The Lonestar Weekly: September 24, 2010

Statement

Texas Travel

The recent August work period allowed me to travel to all corners of our great state, visiting with Texans in El Paso, Wichita Falls, Amarillo, Dallas, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and McAllen. During my trip to Corpus Christi I visited Helix Subsea Construction, a small business that fabricates pipes for undersea drilling. The employees at Helix expressed their concerns about the impact the drilling moratorium is having on their business and livelihoods, including reduced hours and potential layoffs. On a later trip to the Corpus region I addressed the Bay Area Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, where I shared a legislative update and stressed the continued need for federal tort reform similar to successful reforms Texas already has in place. In Wichita Falls I gave an update on what's going on in Washington to the mayors, county judges, community leaders and residents there, while in El Paso I visited the new medical school and was briefed by community leaders on local projects. At both stops we discussed some of the issues that Texans are most concerned about, including job creation, border security, and health care. In Amarillo I toured the V-22 Osprey production facility at Bell Helicopter, a first-rate facility that provides quality jobs, pumps revenue into the local economy, and produces a second-to-none aircraft that has greatly assisted in the Global War on Terror.

I also visited with school children at Woodlawn Elementary in San Antonio, where I highlighted the dangers of childhood obesity. A recent study found that 30% of children ages 8 -- 10 in San Antonio were obese, and I announced my intention to offer new legislation in the future that will help combat this growing epidemic. Finally I traveled to South Texas where I made stops in McAllen, Hidalgo, and Edinburg. Here I visited one of the busiest ports of entry along the Texas-Mexico border, and took an aerial tour of the levee-fence and Anzalduas Dam along the Rio Grande. This important infrastructure is in serious need of updates, and I assured local leaders I will continue to push for passage of my legislation that would reimburse local governments so they can make immediate repairs. I met with officials from Border Patrol and the International Water & Boundary Commission (IWBC), as well as mayors and law enforcement from neighboring cities. We also discussed my bill to improve security and reduce congestion at our ports of entry and the importance of continuing our partnership to meet both national security and local flood control needs.

Playing Politics with Our Troops

This week Majority Leader Harry Reid and the Senate Democrats attempted to use the annual Defense Authorization bill, which funds our troops in harm's way, as the vehicle to push through extra measures in a last-minute legislative scramble before Election Day. One of the reasons I voted against the procedural motion was that I intended to offer my VA hospital amendment to the bill, but the Majority Leader had made clear that I and other Senators would not have an opportunity to call up our amendments for consideration. Much to my disappointment, Sen. Reid would not allow an open debate on the bill that already included provisions requiring military hospitals to provide abortions on demand and the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"--two provisions I oppose. Democrats had said that they intended to offer the DREAM Act as an amendment to the bill as well. I have no doubt that Texans -- especially those that respect the sanctity of life, the troops that sacrifice so much to protect our freedom, and those of us committed to addressing our broken immigration system with credible reform -- will see these cynical tactics for what they truly are, a desperate political ploy.

Jobs and the Economy

As I travel the state, I keep hearing the same question from Texans: when will Washington focus on creating jobs? Last week Congress returned to session to consider legislation that was billed as an aid package for our small businesses. American small businesses, the backbone of our economy and the key to emerging from this downturn, deserve all the help they can get. But this effort by Senate Democrats turned out to be a wolf in sheep's clothing. Democrats hope that $12 billion of temporary tax breaks included in the bill will make small businesses forget about the $300 billion in permanent tax increases they will face at the beginning of 2011. And this is on top of the largest tax increase in American history, which will come December 31st unless Congress moves. This is just the type of uncertainty that is keeping job creators on the sidelines and millions of Americans in the unemployment line, and that's why I voted against the measure when it came up on the Senate floor.

Education Funding for Texas

Last week Senator Hutchison and I introduced legislation to repeal the House provision -- better known as the Doggett Amendment -- that has cut off Texas from more than $800 million in federal education dollars that it would otherwise be eligible for. Our legislation would put a stop to Texas Democrats' efforts to play politics with much-needed funding for Texas schools and teachers. Texas taxpayer dollars belong in Texas schools -- not in California or New York, as the Doggett Amendment would have it.

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