FLORIDA - SENATOR MARCO RUBIO eNEWSLETTER

 

This Week in the Office of Senator Marco Rubio  Last Friday, as Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and as a senior member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, I sent a letter to President Joe Biden demanding answers regarding his administration’s decision to share intelligence and the names of U.S. citizens and Afghan allies with the Taliban. Read more here.     On Monday, Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) and I sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urging her “to use all means necessary to keep all internationally-held reserve assets of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan out of the hands of the Taliban’s illegitimate Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, and to firmly resist any efforts to release these funds.” We highlighted that, “releasing any reserve assets to a Taliban-controlled Afghan government would be tantamount to providing a resource windfall to malign actors in direct conflict with the interests of the United States.” Read more here.    On Wednesday, Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) and I sent a letter to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Charles Rettig requesting that the IRS provide clear guidance regarding the tax treatment of gifts from charitable organizations that have made, and continue to make, payments in response to the tragic collapse of Champlain Towers in Surfside, Florida. Read more here.     On Tuesday, I sent a letter to the President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, to express support for Lithuania’s decision to “open reciprocal representative offices with Taiwan.” Read more here.    In Case You Missed It... “Mujtaba also credits the adoption agencies involved [and] Sen. Marco Rubio’s office for communicating with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.” (South Florida family welcomes newly adopted son evacuated from Afghanistan, CBS 12 News, 08/31/21) “Sen. Marco Rubio Is Demanding Answers About List of Americans and Allies Sent to Taliban” (Townhall, 08/28/21) “‘Ninety days was not enough time to break new ground,’ Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), the ranking Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told me. ‘The intelligence community must keep pursuing new avenues of inquiry until sufficient evidence is gathered to draw a satisfying conclusion. … The American people deserve the truth about how this virus emerged, which this assessment did not provide.’” (Opinion: Biden’s covid origin intelligence review has failed. So what’s next?, The Washington Post, 09/02/21)  “Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, are calling on Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to ‘use all means necessary’ to keep billions in internationally-held funds intended for the government of Afghanistan from being placed in the hands of the Taliban after the terrorist group took control of the country.” (Senators urge Yellen to keep $9 billion in assets from Taliban, Fox Business, 08/30/21) “In June, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., along with U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., and U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, D-Fla., reintroduced legislation to help Florida fruit and vegetable growers combat trade practices by countries like Mexico.” (Ag commissioner urges buying Florida-grown crops, WINK Fort Myers, 08/30/21)  Coming up… My staff will host Mobile Office Hours next week to assist constituents with federal casework issues in their communities. More information and locations near you here. Keep up with me on Facebook and Twitter.