Growing up in rural Missouri, I knew if I didn’t feed our animals by 6am, I was going to be in trouble. Starting the day with this chore was essential to the rest of the day on the farm going smoothly. I approach my job as your Congressman the same way I approached my jobs on the farm – if things like tending to the animals or repealing Obamacare don’t get done on time and in the right way, you can’t accomplish bigger things like putting food on grocery store shelves or restoring healthcare choice and lowering insurance costs for Americans.
Traditionally, August is a time when Members of Congress get to spend time back home without having to fly back and forth to D.C. for votes and committee hearings. I always appreciate this time of year because I get to spend time with fellow Missourians and make stops in all 30 counties in our district to visit family farms and small businesses. I also get a break from sleeping on the couch in my office! But my job is to defend Missourians’ way of life, and I don’t want to see my colleagues take a break from work in D.C. until we make some real progress.
We have a failing healthcare law that leaves folks at home with little to no healthcare choices, a massive and burdensome tax code that takes Missouri families’ time and money and complicated and expensive regulations that need to be rolled back. Spending a few nights of August on the couch in my office would be well worth the tradeoff of getting some real work done, but first, we are going to need the Senate to take some action.
We have passed 269 bills out of the House of Representatives in just a few short months, but Senate Liberals have been doing their best to slow down our work ever since President Trump was elected. Of the 269 bills we have passed, 226 have stalled out and gone nowhere in the United States Senate. Unfortunately, Senate Liberals don’t understand working quickly and consecutively to accomplish goals – they only understand how to put up roadblocks in President Trump’s way. They are trying to obstruct the legislative process and stop us from delivering on the policies and the agenda Americans voted for in November.
The Senate is also behind on confirming President Trump’s nominees to his administration. At the same time during the Obama Administration, more than 90% of President Obama’s nominees were confirmed by the Senate in a voice vote. But Senate Liberals have only allowed 10% of President Trump’s confirmations to happen by voice vote. Furthermore, only two of President Trump’s 23 judicial nominations have actually been confirmed by the Senate. Once again, Senate Liberals are intentionally holding up the process for the Trump Administration.
Because of Senate Liberals’ inaction, there’s no time for a break. We have to work longer and harder than ever before to overcome Senate Liberals’ obstruction of President Trump’s legislative agenda.
