{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20140221082956/http://denham.house.gov/newsletter/weekly-update-rep-denham-december-13-2013", "Weekly Update from Rep. Denham - December 13, 2013", "2013-12-13", "2013", "2013-12", "Republican", "House", "CA", "Jeffrey Denham", "D000612", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "Dear Friend,\n\tYesterday the House passed a budget agreement which makes permanent changes to mandatory spending programs, taking a step in the right direction towards long-term budgetary reform that will end our out-of-control spending and bring fiscal stability to Washington. I supported the agreement because it makes common sense reforms and replaces the indiscriminate cuts put in place by the President\u2019s sequester plan in the 2011 Budget Control Act. I believe we must rein in our out-of-control spending, which is why I\u2019ve voted for budgets that balance every year I\u2019ve served in Congress.\n\tWe also passed a one-month extension to the farm bill last night. The short-term extension is a temporary solution as we work towards having a full 5-year farm bill signed into law. It gives certainty to families across the country whose household budgets rely on stable prices at the grocery store and to farmers who depend on the safety net this legislation provides. I continue to work along with the rest of the Conference Committee to find common ground with counterparts in the Senate and on the other side of the aisle, and I look forward to seeing our final agreement finished early next year.\n\tToday marks the 377th birthday of the National Guard. Our guard members function as citizen soldiers standing ready to defend our nation whenever the call may come, and I am especially thankful today for their service. This week we passed key defense legislation, the National Defense Authorization Act, which provides the resources the National Guard and the other branches of our military need to keep our country safe.\n\tOn Wednesday, we passed a bill I co-sponsored shortly after its introduction in May called the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act. This legislation would prioritize funding for pediatric research in the hopes of helping children with autism, cancer and other diseases. As a father, I was inspired by Gabriella\u2019s story. She is one of too many children who have battled life-threatening illnesses, and she passed away about a month ago. You can see more of her story here.\n\tI met with representatives from Congregations Building Community in Modesto to discuss my support for securing our borders and for implementing real and effective immigration reform to improve our economy, aid in job creation and unite families nationwide. I will continue to work to find a fix for our broken system.\nI enjoyed meeting with representatives of Congregations Building Community.\nOn Thursday, I met with two members of the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission. Chairman Johnson and Executive Director Mortensen gave me an update on their work with ACE, and I shared my priorities as we move towards passing a Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act (or PRIIA) next year.\n\tAs your representative in Congress, each year I have the privilege of nominating a limited number of people to four of the five military service academies. I got on the phone today to personally congratulate the students I nominated in 2013. It\u2019s an honor to share such good news.\u00a0For more information about the military academy nomination process, please visit my website here.\nThis call was for Alex, a Turlock student at Pitman High School who I nominated to the Air Force Academy.\u00a0\nMy Twitter\u00a0and Facebook\u00a0pages are great ways to stay updated on what I\u2019m doing in the Central Valley and in D.C. You can also visit my website\u00a0and contact me there with your questions and concerns.\n\t  \n\tJEFF DENHAM", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20140221082956/http://denham.house.gov/newsletter/weekly-update-rep-denham-december-13-2013"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6334501560777426, "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"}