|
Dear
Oklahoma
Friends
and
Neighbors,
I
am
grateful
for
the
time
I
got
to
spend
last
week
traveling
around
Oklahoma
to
catch
up
with
so
many
people
in
Edmond,
Okmulgee,
OKC,
Muskogee,
Stillwater,
and
Tulsa.
Conversations
and
questions
focused
on
infrastructure,
immigration,
national
security,
healthcare,
tax
reform,
our
national
debt,
and
racial
issues
in
our
nation.
I'm
grateful
to
hear
the
issues
you
deeply
care
about
and
your
suggestions
as
to
how
we
can
address
the
problems
together.
As
Congress
returned
to
Washington,
DC,
this
week,
we
had
a
number
of
issues
to
debate
including
taxes,
passing
a
budget
to
fund
the
federal
government,
addressing
our
national
debt
limit,
immigration
reform,
funding
our
military,
and
healthcare
reform.
As
we
tackle
our
national
priorities,
I
hope
you’ll
stay
in
touch.
The
response
by
Americans
after
Hurricane
Harvey
is
a
shining
example
of
how
love
can
transcend
any
difficulty.
To
all
the
Oklahomans
who
have
donated
time,
money,
blood,
and
equipment
over
the
last
few
weeks—thank
you
for
sharing
our
Oklahoma
Standard
with
those
who
need
it
most.
Now
the
US
Virgin
Islands,
Puerto
Rico,
and
the
East
Coast
are
recovering
or
evacuating
from
Hurricane
Irma.
I
hope
you
will
join
me
in
praying
for
all
affected.
If
you
want
to
donate
to
hurricane
relief,
please
donate
through
trusted
nonprofits.
Many
Oklahomans
have
already
found
a
way
to
volunteer
their
time
to
assist
in
the
clean-up—thank
you
for
showing
the
Oklahoma
Standard
again.
|
Debt
Ceiling,
Continuing
Resolution,
and
Emergency
Funding
for
Hurricane
Harvey
When
Congress
returned
to
DC
this
week,
the
priority
was
to
provide
assistance
to
those
affected
by
Hurricane
Harvey
along
the
Gulf
Coast
in
Texas
and
Louisiana.
Unfortunately,
disaster
relief
got
caught
up
in
the
chaos
of
Washington
politics.
What
should
have
been
a
simple
vote
to
provide
essential
emergency
funding
for
disaster
victims
became
a
legislative
hybrid
to
postpone
the
budget
debate
another
three
months
and
raise
the
national
debt
ceiling
with
absolutely
no
spending
reforms
to
address
the
nation’s
growing
debt.
I
am
extremely
disappointed
that
Republican
leadership
paired
these
issues
together.
A
small
group
of
Senators
forced
a
separate
vote
for
the
disaster
relief.
I
voted
for
the
stand-alone
disaster
relief
package,
but
many
more
Senators
voted
for
the
disaster
relief
bill
with
the
debt
ceiling
package
included.
We
avoided
the
drama,
but
we
only
postponed
the
problem.
I
have
always
had
one
simple
rule
on
debt
ceiling
increases:
if
we
are
not
making
progress
on
solving
the
debt,
we
should
not
raise
the
debt
ceiling.
The
reason
Congress
debates
and
votes
on
the
debt
ceiling
is
to
provide
an
opportunity
for
the
nation
to
create
a
plan
to
cut
the
deficit
and
make
reforms.
Lately,
the
debt
ceiling
debate
is
more
about
passing
it
rather
than
fixing
it.
Months
ago,
I
presented
a
plan
to
reform
the
appropriations
process,
structurally
change
the
debt
ceiling,
and
update
the
Senate
rules.
I
am
committed
to
doing
more
than
complaining
about
the
problem,
I
am
committed
to
fixing
it.
To
read
my
statement,
CLICK
HERE.
|
DACA
On
Tuesday,
President
Trump
and
his
Administration
announced
their
decision
to
end
the
Deferred
Action
for
Childhood
Arrivals
(DACA)
program
on
March
5,
2018.
DACA
is
an
Executive
program
created
by
President
Obama
to
circumvent
Congress.
It
gave
a
two-year
legal
delay
to
individuals
who
were
brought
to
the
United
States
illegally
as
children
if
they
registered
and
paid
a
small
fee.
President
Obama
also
created
a
similar
program
for
adults,
but
it
was
immediately
declared
unconstitutional
by
the
courts.
Today
DACA
is
still
being
argued
in
the
courts
to
determine
its
constitutionality.
President
Trump
and
Attorney
General
Jeff
Sessions
were
very
clear
that
they
believe
the
White
House
is
responsible
for
immigration
enforcement
and
border
security,
not
immigration
policy.
The
President
was
also
very
clear
that
he
believes
individuals
who
were
illegally
brought
to
the
United
States
by
their
parents
should
receive
some
compassion
and
a
legal
resolution.
Now
it
is
up
to
Congress
to
resolve
this
legal
issue.
We,
as
Americans,
do
not
hold
children
legally
accountable
for
the
actions
of
their
parents,
but
it
is
right
for
there
to
be
consequences
for
those
who
intentionally
broke
the
law.
As
all
of
us
know,
DACA
is
just
one
of
many
legal
problems
related
to
immigration.
Our
borders
are
not
secure,
we
still
do
not
have
a
reliable
entry/exit
system,
e-verify
is
unreliable,
our
visa
system
is
out
of
date,
border
patrol
is
understaffed,
and
much
more.
Congress
should
use
this
moment
that
President
Trump
has
created
to
finally
address
border
security
and
immigration
enforcement.
To
read
my
statement
on
the
Administration’s
announcement
to
end
DACA,
CLICK
HERE.
|
Tornado
Aftermath:
Temporary
Office
in
Tulsa
As
you
may
already
know,
the
late-night
tornado
in
early
August
caused
serious
damage
to
parts
of
Tulsa,
including
the
building
in
which
my
Tulsa
office
is
located.
No
one
from
our
team
was
hurt,
but
we
have
temporarily
relocated
to
downtown
Tulsa
until
we
are
able
to
return
to
the
Remington
Tower.
We
appreciate
your
patience
as
we
set
up
a
temporary
office
space
to
continue
to
serve
you.
If
you
need
to
contact
the
Tulsa
office
by
phone,
the
number
is
the
same:
(918)
581-7651.
The
address
for
our
temporary
office
is
224
South
Boulder,
Suite
210.
As
always,
the
DC,
Oklahoma
City,
and
Tulsa
offices
are
here
to
serve
you.
I
will
keep
you
updated
as
we
learn
more
about
our
Tulsa
office.
|
Israel
&
North
Korea
As
a
member
of
the
Senate
Select
Committee
on
Intelligence,
part
of
my
commitment
is
to
stay
engaged
in
the
international
issues
we
face
as
a
nation.
On
separate
occasions
during
the
last
year,
I
traveled
to
Turkey,
Kosovo,
Lebanon,
Jordan,
South
Korea,
Syria,
Iraq,
and
Israel.
These
trips
provided
me
a
firsthand
opportunity
to
evaluate
anti-terrorism
efforts,
speak
with
diplomats,
and
meet
with
Oklahomans
deployed
in
the
region.
My
bipartisan
trip
to
Israel
a
few
weeks
ago
was
another
opportunity
to
speak
face-to-face
with
Israeli
and
Palestinian
leaders.
Israel
and
the
United
States
have
a
unique
security
and
economic
friendship.
Our
continued
partnership
is
essential
to
confront
the
terrorism
challenges
we
both
face
in
the
days
ahead.
When
I
met
with
leaders
in
South
Korea
a
few
months
ago,
they
reiterated
their
concerns
with
the
military
dictatorship
located
just
a
few
miles
north
of
Seoul.
Six
American
presidents
in
a
row,
of
both
parties,
have
worked
to
limit
the
aggression
of
North
Korea,
but
each
generation
of
communist
leaders
seems
to
be
more
unstable
than
the
last.
The
situation
with
North
Korea
is
serious,
but
President
Trump
and
his
national
security
team
have
worked
with
South
Korea,
Japan,
China,
and
Russia
to
de-escalate
the
tension
and
confront
the
international
threat.
I
stay
very
engaged
in
the
issue
and
grieve
for
the
North
Korean
people,
who
suffer
the
most
under
the
brutal
Kim
regime.
|
Keeping
You
in
the
Loop
- Last
week,
I
held
a
townhall-style
Community
Conversation
in
Edmond.
If
you
missed
it,
you
can
watch
it
anytime
on
my
.
- Next
week,
the
Senate
will
likely
consider
the
National
Defense
Authorization
Act
(NDAA),
which
sets
the
annual
direction
for
the
Department
of
Defense.
I
support
our
efforts
to
increase
manpower,
procure
new
equipment,
and
improve
readiness
levels
in
both
training
and
weapon
system
sustainment.
These
are
the
first
steps
to
guarantee
our
military
is
ready
and
able
to
meet
any
threat.
- While
traveling
the
state
last
week,
a
number
of
Oklahomans
asked
me
about
the
future
of
meaningful
healthcare
reform.
Many
people
I
met
did
not
know
that
a
bipartisan
group
of
Senators
started
meeting
in
August
to
discuss
a
way
forward.
That
conversation
has
progressed
to
hearings
and
roundtables
this
week.
Healthcare
costs
and
problems
with
the
Affordable
Care
Act
are
not
Republican
or
Democrat
issues.
Every
American
is
affected
by
the
major
problems
in
the
law.
It
is
our
hope
that
by
the
end
of
September,
we
can
pass
a
first
step
in
healthcare
delivery
reforms.
Costs
are
rising
and
healthcare
options
are
declining;
we
must
find
some
agreement
to
help
people
escape
the
harmful
consequences
of
the
Affordable
Care
Act.
- As
I
mentioned
earlier
in
this
newsletter,
the
debt
ceiling
tends
to
produce
more
crisis
theater
than
actual
debt
reduction.
It’s
time
Congress
considers
meaningful
reform
to
the
debt
ceiling
that
actually
works
to
lower
our
nation’s
debt.
To
read
an
opinion
piece
I
wrote
about
why
we
should
reform
the
debt
ceiling,
CLICK
HERE.
- On
Thursday,
the
Senate
Judiciary
Committee
considered
two
US
Attorney
nominations
for
the
Eastern
and
Northern
Districts
of
Oklahoma.
The
nominations
of
R.
Trent
Shores
and
Brian
Kuester
both
passed
out
of
the
Senate
Judiciary
Committee
unanimously
and
now
await
approval
from
by
the
full
Senate.
- Tomorrow,
Saturday,
September
9,
2017,
my
office
will
host
a
Service
Academy
Information
Day.
The
first
event
will
be
in
the
morning
in
Muskogee
and
a
second
event
will
be
held
in
the
afternoon
in
Lawton.
Oklahoma
students
8th
grade
through
high
school
seniors
who
are
interested
in
applying
for
a
United
States
service
academy
will
have
an
opportunity
to
meet
representatives
from
all
academies
and
learn
more
about
the
application
process.
For
more
information,
CLICK
HERE.
The
event
is
free
and
open
to
the
public.
No
reservation
is
required
to
attend.
|
Stay
Connected!
If
you
would
like
more
information
on
these
topics
or
any
other
legislation
currently
before
the
US
Senate,
please
do
not
hesitate
to
call
my
DC
office
at
(202)
224-5754.
My
Oklahoma
City
office
can
be
reached
at
(405)
231-4941
and
my
Tulsa
office
at
(918)
581-7651.
You
can
also
follow
me
on Facebook or Twitter or Instagramfor
updates
on
my
work
in
Congress.
Notice:
If
you
wish
to
stop
ALL
electronic
communications
from
my
office,
visit
this
link
to opt
out permanently
from
this
list.
If
you
have
any
questions
about
this
Notice
or
your
right
to
decline
future
electronic
mail
from
this
office,
please
contact
us
at
United
States
Senate,
316
Hart
Senate
Office
Building
Washington,
DC
20510.
|
|
|
|
|