Texas Conservation Alliance, Texas Sealife Center, Texas State Aquarium, The Florida Aquarium, The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies, The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, The Ocean Project, The Turtle Hospital, Upwell Turtles, Vancouver Aquarium, Virgin Islands Conservation Society, Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, Whitney Lab for Marine Bioscience at University of Florida, WIDECAST: Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network, Wildlife Restoration Foundation, and Woodland Park Zoo.

    “We are grateful for Sen. Markey’s continued partnership as he reintroduces the Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act of 2025 in the U.S. Senate. Each year, the New England Aquarium rescues and rehabilitates hundreds of cold-stunned sea turtles that wash onto the beaches of Cape Cod Bay. This bill would help fill a critical gap in sea turtle conservation efforts by providing much-needed financial support to organizations across the country like ours that help return these endangered animals to the ocean,” said Vikki N. Spruill, President and CEO of the New England Aquarium.

    “The National Aquarium applauds the reintroduction of the bicameral, bipartisan Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act. We are proud to be part of the nationwide network of organizations engaged in sea turtle conservation and in educating the public on the challenges facing these threatened and endangered species. Sea turtle strandings are on the rise, as are the expenses related to rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing them back to their ocean home. The level of voluntary contribution from stranding network partners is not sustainable. We thank the champions in the House and Senate for their leadership in creating a much-needed federal grant program to support this important work,” said John Racanelli, President & CEO of the National Aquarium.

    “Each year, aquariums, zoos and other organizations selflessly rescue and rehabilitate thousands of stranded and injured sea turtles with little to no federal support. They do it because it is the right thing to do,” said Dan Ashe, President and CEO of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. “This bipartisan Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act would help to fill a critical gap in support for these federally protected sea turtles.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cotton, Banks: States Should Fight True Child Abuse, Not Punish Parents for Rejecting Sex Changes for Minors

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Arkansas Tom Cotton

     

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
    Contact: Caroline Tabler or Patrick McCann (202) 224-2353
    March 5, 2025

    Cotton, Banks: States Should Fight True Child Abuse, Not Punish Parents for Rejecting Sex Changes for Minors

    Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) and Jim Banks (R-Indiana) today reintroduced legislation to stop state governments from discriminating against parents who oppose “gender transitions” for children. The Guaranteeing Unalienable and Anatomical Rights for Dependents (GUARD) Act would make a state government ineligible for Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) funds if that state discriminates against a parent or guardian in custody disputes for opposing medical treatment, clothing changes, or social changes related to a child’s subjective “gender identity.”

    “If you don’t let your kid ‘transition’ to the opposite sex, certain state governments will help remove them from your custody. It sounds like dystopian science fiction, but it’s happening in the United States of America. Our bill would take funding away from states that abuse their power by taking away parents’ rights simply for opposing radical gender experiments,” said Senator Cotton.

    “The government has no business punishing parents for protecting their kids from radical gender ideology. My bill ensures that states respecting parental rights aren’t strong-armed into embracing dangerous social experiments,” said Senator Banks.

    This legislation is supported by the American Principles Project, Family Policy Alliance, Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee, and Heritage Action.

    Full text of the bill may be found here.

    The GUARD Act would:

    • Make any state government ineligible for Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) funds if they discriminate in child custody disputes, child services, or cases against a parent or guardian based on their opposition to medical, surgical, pharmacological, psychological treatment, or clothing and social changes related to affirming the subjective claims of so-called “gender identity” expressed by any minor, if such claimed identity is at odds with the minor’s biological sex.
    • Create a private right of action for individuals to sue if they were subject to the prohibited discrimination. If a suit is successful, CAPTA funds granted to the state are required to be returned to the Treasury. 

    Background:

    • Left-leaning states such as California, Oregon, and Washington have been removing children from their non-affirming parents’ care for years. This violates the religious freedom, conscience, and medical rights of parents.
    • In the case of Abby Martinez, her daughter was removed from her care. She ultimately committed suicide.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Yes, Biden Spent Millions on Transgender Animal Experiments

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    Last night, President Donald J. Trump highlighted many of the egregious examples of waste, fraud, and abuse funded by American taxpayers, including $8 million spent by the Biden Administration “for making mice transgender.”
    The Fake News losers at CNN immediately tried to fact check it, but President Trump was right (as usual).FACT: Under the Biden Administration, the National Institutes of Health doled out millions of dollars in taxpayer-funded grants for institutions across the country to perform transgender experiments on mice.
    $455,000: “A Mouse Model to Test the Effects of Gender-affirming Hormone Therapy on HIV Vaccine-induced Immune Responses”
    $2,500,000: “Reproductive Consequences of Steroid Hormone Administration”
    “These mice manifest defects in ovarian architecture and have altered folliculogenesis.”

    $299,940: “Gender-Affirming Testosterone Therapy on Breast Cancer Risk and Treatment Outcomes”
    “We will compare the incidences and tumor specific survival in female mice (intact) and oophorectomized female mice receiving TT with their respective counterparts that do not receive TT.”

    $735,113: “Microbiome mediated effects of gender affirming hormone therapy in mice”
    $1,200,000: “Androgen effects on the reproductive neuroendocrine axis”
    “Aim 2 utilizes transgenic mice to test whether male-level androgens acting via AR specifically in kisspeptin neurons are necessary and/or sufficient for androgen inhibition of in vivo LH pulse parameters, including pulse frequency, and the estrogen-induced LH surge.”

    $3,100,000: “Gonadal hormones as mediators of sex and gender influences in asthma”
    “We will study the contributions of estrogens to HDM-induced asthma outcomes using male and female gonadectomized mice treated with estradiol…”

    TOTAL: $8,290,053

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Chairman Wicker Makes Remarks on Zelenskyy Comments, Prospects for Peace in Ukraine

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Mississippi Roger Wicker

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, upon reviewing a statement made today by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, offered comments during a Senate Armed Service Committee hearing about the opportunity President Trump has to help craft a sustainable peace for Ukraine.

    Specifically, Chairman Wicker suggested that now is a moment for lawmakers to “take a deep breath” and allow the peace process to play out. Read his remarks in full below.

    Thank you Senator Banks for mentioning the really encouraging developments that have taken place since this hearing began. I’m going to take the liberty of reading into the record the exact statement of President Zelenskyy today.

    And I quote,

    “I would like to reiterate Ukraine’s commitment to peace.

    “None of us wants an endless war. Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer. Nobody wants peace more than Ukrainians. My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump’s strong leadership to get a peace that lasts.

    “We are ready to work fast to end the war, and the first stages could be the release of prisoners and truce in the sky – ban on missiles, long-ranged drones, bombs on energy and other civilian infrastructure — and truce in the sea immediately, if Russia will do the same. Then we want to move very fast through all next stages and to work with the US to agree a strong final deal.

    “We do really value how much America has done to help Ukraine maintain its sovereignty and independence. And we remember the moment when things changed when President Trump provided Ukraine with Javelins. We are grateful for this.

    “Our meeting in Washington, at the White House on Friday, did not go the way it was supposed to be. It is regrettable that it happened this way. It is time to make things right. We would like future cooperation and communication to be constructive.

    “Regarding the agreement on minerals and security, Ukraine is ready to sign it in any time and in any convenient format. We see this agreement as a step toward greater security and solid security guarantees, and I truly hope it will work effectively.”

    And I would then remind those within the sound of my voice and those reading the record that our president, President Trump, has said,

     

    “The Government of the United States of America supports Ukraine’s efforts to obtain security guarantees needed to establish lasting peace.”

     

    So let me just say this. I probably will not have an opportunity to take to the floor today. But I hope this is a day when we can refrain from some of the rhetoric that it’s tempting to make. I hope this is a day when Senators and members of the House of Representatives can take a deep breath and hope that the excellent, hopeful signs that come from this statement by President Zelenskyy come to fruition and come to fruition quickly.

    I’ve had fights with my roommates over time. We got over it. I’m even told sometimes there are family fights. It’s regrettable when they spill out into the front yard. But friends get over it. Friends decide to move on. And I think we’re seeing that process today. I hope to heaven that that is the case.

    And since Senator Banks mentioned it, I took the liberty of bringing it to the attention and to the record.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Chairman Wicker Leads SASC Hearing on Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Nominee Elbridge Colby

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Mississippi Roger Wicker

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today chaired a hearing reviewing the nomination of Mr. Elbridge A. Colby to be Under Secretary of Defense for Policy at the Department of Defense.

    In his opening statement, Chairman Wicker raised the need for a program of rapid reform at the Pentagon to improve deterrence against the complex threat environment posted by China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran. Chairman Wicker noted that Mr. Colby shares a common understanding of the dangerous security situation in the Western Pacific. Wicker also commended Colby’s exhortations to improve the defense industrial base.

    In examining Colby’s previous writings, however, Chairman Wicker noted the importance of remaining active in multiple theaters where threats against American national security have manifested, and asked Colby to offer his grand strategic vision for the U.S. in years ahead. Chairman Wicker also asked Colby to comment on his major reports to rebuild the military and reform the Pentagon as well, which Colby offered strong concurrence with.

    “Senator…I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing [your Peace Through Strength plan], and I think we’re keying off exactly. And I am a big supporter of that kind of perspective: restoring American strength, industrial might, and getting our allies to do more, which seems to me is also the perspective of the president and the Secretary of Defense…part of that plan [for deterrence] is greater resources, like, Mr. Chairman, you have advocated for,” Colby said. “I commit to advocating for the higher defense levels that I think are consistent with what our security dictates.”

    Read Senator Wicker’s hearing opening statement as delivered below.

    The hearing will come to order.

    Thank you all for being here this morning. The committee meets to consider the nomination of Mr. Elbridge Colby to be Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.

    I want to thank Mr. Colby for his willingness to serve again. I want to thank his wife, Susanna, and their children for being here today. It also says a lot that Mr. Colby will be introduced today by two distinguished friends: Vice President JD Vance and Senator Banks.

    We are informed that the vice president is in traffic, and so after consulting to my right and left, we will proceed again because there are time constraints. And when the vice president arrives – I think he’ll be arriving just in time, so proceeding on.

    If confirmed, Mr. Colby would oversee the developments of policy and strategy for the Department of Defense. He would assume these responsibilities during the most dangerous security environment since World War II. The deepening military cooperation between China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea represents a complex and far-reaching set of threats. These threats demand a generational investment to revitalize America’s military strength. They demand rapid Pentagon reform. And they demand a fresh look at strategies needed to achieve our national security objectives.

    The American people need to understand what is at stake. We should help the country appreciate the risks imposed to our way of life. Beijing is leading an emerging alliance of countries with one clear objective: to use their economic and military power to tear down the United States and impose their will on global affairs. The new Axis of Aggressors is a greater menace than we have faced in decades.

    Under Xi Jinping’s leadership the Chinese Communist Party has undertaken one of the largest and most aggressive military buildups in history. Their speed has been astounding. In just a few short years, China has built more nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles than the U.S. has in decades. They have tested orbital bombardment weapons and unveiled what may be the world’s first sixth-generation fighter aircraft. China possesses a ship building capacity over 230 times that of the United States – over 230 times. That’s almost inconceivable.

    Over three years ago, Vladimir Putin launched the first invasion of a European country since World War II. He has barraged the Ukrainian people with constant missile and drone attacks. The Kremlin has developed a variety of new weapons capabilities, including nuclear-armed satellites. Meanwhile Russia actively provides enriched uranium to China to support Beijing’s nuclear buildup. Putin has also been suspected of aiding North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.

    Moving on to North Korea, nuclear arsenal there continues to advance unchecked. Kim Jong-Un has been aiding Russia’s war machine as it terrorizes Europe. Pyongyang’s missiles could soon be capable of overwhelming our defenses – North Korea’s – especially if reports of Russian assistance are accurate.

    In the Middle East, Israel has successfully crippled Iran’s proxies in the region, but these setbacks may spur Tehran to take the final step: to build a nuclear weapon, permanently altering the balance of power in that region.

    Few really understand how this axis of aggressors is working to make Americans less safe. If confirmed, I hope Mr. Colby can help Secretary Hegseth as he makes sure the public sees these threats for what they are.

    During Secretary Hegseth’s hearing, I spoke about the importance of building a motivated and highly competent team of professionals at the Pentagon. In this regard Mr. Colby is certainly qualified for the role to which President Trump has nominated him.

    For more than two decades, he has worked on defense policy. Mr. Colby previously served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary Defense for Strategy and Force Development. In that role, Mr. Colby played a pivotal role in the formulation of the 2018 National Defense Strategy – the first real strategy in years. His leadership was crucial in helping the United States articulate the need for a new defense posture, one focused on strategic competition with China and Russia, and the overdue modernization of our military.

    Mr. Colby and I have been ringing the same bell on military unpreparedness for years, particularly as it relates to China. This committee would echo exhortations on defense policy in the Western Pacific. We should make Taiwan a porcupine and Taipei is sprinting in that direction. We should build a larger US military footprint in East Asia, and we should accelerate the most important weapons programs to deter China.

    President Trump has made it clear that he intends to rebuild the military and reform the Pentagon. He campaigned on peace through strength. We all want to keep America safe and prosperous. To secure that peace, we will enable a Golden Age for America, but we do not now have the strength that can guarantee us the peace.

    Given the threat environment facing us, I strongly believe that we cannot simply pivot our attention and resources from one threat to another. That is an approach the Obama administration tried, and it did fail. We must be focused and strategic, but we need to be clear Beijing sees its fight against America as a global fight.

    Beijing is not pivoting between theaters or among theaters. Significant American withdrawal in Europe, Africa, South America, or the Middle East will allow the Chinese Communist Party to overcome us strategically, even if we are able to prevent military conflict in East Asia in the near term.

    In the past few weeks, President Trump has killed five top Al-Qaeda and ISIS terrorists. Good for him. He’s green lit more aggressive campaigning against the Houthis, and promised to support Israel to the hilt. All these policies are in line with the president’s desire for lasting peace and prosperity in the United States, and Mr. Colby, I’m sure that is your desire too.

    Now, Mr. Colby, your views on each theater have seemingly evolved since 2018, and I’m sure there’ll be discussions about that which are worth exploring. It goes without saying that the elephant in this hearing room today is the recent developments with regard to Ukraine and Russia and this administration.

    I was disappointed and dismayed as I watched the televised meeting involving the President of the United States and President Zelenskyy. And I was distressed that the White House meeting ended without the signing of the minerals agreement, which was there to be signed, as I understand it.

    This was followed by a television appearance by President Zelenskyy, and then a visit to some of our friends in Europe, where there’s much concern about the failure of that agreement to be signed.

    It was also followed that weekend by Mr. Putin’s continued barrage of attacking apartments, civilian targets, and other areas in Ukraine. Not a good weekend for peace in Ukraine or world peace.

    The president is trying to get a peace deal in Ukraine, and I certainly hope we’ll be able to get this back on the rails. I would like to hear your views on the potential there. Your views on President Trump’s crystal-clear Iran policy seem to have hardened considerably, yet your views on Taiwan’s importance to the United States seems to have softened considerably. I hope we can clarify those views today. And your views on the relevance of nuclear weapons in the next decade remain unclear to me. I would appreciate your comments on each of those issues.

    Mr. Colby, you’ve spoken frequently to audiences who are skeptical of the idea that U.S, peace and prosperity require us to wield U.S. power abroad. I’m grateful that you have led those discussions that U.S. foreign policy professionals do not like having. I expect your points on the limits of U.S. power remain nuanced, and complimentary to the president’s peace through strength agenda. And it will be crystal clear that you will speak for the president in this regard.

    If you’re focused on finding innovative ways to blend America’s comparative advantages in this global fight against Chinese Communists, then I strongly believe you will be a boon to the president and to the United States of America. I’d like to hear your strategic vision for the next four years. I’d like to hear your comments on the plans I have released for rebuilding and reforming the military. In confirming Secretary Hegseth, we charged him with focusing on four guiding principles as he assumed office: lethality, efficiency, speed, and accountability. I also appreciate the ease of access that he and I have had in conversations with each other since his confirmation.

    As Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, I’d like to know how you plan to execute in these four areas to support President Trump’s peace through strength agenda. So, thank you very much for being here, we look forward to your testimony, and I now recognize Ranking Member Reed for his opening remarks.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: Peters Takes to Senate Floor to Denounce Trump Administration’s Illegal Firing of Thousands of Veterans Throughout Federal Workforce

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Michigan Gary Peters

    WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) delivered a speech on the Senate floor denouncing the Trump Administration’s illegal firing of thousands of veterans throughout the federal government. Veterans make up nearly 30 percent of the federal workforce, or approximately 640,000 employees. Since taking office, the Trump Administration has already laid off about 6,000 former servicemembers without cause, including veterans who worked in federal agencies like the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Department of Defense (DOD), and the Treasury Department for several years. In his remarks, Peters underscored the talent and value that veterans bring to the federal civil service and called on the Trump Administration to immediately reinstate these employees. 

    “Employing our nation’s veterans when they transition to civilian life is not just a responsibility, it is a smart business decision,” said Senator Peters. “That’s why the federal government has long taken advantage of this absolutely remarkable talent pool.”  

    Peters continued, “These are Americans who put their lives on the line to defend this country. They took up a job to continue to serve the people of this country. They represent the best of our nation, and we need them in our federal workforce. I’m calling on the Administration to reinstate these veteran employees immediately.” 

    To watch a video clip of Senator Peters’ remarks, click here.

    In his remarks, Peters also highlighted the stories of Michigan veterans who were impacted by these firings:

    “My staff met with a veteran who has worked for the VA in Michigan for nearly 30 years. Last year, they were moved to a new role within VA and were promoted to supervisor shortly thereafter. No surprise, because they had never received less than an excellent performance review over 30 years. But because they were relatively new to that specific role, they were swept up in the widespread firings, both within VA and across government, of all probationary employees. They were one of many veterans fired abruptly without cause, without reason.”

    “In another case, a veteran with 8 years of active-duty service in the Air Force was fired from a VA in Michigan after receiving an ‘outstanding’ performance review. Their probationary period was set to expire last week, just 12 days after they were let go.”

    Peters has been a continued advocate for America’s veterans. In January 2024, two bipartisan bills authored by Peters were signed into law to protect burial benefits for both veterans and military families. Peters also helped pass the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act into law – which delivered VA health care and benefits to all generations of toxic-exposed veterans – and their survivors – for the first time in our nation’s history. In 2016, Peters’ Fairness for Veterans Act was signed into law to help veterans who may have been erroneously given less than honorable discharge from the military due to negative behavior resulting from mental health traumas, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). In 2017, Peters was recognized as Legislator of the Year by the Vietnam Veterans of America for his work authoring and enacting the Fairness for Veterans Act.   

    Peters served more than a decade in the U.S. Navy Reserve, where he earned a Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist designation and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander. After the September 11th terrorist attacks on our country, he volunteered again for drilling status and served overseas as part of his Reserve duty. 

    MIL OSI USA News –