{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://noem.house.gov/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=9071D806-92CD-416F-A728-BF22A5D06B1C", "Questions from My Latest Town Hall", "2017-10-27", "2017", "2017-10", "Republican", "House", "SD", "Kristi Noem", "N000184", "noem.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "It often goes unreported, but the House has passed more than 250 bills this year, many following through on the conservative priorities I\u2019ve been discussing for nearly a decade. These 250 House-passed bills include the repeal and replacement of Obamacare, resources for President Trump\u2019s border wall proposal, protections for unborn children, VA reform, and a rollback of numerous Obama-era regulations.\r\nMore than 50 of these bills have become law, including many regulatory repeals and national-security legislation I wrote to bring more women into peace negotiations. Others, such as Obamacare repeal, continue to be debated in the Senate. This was the opening report I gave at a recent town hall in Mobridge \u2013 one in a series of town halls and telephone town halls I\u2019ve done in recent months.\r\nAfter that initial report came questions. The first was from Carson, a senior at Mobridge-Pollock High School. He wanted to know what had been done on the issue of abortion. I talked to him about how I helped introduce legislation that would define life as beginning at conception. While we haven\u2019t had the opportunity to vote on that specific provision yet, the House did recently pass the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which bans abortions after 20 weeks (the point at which studies indicate babies can feel pain). We were also able to get legislation signed into law this year that would empower states to withhold family-planning funds from organizations like Planned Parenthood.\r\nThe next question came from Jayden, who was wondering what I thought of President Trump. I explained that I was pleased the president was strong on national security, which is his number one job. President Trump also campaigned on building a wall on the southern border, repealing Obamacare, and reforming the tax code \u2013 all of which are priorities that I share. Additionally, he put a pro-life Supreme Court justice on the bench, which was a huge accomplishment.\r\nThen, a Navy veteran from the area asked about the inefficiency that happens in many government-run agencies. I\u2019m incredibly grateful for this man\u2019s service and believe his concerns are well founded. I\u2019ve fought this kind of inefficiency and waste many times, including through my CUFF Act. This legislation, which has passed the House and is awaiting action in the Senate, would stop certain Social Security benefits from going to people wanted for felonies and parole violations.\r\nThe grand finale question came from a young woman interested in my thoughts on unions. South Dakota is a \u201cRight to Work\u201d state, which means individuals can\u2019t be required to join unions or be forced to pay for union dues as a condition of employment (something that\u2019s required in other states). I think \u201cRight to Work\u201d is the right approach.\r\nI was grateful to everyone who made it to my town hall in Mobridge, and I hope to either see you at one in the near future or talk with you during one of my upcoming telephone town halls. In the meantime, don\u2019t hesitate to visit one of my offices, give us a call, or send me an email. To get the location of the office nearest you, please visit my website: noem.house.gov", 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": ["http://noem.house.gov/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=9071D806-92CD-416F-A728-BF22A5D06B1C"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9495250415056944, "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"}