In the wake of Hurricane Helene—and with the looming threat of Hurricane Milton—we ought to reflect on how Congress can best provide the tools and resources to help us prepare for and recover from disasters.
Project 2025 would take away many of those tools. A brief 🧵 👇
Project 2025 would decimate America’s disaster response. It would:
-Eliminate grants and loans that help Americans prepare for and recover from disasters
-Gut @NOAA and the National Weather Service
-Make it harder for @FEMA to respond to every disaster (2/7)
And just last week, reports highlighted what we already knew about Donald Trump—that he only looks out for himself.
When Orange County needed help after a wildfire, Trump refused to approve disaster aid until he saw how many Republicans lived in OC. (3/7)
Instead of selfish leadership and radical plans, we need to learn lessons from previous disasters to help better prepare for future ones. My bipartisan bill would establish a National Disaster Safety Board to lead this charge. (4/7)
Congress also needs to help cut through red tape for disaster victims that lose their homes and jobs. My bipartisan Tax Fairness for Disaster Victims Act would help Americans rebuild their lives without worrying about their taxes going up. (5/7) porter.house.gov/news/documents…
Finally, Orange County is home to a @FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Force that was recently deployed to help Carolinians recover from Hurricane Helene.
I toured their facility in 2021 to learn how Congress can help support their life-saving work. (6/7)
It's pretty simple: Congress needs to give these brave first responders, FEMA, NOAA, and other partners the tools they need to do their job when disaster strikes.
Republicans' Project 2025 plan would do the exact opposite. (7/7)
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The justices rigorously questioned the government's lawyer. This is a good thing. In criminal cases, the burden of proof is on the government, and our Court should press the government on its use of power, especially in prosecutions. (1/5)
The government’s lawyer, Elizabeth Prelogar, was masterful. Coming from another branch of government, I appreciated the opportunity to see this impressive Biden appointee in action. (2/5)
Despite many questions on whether the statute at issue covers certain Jan. 6 defendants' conduct, I predict the government prevails. The statute applies to those who corruptly obstruct, influence, or impede official proceedings. These defendants did exactly that on Jan. 6. (3/5)
Each year, my office puts together an End of Year Report, so Orange County families can see how I’m representing them.
As we ring in the #NewYear this weekend, here are some of my favorite accomplishments of 2023 ⤵️ (1/9)
My job is to help Orange County families, and I'm grateful to work with such an effective team. We introduced dozens of bills, took hundreds of meetings, responded to thousands of messages, and delivered millions owed to Californians by federal agencies. (2/9)
The infant formula crisis devastated our supply chain and hurt families. This year, I teamed up with @RepLisaMcClain to hold corporations and @US_FDA accountable. Our bill would add new safeguards to keep contaminated formula out of grocery stores. (3/9) wsj.com/health/healthc…
Drug companies and their enablers keep trying to convince the American people that lowering drug prices is somehow bad for patients. I’ve debunked these myths over and over. Here are some highlights 🧵
First Republic Bank was taken over by @FDICgov and sold overnight—the third bank failure in two months. I’ll dive deeper into what Congress can do, but first let me say this: Americans' money in the banking system remains safe and deposits up to $250,000 are fully insured. 🧵🔽
These recent bank failures were avoidable.
The Fed’s report on #SiliconValleyBank's collapse pointed to bank mismanagement and the 2018 rollback of financial safeguards, among other issues.
I wrote two bills to prevent this from happening again. (2/5)
In 2018, Congress overturned banking regulations put in place after the 2008 financial crisis. I called it out at the time for exactly what it was—catering to Wall Street. I’ve introduced the #SVBAct to restore these critical protections. (3/5)
The East Palestine, Ohio, railroad derailment has jeopardized hundreds of families, who will now face significant environmental and human health concerns for decades. Let’s talk about it. 🧵⬇️
I agree with my colleagues that we need accountability, but we need to understand what caused this catastrophe in the first place, so we know how Congressmembers can prevent a similar disaster from ever happening again. (2/6)
For decades, too many politicians have sided with rail lobbyists to limit regulations on the transportation of hazardous substances and requirements for safety systems. Norfolk Southern, the company that owned the derailed train in Ohio, was part of these lobbying efforts. (3/6)
When Republicans took power in 2010, they defunded the IRS so it would be easier for their ultra-wealthy donors to cheat taxes. Families have since been dealing with delays, and big corporations have been pocketing billions in taxes they owe under the law each year. (1/3)
I’ve been pushing to give the IRS the resources it needs to serve taxpayers and crack down on ultra-wealthy tax cheats. With 50,000+ workers—including many customer service representatives—set to retire soon, time has been of the essence. (2/3)
Congress passed a law to boost IRS funding last year. Republicans now want to rescind resources and spread lies that new agents would otherwise go after families. I voted no on their bill to help big corporations evade taxes—and add $114M to the deficit over 10 years. (3/3)