This Week in Washington: 11.2-11.6
Statement
Fellow Americans --
We lost a much loved Tennessean this week. Though Fred Thompson's roots were in Tennessee, his service spanned far past the borders of our state and into the lives and homes of all Americans. To my family, and to many in Middle Tennessee, Fred was a neighbor, a friend and a trusted political voice. Many of you have shared with me your memories of Fred and here I share with you my own. His passing brings great sadness to all and our prayers are with his wife Jeri and the entire Thompson family.
Every time I hear from you, no matter what the issue is, there is one underlying theme -- you want to see action. Under the leadership of Speaker Paul Ryan the House now has a clean slate to move forward and to take that action. We will work together to rein in regulations and spending, enact tax reforms that benefit all Americans, and strengthen our national security. In case you missed it, I discussed our new leadership in depth with Fox News this weekend. Additionally, I spoke about my new role as Chairman of the Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives. As I've mentioned before, our mission is to gather information and get the facts about the medical practices of abortion service providers and the business practices of the procurement organizations who sell baby body parts. You can be assured that we will follow the law, find the facts and focus on where those facts take us in defense of life.
We've had a full schedule at the House Energy and Commerce Committee this week looking into ways to fix our broken healthcare system and make sure all American's have access to quality healthcare they can afford to use. Our nation's most vulnerable rely on Medicaid to access the healthcare they need, but more must be done to strengthen and sustain the program. Working with colleagues on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, I'm pleased to serve on the Medicaid Task Force which will build on our efforts to fulfill the promise of quality care for years to come. You can learn more about what we've done in the past to examine Medicaid and what our plan going forward is, here. We also looked into the failing Obamacare CO-OPs that are costing taxpayers millions of dollars and counting. Eleven of the 23 Obamacare CO-OPS have failed, including our own in Tennessee. You can watch our full hearing here where we examined the Administration's costly failures and worked to find solutions.
As you can see, a lot of our work this week has centered on the delivery of healthcare. Our district is home to many health innovators who dedicate their talents to developing 21st century technology that can improve the health and well-being of all Americans. It was an honor to accept the Champion of Healthcare Innovation Award from the Healthcare Leadership Council this week for my work on legislation, such as 21st Century Cures, which encourages these developments to help save lives.
On two occasions this week we've seen blatant instances of President Obama putting criminals and illegal aliens before law-abiding, hardworking Americans who should be his priority. With the whim of his pen and phone, the President issued an executive order that prevents federal agencies from requiring job-applicants reveal if they have had a criminal record and through a leaked DHS memo, we saw the President once again planning to circumvent checks and balances -- this time, to help illegal aliens secure work. This only strengthens my resolve to fight against President Obama's lawless executive actions.
As Veteran's Day approaches, I encourage you to take the time to thank all of those who have served. Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Twitter as we'll be recognizing the sacrifice and courage of our veterans community throughout the week. If you are a local veteran who would like to submit your story and a photo to share on my Facebook page, please send it to TN07vets@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you and to each of you I convey my appreciation and admiration
Have a great weekend,
Marsha
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