Link to Abigail Spanberger's website: Spanberger.house.gov
Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger's Weekly Newsletter: September 27, 2019
(Copied from email Newsletter)
Good evening friends,
This week, I made progress on two of our priorities – trade and election security. In a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Lighthizer, I made the case for a rapid resolution on the GSP trade agreement with India to benefit American businesses. This agreement saved Virginians $14 million in 2016. I also cosponsored the Honest Ads Act, a bipartisan bill to strengthen the integrity of our elections and protect Americans from a flood of misinformation from foreign actors online.
Please keep scrolling for a quick debrief on this week's work. Thank you, as always, for the honor of serving Virginia's Seventh District. It is a privilege to represent you in the U.S. House.
IN VIRGINIA'S SEVENTH DISTRICT
Since swearing in on 1/3/19, my office has attended 410 events in the district, completed 444 constituent services cases, held 12 sessions of mobile office hours, hosted 10 town halls, and 6 Coffee with your Congressperson events.
Our district team has successfully resolved hundreds of cases for our constituents, and they are ready to assist you too. If you need help dealing with the IRS, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, visas, passports, or any other federal agency or program, please click this link to get started.
NOTE ON THIS WEEK'S DEVELOPMENTS
I'd like to thank all the Central Virginians who have called and written to express their opinion on the important issue of upholding our Constitution and responding to urgent national security concerns. Know that your input is always at the forefront of my mind when I make a decision in the House, and I appreciate your active engagement in our country's civic life.
Earlier this week, I made the following statement to my constituents about the recent allegations against the president:
“To the People of Central Virginia --
“On January 3, 2019, I swore an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States. It was the third time in my life of public service that I had taken such an oath, but the words were just as profound to me as the first time I spoke them. On the floor of the House of Representatives, I affirmed my fidelity to the Constitution in front of the American people.
“Over the past nine months, I have worked faithfully to deliver on my promises to the people of Central Virginia. I have focused on local issues, and I have introduced and supported healthcare and infrastructure legislation that would make a real difference in the lives of our neighbors. I’ve hosted town halls in each of the 10 counties I represent, and I’ve heard directly from many of you — both those who agree and those who disagree with my positions. I have joined bipartisan working groups and worked to build relationships and sponsor effective legislation with my Republican colleagues. I have voted on the merits of legislation, voting both “with” and “against” my party. I pledged to put country before party and assert my independence when it reflects my principles or the needs of Central Virginia, and I have done that.
“While many of my Democratic colleagues have called for investigations and inquiries over the last nine months, I have not. I have been clear in my desire to pursue evidence, but I have felt that a rush to designate a preferred outcome would be irresponsible and could be seen as partisan. I have believed that this partisanship would further divide our country and distract us from the fact that our elections and electorate were attacked in 2016. So while others called for inquiries and impeachment, I got to work. I co-founded a task force to understand and define our nation’s vulnerabilities and legislate to protect our elections and electorate from potential foreign influence and attack in our upcoming elections.
“But the newest allegations against the President of the United States have started a new chapter, and they must be treated as such. The allegation that the President may have used his position to ask a foreign leader to investigate a political rival to benefit his reelection efforts is shocking. That he may have tried to use U.S. taxpayer-funded security assistance funding as leverage in this effort represents a national security threat. In addition to the alleged actions of the President, the Administration is also blocking the Intelligence Community Inspector General from providing “urgent” and “credible” whistleblower information to Congress as required by law. The people of Central Virginia and the entire country deserve answers.
“That’s why I’ve joined with my fellow veteran and national security colleagues in calling on the House to pursue all possible avenues to determine the validity of these allegations. I want to make clear to the people of Central Virginia that these allegations, if proven true, pose a threat to our national security, endanger the integrity of our elections, and represent impeachable offenses. Congress must urgently determine if these allegations are true.
“As Congress digs deeper into these serious allegations, my focus in the House of Representatives will remain the same — I’ll continue fighting to lower prescription drug costs, boost healthcare coverage, expand our broadband infrastructure, address our growing debt and deficits, and build bipartisan coalitions. And I will continue to fight to uphold our Constitution. It is my honor to serve as your U.S. Representative.”
SERVICE ACADEMY DAY UPDATE
Saturday, Rep. Donald McEachin and I are hosting the Central Virginia Service Academy Day. If you are attending, please bring some form of ID! Our hosting venue will require identification for admittance.
WHAT I'M WORKING ON
This week, I joined 18 Republicans and 17 Democrats in cosponsoring the Honest Ads Act. This bipartisan bill would require that digital political ads, including ads that appear on social media, are subject to the same rules and oversight as political ads that run on TV, in print, or on the radio. We know that foreign actors will be working hard in the 2020 election cycle to divide and deceive Americans, and I'm working in a bipartisan manner to protect against this interference in our democracy.
I also recently wrote a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Lighthizer, urging him to reach a renewed GSP trade agreement with India that would benefit American businesses. The GSP program saves Virginians millions of dollars per year, and allowing it to terminate only hurts our Seventh District businesses.
On Thursday, I chaired a Conservation and Forestry Subcommittee hearing on national forest infrastructure. The roads, trails, bridges, and dams that traverse our U.S. Forest Service lands serve as the backbone to more than $10 billion of economic activity each year. Addressing the long backlog of forest infrastructure maintenance projects is vital.
On Thursday, I also participated in two House Foreign Affairs Committee hearings. My colleagues and I discussed the FY2020 budget for the Asia, Pacific, and Nonproliferation subcommittee, as well as the vital importance of our diplomatic and security relationships with Palau, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING
Washington Post: Seven freshman Democrats: These allegations are a threat to all we have sworn to protect
Culpeper Star Exponent: Spanberger warns against impeachment overreach
WRIC: Spanberger says questions need to be answered before considering Trump impeachment
PBS News Hour: Spanberger: 'So many troubling threads' in Trump allegations that full investigation is needed
Culpeper Star Exponent: For the Record: Spanberger on Trump-Ukraine allegations
Richmond Times Dispatch: Broadband remains hot topic at joint Powhatan board meeting
Richmond Times Dispatch: Congress must fund programs that help Virginia children aim high
(Not included..MY WEEK IN PHOTOS)
If my office can assist or serve you, please don't hesitate to call us at (202) 225-2815 in Washington or (804) 401-4110 in Henrico.
Sincerely,
Abigail
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