Women's Health
Welcome to the 118th Congress! In all my years in Congress, I have never experienced a week quite like last week. Instead of fighting for the American people, Republicans spent the week fighting against each other. Now that we finally have a Speaker of the House, and I have officially been sworn in for the 118th Congress, I can finally continue my work on behalf of Illinois’ 9th Congressional District.
In this week's video, I discuss the Senate vote on voting rights and Mitch McConnell. I talk about some of the funding coming to Illinois thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. And I talk about the 49th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.
Last Thursday, the United States of America reached its debt limit. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that extraordinary measures need to be taken to avoid the United States defaulting on its debts. We must raise the debt ceiling. This is not new spending; it is paying the bill for programs we have already approved. Republicans would rather cut Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, plus help the rich cheat on their taxes, than follow through with our obligations. It is time my colleagues put the livelihood of Americans first.
Once again, House Democrats saved the day by helping pass a continuing resolution, averting a catastrophic shutdown of the government. A total of 106 Republicans, nearly half of the entire House Republican Conference, voted against the continuing resolution and were prepared for a government shutdown. This is now the third time that Democrats have stepped up to prevent a shutdown. With the passage of this legislation, we have extended the deadlines to pass our appropriations bills to March 1st and March 8th.
Last week was another busy week here in Washington thanks to several press conferences, constituent meetings, and bill introductions! We also spent a lot of the week deliberating on committee assignments. I am proud to announce that I am the Ranking Member of the Innovation, Data, and Commerce Subcommittee, formerly known as the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee, of the Energy and Commerce Committee. The Chair of the subcommittee is my friend, Rep. Gus Bilirakis from Florida.
Our greatest security threats have no military solutions, and it is time our budget reflects that. Last week, I voted against the final passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This bill, that originally came out of committee with pay raises for our service members and civilian federal employees, turned into a MAGA manifesto with the addition of a series of extremist Republican amendments.
Our most fundamental rights are under attack. In the last two weeks, the House of Representatives passed legislation to protect the right to abortions, contraception, interstate travel, and gay marriage. Now, it is up to the Senate to pass these bills so they can be sent to President Biden's desk and signed into law.