Grassley Direct

spoke with AJ Taylor of KIOW Radio in Forest City and Tom Cullen of the Storm Lake Times about lowering prescription drug costs, federal and state water quality regulations, bipartisan legislation to increase access to and lower the cost of hearing aids and the firing of FBI Director James Comey. 

Q&A: Foster Youth

Q.What prompted your leadership on foster care issues in Congress? 
Q. What other reforms are you proposing to help at-risk youth? 

Quick Link

urged the IRS and Treasury Department to clarify rules on refinancing options for student debt. Empowering nonprofits operating in the student loan space is one tool we should unleash to better deal with the student debt problem.

Governor Branstad was unanimously approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to serve as the next U.S. ambassador to China. I look forward to voting to confirm him to serve the nation in this new role.

At a Judiciary Committee hearing earlier this month, now-former FBI Direct Comey committed the Bureau to providing follow-up briefings for several matters that were discussed. I requested the Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe to provide such a briefing in a timely manner. I also called on them to brief the full committee on the investigation into Russian interference in the U.S. election. The bipartisan request is intended to ensure that all Judiciary Committee senators, both Republicans and Democrats, have a better understanding of what went on and where the investigation stands.

Fellow senators and I called on the Trump Administration to prioritize funding for the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Since its inception, the program has achieved statistically significant reductions in youth drug use. We must also maintain strong law enforcement efforts to address the trafficking of dangerous substances. 

bipartisan bill I wrote with Senator Elizabeth Warren that would make certain types of hearing aids available over the counter passed through committee this week. Consumers are interested in new hearing aid products to improve their quality of life at an affordable price. The committee was right to advance this bill, and I look forward to seeing it continue to move forward.

In recent years, I’ve raised many concerns about flaws in the EB-5 investor visa program, which was designed to create jobs in rural and economically depressed urban areas through foreign investments in exchange for visas. Unfortunately, the program has been riddled with fraud, abuse and national security vulnerabilities.I called on the Department of Homeland Security to expedite proposed regulations to address these flaws and return integrity to the program. The department must also clarify that no foreign investors will receive preferential treatment and applications will be processed in the order in which they are received.

Post of the Week

Unsubscribe