Mike Lee Profile picture
U.S. Senator for Utah
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Nov 18 12 tweets 2 min read
🧵 1. Progressives love to say “let’s keep politics out of this”

What they really mean is “let’s make sure the people have no say in this” 2. Progressives propose insulating key decisions from politics when they want government “experts” to make decisions that are beyond the power of the people to oversee, or even impact
Nov 13 12 tweets 2 min read
🧵1. Tonight I hosted & moderated a forum for GOP senators, giving my colleagues a chance to hear from each of the three candidates running to replace McConnell. After hearing from each candidate, I’ve decided to support Rick Scott. Here are my takeaways: 2. As I’ve been saying for months, the Senate is supposed to be “the world’s greatest deliberative body,” but it has ceased to function as such in recent years, as majority leaders from both political parties have consolidated power at the expense of nearly every other senator.
Nov 2 24 tweets 3 min read
🧵 1. Have you ever wondered why reporters don’t seem to hesitate to say and repeat things about Donald Trump that simply aren’t true—as if they have no fear of defamation liability? Image 2. This sort of thing happens because the Supreme Court, about 60 years ago, invented a First Amendment doctrine that protects the media from defamation liability, at least in lawsuits brought by public figure
Oct 24 5 tweets 1 min read
🧵 1. McConnell’s attacks on Donald Trump & Rick Scott are indefensible

Those running for Senate GOP leadership posts need to weigh in on this & commit never to sabotage Republican candidates & colleagues—particularly those who are less than two weeks away from a close election Image 2. We must have clarity from the candidates running to replace McConnell on where they stand on these attacks. They must be clear on how they plan to lead the conference, and on the role of its members
Oct 22 23 tweets 3 min read
🧵 1. Are you okay with the fact that most new federal laws—roughly 100,000 pages per year—are written by bureaucrats who will never stand for election? 2. Does it bother you that these federal laws—not enacted by Congress but rather “promulgated” as “rules and regulations” by unelected bureaucrats—cost the American people trillions of dollars each year by increasing the price of basically everything they buy?
Oct 21 25 tweets 2 min read
Kamala wants to gut religious freedom

That’s not conservative

Nor is it okay

Sad Kamala likes price controls

That’s not conservative
Oct 16 9 tweets 2 min read
🧵1. In an op-ed published today by Fox News, I make the case that the Senate Republican Conference will be made stronger, not weaker, by empowering each senator. Image 2. When we as Senate Republicans elect new leadership on November 13th, we need to be laser-focused on how best to pursue a bold, conservative legislative agenda—one designed to reform a government that has become far too big, expensive, intrusive, & detached from the people.
Oct 8 12 tweets 2 min read
1/ 🧵 Senate Republicans will soon have the rare opportunity to elect new leadership. Given that the stakes have never been higher, we must choose wisely. I’ve proposed a few objectives that would help us do that:
politico.com/news/2024/10/0… 2/ Currently, many senators can’t even propose amendments to bills that directly impact their constituents. This broken process means the voices of Americans are being sidelined. Here’s how reforms can make the Senate work for the people again.
Sep 22 8 tweets 2 min read
🧵 1. A vote for Kamala Harris is a vote against any religious institution, including schools, universities, hospitals, and charities. The media doesn’t want you to know about the Do No Harm Act. They won’t ask her about it because they know the answer. 2. This is the truth: Kamala Harris doesn’t believe that religious institutions should be able to live according to their faith. Rather, they must bend the knee to the popular social justice movement of the day.
Sep 12 5 tweets 1 min read
🧵 1. This will be the first time Senate Republicans have elected a new leader in nearly 18 years. We should have the chance to meet as a conference following the general election in November and—after hearing each candidate’s pitch—choose our next leader. 2. That’s not too much to ask, especially when we’re electing our next leader.
Sep 9 10 tweets 2 min read
🧵1. I first heard the name “Russell M. Nelson” in the summer of 1978, when my parents told me about the world-class, Utah-based surgeon who—in an unusual coincidence—would perform open-heart surgery on both of my maternal grandparents, Ben and Marian Griffin, on the same day. 2. I vividly remember, as a seven-year-old child, praying for Dr. Nelson, whom I had never met. I was very close to my grandparents—who had just returned from an assignment for @Ch_JesusChrist in Spain—and wanted them to live for a long time.
Sep 5 10 tweets 2 min read
🧵 1. The Constitution’s first provision says that the power to make federal law rests solely with Congress, whose members are all elected.

But most federal laws today are made not by Congress, but by unelected bureaucrats.

That’s wrong.

Fortunately, there’s a way to fix it. 2. Enter the **REINS Act**. This legislation aims to restore the balance of power by requiring Congress to approve and enact any new “major rule” regulation—that is, a regulation with significant economic impact ($100M+)— before it can become legally binding.
Aug 26 5 tweets 1 min read
🧵 1. The U.S. government should *never* be allowed—either directly or by funneling resources through a third party—to support clandestine propaganda campaigns to influence public opinion among U.S. citizens. 2. If the government identifies a need to communicate a particular message—like “don’t start forest fires”—it should always be accompanied by a disclaimer like this one: “this message was prepared and communicated with the support of the U.S. government.”

Americans should know.
Aug 23 10 tweets 2 min read
🧵1. Your First Amendment rights shouldn’t depend on whether you own a media company.

The government aggressively regulates individuals when they support a candidate.

Why should media companies get a free pass?

In fairness, government shouldn’t regulate either in this context. 2. The government shouldn’t regulate either citizens or media companies in the way they choose to support their preferred candidates, but it’s unfair, constitutionally indefensible, and likely to favor one party over the other to regulate individuals but not media companies.
Aug 22 23 tweets 4 min read
🧵 1. Speaking, writing, publishing, and broadcasting about politics is core political speech, entitled to the highest degree of protection under the First Amendment.

Sadly, how much freedom you have to do those things—free of government control —can depend on who you are. 2. If you own a newspaper or broadcasting company, you can say, write, publish, or broadcast whatever you want—helping or hurting any candidate you choose—and the government will leave you alone.

This is as it should be.

We don’t want government influencing such things!
Aug 21 11 tweets 2 min read
🧵 1. Kamala’s proposed tax on unrealized capital gains would be unwise, harmful, and unconstitutional. It’d be a direct tax which, under the Constitution, must be apportioned among the states based on population. 2. Any apportionment requirement would make such a tax essentially impossible to implement. Such a requirement would essentially force states with zero billionaires to contribute revenue from this tax, which isn’t possible if no one there has unrealized gains.
Aug 20 22 tweets 3 min read
🧵 1. Would you want the U.S. government controlling 70% of the land in your state? If you’re tempted to say “yes,” stop and consider what this arrangement does to Utah. 2. Not only does this arrangement put Utah’s economy in the hands of unelected bureaucrats nearly 2,000 miles away from our state, but it stunts economic growth and leads to poor decision-making—which itself leads to neglect of the land and (in many cases) environmental disaster.
Aug 15 22 tweets 4 min read
🧵 1. Government-imposed price controls create scarcity and a vicious cycle of poverty and dependence on government. So naturally, Kamala Harris likes them. Image 2. Prices are high because government spends too much money, printing more money to cover shortfalls. But printing more money reduces the purchasing power of every dollar.
Aug 13 17 tweets 3 min read
🧵 1. The American people can’t pretend the European Union’s attempt to extort @elonmusk yesterday—threatening to punish him unless he canceled his plan to interview @realDonaldTrump on X—didn’t threaten to fundamentally change our relationship with longstanding European allies. 2. Fully 22 of the 27 countries that belong to the European Union also belong to NATO, meaning that they benefit from the U.S. security umbrella, and from our obligation under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty to defend them if they’re attacked.
Aug 12 5 tweets 1 min read
How did Joe Biden manage to outsource censorship of @elonmusk to the European Union for purposes relevant to the U.S. presidential race? The EU needs to be called out on this.
Aug 10 25 tweets 3 min read
🧵 1. A Kamala Harris administration would be an unmitigated disaster for religious freedom.

deseret.com/faith/2024/08/… 2. While serving in the U.S. Senate, Kamala Harris supported the Do No Harm Act, “a bill that would limit the application of federal religious freedom protections.” Sh insisted the bill was necessary “to prevent people from using those protections as a license to discriminate.”