I pledge to work in a bipartisan way to lower the cost of living and keep our communities safe, no matter who is president or who controls Congress. Tampa Bay area families and small business owners always come first. 

Immediately following the presidential inauguration, President Trump announced a number of executive orders that are cause for concern, including one that encourages oil drilling off the Gulf Coast of Florida. President Biden recently announced permanent protection for our beaches and fishing industry, and environmental organizations are preparing to challenge Trump’s early move to reverse the decision to drill for oil on public lands and off the Florida coast. Read my full statement here. We need more lower-cost clean energy to reduce our electric bills, and also to cut the pollution that is fueling more intense hurricanes, rainfall, wildfires and excruciatingly hot summers.

Also alarming was President Trump’s pardon of the hundreds of felons who violently attacked police officers on January 6, 2021. Releasing criminals into our communities is dangerous. Trump freed felons who beat, tased and pepper-sprayed police officers, and the most violent get the biggest benefit. It is shameful and a threat to our safety. 

I’m urging Speaker Johnson to follow through with the law passed in 2022 to install a plaque to honor the Capitol Police and other first responders who bravely sacrificed their lives to protect the Capitol on January 6^th. The heroism of the United States Capitol Police and other first responders needs to be memorialized in the Capitol, particularly fallen heroes Brian Sicknick, Howard Liebengood, Jeffrey Smith, Gunther Hashida and Kyle DeFreytag. The plaque has been ready for sometime and it is past time to install it.

House Republicans offered partisan messaging bills without the ability to offer amendments. Time would have been better spent on legislation to lower the cost of living:

 H.R. 21 - House GOP Reproductive Health Care Surveillance Act: On what would have been the 52nd Anniversary of Roe v. Wade, House Republicans passed a bill to criminalize medical care provided by doctors and nurses during a lethal fetal emergency late in pregnancy. This bill spreads disinformation, limit access to reproductive health care and criminalize those who provide it. Some Republicans believe this is an important step in enacting a national abortion ban. Doctors already have an obligation to provide appropriate medical care to all, and patients must have the freedom to make the health care decisions that are best for themselves and their families, particularly during the worst type of tragedy. 

H.R. 29 - Laken Riley Act: Federal law already provides for the deportation of unauthorized immigrants who are convicted of theft. This bill would subject immigrants who reside here legally and are merely accused of property-related offenses to mandatory detention and deportation - with no recourse to contest the charge or the detention. Any of the thousands of immigrants who reside in the Tampa Bay area and who are lawfully present under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Temporary Protected Status (TPS), asylum and parole could be falsely accused of theft and immediately be detained, separated from their family and deported. Laken Riley's tragic murder deserves better than to be exploited for partisan gain. Border security is paramount, and I strongly support existing law that deports people who are unauthorized to be in the country when they commit a crime.

H.R. 471 - Fix Our Forests Act: If the bill had actually offered resources to prevent wildfires or to provide assistance to firefighters, it likely would have been unanimous, but Republicans used fire safety as a pretext to gut environmental laws that benefit everyday families. I look forward to working on a bipartisan package for emergency wildfire response, safety and resilience.

If you are having issues with Social Security, Medicare, Disaster Assistance, Veterans Affairs, Immigration or need assistance with a passport renewal, contact my offices for help by calling (813) 871-2817 or (727) 369-0201.