December 5, 2019
Friend,
This November, I was able to reflect on how thankful I am to represent Kentucky's 4th district. As Congress heads into one of its busiest times of the year, I will continue to show my gratitude by fighting for the values and principles our district holds dear.
I wish everyone a great holiday season with their family and friends!
Below, I've included some highlights from the month of November. In case you didn't know, you can follow me on Facebook and Twitter for more updates.
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City of Walton Veterans Day Celebration |
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I was honored to speak at the City of Walton Veterans Day Celebration to honor those who have served or are serving in the United States Armed Forces. I enjoyed meeting and having the chance to personally thank so many distinguished veterans. One of these veterans, Vincent “Tahir” Metcalf, was presented with a key to the City of Walton. Master Sergeant Metcalf graduated from Walton-Verona High School and retired to his home state after serving 20 years in the United States Air Force. Over the course of his 20 year career, he was awarded three Air Force Commendation Medals, two Air Force Achievement Medals, and an Air Force Meritorious Service Medal.
There is a lot of good news for veterans that doesn’t get much media coverage. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to meet Staff Sergeant Justin Miller when he testified at a hearing on identifying, preventing, and treating trauma for the Committee on Oversight and Reform. Mr. Miller is a veteran who has battled suicide and now serves as the Deputy Executive Director of The Objective Zero App. His app fights veteran suicide in real time by anonymously connecting users to wellness resources and a nationwide network of more than a thousand trained volunteers. This year, the President signed the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act (H.R. 299) into law. Every year I’ve been in Congress, the House of Representatives has passed this bill to extend adequate health coverage for exposure to Agent Orange to Navy veterans who served off-shore from Vietnam and removes the nearly impossible burden of proof of exposure. I’ve also cosponsored the WINGMAN Act (H.R. 628) to allow congressional offices to have read-only access to all veterans’ records in the VA databases, provided a veteran gives consent. This would help provide faster and better congressional office customer service for veterans.
As the veterans of the Second World War grow older and their group grows smaller and smaller, it becomes more important for us to recognize their sacrifices and pivotal role in shaping the world as we know it. I recently cosponsored a bill to authorize the use of the rotunda of the Capitol to honor the last surviving Medal of Honor recipient of the Second World War upon his death (H.Con.Res. 10). Those who performed extraordinary acts of valor, like Medal of Honor recipients, deserve our respect and commemoration.
I shared the story of Private First Class Wheatley, a veteran who was never recognized for his extraordinary acts of valor during his life, with attendees. PFC Wheatley was a communications specialist who was taken prisoner by North Korean soldiers in the Korean War. He knew the North Koreans didn't take many prisoners and thought he would probably die shortly after being captured. Eventually, however, PFC Wheatley heard American soldiers in the distance. He yelled for help. The American soldiers heard his cries, rescued him, and successfully reunited him with United States forces. He was sent to Japan for medical treatment before going home.
PFC Wheatley's records were lost in a fire in St. Louis and his capture was never properly documented or recognized before he passed away. Based on research by PFC Wheatley’s grandson, Larry Dechant, and documentation from the National Archives, my staff and I worked with the Army to present Mr. Dechant with PFC Wheatley's Purple Heart, a Prisoner of War Medal, a National Defense Service Medal, a Korea Service Medal (adorned with two Bronze Service Stars), a United Nations Service Medal, and a Republic of Korea Korean War Service Medal and Presidential Unit Citation letter.
There are a lot of songs about people who died for a flag or for their country but that’s not what our service members take an oath to protect and uphold. Their oath is not to the President or the country or the flag. You can change a country and you can burn a flag, but you can’t take the principles of liberty and freedom away from somebody once they swear an oath to those principles. I want us to think about that—the oath that our soldiers have sworn, those who are serving and those who have served, is to our Constitution. And when they fight, they fight for something that nobody else is fighting for.
Thank you to Walton Mayor Gabe Brown, Councilman John Wainwright, Pastor David Wiggins, Courtney Flege, and members of the Johnson McElroy Post 277 of the American Legion for participating in the ceremony. I was glad to see Kentucky State Representative Savannah Maddox and Boone County Circuit Court Clerk David Martin as well. It was a true joy to have been invited to the celebration.
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45th Annual Conference of the Kentucky Association of Counties |
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I was honored to speak to several hundred elected county officials at the 45th Annual Conference of the Kentucky Association of Counties - KACo recently. As a former County Judge Executive myself, I appreciate the difficulty and importance of the jobs that local elected officials perform.
I began by telling attendees about a woman who was having trouble getting her trash collected on a regular basis. She called former Congressman Gene Snyder, then chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to see if there was anything he could do. Congressman Snyder told her that trash collection was a local issue and the House of Representatives had no authority over it and wondered if she had thought to call her county commissioner. The woman replied that she had thought about calling a commissioner but didn’t want to start so high up!
This humorous story is just one example of the power county and city governments have to impact the lives of their residents. The federal government often sends decision-making responsibility to state governments who relay that responsibility to local governments. Important decisions are made at the local level—real change, both good and bad, happens there.
I reminded attendees that we spend about $50 billion a year on the conflict in Afghanistan—the same amount we spend on the highway trust fund in the United States. Imagine what it would look like in our cities and communities if we practically doubled the highway trust fund. That additional infrastructure spending would go a long way in Kentucky.
Similarly, I recently voted against H.J. Res. 77, a resolution pushed by the Democrats that objected to President Trump’s decision to remove U.S. troops from Syria. President Trump made the right decision to remove American troops from a conflict without a clear objective or rationale that was never authorized by Congress. The Constitution calls for Congress to declare war and for the Commander in Chief to wage the war. This resolution perverted the Constitution by allowing Congress to try to direct a war without ever authorizing it. We have no business asking for the courage of the U.S. military when we don’t have the courage to give them a clear mission nor should we ask taxpayers to fund it.
Thank you to Boone County Judge Executive and KACo President Gary Moore for the invitation and for introducing me. It was great to join Congressman James Comer at this event. I especially enjoyed catching up with county officials around the state like my good friend Spencer County Judge Executive John Riley.
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Oversight and Reform Committee Hearing on Abortion Law |
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Saddened, but not surprised by what I heard this past month during an Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on state pro-life laws.
I asked Dr. Colleen McNicholas, an OB/GYN and the Chief Medical Officer for Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region, when most doctors would consider a fetus viable outside the womb. While most OB/GYNs and neonatologists consider the period of viability to be after the baby has reached its twenty-fourth week of gestation, Dr. McNicholas dodged the question by stating that some pregnancies are never viable. I then asked her if her clinic would perform an abortion at any point during pregnancy. She replied that the policy was to perform an abortion as long as the fetus wasn’t viable. It seems like a strange policy for a doctor that couldn’t tell me when the period of viability starts. This essentially puts no restrictions on when an abortion can be performed. Even up until the minute before a baby would be born at full term. Dr. McNicholas couldn’t tell me the gestational age or even the size of the oldest baby she had aborted. She seemed to not understand why that question was relevant to the abortion debate.
Moreover, she confirmed this by stating that abortion is a moral good and should not be restricted so long as a woman has any reason for seeking one. Unbelievable. We must do better to protect the most vulnerable in our society. Women and their babies deserve better.
Watch my questioning here.
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Interview Day for U.S. Service Academy applicants |
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My office hosted Interview Day for U.S. Service Academy applicants. Each year, Members of Congress have the privilege of recommending exceptional young men and women for admission to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the Naval Academy, the Air Force Academy, and the Merchant Marine Academy, known collectively as the U.S. Service Academies.
The U.S. Service Academies offer a unique opportunity for motivated young adults to serve their country while improving all facets of their character through a rigorous scholastic curriculum and a disciplined moral and physical regimen. In place of tuition, the Academies require military service after graduation. Cadets and Midshipmen graduate as Officers in the United States Military, and many have gone on to be great leaders in our nation’s history.
An interview panel of academy graduates, officers, and academy liaisons from all branches of the military evaluated applicants and will make recommendations on who will receive a nomination. I met with the panel to answer questions, give an update on what’s happening in Washington, D.C., and thank them for sacrificing their Saturdays for this. I answered questions regarding impeachment, the mood in Congress, and the upcoming spending deadline.
The panel interviewed each of the applicants throughout the day. I wish each of the applicants the best and know the panelists will use their expertise to pick the most qualified and dedicated individuals. Huge thank you again to all of the panelists and applicants!
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Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on National Security |
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The Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on National Security recently held a hearing entitled, "The Trump Administration's Syria Policy: Perspectives from the Field." I asked Ilham Ahmed, Kurdish co-president of the Democratic Council of Syria, whether or not the United States ever promised the Kurds a decentralized, democratic Syria. She answered, "No."
The Obama administration's decision to put American troops in Syria was unconstitutional. This use of military force was never authorized by Congress and its objective was never defined. Ms. Ahmed confirmed that, even for the Kurds, the United States' ultimate plan for the region was unknown.
We cannot continue to fight ill-defined, costly, and unconstitutional wars simply because it is the status quo. We have created a situation of dependency in the Middle East where any withdrawal will be considered 'untimely' by the establishment in Washington, D.C. At some point, we have to start correcting these mistakes.
Watch my questioning here.
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Congressman Massie on Kennedy |
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I joined Kennedy on Fox Business to talk about what was hidden in the latest spending bill. We also discussed my lone vote against imposing sanctions on China.
Watch our discussion here.
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Cosponsoring bill to honor World War II veterans |
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I recently cosponsored a bill to authorize the use of the rotunda of the Capitol to honor the last surviving Medal of Honor recipient of the Second World War upon his death (H.Con.Res. 10). World War II claimed the lives of millions and shaped the world we see today. Those who performed extraordinary acts of valor, like Medal of Honor recipients, deserve our respect and commemoration.
Every elected official and member of the military takes an oath to protect and uphold the Constitution. But, it is our military members who are asked to pay the ultimate price to defend our freedoms. Though lying in state is insufficient payment for these sacrifices, it is nonetheless a respect we ought to pay.
Find the resolution here.
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Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter.
In Liberty,
Thomas Massie
Member of Congress
Kentucky's 4th District |
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