{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "is_view": false, "human_description_en": "where chamber = \"Senate\", state = \"NC\" and year = 2023 sorted by date descending", "rows": [["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/senate-passes-tillis-bill-to-equip-law-enforcement-with-trauma-kits", "Senate Passes Tillis Bill To Equip Law Enforcement With Trauma Kits", "2023-12-21", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Senate recently passed the American Law Enforcement Sustaining Aid and Vital Emergency Resources(SAVER) Act, legislation co-sponsored by Senator Thom Tillis to equip law enforcement officers with quality trauma kits to immediately respond to civilian or first responder injuries during emergency calls.\n\n\u201cAs a strong supporter of our brave men and women in law enforcement, I was proud to co-introduce this legislation which would equip law enforcement with the tools they need to keep our communities safe,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cEnsuring law enforcement officers have effective trauma kits will save countless lives. I am proud the American Law Enforcement SAVER Act passed the Senate and look forward to quick passage in the House to ensure our law enforcement agencies have the resources they need.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe effectiveness of a law enforcement trauma kit program depends in part on the contents and the quality of the kits. Medical professionals recommend that a kit include bleeding control supplies like tourniquets, bandages, non-latex gloves, scissors, and instructions. However, there is enormous variation in the products available on the market. The American Law Enforcement SAVER Act would:\n\nEstablish baseline standards in consultation with law enforcement and medical professionals for trauma kits purchased using grant funding under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG);\n\nRequire the development of optional best practices that law enforcement agencies can adapt for training law enforcement officers to use trauma kits and for deployment and maintenance of the kits in vehicles and government facilities.\n\nThe legislation is endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, National Association of Police Organizations, Sergeants Benevolent Association NYPD, Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, Major Cities Chiefs Association, Major County Sheriffs of America, Louisiana Association of Chiefs of Police, Louisiana Sheriffs\u2019 Association, Peace Officers Research Association of California, Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police, National Criminal Justice Association, The Wounded Blue, American Trauma Society, Society of Trauma Nurses, American College of Surgeons, and American College of Emergency Physicians.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-slam-dhs-decision-to-suspend-rail-commerce-at-border-to-process-more-migrants", "Tillis, Colleagues Slam DHS Decision to Suspend Rail Commerce at Border to Process More Migrants", "2023-12-21", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas demanding the BidenAdministration re-open railway commerce at the Southern border. Earlier this week, the Administration closed the railways to process migrants illegally crossing the border.\n\n\u201cWe write today to express our serious concern with the Customs and Border Protection\u2019s (CBP) recent actions to suspend international railway crossings and rail operations in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas. On December 18, 2023, CBP pulled personnel from those operations and redirected them to assist with the migrant surges at the southwest border. In recent weeks, CBP has suspended vehicle processing at Eagle Pass International Bridge 1 and operations at California\u2019s San Ysidro Pedestrian West and Arizona\u2019s Lukeville Port of Entry. Without putting real policies in place to cut the increasing flow of illegal immigration, our national security and economy will continue to pay the price,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cCBP\u2019s decision to suspend rail service and close international crossings at Eagle Pass and El Paso directly and immediately impacts our carriers\u2019 ability to move goods across the North American rail network and to the North American consumers who rely on them. The success of our trade partnership with Mexico relies on the successful operation of these international railway crossings. U.S. goods and services trade with Mexico totaled an estimated $855.1 billion in 2022. Eagle Pass and El Paso accounted for a total of $33.95 billion or 35.8% of all cross-border rail traffic to and from Mexico in the last year,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cThe crisis at our nation\u2019s southern border is unprecedented and is the worst it has ever been in our country\u2019s history. Only smarter and effective policies will guide us out of it, and without a real plan, this Administration will hardly address the substantial challenges that currently exist. Redirecting a small group of CBP personnel away from these rail entries will not do anything to get us closer to a solution. We urge you to re-open the rail ports of entry at Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas. Further, we urge you to take this humanitarian, security, and economic crisis seriously and engage with Congress to enact real policy change that stops the flow of illegal migration,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-incentivize-better-health-care-at-lower-costs", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Incentivize Better Health Care at Lower Costs", "2023-12-20", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Value in Health Care Act, bipartisan legislation that would update the program parameters of Medicare\u2019s Alternative Payment Models (APMs) to incentivize participation in Accountable Care Organizations (ACO). The changes would increase participation in these value-based health programs, which are designed to improve the quality of care and health outcomes for seniors while lowering costs.\n\n\u201cValue-based care programs have a successful track record of improving outcomes and reducing costs. The Value in Health Care Act will take an important step to further incentivize participation in these programs by financially rewarding coordination of care and patient outcomes, rather than the number of services provided,\u201dsaid Senator Tillis. \u201cI\u2019m proud to join my colleagues in introducing this bipartisan legislation that will increase access to higher quality, lower cost, patient-centered care for the nearly two million seniors in North Carolina.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Value in Health Care Act would make the following changes to the APM and ACO parameters:\n\nIncentivize participation in Advanced APMs by extending the annual lump sum participation bonus for an additional two years.\n\nCorrect arbitrary thresholds for Advanced APM qualification to better reflect the existing progress of the value-based movement and to encourage bringing more patients into this model of care.\n\nEstablish guardrails for CMS to ensure that the process to set financial benchmarks is transparent and appropriately accounts for regional variations in spending to prevent arbitrary winners and losers.\n\nRemove barriers to ACO participation by eliminating arbitrary program distinctions so all participants are participating on a level playing field.\n\nSupport fair and accurate benchmarks by modifying performance metrics so participants aren\u2019t competing against their own successes in providing better care.\n\nProvide greater technical support to ACO participants to cover the significant startup costs associated with program participation.\n\n\u201cThe North Carolina Medical Society applauds Senator Tillis\u2019 introduction of the Value in Health Care Act in the Senate,\u201d said Dr. Eileen M. Raynor, President of the North Carolina Medical Society. \u201cAdvancement of value-based care is a priority of the Medical Society and we are supportive of state and federal efforts that will expand participation in Alternate Payment Models among all physician specialties and help meet the needs of our state\u2019s Medicare patients.\"\n\n\"North Carolina's hospitals have been leaders in the value-based care for years,\u201d said Steve Lawler, President and Chief Executive Officer of the North Carolina Healthcare Association. \u201cValue-based care is best designed and delivered by the healthcare community. When incentives are properly aligned, and patients get the right care at the right time it costs less, and all involved benefit. This bill takes a step forward. We are grateful to Senator Tillis for his leadership and support of innovative approaches that work for patients, families, and those who are charged with their care.\"\n\n\u201cDuke Connected Care applauds Senator Tillis\u2019 introduction of theValue in Health Care Act which includes incentives to continue the transformational work of improving health care for so many North Carolinians,\u201d said Dr. Craig T. Albanese, Chief Executive Officer of Duke University Health System. \u201cDuke Connected Care has delivered high quality, coordinated care for Medicare beneficiaries in central North Carolina for a decade, and this legislation includes provisions that will allow it to continue to do so.\u201d\n\n\u201cAdvocate Health, headquartered in Charlotte, NC, affiliated accountable care organizations generated $128.2 million in savings in 2022 and have saved more than three quarters of a billion dollars to date,\u201d said Dr. Gary Stuck, Chief Medical Officer, Advocate Health. \u201cWe're grateful for the innovative programs such as MSSP that foster and encourage value-based care models and help push providers like us and the industry at large in that direction. We greatly appreciate Senators\u2019 Tillis, Whitehouse, Barrasso, Welch, Cassidy, Thune and Backburn for introducing the Value in Health Care Act. This bipartisan legislation would make important reforms to maintain and further strengthen Medicare's movement towards high-quality care in which financial performance is linked to the quality of patient care rather than the number of services delivered.\u201d\n\nThe Value in Health Care Act is endorsed by the American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, Accountable for Health, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, American College of Physicians, America\u2019s Essential Hospitals, America\u2019s Physician Groups, AMGA, Association of American Medical Colleges, Federation of American Hospitals, Healthcare Leadership Council, Health Care Transformation Task Force, Medical Group Management Association, National Association of ACOs, National Rural Health Association, and Premier Inc.\n\nA section-by-section summary of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/12/19/budd-tillis-brown-vance-braun-young-resolution-honoring-wright-brothers-passes-senate/", "Budd, Tillis, Brown, Vance, Braun, Young Resolution Honoring Wright Brothers Passes Senate", "2023-12-19", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 The Senate has passed S. 513, a resolution recognizing December 17th as \u201cWright Brothers Day\u201d and commemorating the 120th anniversary of the first powered flight.\n\nSenators Ted Budd (R-NC), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Thom Tillis (R-NC), JD Vance (R-OH), Mike Braun (R-IN), and Todd Young (R-IN) were the original sponsors of the resolution, which reads:\n\nWhereas, on December 17, 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright (referred to in this preamble as the \u201cWright Brothers\u201d) of Dayton, Ohio, performed the first powered, controlled, sustained, heavier-than-air flight, near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina;\n\nWhereas the Wright Brothers continued their experiments and flights in the United States and throughout Europe for people to see the miracle of flight;\n\nWhereas the successful first flight by the Wright Brothers launched a new era of exploration, from the solo transatlantic flight by Charles Lindbergh, to the Apollo 11 moon landing by Neil Armstrong, and beyond;\n\nWhereas people of the United States achieved the first supersonic flight less than 50 years after the first flight by the Wright Brothers, and achieved manned spaceflight less than 60 years after the first flight by the Wright Brothers;\n\nWhereas the modern commercial aviation system that links the world through commerce, trade, and travel owes its existence to the work of the Wright Brothers;\n\nWhereas the 3-axis control system devised for the \u201cWright Flyer\u201d remains the standard for fixed-wing aircraft;\n\nWhereas the original \u201cWright Flyer\u201d remains on display at the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution on the National Mall;\n\nWhereas the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, welcomes more than 400,000 visitors annually to the location of the first flight by the Wright Brothers;\n\nWhereas the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park in Dayton, Ohio, welcomes more than 90,000 visitors annually to the locations where the Wright Brothers lived, worked, and conducted many test flights;\n\nWhereas the Wright Brothers gave rise to a world of aviation supported and enjoyed by enthusiasts, hobbyists, and aeronautical professionals across the world;\n\nWhereas the Wright Brothers finally realized the ancient and universal human aspiration to defy gravity;\n\nWhereas, in 1959 and 1961, Congress passed, and the President signed into law, joint resolutions designating December 17 as \u201cWright Brothers Day\u201d;\n\nWhereas, in 1963, Public Law 88\u2013209 (36 U.S.C. 143) permanently designated December 17 each year as \u201cWright Brothers Day\u201d; and\n\nWhereas the inventive, courageous, and perseverant nature of the Wright Brothers exemplifies the spirit of the United States and the people of the United States;\n\nNow, therefore, be it\n\nResolved, That the Senate\u2014\n\n(1) recognizes December 17 as \u201cWright Brothers Day\u201d;\n\n(2) commemorates December 17, 2023, as the 120th anniversary of the first flight of Orville and Wilbur Wright; and\n\n(3) calls on the people of the United States to observe \u201cWright Brothers Day\u201d with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:56:20Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/senate-passes-tillis-co-sponsored-legislation-to-provide-back-pay-for-officers-impacted-by-military-promotion-hold", "Senate Passes Tillis Co-sponsored Legislation to Provide Back Pay for Officers Impacted by Military Promotion Hold", "2023-12-19", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Recently, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed legislation co-sponsored by Senator Thom Tillis that would provide back pay for military officers whose promotions were delayed. The Military Personnel Confirmation Restoration Act of 2023 would also make an adjustment to the affected servicemembers\u2019 time in grade and other administrative fixes. The bipartisan legislation has 52 co-sponsors and now heads to the House of Representatives.\n\n\u201cI am grateful for the Senate\u2019s unanimous support to pass this crucial legislation to provide military officers and their families with the pay and benefits they deserve,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cOur brave servicemembers defend our nation every day, and their pay and benefits should be immune from the partisan gridlock and political infighting in our nation\u2019s capital. This legislation ensures delayed pay and benefits are fully restored to those who bravely serve our country.\u201d\n\nFull text of the legislation can be found HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-legislation-to-provide-financial-relief-for-members-of-national-guard-and-reserves-to-be-signed-into-law", "Tillis Legislation to Provide Financial Relief for Members of National Guard and Reserves To Be Signed Into Law", "2023-12-19", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Bipartisan legislation recently co-sponsored by Senator Thom Tillis to reauthorize an additional four years of relief for qualifying members of the National Guard and Reserves experiencing financial hardship will be signed into law. The National Guard and Reservists Debt Relief Extension Act will protect a long-standing bipartisan carveout from means-testing restrictions in Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases.\n\n\u201cThe men and women who serve in the National Guard and Reserves provide an invaluable service to our nation,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI am proud this bipartisan legislation will be signed into law so we can ensure protections for members if they fall on financial hardship.\u201d\n\nThe National Guard and Reservists Debt Relief Extension Act of 2023 will reauthorize the National Guard and Reservists Debt Relief Act of 2008, which included a clause exempting qualifying members of reserve components of the Armed Forces and the National Guard from provisions in the Bankruptcy Code, which limit access to Chapter 7 bankruptcy based on recent income.\n\nBecause National Guard members and reservists often receive higher pay while on active duty than at their civilian jobs, these limits could otherwise prevent them from receiving financial relief in bankruptcy. The National Guard and Reservist Debt Relief Extension Act ensures they are not penalized for their service.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-to-introduce-bill-to-require-scotus-review-of-presidential-candidate-qualifications", "Tillis to Introduce Bill to Require SCOTUS Review of Presidential Candidate Qualifications", "2023-12-19", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) announced he will soon introduce the Constitutional Election Integrity Act, legislation that would prevent state politicians and state entities like the Colorado Supreme Court from disqualifying presidential candidates from the ballot on Constitutional matters that should be decided by only the Supreme Court.\n\nThe Constitutional Election Integrity Act clarifies that the Supreme Court of the United States has sole jurisdiction to decide claims arising out of section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution. The legislation also withholds federal funding for election administration from states that misuse the 14th Amendment for political purposes.\n\n\u201cRegardless of whether you support or oppose former President Donald Trump, it is outrageous to see left-wing activists make a mockery of our political system by scheming with partisan state officials and pressuring judges to remove him from the ballot,\u201d said Senator Thom Tillis. \u201cAmerican voters, not partisan activists, should decide who we elect as our President. The Constitutional Election Integrity Act would put any constitutional challenges in the sole place they belong: the U.S. Supreme Court.\u201d\n\nThe text of the legislation can be found here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-reignite-effort-to-improve-reporting-attacks-on-law-enforcement", "Tillis, Colleagues Reignite Effort to Improve Reporting Attacks on Law Enforcement", "2023-12-18", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently reintroduced bipartisan legislation to enhance information-gathering on attacks targeting law enforcement. The Improving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act would help fill identified gaps in reporting requirements for ambush-attacks against law enforcement officers by increasing our understanding of these crimes and how they arise.\n\n\u201cAttacks on our law enforcement officers are abhorrent and we must get a clear picture on when they occur,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI\u2019m proud to co-introduce this bipartisan legislation so we can improve reporting and continue supporting the men and women in blue to prevent these disgusting acts.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nTragically, 60 police officers were feloniously killed in the line of duty in 2022. Nearly 30 percent of police officer killings were the result of an unprovoked attack or ambush. While the government collects basic information on these attacks, such as when the attack occurred and what types of weapons were used, more information is needed to help law enforcement officers prepare for, identify, and prevent future anti-police activity.\n\nThe Improving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act would:\n\nIncrease the categories of information that can be voluntarily reported regarding anti-police attacks, including the intention and coordination of perpetrators;\n\nDirect the Justice Department to explore adding escalatory aggression to its reports;\n\nShed light on the mental health and stress-related impacts of aggressive activity or trauma on law enforcement; and\n\nExplore the availability and extent to which mental health resources for officers are used.\n\nThe bill is endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, the National Association of Police Officers, Sergeants Benevolent Association of the NYPD, Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association and Major Counties Sheriffs of America.\n\nFull text of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bill-to-ensure-veterans-access-to-quality-mental-health-care", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Ensure Veterans\u2019 Access to Quality Mental Health Care", "2023-12-15", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Veterans Mental Health and Addiction Therapy Quality of Care Act, which would require an independent organization outside of the government to conduct a study to assess the quality of care veterans receive for mental and addiction health treatment from providers within and outside the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).\n\n\u201cIt is critical the VA provides the highest quality mental health services to our veterans through implementing the best treatment practices available,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis legislation enables the VA to improve its mental health services by studying best practices administered by non-VA providers. Veterans deserve the best care possible, and I am proud to cosponsor this legislation on behalf of the more than 600,000 veterans who call North Carolina home.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Department of Veterans Affairs is home to the nation\u2019s largest integrated healthcare system that provides comprehensive health services to U.S. military veterans who are enrolled. However, recent estimates indicate that as many as 70% of VA-eligible veterans received their care from external providers. Given the high rate of veteran suicide due to mental and addiction health conditions, a study is needed to better understand if current practices provide our veterans with the best mental and addiction quality of care.\n\nThe Veterans Mental Health and Addiction Therapy Quality of Care Act would require an independent and objective organization outside of the VA to conduct a study to:\n\nAnalyze the results of comparable instances of addiction and mental health care between inside and outside providers using objective criteria such as symptom scores and suicide risk;\n\nAscertain to what extent outside providers are using evidence-based practices in the treatment of addiction and mental health issues;\n\nIdentify potential gaps in coordination between internal and external providers in responding to individuals seeking addiction or mental health care;\n\nEvaluate the availability of coordinated care for veterans who have separate or related conditions which may be impacting their mental health;\n\nAssess providers\u2019 military cultural competency;\n\nGauge the ease and flexibility of sharing medical records with a veteran\u2019s health care team;\n\nConsider to what extent providers are conducting outcome monitoring throughout a veteran\u2019s treatment to track progress or lack thereof.\n\nThe legislation is supported by the Disabled American Veterans Association, the American Psychological Association, and the Veteran Health Care Policy Initiative.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-applauds-house-passage-of-legislation-to-deter-malicious-foreign-influence-in-postsecondary-education", "Tillis Applauds House Passage of Legislation to Deter Malicious Foreign Influence in Postsecondary Education", "2023-12-14", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013Today, Senator Thom Tillis applauded the House of Representatives for passing the Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act, legislation that brings much needed transparency, accountability, and clarity to foreign gift reporting requirements for American colleges and universities. Senator Tillis led the introduction of the Senate version last month.\n\nThe legislation follows oversight efforts uncovering the Biden Administration\u2019s failure to open a single investigation under Section 117 of the Higher Education Act\u2014the single biggest enforcement tool to protect against the threats posed by foreign adversaries. A Senate report from 2019 found that up to 70 percent of all institutions failed to comply with section 117 of the Higher Education Act. Section 117\u2019s loose legislative language, Biden\u2019s blatant crippling of enforcement efforts, and institutions\u2019 refusal to adhere to the law have resulted in billions of dollars in foreign funds infiltrating our country undetected.\n\n\u201cAmerica\u2019s foreign adversaries, including the Chinese Communist Party, are targeting our nation\u2019s students by stealing research, spewing anti-American propaganda, and censoring free speech by providing American academic institutions with lucrative funding opportunities,\u201dsaid Senator Tillis. \u201cToo often, schools fail to report these foreign gifts and funding, leaving our adversaries with an undetected stranglehold on U.S. academic institutions. I applaud the House of Representatives for passing this important legislation and I urge the Senate to follow suit and consider the legislation swiftly.\u201d\n\nThe DETERRENT Act:\n\nSlashes the foreign gift reporting threshold for colleges and universities from $250,000 down to $50,000, with an even stricter $0 threshold for countries of concern.\n\nCloses reporting loopholes and provides transparency to Congress, intelligence agencies, and the public.\n\nRequires disclosure of foreign gifts to individual staff and faculty at research-heavy institutions to protect those targeted the most by our adversaries.\n\nHolds our largest private institutions accountable for their financial partnerships by revealing concerning foreign investments in their endowments.\n\nImplements a series of repercussions for colleges and universities that remain noncompliant in foreign gift reporting such as fines and the loss of Title IV funding.\n\nA one-pager of the legislation is available HERE. Full text of the legislation can be found HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/12/13/budd-sends-holiday-message-of-support-to-gaza-hostage-families-in-floor-speech/", "Budd Sends Holiday Message of Support to Gaza Hostage Families in Floor Speech", "2023-12-13", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 In a speech on the Senate floor today, Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) delivered a holiday message of support for the families of the hostages still being held in Gaza.\n\nSenator Budd also encouraged all Americans to send prayers of comfort and speak out in support of the hostages and their families during the holiday season.\n\nHe concluded his speech by saying, \u201cI want every one of these family members to know that our country is behind them, we support them, and we are praying for them.\u201d\n\nWatch the full speech:\n\nRead the full speech below:\n\nAs we enter the holidays this year, we experience the typical sights and sounds of the season.\n\nPerhaps it\u2019s the annual trip to buy a family Christmas tree, perhaps in Western North Carolina, if you\u2019re from the region.\n\nFor some, it\u2019s the solemn lighting of each candle on the menorah.\n\nOften, it\u2019s the joyous family gatherings, the giving of gifts, and the making of lifelong memories.\n\nBut for the 130 hostages still being held by terrorists in Gaza, this holiday season is one of pain and isolation.\n\nFor their families, this holiday season is filled with pain and uncertainty.\n\nMr. President, this week I met again with some of the families of both recently released hostages and the families of those still being held.\n\nTheir heartache is something that no person should ever have to face.\n\nWhen you compare the joy of the holidays with the pain of their situation, you can\u2019t help but feel an overwhelming sense of both anger and sadness \u2013 but also a sense of resolve.\n\nWhat if this was my loved ones? What if this was yours?\n\nEach and every one of these families deserves for their loved ones to be released immediately and unconditionally.\n\nRest assured, all levels of the United States government are working with our allies and partners to get these hostages home and to get them home safely.\n\nBut until that happens, there is still something that all of us can do.\n\nYou don\u2019t have to be an elected official to send prayers of comfort to these families.\n\nYou don\u2019t have to be here on the Senate floor to speak out on their behalf and call for their release.\n\nAnd you don\u2019t have to be politically active to commit yourself to not forget these men and women, especially during this season.\n\nDeuteronomy 31:6 tells us, \u201cBe strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.\u201d\n\nMr. President, I want every one of these family members to know that our country is behind them, we support them, and we are praying for them.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:56:20Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/12/13/senate-passes-final-2024-defense-bill-including-budd-secured-wins-for-nc/", "Senate Passes Final 2024 Defense Bill Including Budd-Secured Wins for NC", "2023-12-13", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Today, the U.S. Senate passed the Conference Report of the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This is the final version of the annual defense bill and will be sent to the president to be signed into law after the House approves it.\n\nSenator Ted Budd (R-NC), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, voted in favor of the package after successfully securing several wins for North Carolina.\n\nSenator Budd supported a 5.2% pay raise for North Carolina servicemembers and their families, secured authorization of more than $890 million for construction at North Carolina\u2019s military installations, added a provision to protect F-15E Strike Eagles at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, and a provision to assess optimal force structure for special operations forces, supporting U.S Army Special Operations Command at Fort Liberty (formerly, Fort Bragg).\n\nSenator Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cIn order to be a strong nation, we need a strong military. The NDAA\u2019s conference report provides significant support to North Carolina\u2019s servicemembers, their families, and our military installations. At the same time, it limits divestment of F-15E fighters, which not only bolsters North Carolina\u2019s Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, but maintains one of our country\u2019s most reliable fighter aircraft for the remainder of this decade.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis year\u2019s package also helps the United States confront the Chinese Communist Party, invests in American manufacturing, and secures critical supply chains. I am thrilled to see this package pass both chambers and look forward to it soon being signed into law.\u201d\n\nWins for North Carolina:\n\n5.2% pay raise for North Carolina servicemembers and their families.\n\nAuthorizes over $890 million for military construction and planning and design funding for North Carolina\u2019s military installations including:\n\nFort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg ($263.5 million total authorized)\n\n$61 million to construct an Aircraft Maintenance Hangar\n\n$85 million to construct a new prototype barracks.\n\n$50 million to construct a new barracks.\n\n$21 million to construct a new automated record fire range.\n\n$36 million to construct a Child Development Center.\n\n$10.5 million to construct a new microgrid and backup power for Camp Mackall.\n\nCamp Lejeune ($356.78 million total authorized)\n\n$70 million to construct a Marine Raider Battalion Operations Facility.\n\n$51.3 million for phase 2 of a 2nd Radio BN Complex.\n\n$66.27 million to begin construction of 10th Marines Maintenance & Operations Complex.\n\n$32.89 million for Amphibious Combat Vehicle Shelters.\n\n$45 million to begin construction of a corrosion repair facility.\n\nCherry Point ($269.79 million total authorized)\n\n$35.1 million to begin construction of a maintenance facility & Marine air group headquarters.\n\n$45 million to begin construction of a new Maintenance and Operations Facility for the 2nd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion.\n\n$19.5 million to complete an aircraft maintenance hangar.\n\n$12 million to complete the Army Reserve Center in Asheville.\n\n$2.2 million to complete planning & design of the North Carolina National Guard\u2019s Aviation Support Facility in Salisbury.\n\nLimits divestment of F-15E Strike Eagles and ensures that Seymour Johnson Air Force Base remains the heart of the F-15 fighter enterprise.\n\nRequires the Secretary of Defense to assess the optimal force structure for special operations forces and report to Congress within 90 days.\n\nThe Army\u2019s plan to make significant cuts to special operations force structure would have a negative impact on North Carolina communities surrounding Fort Liberty as well as the country\u2019s ability to deter adversaries. This assessment will help Congress conduct more detailed oversight of the Army\u2019s plans.\n\nAmends Section 12304b of Title 10 to ensure National Guardsmen, Reservists, and families receive pre-mobilization health benefits without delay in the event the president\u2019s budget is delivered late to Congress.\n\nNational security wins:\n\nDeterring China and Russia\n\nExtends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative.\n\nModernizes our nuclear arsenal to ensure the United States maintains strategic deterrence against potential adversaries.\n\nAuthorizes procurement of the next amphibious transport dock, LPD-33 despite the Biden Administration leaving it out of the budget request as required by Congress.\n\nAuthorizes multiyear procurement of 13 Virginia-class submarines including long lead time materials to save the taxpayers\u2019 money.\n\nAuthorizes an increase of $190 million to support continued development of the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile despite the Biden Administration\u2019s attempt to kill the program.\n\nRequires a report on the feasibility and advisability of establishing a quantum computing innovation center.\n\nImproves DOD\u2019s ability to build the capabilities of foreign security forces.\n\nBoosting U.S. Manufacturing and Securing Supply Chains\n\nAuthorizes $10 million to scale new technologies for titanium metal powder production.\n\nSenator Budd also championed the following provisions:\n\nDirects the Department of Energy to acquire enough uranium to ensure the next generation nuclear power deployment and jumpstart domestic uranium production.\n\nEstablishes a Foreign Military Sales Center of Excellence to improve the training and education of personnel engaged in foreign military sales planning and execution.\n\nAuthorizes $12.5 million to accelerate semiautonomous adversary air platform development.\n\nAuthorizes $15 million for procuring 20T Dump Trucks, largely produced in North Carolina.\n\nAuthorizes $8 million for Airborne Pathfinder, a program at Fort Liberty, to improve soldier readiness and effectiveness.\n\nRequires the Army to update its tactical wheeled vehicle strategy every 5 years, providing more consistent demand signals to industry.\n\nAuthorizes co-development and co-production of Iron Dome, David Sling, and other missile defense efforts with Israel.\n\nDirects DOD to develop a strategy for improved integrated maritime domain awareness and interdiction capabilities to counter seaborne threats in the Middle East.\n\nDirects the Secretary of Defense to submit a plan for countering human trafficking.\n\nDirects the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State to provide a briefing to Congressional Committees on bilateral agreements supporting the United States military posture in the Indo-Pacific region.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:56:20Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-bipartisan-working-group-requests-input-on-paid-leave-proposals", "Tillis, Bipartisan Working Group Requests Input on Paid Leave Proposals", "2023-12-13", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues announced that the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional paid family leave working group is seeking information from experts, researchers, organizations, and others as the Congressional working group explores bipartisan, flexible, sustainable paid leave proposals.\n\n\u201cAs a father, grandfather, and former caregiver to my grandmother who suffered from Alzheimer\u2019s, I know first-hand the value of family and medical leave, and the positive impact it has on individuals and workforce development,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cParents, families, and economic productivity thrive when employees don\u2019t have to choose between taking care of their family and participating in the workforce. I\u2019m proud to work on a bipartisan basis to pursue family and medical leave policies that will support millions of families across North Carolina and the country.\u201d\n\nThe lawmakers penned a letter to a wide range of individuals, organizations, researchers, policy experts, and others to request suggestions for expanding access to paid parental, caregiving, and personal medical leave in a bipartisan, fiscally responsible and sustainable way.\n\nThe full letter can be found HERE and below.\n\nTo Whom It May Concern:\n\nAs members of the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional working group exploring solutions to expand access to paid leave for all Americans, we write with strong interest in hearing diverse stakeholder input. To inform our efforts, we invite individuals, organizations, researchers, policy experts, and others, to share your suggestions for expanding access to paid parental, caregiving, and personal medical leave in a bipartisan, fiscally responsible and sustainable way. We will closely review submissions to help inform ongoing bipartisan efforts, and individual submissions will be kept confidential. Please note, trustworthy data and research with proper citations will be appreciated.\n\nWe invite your response to the following:\n\n1. What should the federal role be, if any, in providing, promoting, and/or incentivizing paid leave? And how should this interact with the role of state government programs, and/or employer programs?\n\n2. What types of leave should a potential federal program cover, at what length, and why? How should different types of leave be prioritized? Should different types of leave be treated differently or does doing so create adverse effects?\n\n3. Please describe your recommended framework/s, focusing on what you believe could be a bipartisan and passable solution/s to expanding paid leave nationally?\n\n4. Please describe alternative ways any proposed framework can be financed, including possible payfors. What financial mechanisms should be considered to expand paid leave?\n\n5. How can proposed paid leave frameworks avoid creating unintended distortions, such as marriage penalties, reductions of private sector paid leave coverage, etc.?\n\n6. Should government support for paid leave be focused only on the most vulnerable individuals in our society, or on all Americans regardless of means or need?\n\n7. What supports do small and mid-sized businesses need from the federal government to provide paid leave to workers?\n\n8. What does research say about the impact of providing paid leave on worker health, job satisfaction, economic mobility, child development, breastfeeding rates and related health outcomes, fertility rate, infant mortality, elderly health, public assistance levels, family income, and recruitment and retention efforts?\n\n9. What lessons should the federal government learn from successful or failed attempts at expanding paid leave in U.S. states or other countries?\n\n10. What other information would you like us to consider as we attempt to chart a bipartisan path forward?\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-demand-doj-address-ccp-influence-on-college-campuses", "Tillis, Colleagues Demand DOJ Address CCP Influence on College Campuses", "2023-12-13", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently penned a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland expressing serious concern about Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence over Chinese Students and Scholars Associations (CSSAs) at American colleges and universities. Recent reports suggest that the Chinese government is increasingly pushing its agenda on our nation\u2019s campuses through student organizations such as CSSAs. The letter urges the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to determine whether CSSAs need to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) for their work on behalf of the CCP, which would help combat this influence on campus.\n\n\u201cWe write to express serious concern about Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence over Chinese Students and Scholars Associations (CSSAs) at our nation\u2019s colleges and universities. With the closure of many Confucius Institutes, the CCP is relying on other actors, including CSSAs, to influence U.S. academic institutions. This issue requires greater attention from the United States government,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cTroubling communications from CSSAs have been reported at U.S. universities. For example, a graduate student at the University of Colorado-Boulder told her professor that the CSSA president had called late at night to inquire about the department faculty's work on Tibet. In another case, a Chinese national who was a former University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate student said he received a \u2018deluge\u2019 of abusive CSSA emails accusing him of \u2018being a traitor to [China], including one death threat,\u2019 after expressing belief that a CSSA list-serv email proposed racist and inappropriate slogans to protest a visit by the Japanese Prime Minister. A China expert and professor at the University of California-Riverside stated that CSSAs are a \u2018tool of government\u2019s foreign ministry.\u2019 He added that \u2018the effect of that surveillance is less that certain people are caught and punished and more that virtually all Chinese students know they could be reported, and, therefore, watch what they say in public fora,\u2019\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cThe Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) requires individuals to register with the Department of Justice (DOJ) if they act at the behest of a foreign principal to influence U.S. policy or public opinion. There is clear evidence that CSSAs act as an arm of the PRC for the purpose of shaping U.S. policy and public opinion, and the United States should therefore evaluate whether they are required to register as foreign agents,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-enhance-and-expedite-access-to-the-9-8-8-suicide-and-crisis-lifeline", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Enhance and Expedite Access to the 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline", "2023-12-12", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), co-founders of the bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus, recently introduced the Local 9-8-8 Response Act of 2023. The legislation would expedite the process of connecting callers with their nearest call center so they can receive appropriate care from mental health professionals as quickly and as safely as possible, while still protecting user privacy.\n\n\u201cFrom the creation of the 9-8-8 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline to historic mental health investments included in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, we have made substantial progress in recent years in expanding access to quality mental health care,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis legislation furthers that goal by ensuring those experiencing a mental health crisis receive rapid and localized care when calling the Lifeline, and I\u2019m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation with my colleagues to make lifesaving mental health care more accessible.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe 9-8-8 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline has been critical for supporting Americans in crisis, but currently, calls to the hotline are routed by area code rather than by the caller\u2019s location. This system leads to callers oftentimes being connected to centers that cannot connect them with additional mental health assistance. As awareness of the hotline increases, it is crucial to ensure that the line can quickly connect callers to a range of mental health services and a full continuum of care.\n\nSpecifically, the legislation would improve access to and the accuracy of 9-8-8 response by:\n\nRequiring the FCC to route calls based on the proximity of a caller to the call center, not their area code. The bill specifies that a caller\u2019s specific location should not be revealed or discernible;\n\nInstructing carriers to allow calls and texts to 9-8-8 even if their phone plan is inactive or the carrier is experiencing service interruptions or failures, just as they currently do for 911 calls;\n\nObligating multi-line systems like hotel and office phones to support the direct dialing of 9-8-8, rather than requiring a caller to dial 9 or another number before dialing 9-8-8.\n\n\u201cThe Local 9-8-8 Response Act improves access to life- saving supports and mental health resources by requiring calls and texts to the 9-8-8 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline be routed based on the caller\u2019s proximity to the local call center rather than by area code,\u201d said Robert Gebbia, Chief Executive Officer at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. \u201cAFSP is grateful to Senator Padilla and Senator Tillis for their bipartisan leadership to enhance access to 9-8-8 by ensuring individuals in crisis receive timely support, while maintaining privacy.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe 9-8-8 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is saving lives and serving as the entry point to a reimagined mental health crisis system. NAMI is grateful to Sens. Padilla and Tillis for introducing the Local 9-8-8 Response Act to ensure people calling 9-8-8 get connected to the local resources that help them get well and stay well,\u201d said Hannah Wesolowski, Chief Advocacy Officer of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). \u201cThis bill will ensure that help seekers reaching out to 9-8-8 get connected to the support they need in their community.\u201d\n\nA one-page summary of the bill is available HERE. Full text of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-introduce-legislation-to-support-pregnant-and-postpartum-women", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Support Pregnant and Postpartum Women", "2023-12-11", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the bipartisan Pregnant and Postpartum Women Treatment Reauthorization Act to ensure pregnant and postpartum women across the United States have reliable access to mental health and substance use disorder care. This bipartisan legislation reauthorizes residential treatment programs for pregnant and postpartum women and enhances comprehensive substance use disorder (SUD) treatments, prevention and recovery support, parenting training, mental health counseling, and harm reduction interventions.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve heard the heartbreaking stories of countless families in North Carolina and across the country who have lost loved ones to substance use and overdoses,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cWe owe it to future generations to address this unfolding crisis and save lives by increasing access to life-saving treatments, prevention and recovery support, and mental health counseling for pregnant and postpartum women struggling with substance use disorder. This legislation will take a positive step in ensuring all moms and babies benefit from comprehensive, family-centric recovery and support services.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nDrug overdose deaths, involving synthetic opioids like fentanyl, reached record highs in 2020 and 2021, with pregnant women experiencing more overdoses than ever before. The PPW program supports evidence-based parenting and treatment models to reduce substance use among pregnant women. Grant funds to PPW programs aim to ensure access to services for low-income women and combat maternal health disparities. The Pregnant and Postpartum Women Treatment Reauthorization Act will support public and non-profit entities that offer PPW programs.\n\n\u201cOn behalf of the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD), I am writing in support of the Pregnant and Postpartum Women Treatment Reauthorization Act. Thank you for introducing this important legislation. As a result, more pregnant and postpartum women have access to these comprehensive services in outpatient and intensive outpatient settings. Again, thank you for introducing the Pregnant and Postpartum Women Treatment Reauthorization Act. We believe this bill will continue to help more pregnant and postpartum women and their families gain access to comprehensive, family-centered substance use disorder services,\u201d said Robert I.L. Morrison, Executive Director, National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors.\n\nA summary of the bill text can be found HERE. Full text of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/12/06/budd-calls-on-biden-to-include-border-policy-in-national-security-bill/", "Budd Calls on Biden to Include Border Policy in National Security Bill", "2023-12-06", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 In a speech on the Senate floor today, Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) called on President Biden and Senate Democrats to include border security funding and policy changes in the proposed national security supplemental spending package.\n\nKey excerpts:\n\n\u201cAs we confront a dangerous global situation, we cannot ignore the fact that for America to be a strong nation, we must first be strong at home. Before we can help countries protect their borders thousands of miles away, we must first protect our own borders. The biggest threat to our national security right now is the wide open southern border.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis crisis must be dealt with, and dealt with now. That\u2019s why Senate Republicans have offered the Biden White House a deal: Include proven border policies in the House-passed H.R. 2 to the national security spending package, and you\u2019ll have our support \u2013 A clear pathway. But so far, this White House is more interested in playing politics and continuing to ignore the border crisis altogether.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe bottom line here is that in order to be a strong nation, we have to have strong borders. And right now, we don\u2019t have that. So I want to call on President Biden to change course, work with us so that we can solve this crisis together. We know what to do. All we need is a president who takes this seriously and fulfills his oath to protect and defend this country.\u201d\n\nWatch the full speech:\n\nRead the full speech:\n\nForces of evil and instability are on the march around the globe.\n\nIn the Middle East, Hamas massacred more than 1,200 Israelis and 33 Americans.\n\nIran \u2013 the world\u2019s leading state sponsor of terrorism \u2013 continues to finance, provide training for, and authorize attacks against U.S. forces across the region.\n\nIn Europe, Russia continues its brutality against Ukraine and is fomenting conflict in the Balkans, further threatening peace and stability in Europe.\n\nMeanwhile, China is rapidly expanding its military, threatening our allies and partners, and stealing billions in Americans\u2019 intellectual property.\n\nAll of this chaos is the result of weakness from the Biden administration.\n\nStarting in Afghanistan and continuing to this day, this administration has put American weakness on full display.\n\nAs we confront a dangerous global situation, we cannot ignore the fact that for America to be a strong nation, we must first be strong at home.\n\nBefore we can help countries protect their borders thousands of miles away, we must first protect our own borders.\n\nThe biggest threat to our national security right now is the wide open southern border.\n\nFor three years, the border has been in a state of crisis.\n\nWe have grown familiar with these numbers, but they remain historic and staggering.\n\nUnder President Biden, over eight million illegal immigrants have crossed the border.\n\nUnder President Biden, 279 individuals on the terrorist watch list have tried to illegally enter our nation.\n\nUnder President Biden, nearly 50,000 pounds of fentanyl has been seized at the border \u2013 That\u2019s enough to kill every man, woman, and child in the United States.\n\nGiven the fact that we\u2019re only able to interdict 5-10 percent of the illegal drugs that cross, our country is being overwhelmed with drugs that can kill with just a 2 milligram dose.\n\nUnder President Biden, there have been 1.8 million known got-aways \u2013 And that\u2019s not counting all of the unknown got-aways, including terrorists, human traffickers, and other bad actors.\n\nThis crisis must be dealt with, and dealt with now.\n\nThat\u2019s why Senate Republicans have offered the Biden White House a deal: Include proven border policies in the House-passed H.R. 2 to the national security spending package, and you\u2019ll have our support \u2013 A clear pathway.\n\nBut so far, this White House is more interested in playing politics and continuing to ignore the border crisis altogether.\n\nBut you know who can\u2019t ignore it? The border patrol agents who are under siege right now.\n\nIn the times I\u2019ve been down there, they have told me that, yes, we need a wall, we need border enforcement, we need funding.\n\nBut what we really need \u2013 in their words \u2013 is the policy changes that would empower them to stop the illegal flow of people, drugs, and crime.\n\nYou know who else can\u2019t ignore this crisis? The sheriffs from all 100 of North Carolina\u2019s counties.\n\nMany of them have come up to me saying the same thing: Every single county in North Carolina is now a border county because of Joe Biden\u2019s policies.\n\nThe bottom line here is that in order to be a strong nation, we have to have strong borders. And right now, we don\u2019t have that.\n\nSo I want to call on President Biden to change course, work with us so that we can solve this crisis together.\n\nWe know what to do. All we need is a president who takes this seriously and fulfills his oath to protect and defend this country.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:56:20Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-announces-1-billion-grant-for-raleigh-to-richmond-commuter-rail", "Tillis Announces $1 Billion Grant for Raleigh to Richmond Commuter Rail", "2023-12-05", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis announced a $1 billion grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for a new passenger rail route between Raleigh, NC and Richmond, VA. The route will be along the CSX Transportation \u201cS-Line\u201d as a part of the Southeast Corridor that will better connect North Carolina with Virginia, Washington D.C., and the Northeast Corridor.\n\n\u201cThis $1 billion grant for North Carolina to make progress on the Raleigh to Richmond Rail Line is a big win for economic development in the region,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI\u2019m proud this investment was made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that I helped negotiate, write, and pass into law.\u201d\n\nThe project improves system and service performance by developing a resilient and reliable passenger rail route that will also contribute to freight and supply chain resiliency in the Southeast. NCDOT and Amtrak will provide a 20% non-Federal match. Following selection, FRA will work with the recipient to establish and obligate the Phased Funding Agreement. FRA anticipates an initial obligation of FY22-23 funds under the agreement of up to $479,416,000, with contingent commitments from Advance Appropriations in FY24-26 providing the balance of funds.\n\nFor a list of specific BIL infrastructure grants, click HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-06-27T22:34:08Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-announces-3-5-million-in-grants-for-nc-rail-identification-and-development", "Tillis Announces $3.5 Million in Grants for NC Rail Identification and Development", "2023-12-05", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis announced $3.5 million in grant fundingfrom the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to identify potential new rail routes or improvements across North Carolina. The Corridor sponsors would enter Step 1 of the program to develop a scope, schedule, and cost estimate for preparing, completing, or documenting its service development plan.\n\n\u201cThis $3.5 million in grant funding to identify and develop potential rail lines across North Carolina could be transformational in how North Carolinians travel,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI\u2019m proud these investments were made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that I helped negotiate, write, and pass into law.\u201d\n\nThe following corridors were awarded $500,000 for identification and development:\n\nCharlotte to Washington, DC Corridor\n\nThe proposed Corridor would provide improvements to the existing state-supported Carolinian service between Charlotte, NC and Washington, DC (with existing service continuing north to New York, NY) by improving/adding services in Greensboro, Winston-Salem, High Point, Raleigh, Durham, Salisbury, and Burlington NC and Petersburg, Richmond, Fredericksburg and Alexandria, Virginia by addressing infrastructure capacity constraints. Improvements include constructing/rehabilitating a partially abandoned alignment between Raleigh, NC and Petersburg, VA that is more direct than the existing routing through Rocky Mount, NC, potentially shaving more than an hour off the end-to-end travel time.\n\nCharlotte to Atlanta, Georgia Corridor\n\nThe proposed Corridor would provide new service on a new high speed rail alignment between Charlotte, NC and Atlanta, GA, with potential intermediate stops including Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport in South Carolina and Augusta and Athens, GA, then serving a downtown Atlanta station and terminating at Atlanta\u2019s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the world\u2019s busiest airport.\n\nCharlotte to Kings Mountain Corridor\n\nThe proposed Corridor would connect Kings Mountain, North Carolina to Charlotte, North Carolina. The proposed Corridor would provide new service on existing alignment with capacity improvements west of the Charlotte Gateway Station and likely extending service to Kings Mountain, in addition to track, crossover, or signal improvements.\n\nWinston-Salem to Raleigh Corridor\n\nThe proposed Corridor would connect Winston-Salem, NC with Raleigh, NC, with intermediate stops at Greensboro, Burlington, Durham, and Cary, complementing the existing state-supported Piedmont and Carolinian services. The proposed Corridor would also include new frequencies, improvements to reliability, and new stations.\n\nFayetteville to Raleigh Corridor\n\nThe proposed Corridor would provide a new service connecting Fayetteville, NC with Raleigh, NC, with intermediate stops at Lillington, and Fuquay-Varina, NC, using an existing alignment.\n\nWilmington to Raleigh Corridor\n\nThe proposed Corridor would connect Raleigh, NC to Wilmington, NC. The proposed Corridor would provide new service on an existing alignment, part of which has been abandoned and would need to be reconstructed, to include new stations.\n\nAsheville to Salisbury Corridor\n\nThe proposed Corridor would provide new service on an existing alignment between Asheville and Salisbury in western North Carolina, following a line that last hosted passenger trains in 1975.\n\nFor a list of specific BIL infrastructure grants, click HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-statement-on-representative-mchenry-s-retirement", "Tillis Statement on Representative McHenry\u2019s Retirement", "2023-12-05", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis released the following statement on the retirement of Representative Patrick McHenry:\n\n\u201cCongressman McHenry has been an extraordinary leader and problem solver who always rises to the occasion, most recently spearheading a bipartisan deal that saved our country from default and secured the largest spending cut in history. It\u2019s been an honor to work with Patrick and call him a friend. While Congress will sorely miss his leadership, Susan and I wish Patrick, Giulia, and their beautiful family the very best.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/12/04/budd-murray-lead-bipartisan-bill-help-military-retain-skilled-nurses/", "Budd, Murray Lead Bipartisan Bill Help Military Retain Skilled Nurses", "2023-12-04", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senators Ted Budd (R-NC) and Patty Murray (D-WA) have introduced the Retain Educated Workers and Registered Nurses Developing (REWARD) Experience Act, which would empower the Military Health System to retain skilled nurses as they pursue higher education.\n\nThe legislation gives the hiring manager of a military medical center the ability to waive certain General Schedule (GS) qualification standards related to work experience for nurses at military medical treatment facilities if they deem the nurse or practical nurse fit to perform the required duties.\n\nThe legislative text of the bill is HERE.\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cAs our country faces a shortage of qualified nurses, this bipartisan proposal provides a common sense fix that would cut through bureaucratic requirements to help the military keep dedicated healthcare professionals on the job without taking a pay cut. I\u2019d like to thank Senator Murray for co-leading this bill with me.\u201d\n\nSenator Murray said:\n\n\u201cOur new bipartisan legislation would provide a common-sense fix to incentivize skilled nurses to stay in the military health care system, where their services are so important to getting servicemembers and their families timely access to high-quality care. Staffing shortages are a challenge for health care facilities across the country, and we must keep working to find ways to retain qualified and experienced nurses in military health care facilities and ensure servicemembers and their families get the care they deserve\u2014I\u2019m proud to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get that done.\u201d\n\nMilitary Officers Association of America (MOAA) President and CEO Lt Gen Brian Kelly, USAF (Ret) said:\n\n\u201cMOAA supports the REWARD Act that will help military hospitals and clinics retain experienced civilian nurses as they further their education and achieve higher levels of licensure. MOAA\u2019s spring advocacy campaign last year raised concerns about health care workforce challenges, so we appreciate the REWARD Act will help DoD retain experienced nurses by addressing a barrier in hiring policy. We thank Senator Patty Murray and Senator Ted Budd for their leadership on military treatment facility staffing challenges and their support of military medicine.\u201d\n\nCEO of the National Military Family Association (NMFA) Besa Pinchotti said:\n\n\u201cService members and military families need and deserve the very best health care. Nurses are an essential part of that equation. The REWARD Experience Act is commonsense legislation that incentivizes nurses to remain with the military health system as they progress in their careers. We are grateful to Senators Murray and Budd for their leadership on this issue.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:56:20Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/12/tillis-colleagues-demand-answers-from-biden-on-latest-iran-sanctions-waiver", "Tillis, Colleagues Demand Answers from Biden on Latest Iran Sanctions Waiver", "2023-12-04", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin demanding answers over the administration\u2019s lack of a cohesive Iran strategy given the recent decision to extend an Iran sanctions waiver. As Israel continues to battle Iranian-backed Hamas and the regime\u2019s proxies increase their attacks against U.S. personnel in the region, the Biden Administration on November 13 issued a waiver providing Iran access to approximately $10 billion.\n\n\u201cOn August 18, 2023, we wrote to express our concern over the administration\u2019s decision to release $6 billion worth of frozen Iranian assets in exchange for the return of American detainees. This decision reinforced an incredibly dangerous precedent of providing ransom payments to the world\u2019s greatest state sponsor of terrorism and put a price on the life of every American overseas. Understanding the grave error of the unfreezing of Iranian assets and the danger this action poses to U.S. lives and interests, it is therefore alarming to hear that the administration is doubling down on its appeasement strategy by actively working to provide Iran with access to billions more in funding,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cAs we said in August, money is fungible. Combined with the $10 billion waiver extension, the administration has provided Iran with access to roughly $16 billion in assets over the past four months; assets that can be used\u2014now or in the future\u2014to offset the cost of the Iranian regime\u2019s increase in destabilizing activities across the region. A strong signal of deterrence\u2014utilizing military, economic, and diplomatic tools\u2014is needed if we want to stop the attacks against U.S. personnel and prevent the war in Gaza from expanding into a protracted regional conflict. Unfortunately, the administration\u2019s military and economic responses to Iran and its proxies have not only been disproportionate, they appear to be completely disjointed,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cWe therefore request that your departments provide us with a classified assessment on the administration\u2019s plan to deter Iranian aggression and prevent the escalation of conflict in the Middle East. This assessment should include an estimation of how Iran has already leveraged\u2014and could in the future leverage\u2014against U.S. persons and interests the tens of billions in assets it now has access to due to your administration\u2019s use of U.S. sanctions waivers and is to be provided in a member or staff-level briefing no later than December 7, 2023,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/30/budd-colleagues-call-on-white-house-to-reverse-course-on-digital-trade-and-stand-up-to-china/", "Budd, Colleagues Call on White House to Reverse Course on Digital Trade and Stand Up to China", "2023-11-30", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has joined a bipartisan coalition of 32 Senators to urge President Biden to reverse a decision by the U.S. Trade Representative to abandon long-held positions at the World Trade Organization (WTO) that allow the free flow of information across borders, protect against the forced transfer of American technology, and promote open markets for digital goods exported by American creators and businesses.\n\nThe letter was led by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-ID).\n\nThe full text of the letter is below:\n\nWe write to express our concerns with the decision of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to stop supporting key commitments in the e-commerce negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO)\u2014and potentially in other negotiations. These commitments reflect bipartisan principles that, until now, the United States has strongly supported across political parties, administrations, and the federal government: an open internet that promotes the flow of information across borders to support American exports and American values. USTR\u2019s decision to abandon these commitments at the WTO creates a policy vacuum that China and Russia will fill. Accordingly, before changing the longstanding U.S. position, we request that you work with Congress and run a comprehensive consultation process\u2014with other federal agencies, with the public, and with us\u2014to reach a consensus U.S. position on these issues that promotes U.S. competitiveness, innovation, and jobs.\n\nFor decades, the United States has been at the helm of global leadership on protecting, promoting, and expanding the open internet as both a means of worldwide connectivity and an engine of U.S. economic growth and opportunity. This effort has long been a feature of U.S. trade policy: the United States advocated for commitments to ensure the free flow of information in WTO rules agreed to almost 30 years ago, and our trade agreements with Korea, Mexico, Canada, and Japan include strong digital trade rules guaranteeing the right to move data across borders. In this vein, the United States joined negotiations on e-commerce at the WTO, working with like-minded democratic allies to create rules for a digital economy that is open, fair, and competitive for all. The United States has supported proposals to spur economic growth, encourage free expression and access to information, and promote consumer protections online, while also allowing countries to address concerns regarding security, privacy, surveillance, and competition. These negotiations are crucial to our strategic approach to outcompeting our adversaries: both China and Russia are at the negotiating table, actively pushing their cyberagenda of censorship, repression, and surveillance that not only hurts their own citizens but also undercuts U.S. competitiveness. Indeed, China is actively seeking to weaken the very principles at issue so it can promote its own version of internet governance.\n\nIn spite of this, on October 25, 2023, USTR reversed course and announced that it was walking away from the negotiating table on several core commitments in the e-commerce negotiations. These commitments, which again have broad bipartisan support, are fundamental to the modern economy, supporting U.S. businesses of all sizes across all sectors. Specifically, USTR abandoned the following commitments:\n\nPromoting the free flow of data. Almost every sector of the U.S. economy requires crossborder data flows, from manufacturers sharing product specifications, to airlines diagnosing problems mid-flight, to farmers leveraging precision agriculture to maximize crop yield. Arbitrary and trade-distorting restrictions on cross-border data flows that serve no legitimate public policy purpose can prevent American firms from doing business abroad, stifle economic growth here at home, and trample on human rights in authoritarian countries. Russia, for example, has weaponized data-restrictive laws to crack down on dissent, control information, and expel civil society organizations amidst its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Recognizing the importance of data flows to U.S. economic and foreign policy goals, the United States\u2019 original proposal at the WTO sought to ensure that consumers, companies, and non-governmental organizations could move data across international borders, while recognizing that countries must be able to act in the public interest, such as to protect personal data from abuse and foreign surveillance.\n\nCombating forced data localization. China and Russia, as well as other countries emboldened by their actions, have increasingly pursued data localization measures that require certain domestic data to be stored or processed within their borders. These policies require companies to build or maintain capital- and energy-intensive infrastructure in every market they enter, a major expense for large businesses, but an insurmountable hurdle for small and medium-sized enterprises. Small and medium-sized businesses are then left with an impossible choice: enter a risky joint venture with a foreign enterprise or get shut out of the market entirely. In this way, authoritarian governments leverage data localization measures to discourage competition and facilitate governmental access to data within their borders, helping them access trade secrets, censor and surveil their citizens, and hide human rights abuses, including forced labor. The United States\u2019 proposal sought to limit data localization, while acknowledging that in certain circumstances, data localization may be appropriate to address national security, law enforcement, and privacy concerns.\n\nPreventing forced tech transfer. The U.S. government opposes the Chinese government\u2019s practice of conditioning market access on the sharing of proprietary information belonging to U.S. innovators, creators, and start-ups\u2014a threat to both our economic and national security. The United States\u2019 proposal sought to ensure that countries could not force businesses to surrender their source code or share it with domestic competitors as a condition of doing business, while preserving the ability of governments to access source code to achieve legitimate public policy objectives, such as conducting investigations and examinations and promoting consumer health and safety.\n\nOpen, competitive markets for digital goods and services. The principle of nondiscrimination has been a central component of U.S. trade policy for decades and underlies the international trading system that the United States helped create. It has opened markets for American exporters across industries, from farmers to filmmakers. At its core, non-discrimination ensures that foreign governments treat U.S. companies fairly. It ensures that countries cannot gain a competitive edge by targeting their regulations on imports from one or multiple countries without regulating similarly situated domestic businesses. China, in particular, has leveraged discriminatory policies to handicap international competitors and nurture its domestic companies, many of which are stateowned enterprises that operate at the behest of the Chinese government. Not only do these homegrown giants facilitate human and worker rights abuses, particularly in the Uyghur community in Xinjiang, but they have the ability to grow without competition and then undercut American competitors in international markets. Recognizing this, the U.S. WTO proposal sought to ensure that protections against discrimination would apply to digital products (e.g., apps, music, games, and movies), ensuring that American creators, innovators, and businesses could operate on a level playing field around the world.\n\nAs indicated above, each of these commitments maintained flexibility to regulate for legitimate public policy reasons.\n\nUSTR provided no policy alternatives to these longstanding and bipartisan U.S. positions, nor a timeline for providing them. We are concerned that USTR\u2019s retreat will hurt workers and employers across all sectors of the U.S. economy, with disproportionate effects on small and medium-sized businesses in creative industries like film, music, and book publishing; innovative industries like software, medical devices, and precision agriculture; travel, tourism, and transportation; logistics, shipping, and supply chain management; and manufacturing, including the critical automotive and semiconductor sectors. Moreover, with this abrupt change in policy, USTR has not only turned its back on our democratic allies and undermined U.S. credibility in other negotiations and fora around the world, but it has also empowered authoritarian regimes like China and Russia, who are eager to fill the void and regulate U.S. jobs out of existence.\n\nWe recognize that there is much interest in the digital regulation space, particularly with the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence technology. We welcome discussions and debate on the best way to protect consumers, promote privacy, and ensure a competitive marketplace. However, these efforts do not require the United States to walk away from negotiating strong rules at the WTO that support U.S. businesses and workers\u2014nor would these rules constrain the ability of the United States to regulate. In fact, the commitments under discussion have built-in exceptions that ensure countries can legislate in the public interest. Retreating from our longstanding principles without offering a viable alternative does not help U.S. workers, it does not help U.S. consumers, it does not help U.S. businesses, and it does not help U.S. allies; it only helps our adversaries.\n\nWe continue to support the core commitments that USTR has distanced itself from in the WTO e-commerce negotiations. We request that you run a consultation process before changing the historical, consensus U.S. position on these important issues. We look forward to working with you to address this and other bipartisan Member concerns.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/30/budd-scott-colleagues-demand-answers-on-latest-iran-sanctions-waiver/", "Budd, Scott, Colleagues Demand Answers on Latest Iran Sanctions Waiver", "2023-11-30", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has joined a coalition letter led by Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin demanding further information about the administration\u2019s lack of a cohesive Iran strategy given the recent decision to extend an Iran sanctions waiver.\n\nOn November 13, the Biden Administration issued a waiver providing Iran access to approximately $10 billion.\n\nThe letter was also signed by: Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS) Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Braun (R-IN), J.D. Vance (R-OH), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), John Cornyn (R-TX), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Marco Rubio (R-FL), John Hoeven (R-ND), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Steve Daines (R-MO), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Tom Cotton (R-AR), John Barrasso (R-WY), Katie Britt (R-AL), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Deb Fischer (R-NE).\n\nThe full text of the letter is below:\n\nOn August 18, 2023, we wrote to express our concern over the administration\u2019s decision to release $6 billion worth of frozen Iranian assets in exchange for the return of American detainees. This decision reinforced an incredibly dangerous precedent of providing ransom payments to the world\u2019s greatest state sponsor of terrorism and put a price on the life of every American overseas. Understanding the grave error of the unfreezing of Iranian assets and the danger this action poses to U.S. lives and interests, it is therefore alarming to hear that the administration is doubling down on its appeasement strategy by actively working to provide Iran with access to billions more in funding.\n\nOn October 7, 2023, Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists attacked Israel, brutally killing an estimated 1,200 civilians and taking over 200 hostages. In response, the administration reached an agreement with Qatar on October 12 to temporarily prevent the unfrozen assets\u2014now held at Qatari financial institutions\u2014from being expended. Based on information from your administration, it is our belief that with the current lack of safeguards, Iran will soon access this $6 billion and use the funds to continue to expand its malign proxy activities.\n\nSince October 7, Hamas and fellow Iranian proxy, Hezbollah, have continued to launch attacks against Israel as it fights to defend its sovereignty and protect its people. As we continue to stand with our greatest ally in the Middle East, other Iranian proxies have increased their attacks against U.S. personnel in the region. According to the U.S. Department of Defense, Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria have conducted over seventy attacks against U.S. personnel since October 7. United States forces have responded only three times. However, at the same time, your administration has inadvisably taken steps to unlock tens of billions of dollars for Iran to fund additional terrorist activities that directly threaten American lives.\n\nOn November 13, 2023, the U.S. Department of State extended a sanctions waiver pursuant to Section 1245(d)(5) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 and Section 1244(i) and 1247(f) of the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012, finding that a sanctions waiver to allow Iraq to pay Iran for electricity was in the national security interest of the United States. Public reports have held that there is roughly $10 billion in Iraqi payments for Iranian electricity currently being held in escrow accounts in Iraq.[1] The decision to extend this waiver and allow Iran to convert Iraqi Dinars to Euros was signed the day after U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) carried out its latest strike against facilities used by Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other Iranian proxy groups in Eastern Syria, in response to their attacks against U.S. personnel. Such timing signals to Iran that despite attacks on U.S. service members and our allies, it is business as normal on the economic front.\n\nAs we said in August, money is fungible. Combined with the $10 billion waiver extension, the administration has provided Iran with access to roughly $16 billion in assets over the past four months; assets that can be used\u2014now or in the future\u2014to offset the cost of the Iranian regime\u2019s increase in destabilizing activities across the region.\n\nA strong signal of deterrence\u2014utilizing military, economic, and diplomatic tools\u2014is needed if we want to stop the attacks against U.S. personnel and prevent the war in Gaza from expanding into a protracted regional conflict. Unfortunately, the administration\u2019s military and economic responses to Iran and its proxies have not only been disproportionate, they appear to be completely disjointed.\n\nWe therefore request that your departments provide us with a classified assessment on the administration\u2019s plan to deter Iranian aggression and prevent the escalation of conflict in the Middle East. This assessment should include an estimation of how Iran has already leveraged\u2014and could in the future leverage\u2014against U.S. persons and interests the tens of billions in assets it now has access to due to your administration\u2019s use of U.S. sanctions waivers and is to be provided in a member or staff-level briefing no later than December 7, 2023.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-demands-democrats-prioritize-fixing-broken-border-policies", "Tillis Demands Democrats Prioritize Fixing Broken Border Policies", "2023-11-30", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, Senator Thom Tillis delivered remarks on the Senate floor to highlight the serious national security and humanitarian crises at our Southern border and the need for Democrats to work across the aisle and prioritize policies to secure our southern border. The speech comes as nearly 8 million individuals have illegally crossed our Southern border since President Biden assumed office including individuals on the terrorism watchlist.\n\nWatch the speech HERE.\n\nSenator Tillis on Increased Border Crossings:\n\n\u201cThe situation at the border has simply gotten out of control. I think it bears repeating. It's been said by some of the folks who spoke before we're talking about a fourfold increase. Donald Trump was president for four years. President Biden has been president for three years. And in three years, we have nearly four times the crossings that we did in the Trump Administration.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis on Losing Control of the Border:\n\n\u201cWe've lost operational control of the border. We don't have situational awareness at the border. Let me explain what that means when you have 1.5 million people that we know came into this country illegally. They paid money to a cartel five to fifty thousand dollars, depending upon what country they came from, to get in this country illegally. But some of them specifically want to go through a sector that the cartels specialize in, making sure that you never have to encounter a border agent. They're called got-aways. Over the last three years, 1.5 million got-aways have entered this country.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis onSupport for Border Security:\n\n\u201cThe American people now a majority; we're not talking a plurality; we're talking about a majority of the American people, Democrats, Independents, Republicans, agree that we have a major problem or crisis at the border. Biden needs to fix this problem. Biden needs to fix this problem for Senators that are running for re-election. This is not a situation where it's just Republicans saying we want a secure border. We always do and we always will. This is now the American people in the electorate saying that we need to fix it. So, when we get into negotiations, of course, we've got to change asylum policy. And, of course, we've got to change parole policy. And, of course, that's going to make some Democrats get out of their comfort zone.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/29/budd-hagerty-colleagues-renew-demand-for-transparency-on-taxpayer-funded-voter-mobilization/", "Budd, Hagerty, Colleagues Renew Demand for Transparency on Taxpayer-Funded Voter Mobilization", "2023-11-29", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has joined a coalition letter led by Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) to President Biden renewing their call for transparency regarding the use of taxpayer dollars to implement an executive order instructing federal agencies to engage in voter mobilization.\n\nPresident Biden\u2019s Executive Order 14019 would empower federal agencies to use taxpayer funds to implement or enter into agreements with partisan organizations that conduct voter mobilization activities.\n\nThe letter was also signed by: Senators Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Katie Britt (R-AL), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Mike Lee (R-UT), Mike Braun (R-IN), Rick Scott (R-FL), J.D. Vance (R-OH), James Lankford (R-OK), Bill Casidy (R-LA), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Jim Risch (R-ID), Steve Daines (R-MT), and Mike Crapo (R-ID).\n\nSenator Budd proposed the Promoting Free and Fair Elections Act on May 2, 2023, which would prevent the Biden administration from implementing the order.\n\nThe full text of the letter is below:\n\nWe are concerned by your failure to respond to our previous inquiry on May 10, 2023, regarding Executive Order 14019 on \u201cPromoting Access to Voting.\u201d This policy directive merits congressional oversight both as a general matter and under the Antideficiency Act. Accordingly, we write to reiterate our request for information regarding the implementation of this executive order, including copies of the plans submitted to the White House.\n\nExecutive Order 14019 instructs federal agencies to engage in voter mobilization and submit a plan for doing so to the White House by September 2021. The Order outlines various activities in which agencies are to engage, including promoting mail-in voting and partnering with third-party organizations to register voters. Federal agencies should be focused on their defined missions in a nonpartisan manner, not using taxpayer funds for voter mobilization efforts with potentially partisan impacts. In other words, it\u2019s not the job of the federal government to drive voter turnout. Reviewing these agency plans is crucial to determining whether this order has or may lead to the improper use of federal resources.\n\nExecutive Order 14019 directs more than 600 federal agencies to engage in voter-related activities without congressional approval, and it is doubtful that Congress approved the use of appropriated agency funds for voter mobilization. Using appropriated funds for a purpose that Congress did not expressly authorize would constitute a violation of the Antideficiency Act (31 U.S.C. \u00a7 1341(a)(1)(A)), which prohibits agencies from expending or obligating funds in a manner not authorized by law. Violating this statute carries administrative and potential criminal penalties, highlighting the need for transparency. Unfortunately, the White House has kept these plans hidden despite numerous requests from Congress.\n\nThe initial deadline for providing this information was May 23, 2023, so the response is now 27 weeks overdue.\n\nSo that Congress can determine the voter mobilization and electioneering activities to which your Administration has devoted taxpayer resources, we respectfully request the following information developed in accordance with Executive Order 14019 as soon as possible:\n\nFull copies of all federal agency \u201cstrategic plans\u201d required under Section 3 and a list of which agencies have not yet submitted a strategic plan;\n\nThe strategic plan required by the General Services Administration under Section 5;\n\nThe recommendations provided by the Office of Personnel Management under Section 6; and\n\nAll procedures established by the Attorney General under Section 9.\n\nFurthermore, we respectfully request a full accounting of all federal funding used to date to implement Executive Order 14019, including the accounts from which the funding was used.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-statement-on-epa-s-decision-to-stop-genx-shipment-to-fayetteville", "Tillis Statement on EPA\u2019s Decision to Stop GenX Shipment to Fayetteville", "2023-11-29", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis issued the following statement on the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s (EPA) announcement to no longer allow Chemours to import GenX from their overseas facility to their facility in Fayetteville, North Carolina:\n\n\u201cI am glad the EPA reversed its decision to allow wastewater with GenX to be sent to a facility in Fayetteville. It is vital all North Carolinians have access to safe water, and I\u2019ll continue my work to address the risks posed by emerging PFAS contaminants, just like we did with the historic clean water investment in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis previously sent a letter with Congressmen Rouzer and Hudson to EPA Administrator Regan outlining concern with the shipment.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/28/budd-calls-on-qatar-to-pressure-hamas-to-release-nc-hostage-in-floor-speech/", "Budd Calls on Qatar to Pressure Hamas to Release NC Hostage in Floor Speech", "2023-11-28", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 In a speech on the Senate floor today, Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) called on the government of Qatar to exert pressure on Hamas leaders living in Doha to immediately and unconditionally release all remaining hostages from Gaza, including North Carolina native Keith Siegel.\n\nSenator Budd also called on Qatar to extradite the Hamas leadership to the United States after the hostage crisis is resolved to face justice for the killing and kidnapping of Americans.\n\nWatch the full speech:\n\nKey excerpts:\n\n\u201cWhile we are grateful for the release of some hostages over the weekend, our hearts remain with those still being held. This includes several Americans \u2013 including Keith Siegel, a native of my home state of North Carolina.\u201d\n\n\u201cIn this clash between good and evil, the question that the United States should be asking is who can we count on to be on our side and who stands on the side of the terrorists.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis brings us to the State of Qatar. This is a nation that hosts Hamas\u2019 so-called \u201cpolitical office\u201d, including Hamas\u2019 leaders. From the safety of Doha, these terrorists gleefully watched and celebrated the attack on October 7th.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur two nations are friends, but sometimes friends must be honest with one another.\u201d\n\n\u201cEarlier this month, I met with the Qatari ambassador in my office. I told him in no uncertain terms that his government must pressure Hamas\u2019 leaders living in Doha to immediately and unconditionally release all hostages.\u201d\n\n\u201cIn the past two months, we\u2019ve watched Hamas leaders use Qatar\u2019s hospitality to buy time, prolonging the war and the hostage crisis from the comfort of their luxury accommodations.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhile Palestinians suffer in Gaza because of the war that Hamas started, we\u2019ve seen Hamas leaders push their genocidal agenda from Doha \u2013 including multiple meetings with Iran\u2019s foreign minister, and even a visit to Moscow.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf Qatar\u2019s leadership believes that any of this is consistent with what Washington has asked of them, it is not. So my message to the Qatari government is very simple: Stop this now.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour leadership continues to speak out of both sides of its mouth \u2013 on one hand committing to negotiate a resolution to the hostage crisis, while on the other hand blaming Israel and absolving Hamas at every turn. We need to tell our friends in Doha loudly and clearly: Qatar is accepting a significant liability with its pro-Hamas policy.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis is personal for Americans. I\u2019ve met with the families of hostages right here in Washington. I\u2019ve heard their stories. I look at their photos every day on my desk. Every day that these families have to live with the pain and the uncertainty is unacceptable. We must stand united and say: Not one more day.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy view is that [Hamas leaders] should be extradited to the United States, so that these terrorists can face justice for killing and kidnapping American citizens in a U.S. court of law. I would hope that our friends in Qatar will not only be partners for peace and stability, but also partners in ensuring that Hamas and its leaders are brought to justice for the despicable acts of terror they committed.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-urge-cbp-to-stop-imports-of-clothing-made-with-forced-labor/50526aca-c6be-4f5b-8115-f103838d7f95", "Tillis, Colleagues Urge CBP to Stop Imports of Clothing Made with Forced Labor", "2023-11-28", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter calling on U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Commissioner Miller to ensure Chinese companies aren\u2019t evading U.S. laws against forced labor and costing American jobs by stepping up oversight and enforcement provisions in trade agreements with Central American and North American trading partners.\n\n\u201cWe write today seeking your attention to an urgent issue of trade enforcement with significant impacts on the livelihoods of Americans and our partners in Central America. Recent reports of textile and apparel mill closures in the United States raise serious concerns as the lack of effective customs enforcement has been cited repeatedly as a key factor contributing to declining demand,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cThis is particularly true with respect to commitments concerning the U.S. textile and apparel industry facilitated by the Dominican Republic-Central America FTA (CAFTA-DR) and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The United States is a significant producer of high-quality cotton. It has a well-established and sophisticated spinning industry, as well as thread, fabric, and other textile and apparel producers. Regional partners in Central America, including Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico, have developed a cut and sew industry that employs thousands of workers and complements U.S. production. The rules and benefits established by CAFTA-DR and USMCA provide the environment for a robust and integrated regional textiles and apparel supply chain that has, in turn, developed and supported production across numerous product categories and price points, while avoiding unnecessary climate emissions. This type of win-win partnership is what U.S. trade agreements should be delivering,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cAs the U.S. textile and apparel industry is facing a number of unprecedented challenges including inflationary pressure, supply chain disruptions, and unfair competition from products made with forced labor, we ask that you confirm to us in writing an intent to prioritize textile enforcement related to CAFTA-DR and USMCA in the coming year,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-call-on-biden-administration-to-enforce-sanctions-on-iran", "Tillis, Colleagues Call on Biden Administration to Enforce Sanctions on Iran", "2023-11-27", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to President Biden urging him to immediately enforce oil sanctions on Iran as mandated by Congress. The letter also urges the administration to permanently freeze the $6 billion funding mechanism established in September\u2019s hostage agreement with Iran.\n\n\u201cWe write to you during a time of global outrage and sorrow following Hamas\u2019s unprecedented massacre in Israel which has left 1,400 dead, including at least 33 Americans. Iran\u2019s fingerprints are all over the events of October 7th and ensuing escalations across the Middle East. Its leaders have provided Hamas and Hezbollah hundreds of millions of dollars in funding, weapons, and training, bolstering terrorists on Israel\u2019s borders,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cWe ask that you take immediate action to permanently freeze the funding mechanism established in September\u2019s hostage deal with Iran. This $6 billion would free up money for Iran to use not for the well-being of its own people but for nefarious purposes in the region and beyond. Blocking the world\u2019s largest state sponsor of terrorism from accessing this $6 billion \u2013 rescinding or revising all waivers and licensed involved \u2013 will hinder the regime\u2019s ability to support the death and destruction of our allies,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cThe world is now seeing the direct result of allowing Iran\u2019s oil revenues to grow and unfreezing billions of dollars in its extraterritorial bank accounts. Congress has a responsibility to ensure sanctions are not only on the books but enforced to their fullest extent. As our trusted ally Israel endures devastation, we must prioritize enforcing all economic sanctions and restricting Iranian oil revenue,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/26/budd-statement-on-release-of-first-u-s-hostages-from-gaza-renews-call-to-release-all-hostages-including-nc-native/", "Budd Statement on Release of First U.S. Hostages From Gaza, Renews Call to Release All Hostages, Including NC Native", "2023-11-26", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) released the following statement after a third group of hostages was released from Gaza on Sunday, including 4 year-old American Avigail Mor Idan, and Adrienne \u201cAviva\u201d Siegel, wife of North Carolina native Keith Siegel:\n\n\u201cWe are pleased that some hostages have been released and are now home with their loved ones. We remain steadfast in our commitment to secure that freedom for North Carolina native Keith Siegel, Omer Neutra, and all hostages illegally held by Hamas terrorists. While we are encouraged by the government of Qatar\u2019s efforts to mediate the release of some of the hostages, we renew our call to their government to exert pressure on Hamas leadership to release each and every hostage immediately and unconditionally.\u201d\n\nSenator Budd met with Qatari Ambassador Meshal Al Thani on November 6 in Senator Budd\u2019s Washington, D.C. office, and strongly urged his government to use their leverage on Hamas leaders currently residing in Doha, Qatar to immediately release all hostages, and hold those same Hamas leaders accountable once the hostage situation is fully resolved.\n\nA photo from that meeting is below:\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-reintroduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-support-startups-small-businesses", "Tillis, Colleagues Reintroduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support Startups, Small Businesses", "2023-11-21", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Helping Angels Lead Our Startups (HALOS) Act, bipartisan legislation that would ensure that individuals who want to invest in startups do not face burdensome regulations, and allow those startups to get the investments they need to grow their business and create jobs.\n\n\u201cSmall business investors play a crucial role in allowing start-ups to grow and create more jobs, but too often face unnecessary regulatory requirements that deter investment,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis bipartisan legislation will remove burdensome regulations so we can invest in our small business and continue to grow our economy.\u201d\n\nIn order for startups to secure capital and grow their businesses, entrepreneurs commonly attend \u201cdemo days\u201d, or conferences that allow startups to showcase their business model in front of valuable startup investors, such as \u201cangel investors.\u201d\n\nThe HALOS Act would codify provisions finalized in SEC rules to ensure that startups can continue to present at demo days without facing onerous regulations, and instead preserve the same investor vetting process that angel investors have been using at demo days for years. This bipartisan legislation will enable startups to continue to get the investments they need to grow and create new jobs.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/20/senator-budd-urges-businesses-to-reject-esg-in-new-op-ed/", "Senator Budd Urges Businesses to Reject ESG in New Op-Ed", "2023-11-20", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has written an opinion piece for the Washington Examiner detailing the toxic nature of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives and urging good companies to return to the basic principles of business: serve your customers and deliver value.\n\nHighlights:\n\n\u201cWhether it\u2019s climate policy, race relations, or radical gender ideology, ESG has begun to displace the traditional business principles upon which successful companies were founded.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201c[Bud Light] violated the basic tenets of business, which are to know your customers, serve them, and deliver value. To abandon its customer base and imply that it needs to be rebranded is particularly disrespectful, and customers rightly rebelled. This should serve as a warning for corporate America: Personnel is policy.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cWhen companies stray from their customer base and lose focus on their core principles, they draw the ire of the people and their elected representatives.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cThe fundamental truth is that to be a successful business of any size, you must be a good corporate citizen. You have to serve your customers, work hard, comply with the law, and deliver value for your shareholders.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cIt is ESG that damages the entire free enterprise system by misleading good companies to prioritize politics over profit. In the end, this approach will leave our country less prosperous and our people worse off. We must reject ESG and get back to basics if we are to save capitalism.\u201d\n\nRead the full op-ed HERE or below:\n\nBusinesses should reject ESG and get back to basics\n\nBy Sen. Ted Budd\n\nNovember 20, 2023 06:00 AM\n\nJust 20% of people consider our economy to be excellent or good, according to the latest Gallup survey. They have every right to feel that way. President Joe Biden \u2019s economic plan has resulted in about a 3% drop in average wages \u2014 in real terms, adjusted for inflation \u2014 since 2020, while the costs of everyday goods have increased dramatically. Right now, too many working families are paying more and earning less.\n\nGiven this economic pain, one would think the most straightforward solution would be to tackle inflation at the source by reducing government spending to get prices down and reducing taxes and regulations on job creators, freeing them up to hire more workers and raise wages.\n\nBut many on the \u201cwoke\u201d Left have a different focus. Their priority is to implement so-called environmental, social, and governance, or ESG, initiatives. This set of goals prioritizes social and political activism above all other factors. Whether it\u2019s climate policy, race relations, or radical gender ideology, ESG has begun to displace the traditional business principles upon which successful companies were founded.\n\nThis shift means the power brokers in large corporations are no longer the CEO or the COO but the public relations manager. A prime example of this is the backlash that occurred after Bud Light partnered with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney for a social media campaign earlier this year. The campaign backfired spectacularly, driving millions away from the beer and causing Anheuser-Busch InBev, Bud Light\u2019s parent company, to lose 13.5% of its revenue in quarter three this year.\n\nBut the real story here is that the primary decision-maker was a Harvard-educated marketing officer at the company who admitted prior to the ad campaign that she believed Bud Light was culturally \u201cout of touch\u201d and \u201cfratty\u201d and that her goal was to change that. Read another way, the goal of the campaign was to move a right-of-center, working-class brand to the elite, \u201cwoke\u201d Left.\n\nShe and the company violated the basic tenets of business, which are to know your customers, serve them, and deliver value. To abandon its customer base and imply that it needs to be rebranded is particularly disrespectful, and customers rightly rebelled. This should serve as a warning for corporate America: Personnel is policy.\n\nToxic ESG policy is also invading banks and financial institutions. When Silicon Valley Bank crashed earlier this year, it set off a panic in the financial system. As it turned out, SVB did not have a chief risk officer for much of 2022, and its risk committee was not composed of anyone with risk management experience. But SVB did mention ESG in its proxy statement at least 40 times, and two-thirds of the membership of the risk committee ran the bank\u2019s ESG committee. Given these facts, it\u2019s easy to see how misplaced the priorities were at SVB.\n\nSome banks and financial institutions are actually going further and picking sides in policy debates. ESG is not simply a risky distraction to these entities. It has become an affirmative choice. For example, On Sept. 9, 2022, the New York-based Amalgamated Bank announced that its petition to the International Organization for Standardization for a new merchant category code for gun stores and ranges had been accepted. This new policy would make it much easier for lawful buyers and sellers to be tracked and possibly discriminated against when they exercise their Second Amendment rights.\n\nGiven Amalgamated\u2019s public commitment to \u201csustainable organizations, progressive causes, and social justice,\u201d it should surprise no one that it is doing in the private sector what liberal politicians such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) have crusaded for in the halls of the Senate. Their former director of public relations even went on to become the executive director of the far-left gun control group Guns Down America.\n\nWhat\u2019s worse, the \u201cwoke\u201d Left is gaining ground in this cause. Earlier this year, Discover Financial Services announced that it, too, would adopt a new merchant category code for gun retailers.\n\nThe good news is that while the Left is on the march at the federal level, the states are forcefully fighting back. When it comes to gun rights, Florida passed and signed a law earlier this year that instituted up to a $10,000 fine for tracking firearm and ammunition sales in Florida. Similar laws were passed in Texas and Mississippi , and other states are considering proposals to do the same.\n\nIn other cases, consumers themselves are flexing their muscles. Anheuser-Busch is the perfect example of this. When companies stray from their customer base and lose focus on their core principles, they draw the ire of the people and their elected representatives.\n\nWhat is most perverse about the pro-ESG position is the assumption that business is inherently toxic and ESG is the cure. Purveyors of this view have it backward. The fundamental truth is that to be a successful business of any size, you must be a good corporate citizen. You have to serve your customers, work hard, comply with the law, and deliver value for your shareholders.\n\nIt is ESG that damages the entire free enterprise system by misleading good companies to prioritize politics over profit. In the end, this approach will leave our country less prosperous and our people worse off. We must reject ESG and get back to basics if we are to save capitalism.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-introduce-the-national-guard-and-reservists-debt-relief-extension-act", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce the National Guard and Reservists Debt Relief Extension Act", "2023-11-20", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the bipartisan National Guard and Reservists Debt Relief Extension Act to reauthorize an additional four years of relief for qualifying members of the National Guard and Reserves experiencing financial hardship. The legislation would protect a long-standing bipartisan carveout from means-testing restrictions in Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases.\n\n\u201cThe men and women who serve in the National Guard and Reserves provide an invaluable service to our nation,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI am proud to co-sponsor this bipartisan legislation that will ensure protections for members if they fall on financial hardship.\u201d\n\nThe National Guard and Reservists Debt Relief Extension Act of 2023 would reauthorize the National Guard and Reservists Debt Relief Act of 2008, which included a clause exempting qualifying members of reserve components of the Armed Forces and the National Guard from provisions in the Bankruptcy Code, which limit access to Chapter 7 bankruptcy based on recent income.\n\nBecause National Guard members and reservists often receive higher pay while on active duty than at their civilian jobs, these limits could otherwise prevent them from receiving financial relief in bankruptcy. The National Guard and Reservist Debt Relief Extension Actensures they are not penalized for their service.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-recognize-the-service-of-hmong-veterans-during-the-vietnam-war", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Recognize the Service of Hmong Veterans During the Vietnam War", "2023-11-17", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Hmong Congressional Gold Medal Act, bipartisan legislation to recognize the distinguished service of the Hmong veterans who served alongside American troops in the Vietnam War by awarding them a Congressional Gold Medal.\n\n\u201cThe Hmong bravely risked their lives to help our servicemembers during the Vietnam War,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cToday, more than 10,000 Hmong people call North Carolina home, and we are beyond grateful for their patriotic service and cultural contributions to our state. It is my honor to work to pass this bipartisan legislation to recognize Hmong veterans for their heroic actions.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nAs the Vietnam War spread south and west into Laos, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) recruited and trained Hmong soldiers to help American troops fight back against the communist North Vietnamese and Pathet Lao. At great risk to the safety of themselves and their families, Hmong soldiers fought the ground war, flew combat missions, gathered intelligence on North Vietnamese troop movements, interrupted the Ho-Chi-Min Supply Trail, and rescued American pilots downed behind enemy lines. The Hmong people suffered heavy casualties, and their soldiers died at a rate ten times as high as that of American servicemembers in Vietnam.\n\nIn the aftermath of the Vietnam War, many Hmong were displaced from their villages as they were either bombed or burned down by the North Vietnamese, and over 150,000 Hmong fled Laos when the nation fell to communist forces in 1975. Due to their ties with the American military, many Hmong came to the United States as refugees to start a new life. Over the ensuing decades, Hmong populations and their traditions have become engrained in communities in Michigan and across the United States. Currently, over 327,000 Hmong are living in the United States.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/16/budd-leads-46-senators-to-demand-answers-over-biden-administrations-unprecedented-pause-of-firearms-export-licenses/", "Budd Leads 46 Senators to Demand Answers Over Biden Administration\u2019s Unprecedented Pause of Firearms Export Licenses", "2023-11-16", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Today, Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) led a group of 46 U.S. Senators in a letter to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo raising questions over the decision announced last month by the Bureau of Industry and Security to pause for 90 days the issuance of export licenses for firearms, ammunition, and certain accessories to most overseas markets. This unprecedented move is the latest chapter in the Biden administration\u2019s hostility towards America\u2019s firearms industry.\n\nThe letter notes the impact this unprecedented pause could have on \u201cU.S. commercial and economic interests\u201d which according to the firearms and ammunition industry has an estimated \u201cdirect cost of at least $89 million associated with the 90 day pause and at least $238 million annually should the pause become permanent.\u201d\n\nCiting \u201csignificant concerns about the justifications for and ramifications of this pause\u201d and concerns that the \u201cunmet demand created by this action will promote opportunities for less scrupulous, professional, or conscientious sources of supply to fill the void, thereby strengthening illicit arms markets,\u201d the Senators are demanding a response to their inquiry by no later than November 30.\n\nThe letter was signed by Senators:\n\nTed Budd (R-NC)\n\nMitch McConnell (R-KY)\n\nJohn Thune (R-SD)\n\nJohn Barrasso, M.D. (R-WY)\n\nShelley Moore Capito (R-WV)\n\nTim Scott (R-SC)\n\nBill Hagerty (R-TN)\n\nJim Risch (R-ID)\n\nMike Crapo (R-ID)\n\nJoni Ernst (R-IA)\n\nLindsey Graham (R-SC)\n\nChuck Grassley (R-IA)\n\nThom Tillis (R-NC)\n\nRick Scott (R-FL)\n\nRoger Wicker (R-MS)\n\nSteve Daines (R-MT)\n\nMarsha Blackburn (R-TN)\n\nJohn Hoeven (R-ND)\n\nJ.D. Vance (R-OH)\n\nJohn Kennedy (R-LA)\n\nJosh Hawley (R-MO)\n\nJohn Cornyn (R-TX)\n\nKatie Britt (R-AL)\n\nMarkwayne Mullin (R-OK)\n\nKevin Cramer (R-ND)\n\nMike Lee (R-UT)\n\nTed Cruz (R-TX)\n\nCynthia Lummis (R-WY)\n\nMike Rounds (R-SD)\n\nCindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS)\n\nPete Ricketts (R-NE)\n\nMike Braun (R-IN)\n\nDeb Fischer (R-NE)\n\nEric Schmitt (R-MO)\n\nRoger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS)\n\nTom Cotton (R-AR)\n\nJohn Boozman (R-AR)\n\nDan Sullivan (R-AK)\n\nJerry Moran (R-KS)\n\nBill Cassidy (R-LA)\n\nMarco Rubio (R-FL)\n\nRon Johnson (R-WI)\n\nRand Paul (R-KY)\n\nTommy Tuberville (R-AL)\n\nJames Lankford (R-OK)\n\nTodd Young (R-IN)\n\nFull text of the letter:\n\nDear Secretary Raimondo:\n\nWe write regarding the October 27 announcement from the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the Department of Commerce (the Department) that \u201c[e]ffective immediately\u201d, the Department \u201cis pausing for approximately 90 days the issuance of new export licenses involving certain firearms, related components, and ammunition\u201d as well as \u201cthe provision of new export assistance activities for such products to all non-governmental end users worldwide\u201d with the exception of \u201cthose located in Ukraine, Israel, or a country in Country Group A:1 (Wassenaar Arrangement Participating States).\u201d Further, this announcement stated that the Department will, during this \u201c\u2018pause\u2019 period\u201d, conduct an urgent review of \u201ccurrent firearm export control review policies\u201d in light of \u201cU.S. national security and foreign policy interests\u201d to \u201cenable the Department to more effectively assess and mitigate risk of firearms being diverted to entities or activities that promote regional instability, violate human rights, or fuel criminal activities.\u201d\n\nWe recognize the crucial need for firearms for civilian self-defense in Ukraine and Israel, which are exempted from this pause, and note the actions by the Ukrainian and Israeli governments to fulfill those needs. For example, in response to the Hamas attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that part of the war against Hamas involves \u201cencouraging civilians and helping civilians to arm themselves for their self-defence.\u201d The Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, promised to distribute 10,000 free weapons, including 4,000 rifles to settlers in the West Bank, and has relaxed rules for permits to allow 400,000 new people to qualify to carry a firearm. Similarly, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine\u2019s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on February 24, 2022, that the Ukrainian government \u201cwill give weapons to anyone who wants to defend the country.\u201d By June 2022, Ukraine had distributed \u201ctens of thousands\u201d of firearms to civilians \u201cfor national defense\u201d, according to Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky.\n\nHowever, we also recognize the significance of exports that are now put on pause by the Department\u2019s announcement. As you know, firearms exports to non-government users in countries not covered by the exception constitute a significant percentage of overall U.S. firearm exports. This pause puts at stake U.S. commercial and economic interests, as well as those business interests of firearm exporters whose pending exports are now subject to pause, in addition to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests. According to a survey conducted by NSSF, the firearm and ammunition industry trade association, this decision would have a severe negative economic impact. As of today, the industry estimates a direct cost of at least $89 million associated with the 90 day pause and at least $238 million annually should the pause become permanent. Furthermore, it is our understanding that the Department has never before imposed such a 90 day pause on such a wide range of firearms exports. We have significant concerns about the justifications for and ramifications of this pause. Finally, we are concerned the unmet demand created by this action will promote opportunities for less scrupulous, professional, or conscientious sources of supply to fill the void, thereby strengthening illicit arms markets.\n\nThus, for the purpose of congressional oversight regarding the Department\u2019s announcement we ask that you respond to the following questions and requests by November 30, 2023:\n\nPlease explain the reasoning for this pause and identify the specific U.S. national security and foreign policy interests that are part of this reasoning.\n\nWhat specific situations has the Department identified where the current export policies affected U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, and contributed to regional instability, violated human rights, or fueled criminal activities?\n\nDid BIS engage with firearm and ammunition industry stakeholders prior to the October 27 announcement to understand the impact this unprecedented decision would have on their industry?\n\nDid BIS engage with advocacy organizations prior to the October 27 announcement to provide advance knowledge of this announcement?\n\nIf yes, then please provide a list of these organizations.\n\nHas BIS held a meeting with firearm and ammunition industry stakeholders since making the October 27 announcement?\n\nPlease provide data on the number of export license applications covered by the Department\u2019s October 27 announcement for all countries (disregarding any exceptions) that were pending on October 27, and the number submitted over the previous six months.\n\nPlease provide data on export license applications submitted for non-governmental users in Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022 that are of the same type covered by the Department\u2019s October 27 announcement.\n\nPlease provide data on export license applications submitted for non-governmental users in Israel since Hamas\u2019 attacks began in October 2023 that are of the same type covered by the Department\u2019s October 27 announcement.\n\nPlease provide data on the number of Department employees reviewing export license applications related to the October 27 announcement.\n\nPlease provide data on the average number of export license applications related to the October 27 announcement reviewed per day.\n\nPlease provide data on the average time to review export license applications related to the October 27 announcement to non-governmental users in Ukraine.\n\nPlease provide data on the average time to review export license applications related to the October 27 announcement to non-governmental users in Israel.\n\nAre supplemental funds needed to add more Department employees to review applications so that reviews can be completed in a timely manner?\n\nIf so, what is the needed level of supplemental funding and how many additional employees should the Department add?\n\nWhat is your estimate of potential economic loss, measured in dollars, to U.S. firearms industry as a result of this pause?\n\nWhat is your estimate of potential economic loss, measured in job losses, to U.S. firearms industry as a result of this pause?\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-lead-resolution-to-strengthen-economic-ties-with-israel", "Tillis, Colleagues Lead Resolution to Strengthen Economic Ties with Israel", "2023-11-16", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced a resolution calling for the strengthening of economic ties between the U.S. and Israel. The resolution comes amid Israel\u2019s war against Hamas in response to the terrorist group\u2019s gruesome assault on southern Israel on October 7th, which has stunted Israel\u2019s economy.\n\n\u201cThis resolution reiterates America\u2019s support for the Israeli people and their economy following the brutal attacks carried out by Hamas on October 7th,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI am committed to working with my colleagues to ensure America and Israel\u2019s economic relationship continues to thrive and grow during this difficult time.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe U.S.-Israel Free Trade Agreement of 1985 has helped U.S.-Israel trade grow more than sevenfold since its inception and is an essential tool for supporting the Israeli economy during this time. In 2022, American companies exported $14.2 billion in goods and $5.8 billion in services to Israel. Major exports included machinery, mechanical appliances, stone, glass, metals, and chemicals. Israeli companies exported $21.4 billion in goods and $9.2 billion in services to the U.S. last year. Israeli companies\u2019 foreign direct investment in the U.S. totaled $10.6 billion in 2022 and supported more than 20,000 American jobs.\n\nThis resolution is endorsed by the National Taxpayers Union, the Center for Individual Freedom, and the Trade Alliance to Promote Prosperity.\n\nText of the resolution is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-discusses-government-funding-border-security-ukraine-and-israel-aid-on-bloomberg-news", "Tillis Discusses Government Funding, Border Security, Ukraine and Israel Aid on Bloomberg News", "2023-11-16", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis appeared on Bloomberg News\u2019 Balance of Power with Kailey Leinz and Joe Mathieu to discuss government funding, aid to Israel and Ukraine, border security, and other topics.\n\nSenator Tillis on the Continuing Resolution:\n\n\u201cThis is a very expensive process, and we need a consistent longer-term view of spending. To the point in your prior segment, we\u2019ve also got to get serious about our debt. We are going to reach a point where we\u2019ll run out of our credit line. We are reaching a point now where mandatory spending alone will consume all the revenue coming into the U.S. government. What do we do with the 20% that\u2019s not mandatory spending? So, we have to have a serious discussion about that at the same time that we\u2019re dealing with the conflict in Ukraine, Israel, and other threats.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis on President Biden\u2019s Supplemental Budget Request:\n\n\u201cWe\u2019re involved in discussions, and we should be instructed by the President\u2019s request. The President did request funding for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, but also for border security. We have to get the four legs of that stool together. We\u2019re actively working on a border security strategy, which I think is critically important. Of course, we have to support Israel, and I am 100% behind sustaining the investment for Ukraine.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis on Border Security Funding:\n\n\u201cIt is a national security problem, but it is also a political problem. I don\u2019t think that Republicans are the only ones who recognize that we\u2019ve got to make progress on border security, and we have to get it done. Now, to the point on timing, the thing that worries me, or the thing that frustrates me about Washington, is when we set a deadline, we almost never get something done early. I hope we break the cycle on this one. I hope we have a definitive answer for Israel, Ukraine, and the American people on border security before Christmas.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis on Ukraine and Israel Funding:\n\n\u201cWell, I think those of us who support both Israel and Ukraine funding believe that we should move that as a block. We cannot have a lapse in Ukraine funding. That could have been a strategy on the part of some members of the House who apparently do not want to support sustaining the Ukraine effort and I completely disagree with them. I think that history will remember them in a very negative light. We\u2019ve got to work together. I think that the Speaker is doing the best with the hand that he\u2019s dealt. This is a case where the Republicans need to understand the American people want us to lead and leading means we have to address these pressing problems.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-protect-veterans-from-outdated-or-incorrect-va-billing", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Veterans from Outdated or Incorrect VA Billing", "2023-11-15", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Department of Veterans Affairs Billing Accountability Act, bipartisan legislation to protect veterans from outdated or incorrect Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) billing.\n\n\u201cThis important legislation ensures that veterans receive affordable, quality healthcare by waiving late co-payment fees for medications and other healthcare services,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI am proud to co-sponsor this legislation on behalf of the more than 600,000 veterans that call North Carolina home.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThis legislation would give the VA the authority to waive veterans\u2019 copayment requirements for medication, care, or certain services if the copayment notification was received more than 180 days after care or services. It would also require the VA to notify the veteran of copayment requirements no later than 180 days from when the veteran received care. Finally, the legislation would require the VA to review and improve its co-payment billing procedures.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-discusses-u-s-china-relations-on-fox-news", "Tillis Discusses U.S.-China Relations on Fox News", "2023-11-15", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis appeared on Fox News\u2019 Your World with Neil Cavuto to discuss the importance of eliminating America\u2019s pharmaceutical and medical supply dependence on China and the future of U.S.-China relations. Senator Tillis\u2019 comments come as President Biden met with Chinese President Xi Jinping today.\n\nWatch the interview HERE.\n\nSenator Tillis on Foreign Direct Investment in China:\n\n\u201cI think they\u2019ve got serious problems. They\u2019ve got a long-term problem because they\u2019re seeing a reduction in foreign direct investment in China. That\u2019s an indication that the world has woken up and decided that we\u2019ve got to reduce our dependence on China for so many of our supply chains. They have a demographic problem. They have a problem that we don\u2019t have, we have lots of allies. They don\u2019t have a lot of allies.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis on America\u2019s Relationship with China:\n\n\u201cI think that China is in a weaker position they\u2019ve been in some time, and it concerns me that this President won\u2019t go in playing with what I think is a strong hand. China has to behave differently for us to reward them in any way. I\u2019ve seen this administration reach out to Iran. I\u2019ve seen them reach out to China. I want those to be postures of strength, where those regimes have to change for us to have any concessions or working relationships.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis on Future American Investments in China:\n\n\u201cI think what we have got to do is look at China differently. I don\u2019t mind the idea of investments in China that are beneficial to the United States. I no longer want the pattern that we have seen over the last quarter-century of investments in China that make us more dependent on them. And we\u2019re seeing that happen organically. We learned our lesson from COVID. But I do think that there\u2019s a market there. Think about that the Chinese people have nearly twice our population size in what they consider to be the middle class. That will probably shrink a bit over time. But it\u2019s still a big market that I think that we want American and Western businesses to serve.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis on America\u2019s Dependence on China:\n\n\u201cOne of my favorite pictures coming out of China is a little Chinese girl wearing a Wonder Woman outfit with a Captain America shield. I want American culture, Western culture known in China, because that\u2019s a path to freedom and ultimately change in China. What I don\u2019t want are strategic investments that make us dependent upon them for our pharmaceutical supply chains, the PPEs, all the things that we saw that we were dependent on in China over the time that we were dealing with the COVID pandemic. That has to change. We should have learned our lesson.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/14/budd-leads-majority-of-senate-gop-to-demand-that-dod-rescind-abortion-travel-policy/", "Budd Leads Majority of Senate GOP to Demand that DOD Rescind Abortion Travel Policy", "2023-11-14", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) led a group of 27 U.S. Senators in sending a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin denouncing the department\u2019s policy of paying the travel expenses of those servicemembers and dependents seeking abortions.\n\nThe letter also stresses that, \u201cour men and women in uniform deserve Senate-confirmed leadership but the current situation began with your original sin of promulgating the Policy.\u201d\n\nThe letter concludes by calling on Secretary Austin to, \u201cDo the right thing. Rescind the Policy now.\u201d\n\nThe letter was co-signed by Senators:\n\nTed Budd (R-NC)\n\nRoger Wicker (R-MS)\n\nMike Lee (R-UT)\n\nCynthia Lummis (R-WY)\n\nMike Rounds (R-SD)\n\nJohn Barrasso, M.D. (R-WY)\n\nRand Paul (R-KY)\n\nCindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS)\n\nPete Ricketts (R-NE)\n\nKatie Britt (R-AL)\n\nMike Braun (R-IN)\n\nTed Cruz (R-TX)\n\nRick Scott (R-FL)\n\nMarkwayne Mullin (R-OK)\n\nDeb Fischer (R-NE)\n\nKevin Cramer (R-ND)\n\nEric Schmitt (R-MO)\n\nRoger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS)\n\nLindsey Graham (R-SC)\n\nJoni Ernst (R-IA)\n\nTom Cotton (R-AR)\n\nChuck Grassley (R-IA)\n\nJohn Cornyn (R-TX)\n\nJohn Boozman (R-AR)\n\nJohn Thune (R-SD)\n\nMarsha Blackburn (R-TN)\n\nDan Sullivan (R-AK)\n\nFull text of the letter:\n\nSecretary Austin:\n\nYou have broken your promise to the American people not to politicize the military, and your actions have harmed and threaten to further harm institutional norms within our democracy. On June 28, 2022, four days after the Supreme Court\u2019s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women\u2019s Health Organization, you issued a memorandum to senior leaders in the Department of Defense (\u201cDepartment\u201d) stating that the Department is authorized to pay for government funded, official travel for active duty personnel to receive abortions outside of the state in which they are stationed.\n\nOn October 20, 2022, you issued the memorandum Travel for Non-Covered Reproductive Health Care Services, properly referred to as the Department\u2019s abortion travel policy (\u201cPolicy\u201d), which directed the Department to pay travel expenses not only for active duty personnel to receive abortions, but for their dependents to receive abortions as well. Importantly, on July 19, 2023, at a hearing on the Department\u2019s abortion travel policy, the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness confirmed that this policy extends to late term abortions.\n\nAll legislative power is vested in Congress, and the Executive branch is responsible for implementing and enforcing the law. While the Department may issue regulations, it can only do so under the laws authorized and enacted by Congress. But, Congress never authorized the Department to expend funds to facilitate abortions and, until the Policy was issued, the military never facilitated abortions except in cases of rape, incest, or where the life of the mother would be endangered if the unborn child were carried to term. Now taxpayers\u2014many of whom have deeply-held religious and moral objections to abortions\u2014are on the hook to facilitate the very abortions they fundamentally oppose. Indeed, a Marist poll in January 2023 found that 60% of Americans strongly oppose the use of taxpayer dollars to pay for an abortion, consistent with polls taken throughout recent years.\n\nRather than respect the Supreme Court\u2019s decision, you decided to engage the Department, and our men and women in uniform, in a policy debate properly reserved for the legislature. You did so by claiming that Dobbs had \u201creadiness, recruiting, and retention implications for the Force.\u201d By your own officials\u2019 admissions, however, the Department has no data to support that claim, and few servicemembers or dependents have utilized the Policy.\n\nAfter multiple inquiries from Congress on this question, the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness finally confirmed that \u201cThe Department does not have any data on women being deterred from joining the military for fear of being stationed at an installation or base in a state or nation that has restrictive abortion laws.\u201d Finally, a recent letter from the Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee revealed that only 12 women have taken advantage of the Policy since its inception, which undercuts your argument that Dobbs has significant recruiting and retention implications.\n\nOur men and women in uniform deserve Senate-confirmed leadership but the current situation began with your original sin of promulgating the Policy. Much has been made in the press about one Senator\u2019s decision to try and stop your egregious wrongs, without acknowledging the Senate Majority Leader\u2019s refusal to bring general and flag officer nominations to the floor until forced to by Republicans. Seeking to circumvent the Senate prerogative of the informal \u201chold\u201d practice without addressing the underlying causes\u2014the novel Policy and the subsequent refusal of the Majority to bring these nominees to the floor\u2014will not ultimately reconcile this matter. It could create a toxic precedent with lasting negative effects on future military nominations.\n\nYour decision to issue the Policy politicized the military and placed the wants of a few over the needs of the entire nation.\n\nDo the right thing. Rescind the Policy now.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/14/budd-shaheen-lead-resolutions-countering-chinese-influence-in-latin-america-and-globally/", "Budd, Shaheen Lead Resolutions Countering Chinese Influence in Latin America and Globally", "2023-11-14", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senators Ted Budd (R-NC) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) have led a bipartisan coalition to introduce a pair of resolutions designed to counter Chinese influence in South America and internationally.\n\nThe first resolution aims to bolster support and grow the strength of the US dollar as the world\u2019s reserve currency. It is co-sponsored by Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).\n\nThe resolution expresses:\n\nThe United States must prioritize safeguarding the U.S. dollar\u2019s status as the world\u2019s reserve currency and maintain its influential role in the global financial system.\n\nThe actions of the Chinese government, aimed at diminishing the U.S. dollar\u2019s reserve currency status, should be closely monitored and appropriate countermeasures must be taken.\n\nThe U.S. should focus on strengthening economic ties with regions like South America as an alternative to Chinese investment and capital.\n\nCollaboration with allies is crucial for promoting economic policies that foster growth and stability in developing nations.\n\nThe second resolution denounces efforts by the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC) to exert malign influence in Latin America. It is co-sponsored by Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Peter Welch (D-VT).\n\nThe resolution resolves that the Senate:\n\nNotes the importance of continuing to develop and establish bilateral trade agreements in Latin America.\n\nUrges additional U.S. investment and foreign assistance in Latin America.\n\nExpresses gratitude for those countries in the Western Hemisphere that continue to recognize and support Taiwan.\n\nCondemns efforts by state-owned Chinese media to conduct information operations in Latin America.\n\nSupports transparent bidding processes for telecommunication projects in Latin America.\n\nSenator Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cAs we traveled to South America on a bipartisan CODEL earlier this year, it became crystal clear that China\u2019s influence in the region is growing and undermining our national interest. It must be the policy of the U.S. government to counter this influence, maintain the dominance of the dollar, and keep our nation as the go-to resource for trade and resources in South America.\u201d\n\nSenator Shaheen said:\n\n\u201cTo better counter China\u2019s attempts to disrupt international norms and spread its malign influence, including by engaging in coercive economic practices that stymie economic growth and democratic governance, we must work to deepen our economic and diplomatic ties with our Allies and partners in Latin America and around the world. These bipartisan resolutions would make clear that the United States can and must make additional economic, security and political investments to remain the partner of choice internationally.\u201d\n\nSenator Rubio said:\n\n\u201cAs China continues to make inroads globally, this administration\u2019s negligence draws countries to our nation\u2019s adversaries. This resolution underscores the need for the U.S. to support the dollar and provide real alternatives to China\u2019s Belt and Road projects.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-demand-un-designate-hamas-a-terrorist-organization-and-impose-sanctions", "Tillis, Colleagues Demand UN Designate Hamas a Terrorist Organization and Impose Sanctions", "2023-11-14", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to the United Nations (UN) urging them to designate Iranian-backed Hamas as a terrorist organization following the brutal terrorist attacks on Israel since October 7 with the intent to eradicate Israel and Jews in Israel.\n\n\u201cWe write with our utmost concern regarding the recent terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas and other terrorist organizations in the region. We commend your unequivocal condemnation of Hamas\u2019 terrorism and your support for Israel\u2019s right to defend its people. Recent events have demonstrated that Hamas\u2019 actions, tactics, and stated goals are in many ways indistinguishable from Al Qaeda, ISIS, and other terrorist organizations the United Nations (UN) has sanctioned. Therefore, we write to urge you to bring a resolution to the UN Security Council recognizing and imposing sanctions on Hamas as a terrorist organization,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cAs you know, on October 7, 2023, thousands of Hamas terrorists launched attacks, including on civilian communities, in southern Israel, brutally murdering 1,400 innocent people and wounding 4,500 others. Additionally, Hamas kidnapped over 240 men, women, and children \u2013 ranging from infants to Holocaust survivors. Hamas terrorists have committed and continue to commit abhorrent attacks that not only impact Israelis but also directly impact Americans citizens, with at least 32 Americans killed and countless more held in captive as a result of the terrorist attack on October 7. In fact, Hamas hostages come from 25 countries around the world. Hamas\u2019 reign of terror is not just an Israeli problem, but one that impacts us all,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cWe are also concerned that a lack of UN sanctions enables Hamas to divert humanitarian aid for malicious intent, which deprives innocent Palestinian civilians of crucial assistance while simultaneously strengthening offensive capabilities used to attack Israel. Hamas continues to divert aid meant for civilians in order to fund its operations by:\n\nImposing \"taxes\" on humanitarian consignments at border checkpoints;\n\nSeizing a segment of donated goods intended for Palestinian civilians and later selling them illicitly for financial gain;\n\nSeizing donated supplies \u2013 as Hamas did on October 16, 2023, when they took fuel meant for Gazan hospitals from a United Nations Relief and Works Agency site; and\n\nDismantling and repurposing humanitarian facilities, like water and sewage components, to create rockets and missiles, some of which misfire and land in Gaza, causing Palestinian civilian casualties and posing threats to aid workers.\n\nWe therefore request you bring forward a UN resolution to recognize and sanction Hamas as a terrorist organization. Thank you for your consideration, and we look forward to your timely response,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-introduce-legislation-to-combat-trafficking-and-exploitation-of-migrant-minors", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Combat Trafficking and Exploitation of Migrant Minors", "2023-11-14", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Preventing the Recycling of Immigrants is Necessary for Trafficking Suspension (PRINTS) Act, aimed at combatting child trafficking and exploitation by giving U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) the authority to fingerprint non-citizens under the age of 14.\n\n\u201cThere is a serious humanitarian crisis at our Southern border as cartels, coyotes, and other bad actors are exploiting innocent children to cross our border,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis legislation is a commonsense, humane reform to help prevent innocent children from being trafficked, exploited, and abused.\u201d\n\nSpecifically, the PRINTS Act:\n\nGives CBP the authority to fingerprint non-citizens under the age of 14 in order to combat trafficking and exploitation;\n\nRequires the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to publicly report the number of apprehensions in a given month involving child traffickers who falsely claimed that an accompanying child was a relative;\n\nRequires DHS to submit an annual report to Congress identifying the number of minors who were fingerprinted pursuant to this Act;\n\nRemoves the Attorney General\u2019s authority to waive fingerprinting requirements for those illegally crossing the southern border; and\n\nCriminalizes child recycling\n\nBackground:\n\n1 in every 3 human trafficking victims is a child. In 2019, ICE identified 600 children who were \u201crecycled,\u201d with one child being brought across the border as many as eight different times. Recent reports indicate that the Department of Health and Human Services has lost track of over 85,000 children released to sponsors, subjecting these children to exploitation, abuse, and forced labor. Despite these statistics, current DHS regulation and federal law prohibit Border Patrol agents from fingerprinting children under the age of 14.\n\nText of the bill can be found HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/senate-advances-tillis-proposals-to-improve-mental-health-care-lower-drug-costs-and-extend-essential-medicaid-and-medicare-programs", "Senate Advances Tillis Proposals To Improve Mental Health Care, Lower Drug Costs and Extend Essential Medicaid and Medicare Programs", "2023-11-13", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis applauded the Senate Finance Committee\u2019s recent unanimous vote in support of the Better Mental Health Care, Lower Drug Cost and Extenders Act. The legislation includes many of Senator Tillis\u2019 policy priorities and proposals, including expanding mental health care and substance use disorder services under Medicaid and Medicare, reducing prescription drug costs for seniors at the pharmacy counter, extending essential Medicaid and Medicare provisions that will expire this year, and increasing Medicare payments to support physicians and other providers.\n\nWATCH SENATOR TILLIS\u2019 REMARKS HERE.\n\n\u201cThis bipartisan legislation will provide savings to consumers, ensure access to critical mental health services, and increase accountability for federal health programs,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI am proud this legislation includes a number of my priorities aimed at improving health care for North Carolinians, and I look forward to supporting it when it comes before the full Senate for a vote.\u201d\n\nSpecifically, the Better Mental Health Care, Lower Drug Cost and Extenders Act:\n\nRequires enhanced and accurate lists of Medicare Advantage plans and verification of provider directory information at least every 90 days through the REAL Health Providers Act introduced by Senator Tillis;\n\nImproves access to mental health service for Medicare beneficiaries;\n\nProtects seniors from excessive cost-sharing for certain medicines by requiring post-deductible enrollee coinsurance for certain covered Part D drugs to be based on net prices rather than negotiated prices, based on Senator Tillis\u2019 Share the Savings with Seniors Act;\n\nSupports states in providing mental health and substance use care for children and youth;\n\nDelays Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) payment reductions under the Medicaid Program. This provision delays DSH payment cuts for one year, providing relief for hospitals that treat large numbers of low-income Medicaid patients;\n\nIncreases support for physicians and other professionals adjusting to Medicare payment changes by replacing the statutory increase of 1.25% for Medicare physician fee schedule services furnished in 2024 with 2.50% for that year;\n\nAverts cuts to clinical laboratory reimbursement by delaying for one year the reductions in the Medicare clinical laboratory fee schedule (CLFS).\n\nRecent Finance Committee health care efforts have drawn support from a strong coalition of organizations, including the Alliance for Transparent and Affordable Prescriptions; the Alliance of Community Health Plans; the Arthritis Foundation; the Coalition of State Rheumatological Organizations; the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation; the National Community Pharmacists Association; the National Consumers League; and a large coalition of patient groups. This legislation is supported by the American Association of Senior Citizens; American College of Physicians; American Hospital Association; American Pharmacists Association; American Psychiatric Association; Bipartisan Policy Center; CIVICA; Food Industry Association; Leukemia & Lymphoma Society; National Association of Manufacturers; National Association of Specialty Pharmacy; National Council for Mental Wellbeing; and a large coalition of groups.\n\nA section-by-section analysis of the bill can be found HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-op-ed-here-s-why-those-demanding-israeli-cease-fire-are-either-naive-or-hateful", "Tillis Op-Ed: Here\u2019s why those demanding Israeli cease-fire are either \u2018naive\u2019 or \u2018hateful\u2019", "2023-11-13", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Fox News published an op-ed by Senator Thom Tillis calling out radical antisemitism and urging Americans to unite in their support for Israel following the horrific attacks by Hamas against innocent Israelis on October 7th.\n\nRead the full op-ed HERE.\n\nTillis on why a cease-fire would not work:\n\n\u201cMost Americans calling for a cease-fire are sincere in not wanting to see more innocent civilians lose their lives. This is a fair position; however, it is not a realistic one, especially if the end goal is to truly save lives and end the cycle of violence in the Middle East. The only way a cease-fire could ever work is if Hamas safely returns every single hostage, surrenders and surrenders its arsenal of weapons. Hamas has made it clear that is not going to happen. Simply put, you cannot have a cease-fire with a terrorist organization like Hamas. Nothing they say or do can be trusted.\u201d\n\nTillis on antisemitism motivating some Americans' opposition to Israel:\n\n\u201cWhen it comes to the other group of Americans who are demanding a cease-fire from a place of hate, this kind of logic doesn\u2019t apply. They don\u2019t care about Israeli lives or Jewish lives. Forget about believing that Israel doesn\u2019t have a right to defend itself \u2013 they don\u2019t even believe Israel has a right to exist....Moving forward, we cannot allow these radical voices to succeed in their attempt to normalize antisemitism in America.\u201d\n\nTillis on supporting Israel and fighting antisemitism:\n\n\u201cThe only two nations in recent history that have consistently welcomed Jews and provided them with a safe home are Israel and the United States. The only way that can be preserved is by destroying Hamas and rooting out antisemitism here at home. Throughout history, we have seen the tragic consequences of what happens when antisemitism is allowed to metastasize. It can never happen again.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/09/budd-lays-out-foreign-policy-principles-in-new-op-ed/", "Budd Lays Out Foreign Policy Principles in New Op-Ed", "2023-11-09", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has written an opinion piece for FoxNews.com laying out his vision for foreign policy and how the United States should confront the forces of evil now on the march around the world.\n\nHighlights:\n\n\u201cThe Biden administration\u2019s original sin is its failure to recognize that for America to be a strong nation, we must first be strong at home.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cGiven this dismal record at home, it\u2019s no wonder why some Americans balk at the billions in aid sent overseas.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cWe can both exert global leadership and put America first. These responsibilities should not be in conflict. To pursue the misguided course of isolationism and end support to allies like Israel, Ukraine, and others, would be yet another sign of weakness at a time when forces of evil like China, Russia, and Iran already smell blood.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cFirst and foremost, we must secure our border.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cWe must rebuild the arsenal of democracy and make once in a generation investments in our industrial base.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cWhen we provide military aid to other nations, funding should bolster American manufacturing and modernize our military first.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cIn its current form, the Biden aid for Gaza is effectively a blank check for Hamas.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cFurther aid to Ukraine should come with preconditions for the Biden Administration. No more hesitation or half measures. Level with the American people, articulate a clear strategy for forcing Putin to the negotiating table on terms most favorable to Ukraine, and commit to transparent accountability measures so that the American people can trust that their hard-earned tax dollars are not being wasted.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cDeterring China is and should be our top priority, and the White House\u2019s package is lacking when it comes to security in the Indo-Pacific.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cIt is strength that deters aggression, and weakness that provokes it. China, Russia, and Iran are watching our every move. The world is safer when America leads from a place of strength, both economically as well as militarily.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\nRead the full op-ed here or below:\n\nThe Biden administration\u2019s original sin of America on the world stage\n\nBy Sen. Ted Budd\n\nPublished November 9, 2023 8:00am EST\n\nThe world is tearing at the seams. Forces of evil and instability are on the march around the globe. But in Washington, President Biden has lacked the strength and focus necessary to protect our homeland and deter our adversaries abroad.\n\nIn the Middle East, Hamas massacred more than 1,400 Israelis and 33 Americans. Iran, Hamas\u2019 primary benefactor and the world\u2019s leading state sponsor of terrorism, continues to finance, provide training for, and authorize attacks against U.S. forces across the region.\n\nIn Europe, Russia continues its brutality against Ukraine and is fomenting conflict in the Balkans and Caucasia, further threatening European peace and stability.\n\nMeanwhile, China, the single greatest threat to U.S. national security, is rapidly expanding its military, threatening our allies and partners, and stealing billions in Americans\u2019 intellectual property.\n\nOur homeland is already facing a critical security situation at the southern border. Now, the global security situation is swiftly reaching a tipping point that could draw the United States directly into conflict \u2013 a situation that no American wants.\n\nTo avoid this nightmare scenario, America needs strong leadership, strategic investments, and a clearly stated set of goals and principles. President Biden has failed on each of these pillars.\n\nThe Biden administration\u2019s original sin is its failure to recognize that for America to be a strong nation, we must first be strong at home. COVID exposed brittle supply chains, the challenge from China, and emphasized the need for a renewal of American manufacturing. Rates of violent crime are up across the country. Meanwhile, the southern border is in chaos and deadly drugs like fentanyl took over 100,000 American lives just last year. Prices for groceries, gas, and electricity are too high, our students\u2019 test scores are plummeting, and overregulation is stifling America\u2019s entrepreneurial spirit.\n\nGiven this dismal record at home, it\u2019s no wonder why some Americans balk at the billions in aid sent overseas. But rebuilding America and assisting allies and partners should not be a zero-sum game. We can both exert global leadership and put America first. These responsibilities should not be in conflict. To pursue the misguided course of isolationism and end support to allies like Israel, Ukraine, and others, would be yet another sign of weakness at a time when forces of evil like China, Russia, and Iran already smell blood.\n\nInstead, Republicans have an opportunity to right the ship in both domestic and foreign policy. That starts by rekindling the GOP mantle as the party of a strong national defense. In order to do so, we must rebuild the arsenal of democracy and make once in a generation investments in our industrial base.\n\nThe way to accomplish this goal is by engaging in a full and honest debate on each conflict before us. It is deeply troubling that this is not how the Biden White House has handled its $106 billion emergency national security funding request. The request intertwined Israel, Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific, and the southern border into one large package, robbing the American people and their representatives of the chance to vote on these issues independently.\n\nWhen one does evaluate the Biden funding request, the goals are worthy, but the details are flawed.\n\nFirst and foremost, we must secure our border. Although the Biden package requests funding to hire an additional 1,300 border patrol agents, it also includes dangerous provisions on \u201cexpansion of lawful pathways\u201d and \u201csupport for eligible arrivals.\u201d This is classic D.C. doublespeak for giving Americans\u2019 hard-earned taxpayer dollars to sanctuary cities to house illegal aliens. This would make the current border crisis that much worse.\n\nMoving abroad, when we provide military aid to other nations, funding should bolster American manufacturing and modernize our military first. This helps create new and higher paying jobs for American workers and allows our leaders the flexibility to maintain peace and security.\n\nThere is significant overlap when it comes to the type of weapons that are relevant to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. With the right focus and investment, we can support all three, though it will require tough conversations about tradeoffs until our industrial base can support at scale.\n\nWhen it comes to Israel, we must stand with one of our closest allies in their time of need by providing immediate support including replenishment of interceptors for their Iron Dome and David\u2019s Sling as well as access to ammunition stockpiles originally placed in Israel just for such occasions.\n\nHowever, in its current form, the Biden aid for Gaza is effectively a blank check for Hamas. We must never forget that these are the very terrorists who massacred Israeli and American citizens and currently hold innocent citizens of 33 countries, including Americans, hostage. I simply do not believe that we should give a single penny of aid to Gaza until our hostages are home and safe, and Hamas is no longer their de-facto government.\n\nFurther aid to Ukraine should come with preconditions for the Biden Administration. No more hesitation or half measures. Level with the American people, articulate a clear strategy for forcing Putin to the negotiating table on terms most favorable to Ukraine, and commit to transparent accountability measures so that the American people can trust that their hard-earned tax dollars are not being wasted.\n\nI understand the concerns of some who have argued that further aid to Ukraine comes at the expense of our ability to arm Taiwan and deter China. There is no doubt that the economic impacts of Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine would be far outweighed by a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Deterring China is and should be our top priority, and the White House\u2019s package is lacking when it comes to security in the Indo-Pacific.\n\nAt the end of the day, it is strength that deters aggression, and weakness that provokes it. China, Russia, and Iran are watching our every move. The world is safer when America leads from a place of strength, both economically as well as militarily.\n\nDecline is a choice and now is the time for choosing. As global threats increase, I choose to support investment in America, and help our allies and partners in ways that make sense for them, but more importantly, for us. That means providing lethal aid to Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan enabled by direct investment in American manufacturing and that will simultaneously result in a more modern U.S. military. That\u2019s the sort of strength, wisdom, and leadership that America needs \u2013 and currently lacks.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-warn-new-permitting-rule-endangers-america-s-mineral-needs-adds-red-tape", "Tillis, Colleagues Warn New Permitting Rule Endangers America\u2019s Mineral Needs, Adds Red Tape", "2023-11-08", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to the executive director of the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (FPISC) demanding the council rescind its proposal to limit the type of mining projects eligible for the improved permitting process established under Title 41 of the Fixing America\u2019s Surface Transportation Act (FAST-41).\n\nIn their letter, the senators warned the proposed rule will hinder mining permitting predictability and efficiency, threaten America\u2019s manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, and national security needs, and further empower China\u2019s near-monopoly on the global supply of critical minerals.\n\n\u201cWe write to express our concerns regarding the proposed rule, \u2018Revising Scope of the Mining Sector of Projects That Are Eligible for Coverage Under Title 41 of the Fixing America\u2019s Surface Transportation Act.\u2019 The mining of all minerals is essential to the development of domestic infrastructure, and accordingly, it is imperative the FPISC ensure that all mining projects \u2013 for all minerals \u2013 are equally considered \u2018covered projects\u2019 for the purposes of FAST-41. Indeed, even the U.S. Department of the Interior\u2019s own \u2018Interagency Working Group on Mining Laws, Regulations, and Permitting\u2019 did not suggest this change is needed in a report it recently released regarding recommendations to reform domestic mining policies,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cThe nation needs these investments to match the increasing mineral demand necessary to support budding technologies, bolster domestic supply chains, and strengthen our nation's national defense to reduce our reliance on minerals from our geopolitical adversaries. While the global demand for critical minerals \u2018would require six times more mineral inputs in 2040 than today,\u2019 it should not be lost on FPISC the amount of other mined materials, such as crushed stone and gravel that are needed for domestic infrastructure,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cThank you for your attention to this matter. We urge FPISC to abandon this proposal and use its existing authority to actively support all mining infrastructure projects to unleash America's national supply chains and processing capabilities. We look forward to a response from you no later than November 30,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/07/budd-introduces-bill-to-empower-individuals-to-control-their-own-digital-assets/", "Budd Introduces Bill to Empower Individuals to Control Their Own Digital Assets", "2023-11-07", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has introduced the Keep Your Coins Act, which would protect an individual\u2019s right to conduct transactions with cryptocurrency assets without the need to utilize a third-party intermediary.\n\nIn the wake of the collapse of FTX, the Keep Your Coins Act would allow customers to maintain custody of their digital assets in self-hosted wallets and avoid third party risks. The bill would prohibit any federal agency from proposing a rule that would impair a person\u2019s ability to act as a self-custodian of digital assets.\n\nThe House companion is led by Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH).\n\nThe legislative text of the bill is HERE.\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cAs consumers face new challenges and risks associated with the use of digital currencies, we should be empowering individuals to maintain control over their own digital assets. This approach will foster financial freedom and a more decentralized cryptocurrency ecosystem.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/07/budd-joins-bipartisan-coalition-pushing-to-upgrade-military-barracks/", "Budd Joins Bipartisan Coalition Pushing to Upgrade Military Barracks", "2023-11-07", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has joined a coalition letter to the Department of Defense (DOD) urging the department to increase funding requests to upgrade barracks on military bases across the country.\n\nThe letter was also signed by: Senators Jon Ossoff (D-GA), John Cornyn (R-TX), Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Ted Cruz (R-TX).\n\nThe full text of the letter is below:\n\nWe write to express our frustration regarding atrocious and unacceptable conditions in barracks facilities across the armed forces.\n\nAs I am sure you are aware, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently published a report entitled \u201cMilitary Barracks: Poor Living Conditions Undermine Quality of Life and Readiness.\u201d The report found that \u201cliving conditions in some military barracks may pose potentially serious risks to the physical and mental health of service members, as well as their safety.\u201d The reports further noted that in one facility: \u201cFormer residents of this barracks told us they experienced months of hot water interruptions and routinely dealt with clogged showers, broken door locks, broken elevators, and apparent mold growth.\u201d\n\nThe GAO report specifically identified the lack of reliable information about barracks conditions, and the level of funding committed to barracks facilities sustainment, restoration, and modernization (FSRM), as key areas of concern. A few key examples from the report:\n\n\u201cDOD has not tracked complete or reliable information on how much Operations and Maintenance (O&M) or Military Construction (MILCON) it has used to improve barracks conditions or how much would be needed to meet minimum condition standards.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen we asked the military services to provide information on the amount of FSRM funding obligated for barracks, none was able to provide us complete data.\u201d\n\nThese findings call into question the reliability of armed service budget requests for facilities sustainment, restoration, and modernization, which already consistently fall below assessed requirements. Therefore, we ask for your commitment to the following:\n\nThe fiscal year 2025 budget request for each of the armed services will reflect 100% of assessed barracks sustainment, restoration, and modernization requirements.\n\nThe fiscal year 2025 budget request for each of the armed services will specify the amount of facilities sustainment, restoration, and modernization funding allocated to barracks facilities.\n\nThese barracks sustainment, restoration, and modernization requirements will be assessed using a consistent methodology across each service.\n\nThe fiscal year 2025 budget request will include a comprehensive and installation-specific identification of military construction (MILCON) requirements, regardless of whether these requirements are slated for funding in fiscal year 2025.\n\nDepartment of Defense personnel will brief our staffs on Department efforts to address barracks maintenance, repair, modernization, and construction requirements.\n\nAt a time when the Department of Defense is rightly working to address serious recruitment and retention issues, reports of poor living conditions serve only to dissuade qualified Americans from considering military service. Moreover, those who have already answered the call to serve deserve a standard of living commensurate with the most modern and capable fighting force in the world. Anything less represents a failure to uphold the U.S. government\u2019s commitments and endangers military readiness.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/senate-passes-tillis-legislation-to-reduce-rape-kit-backlog", "Senate Passes Tillis Legislation to Reduce Rape Kit Backlog", "2023-11-07", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Last week, the U.S. Senate passed legislation co-sponsored by Senator Thom Tillis to reauthorize the Debbie Smith Act, which would provide state and local law enforcement agencies with resources to complete forensic analyses of crime scenes and untested rape kits.\n\n\u201cNorth Carolina has thousands of untested rape kits, and victims of these heinous crimes deserve justice,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cCongress should do everything we can to put the perpetrators behind bars. I am proud the Debbie Smith Act passed the Senate and look forward to quick passage in the House to ensure our law enforcement agencies have the resources they need.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Debbie Smith Act was originally signed into law in 2004 to provide local and state crime laboratories resources to end the backlog of untested DNA evidence from unsolved crimes, analyze DNA samples, and increase the capacity to process DNA in order to guard against future backlogs. Since it became law, more than 860,000 DNA cases have been processed.\n\nIn addition to crime scene evidence, Debbie Smith funds are also utilized to process offender DNA samples to ensure evidence from unsolved crimes can be matched against a database of known offenders, similar to the criminal fingerprint databases.\n\nThis legislation is endorsed by Debbie Smith, the Fraternal Order of Police, Major Cities Chiefs, Major County Sheriffs of America, National District Attorneys Association, Consortium of Forensic Science Organizations, Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), and Joyful Heart Foundation.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-urge-biden-administration-to-re-designate-iran-backed-houthis-as-a-foreign-terrorist-organization", "Tillis, Colleagues Urge Biden Administration to Re-Designate Iran-Backed Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization", "2023-11-07", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging the State Department to re-designate Iran-backed Ansarallah, also known as the Houthis, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in the wake of the group\u2019s repeated brazen attacks against Israel.\n\nThe Trump Administration designated the Houthis as an FTO in January 2021, however the Biden Administration reversed the designation in February 2021, citing humanitarian concerns. Following years of Iranian support, the Houthis have one of the most sophisticated arsenals of ballistic missiles and drones among Iran\u2019s allies and proxies, which they have used to target U.S. partners and interests.\n\n\u201cRe-designating the Houthis as an FTO would send a powerful message that the United States views this group as a clear threat to our Allies and partners and to regional stability in the Middle East. Since Hamas\u2019s savage terrorist attacks on Israel on October 7, the Houthis have launched three attacks against the Jewish state and promised to carry out more strikes \u2018until the Israeli aggression stops,\u2019\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cWhile the Houthi movement\u2019s Iranian backers chant \u2018Death to America, Death to Israel,\u2019 its own doctrine is replete with virulent anti-Semitism and calls for genocide, including its own chant of \u2018Death to America, Death to Israel, Damn the Jews.\u2019 The Houthi\u2019s alliance with Iran has allowed the IRGC to apply sustained military pressure against Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Between 2015 and 2022, the Houthis carried out nearly 1,000 missile attacks and 350 drone strikes against cities and key infrastructure inside Saudi Arabia alone, including against oil facilities, airports, and military sites,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cDespite being nearly 1,400 miles away from Israel, the Houthis have made a deliberate choice to engage in Iran-enabled terrorism against the United States\u2019 partners and allies. Therefore, we urge you to re-designate the group an FTO immediately,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-announces-10-9-million-for-improvements-to-port-of-wilmington", "Tillis Announces $10.9 Million for Improvements to Port of Wilmington", "2023-11-06", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis announced a $10.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for improvements to the Port of Wilmington. All funding comes directly from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which Senator Tillis helped negotiate, write, and pass into law.\n\nIn total, the Wilmington region (Brunswick, New Hanover, Columbus, Bladen, Pender Counties) has already been awarded more than $190 million total from the bipartisan legislation. For a list of specific BIL infrastructure grants, click HERE.\n\nThe project will construct 4,000 feet of elevated roadway access to the general cargo terminal, relocate the North Gate security checkpoint, improve existing at-grade railroad crossings, construct a truck queuing area, and a new badging office to include EV charging infrastructure. The project also includes the development of a Terminal Resiliency Plan and a Terminal Emissions Reduction Plan.\n\n\u201cThe Port of Wilmington plays an important role in transporting goods throughout North Carolina and is an economic hub in the Wilmington area,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI have visited the Port of Wilmington multiple times, and understand how crucial it is to continue investing in the port and improving it with updated technology. I\u2019m proud to have worked on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that will deliver more than $10.9 million to make these critical improvements to the port.\u201d\n\nRead more about the grant award HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-bipartisan-amendment-to-expand-veterans-access-to-breast-cancer-screenings-passes-u-s-senate", "Tillis\u2019 Bipartisan Amendment to Expand Veterans\u2019 Access to Breast Cancer Screenings Passes U.S. Senate", "2023-11-06", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Last week, the U.S. Senate passed Senator Thom Tillis\u2019 bipartisan amendment to expand access to breast cancer screenings for veterans.\n\n\u201cEarly detection of breast cancer through regular screenings plays a critical role in saving lives,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI\u2019m proud to cosponsor this important amendment on behalf of our female veterans.\u201d\n\nThe bipartisan amendment appropriates funding to the VA\u2019s Office of Women\u2019s Health to expand access to mobile mammography units, improve advanced mammography equipment, and enhance outreach services to better publicize mammography services. According to the National Library of Medicine, female veterans were nearly three times more likely to develop invasive breast cancer than the rest of the population.\n\nLast week, the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations bill passed the Senate, which included Senator Tillis\u2019 bipartisan amendment.\n\nFull text of the amendment can be found HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-co-introduces-bill-to-ensure-access-to-mental-health-care-for-foster-care-children", "Tillis Co-Introduces Bill to Ensure Access to Mental Health Care for Foster Care Children", "2023-11-06", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) recently introduced the Ensuring Medicaid Continuity for Children in Foster Care Act to remove the federal prohibition on Medicaid funding going to certain facilities that provide foster children with mental and substance use care.\n\n\u201cFoster care provides a safe and stable environment for children, many of whom are recovering from traumatic events,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cHowever, children in foster care who require critically important support and services oftentimes face unnecessary barriers in receiving care. This legislation will ensure these children can receive the necessary behavioral and mental health services when they need it and where they need it. Investing in the mental health and well-being of children in foster care will positively impact lives and improve outcomes for the next generation, and I\u2019m glad to work with Senator Rubio to achieve these goals.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Family First Prevention Services Act of 2018 (FFPSA) created a federal category of residential settings calledQualified Residential Treatment Programs (QRTPs). These programs were designed to provide care for children in foster care with assessed emotional or behavioral needs in a residential setting.\n\nThe health care needs of children in foster care are covered by Medicaid. Today, however, QRTPs may not receive Medicaid financing because of the Institutions for Mental Disease (IMD) exclusion, a law that prohibits Medicaid payments to a hospital, nursing facility, or other institution with more than 16 beds that primarily provides care for people with mental health conditions.\n\nThe Ensuring Medicaid Continuity for Children in Foster Care Act would provide a narrow exemption from the IMD exclusion to ensure children in foster care receiving care in QRTPs can continue to receive care provided in these settings without losing their federal Medicaid coverage.\n\nText of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/03/budd-sponsors-bill-requiring-dhs-to-notify-localities-on-illegal-alien-transfers/", "Budd Sponsors Bill Requiring DHS to Notify Localities on Illegal Alien Transfers", "2023-11-03", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has co-sponsored the National Oversight of Transportation Immigrants to Communities is Essential (NOTICE Act).\n\nThe bill would require federal agencies to notify states and localities when an agency uses taxpayer dollars to transport migrants within 100 miles of their jurisdictions.\n\nThe notification must include the following information about the transported alien:\n\nHis or her legal name, country of origin, age, and sex.\n\nAny crimes for which the alien has been convicted.\n\nAny criminal gang with which such alien is or has been affiliated.\n\nThe types of security screenings that have been performed with respect to such aliens.\n\nThe bill was originally introduced by Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS).\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cThe Biden administration\u2019s dangerous practice of catch and release has morphed into a relocation program to place illegal immigrants all over the country without telling local or state officials. This is unacceptable, and that\u2019s why I support Senator Marshall\u2019s legislation to force the Biden administration to notify states and localities when they transport illegal migrants into their jurisdiction and to provide information on any crimes for which they have been convicted.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-reintroduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-expand-telehealth-treatment-for-opioid-use-disorder", "Tillis, Colleagues Reintroduce Bipartisan Legislation to Expand Telehealth Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder", "2023-11-03", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently reintroduced the bipartisan Telehealth Response for E-prescribing Addiction Therapy Services (TREATS) Act, legislation to increase access to telehealth services for opioid use disorder. The bill will waive regulatory restrictions for accessing care, preserving flexibilities put in place to expand access and save lives during the pandemic.\n\n\u201cThe opioid epidemic is one of the most pressing public health emergencies of our time,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cDuring the pandemic, temporary flexibilities allowed life-saving opioid use disorder (OUD) treatments, such as buprenorphine, to be prescribed via telehealth. This bipartisan legislation will permanently allow health care providers to prescribe OUD treatments via telehealth as appropriate, and result in expanded access to treatments that are proven to be effective in treating substance use disorders. As the United States continues to experience an unacceptable number of opioid overdose deaths, we must pursue policies that reduce barriers and increase access to care, and I'm proud to work with my colleagues on the TREATS Act, which does exactly that.\u201d\n\nOverdose deaths involving opioids rose to a peak of nearly 83,000 Americans in 2022. Despite strong evidence that medication is the most effective treatment for opioid use disorder, only one in five Americans with opioid addiction receive medication treatment that could help them quit and stay in recovery.\n\nBackground:\n\nDuring the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Department of Health and Human Services temporarily removed the in-person exam requirement for prescribing medication via telemedicine for people with opioid use disorder. Telehealth flexibilities helped a broad range of patients \u2013 including veterans, those living in rural areas, people experiencing homelessness, individuals in the criminal justice system, and racial and ethnic minorities \u2013 access treatment. The flexibilities are set to expire on December 31, 2024.\n\nThe TREATS Act would make the changes permanent, allowing providers to waive the in-person visit requirement and instead use audio-only or audio-visual telehealth technology.\n\nThe American Medical Association, American Society for Addiction Medicine, American Telemedicine Association, Faces and Voices of Recovery, Kennedy Forum, National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, National Rural Health Association, National Safety Council, National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers, R Street Institute, and The Pew Charitable Trusts endorsed the senators' legislation.\n\n\"The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) applauds the bipartisan introduction of the TREATS Act in the United States Senate. ASAM is deeply committed to ensuring every person with a substance use disorder has access to high-quality, full-spectrum addiction care and to closing the addiction treatment gap. This commitment includes supporting policies, like the TREATS Act, which optimize telehealth access and advance health equity in addiction medicine,\" said Brian Hurley, MD, MBA, FAPA, DFASAM, President of ASAM.\n\n\"The TREATS Act is a critical piece of legislation for sustaining and expanding access to medications for opioid use disorder (OUD) in rural communities, especially as nearly three-quarters of rural counties lack a buprenorphine provider, impeding access to lifesaving care. The National Rural Health Association applauds Senators Whitehouse and Murkowski for their efforts to extend public health emergency flexibilities and allow patients with OUD to access buprenorphine treatment remotely,\" said Alan Morgan, Chief Executive Officer, National Rural Health Association.\n\n\"Telehealth access to buprenorphine has transformed opioid use disorder treatment, as patients haven't had to take off work, find transportation or child care, or face the stigma that often accompanies in-person treatment. The TREATS Act will help more patients receive treatment by permanently allowing them to access this lifesaving medication remotely,\" said Brandee Izquierdo, director of behavioral health programs for The Pew Charitable Trusts.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/02/budd-sponsors-bill-to-help-families-of-victims-killed-by-illegal-aliens/", "Budd Sponsors Bill to Help Families of Victims Killed by Illegal Aliens", "2023-11-02", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has co-sponsored the Justice for Angels Families Act.\n\nThe bill would amend the Crime Victims Fund to expand coverage for Angel Families, who are immediate relatives of victims of homicide by an illegal immigrant, including drunk driving accidents.\n\nThis legislation would also reinstate and codify the Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement (VOICE) Office at the Department of Homeland Security, which was established by President Trump in 2017. The VOICE office helps victims and their families who have been impacted by crimes committed by illegal immigrants.\n\nThe bill was originally introduced by Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS).\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cThe pain and heartbreak of Angel Families is something that no one should have to face. Tragedies like these should not be allowed to happen. That\u2019s why I support the Justice for Angel Families Act, which not only expands funds to the families of the victims who were killed by illegal immigrants, but it reinstates the Trump administration\u2019s initiative to track and report on crimes committed by individuals who should not be in our country in the first place.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bill-forcing-the-biden-administration-to-make-catch-and-release-data-public", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bill Forcing the Biden Administration to Make Catch-and-Release Data Public", "2023-11-02", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues introduced the Southern Border Transparency Act, which would require the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to accurately report how it is handling migrants encountered at the border. This legislation will ensure the American people have a full accounting of the number of migrants being released into the United States by the Biden Administration along with information detailing where they are coming from.\n\n\u201cThe Biden Administration refuses to offer serious solutions to the crisis unfolding at our Southern border, and would prefer to keep the American people in the dark about its failures,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI am proud to cosponsor this legislation, which will require real transparency about the Biden Administration\u2019s failure to stop the flow of illegal immigration at our Southern border.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Biden Administration\u2019s strategy for handling the influx of migrants at the border has been to abuse and misuse immigration law to funnel migrants into so-called \u201cparole\u201d programs. This includes the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan parole program, an expanded Central American Minors program that now includes adults, as well as the likely widespread use of parole at Ports of Entry (POEs). These migrants are eligible for work authorization, and there is limited visibility into whether they ultimately depart the United States.\n\nCurrently, only limited public data is available on the total number of people released into the U.S. under these programs, whether they are even making asylum claims before they are released, what screenings are taking place, or whether these migrants ever depart the United States. The Southern Border Transparency Act would require DHS to fully report on how it is handling migrants encountered at the border, including:\n\nThe number of migrants paroled at each POE and in each Border Patrol sector;\n\nThe number of migrants apprehended at each POE and in each Border Patrol sector and how many were granted voluntary departure, placed into expedited removal, or simply released into the interior;\n\nThe number of petitions for parole received and granted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS); and\n\nThe total number of migrants paroled into the United States each fiscal year, whether they are granted work authorization, and whether they ultimately depart the United States when their parole expires.\n\nEarlier this year, the Biden Administration acted without Congress\u2019 consent to create programs that allow for hundreds of thousands of migrants to be paroled and released into the United States annually. One will enable migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to remain in the U.S. for two years legally and offers work authorizations to up to 360,000 people a year.\n\nThese practices result in decreased apprehensions but do not decrease the number of migrants with unrealistic asylum claims who are entering and remaining in the United States. Separately, the Administration is releasing an unknown number of individuals under the label of \u201chumanitarian release,\u201d although it is unclear who qualifies. Although some migrants are placed into expedited removal proceedings, most are released into the interior of the U.S. before DHS even determines whether they will make asylum claims, let alone whether those claims are credible.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/11/01/budd-colleagues-urge-sanders-to-hold-hearing-on-antisemitic-attacks-on-college-campuses/", "Budd, Colleagues Urge Sanders to Hold Hearing on Antisemitic Attacks on College Campuses", "2023-11-01", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has joined a coalition letter led by Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee ranking member Bill Cassidy (R-LA) urging HELP Committee Chair Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to hold a hearing to ensure the Biden administration is upholding its legal responsibility to protect Jewish students from anti-Semitic harassment and attacks on college campuses in the aftermath of the Hamas-led massacre against Israel on October 7th.\n\nThe letter was also signed by: Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Mike Braun (R-IN), Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), and Markwayne Mullin (R-OK).\n\nThe full text of the letter is below:\n\nIn the wake of the mass murder of Jewish civilians by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, there has been a disturbing rise in anti-Semitic incidents, including targeted harassment and violent attacks, directed at Jewish students on college campuses. As the Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, we urge you to hold a bipartisan hearing on ensuring safe learning environments for Jewish students, as required by the Civil Rights Act of 1964.\n\nIt is our duty to ensure federal officials are doing everything in their power to uphold the law and ensure students are not excluded from participation, denied the benefits of, or subject to discrimination at school based on race, color, or national origin. We need to engage in a direct discussion with Department of Education leaders Secretary Miguel Cardona and Assistant Secretary of Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon about the actions they are taking to address anti-Semitism on college campuses.\n\nThe terrorist attack of October 7 was the largest murder of Jewish people in one day since the Holocaust. It led to a noticeable rise in anti-Semitic activity, specifically on college campuses. Under your leadership, the Committee has quickly organized and held hearings on other topics related to recent events. This issue certainly demands the Committee\u2019s direct attention and engagement from the Senate-confirmed Department of Education officials we oversee.\n\nThe examples of anti-Semitism after Hamas\u2019 attack are startling. In the shadow of our nation\u2019s capital, swastikas were drawn on dorm room doors and in bathrooms where Jewish students live and in the parking lot at a high school where Jewish students study. In Philadelphia, a hateful arsonist set a Jewish student\u2019s dorm ablaze. During the nationwide \u201cDay of Resistance,\u201d groups of pro-Palestinian students on the University of California Los Angeles campus shouted \u201cintifada,\u201d celebrating the violent act of Hamas towards Israelis. At Columbia University, posters of Israelis taken hostage by Hamas were torn down by a vandal who was charged with a hate crime after allegedly attacking an Israeli student with a stick.\n\nFaculty at universities have also made concerning anti-Semitic acts. A Stanford professor directed Jewish students to stand in a corner and asked Jewish students to identify themselves. He stated that \u201conly six million\u201d Jewish people died in the Holocaust and \u201ccolonizers killed more than six million. Israel is a colonizer.\u201d A professor and student advisor at University of California Davis went as far as posting on social media that Zionist journalists and their children should be identified and murdered.\n\nThis hearing should be focused on the Department of Education\u2019s anti-Semitism campaign over the last four months, its recent announcement to expedite processing of discrimination complaints under Title VI, the impact these actions have had, and how the Office of Civil Rights is ensuring safe learning environments for students in light of recent events. A non-government panel could share what it is like to be a student on campus, egregious examples of incited violence, and what institutions of higher education are doing to support students and maintain safe learning environments.\n\nFormer President Barack Obama stated, \u201cThe state of Israel does not exist because of the Holocaust, but in the survival of a strong Jewish state of Israel the Holocaust will never happen again.\u201d The prospect of the destruction of the state of Israel and more murders based on anti-Semitism are real. Let us be proactive on a bipartisan basis as we seek to ensure the civil rights of Jewish students are upheld and a safe environment for all students is maintained.\n\nThank you for your consideration of this serious issue. We look forward to your response and our staffs stand ready to make this important bipartisan hearing happen.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/11/tillis-colleagues-urge-biden-administration-to-reverse-guidance-requiring-loans-for-illegal-immigrants", "Tillis, Colleagues Urge Biden Administration to Reverse Guidance Requiring Loans for Illegal Immigrants", "2023-11-01", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently penned a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Rohit Chopra urging them to reconsider their October 12 joint statement on lending discrimination against \u201cnoncitizen borrowers.\u201d\n\nThrough the statement, which dramatically upends decades of guidance from the CFPB and the Federal Reserve, theDepartment of Justice (DOJ) and CFPB aim to force American financial institutions to extend loans to illegal immigrants. This practice contradicts longstanding legal interpretations from federal regulators and could create situations where lenders are unable to recoup loan payments from deported illegal immigrants.\n\n\u201cWe write today to express our concerns regarding the October 12, 2023 joint statement by the CFPB and the DOJ warning financial institutions that the consideration of immigration status in loan applications may be a violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA),\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cWhile the CFPB and DOJ note that financial institutions are permitted to consider immigration status under the ECOA, they claim that unnecessary or overbroad reliance on immigration status \u2018may run afoul of the law,\u2019 and that all borrowers, regardless of immigration status, are protected from discrimination. Specifically, your agencies claim that if a creditor has a \u2018blanket policy\u2019 on immigration status, then they risk violating fair lending laws. The joint statement also suggests that as long as an applicant for credit has a good credit score and other credit qualifications, then his or her immigration status should not matter,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cWhile the CFPB and DOJ\u2019s joint statement conflicts with decades of immigration status-related guidance from the CFPB and the Fed, it also poses serious risks to financial stability\u2014 encouraging financial institutions to ignore critical dispositive factors in their calculation of risk. Additionally, the fact that your agencies moved forward with this guidance outside of the APA rulemaking process, and without any advanced communication or feedback from industry, raises even more concerns. As members of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, we urge you to retract your agencies\u2019 irresponsible joint statement and instead endorse risk-based lending practices that promote safety and soundness in the bank sector,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/31/budd-proposes-amendment-to-shut-down-bidens-election-takeover-executive-order/", "Budd Proposes Amendment to Shut Down Biden\u2019s Election Takeover Executive Order", "2023-10-31", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has proposed an amendment to the Senate Appropriations Minibus (H.R. 4366) to defund President Biden\u2019s Executive Order 14019, which would empower federal agencies to use taxpayer funds to implement or enter into agreements with partisan organizations that conduct voter mobilization activities.\n\nThis is the same Executive Order that is the subject of Senator Budd\u2019s Promoting Free and Fair Elections Act (S. 1398).\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cThe federal government should not be using official taxpayer resources to advance partisan politics. We need to defund this ethically and legally dubious scheme to further weaponize the federal bureaucracy. Federal agencies should not engage in electioneering on the taxpayers\u2019 dime.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nOn March 7, 2021, President Biden signed Executive Order 14019, titled \u201cPromoting Access to Voting.\u201d\n\nThe EO commands the head of every federal agency to submit to the President\u2019s Domestic Policy Advisor, a plan outlining the steps their agency will take to \u201cpromote voter registration and voter participation.\u201d\n\nThe EO mandates that all federal agencies support \u201capproved\u201d third-party organizations to provide voter registration services on federal agency premises located in states across the nation. Determining which third-party organizations will be approved, by whom, and based on what criteria is missing from the EO.\n\nOn January 19, 2022, Senator Budd and 35 of his colleagues wrote to the White House requesting copies of the strategic plans submitted under the EO. The White House never responded to the request and has refused to publicly disclose the plans.\n\nThe Promoting Free and Fair Elections Act:\n\nThe legislation prevents the Biden administration from using the power, resources, and reach of the federal executive branch, and federal offices located in states across the country, from engaging in voter registration and mobilization efforts designed to benefit Democrats.\n\nThe bill prohibits the actions ordered under President Biden\u2019s Executive Order (EO) 14019, titled \u201cPromoting Access to Voting,\u201d from being carried out until the agencies disclose to Congress how they intend to carry out these programs.\n\nThe bill prohibits soliciting or entering into an agreement with a third-party group to conduct voter registration or voter mobilization activities on federal property anywhere in the country, or on any federal agency website.\n\nIn addition, the bill prohibits voter registration and voter mobilization activities in federal work study programs.\n\nStrategic plans to carry out activities directed under EO 14019 may not be implemented until at least 180 days after submitting to Congress a copy of the plan, unless those activities are required under federal law.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-urge-biden-administration-to-protect-jewish-students-amid-rising-antisemitism-on-college-campuses", "Tillis, Colleagues Urge Biden Administration to Protect Jewish Students Amid Rising Antisemitism on College Campuses", "2023-10-31", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently penned a letter to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona urging him to protect Jewish college students amid rising antisemitic incidents and attacks on college campuses in the aftermath of Hamas\u2019 deadly attacks on Israel.\n\nSince the Hamas-led massacre against Israel earlier this month, there has been a disturbing rise in antisemitic incidents, including targeted harassment and violent attacks directed at Jewish students on college campuses.\n\nUnder Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Department of Education has a responsibility to ensure university programs or activities that receive federal funds do not discriminate against students. So far, there has been no noticeable action from the Department in response to these horrific antisemitic incidents. The senators are urging the administration to use their enforcement power under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to ensure colleges and universities uphold their responsibilities maintaining a safe learning environment for Jewish students and protect them from antisemitic harassment and attacks.\n\n\u201cWe are significantly concerned that your Department is not ensuring American universities are fostering a safe learning environment for all students after the terrorist organization Hamas\u2019 violent attack on civilians, including Americans and Israeli citizens,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cThere have been dozens of targeted attacks on American college campuses since October 7, including reported vandalism, arson, and even professors taking discriminatory actions in their classroom toward their students, based on the student\u2019s status as a member of a protected class. At Drexel University, a Jewish student's dorm room door was set on fire. At Georgia Tech, someone wrote \u2018Free Palestine\u2019 in shaving cream below the Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi\u2019s posted Israeli flag. At Stanford University, a professor encouraged Jewish students to stand in a corner alone in a purported \u2018academic\u2019 exercise to show how Israel treats Palestinians. A professor and faculty advisor at the University of California Davis wrote a social media post appearing to call for Zionist journalists and their children to be murdered,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cWe look forward to an update regarding your efforts on the Antisemitism Awareness Campaign and broader enforcement of Title VI to ensure the Department and colleges and universities receiving Federal financial assistance protect Jewish students in the same capacity as other legally protected classes,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/30/budd-joins-coalition-demanding-answers-on-national-security-threats-at-border/", "Budd Joins Coalition Demanding Answers on National Security Threats at Border", "2023-10-30", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has has joined a coalition letter led by Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) and Representative Mark Alford (R-MO) demanding answers from the Biden Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regarding adversaries exploiting the wide-open Southern border to infiltrate the United States.\n\nThe letter specifically requests answers to the following questions:\n\nConsidering the ongoing conflict in Israel, please provide confirmation or intelligence as to whether Hamas, Hezbollah, or any Iranian proxy agents have infiltrated our Southern border. If this has occurred, how has the threat been mitigated?\n\nSince 2021, are you aware of any planned terrorist attack by any terrorist organization being foiled by intercepting individuals illegally crossing the Southern border?\n\nHow many Chinese nationals with ties to the CCP have successfully crossed through our Southern border?\n\nHave any Chinese foreign nationals who made unauthorized border crossings then attempted to access U.S. military installations?\n\nWhat steps are DHS and DoD taking to ensure terrorists are not among the millions of illegal immigrants streaming through our Southern border?\n\nSenator Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cThe open southern border has created so many issues across the country like drug abuse, human trafficking, increasing crime. But it is also a massive national security issue as well. Just this year, the border patrol has caught over 160 individuals on the FBI\u2019s terrorist watch list trying to illegally enter our country. The American people need answers, and we need them now. We must hold the Biden administration accountable for their dereliction of duty at border.\u201d\n\nThe letter is signed by Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Rick Scott (R-FL), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and Representatives Bill Posey (FL-08), Nancy Mace (SC-01), Carlos Gimenez (FL-28), Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03), Jason Smith (MO-08), Eric Burlison (MO-07), Randy Weber (TX-14), Morgan Luttrell (TX-08), Andy Biggs (AZ-05), John Joyce (PA-13), Ben Cline (VA-06), Ronny Jackson (TX-13), Mike Collins (GA-10), Chris Smith (NJ-04), and Kat Cammack (FL-03).\n\nRead the full text of the letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-urge-president-biden-to-address-rise-in-terrorists-crossing-southern-border", "Tillis, Colleagues Urge President Biden To Address Rise in Terrorists Crossing Southern Border", "2023-10-30", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues sent a letter to President Joe Biden expressing deep concern about the rise in terrorists crossing the Southern border and asking for plans to bolster border and internal security measures.\n\n\u201cThe recent brutal and reprehensible attacks by Hamas against Israel underscore the importance of vigilance against global terrorist groups both internationally and domestically. As President of the United States, we expect you to take every necessary step to ensure the protection of the homeland and to both prioritize and resource this task accordingly,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cOur Southern border is a matter of deep national concern and insecurity. With rising violence and economic crises around the world pushing many people towards our borders, the record levels of illegal crossings and the spike in Border Patrol apprehensions of individuals matching the U.S. terror watchlist are alarming. In fiscal year 2023 alone, 169 migrants with positive terrorism watchlist matches were apprehended along our Southern border. This represents a tenfold increase from the figures reported in fiscal year 2021,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cThe consequences of lapses in security can be catastrophic. We must be proactive and not wait for tragedy to strike before taking decisive action. We stand ready to support any measures and initiatives that prioritize the safety and well-being of our nation and its citizens,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nThe full letter is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-fights-to-lower-costs-for-north-carolina-farmers", "Tillis Fights to Lower Costs for North Carolina Farmers", "2023-10-30", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues in the Senate and House recently sent a bicameral letter to U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) Secretary Gina Raimondo calling for a change in how the DOC calculates countervailing duties (CVD) on phosphate fertilizers from Morocco.\n\nThe U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) recently remanded to the Department of Commerce a calculation of its subsidies, which impacts duties imposed on phosphate fertilizers. Senator Tillis and the group addressed the financial burden these duties are placing on farmers.\n\n\u201cWe ask that Commerce carefully consider and follow the CIT\u2019s decision in Commerce\u2019s recalculation of the subsidy amount, both in its final determination in the investigation and its administrative review. Reducing the subsidy rate would provide welcomed relief for U.S. farm suppliers and their customers, American family farms,\u201d the members wrote.\n\n\u201cAmerican family farmers need a reliable, diverse supply of many agricultural inputs, including fertilizers. The administrative review and the response to the CIT remand present opportunities to address this situation and to properly consider the facts as to the amount of subsidies in this proceeding since its inception,\u201d the members concluded.\n\nRead the full letterHERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/27/budd-tillis-to-introduce-bill-to-combat-persecution-of-religious-groups-in-china/", "Budd, Tillis to Introduce Bill to Combat Persecution of Religious Groups in China", "2023-10-27", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 To coincide with International Religious Freedom Day, Senators Ted Budd (R-NC) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) announced that they intend to introduce the Combatting the Persecution of Religious Groups in China Act. The companion bill in the House is led by Rep. Mark Alford (R-MO).\n\nThe bill would hold senior Chinese government officials accountable for carrying out persecution of Christians and other religious minorities by:\n\nDeclaring that the persecution of Christians and other religious minorities by senior Chinese government officials to be gross violation of human rights.\n\nEnsuring that trade negotiations with China include conditions on protecting religious freedom.\n\nDeclaring that it is the policy of the United States to continue to designate China as a \u201ccountry of particular concern\u201d, as long as they continue to engage in violations of religious freedom.\n\nThe legislative text of the bill is HERE.\n\nWatch this video to learn more:\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cOne of the most sacred human rights is the right to freely practice your religion. The Chinese government has violated these rights for decades by routinely and egregiously persecuting Christians and other religious groups. Until China changes course, it should be the policy of the United States to hold them accountable.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis said:\n\n\u201cThe Chinese government has an abysmal human rights record and has persecuted its citizens for practicing their own religious beliefs for far too long. I am proud to co-chair the Senate Human Rights Caucus and participate in the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission\u2019s Defending Freedom Project by advocating for prisoners of conscience in China including Pastor John Cao and Pastor Wang Yi. The United States should work to hold China accountable and take China\u2019s blatant disregard for religious freedom into consideration when conducting any future business or trade negotiations.\u201d\n\nRep. Alford said:\n\n\u201cIn the face of the Chinese Communist Party\u2019s deliberate attempts to persecute and control religious groups and traditions, we must stand unwavering in our commitment to safeguard the sanctity of faith. The \u2018Sinicization of Religion\u2019 threatens every individual who believes in the fundamental right to religious freedom. With this bill, we send a clear message: the United States will not stand idly by while religious freedoms are under attack.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bill-to-improve-health-care-access-protect-seniors-from-unexpected-costs", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Improve Health Care Access, Protect Seniors from Unexpected Costs", "2023-10-27", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senators Thom Tillis, Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) recently introduced the bipartisan Requiring Enhanced & Accurate Lists of (REAL) Health Providers Act to ensure Medicare Advantage plans maintain accurate provider directories and protect seniors from unexpected healthcare costs.\n\n\u201cFar too often, North Carolinians, especially seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage and those in need of mental health services, find themselves unable to access the care they need due to inaccurate provider directories,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis bipartisan legislation ensures that consumers can access updated provider information enabling them to make informed decisions about their healthcare.\u201d\n\nMany seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage rely on their health plan\u2019s provider directory to find in-network physicians and practitioners, but inaccurate data can make it harder to find a provider or lead to unexpected costs. These inaccurate provider directories are known as \u201cghost networks\u201d because some listed healthcare providers are not in a patient\u2019s network, are not accepting new patients, or, in some cases, are no longer in business. Ghost networks make it more difficult for patients to find in-network healthcare providers, a more acute issue in the mental and behavioral health fields, resulting in unexpected costs or delayed patient care.\n\nSpecifically, the REAL Health Providers Act would:\n\nStrengthen requirements for Medicare Advantage plans to maintain accurate and updated provider directories;\n\nEnsure patients do not pay out-of-network costs for appointments with providers that were incorrectly listed in their plan\u2019s provider directory as in-network; and\n\nDirect Centers for Medicare and Medicaid to publish guidance for plans to maintain accurate provider directories.\n\n\u201cIn the midst of a mental health and substance use crisis, people need to easily and quickly access the help they need. The federal government pays Medicare Advantage plans to provide timely services, but their inaccurate provider directories lead to frustration, financial hardship, delay, and denial of care. MHA supports this bill as an important step forward in addressing this persistent problem that causes so much harm to people with mental health and substance use conditions and their families,\u201d said Mary Giliberti, Chief Public Policy Officer, Mental Health America (MHA).\n\n\u201cInaccurate provider directories may sound innocuous, but they prevent people from getting treatment or stick them with surprise bills for out-of-network care. Inseparable applauds Senators Bennet (D-CO) and Tillis (R-NC) for their bipartisan collaboration on this bill that will help protect people from those unfair charges,\u201d said Bill Smith, Founder and President, Inseparable.\n\nText of the bill is available HERE. A summary of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/26/budd-leads-colleagues-to-send-letter-on-dods-thunderdome-initiative/", "Budd Leads Colleagues to Send Letter on DOD\u2019s Thunderdome Initiative", "2023-10-26", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has led a letter with his colleagues on the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Cybersecurity related to the Department of Defense\u2019s Thunderdome initiative.\n\nThe letter was co-signed by Senators Mike Rounds (R-SD), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Jacky Rosen (D-NV).\n\nRead the full text of the letter:\n\nThe implementation of zero trust principles and architecture across the Department of Defense (DoD) Information Network is essential to safeguarding sensitive data and critical systems throughout the enterprise.\n\nZero trust architecture \u2013 a cutting-edge security principle that assumes the network is already compromised and implements processes that continuously validate the user, device, application and data in a controlled manner \u2013 allows our network defenders to stay ahead of increasingly emboldened cyber adversaries like China and Russia.\n\nDoD\u2019s Thunderdome initiative, which brings modern, commercial digital trust technologies to the Department, is integral in helping DoD implement key components of the Department\u2019s Zero Trust Strategy. As the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) noted in their Committee Report accompanying the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, Thunderdome \u201ccan act as a model for zero trust implementation across the Department of Defense.\u201d\n\nEarlier this year, during the SASC Subcommittee on Cybersecurity hearing titled, \u201cEnterprise Cybersecurity to Protect the Department of Defense Information Networks,\u201d you both testified that the Thunderdome prototype was a success and that you are working on an acquisition strategy to expand these capabilities across the enterprise.\n\nOn July 28, 2023, the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) announced the award of a follow-on production agreement for Thunderdome. Notably, that announcement said, \u201cWhile DISA leverages these capabilities on our cyber terrain, this full-scale production agreement can be used to assist the military services and other DoD components in implementing key zero-trust activities.\u201d\n\nDeploying proven, scalable zero trust solutions enterprise-wide will ensure the resilience of the DoD Information Network that the warfighter depends upon. With an ambitious goal of achieving zero trust implementation DoD-wide by 2027, we would like to better understand your timeline, the progress made to date, resources budgeted, and how we can rapidly accelerate efforts to scale Thunderdome to meet zero trust implementation milestones.\n\nTo that end, please provide the following no later than November 10, 2023:\n\nA description of how the $117 million provided to DISA in Fiscal Year 2023 for Thunderdome was executed.\n\nA description of plans and activities in Fiscal Year 2024 to accelerate the deployment of Thunderdome to the military departments and DoD elements beyond DISA.\n\nAn analysis of any non-resource-related challenges hindering the deployment of Thunderdome to the military departments and DoD elements beyond DISA.\n\nThe total amount of funds included in the Fiscal Year 2024 President\u2019s Budget for zero trust implementation across DoD, and for each military department individually.\n\nFor each DoD budget account with zero trust implementation funding, the account information (appropriation, line item, and title), amount of zero trust implementation funding included, and details on how the funds will be executed.\n\nAdditional details about other solutions the DODIN\u2019s 46 combatant commands, services, DoD agencies and field activities are exploring to meet zero trust implementation requirements.\n\nAn update on the status of the military department zero trust implementation plans required under Section 1528(d) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law 117-81).\n\nWe appreciate your consideration of this request and look forward to your prompt reply. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns you may have.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/25/budd-speaks-on-nc-hostages-in-gaza-demands-release-before-aid/", "Budd Speaks on NC Hostages in Gaza, Demands Release Before Aid", "2023-10-25", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 In a speech on the Senate floor, Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) demanded the release of all American hostages, including North Carolinians, held by Hamas terrorists before any U.S. aid is sent to the Gaza Strip.\n\nWatch the full speech:\n\nKey excerpts:\n\n\u201cMake no mistake, the only word to describe Hamas is evil, and when they commit atrocities like those of October 7th, we must not look away.\u201d\n\n\u201cOne aspect of the October 7th attack that continues to this day is the plight of the more than 200 innocent people currently being held hostage in Gaza, including several Americans \u2013 including some from my own state of North Carolina.\u201d\n\n\u201cLast week I met with some of these families here in Washington. They told me stories about their loved ones and gave me their photos. These families, their fear and their heartache is something that no American should ever have to face.\u201d\n\n\u201cGiven that Gaza is governed by Hamas, I simply do not believe it is right to give a dime of taxpayer money to the very terrorists who are holding Americans hostage. When this funding package comes to the floor, I plan to offer several amendments to hold all humanitarian aid to Gaza until each and every American hostage is home and is safe.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-reintroduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-help-americans-save-for-retirement", "Tillis, Colleagues Reintroduce Bipartisan Legislation to Help Americans Save for Retirement", "2023-10-25", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senators Thom Tillis and John Hickenlooper (D-CO), alongside Representatives Lloyd Smucker (R-PA) and Terri Sewell (D-AL), recently introduced the Retirement Savings for Americans Act (RSAA),bipartisan legislation to help low- and middle-income Americans build wealth and save for retirement.\n\nThe bill would establish a new program allowing eligible workers access to portable, tax-advantaged retirement savings accounts. If passed, the RSAA would enable the federal government to match contributions for low- and middle-income workers, with the match beginning to phase out at median income.\n\n\u201cRoughly 40 million Americans lack access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan, which represents a significant roadblock to achieving financial security for their retirement,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThe Retirement Savings for Americans Act tackles this problem by establishing a pathway for savings for Americans lacking retirement options.\u201d\n\nThe Retirement Savings for Americans Act contains the following provisions:\n\nEligibility and Auto Enrollment: Full- and part-time workers who lack access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan would be eligible for an account and automatically enrolled at 3% of their income. Workers could increase or decrease their withholding or opt-out at any time. Independent workers (including gig workers) would also be eligible.\n\nFederal Contribution: Low- and moderate-income workers would be eligible for a 1% automatic contribution (as long as they remain employed) and up to a 4% matching contribution via a refundable federal tax credit. This provision would begin to phase out at median income.\n\nPortability: Accounts would remain attached to workers throughout their lifetimes, and workers would be able to stop and start contributions at will.\n\nPrivate Assets: The accounts would be the worker\u2019s property, and the assets could be passed down to future generations to help them build wealth and financial security.\n\nInvestment Options: Much like the current Thrift Savings Plan, participants would be given a menu of simple, low-fee investment options, including lifecycle funds tied to a worker\u2019s estimated retirement date or index funds made of stocks and bonds.\n\nView quotes of support from Charles Schwab and others HERE.\n\nView a one-page explainer of the bill HERE.\n\nFull text of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/24/budd-sponsors-bill-to-increase-awareness-of-resources-for-veteran-homebuyers/", "Budd Sponsors Bill to Increase Awareness of Resources for Veteran Homebuyers", "2023-10-24", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has co-sponsored S. 3068, the VA Home Loan Awareness Act.\n\nThe bipartisan bill would add a disclosure to the standard mortgage pre-qualification application highlighting the VA Home Loan Program, thereby increasing awareness of the option for veterans.\n\nThe bill was originally introduced by Senators Mike Braun (R-IN) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH).\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cThe men and women who served our country in uniform deserve all the support we can give them. Making it easier for veterans to purchase a home is a worthy mission and I\u2019m proud to support Senator Braun\u2019s bill to help.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/24/budd-tillis-demand-answers-on-flow-of-fentanyl-into-nc/", "Budd, Tillis Demand Answers on Flow of Fentanyl Into NC", "2023-10-24", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Today, Senators Ted Budd (R-NC) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator Anne Milgram to express grave concern about the flow of fentanyl into our country and communities all across North Carolina.\n\nThe letter reads, in part:\n\n\u201cIn the past nine years, over 13,000 North Carolinians have died from fentanyl overdoses. The overdoses are being driven by various factors including the open border, drug cartels using social media apps to sell drugs, and the Chinese Communist Party\u2019s failure to stop fentanyl precursors from being shipped to drug cartels.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cBroken border policies are driving cartels to engulf our country with drugs. During fiscal year 2023, over 25,000 pounds of fentanyl were seized at the southern border alone. This number does not include the fentanyl evaded detection and made it into communities across North Carolina and the nation.\u201d\n\n\u2013\n\n\u201cOur nation is being poisoned by fentanyl and other deadly narcotics that are pouring in from our open border. Families from all demographics are being impacted and losing loved ones daily. As of April, 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the United States had over 106,000 overdose deaths, which included fentanyl-related deaths during a 12-month period. We urge the DHS and DEA to use all the tools at your disposal to dismantle the drug cartels and halt the incursion of drugs flowing into our country.\u201d\n\nRead the full text letter.\n\nBackground:\n\nOn August 31, 2023, Axios Raleigh reported that Raleigh Police Department (RPD) alone has seized over 17 kilograms of fentanyl in 2023. The amount seized by the RPD is enough to kill 8.5 million people, which is 85% of North Carolina\u2019s population.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-budd-demand-answers-on-flow-of-fentanyl-into-north-carolina-communities", "Tillis, Budd Demand Answers on Flow of Fentanyl Into North Carolina Communities", "2023-10-24", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, North Carolina Senators Thom Tillis and Ted Budd sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator Anne Milgram to express their grave concern about the flow of fentanyl into our country and communities all across our State of North Carolina.\n\nOn August 31, 2023, Axios Raleigh reported that Raleigh Police Department (RPD) alone has seized over 17 kilograms of fentanyl in 2023. The amount seized by the RPD is enough to kill 8.5 million people, which is 85% of North Carolina\u2019s population.\n\n\u201cIn the past nine years, over 13,000 North Carolinians have died from fentanyl overdoses. The overdoses are being driven by various factors including the open border, drug cartels using social media apps to sell drugs, and the Chinese Communist Party\u2019s failure to stop fentanyl precursors from being shipped to drug cartels,\u201d wrote Senators Tillis and Budd.\n\n\u201cBroken border policies are driving cartels to engulf our country with drugs. During fiscal year 2023, over 25,000 pounds of fentanyl were seized at the southern border alone. This number does not include the fentanyl evaded detection and made it into communities across North Carolina and the nation,\u201d Senators Tillis and Budd continued.\n\n\u201cOur nation is being poisoned by fentanyl and other deadly narcotics that are pouring in from our open border. Families from all demographics are being impacted and losing loved ones daily. As of April, 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the United States had over 106,000 overdose deaths, which included fentanyl-related deaths during a 12-month period. We urge the DHS and DEA to use all the tools at your disposal to dismantle the drug cartels and halt the incursion of drugs flowing into our country,\u201d Senators Tillis and Budd concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-introduce-confucius-act-to-fight-communist-china-s-influence-at-u-s-colleges", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce CONFUCIUS Act To Fight Communist China\u2019s Influence at U.S. Colleges", "2023-10-24", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis recently co-introduced the Concerns Over Nations Funding University Campus Institutes in the United States (CONFUCIUS) Act to prevent Chinese-backed Confucius Institutes on U.S. college campuses from suppressing students\u2019 freedom of speech.\n\nConfucius Institutes are education organizations funded and arranged by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The institutes enroll more than nine million students around the world, including many in the United States. They spread false narratives about historical events such as the Tiananmen Square massacre.\n\n\u201cConfucius Institutes are an echo chamber for the Chinese Communist Party and threaten academic liberty and free speech in American colleges and universities,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis legislation will work to address concerns about Confucius Institutes on American campuses so that speech can be protected and to minimize the CCP\u2019s anti-American influence campaigns on our students.\u201d\n\nSpecifically, the CONFUCIUS Act would require Confucius Institutes to:\n\nProtect academic freedom on the campus where the Confucius Institute is located,\n\nProhibit the application of any foreign law on any campus of the institution, and\n\nGrant full control over what a Confucius Institute teaches, the activities it carries out, the research grants it gives and the individuals it employs to the college or university on which it is located.\n\nThis bill would prohibit federal government funding to colleges and universities that host Confucius Institutes and are not in compliance with the above provisions. The funding prohibition would only apply to funding directed to the college or university and would not include funding disbursed to students, such as Pell Grants.\n\nThe Senate passed the legislation unanimously in the 116th and 117th Congresses.\n\nBackground:\n\nIn May 2020, the College Republican National Committee and the College Democrats of America wrote a joint letter calling for the \u201cimmediate and permanent closure of all Confucius Institutes in the United States\u201d due to their \u201cconcerns over the present state of academic freedom\u201d and \u201cthe continued exploitation of liberal, democratic academic institutions by authoritarians.\u201d\n\nThese institutes can threaten universities by withholding funding in order to achieve their objectives, such as regulating speech the Chinese government opposes. Universities forced to choose between losing funding or upholding free speech are often tempted to yield to an institution funded by a foreign government over the interests of free speech. This allows foreign governments like China\u2019s Communist Party to exert influence over American schools (such as prohibiting the Dalai Lama from speaking on a campus) and even to apply Chinese Communist laws on U.S. soil.\n\nFull text of the legislation is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/23/budd-leads-colleagues-to-demand-state-department-rescind-pronoun-mandate/", "Budd Leads Colleagues to Demand State Department Rescind Pronoun Mandate", "2023-10-23", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) and 10 other U.S. Senators have sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken demanding he rescind the State Department\u2019s latest guidance which threatens termination if an employee refuses to use another employee\u2019s chosen gender pronoun instead of one that corresponds to the employee\u2019s birth sex.\n\nIn the letter, the Senators highlight that the State Department guidance, \u201cis potentially illegal\u201d because it \u201cinfringes upon the First Amendment rights of State Department employees, as recognized by the Supreme Court, to speak openly on matters of public concern\u201d.\n\nAlso, the letter details how the guidance violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) \u201cby forcing employees to choose between facing disciplinary action and complying\u201d.\n\nThe signers of this letter include:\n\nSen. Ted Budd (R-NC)\n\nChuck Grassley (R-IA)\n\nThom Tillis (R-NC)\n\nMarco Rubio (R-FL)\n\nMike Lee (R-UT)\n\nTommy Tuberville (R-AL)\n\nTom Cotton (R-AR)\n\nJames Lankford (R-OK)\n\nJosh Hawley (R-MO)\n\nJD Vance (R-OH)\n\nRoger Marshall (R-KS)\n\nFull text of the letter:\n\nWe write to demand that you rescind the recent State Department guidance for employees titled \u201cUpdated Department Guidance Regarding Transgender Employees in the Workplace\u201d (\u201cGuidance\u201d). We understand that you personally approved and signed the Guidance and authorized its electronic transmission via the attached, unclassified cable on your behalf to all State Department employees.\n\nThe Guidance forces every State Department employee\u2014without exception\u2014to comply with any demand by another employee to use that employee\u2019s choice of name, pronouns, or honorific. According to the Guidance, failure to comply may \u201ccontribute to a hostile work environment allegation, and constitute misconduct subject to disciplinary action, up to and including separation or removal.\u201d This is potentially illegal for multiple reasons.\n\nFirst, Congress never authorized the State Department to impose such restrictions on employee speech. But even if Congress did so, this Guidance would be arguably unconstitutional. Specifically, this Guidance infringes upon the First Amendment rights of State Department employees, as recognized by the Supreme Court, to speak openly on matters of public concern and to be free from government-compelled speech, including government-compelled affirmation of contested political, social, and religious ideas. Accordingly, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently recognized that \u201cthe use of gender-specific titles and pronouns\u201d constitutes such a matter of public concern; thus, government employees have the right to speak openly on this subject, or not to speak at all.\n\nMoreover, this Guidance creates a hostile work environment for dissenting employees, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, for failing to provide a religious accommodation for dissenters. Several State Department employees have voiced their concerns with this Guidance to Senators, stating that they cannot comply with this Guidance without violating their religious beliefs. Indeed, by forcing employees to choose between facing disciplinary action and complying with this Guidance, the Guidance violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), which was enacted \u201cto provide very broad protection for religious liberty.\u201d It may even constitute a violation of the \u201cNo Religious Test Clause\u201d of the Constitution by discriminating against those with certain religious views from holding a position within the State Department. Lastly, we understand that the State Department adopted this major policy change behind closed doors, thus preventing it from receiving any scrutiny by the press or the broader public. Such a major policy change, which threatens severe consequences against State Department employees for noncompliance, deserves rigorous, public scrutiny.\n\nSecretary Blinken, you have declared that \u201c[dissent] should be and it will be welcomed\u201d at the State Department. You have also warned that \u201c[w]hen religious liberty is at risk\u201d then \u201cother freedoms are jeopardized as well.\u201d Therefore, we call on you to adhere to your oath to uphold the Constitution and federal law, and to live up to your own public commitments, by formally and publicly rescinding this Guidance immediately.\n\nAccordingly, please provide written responses to the following no later than November 3, 2023:\n\nPlease identify the specific legal authority you relied upon to issue this Guidance.\n\nAre there exceptions, whether religious or non-religious, to this Guidance? If the answer is yes, then please describe these exceptions, including the following:\n\nthe process for an employee to seek to obtain such an exception,\n\nthe efforts you have made to inform employees about this process, and\n\nthe efforts you have made to inform employees that those seeking exceptions may not be subject to retaliation, discrimination, or other mistreatment.\n\nIf there are no exceptions to this Guidance, then please provide a justification for the lack of exceptions, including how such a policy complies with the First Amendment, RFRA, and Title VII.\n\nPlease describe every phase of the process by which the State Department could seek to impose disciplinary action for an alleged violation of this Guidance, including but not limited to the following:\n\ninitiation of investigation,\n\nadjudication,\n\nappeal,\n\nimposition of disciplinary action.\n\nPlease describe the standard that the State Department will use to determine that an alleged violation of the Guidance:\n\ncontributed to a hostile work environment,\n\nwarranted disciplinary action, or\n\nwarranted separation or removal.\n\nPlease provide an accounting of whether State Department employees have been or are, due to alleged violation of the Guidance:\n\nunder investigation, or\n\nare or have been subject(ed) to disciplinary action, or\n\nhave been separated or removed from the State Department.\n\nPlease describe the role that this Guidance could play in the\n\nhiring process,\n\nperformance ratings,\n\npromotion decisions, or\n\nany other employment decision other than disciplinary action.\n\nPlease describe what efforts, if any, the State Department has undertaken or will undertake to address any conflicts between this Guidance and local cultural beliefs, including conflicting, local cultural beliefs held by locally employed, State Department employees in host countries who are foreign nationals, and who are, as all State Department employees, required to adhere to this Guidance.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-lead-legislation-pushing-back-on-radical-electric-vehicle-mandate", "Tillis, Colleagues Lead Legislation Pushing Back on Radical Electric Vehicle Mandate", "2023-10-23", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues introduced the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales (CARS) Act to counter the Biden Administration\u2019s radical environmental agenda and executive overreach by preventing the implementation of a proposed rule and other regulations that seek to limit consumer vehicle choice.\n\nAccording to data from Kelley Blue Book, the average price of an electric vehicle (EV) is over $17,000 more than the average price of a gas-powered vehicle. The administration\u2019s continued push for EVs threatens to hurt everyday Americans and costs auto workers their jobs while simultaneously helping China dominate the EV supply chain.\n\n\u201cThe EPA has no business dictating what cars Americans can purchase with their hard-earned money,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis legislation fights against the Biden Administration\u2019s radical green agenda, protects consumers from executive overreach, and promotes American production and innovation.\u201d\n\nSpecifically, The Choice in Automobile Retail Sales (CARS) Act:\n\nProhibits the EPA from finalizing, implementing, or enforcing its proposed emissions rule;\n\nProhibits the use of authority under the Clean Air Act to issue regulations that mandate the use of any specific technology or limit the availability of new motor vehicles based on that vehicle\u2019s engine type. Including any regulation prescribed on or after January 1, 2021;\n\nRequires the EPA to update any regulations since January 1, 2021, that result in the limited availability of new vehicles based on that vehicle\u2019s engine within two years;\n\nEnds the EPA\u2019s radical agenda, which is driving up costs for people and handing the keys of America\u2019s auto industry to China.\n\nThe bill is supported by the American Petroleum Institute, American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, National Propane Gas Association, National Association of Convenience Stores, National Association of Truck Stop Operators, SIGMA: America\u2019s Leading Fuel Marketers, Idaho Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, Energy Marketers of America, American Exploration and Production Council, American Energy Alliance, Western Energy Alliance, National Taxpayers Union, National Association of Small Trucking Companies, Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, Idaho Farm Bureau, American Farm Bureau, National Corn Growers Association, National Automobile Dealers Association, Idaho Automobile Dealers Association, Texas Automobile Dealers Association, Montana Automobile Dealers Association, Specialty Equipment Market Association, Heritage Action and Americans for Prosperity.\n\nFull text of the bill is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/20/senator-budd-returns-from-codel-to-indo-pacific-command/", "Senator Budd Returns from CODEL to Indo-Pacific Command", "2023-10-20", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, DC \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) provided a wrap-up of his recent congressional delegation (CODEL) to Indo-Pacific Command and other U.S. military headquarters and installations in Hawaii and Guam.\n\nGiven the increasing military threat posed by China, Senator Budd received operational briefings and toured infrastructure projects to ensure the joint force is postured to maintain deterrence in the region.\n\nAdditionally, he toured the USS Charlotte (SSN-766), a Los Angeles-class submarine, named for Charlotte, North Carolina, currently stationed in Pearl Harbor.\n\nWATCH VIDEO BELOW:\n\nAs a Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Budd led efforts in the fiscal year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act to improve security cooperation with allies and partners, block cuts to Army special operations force structure, prohibit the Air Force from divesting F-15E Strike Eagles that would cause a critical fighter gap against China, and accelerate development of collaborative combat aircraft.\n\nAdditionally, he voted to authorize the full budget request for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, modernization of the U.S. nuclear arsenal, multiyear procurement of 10 Virginia-class submarines, and fully fund the next amphibious transport dock, LPD-33, despite the Biden Administration leaving it out of the budget request.\n\nEach of these efforts is critical to posture the Joint Force to maintain deterrence, peace, and security in the Indo-Pacific.\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cThere is no doubt that the Joint Force retains the strategic advantage and, alongside our allies and partners, is postured to maintain deterrence in the Indo-Pacific. Maintaining deterrence, however, requires constant vigilance and significant investment in our military infrastructure and posture in the region. As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I am committed to ensuring our military has the resources and authorities necessary to secure peace through strength for generations to come.\u201d\n\nDetails from the CODEL include:\n\nIn Hawaii, Senator Budd met the commanders of Indo-Pacific Command and component commands, including Special Operations Command Pacific, to discuss current operations. Additionally, they discussed service modernization efforts, needed infrastructure investments, and security cooperation with allies and partners across the region.\n\nAfter receiving an operations update from the Commander, Submarine Force U.S. Pacific Fleet, Senator Budd toured the USS Charlotte (SSN-766), a Los Angeles-class attack submarine named after Charlotte, North Carolina. Charlotte can support various missions, including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface ship warfare, strike warfare, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.\n\nIn Guam, Senator Budd visited the Headquarters of Joint Region Marianas to discuss the significant and growing military presence on the island. Later, Budd viewed damage at Anderson Air Force Base and Naval Base Guam from Super Typhoon Mawar and conducted oversight of major military construction projects at Camp Blaz in anticipation of 5,000 U.S. Marines moving to the strategically located U.S. territory.\n\nSenator Budd also met with the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Guam, as well as the local Chamber of Commerce, to discuss the ongoing construction projects, federal regulatory constraints, logistical issues, and quality of life for military families and other residents of the island.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-lead-effort-to-increase-awareness-of-resources-for-veteran-homebuyers", "Tillis, Colleagues Lead Effort to Increase Awareness of Resources for Veteran Homebuyers", "2023-10-20", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues introduced the bipartisan VA Home Loan Awareness Act of 2023 to increase awareness of the VA Home Loan Program for veterans by adding a disclosure to the standard mortgage pre-qualification application.\n\n\u201cThe VA Home Loan Program is an important resource for veterans to achieve the American dream and purchase a home,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThis bipartisan legislation will help expand awareness so the men and women who served our country can take advantage of this benefit.\u201d\n\nThe VA Home Loan Program offers veterans unique perks for financing their home purchases, including no down payment, no private mortgage insurance, and oftentimes lower interest rates than conventional FHA loans. Despite these benefits, only 13% of veterans ever utilize their VA Home Loan benefit.\n\nSpecifically, the VA Home Loan Awareness Act of 2023 would:\n\nAdd a disclosure informing Veterans they may be eligible for a VA Home Loan to the URLA form;\n\nDirect applicants to consult their lender for more information about the VA Home Loan Program;\n\nInstruct the GAO to conduct a review and report to Congress regarding lenders adoption of the URLA form updates.\n\nThe full text of the bill may be found HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-hickenlooper-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-prevent-another-ftx-disaster", "Tillis, Hickenlooper Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Prevent Another FTX Disaster", "2023-10-20", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and John Hickenlooper (D-CO) introduced the Proving Reserves of Others Funds (PROOF) Act, bipartisan legislation that would establish strong safeguards against instances of unethical co-mingling of customer funds while also requiring digital assets institutions to submit to a monthly proof of reserves (PoR) inspection by a neutral third-party auditing firm.\n\nPoR is an already-existing industry best practice that is used to verify whether an institution holds sufficient reserves to back its customer balances. Under the PROOF Act, the results of monthly PoR inspections are submitted to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, which is required to post the information publicly. Failure to submit to this inspection would result in a civil fine, derived through a tiered system that increases penalties for repeat offenders.\n\n\u201cThe FTX fiasco was a direct result of mismanagement and grossly unethical decision-making, leading to significant fraud and loss of investor funds. Americans deserve better assurances regarding their deposits and the solvency of these platforms,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThe PROOF Actwould improve regulation of the cryptocurrency industry by explicitly prohibiting the co-mingling of funds, while also setting a strong transparency standard with the already-used industry best practice of PoR. Combined, these two steps will help build trust that investors, both institutional and retail, can engage in digital asset markets.\u201d\n\n\u201cFTX\u2019s collapse made one thing clear: lack of customer protections in crypto will leave consumers in the lurch,\u201d said Senator Hickenlooper. \u201cThese commonsense safeguards make crypto companies more transparent and hold them to the same standards as everyone else.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe PROOF Act standardizes solvency reporting requirements for digital asset exchanges and custodians in a way that will significantly improve consumer safety. Proof of Reserves (PoR) is an industry best practice that combines the cryptographic nature of digital assets with strong traditional audit standards to achieve greater industry transparency than is possible in traditional finance. Creating a framework that standardizes how digital assets firms indisputably prove the soundness of their platforms is overdue and will help investors, consumers, and even regulators identify and avoid the blowups that rocked the industry last year. We thank Sens. Tillis and Hickenlooper for introducing this important legislation and for their leadership on this issue. We believe this legislation will help grow the adoption of digital assets and blockchain technology while helping to modernize our financial system and ensuring the United States maintains its position as the world\u2019s premier capital market.\u201d \u2013 Alex Thorn, Head of Firmwide Research at Galaxy\n\n\u201cIn the wake of the FTX scandal, intermediaries in the digital asset industry have settled on a standard of asset and liability disclosures, known as Proof of Reserves. The PROOF Act acknowledges these industry-led self-regulatory efforts and creates a framework to further protect consumers in the digital asset space. This Act ensures that digital asset platforms cannot comingle client and operating capital, and requires disclosures that assets held by platforms match customer liabilities. This unrivaled transparency is uniquely possible due to the cryptographic properties of digital assets. The PROOF Act ensures that another covert insolvency like FTX, Quadriga, or Mt Gox can never again occur.\u201d - Nic Carter, General Partner at Castle Island Ventures\n\n\u201cThe PROOF Act is exactly what users of digital assets need in the US. By banning the comingling of assets and requiring PoR, everyday users will be able to use crypto with peace of mind.\u201d \u2013 Rich Dewey, Proven\n\nBackground:\n\nThe implosion of the digital asset platform FTX was largely possible due to two key organizational weakness and failures: (1) FTX co-mingled customer funds with its institutional and proprietary funds and (2) FTX diverted significant portions of its customer deposits to its subsidiary, Alameda Research, resulting in a systemic lack of adequate reserves to back its customer balances.\n\nThe Proof Act seeks to address these dual issues by establishing clear and concrete customer protections, while also creating an important mechanism to provide greater transparency into digital asset exchange and custodial operations. Specifically, the PROOF Act would:\n\nEstablish regulatory standards on how digital asset institutions can hold customer assets, including a prohibition of the co-mingling of customer funds\n\nRequire digital asset exchanges and custodians to submit to a Proof of Reserves inspection by a neutral third-party\n\nFull text of the bill may be viewed here. Read more about the bill here and here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/19/budd-rubio-colleagues-call-on-biden-to-revoke-visas-for-hamas-sympathizers/", "Budd, Rubio, Colleagues Call on Biden to Revoke Visas for Hamas Sympathizers", "2023-10-19", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has joined Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and 10 other Senators to introduce S. Res 413, which calls on President Biden to use existing U.S. law to revoke the visas of foreign nationals who endorse or espouse activity in support of Hamas or other Foreign Terrorist Organizations.\n\nSenator Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cThe privilege of living in the United States is something that should be cherished. If a foreign national abuses this blessing by supporting Hamas or another Foreign Terrorist Organization, they should no longer be allowed to stay in this country. I thank Senator Rubio for leading this effort.\u201d\n\nSenator Rubio said:\n\n\u201cIt is a blessing to live in America and any individual that is promoting Hamas should have that privilege revoked. Republicans are united in calling on President Biden to enforce current law and revoke the visas of any foreign national who support Hamas or any other Foreign Terrorist Organization.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/19/budd-supported-resolution-supporting-israel-passes-senate/", "Budd-Supported Resolution Standing with Israel Passes Senate", "2023-10-19", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Today, the Senate passed S. Res. 417, a resolution supporting Israel, as they face an unprecedented series of terrorist attacks from Hamas. Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) was an original co-sponsor of the resolution, which reads:\n\nNow, therefore, be it resolved that:\n\nThe Senate \u2013\n\n(1) stands with Israel as it defends itself, including Israeli efforts to diminish the threat posed by Hamas;\n\n(2) reaffirms Israel\u2019s right to self-defense, and is committed to helping Israel safeguard its people from future aggression;\n\n(3) calls on all countries to unequivocally condemn Hamas\u2019 war on Israel, including Hamas\u2019 intentional targeting of, and attacks against, civilians;\n\n(4) demands that Hamas immediately cease its attacks against Israel and safely release all living hostages and return the bodies of deceased hostages;\n\n(5) condemns Iran\u2019s support for global terrorism, including its support for terrorist groups such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad;\n\n(6) calls on the United States to lead an international effort to deprive Hamas of Iranian and other sources of funding and lethal assistance that the terror group relies on to threaten Israel;\n\n(7) warns against any other party hostile to Israel taking advantage of the current situation;\n\n(8) reaffirms the United States\u2019 commitment to Israel\u2019s security; and\n\n(9) stands ready to assist Israel with emergency resupply or other security, diplomatic, and intelligence support needs, both during the immediate crisis and in the near future, including by accelerating delivery of defense articles and systems.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-introduce-legislation-to-resupply-israel-s-iron-dome-missile-defense", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Resupply Israel\u2019s Iron Dome Missile Defense", "2023-10-19", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Emergency Resupply for Iron Dome Act of 2023, a bill to require the Executive Branch to transfer the U.S. foreign assistance that the U.S. Department of State plans to send to Hamas-controlled Gaza and redirect it to resupply Israel\u2019s highly-effective missile defense interceptors.\n\n\u201cIsrael has a right to defend itself against the barbaric attacks of Hamas terrorists operating in Gaza,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cThe United States must stand with our ally Israel and ensure their life-saving Iron Dome technology is resupplied to protect innocent Israelis.\u201d\n\nFull text of the legislation is available HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/18/budd-cruz-capito-propose-bill-to-limit-social-media-access-at-school/", "Budd, Cruz, Capito Propose Bill to Limit Social Media Access at School", "2023-10-18", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senators Ted Budd (R-NC), Ted Cruz (R-TX), and Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) have introduced S. 3074, the Eyes on the Board Act.\n\nThe bill would limit children\u2019s access to social media at school by requiring schools receiving federal broadband funding to prohibit access on subsidized services, devices, and networks.\n\nThe bill is supported by American College of Pediatricians, Parents Defending Education Action, Heritage Action, American Principles Project, Family Policy Alliance, American Association of Christian Schools, Association of Christian Schools International, The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, The Institute for Family Studies, Concerned Women for America, and the Bull Moose Project.\n\nSenator Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cStudents across the country fell behind in a big way because of COVID-era lockdowns. Ever since, parents have reasserted their right to be involved in their child\u2019s education. That\u2019s why I\u2019m proud to help Senator Cruz introduce the Eyes on the Board Act, which is a commonsense solution to ensure that kids are focused on their studies at school rather than social media. If taxpayers are going to pay some of the costs for schools to be connected to the internet, then parents deserve to know that students are actually learning during school hours.\u201d\n\nSenator Cruz said:\n\n\u201cAddictive and distracting social media apps are inviting every evil force on the planet into kids\u2019 classrooms, homes, and minds by giving those who want to abuse or harm children direct access to communicate with them online. The very least we can do is restrict access to social media at school so taxpayer subsidies aren\u2019t complicit in harming our children. The Eyes on the Board Act is a commonsense solution to protecting our kids in the classroom and providing parents with the transparency needed to know their kids are safe.\u201d\n\nSenator Capito said:\n\n\u201cThe Universal Service Fund\u2019s E-Rate program helps connect schools to the internet so that every child has the same opportunities to learn. However, there is currently no provision that requires schools to prohibit the use of addictive social media apps that distract students. Our legislation would help ensure these dollars from the program are used for learning and not for children to use social media.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Federal Communications Commission is set to vote to expand the E-Rate program to fund Wi-Fi on school buses, even though Congress explicitly confined the FCC\u2019s E-Rate authority to classrooms and libraries.\n\nThe proposed expansion of funding is not only unlawful (the Commission has no authority to extend support to school buses without congressional direction), but would make the federal government complicit in enabling unsupervised access to distracting and addictive social media apps like TikTok and Instagram on kids\u2019 bus rides to and from school.\n\nThe Eyes on the Board Act would:\n\nLimit kids\u2019 use of distracting and addictive social media apps or websites at school by prohibiting schools or school districts from receiving E-Rate or Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF) subsidies unless they prohibit access to social media on subsidized services, devices, and networks.\n\nPromote parental limits and transparency on screen time in schools by requiring schools receiving E-Rate subsidies to adopt a screen time policy as a condition of receiving federal funding.\n\nThis requirement would be similar to schools\u2019 existing obligations to maintain an \u201cinternet safety policy\u201d under CIPA, which prevents schools from receiving E-Rate funding unless they have certified that they have an internet safety policy that includes technology protection measures to block or filter obscenity, pornography, or other harmful sexual content.\n\nProvide parents and the public with needed transparency by requiring the FCC to create a database of schools\u2019 internet safety policies.\n\nThe FCC does not currently collect these plans, and they are not publicly available, so it\u2019s unclear what steps E-Rate-funded schools are taking to protect children online.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/18/budd-joins-britt-letter-calling-out-president-biden-for-placing-unconfirmed-julie-su-in-presidential-line-of-succession/", "Budd Joins Britt Letter Calling Out President Biden for Placing Unconfirmed Julie Su in Presidential Line of Succession", "2023-10-18", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has joined a letter to President Biden requesting clarification regarding the Administration\u2019s apparent decision to improperly elevate Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su into the presidential line of succession.\n\nThe letter was led by Senators Katie Britt (R-AL) and signed by a total of 30 senators.\n\nRead the full text of the letter here:\n\nWe write today to express grave concerns with your Administration\u2019s apparent belief that Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su is eligible to assume the office of President of the United States pursuant to the presidential line of succession as established by Congress in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947.\n\nAs you are well aware, since March 14, 2023, the United States Senate has declined to confirm Ms. Su\u2019s nomination as Secretary of Labor, and she continues to lack adequate support from both Republican and Democratic members of the Senate to be confirmed to that position.\n\nDespite that reality and Ms. Su becoming the longest-ever Cabinet nominee to await confirmation in a time when the same party controls the White House and the Senate, the White House has chosen to keep her in place as Acting Secretary of Labor on an indefinite basis and has also listed her on the White House website as a member of the Cabinet \u201c[i]n order of succession to the Presidency.\u201d\n\nWhile you and your Administration have clearly decided to ignore congressional intent in keeping Ms. Su in place in her current role, it would be unfortunate if you have decided to further discount congressional intent \u2013 and violate the law \u2013 by taking the position that Ms. Su is eligible for placement in the presidential line of succession.\n\nWhile the Twenty Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states that the Vice President shall assume the presidency upon the removal from office, death, or resignation of the sitting President, Article II, Section 1, clause 6 of the Constitution vests in Congress the power to set the presidential line of succession beyond the Vice President.\n\nCongress exercised that authority in passing the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, which established the current presidential line of succession. Specifically, 3 U.S.C. \u00a719(d)(1) lists the members of the President\u2019s Cabinet, including the Secretary of Labor, in the order in which they would succeed to the presidency, beginning with the Secretary of State and ending with the Secretary of Homeland Security.\n\nHowever, 3 U.S.C. \u00a719(e) further states that, with respect to Cabinet members, they are only eligible to be in the line of presidential succession and assume the office of President of the United States if they are an officer \u201cappointed, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.\u201d\n\nAs Ms. Su has failed to be \u201cappointed, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate\u201d as Secretary of Labor, we strongly urge the White House to clarify its position and views regarding Ms. Su\u2019s eligibility for the presidential line of succession and, in the event it was to become necessary, to assume the presidency.\n\nIt is unimaginable to think that this Administration believes someone who has neither been duly elected nor confirmed by the Senate to the position of Secretary of Labor could be President of the United States. Suggesting that Ms. Su is eligible to be in the presidential line of succession is antithetical to our system of governance and the bedrock principles on which our Republic rests.\n\nFurthermore, as many of our Senate colleagues have done in the past, we once again call upon you to withdraw Ms. Su\u2019s nomination and put forward a nominee for Secretary of Labor who is capable of garnering sufficient support on a bipartisan basis to be confirmed.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/18/this-is-good-versus-evil-budd-delivers-speech-supporting-israel/", "\u201cThis is Good Versus Evil\u201d: Budd Delivers Speech Supporting Israel", "2023-10-18", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 In a speech on the Senate floor today, Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) expressed his unequivocal support for the State of Israel after Hamas terrorists murdered over 1,400 civilians, including 31 Americans.\n\nWatch the full video:\n\nKey excerpts:\n\n\u201cThe level of barbarism that we witnessed was nothing short of evil incarnate. The mass slaughter of innocent civilians. Unspeakable violence against women, children, and the elderly. The deadliest massacre of the Jewish people since the Holocaust.\u201d\n\n\u2014\n\n\u201cCompounding these atrocities is the reaction in some parts of the world and even in our own land, like the sickening anti-Semitic protests in city streets and on university campuses. These vile demonstrations celebrated, they justified, and they endorsed this violence. Simply put, there can be no place in our country for that sort of anti-Semitic bigotry.\u201d\n\n\u2014\n\n\u201cMake no mistake, the only word to describe this is evil\u2026 Evil is surrounding a music festival full of innocent young people and systematically hunting them down and slaughtering them on the side of the road. That\u2019s evil. Evil is kidnapping elderly women out of their homes and threatening on the internet to murder them. And evil is beheading and burning babies in front of their mothers and fathers. The line between morality and depravity, right now, is as bright as it has ever been. As a country, we must not avoid the reality that this is good versus evil.\u201d\n\n\u2014\n\n\u201cIf we try to turn away from evil, to deny that it\u2019s evil, to beg for context to explain away evil, we do a disservice to our credibility and stain the soul of our nation. We must stand shoulder to shoulder with the State of Israel.\n\n\u2014\n\n\u201cIn this current struggle between good and evil, America must lead the forces of good \u2013 and we must not fail.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-demand-president-biden-do-everything-in-his-power-to-rescue-american-hostages-in-israel", "Tillis, Colleagues Demand President Biden Do Everything in His Power to Rescue American Hostages in Israel", "2023-10-18", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and 47 of his senate colleagues penned a bipartisan letter urging President Biden to continue doing everything in his power to rescue American hostages taken by Hamas during the terrorist organization\u2019s October 7th attacks on Israel while supporting Israel\u2019s efforts to dismantle the threat of Hamas.\n\n\u201cHamas has already killed 30 Americans and likely injured many more\u2026The terrorists responsible for these atrocities hide behind human shields while they threaten to livestream the execution of hostages. Hamas has also reportedly demanded the mass release of prisoners in exchange for freeing its hostages and could use the hostages to push for a ceasefire. With several U.S. citizens still missing in the aftermath of the terror group\u2019s brutal attack, we urge you to continue putting your full attention on the freeing of American hostages. Every day must be treated with a sense of urgency,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cAs a result, we urge the United States to continue supporting Israel\u2019s urgent efforts to dismantle the threat of Hamas, provide the necessary resources for Israel\u2019s defense, and continue offering whatever support necessary to immediately and safely rescue kidnapped Americans, with particular attention to those who require urgent medical care,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cWe urge you to encourage our allies and partners in the region to place pressure on Hamas to allow the International Committee of the Red Cross to have access to the hostages while the United States and Israel work to secure their release,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bill-to-freeze-6-billion-to-iran-probe-additional-iranian-assets", "Tillis, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Freeze $6 Billion to Iran, Probe Additional Iranian Assets", "2023-10-17", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced the Revoke Iranian Funding Act to rescind the general licenses that enabled the release of the $6 billion to Iran and prevent the Iranian regime from accessing and using the funds held in Qatar to finance terrorist attacks against Israel or any other nation.\n\nIn addition, the bill directs the Treasury Secretary to study all high-value Iranian assets around the world that are currently blocked by U.S. sanctions and provide that information to Congress, ensuring Congress has the information necessary to enact further targeted legislation, if necessary.\n\n\u201cThe Biden Administration\u2019s reckless decision to send $6 billion to the rogue state of Iran must be reversed,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cIran is the world\u2019s largest state sponsor of terrorism and its continued financial support of Hamas enabled the cold-blooded murder of thousands of innocent Israeli civilians, including the horrific slaying of children. This legislation will ensure the United States does not provide the Iranian regime with more resources to fund terrorism and attack our allies.\u201d\n\nRead an overview of the bill HERE and a section-by-section overview HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-introduce-bill-to-freeze-6-billion-to-iran-probe-additional-iranian-assets/bd869dc6-8a8f-4ff7-a1c6-e8263d45ab5a", "Tillis, Padilla, Smith, and Ernst Launch Bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus", "2023-10-17", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Joni Ernst (R-IA) announced the launch of their bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus. Daniel Gillison, Jr., Chief Executive Officer of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and Laurel Stine, Vice President of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), joined the Senators in announcing the launch. Senator Tillis helped write and pass theBipartisan Safer Communities Act that marked the largest investment in community-based mental health and substance use care in American history.\n\n\u201cOur country is experiencing a mental health crisis, from children to adolescents to older adults, and it\u2019s past time for us to prioritize mental health care. That is why I have worked on a bipartisan basis to expand access to evidence-based mental health care for all Americans, including the creation of the 988 Suicide Hotline, to writing and passing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that marked the largest investment in community-based mental health and substance use care in American history,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cHowever the work is not done, and I am honored to be joining Senator Padilla in establishing the Senate Mental Health Caucus, where we can discuss, advocate for, and support the continued investment in mental health care. I am hopeful together we can work to raise awareness, expand education, and continue destigmatizing mental health care for Americans nationwide.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur nation has long faced mounting mental health challenges that have touched the lives of all Americans, but we know there are bipartisan solutions to address this crisis in reach,\u201d said Senator Padilla. \u201cPeople are finally beginning to realize the scale of our mental health crisis \u2014 and the wall of stigma that prevents too many from getting help is starting to come down. Now we need to ensure there are resources ready to get Americans the help that they need. I\u2019m proud to announce this bipartisan caucus alongside Senators Tillis, Smith, and Ernst, so that we can come together to find help and solutions for the millions of Americans who may be suffering in silence.\u201d\n\n\u201cI believe that everyone should have access to quality mental health care, regardless of insurance, ZIP code, or age,\u201d said Senator Smith. \u201cMental health care isn\u2019t a partisan issue \u2013 it\u2019s something that affects Americans in red states and blue states alike. Today\u2019s launch represents a renewed commitment and focus to collaborate on bipartisan legislation and solutions. I\u2019m looking forward to working alongside my colleagues to continue to tackle the mental health care crisis in this country.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019m honored to join my colleagues from both sides of the aisle to raise awareness and reduce stigma about mental health, so folks can receive the support they deserve. Together, we will work to improve care for mental health issues on behalf of our Iowa veterans, farmers, and families and improve the health of all Americans,\u201d said Senator Ernst.\n\n\u201cMental health is the bipartisan issue of our time, and it is inspiring to see the establishment of the bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus,\u201d said NAMI Chief Executive Officer Daniel H. Gillison, Jr. \u201cNAMI is grateful to Senators Padilla, Tillis, Ernst and Smith for their leadership on mental health. We\u2019re excited to collaborate with the new caucus to build better lives for all people affected by mental health conditions.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) thanks Senators Alex Padilla, Thom Tillis, Tina Smith, and Joni Ernst for their leadership in launching the bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus,\u201d said Laurel Stine, J.D., M.A., Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. \u201cThe launch of the Senate Mental Health Caucus comes at a critical time as our nation faces a mental health crisis that affects people across the lifespan, with suicide being the 11th leading cause of death in the United States. AFSP looks forward to working with the Caucus to raise awareness of mental health issues, promote bipartisan policy solutions, and help reduce stigma to improve mental health and prevent suicide.\u201d\n\nIn recent years, Congress has worked on a bipartisan basis to implement crucial mental health services, including through establishing the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, permanently expanding the successful Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) demonstration program, expanding access to suicide prevention programs for veterans, and building out the infrastructure for mental health in K-12 school settings. The Senate Mental Health Caucus will work to ensure those investments are effective and improve the lives of American families as they work to build on this historic bipartisan legislation.\n\nU.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Susan Collins (R-ME), John Fetterman (D-PA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) are also members of the caucus.\n\nThe full mission statement of the Senate Mental Health Caucus is available here.\n\nA recording of the press conference is available here.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-issue-statement-regarding-domestic-terrorist-threats", "Tillis, Colleagues Issue Statement Regarding Domestic Terrorist Threats", "2023-10-13", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), John Cornyn (R-TX), Mike Lee (R-UT), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Tom Cotton (R-AR), John Kennedy (R-LA), and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) issued the following joint statement warning potential perpetrators against making any domestic threats precipitated by Hamas\u2019 attacks in Israel:\n\n\u201cThe Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel are despicable and depraved. As we mourn the hundreds of lives lost, including at least 27 U.S. citizens, we must also remain vigilant in our efforts to safeguard our communities at home. The first duty of government is to protect the national security of our citizens and keep Americans safe.\n\n\u201cTo any bad actors who dare cross onto American soil seeking to exploit the crisis in Israel and wreak havoc domestically, our message is clear: Any threat to the United States will be pursued and suppressed swiftly, forcefully and to the fullest extent of U.S. justice. Your vile and hateful acts have no place here. The United States will relentlessly defend against domestic threats while supporting Israel as it fights to eradicate Hamas\u2019 campaign of evil.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/12/budd-klobuchar-smith-introduce-bill-to-support-volunteer-drivers/", "Budd, Klobuchar, Smith Introduce Bill to Support Volunteer Drivers", "2023-10-12", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Today, Senators Ted Budd (R-NC), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Tina Smith (D-MN) introduced S. 3020, the Volunteer Driver Tax Appreciation Act.\n\nThe bill would increase the charitable mileage tax deduction rate for drivers from $0.14 to $0.655 per mile. This would ease the financial burden on volunteer drivers who provide rides for seniors and other non-drivers through churches, community organizations, and nonprofits, giving them access to health care, meals, and other essential services.\n\nSenator Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cVolunteer drivers provide critical services to predominantly rural areas of our country. Seniors, veterans, and disabled citizens are able to access food and healthcare through the charitable work of others. Increasing the charitable mileage reimbursement rate will make it easier for volunteer drivers to continue giving of themselves and helping more people. Thank you to Senator Klobuchar for leading this vital legislation.\u201d\n\nSenator Klobuchar said:\n\n\u201cVolunteer drivers are vital to rural communities across our state, helping seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, and others access necessities like meals and health care. By increasing the charitable mileage tax deduction rate, this legislation will help reduce the financial burden on volunteer drivers and ensure they can continue to serve their communities.\u201d\n\nSenator Smith said:\n\n\u201cMinnesota\u2019s volunteer drivers are critical to communities across our state, helping provide access to food, medication, transport to seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities. This legislation would increase the charitable mileage tax reimbursement rate and lower the financial burden for these volunteers. By more fairly compensating them for their services, we can ensure volunteers are able to continue helping the people who rely on them.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-demand-answers-for-violations-of-iran-s-nuclear-program", "Tillis, Colleagues Demand Answers For Violations of Iran\u2019s Nuclear Program", "2023-10-12", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and 15 of his fellow Republican colleagues sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken requesting an update on U.S. action to hold Iran accountable for multiple violations of theComprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) signed by the Obama Administration, Iran, and other countries agreeing to place restrictions on Iran\u2019s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. One condition included the JCPOA tasking the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to ensure the regime in Tehran adheres to nuclear restrictions. Even with the signed agreement, Iran proves to be non-compliant and further continues nuclear programs.\n\n\u201cThe Iranian regime is intent on fomenting terror across the region, as evidenced by its proxies, Hamas and Hezbollah\u2019s, brutal attacks this weekend on our ally, Israel. Now more than ever, you must ensure that you hold the regime accountable for its failure to comply with obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Further, we were disappointed that the administration did not call for a formal censure of Tehran given its continued non-compliance with the IAEA,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cThe Biden Administration has failed to press for concrete action against Iran in Vienna. We are especially disturbed by reports that the United States led efforts to oppose a censure of Iran. As Iran violates its commitments and refuses to comply with the IAEA, your business-as-usual approach to resolving the situation is tantamount to an endorsement of the Iranian regime\u2019s activities,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nSpecifically, the senators made the following requests:\n\nAn explanation as to why the State Department did not seek a censure of Iran during the September 11-15, 2023 Board of Governors meeting and the extent to which this decision was due to ongoing nuclear negotiations;\n\nAll documents related to the United States decision to oppose a censure of Iran at the September 11-15, 2023 Board of Governors meeting;\n\nA determination as to whether Iran is in compliance with the NPT;\n\nIf the State Department finds that Iran is in compliance with the NPT, an explanation of how Iran is in compliance with the treaty given the IAEA\u2019s findings of safeguards violations at two sites involving undeclared nuclear material and activities;\n\nAn explanation of what the State Department plans to do about Iran\u2019s failure to cooperate with the IAEA regarding the two outstanding sites of concern, which amounts to violations of Tehran\u2019s legal obligation to cooperate with the agency; and\n\nWhether the State Department will provide financial incentives or concessions for Iran while Tehran fails to comply with the IAEA\u2019s requests.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-call-on-president-biden-to-convene-the-g7-to-jointly-sanction-iran-following-hamas-attacks-on-israel", "Tillis, Colleagues Call on President Biden to Convene the G7 to Jointly Sanction Iran Following Hamas Attacks on Israel", "2023-10-11", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and 9 of his fellow Republican senators are calling on President Biden to immediately convene the G7 nations and take coordinated action to further isolate Iran with crippling sanctions. The senators are urging President Biden to punish the evil Iranian regime, which remains the world\u2019s largest state sponsor of terror, isolate its support of evil terrorism, and deny its ability to continue supporting the brutality witnessed in Israel.\n\n\u201cThe terror and devastation unleashed on Israel over the last 72 hours by Iran-backed Hamas terrorists has rightly horrified the world. Innocent families were murdered in their homes. Teenage girls have been raped and then burned alive. An elderly wheelchair-bound woman, who was later identified as a Holocaust survivor, was brutally dragged through the streets of Gaza and killed. Children who witnessed the murders of their parents have been kidnapped and are now being held hostage by Hamas,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cWhile we appreciate the willingness of the leaders of France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany to stand in support of Israel as expressed in your joint statement yesterday, the statement failed to direct any action toward the evil behind these attacks: Iran. We know that the Iranian regime is behind the brutal attacks on innocent civilians being carried out by terrorists from Hamas and Palestinian Jihad. The United States and our allies cannot ignore this reality for a second longer. We the undersigned senators urge you to immediately convene the G7 nations and take coordinated action to further isolate Iran with severe sanctions and action that will strike directly at the wealth that this evil brings to the Ayatollah and the Iranian mullahs,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cNow, it falls on you as President of the United States to lead the freedom-loving world. We must punish the evil Iranian regime, which remains the world\u2019s largest state sponsor of terror, and deny its ability to continue supporting the brutality witnessed in Israel from ever occurring again,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/10/budd-blackburn-colleagues-call-on-biden-to-freeze-6-billion-iran-transfer/", "Budd, Blackburn, Colleagues Call on Biden to Freeze $6 Billion Iran Transfer", "2023-10-10", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has co-signed a letter to President Biden, calling on the administration to immediately rescind the waivers that allowed Iranian funds to be converted and moved to more accessible bank accounts, as well as work with Qatar to immediately freeze the accounts containing these funds.\n\nThe letter reads, in part:\n\n\u201cIran is the world\u2019s largest state sponsor of terrorism, and the Wall Street Journal reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps worked with Hamas to plan the ongoing attacks on Israel. These horrific attacks come on the heels of the State Department issuing sanctions waivers for Iranian funds held in South Korean accounts to be converted from won to euros and then transferred to bank accounts in Qatar.\u201d\n\n\u2014\n\n\u201cTo stand by and allow Iran access to these funds as Hamas infiltrates Israel and murders, rapes, and mutilates countless Israelis is unconscionable. Your administration claims these funds are only available for humanitarian use, but money is fungible, and there is a significant risk they could be used to further efforts by Iran or Hamas against Israel. Moreover, allowing $6 billion to flow into Iran\u2019s economy, even if the purpose is for humanitarian aid, allows the Iranian regime to reallocate even more funds to supporting terrorism. Oversight over the use of this $6 billion is not enough, and the oversight mechanism is crippled by your reported decision to pull the longstanding Treasury attach\u00e9 from Qatar. The State Department should immediately rescind the waivers that allowed Iranian funds to be converted and moved to more accessible bank accounts, as well as work with U.S. ally Qatar to immediately freeze the accounts containing these funds.\u201d\n\n\u2014\n\n\u201cWe must stand with Israel and restrict access to these Iranian funds. Iran should be placed under the most stringent sanctions admissible. Anything short of this is unacceptable and only aids in the ability of Iran and Hamas to fund these heinous acts.\u201d\n\nThe letter was led by Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and signed by a total of 19 senators including Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Steve Daines (R-MT), Rick Scott (R-FL), Kevin Cramer (ND), John Thune (SD), James Lankford (R-OK), Mike Lee (R-UT), John Cornyn (R-TX), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Katie Britt (R-AL), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Mike Braun (R-IN), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Roger Marshall (R-KS).\n\nRead the full text letter here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-call-on-biden-to-freeze-6-billion-iran-transfer", "Tillis, Colleagues Call on Biden to Freeze $6 Billion Iran Transfer", "2023-10-10", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and 19 Senate Republicans are calling on President Biden and the State Department to immediately rescind the waivers that allowed Iranian funds to be converted and moved to more accessible bank accounts and work with Qatar to immediately freeze the accounts containing these funds.\n\n\u201cIran is the world\u2019s largest state sponsor of terrorism, and the Wall Street Journal reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps worked with Hamas to plan the ongoing attacks on Israel. These horrific attacks come on the heels of the State Department issuing sanctions waivers for Iranian funds held in South Korean accounts to be converted from won to euros and then transferred to bank accounts in Qatar,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\n\u201cTo stand by and allow Iran access to these funds as Hamas infiltrates Israel and murders, rapes, and mutilates countless Israelis is unconscionable. Your administration claims these funds are only available for humanitarian use, but money is fungible, and there is a significant risk they could be used to further efforts by Iran or Hamas against Israel. Moreover, allowing $6 billion to flow into Iran\u2019s economy, even if the purpose is for humanitarian aid, allows the Iranian regime to reallocate even more funds to supporting terrorism. Oversight over the use of this $6 billion is not enough, and the oversight mechanism is crippled by your reported decision to pull the longstanding Treasury attach\u00e9 from Qatar. The State Department should immediately rescind the waivers that allowed Iranian funds to be converted and moved to more accessible bank accounts, as well as work with U.S. ally Qatar to immediately freeze the accounts containing these funds,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cWe must stand with Israel and restrict access to these Iranian funds. Iran should be placed under the most stringent sanctions admissible. Anything short of this is unacceptable and only aids in the ability of Iran and Hamas to fund these heinous acts,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/05/budd-warnock-tillis-van-hollen-introduce-bill-to-help-companies-attract-investors/", "Budd, Warnock, Tillis, Van Hollen Introduce Bill to Help Companies Attract Investors", "2023-10-05", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has introduced the Encouraging Public Offerings Act. He was joined by Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).\n\nThe bipartisan legislation encourages capital formation by making initial public offerings (IPOs) more attractive for companies, while encouraging market transparency to better protect investors. The bill would also allow companies of all sizes to confidentially \u201ctest the waters\u201d and gauge interest in a potential securities offering prior to a public IPO.\n\nWhile serving in the U.S. House, Senator Budd introduced this bill in 2017 and 2020. On November 1, 2017, the House passed the bill by a vote of 419-0.\n\nThe legislative text of the bill is HERE.\n\nSen. Budd said in a statement:\n\n\u201cFundamentally, financial markets connect money to ideas. But the process of taking a company public has become more and more difficult. This bill makes significant changes to securities laws to reduce the risk that companies face when they go public, and ensure that the everyday investor has access to the opportunities that help Americans save and watch their dollars grow.\u201d\n\nSen. Rev. Warnock said:\n\n\u201cSmall businesses are the backbones of our communities. Glad to partner with Senator Budd in leading this bipartisan effort to increase access to more funding for small businesses that are interested in entering the public markets.\u201d\n\nSenator Tillis said:\n\n\u201cThis bill encourages economic growth by allowing companies to \u2018test the waters\u2019 before offering an IPO. By changing securities law to reduce many of the risks associated with IPOs, this legislation would lead to greater investment opportunities for American companies and everyday investors.\u201d\n\nSenator Van Hollen said:\n\n\u201cTaking a company public can be a complex and costly process. This bipartisan bill will make it easier for emerging companies to chart their path to an IPO and attract the capital they need to continue growing. This is a key way to boost opportunity for startups and small businesses \u2013 and the workers they employ \u2013 across Maryland and the country.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/tillis-colleagues-call-on-majority-leader-schumer-to-keep-senate-in-session-until-spending-bills-are-passed", "Tillis, Colleagues Call on Majority Leader Schumer to Keep Senate in Session Until Spending Bills Are Passed", "2023-10-05", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senator Thom Tillis and 16 fellow Republican senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) urging for the U.S. Senate to remain in session until all 12 appropriations bills have been debated and passed by the Senate to fully fund the government.\n\nThe U.S. government averted a shutdown on September 30th and set a deadline for new spending agreement for November 17th. The letter comes as Senator Schumer adjourned the Senate for a state work period beginning, October 5th.\n\n\u201cWe urge you to modify the Senate calendar so that we remain in session Monday through Friday every week until all 12 fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills are passed in the Senate and House and signed into law by President Biden,\u201dthe senators wrote.\n\n\u201cThe House of Representatives has already taken the step to forgo their October recess and the Senate must follow suit. While valuable work is done while Senators are back in their home states, it is imperative that we remain in DC until our appropriations work can be completed. That is what the American people expect and deserve of us,\u201d the senators continued.\n\n\u201cThe continuing resolution extended government funding until November 17th . That allows seven weeks for the Senate to consider the fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills. The past nine weeks make it clear that we cannot afford to take a weekday off, much less a weeklong recess, with so much work to be completed in such a condensed time,\u201d the senators concluded.\n\nRead the full letter HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/04/budd-joins-call-to-keep-senate-in-session-until-all-spending-bills-are-passed/", "Budd Joins Call to Keep Senate in Session Until All Spending Bills Are Passed", "2023-10-04", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Today, Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) co-signed a letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), urging him to keep the U.S. Senate in session until all 12 appropriations bills have been debated and passed by the Senate.\n\nThe letter was led by Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and signed by a total of 13 senators including, Senators Deb Fischer (R-NE), John Barrasso (R-WY), Katie Boyd Britt (R-AL), John Cornyn (R-TX), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Rick Scott (R-FL), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), John Thune (R-SD), and Roger Wicker (R-MS).\n\nRead the full text letter:\n\nWe urge you to modify the Senate calendar so that we remain in session Monday through Friday every week until all 12 fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills are passed in the Senate and House and signed into law by President Biden. The House of Representatives has already taken the step to forgo their October recess and the Senate must follow suit. While valuable work is done while Senators are back in their home states, it is imperative that we remain in DC until our appropriations work can be completed. That is what the American people expect and deserve of us.\n\nThe Senate Appropriations Committee passed all 12 appropriations bills through Committee in June and July. In August and September, the Senate could have debated them, amended them, and ultimately passed final versions before the September 30th deadline. While that alone wouldn\u2019t have staved off a shutdown, it would have shown we are committed to working together to tackle this critical government funding issue. Instead, the Senate recessed for five of the nine weeks and failed to pass even a single appropriations bill out of the Senate. The continuing resolution extended government funding until November 17th. That allows seven weeks for the Senate to consider the fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills. The past nine weeks make it clear that we cannot afford to take a weekday off, much less a weeklong recess, with so much work to be completed in such a condensed time.\n\nThis is too important of an issue to put off. We must get back to regular order, and that means passing all 12 appropriations bills. We the undersigned request that you update the Senate calendar so that we are in session every weekday until all 12 appropriations bills are passed.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"], ["https://www.tillis.senate.gov/2023/10/senate-passes-tillis-legislation-to-prevent-maternal-deaths-improve-health-services-and-outcomes-for-mothers", "Senate Passes Tillis Legislation to Prevent Maternal Deaths, Improve Health Services and Outcomes for Mothers", "2023-10-04", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Thom Tillis", "T000476", "www.tillis.senate.gov", "tillis", "https://www.tillis.senate.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 The U.S. Senate recently passed bipartisan legislation introduced by Senator Thom Tillis that would support states in preserving maternal health throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum by addressing disparities in maternal health outcomes and finding solutions to enhance health care quality and outcomes for mothers.\n\nOne out of 75 U.S. births tragically result in stillbirths, accounting for nearly 21,000 stillbirths a year\u2014more stillbirths annually than the number of babies who pass during the first year of life.\n\n\u201cMaternal health is a serious issue in North Carolina and across the country with an alarming rise in pregnancy-related deaths,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cWe must work to improve maternal health outcomes and support mothers throughout pregnancy and beyond, and I am proud the Senate passed this bipartisan legislation that will increase access to maternal health care, address disparities, and improve outcomes for mothers.\u201d\n\nRecent reports and data suggest that further reduction in the incidence of stillbirth is possible, highlighting that nearly 25% of stillbirths are potentially preventable. Alarmingly, in our nation, approximately 21,000 babies are stillborn every year. This is greater than the number of babies that die during the first year of life and more than ten times the number of babies that die annually due to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Data comparing the United States to other countries shows that our nation can and must do more to prevent stillbirth. In the last two decades, the stillbirth rate in the United States declined by a negligible 0.4 percent, and, in a report published by the World Health Organization comparing progress in improving stillbirth rates, the United States ranked 183 out of 195 countries.\n\nThe Maternal and Child Health Stillbirth Prevention Act of 2023 amends Title V, the Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant of the Social Security Act, to clarify that stillbirth prevention activities and research are an allowable use of funds. This clarification will support stillbirth prevention activities, thereby helping to save the lives of mothers and babies.\n\nThe Maternal and Child Health Stillbirth Prevention Act is endorsed by Healthy Birth Day, 1st Breath, Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health (formerly 2020 Mom), 2 Degrees Foundation, Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP), March of Dimes, Measure the Placenta, Mom Congress, PUSH for Empowered Pregnancy, \u201cReproductive and Placental Research Unit, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Yale University School of Medicine\u201d, Return to Zero: H.O.P.E., Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM), American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), Every Mother Counts, Association of Women\u2019s Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN), Start Healing Together, M.E.N.D. (Mommies Enduring Neonatal Death), Society for Reproductive Investigation (SRI), American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM), What to Expect Project, Postpartum Support International, Amniotic Fluid Embolism (AFE) Foundation, National Education Association (NEA), Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH), National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women\u2019s Health (NPWH), Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance, SUDC Foundation, and RH Impact.\n\nFull text of the legislation is available here.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:49:26Z"], ["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2023/10/02/budd-joins-letter-demanding-accountability-on-iran-linked-dod-official/", "Budd Joins Letter Demanding Accountability on Iran-Linked DOD Official", "2023-10-02", "2023", "2023-10", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) has co-signed a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin demanding a full explanation and accountability regarding a senior Pentagon official who has close links to the Iranian government.\n\nAriane Tabatabai, the chief of staff to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, was reportedly engaged in an Iranian government-linked initiative to bolster the Iranian government\u2019s image and reinforce Tehran\u2019s national security views. Leaked emails show Tabatabai asking the Iranian government for input on her speaking engagements and offering to consult with the Iranian government on a congressional briefing that she was invited to give.\n\nIn the letter, the senators called for the immediate suspension of Ms. Tabatabai\u2019s security clearance.\n\nThe letter was led by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) and signed by a total of 30 senators.\n\nRead the full letter here:\n\nWe are concerned that an individual who allegedly served as part of an Iranian Foreign Ministry information operation is currently serving in a senior Department of Defense position. We urge you to take immediate action to ensure that the Department has not been compromised.\n\nOn Tuesday, September 26, Semafor reported that Ariane Tabatabai, who currently serves as chief of staff to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict (SOLIC), was part of a so-called Iran Experts Initiative that \u201csenior Iranian Foreign Ministry officials initiated [in] a quiet effort to bolster Tehran\u2019s image and positions on global security issues \u2013 particularly its nuclear program.\u201d\n\nAccording to communications that Semafor reviewed, Ms. Tabatabai agreed to join the Iranian government-linked Initiative in early 2014, after meeting a Germany-based Iranian diplomat in Prague. On at least two occasions, Ms. Tabatabai \u201cchecked in with Iran\u2019s Foreign Ministry before attending policy events.\u201d The report details one occasion in which an Iranian think tank chief, who acted as an apparent liaison to the Iranian Foreign Minister, dissuaded Ms. Tabatabai from participating in a conference in Israel when she asked for his feedback. The report also indicates that Ms. Tabatabai potentially sought the Iranian government\u2019s input on a congressional briefing that she was invited to give in July 2014.\n\nConcerns about Ms. Tabatabai are not new. In March 2021, shortly after Ms. Tabatabai was appointed senior adviser in the Office of the Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, Iranian dissidents noted Ms. Tabatabai\u2019s long history of echoing the Iranian regime\u2019s talking points. In April 2021, several House members requested a review of Ms. Tabatabai\u2019s security clearance. In response, the Biden administration dismissed these allegations as \u201csmears and slander.\u201d\n\nThe latest allegations reported in Semafor, however, indicate that Ms. Tabatabai may have been engaged in a relationship with the Iranian regime well beyond what even her strongest critics alleged. The fact that the Department initially responded to these latest allegations by rushing a full-throated defense of Ms. Tabatabai, rather than taking the time to ensure that our national security has not been compromised, suggests that you are protecting hiring missteps rather than prioritizing national security.\n\nIran continues to threaten U.S. military personnel in the Middle East and remains intent on assassinating American citizens here in the United States. Given these facts, we find it simply unconscionable that a senior Department official would continue to hold a sensitive position despite her alleged participation in an Iranian government information operation. While we note that Assistant Secretary of Defense for SOLIC Christopher Maier, who is Ms. Tabatabai\u2019s current supervisor, testified before the House on Thursday that the Department is \u201cactively looking into whether all law and policy was properly followed in granting my chief of staff top secret special compartmented information,\u201d we urge you to suspend Ms. Tabatabai\u2019s security clearance immediately pending further review, as the State Department did with her former supervisor, Robert Malley.\n\nIn addition, we ask that you provide answers to the following questions no later than October 6:\n\n1. On what date did the Department of Defense learn that Ms. Tabatabai had served as part of the Iranian government-linked Iran Experts Initiative?\n\n2. On what date was Ms. Tabatabai granted a security clearance, and what was the sponsoring agency that made the determination to grant Ms. Tabatabai a security clearance?\n\n3. Has Ms. Tabatabai\u2019s security clearance been subjected to a periodic reinvestigation and, if so, on what date was Ms. Tabatabai\u2019s most recent periodic reinvestigation completed?\n\n4. Was Ms. Tabatabai subjected to any additional counterintelligence screening, to include a polygraph investigation, as part of her security clearance investigation or any subsequent review of her eligibility to hold a security clearance or access restricted or special access information?\n\n5. On her Standard Form-86, did Ms. Tabatabai list her contacts with:\n\na. Former Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif;\n\nb. Academic Adnan Tabatabai;\n\nc. Mostafa Zahrani, the head of the Iran think tank IPIS; and/or\n\nd. Former Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh?\n\n6. Was Ms. Tabatabai read into any special access programs (SAPs)?\n\na. If so, was she subjected to enhanced security vetting, per SAP security policy, or was she granted a waiver?\n\nb. If she was granted a waiver to be read into SAPs, which DoD official approved the waiver?\n\nThank you in advance for your attention to this urgent matter.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:43:12Z"]], "truncated": false, "filtered_table_rows_count": 373, "expanded_columns": [], "expandable_columns": [], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "units": {}, "query": {"sql": "select url, title, date, year, month, party, chamber, state, member_name, bioguide_id, domain, scraper, source, date_source, text, has_text, collected_at, updated_at from releases where \"chamber\" = :p0 and \"state\" = :p1 and \"year\" = :p2 order by date desc limit 101", "params": {"p0": "Senate", "p1": "NC", "p2": "2023"}}, "facet_results": {"party": {"name": "party", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&state=NC&year=2023", "results": [{"value": "Republican", "label": "Republican", "count": 373, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&state=NC&year=2023&party=Republican", "selected": false}], "truncated": false}, "chamber": {"name": "chamber", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&state=NC&year=2023", "results": [{"value": "Senate", "label": "Senate", "count": 373, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?state=NC&year=2023", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}, "state": {"name": "state", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&state=NC&year=2023", "results": [{"value": "NC", "label": "NC", "count": 373, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&year=2023", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}, "year": {"name": "year", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&state=NC&year=2023", "results": [{"value": "2023", "label": "2023", "count": 373, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&state=NC", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}}, "suggested_facets": [], "next": "2023-10-02,https~3A~2F~2Fwww~2Ebudd~2Esenate~2Egov~2F2023~2F10~2F02~2Fbudd-joins-letter-demanding-accountability-on-iran-linked-dod-official~2F", "next_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&state=NC&year=2023&_next=2023-10-02%2Chttps~3A~2F~2Fwww~2Ebudd~2Esenate~2Egov~2F2023~2F10~2F02~2Fbudd-joins-letter-demanding-accountability-on-iran-linked-dod-official~2F&_sort_desc=date", "private": false, "allow_execute_sql": true, "query_ms": 281.96664503775537, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}