Heinrich, ENR Democrats Secure Key Commitments from BLM Nominee Steve Pearce

WASHINGTON — During a U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing to consider pending Trump administration nominees, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), the Committee’s Ranking Member, and Committee Democrats secured key commitments from former Congressman Steve Pearce, President Trump’s pick to lead the Bureau of Land Management. In his answers to the Democratic Senators’ questions, Pearce acknowledged he could not sell a large amount of public lands under existing law and said he would not recommend rolling back national monument designations across the West, including the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, Chuckwalla National Monument, and the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni-Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument.

Additionally, Pearce pledged to enforce public land grazing laws and engage with communities with respect to the management of public lands.

If former Congressman Pearce is confirmed by the Senate as Director of the Bureau of Land Management, Ranking Member Heinrich and Committee Democrats will hold Mr. Pearce to these commitments.

On Mass Public Land Sell Offs

Heinrich began his questioning of Pearce, asking whether he would support broad-scale public land sell-offs, “The first is just the issue of the potential broad-scale divestment of public lands. And this is something that came up with Secretary Burgum and his nomination as well. And I think he did a good job of talking about how, while it may be completely appropriate to divest of certain isolated parcels of public land for affordable housing and other public purposes, that there wouldn't be a broad scale selling off of the public lands, and because of some of your previous writings and statements there is a concern in the public, among New Mexicans, that a sale of public lands on a broader scale might be part of the new BLM agenda. Can you speak to that and maybe allay some of those concerns?”

Pearce answered, “Thanks, Senator, I appreciate the chance to talk about this. The [Interior] Secretary has been very straightforward that he does not visualize any large-scale sales of land. FLPMA does not allow BLM to go in and the director of BLM to have these large-scale sales, that's something that, frankly, the isolated parcels, I would look to the members of this Committee to identify those. I think that from my time in office, I know that I would have understood better than any director of BLM, the sensitive sensitivity of this piece of land or that piece of land, and so that's the reason, when I say, I'll look to you all on that. There is a monumental amount of work to be done. And again, I would say, gladly, I would use the help you all could provide in identifying those parcels.”

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) criticized Pearce for his previous position on selling off public lands, “It's pretty hard for us to be able, in the West, to trust someone who fundamentally doesn't believe that these public lands are important. I know you answered my colleague to the effect, well, we may not be able to do all the things that some people care about, but you're going to be in a position of great influence.”

Pearce responded, “So I recognize the importance of the federal lands and support the missions completely. I do not believe that we have too much federal land sitting in public hands.”

U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) pushed Pearce on his past comments supporting public land sales, “I think oftentimes someone in your position influences Congress. And I guess the question is, are you free of those past comments? I could read back several where you supported the widespread sale of public lands, either to pay down the deficit or to get money for education or whichever reason. Is that something you really can renounce and feel that — if you were being asked by Congress to provide input, what would you say?”

Pearce answered, “I think the [Interior] Secretary has been very clear FLPMA prohibits any large sale —scale sale by the director, and so it would be at the secretary level. And he said — I would intend to follow his lead on that, there won't be any large-scale sale of land.”

On Protecting Monuments

Heinrich asked about the future of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, given that then-Congressman Pearce opposed the monument’s designation, “The other issue, and I've got correspondence from a number of Las Cruces City Councilors, the Mayor of Mesilla, Doña Ana County Commissioners, and State Representatives and Senators in Southern New Mexico, as well as Soil and Water Conservation District Members, is the issue of the future of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument. I know there's a lot of water under the bridge on that issue between both of us, but what would you say to those elected officials in Doña Ana County about your approach with respect to the monument?”

Pearce responded, stating that the monument was settled and he has no plans to recommend any changes to the monument, “Senator, again, thanks for the opportunity to clarify that because that issue was very hotly contested in the county for about 15 years, and eventually it was designated by executive order [sic]. I very rarely look in the rear-view mirror, and especially looking at this job in the, in the amount of work ahead of us, I don't anticipate going back and reviewing that at the end of the day. It's a presidential decision anyway [sic]. But I don't, I don't view myself as going and making a recommendation. There is too much ahead of us to get done to focus on things that have happened in the past. It's been recognized and operating. I appreciate that very much.”

U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) asked Pearce whether he would respect Chuckwalla’s monument designation, “From a California perspective, the Bureau of Land Management manages nearly 15% of California's land mass, so it's critical for us that BLM and the BLM Director maintain these lands for future generations to enjoy and not just need to sell them to the highest bidder. These BLM lands in California include Chuckwalla National Monument. For years, I worked with numerous Tribal leaders who led the effort to protect the natural resources in that area and to promote access to what is now Chuckwalla. It was a thoughtfully crafted proposal, as you and I discussed in my office, that took into account the input from stakeholders, conservationists, of course, energy developers, utilities, Tribal leaders, hunters, recreation groups and others, and we ended up with universal local support from the state and bipartisan support here in the Senate and in Congress. As a result, as one of the outcomes of that, five Tribes have even formed an intertribal commission to solidify their enduring commitment to protecting sacred lands in Chuckwalla. My question is clear and simple: Mr. Pearce, if confirmed, are you committed to honoring these monument designations? Yes or no?”

Pearce responded simply, “Yes.”

U.S. Senator Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) began his questioning of Pearce, asking if he would support the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni-Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument, “But you know, you've heard it from some of our western states all today. And I'll give you the stat that everyone else has. You know, we have 12.1 million acres of BLM land. We're very, very, very lucky to have such a beautiful state, the most beautiful state in the country. And within this land, we have national monuments to highlight, you know, the beauty, the culture of the state, too. Of course, one of the ones that we always talk about is the Grand Canyon and ancestral footprints and such. And so because it's already been asked, but I have to do it as a home stater, because this has been somewhat controversial, which, when it comes to the Grand Canyon Monument that has been ping-ponging back and forth. Love to make sure that you know there is still going to be support for that, and would like to know if you have any plans to roll back protections for the Grand Canyon?”

Pearce answered, “So the monuments are something I do support deeply and understand. The Grand Canyon is one of the most magnificent things, frankly, in the world. So we'll do whatever we can to work with you any way that's necessary on that.”

On Community Engagement with BLM

U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Public Lands, Mining, and Forests, asked Pearce about whether he supports community partnership with BLM, “Based on your experience... it is important that locals are part of this conversation and that the federal government pays attention to it, locally and to stakeholders?”

Pearce responded, “That is correct... I've said multiple times that I'll work with every member of the Committee and their state to figure out what makes sense in their state. I don't visualize the federal government having the best insight on that.”

Cortez Masto continued, “And I know I'm running out of time, but let me just do one final thing here: resource management plan statewide. I've been asking the department for this, for this very reason, because the federal government owns so much land, there has to be a partnership and a resource management plan taking into consideration our state, our local stakeholders, our Tribes, and working together. I would hope that when you get in this position, you are willing to work with us on updating our Resource Management Plan statewide for the state of Nevada. That is in the best interest of both people in the state of Nevada, but also the federal government.”

Pearce responded, “I think it was Senator Heinrich that mentioned that we had tremendous outreach into every community in the second district of New Mexico. And I would visualize the same effort going into the states. So you'd find me a willing partner on looking at that and working with local communities, because that's the voice that we've got to protect. It's their economy, it's their life, it's their homes, it's their culture, it's their customs. And those are things that I'm deeply sensitive to, whether Native American land or just your average mountain community or whatever. Yes, I would commit strongly to them.”

On Illegal Grazing

Cortez Masto asked Pearce how he’d approach illegal grazing on public lands, “We’ve seen this issue in the state of Nevada, but if a rancher is grazing cattle illegally on federal land, how would you handle that?”

Pearce answered, “If they're grazing illegally? Oh, I think that the laws will be upheld, and we should dig into that. And again, there are pieces of the agency which deal with that. But, absolutely believe that permission has to be given when a land holder, be it personal or federal, the permission has to be sacred.”

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Heinrich Raises Concerns About Trump BLM Nominee Pearce and Efforts to Sell-Off Public Lands

WASHINGTON — In his opening statement at a U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing to consider pending Trump administration nominees, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), the Committee’s Ranking Member, expressed his concerns about Trump’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management, former New Mexican Congressman Steve Pearce. As an elected official, Steve Pearce pushed to sell off public lands, opposed a national monument designation, and advocated for downsizing national monuments.

VIDEO: Ranking Member Heinrich (D-N.M.) delivers opening remarks during a Committee hearing to consider pending nominations, February 25th, 2026.

“The Federal Land Policy and Management Act says that our public lands are to be retained in Federal ownership and managed to best meet the present and future needs of the American people, and where appropriate, preserved and protected in their natural condition, without permanent impairment.” Heinrich continued, “They belong to the public—not to any special interest, but to the American people. And not to our generation alone, but to future generations as well.”

On BLM Director Nominee Pearce, he continued, “Unfortunately, many of the positions [Pearce] has taken and the statements he has made about selling off public lands make it hard for me to believe that he will be a good steward of our public lands and that he will faithfully uphold the public land protections written into our laws.”

In addition to Pearce, the Committee also considered Trump’s nominees for the U.S. Department of Energy Under Secretary and the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Commissioner, Kyle Haustveit and David LaCerte, respectively.

A video of Heinrich’s opening remarks is here.

A transcript of Heinrich’s remarks as delivered is below:

The Committee has previously considered nominations for two of the nominees before us this morning.

The Senate confirmed Mr. Haustveit’s nomination to be the Assistant Secretary of Energy for Fossil Energy last September, and Mr. LaCerte’s nomination to serve the final year remaining on a vacant seat on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

But the Committee still has an obligation to examine Mr. Hausveit’s qualifications for the broader responsibilities that he will have if confirmed to be the Under Secretary of Energy. And we must consider whether Mr. LaCerte has earned an additional 5-year term on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Our third nominee poses a somewhat greater challenge for us. Congressman Pearce, who I’ve long known and often worked with, has been nominated to be the Director of the Bureau of Land Management. If confirmed, he will become the steward of more than 244 million surface acres of public land and another 700 million acres of subsurface minerals.

The Federal Land Policy and Management Act, the law that established the Bureau of Land Management, prescribes how the Director is to perform his important duties. It says that he is to manage the lands and resources under his jurisdiction as “public lands.”

They belong to the public—not to any special interest, but to the American people as a whole. And not to our generation alone, but to future generations as well.

The public lands’ charter calls for them to be managed for fish and wildlife as well as for energy and mineral production; for recreation as well as resource development.

Their value is to be measured not in economic returns or unit output alone, but also in the intangibles of scenic, scientific, historic, and archeological values.

A friend of mine likes to describe public lands as the anvil on which our collective Western identity was forged. I think that kind of sums it up.

The Federal Land Policy and Management Act says that our public lands are to be retained in federal ownership and managed to best meet the present and future needs of the American people, and where appropriate, preserved and protected in their natural condition, without permanent impairment.

The Act tells us that the Director must be someone who will carry out these functions and perform these duties in accordance with these principles.

Congressman Pearce has had a long career in public life, and he is well-known to many of us. He served seven terms in the House of Representatives and three terms as head of the Republican Party in New Mexico. As a public official, he’s cast many votes and made many public statements.

Some of these positions he has taken, he called for the selling off of public lands, and that makes it challenging for me to view his tenure, his potential tenure at the BLM, as one of stewardship.

And so my questions today will largely reflect not just those reservations, but the conversations that we had in my office yesterday.

And it is, of course, the President’s prerogative to nominate who he wants, but it is also the responsibility of those of us on this Committee to assess Mr. Pearce’s nomination and to recommend whether or not the Senate should confirm him.

For much of our nation’s history, our predecessor committee proudly bore the title of “the Public Lands Committee.” Oversight of the public lands was our original purpose, and it remains one of our foremost responsibilities.

To discharge this trust, we depend heavily on the dedicated public servants at the Bureau of Land Management, who devote their careers and their lives to the care of our public lands. And we depend upon the Director of the Bureau to carry out the functions of his office in accordance with our laws and with FLPMA.

Our hearing today is Congressman Pearce’s opportunity to make his case for his nomination and to share his vision of how he would manage the public lands if confirmed, and to allay our concerns.

I look forward to hearing from him.


Hickenlooper, Rosen, Senate Democrats Demand Supreme Court Protect Birthright Citizenship Against Trump Attacks

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper, Jacky Rosen, and 24 of their Senate colleagues urged the U.S. Supreme Court to protect birthright citizenship and strike down President Trump’s unconstitutional attempts to undermine it.

“Birthright citizenship is written in our Constitution. The President’s senseless attempts to erase it runs counter to our nation’s values,” said Hickenlooper. “We won’t stand for it and nor should the Supreme Court.”

“The U.S. Constitution is clear: children born in the United States are American citizens,” said Rosen. “We’re submitting this brief requesting that the Supreme Court upholds the Constitution and puts an end to Donald Trump’s illegal attempt to revoke citizenship from children born in the United States once and for all.”

Alongside colleagues from the House of Representatives, the senators filed an amicus brief in Trump v. Barbara, currently before the Supreme Court. The oral arguments are scheduled for April 1, in which they will argue that Trump’s Executive Order to strip automatic citizenship from children born in the United States violates the U.S. Constitution, over a century of Supreme Court rulings, and laws enacted by Congress.

Hickenlooper has consistently spoken out against the President’s Executive Order that attempts to revoke automatic citizenship for children born in the United States.

The full amicus brief is available HERE.

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WATCH: Hickenlooper Presses Trump’s BLM Nominee in Senate ENR Hearing on Anti-Public Lands Sentiment, Effort to Rollback Methane Regulations

Hickenlooper was the first Senator to publicly oppose Steve Pearce’s nomination to lead BLM

Hickenlooper: “…When someone reveals themself to you, believe them. I think that there’s a lot of distrust that you will have to work very hard to dispel.”

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper, member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee, questioned former U.S. Representative Steve Pearce, President Trump’s latest nominee to be Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), over his previous anti-public lands stances and the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back methane emissions regulations during his confirmation hearing.

“When there were talks of selling off large amounts of public lands recently, we had over 80,000 Coloradans reach out to say that they were against any large-scale selling of public lands…” pressed Hickenlooper. “There has been huge upwellings of people concerned about your nomination over the many things you’ve said around selling public lands… the question is whether you are free of those past comments… Is that really something you can renounce? If you were being asked by Congress to provide input, what would you say?”

Watch his full questions HERE.

In December, Hickenlooper became the first Senator to publicly oppose Pearce’s nomination to lead BLM, the largest land management agency and has consistently pushed back on his nomination. Pearce marked his time in Congress working to undermine environmental protections, open public lands for oil and gas operations, and sell public lands.

HICKENLOOPER PRESSED PEARCE ON IF HE WOULD ABANDON PAST STATEMENTS SUPPORTING THE SALE OF PUBLIC LANDS

Hickenlooper: “Colorado is deeply invested, emotionally, in our public lands. It is not just the $17 billion recreation industry but it’s a sense of connection to our history, to our identity.

“When there were talks of selling off large amounts of public lands recently, we had over 80,000 Coloradans reach out to say that they were against any large-scale selling of public lands… but there has been huge upwellings of people concerned about your nomination over the many things you’ve said around selling public lands… The question is: are you free of those past comments – and I can read back several where you have supported the widespread sale of public lands either to pay down the deficit to get money for education or for whichever reason – is that really something you can renounce? And feel that if you were being asked by Congress to provide input, what would you say?

Pearce: “… I think that the Secretary has been clear: FLPMA (Federal Land Policy and Management Act) prohibits any large-scale sale by the Director, so it would be at the Secretary level…”

Hickenlooper: “Well but if YOU were asked by Congress for your opinion, do you still feel it will be your own personal opinion and it would be an efficient, useful process to be able to sell off more of that land if Congress was asking and that they might change that statute?”

Pearce: “…sometimes the Eastern states don’t understand the role of PILT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes), and they begin to suggest that PILT should be taken away and that it is welfare for the West. And, then those conversations then take a whole different tact on the issue…”

Hickenlooper: “But if you were asked to pay PILT to sell public lands, I don’t think that there would be any question. The people that are calling us and are so concerned about your nomination, that would not be a reason to begin selling public land.”

Hickenlooper: “You know, one of the people calling into my office reminded me of something I had said… When someone reveals themself to you, believe them. I think that there’s a lot of distrust that you will have to work very hard to dispel.”

HICKENLOOPER CRITICIZED EFFORTS TO ROLL BACK METHANE REGULATIONS

Hickenlooper: “The BLM’s Methane Waste Prevention Rule back in 2017 allowed us to conserve gas that would otherwise be vented or flared. It made common sense. When I was governor of Colorado, we actually sat down with the oil industry and environmental community, and we spent a year and a half creating concise, efficient regulations that did everything possible to make sure that we didn’t put those harmful pollutants in the air and that we were able to get max benefit from them. And, yet now we see that the administration is trying to roll back the current rule that prevents methane waste on public lands. I think we’ve already proven that the energy sector can get behind dealing with this, why are we trying to pull that back?”

Pearce: “I am not familiar with the discussions that have been going on. I’ve had very limited contacts –”

Hickenlooper: “Let’s say, would you support high standards in terms of methane waste prevention – would you support that kind of public operation on public lands?”

Pearce: “… there’s a very large attempt to gather methane in particular fields and use it to generate data centers. In other words, use that methane in productive manners…”

Hickenlooper: “Well of course, but I am talking about rolling back existing regulations.”

Pearce: “I am not familiar with the reasons the administration is suggesting… I don’t know that I could comment on that right now.”

Hickenlooper is a former geologist and one of the only scientists in the Senate. He has been outspoken against Trump administration cuts to public lands and led an effort against the admin’s plans to overturn the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Public Lands Rule. Last March, he introduced legislation to reinstate the thousands of National Park Service and Forest Service workers the Trump administration illegally fired.

Hickenlooper also helped lead the fight against Senator Mike Lee’s proposal to sell off more than three million acres of public lands. Hickenlooper first sounded the alarm back in April when he voted against the Republican budget resolution and introduced an amendment with colleagues to protect public lands from being sold to pay for Republicans’ tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy.

Last May, Hickenlooper held a press conference in Estes Park with Congressman Neguse, public lands advocates, and local elected officials to call out the Trump administration’s threats to Colorado’s national parks and public lands, including Rocky Mountain National Park.

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Hirono, Colleagues Introduce SPARK Act to Supercharge Minority Entrepreneurship Nationwide

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Ranking Member Ed Markey (D-MA), Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) introduced the Strengthening Place-based Access, Resources, and Knowledge (SPARK) Act to spur entrepreneurship and increase access for underserved entrepreneurs nationwide. The SPARK Act would create the SPARK Program to provide grant funding to community organizations that support small business accelerators and incubators, and the SPARK Financing Program to provide grants and low-cost loans directly to underserved small businesses.

“Hawaii is the most diverse state in the union and our small business owners and entrepreneurs reflect this diversity. Ensuring that these businesses have the support they need is critical to securing Hawaii’s economic future,” said Senator Hirono. “The Small Business Administration was designed to do just that—helping communities who otherwise may be excluded from economic opportunity to have the resources they need to thrive. This legislation builds on existing infrastructure to create a new program that provides grants to underserved entrepreneurs. I will keep fighting to secure long-term solutions that will support our next generation of business leaders.”

Senator Hirono has long championed underserved small businesses and holding the Trump administration accountable for its continued attacks on federal equity programs. In December, she raised alarms about the Small Business Administration’s audits of the 8(a) Business Development program which targeted many small, socially and economically disadvantaged businesses, which often rely on government contracts to stay in business and keep their staff employed. Last year, she also introduced the Native American Entrepreneurial and Opportunity Act to increase the representation and financial resources available to Native American-owned businesses, which include tribally-owned, Alaska Native-owned, and Native Hawaiian-owned businesses.

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HYDE-SMITH, GOSAR REINTRODUCE ‘GRIP ACT’ TO BLOCK STATE GUN REGISTRIES

Bicameral Legislation Intended to Prohibit the Use of Federal Dollars to Keep Gun Owner Registries

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) has again teamed with U.S. Representative Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) to continue a bicameral fight to prohibit states, localities, or any other organization from using federal funding and background check information to maintain gun registries.

Hyde-Smith and Gosar today reintroduced the Gun-owner Registration Information Protection (GRIP) Act (S.3916), which would clarify existing law prohibiting the use of federal funding by states or local entities to store or list sensitive, personal information related to the legal ownership or possession of firearms.

“The Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens remain imperiled as Democrats and anti-gun activists lean into government overreach. The GRIP Act is needed to clarify that states and localities cannot use federal funds or data to keep gun registries that can lead to infringing on a constitutional right,” Senator Hyde-Smith said.

“The Second Amendment is not a second-class right. The GRIP Act safeguards constitutional freedoms and protects the privacy of millions of law-abiding Americans,” stated Congressman Gosar.

The GRIP Act would ensure the federal government does not support, either intentionally or otherwise, state or local efforts to collect and store personally identifiable information related to legal firearm purchases and ownership. Current law already prevents the federal government from storing information acquired during the firearms background check process.

The bill also clarifies that states and local entities cannot use federal grant funds from programs, such as the National Criminal History Improvement Program, NICS Amendment Records Improvement Program, or the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program, to create or maintain full or partial gun registries. It would not limit states’ recordkeeping for permitting, law enforcement-issued firearms, or lost or stolen firearms.

Original cosponsors of Hyde-Smith’s 119th Congress measure include U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Jim Justice (R-W.Va.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), James Risch (R-Idaho), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.).

U.S. Representatives Mike Ezell (R-Miss.) and Michael Guest (R-Miss.) are among 75 original cosponsors of Gosar’s companion legislation (HR.7678).

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), National Rifle Association, Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, Gun Owners of America, and National Association for Gun Rights have endorsed the GRIP Act.

“This is much-needed legislation to protect the privacy of those who choose to lawfully exercise their Second Amendment rights when they purchase a firearm at retail. The GRIP Act will ensure federal funds aren’t available to create and maintain state government watchlists that are ripe for privacy abuse by malevolent actors, much the same way private banking information was illegally abused by government authorities in the previous administration,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel. “NSSF is grateful to Senator Hyde-Smith for her leadership to protect the privacy and the Second Amendment rights of lawful gun-owning Americans.”

“The danger of any form of gun registration lies in the historical pattern that follows. While such measures are often presented as well-intentioned, they have consistently led to expanded gun control rather than increased freedom. History shows that registration schemes are frequently a precursor to confiscation — as seen in modern examples such as England and Australia. Any infringement on the people’s right to keep and bear arms violates the U.S. Constitution, the supreme law of the land that every public official has sworn an oath to uphold and defend,” said Sam Bushman, CEO of the Constitutional Sheriffs & Peace Officers Association.

A one-page summary of the GRIP Act is available here.


OOIDA: ‘Congress can do more to prevent bad actors from operating on our nation’s highways’

By Bruce Guthrie

GRAIN VALLEY, Mo. — The Owner Operators Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has been speaking loudly to federal congressional leaders on what it feels are the major issues in trucking, and doing so from an independent drivers’ prospective.

In a letter sent to Missouri Republican Rep. Sam Graves, Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, Washington Democratic Sen. Rick Larsen, and Washington Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell — all of whom serve in leadership on various transportation committees — and undersigned by OOIDA president and CEO Todd Spencer, the association outlined its stance on many of the hot-button issues under scrutiny in Washington regarding the state of trucking.

“Earlier this year, OOIDA testified before each of your respective Committees emphasizing an urgent need for more comprehensive training, licensing, and qualification standards for commercial drivers,” the letter read. “Simply put, far too many individuals are entering the trucking industry without the basic skills necessary to safely operate a commercial vehicle. Additionally, inconsistent and improper licensing processes among states has permitted hundreds of thousands of unqualified drivers to work on our nation’s roads which has needlessly resulted in numerous fatal crashes.”

Entry-Level Driver Training standards are a ‘good first step.’

One of the first issues addressed by Spencer’s correspondence was to bolster Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) standards.

“ELDT requirements implemented in 2022 were an important first step to ensuring drivers are properly trained when entering our industry,” he said. “Unfortunately, these bare minimum standards have proven insufficient since they took effect. OOIDA favors the introduction of mandatory behind-the-wheel (BTW) hours for new drivers. In 2015 we participated in the ELDT Advisory Committee, which overwhelmingly supported a minimum number of BTW (behind the wheel) hours as part of ELDT standards.”

OOIDA also advocates for English language proficiency.

Last November, The Trucker reported of a bill that was proposed in Congress to solidify CDL testing standards and require English language proficiency (ELP).

Congressman Dave Taylor (OH-02), Congresswoman Harriet Hageman (WY-AL), and Congressman Greg Steube (FL-17) introduced the Commercial Motor Vehicle English Proficiency Act.

“It’s a no-brainer. If you want to drive an 80,000-pound vehicle on American roads, you should be able to read the road signs,” Taylor said. “Ohio families should be able to get in their cars without fear of being in a tragic collision at the hands of a driver of a heavy vehicle who can’t understand critical warning signs. This bill will ensure safety for everyone and prevent any more innocent American lives from being lost.”

The bill is the House Companion bill to S. 2114, which was introduced in the Senate by Sens. Roger Marshall (R-KS), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), and John Barrasso (R-WY) on June 18. Reps. Buddy Carter (GA-01), Tracey Mann (KS-01), Derrick Van Orden (WI-03), Mary Miller (IL-15), and Paul Gosar (AZ-09) joined Taylor as cosponsors of the legislation.

Specifically, the Commercial Motor Vehicle English Proficiency Act codifies English Language Proficiency into law as a requirement for individuals issued a commercial driver’s license, by requiring all individuals to read and understand traffic signs, communicate with officers and other officials and provide and receive directions and feedback in English.

It also prohibits all CMV tests from being administered in languages other than English.

“Our bill ensures the CDL knowledge test is administered only in English, closing dangerous loopholes,” Hageman said. “When an individual operating a vehicle weighing up to 80,000 pounds cannot understand warnings like ‘Slow Down’ or ‘Accident Ahead,’ lives are put at risk. Improving road safety is a significant issue across Wyoming, where tragic accidents claim lives year after year. Our legislation is essential to protect the safety and security of every driver on our roads.”

“Commercial truck drivers play a critical role in our economy. With that comes the responsibility to understand both the signs of the road and the language of other drivers on the highway,” Steube said. “States like California have unleashed a nationwide public safety hazard with their lax English proficiency standards for individuals applying for a commercial motor vehicle license. My bill will protect our roadways by requiring all commercial motor vehicle applicants to demonstrate they are capable of safely operating these large vehicles and communicating in English with their fellow drivers.”

OOIDA fully backed the bill.

“This common-sense bill would require drivers demonstrate they can read critical road signs before being permitted to operate an 80,000 lb. vehicle on public roadways,” Spencer said. “It would also require CDL testing be conducted only in English. In addition to reading road signs, professional truckers routinely communicate with law enforcement and first responders in order to do their jobs safely and effectively.”

On Friday, Feb. 20, The Trucker reported via the Associated Press all truckers and bus drivers will have to take their commercial driver’s license tests in English as the Trump administration expands its aggressive campaign to improve safety in the industry and get unqualified drivers off the road.

Supporting regular TPR audits

Spencer also pointed out added urgency for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to better utilize the Training Provider Registry (TPR) to remove “bad actors.”

The TPR was created as part of the ELDT rule.

“FMCSA has the authority to remove registered entities that are no longer in compliance with training requirements,” Spencer said.

At the time of OOIDA’s correspondence, there had been “only a handful of the thousands of registered training providers” removed or are currently recommended for removal from the TPR, according to Spencer’s memo.

On Feb. 18, A total of 557 CDL training schools across the U.S. have been notified of proposed removal from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) National Training Provider Registry because of violations of FMCSA standards of safety, as reported by The Trucker.

FMCSA must take decisive action to more quickly remove both non-complaint and inadequate training locations from the TPR,” Spencer said.

While much has been done since the correspondence from OOIDA to Congress, Spencer said there is more work to be done.


Politicos react to State of the Union

By Bob Bakken

Key Points

Mississippi Republicans praised the President’s focus on the “America First” agenda, citing a five percent jump in manufactured goods.

State Democrats blasted the address as “two hours of lies,” pointing to rising household costs and healthcare instability.

The reaction highlights a deep partisan divide over the administration’s economic and border policies.

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address has ignited a fierce departmental firestorm in Mississippi, as state leaders offer vastly different accounts of the nation’s economic and social health following the prime-time speech.

U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., threw her full support behind the president’s “America First” trajectory. In a statement released surrounding the address, Hyde-Smith characterized the administration’s first year as a period of “promises made and promises kept,” specifically highlighting the “Working Families Tax Cut Act.”

“The state of our union is safer, it’s stronger, and it needs to keep moving in the right direction,” Hyde-Smith said. She noted that orders for long-lasting manufactured goods rose more than five percent at the end of last year, which she framed as a surge in business confidence.

State Senator Kevin Blackwell, R-Southaven, echoed this sentiment on social media, describing the address as “nothing short of incredible.” Blackwell praised the president’s “strength and resolve” while criticizing Democratic lawmakers for remaining silent during the proceedings.

However, the Mississippi Democratic Party issued a blistering rebuttal, labeling the president’s performance a “slap in the face” to working families. Party Chair Cheikh Taylor argued that the administration’s policies have driven the economy “into a ditch,” claiming Mississippi households paid thousands more for basic goods like groceries and electricity in 2025.

“Donald Trump has shown Mississippi that he doesn’t have the will to change his ways or fix the massive problems he’s caused,” Taylor said.


Victim’s family continues the fight for Lowndes County traffic light

Nicholas Jenkins' family is still looking for answers six months later.

By Charity Johnson

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Six months after a fatal car accident in Lowndes County, a family is still searching for answers.

Brian and Melissa Jenkins lost their son Nicholas Jenkins in August 2025.

“It’s been very difficult. I get up every morning to make sure that my son is remembered … that his life mattered,” said Melissa Jenkins.

Nicholas died in a car accident at the intersection of Highway 45 and Mike Parra Road.

Shortly after the accident, his parents started a petition to bring a light to that intersection.

They’ve reached out to state and federal leaders about the issue, including Northern District Transportation Commissioner John Caldwell.

“This is one we’re very familiar with and we’re trying to find the best solution for everyone’s concerns,” said Caldwell.

One of the first steps to getting a traffic light is an evaluation of the area.

Caldwell said they’re typically done after a fatality on the highway.

However, he said it can take years before a traffic light is added due to the cost.

“We don’t have money just sitting in a bucket waiting to pour into lights. We have a hundred good ideas or more or thousand for improvements. And those good ideas cost money. We have to find a way to allocate that money,” said Caldwell.

Engineering and construction costs are also considered in the budget.

Recently, the Jenkins spoke with State Senator Chuck Younger and the Office of Congressman Trent Kelly.

Younger told the Jenkins that they’re considering a U-turn or a flashing light.

“I expressed to Senator Younger that a flashing light was not going to prevent preventable loss. A U-turn would be a much better option,” said Melissa.

“I really do think that will help with the bus traffic. It gets really, really bad and busy there… especially from about 6:30, 7 in the morning until about 9,” said Brian Jenkins, father of Nick Jenkins.

Dozens of accidents happen at this intersection.

No matter what it takes to get a traffic signal, the Jenkins are staying the course.

“My son’s death will prevent someone else death and I know he would want me to (keep fighting), so I won’t stop until something is done and we prevent further loss,” said Melissa Jenkins.

The Jenkins said they are grateful for the community’s support.

They have more than 2,300 signatures combined on their petitions so far.

The family had to start a second petition in January due to complications.

On Tuesday, the Jenkins said that the Office of Cindy Hyde Smith reached out to them.


Warner & Kaine Accepting Congressionally Directed Spending Requests for Fiscal Year 2027

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that they are currently accepting congressionally directed spending (CDS) requests for Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27). Since 2021, the senators have secured over $650 million in CDS for projects that upgrade infrastructure, expand affordable housing and health care, boost economic development, and more.

“Over the past several years, we’ve worked with Virginians to secure significant congressionally directed spending to support local community projects that expand health care access, increase affordable housing, improve infrastructure and transportation, and boost economic growth,” said Warner and Kaine. “What’s been most amazing about this process has been visiting these communities after they receive funding to see up close the difference these resources are making. We’re excited to announce that our offices’ applications have opened for Fiscal Year 2027. We urge Virginia entities interested in applying for funding to visit our websites and learn more about the CDS process and how to apply.”

In Fiscal Year 2022, Congress restarted CDS—informally known as earmarks—to allow members of Congress to allocate federal funding for specific local projects in a manner that promotes transparency and accountability. This process is intended for state and local governments, educational institutions, and non-profits to secure a one-time, specified amount of funding for community projects. Warner and Kaine accept applications for funding requests jointly, so eligible entities only need to submit a request to one office. Every request goes through a thorough review process to determine if the project meets the criteria and demonstrates a substantial benefit to the community and Commonwealth.

More information on how to submit a CDS request is available here.

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Kelly, Durbin, Padilla Blast DHS for Wrongfully Targeting and Removing DACA Recipients

In response to a letter the Senators sent in September, DHS confirmed that 261 DACA recipients have been arrested and 86 have been removed from the country since the start of Trump’s second term

Today, Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Alex Padilla (D-CA) released the following statement after U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested 261 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients and 86 have been removed from the country between January 1, 2025 and November 19, 2025.

This information from DHS came in response to a letter the Senators sent in September where they pressed Secretary Noem on the Trump Administration’s wrongful targeting of DACA recipients in its mass deportation scheme.


Kelly Statement on State of the Union Address

Today, Arizona Senator and 25-year Navy combat veteran Mark Kelly released the following statement following President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address:

“Tonight, Arizonans didn’t hear a real plan to lower costs or make their lives better. Instead, they heard more excuses from a president who promised to lower prices on ‘day one’ but has only made Americans poorer and less safe.

“One year into his presidency, families are paying more at the grocery store. Seniors are struggling to afford their prescription drugs. Small business owners are having trouble keeping their doors open, and President Trump’s illegal tariffs are making it worse.

“While costs go up for working families, his biggest accomplishment last year was handing a giant tax cut to rich people and big corporations, paid for by kicking people off Medicaid, cutting food assistance, and driving up health care costs.


PHOTO: Kelly Meets SOTU Medal of Honor Recipient Capt. E. Royce Williams

Kelly led Senate effort to authorize award following decades-long classification

Today, Arizona Senator and retired Navy combat veteran Mark Kelly met with Captain E. Royce Williams, who was awarded the Medal of Honor during last night’s State of the Union address.

For years, Kelly led the Senate effort to authorize this long overdue recognition. Because Capt. Williams’ heroic actions during the Korean War were classified for decades, the five-year statutory time limitation for him to receive the Medal of Honor had long passed. Kelly first introduced a bipartisan amendment to the defense bill in 2022 to waive the time requirement and then kept working until it got to the finish line last year with Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK). Kelly also signed a letter urging the Secretary of Defense to work with Congress to ensure Capt. Williams received this long-overdue recognition.

Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA-28) led the effort in the House, and the provision was ultimately included in the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), authorizing the President to award the Medal of Honor for Capt. Williams’ extraordinary acts of valor during a 1952 aerial combat mission.

“More than seventy years ago, Capt. E. Royce Williams shot down four Soviet MiGs in one dogfight during the Korean War. The dogfight lasted 35 minutes—an eternity for a fighter pilot—and by the end his plane was out of ammunition and badly damaged, and he barely managed to make it back to the aircraft carrier,” said Sen. Kelly. “This still stands out as one of the most exceptional and brave feats of naval aviation in our history, but to avoid escalation with the Soviets, the details of the mission were kept secret for decades and Captain Williams wasn’t recognized at the time. I’m proud to have helped ensure Captain Williams could finally receive the Medal of Honor he deserves, and I couldn’t be prouder to salute a great American.”

“Captain E. Royce Williams demonstrated exceptional heroism and airmanship during the Korean War, a noble time in our nation’s military history that too often goes underrecognized,” said Sen. Sulivan. “Classified for more than half a century, Captain Williams’ bravery in a one-man sustained aerial battle against seven Soviet MiG-15 jets stands among the most remarkable feats in naval aviation history. Captain Williams displayed superior tactical judgment, combat skill, and resolve under fire—successfully defending U.S. and allied forces while returning his aircraft safely against all odds. President Trump awarding him the Medal of Honor during the State of the Union Address last night is both justified and necessary to fully honor Captain Williams’ service and preserve the integrity of our nation’s combat history. I was honored to lead an amendment in the NDAA with Senator Kelly to waive the five-year time limitation on this award, ensuring Captain Williams’ extraordinary valor receives the recognition it has long deserved. As both a United States Senator and a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, I thank him for his service to our country.”


Senator Mike Lee’s SAVE America Act Receives Standing Ovation at State of the Union Address

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump called on members of Congress to pass Senator Mike Lee’s signature legislation, the SAVE America Act, during the State of the Union address Tuesday night.

“Perhaps most importantly, I’m asking you to approve the SAVE America Act to stop illegal aliens and others who are unpermitted persons from voting in our sacred American elections,” said President Donald Trump. “The cheating is rampant in our elections – it’s rampant. It’s very simple: all voters must show Voter ID; all voters must show proof of citizenship in order to vote. And no more crooked mail-in ballots except for illness, disability, military, or travel – none. And this should be an easy one, by the way, it’s polling at 89% including Democrats!”

“President Trump is right – Americans demand the SAVE America Act to protect their elections from illegal voters,” said Senator Mike Lee. “If Senate Democrats want to get in the way, we can make them stand up, filibuster, and fail. Republicans should pass the SAVE America Act to secure our elections and deliver on our promises to the American people!”

The SAVE America Act is widely endorsed by everyday Americans and received a flood of support during Tuesday night’s address.

The SAVE America Act would protect and preserve the right of American citizens to vote by:

Requiring individuals to present an eligible photo identification document before voting.

Requiring states to obtain proof of citizenship – in person – when registering an individual to vote.

Requiring states to remove non-citizens from existing voter rolls.

Under the Biden-Harris administration, at least 10 million illegal aliens poured into communities nationwide. In many states, these illegal aliens are eligible for driver’s licenses and other benefits, providing ample opportunities to illegally register to vote in Federal elections. In some jurisdictions, non-citizens are even able to vote in local elections. While only U.S. citizens can legally vote in Federal elections, Federal law has generally preempted and undermined state laws requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote in such elections.

Watch President Trump’s call to action here.

Read the full bill text of the SAVE America Act here.

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Luján Joins Rosen, Durbin, Senate Democrats in Calling On Supreme Court to Protect Birthright Citizenship Against Trump Attacks

Washington, D.C. – Last week, U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) joined U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), and 26 Senate Democratic colleagues in requesting that the United States Supreme Court protect birthright citizenship and strike down Donald Trump’s unconstitutional attempts to take it away. Alongside colleagues from the House of Representatives, the senators filed an amicus brief in Trump v. Barbara, currently before the Supreme Court, with oral arguments scheduled for April 1, 2026, in which they argue that Trump’s Executive Order to strip automatic citizenship from children born in the United States violates the U.S. Constitution and over a century of Supreme Court rulings, as well as laws enacted by Congress.

“The Constitution, backed by decades of legal precedent, makes it absolutely clear that anyone born in the United States is an American citizen,” said Senator Luján. “President Trump’s attempts to undermine this fundamental right guaranteed by the Constitution are both unacceptable and unlawful. I stand with my colleagues in urging the Supreme Court to prevent any efforts to rewrite this core principle.”

“The U.S. Constitution is clear: children born in the United States are American citizens,” said Senator Rosen. “We’re submitting this brief requesting that the Supreme Court upholds the Constitution and puts an end to Donald Trump’s illegal attempt to revoke citizenship from children born in the United States once and for all.”

“The Supreme Court must uphold well-established law and century-old precedent that children born in America are U.S. citizens,” said Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “Children born here have only ever known America as their home—and they are just as American as every other citizen. President Trump can’t rewrite the Constitution by royal fiat.”

Along with Senators Luján, Rosen, and Durbin this, amicus brief was signed by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Edward Markey (D-MA), Jeffrey Merkley (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).

The full amicus brief can be found HERE.

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Merkley Demands Independent Probe of Funds Used by ICE, CBP to Carry Out Trump’s Cruel Immigration Enforcement

DHS Yet to Provide Clear Accounting for Nearly $170 Billion from Trump’s Big, Ugly Betrayal Appropriated for Immigration Enforcement

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, led 20 of his Senate colleagues in calling on the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to probe the cost of President Donald Trump’s violent escalation of federal immigration enforcement. The senators are requesting a comprehensive assessment and accounting of the supplemental funds, including the roughly $75 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and approximately $65 billion for Customs and Border Protection (CBP), provided by Trump’s Big, Ugly Betrayal Bill.

“Last summer, Congress provided extraordinary supplemental resources for immigration enforcement in H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, including roughly $75 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and approximately $65 billion for Customs and Border Protection (CBP). These sums represent a dramatic expansion of those agencies’ typical annual budgets. Yet there is no comprehensive public accounting of how funds provided for immigration enforcement in H.R. 1 are being obligated and/or spent,” wrote the senators.

“This lack of transparency is part of a broader pattern in which the Trump administration has expanded domestic security operations while withholding basic cost information from Congress. We have serious concerns that this pattern reflects an increasingly authoritarian and unchecked approach to executive power. Congress has a responsibility to ensure that federal agencies are not using taxpayer dollars in ways that vitiate Americans’ civil rights or expand executive overreach,” the senators continued.

In addition to Merkley, U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Patty Murray (D-WA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Ron Wyden (D-OR) joined the letter.

Recently, CBO told Merkley that the Trump Administration could spend upwards of $125 million in its attempt to rename the DOD. Similar to Trump’s attempt to rename the Kennedy Center after himself, without action by Congress to pass legislation to legally rename DOD, the President’s executive order is an unofficial and symbolic designation. CBO also told Merkley that Trump’s brazen decision to deploy National Guard personnel to U.S. cities, including Portland, has cost taxpayers upwards of $589 million to date and will cost a total of $1 billion in 2026 absent a change in current deployment plans.

The full request of CBO can be found HERE.

Dr. Swagel:

We are deeply concerned by the Trump administration’s reckless immigration enforcement surge—unfolding on our streets and undertaken with virtually no transparency or accountability. It represents one of the largest expansions of federal immigration enforcement in modern history, including unprecedented increases in detention capacity, personnel, transportation, surveillance systems, and tactical deployments.

Last summer, Congress provided extraordinary supplemental resources for immigration enforcement in H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, including roughly $75 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and approximately $65 billion for Customs and Border Protection (CBP). These sums represent a dramatic expansion of those agencies’ typical annual budgets. Yet there is no comprehensive public accounting of how funds provided for immigration enforcement in H.R. 1 are being obligated and/or spent.

This lack of transparency is part of a broader pattern in which the Trump administration has expanded domestic security operations while withholding basic cost information from Congress. We have serious concerns that this pattern reflects an increasingly authoritarian and unchecked approach to executive power. Congress has a responsibility to ensure that federal agencies are not using taxpayer dollars in ways that vitiate Americans’ civil rights or expand executive overreach.

To support constitutional and statutory oversight, we request that CBO provide an independent assessment of the costs, obligations, and spending patterns associated with the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies—both at the border and throughout the interior of the United States. Specifically, we ask CBO to:

Determine how much of the $75 billion provided by H.R. 1 to ICE has been obligated and/or expended to date, broken out by major categories such as detention, transportation, enforcement operations, personnel, technology, and security contracting.

Determine how much of the $65 billion provided by H.R. 1 to CBP has been obligated and/or expended to date, including spending on personnel, facilities, surveillance systems, vehicles, and border infrastructure projects.

Determine how much of the $12 billion provided by H.R. 1 to the Department of Homeland Security (in sections 90007 and 100051) has been obligated and/or expended to date.

Determine the total amount of funds that ICE, CBP, and DHS have obligated and/or expended since January 2025 for expanded interior enforcement operations, including any funding sources in addition to the supplemental appropriations provided by H.R. 1.

Identify future costs associated with sustaining the administration’s expanded enforcement posture, including staffing, detention, transportation, and technology requirements.

Provide any additional information CBO believes is necessary to understand the budgetary implications of these activities.

This request follows an earlier inquiry seeking a cost assessment of the Trump administration’s National Guard deployments to American cities. CBO found that the administration’s National Guard domestic deployments have cost taxpayers over half a billion dollars—information that Congress and the public had no access to until CBO’s report. Congress and the American people deserve the same level of independent scrutiny for ICE, CBP, and DHS’s use of the extraordinary funds provided by H.R. 1.

We request this analysis as soon as practicable. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

This press release has been updated.

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Wyden, Merkley Call on Supreme Court to Protect Birthright Citizenship Against Trump’s Unconstitutional Attacks

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined 27 colleagues in calling on the Supreme Court to protect birthright citizenship by striking down Donald Trump’s unconstitutional attempts to roll back a 150-year-old precedent.

“Children born in this country have only called the United States their home, and they are no different than any other U.S. citizen,” Wyden said. “The Supreme Court must uphold the U.S. Constitution and long-settled precedent to stop Donald Trump’s fascist fever dream from ripping away the citizenship of children born in America.”

“The Constitution is clear: every child born in the United States is an American citizen. It’s critical that the Supreme Court uphold this promise,” Merkley said. “The 14th Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship, and more than a century of Supreme Court precedent backs it up. Instead of endorsing a haphazard, patchwork approach, in which citizenship depends on the Trump Administration’s whims and not the Constitution, the Court must reaffirm this fundamental principle.”

In Trump v Barbara, Wyden and Merkley signed an amicus brief, underscoring that Trump’s executive order to strip automatic citizenship from children born in the United States violates the Constitution, more than a century of Supreme Court rulings, and laws enacted by Congress.

The amicus brief was led by U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill. Joining Wyden and Merkley, the amicus brief was also signed by Senators Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Patty Murray, D-Wash., Michael Bennet, D-Colo., Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Cory Booker, D-N.J., Chris Coons, D-Del., Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., John Fetterman, D-Pa., Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., Mazie Hirono, D-Hawai’i, Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., Alex Padilla, D-Calif., Jack Reed, D-R.I., Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., Tina Smith, D-Minn., Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Peter Welch, D-Vt., and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.

The full amicus brief is here.

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Murkowski and Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Advance Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Brian Schatz (D-HI), with Representatives Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) and Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to strengthen marine carbon dioxide removal research and development in the United States.

The Removing and Sequestering Carbon Unleashed in the Environment and Oceans Act (ReSCUE Oceans Act) would establish the United States as a leader in marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) research, development, and responsible testing by investing in science-based measurement tools, creating environmental and community safeguards, as well as strengthening coordination between federal research agencies.

“Alaska has unrivaled potential for carbon sequestration and carbon dioxide removal, both onshore and offshore. As the state with by far the most coastline, emerging marine options, such as seaweed and kelp farming, have shown great promise as we seek to responsibly reduce emissions on a net basis,” Senator Murkowski said. “Our bipartisan, bicameral legislation will provide for new research and development of these technologies in close partnership with local governments, communities, and the private sector. As we seek to develop them the right way – fully protecting our marine environment – I’m excited by what lies ahead and the opportunities this will help create across Alaska.”

“Carbon dioxide removal is an essential tool in the fight against the climate crisis, in addition to being a driver of American innovation,” said Senator Brian Schatz. “Our bill will encourage research into mCDR to ensure it’s safe, effective, benefits coastal communities, and protects ecosystems.”

“We must do all we can to reduce carbon pollution, which fuels more frequent and extreme weather events,” said Representative Bonamici. “Marine carbon dioxide removal is a promising strategy that can enhance the ocean’s role as a natural carbon sink to absorb and store emissions. But we need more rigorous science, meaningful federal investment, and a clear research framework to safely deploy it. Oregon’s coastal communities understand the power and vulnerability of the ocean, and they should have a voice in studying mCDR. As Co-Chair of the House Oceans Caucus, I’m pleased to join my colleagues in leading this bipartisan legislation to explore responsible use of mCDR.”

"Marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) is an emerging tool to help us reduce and capture emissions while spurring economic innovation," said Representative Carter. "Our oceans absorb 30 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions. Funding further research for mCDR will help us better understand this emerging and exciting technology, and I am proud to colead this legislation with Congresswoman Bonamici, Congressman Tonko, Senator Murkowski, and Senator Schatz."

Specifically, the ReSCUE Oceans Act would:

Establish a dedicated research program and grants at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to evaluate mCDR efficacy and safety, including effects on ecosystems and coastal communities;

Invest in monitoring infrastructure to evaluate environmental effects, measure outcomes, develop mCDR standards and protocols, and make findings publicly available;

Develop a framework to designate mCDR field research sites to coordinate science resources and create clarity for researchers and communities;

Establish an interagency working group co-chaired by NOAA and the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a federal mCDR research plan with monitoring goals, standards, and clear safeguards;

Create a research code of conduct based on transparency and ecosystem protection to collect critical data to inform mCDR development, regulation, and siting; and

Leverage research, workforce, measurement, and standards development resources across federal science agencies, including the National Science Foundation, NOAA, and National Institute of Standards and Technology.

This legislation is endorsed by Carbon180, Carbon Removal Alliance, Carbon To Sea Initiative, ClearPath Action, Climate Innovation Action, Ocean Conservancy, Ocean Visions, World Resources Institute, and Third Way.

Additional statements of support can be found here.

A one-page summary of the ReSCUE Oceans Act can be found here and a section-by-section summary of the bill can be found here. The full text of the legislation is available here.


Murphy On DHS Funding Fight: We Are Demanding That ICE Follow The Law

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Wednesday took to the floor of the U.S. Senate to demand reforms to the Department of Homeland Security. He shared horrifying stories of the Department of Homeland Security’s abuses under the Trump administration: from teargassing schools, to murdering American citizens with impunity, and disappearing legal immigrants. Hammering the real-world stakes of this moment, Murphy outlined the commonsense reforms Americans demand to rein in an out-of-control DHS, while making clear Congress must not fund DHS until they stop terrorizing communities.

Murphy warned his colleagues in the Senate that they jeopardize their oath to uphold the Constitution if they support funding Trump’s lawless Department of Homeland Security: “[DHS is] not complying with the law. They are not respecting Americans' rights. They are tear gassing schools. They are murdering American citizens. They are disappearing legal immigrants to this country. Right now, we are not funding the Department of Homeland Security because Democrats have made it clear that we would be violating our oath of office if we funded a department that is using taxpayer dollars to violate the Constitution and the law. I wanted to come down to the floor this evening to remind my colleagues about what is happening all over the country, because now that we're trading legislative texts, now that we're deep in the weeds of immigration policy, the real life experience of people in this country, of communities that are being terrorized by an out-of-control ICE risks is getting lost in the discussion.”

Murphy shared a story emphasizing why ICE and CBP must conduct targeted law enforcement and stop the roving patrols and racial profiling of law-abiding citizens: “Ramon Menera is a US citizen. Guess what? There are a lot of US citizens who have accents. Frankly, most of us have forefathers that when they came to the United States had an accent. That is not a justification for you to be detained. He was even carrying his ID on him. All the agent had to do was check his ID to confirm that he was a US citizen. But the agent did not check his ID. Instead, that agent arrested him, put his wrists in zip ties and took him away from his property. He was forcibly detained by border patrol even though he was a US citizen. This didn't happen just once. This has happened thousands of times, all across the country. It is still happening today that individuals who are legally in this country are being detained, zip tied, and arrested because they have an accent, because they look like they might be from Mexico or from Central or South America. It gets worse, though. Ramon's five-year-old daughter was inside and watched this entire incident through the window. Five years old. To this day, she has refused to go outside because she fears for the masked men that arrested, zip tied, and detained her U.S. citizen father.”

Murphy illustrated why Congress must require DHS agents to stop behaving like masked secret police and wear clear identification and body cameras: “Three unmarked ICE vehicles began chasing this woman down a rural, rural road. When she didn't pull over, they boxed her in. As soon as she stopped, these three masked agents jumped out of their vehicles immediately, with guns drawn, screaming at her to get out of her car again. She has committed no crime, no traffic violation. She refused. She calmly asserted her rights. The agents then forced her door open, dragged this woman onto the road, handcuffed her. This is an unarmed woman who had committed no crime. She's alone on a country road and an unmarked car boxes her in. Out jumps masked men with guns and drag her out of her car. That is not the United States of America. That is Stalinist Russia. That is Maduro. Is Venezuela. We don't allow, in this country, masked men to pull over law-abiding citizens in unmarked cars and drag them out onto the road.”

Murphy demanded Congress prohibit DHS agents from entering sensitive locations like schools, retelling the harrowing experience of children and faculty attacked by ICE agents in Minneapolis: “While students and faculty were gathered outside of the high school for early dismissal, armed masked border patrol officers, some from the elite special forces team, crossed over onto school property and began tackling people. They handcuffed two members of the faculty. They released chemical irritants into the crowd of students and teachers. And in videos taken by witnesses, you can see the agents firing tear gas. This is at a school. Just when the kids are all congregated after school, outside of school, they're firing tear gas into these students. Chaos erupts. Dozens of kids run. They take shelter at a nearby library. Let me say that again, children are running from federal agents who are tear gassing them to find shelter in a nearby library. One school official told a reporter that the agents didn't care.”

Slamming the Trump administration’s unprecedented refusal of an independent investigation into the murder of Renee Good, Murphy made the case for why states must be allowed to independently investigate federal misconduct: “When political pressure overrides independent investigation, justice fails and democracy dies. This is exactly why we are demanding that if we're going to send our taxpayer dollars to fund ICE, we have to be able to protect the authority of states and localities to investigate potential crimes, including excessive force by federal officers. Evidence has got to be preserved and shared, and investigations have to be impartial. That's not a wild demand. Just investigate murders, investigate the killing of American citizens like we have always done under no circumstances. Should we be funding a Department of Homeland Security that believes, as the Vice President said, that they have complete immunity for killing American citizens? Independent investigations: a pretty reasonable demand.”

Setting the facts straight on whether DHS was prioritizing violent criminals for removal, Murphy told the story of a fourteen-year-old asylum applicant detained by ICE: “You have this image that the Trump administration tries to proffer that they're going after violent criminals, or maybe they're going after or only the people who snuck into the country. No no. Ariana and her mom, Stephanie, came to the United States legally, applied for asylum, legally got a work permit, legally were showing up to their check-ins. And they were sucked into the detention system.”

He detailed DHS’ unlawful detention of thousands of children in miserable conditions for weeks at a time: “The law says you're supposed to keep kids in detention for only 25 days. Ariana was there for 45 days - again, ICE violating the law. She was sent to a detention center called Dilley… I'm the ranking Democrat on the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Appropriations. I was denied entry to Dilley. I met later that night two younger boys, younger than Ariana, who had been in Dilley for over a month, month and a half, through Christmas. I sat and looked at these boys. I sat across the table from them for about an hour. They were alive on the outside, but they were dead on the inside… Limited or no access to medical care, no access to legal representation, apathetic guards, traumatized kids: that's the reality of what is happening inside these detention centers.”

Murphy argued that DHS’ enforcement practices are grossly out of step with our fundamental American values: “This isn't America. The Bill of Rights still matters here. The Constitution still matters here in this country. We don't have unidentified masked men ripping American citizens out of their cars. We don't allow federal law enforcement officers to shoot and kill American citizens with impunity. We allow people to apply for legal status. We don't choose to intentionally traumatize children. We don't let officials wander around communities listening for accents and zip tying people who don't speak the way that they think Americans should speak. We are demanding that ICE follow the law.”

Murphy pleaded with his Republican colleagues to support basic guardrails on DHS to ensure the humane enforcement of our immigration laws: “We are asking our Republican colleagues to join us in strengthening the law to make sure that these roving patrols, these murders with impunity, this traumatizing of children, the tear gassing of schools ends. We would still enforce American immigration laws, but we would do it in a humane, legal way.”

A full transcript of Murphy’s remarks is available below.

MURPHY: Thank you very much. Mr. President.

Mr. President, we all swore an oath to uphold the Constitution, and that means that we have an obligation to fund the government, but only a government that is complying with the Constitution, that is obeying and being restrained. By the Bill of Rights, that is upholding the laws of the land right now, the Department of Homeland Security is out of control. They are not upholding the Constitution.

They are not complying with the law. They are not respecting Americans' rights. They are tear gassing schools. They are murdering American citizens. They are disappearing legal immigrants to this country. Right now, we are not funding the Department of Homeland Security because Democrats have made it clear that we would be violating our oath of office if we funded a Department that is using taxpayer dollars to violate the Constitution and the law. I wanted to come down to the floor this evening to remind my colleagues about what is happening all over the country, because now that we're trading legislative texts, now that we're deep in the weeds of immigration policy, the real life experience of people in this country, of communities that are being terrorized by an out-of-control ICE risks getting lost in the discussion.

So I want to spend just a few minutes reminding my colleagues on both sides of the aisle what the stakes are here, what the real world looks like out there, if you are on the receiving end of a Department of Homeland Security that doesn't care about your rights as an American citizen or as a resident of this country. And so I want to go through some of the most egregious, out-of-control, illegal, unconstitutional practices that ICE has been utilizing all across the country over the course of the last year. And I want to get specific with you so that you know why we believe this moment is so serious, why American citizens believe this moment is so serious. Because this isn't just an opinion held by Democrats who were simply saying, if we're going to fund ICE, it's got to be an ICE that's obeying the law.

This is what the American people think. Who have watched images like this, and others that I will show you, and have said from both sides of the aisle – Republicans and Democrats, independents – that we don't want this ICE, we don't want this Department of Homeland Security. We want the immigration laws of this country to be upheld, but not through the abuse of people's rights, not through violence.

This is a screenshot of a video that went viral all across the country, about a month ago. The man in this video's name is Ramon Menera. He was stopped by a border patrol agent outside his home in a Minneapolis suburb. Now, first of all, you may ask, why is a border patrol agent outside of aMinneapolis suburb? That's not on the border? Well, that's the first thing that's gone wrong here. CBP, HSI, all sorts of agencies that we fund in order to do very specific jobs are now doing an entirely different job – interior immigration enforcement. That's violative of the appropriations law. We don't fund CBP to be wandering suburbs in Minneapolis looking for people who they want to detain. This should be a prerogative that matters to both Republicans and Democrats. Our spending power and the spending power in the Constitution is vested in the legislative branch. Our spending power is moot, is pointless, we are powerless, if we tell the administration we're giving you this amount of money to spend on protecting the border, and they just say, “screw it. We're not going to use that money to protect the border. We're going to take those people and we're going to put them on a different job that they're not trained for.”

Well, when you have CBP agents who are not trained to wander apartment complexes searching for people they want to detain, things like this happen every single day. Ramon Menera was stopped and cuffed because of his accent. This is actually what the agent tells him in this video. If you go online and watch this video, you will hear the agent tell Ramon Menera that he is being detained because he has an accent.

Ramon Menera is a US citizen. Guess what? There are a lot of US citizens who have accents. Frankly, most of us have forefathers that when they came to the United States had an accent. That is not a justification for you to be detained. He was even carrying his ID on him. All the agent had to do was check his ID to confirm that he was a US citizen. But the agent did not check his ID. Instead, that agent arrested him, put his wrists in zip ties and took him away from his property. He was forcibly detained by border patrol even though he was a US citizen. This didn't happen just once. This has happened thousands of times, all across the country. It is still happening today that individuals who are legally in this country are being detained, zip tied, and arrested because they have an accent, because they look like they might be from Mexico or from Central or South America. It gets worse, though. Ramon's five-year-old daughter was inside and watched this entire incident through the window. Five years old. To this day, she has refused to go outside because she fears for the masked men that arrested, zip tied, and detained her U.S. citizen father.

The reason that we are demanding that these indiscriminate roving patrols, these show your papers, arrest-you-if-you-have-an-accent patrols end, is because they are fundamentally un-American and they are illegal, and yet they continue. And so unless we restrain them in law, unless we stop ICE and CBP and HSI from wandering through suburban neighborhoods listening for people who may have accents and zip tying them until they can prove that they're an American citizen, then they will continue.

This should upset Republicans just as much as it upsets Democrats. The idea that this man, a U.S. citizen, was zip tied, detained and arrested while his five year old daughter watched, even though he had ID on him, proving that he was an American citizen. This has to end, and we shouldn't fund ICE until it does end.

In another quiet Minnesota suburb, this one called St. Peter, a woman sat alone in her car observing and recording ICE officers as they patrolled her community. This should go without saying, but it clearly needs to be said anyway: what this woman was doing is fully protected by the Constitution. Observing and recording federal agents, local law enforcement is a First Amendment right. You get that right by being born in the United States of America, being a resident of the United States of America. It's not suspicious. It's not a crime. But ICE doesn't like that.

People are watching them, tracking their illegality. So what happened next should alarm every American citizen. Three unmarked ICE vehicles began chasing this woman down a rural, rural road when she didn't pull over, they boxed her in. As soon as she stopped, these three masked agents jumped out of their vehicles immediately, with guns drawn, screaming at her to get out of her car again. She has committed no crime, no traffic violation. She refused. She calmly asserted her rights, the agents then forced her door open, dragged this woman onto the road, handcuffed her. This is an unarmed woman who had committed no crime. She's alone on a country road in an unmarked car boxes her in out jumps masked men. With guns and drag her out of her car. That is not the United States of America. That is Stalinist Russia. That is Maduro. Is Venezuela. We don't allow, in this country, masked men to pull over law-abiding citizens in unmarked cars and drag them out onto the road. They put her in her vehicle, they began driving her in this car to Minneapolis. About 20 minutes later, the agents received a call from their supervisor. The woman's husband had contacted the St Peter police department and reached the police chief, and the chief called the ICE officers and told them they were violating the law and to let this woman out.

The only reason we know this story is because when her husband arrived, he started recording it, and we have these frightening images for every incident that we see like this, there are hundreds others that we don't and it won't end until we decide, as a body, to require that ICE officers stop wearing masks, identify themselves and record what they're doing. This should alarm anybody who believes in the rule of law.

This photo is taken - I want to get this one right - It's outside of Roosevelt High School. And on a Wednesday afternoon in Minneapolis, while students and faculty were gathered outside of the high school for early dismissal, armed masked border patrol officers, some from the elite special forces team, crossed over onto school property and began tackling people. They handcuffed two members of the faculty. They released chemical irritants into the crowd of students and teachers. And in videos taken by witnesses, you can see the agents firing tear gas. This is at a school. Just when the kids are all congregated after school, outside of school, they're firing tear gas into these students.

Chaos erupts. Dozens of kids run. They take shelter at a nearby library. Let me say that again, children are running from federal agents who are tear gassing them to find shelter in a nearby library. One school official told a reporter that the agents didn't care, they were animals. I've never seen people behave like this. The school was forced to close for the rest of the week. Under both Republican and Democratic administrations, before the Trump administration, there was a policy that ICE did not operate in sensitive locations: in schools and hospitals, in churches and daycares, places where there were lots of little kids, sacred places. These aren't supposed to be battlegrounds. These are places where children and other vulnerable populations are known to be. But this continues, schools are under assault.

So what are we saying? Not another dime for DHS if they're going to use taxpayer dollars to turn schools into scenes of terror. The use of federal funds to conduct immigration enforcement at sensitive locations should be prohibited full stop.

[You] probably recognize this car. That's the blood of Renee Good. This photo was taken after an ICE agent shot and killed her, an unarmed American citizen, a mother of three. But here's the story I want to tell: not the story of the incident, the story of what happened after the incident. After the incident, career federal prosecutors did exactly what they were supposed to do. They moved quickly to preserve evidence. They began coordinating with state authorities to investigate a potential use of excessive force. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, these are the experts when it comes to police shootings, were prepared to work alongside the FBI to determine the facts.

But they never got to determine the facts. The career federal prosecutors never got to do their job because the Trump administration intervened. Senior officials at the Department of Justice shut down the investigation. The Trump administration shut down the investigation of the murder of Renee Good. Why? Because they worried that the investigation would actually come to a factual conclusion. Because the Trump administration had decided within hours that Renee Good was a terrorist, and they were only interested in an investigation that confirmed their political judgment. The career prosecutors refused to go along, and instead they resigned.

When political pressure overrides independent investigation, justice fails and democracy dies. This is exactly why we are demanding that if we're going to send our taxpayer dollars to fund ICE, we have to be able to protect the authority of states and localities to investigate potential crimes, including excessive force by federal officers. Evidence has got to be preserved and shared, and investigations have to be impartial. That's not a wild demand. Just investigate murders, investigate the killing of American citizens like we have always done under no circumstances. Should we be funding a Department of Homeland Security that believes, as the Vice President said, that they have complete immunity for killing American citizens? Independent investigations: a pretty reasonable demand.

Finally, this is a letter. You're not going to be able to read this 14 year old's actually pretty legible handwriting, but her name is Ariana. And Ariana and her mom, Stephanie, were in the country legally. They were immigrants to this country, but they were playing by the rules. Her mom had gotten a work permit. They were doing their regular check-ins with ICE. And then everything changed.

One day, they walked in to do their regular check-in. [They] again, complying with the law, applying for asylum, had gone and gotten a work permit, not working under the table. They went to do their check in, and they were swept away and detained. You have this image that the Trump administration tries to proffer that they're going after violent criminals, or maybe they're going after or only the people who snuck into the country. No no. Ariana and her mom, Stephanie, came to the United States legally, applied for asylum, legally got a work permit, legally were showing up to their check-ins. And they were sucked into the detention system.

14 years old. The law says you're supposed to keep kids in detention for only 25 days. Ariana was there for 45 days - again, ICE violating the law. She was sent to a detention center called Dilley. I went down to Dilley, tried to do an inspection of Dilley. I'm the ranking Democrat on the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Appropriations. I was denied entry to Dilley. I met later that night two younger boys, younger than Ariana, who had been in Dilley for over a month, month and a half, through Christmas. I sat and looked at these boys. I sat across the table from them for about an hour. They were alive on the outside, but they were dead on the inside. They were dead on the inside. They spent Christmas in a detention center. They call it the baby jail in Texas because there are literally hundreds of kids, most of them under five years old, who are being detained in prison cells. Ariana wrote this letter to try to tell the world what the conditions were like inside since I got to the center, all you feel is sadness and depression.

People have their courts, but they only last 15 minutes. Their rights are not being provided. We don't have schools [or] doctors, all they have here are nurses. If you need medical attention, the longest you have to wait is three hours. But to get any medicine, pill or anything, it takes a while. There are viruses here all the time, getting people sick. Serious situations happen, and the officers can't take them serious enough. There are no consequences. They don't care. Limited or no access to medical care, no access to legal representation, apathetic guards, traumatized kids: that's the reality of what is happening inside these detention centers. In a center down the road from Dilley called Pearsall, there's, I don't know, 1500-2000 people in that facility. That facility is just for adults. You know how many rooms there are for legal consultations? Four. It's all rigged. It's all rigged. They sweep up legal immigrants like Stephanie and Ariana, they throw them into detention. They don't let them see their lawyers, and they disappear them back to their home country.

This isn't America. The Bill of Rights still matters here. The Constitution still matters here in this country. We don't have unidentified masked men ripping American citizens out of their cars. We don't allow federal law enforcement officers to shoot and kill American citizens with impunity. We allow people to apply for legal status. We don't choose to intentionally traumatize children. We don't let officials wander around communities listening for accents and zip tying people who don't speak the way that they think Americans should speak, we are demanding that ICE follow the law. We are asking our Republican colleagues to join us in strengthening the law to make sure that these roving patrols, these murders with impunity, this traumatizing of children, the tear gassing of schools ends. We would still enforce American immigration laws, but we would do it in a humane, legal way. So I appreciate the time of my colleagues. Today, I wanted to walk you through what's happening. This is all still happening. Just because all the TV cameras aren't in Minneapolis any longer doesn't mean that these practices aren't still real, and until ICE decides to act in a legal manner, we shouldn't give him one more dime. That's our constitutional responsibility. I yield the floor.