This Week in the Office of Senator Marco Rubio On Wednesday, I spoke on the Senate floor ahead of the four-year anniversary of the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. My resolution to honor the victims, survivors and their families passed the Senate unanimously. Watch my full remarks here. On Sunday, I joined CBS’s Face the Nation to discuss the Russian buildup of arms on the Ukrainian border, Russian-Chinese relations, my Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, and more. Watch the interview here. On Monday, I joined Hannity to discuss why socialism always fails. Watch the interview here. On Wednesday, my interview with Batya Ungar-Sargon was published in Bari Weiss’ Substack, Common Sense, discussing the GOP’s role as the party of the American working class, and more. Read the interview here. 
On Thursday, I joined The Brian Rust Show to discuss the Biden Administration’s far left policies, the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine, the need for a return to domestic manufacturing, and more. Watch the interview here. 
On Friday, I published an op-ed in Fox News discussing NBC News’ disgraceful work reciting Chinese Communist Party talking points during their coverage of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.Read the op-ed here. 
On Tuesday, I served as Ranking Member during a Senate Committee on Foreign Relations nominations hearing, where I stressed the importance of bipartisanship to the nominee for Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism and urged the nominee for U.S. Ambassador to Honduras to prioritize Honduras’ partnership with Taiwan. During my opening remarks, I discussed the challenges currently facing Jamaica, including drug trafficking. Read more here. 
On Monday, I joined Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), and 31 Senate colleagues in sending a letter to President Joe Biden rebuking the administration’s ongoing negotiations for a new Iran nuclear deal. Read more here. 
On Tuesday, I released a statement after reports that the Biden Administration is considering changes to how COVID-19 hospitalizations are counted. Read more here. 
On Tuesday, I sent letters to 22 U.S. universities urging them to terminate their academic and research partnerships with universities located in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) that support Beijing’s military-civil fusion (MCF) strategy. Through MCF, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to increase the capabilities and lethality of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) by acquiring and developing the world’s cutting-edge technology, including through theft. Read more here. 
On Tuesday, Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and I sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken requesting him to outline detailed steps the agency will take to help protect freedom of expression in Mexico and to address the persistent violence against Mexican journalists and media workers. Read more here. 
On Wednesday, Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) and I, Chairman and Vice Chairman, respectively, of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, led committee members in sending a letter to President Joe Biden urging him to make sure that the United States is sharing as much intelligence as possible with Ukraine as Vladimir Putin threatens the country with military aggression. Read more here.  On Thursday, I released a video message on the Biden Administration’s “out of control” inflation. Watch the video here. 
On Thursday, Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ed Markey (D-MA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Rick Scott (R-FL), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and I applauded the unanimous Senate passage of our bipartisan resolution to recognize the significant scientific, educational, and economic contributions made by the Arecibo Observatory telescope in Barrio Esperanza, Arecibo, Puerto Rico. Read more here. 
On Thursday, Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID) and I, along with our Republican colleagues, urged the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to do everything it can to support taxpayers during the current tax filing season. Read more here. 
Last Friday, Congressman Jim Banks (R-IN) and I published an op-ed in Fox Businesshighlighting our Teamwork for Employees and Managers (TEAM) Act of 2022 and explaining how workers can organize and communicate with managers outside of a traditional unionization model. Read the op-ed here. 
Last Friday, I joined Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) and Senate colleagues in sending a letter to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) expressing the importance of reliable broadband service for rural America. Read more here. 
Legislation Introduced· On Monday, Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and I introduced the Western Hemisphere Security Strategy Act of 2022. The bill seeks to enhance U.S. engagement with the region at a time when the destabilizing impact of authoritarian regimes, and transnational criminal organizations, in addition to the malign activities of state actors like China and Russia, pose risks to U.S. national security. Read more here. · On Monday, Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Jim Risch (R-ID), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and I introduced the United States-Ecuador Partnership Act of 2022. The bipartisan legislation strengthens the United States’ cooperation with Ecuador on issues of mutual interest, including strengthening democratic institutions, promoting inclusive economic growth, supporting environmental conservation initiatives, and expanding capabilities to address corruption, crime, and negative foreign influence. Read more here. · On Tuesday, Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) and I, along with our Republican colleagues, introduced the Stop the Nosy Obsession with Online Payments (SNOOP) Act. The bill would undo a provision included by the Biden Administration in the American Rescue Plan that requires third-party payment platforms to report businesses’ gross transaction volumes totaling more than $600 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Read more here. · On Tuesday, I led Republican colleagues in introducing the Strengthening Enforcement to Curtail Unlawful, Risky Entrance to Flights Act, or SECURE Flights Act of 2022, to prevent the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation and Security Administration from allowing illegal aliens to use immigration enforcement documents, such as arrest warrants, as identification when boarding commercial flights. Read more here. · On Tuesday, Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and I introduced the No Chinese Communist Subterfuge via Unregistered Regime Presence Rendered Invisible to Shareholders and Equivalent Parties Act, or No Chinese Communist SURPRISE Parties Act, which would direct the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to require companies listed on U.S. exchanges to identify whether a Chinese Communist Party organization is present in the firm’s operations. Read more here. · On Wednesday, I joined Senators Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and John Thune (R-SD) in introducing legislation to require the U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs and U.S. Department of Defense to modify language used on official VA and DoD forms to clarify the information required when a service member elects to have their GI Bill benefit transferred to a dependent. Read more here. · On Thursday, I led Senate colleagues in introducing the Cutting off Rampant Access to Crack Kits (CRACK) Act. The bill would amend Section 2706 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2) to prohibit any funds from directly or indirectly purchasing, supplying, or distributing crack pipes or similar drug paraphernalia. Read more here. In Case You Missed It… “FITSEC Gets Congrats from Rubio” (Florida Tech News, 2/8/2022) “Senators Rubio, Kaine urge Mexico to protect its journalists” (NBC News, 2/9/2022) “Rubio calls on US universities to cut ties with China military-industrial complex” (Washington Examiner, 2/9/2022) “With the support of my Republican colleagues, I hope my recently updated legislation, the "Protecting Our Democracy by Preventing Foreign Citizens from Voting Act" and its companion legislation in the Senate sponsored by Sen. Marco Rubio will continue to gain traction in Congress. ” (Congressman Jeff Duncan (R-SC): Stop pretending non-citizen voting is normal—it's not, Fox News, 2/8/2022) “The U.S. has tried to crackdown on TikTok and its use, with some lawmakers including Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., saying that the White House is moving too slowly to create a cohesive plan. ” (TikTok shares more of your data than any other app, and a study says it's not clear where it goes, Fox Business, 2/9/2022) “‘Veterans who are suffering from debilitating illnesses and dying because they cannot get care deserve better than half measures,’ Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio said. ‘Specifically, the bill fails to provide a presumption of service connection for key ailments afflicting many veterans who were exposed to toxic burn pits.’” (When science is too slow: Doing right by burn pit victims, Washington Examiner, 2/10/2022) “Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida also accused Lipstadt of partisanship, saying that her affiliation with Democrats would not allow her ‘to develop and implement the department’s policies to address the ancient and evil poison of antisemitism around the world.’” (Joe Biden’s Antisemitism Envoy Nominee Slams Israel Apartheid Libel as ‘Poisonous,’ Breitbart, 2/9/2022) “‘I think the only deal that’s possible is a bad one. And that’s what I fear — that the administration wants a deal so badly that they’ll enter into a really dangerous one,’ Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, top Republican on the Intelligence Committee, said in a brief interview.” (‘Sobering and shocking’: Lawmakers pessimistic about new Iran nuke deal, Politico, 2/9/2022) “Florida’s Senators Back Bill Hagerty’s Bill to Stop IRS Looking at Third-Party Payment Platform” (Florida Daily, 2/9/2022) “Rubio, Menendez Push For Hemispheric Defense” (‘Tough on China’ gains traction as electoral test, Politico, 2/10/2022) 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. | 
No comments:
Post a Comment