Saturday, January 30, 2021

FLORIDA - SENATOR MARCO RUBIO eNEWSLETTER 01/29/2021

This Week in the Office of Senator Marco Rubio

On Sunday, I joined Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace to discuss impeachment, President Joe Biden’s immigration plans, and the future of the Republican Party. Watch the video here.

On Thursday, I spoke on the Senate floor to discuss the dignity of life and the need for true pro-family policies. Watch the full remarks here.

On Tuesday, I published an op-ed in RealClearPolitics urging President Joe Biden to call on the House and Senate to pass $2,000 relief payments for struggling Americans. Read the full article here.

On Tuesday, I joined Your World with Neil Cavuto to discuss the upcoming impeachment trial in the Senate, the Biden Administration’s unilateral actions, and all things COVID-19. Watch the video here.

On Wednesday, I joined Fox and Friends to discuss China, court-packing, and the cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline. Watch the video here.

On Wednesday, I joined Maria Bartiromo on Fox News Primetime to discuss the need to open schools and how the Biden Administration will handle China and the demands from the radical left. Watch the video here.

On Wednesday, during a Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Nominations Hearing, I questioned Linda Thomas-Greenfield, President Joe Biden’s nominee to serve as the next U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. I raised my concerns about a paid speech given by Thomas-Greenfield at a Confucius Institute in late October 2019 at Savannah State University where she praised China’s role in Africa, China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and said China was in a “unique position” to spread “ideals,” referring to good governance and the rule of law, across the continent. Watch the video here.

On Thursday, I issued a statement after President Joe Biden rescinded the Mexico City Policy. Read more here.

On Friday, I published an op-ed in the Washington Post explaining how President Joe Biden should respond to China’s continued exploitation of U.S. capital markets. Read the full article here.

On Friday, I urged President Joe Biden to move forward with his commitment to reopen U.S. schools within his first 100 days in office. Read more here.

On Monday, I released a statement after the Senate voted to confirm Dr. Janet L. Yellen to be Secretary of the Treasury. I was unable to travel to Washington to vote in person but would have opposed her confirmation. Read more here.

On Monday, as the Senate confirmed Dr. Janet L. Yellen to be Secretary of the Treasury, I joined Senators Ben Sasse (R-NE), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Mitt Romney (R-UT) in sending a letter to Dr. Yellen expressing concern about her assessment of risks to national security posed by the financial and technological interdependence between the U.S. and China. Read more here.

On Sunday, I sent a letter to McKinsey & Company’s Global Managing Partner Kevin Sneader after the company’s Moscow office told its employees they could not participate in peaceful protests supporting Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who was poisoned and subsequently detained by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime. Read more here

On Thursday, as Acting Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, I joined Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, in writing to Christi Grimm, Principal Deputy Inspector within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to request that the HHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG) expand the scope of their ongoing audit of potential payments going to U.S. entities that have partnerships with genomic data companies with ties to the Chinese government to include a review of HHS’s national security procedures throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Read more here.

On Friday, Senators Tom Cotton, (R-AR), Ben Sasse (R-NE), and I sent a letter to Governor Gina Raimondo, nominee for U.S. Commerce Secretary, following comments “suggesting that all aspects of the approach to U.S. economic and technological competition are up for review.” Read more here.

On Thursday, I joined The Hugh Hewitt Show to discuss pro-life policy and the March for Life, vaccine distribution in Florida, impeachment, and more. Listen to the full interview here.

On Thursday, I joined Preston Scott on the Tallahassee Morning Show to discuss the first seven days of the Biden Administration, President Joe Biden’s plans to pack the court and use emergency powers on climate change, and more. Read more here.

On Wednesday, I joined A Fondo con Juan Manuel Cao on AmericaTeve to discuss impeachment, President Joe Biden’s executive orders, the cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline, President Biden’s policy toward Cuba, and my support for granting Temporary Protected Status to eligible Venezuelan nationals currently in the U.S. Read more here.

Legislation Introduced

On Tuesday, I joined Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) in introducing the Venezuela Temporary Protected Status Act of 2021 , a bill to grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible Venezuelans currently in the U.S. who fled the Maduro regime’s man-made crisis. Read more here.
On Tuesday, Senators Brian Schatz (D-HI), Rick Scott (R-FL), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), and I reintroduced the bipartisan Restoring Resilient Reefs Act of 2021, which would reauthorize and modernize the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000, strengthen NOAA’s Coral Reef program, and give innovative new tools and resources to the non-federal partners who are closest to the crisis in American coral reefs: states, territories, and local communities. Read more here.
On Tuesday, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and I reintroduced the Strengthening America’s Health Care Readiness Act, bipartisan legislation to provide a historic investment in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), Nurse Corps, and National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) programs to bolster health emergency surge capacity and restore the pipeline of physicians, nurses, and other health professionals that will address existing health workforce shortages throughout our country. Read more here.
On Tuesday, I reintroduced the Adversarial Platform Prevention (APP) Act , legislation that would establish a set of data protection- and censorship-related standards and restrictions that must be met by high-risk foreign software, like Chinese-owned TikTok and WeChat, in order to legally operate in the United States. Read more here.
On Wednesday, Senator Rick Scott (R-FL), U.S. Representatives Brian Mast (R-FL) and Darren Soto (D-FL), and I reintroduced the South Florida Clean Coastal Waters Act, legislation that would direct the Interagency Task Force on Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) to assess the causes and consequences of HABs in Lake Okeechobee and around Florida’s southern coastlines, identify needed resources, and develop a plan of action to address these challenges. Read more here.
On Wednesday, I joined Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and 42 Senators in reintroducing the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which would provide common-sense protections for unborn children at 20 weeks after fertilization, a point at which there is significant scientific evidence that abortion inflicts tremendous pain on the unborn. Read more here.
On Thursday, Senators Tim Scott (R-SC), Mike Braun (R-IN), John Cornyn (R-TX), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Ben Sasse (R-NE), Rick Scott (R-FL), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and I reintroduced the Creating Hope and Opportunity for Individuals and Communities through Education Act (CHOICE Act), which will expand opportunities and foster success by providing parents greater options when it comes to their child’s education. Read more here.
On Thursday, I joined Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) and colleagues in reintroducing the bipartisan American Security Drone Act, which would make sure that American policies do not allow for Chinese companies to continue routinely stealing U.S. intellectual property in an attempt to undermine our national security. Read more here.
On Thursday, I joined Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Jim Risch (R-ID), Ranking Member and Chairman, respectively, of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, and Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) in reintroducing a bipartisan Senate resolution reaffirming the partnership between the United States and the Republic of Ecuador. Read more here.
On Thursday, I joined Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and our colleagues in reintroducing the Protecting Individuals with Down Syndrome Act, which would ban a doctor from performing an abortion being sought because the unborn child has Down syndrome. Read more here.
On Thursday, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and I introduced the Local Water Protection Act to reduce water pollution in local communities by reauthorizing an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant program that provides funds for states to develop and implement programs for managing nonpoint source water pollution, or pollution from diffuse sources including runoff from farms, managed forests, and urban areas. Read more here.
On Thursday, I reintroduced the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act and joined introduction of ten additional pieces of legislation to protect the sanctity of life. Read more here.

In Case You Missed It...

“Rubio to Biden: Let's Get $2K Payments Done Now” (RealClearPolitics, 01/26/21)

“Rubio: China is exploiting U.S. capital markets and workers. Here’s what Biden should do.” (Washington Post, 01/28/21)

“Sen. Marco Rubio wants Florida to get share of Gulf of Mexico oil lease revenue” (NWF Daily News, 01/26/21)

“A bipartisan group of U.S Senators, including Sens. Rick Scott and Marco Rubio, is supporting a bill that would ramp up funding and partnerships aimed at preserving a most delicate and vulnerable resource off Florida's coast.” (Restoring Resilient Reefs Act: Lawmakers propose legislation to protect vulnerable coral reefs, WPTV West Palm Beach 01/26/21)

“Rubio: COVID Relief Shouldn’t Go to Schools That Aren’t Open” (Breitbart, 01/27/21)

“Ending Keystone pipeline was 'proof' the left prioritizes their agenda over working Americans: Rubio” (Fox News, 01/27/21)

“In remarks on the Senate floor on Thursday, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said that ‘being pro-life isn’t just the right to be born; it also means the right to live and to thrive,’ arguing that policies like an expanded Child Tax Credit would help build a culture of life.” (Senators speak out for the unborn on the day before the March for Life, Catholic News Agency, 01/28/21)

“Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said he was “puzzled” by Thomas-Greenfield’s decision to give the speech, given that she must have been aware of concerns about the Confucius Institute in academia and elsewhere.” (Biden’s U.N. nominee pledges to fight Chinese influence, Washington Post, 01/27/21)

“Rubio reintroduces amendment to block court packing” (The Hill, 01/25/21)

“Rubio, Scott co-sponsor bill to set term limits on Congress” (WESH 2 Orlando, 01/27/21)