Congressman Smith Capitol Report

Billy Graham, America’s Pastor

March 2, 2018

 

“My home is in heaven, I am just traveling through this world.” On February 21, 2018, Reverend Billy Graham was welcomed to his true home in heaven. This week, we honored his life and legacy with a ceremony in the U.S. Capitol. It was an honor to attend the ceremony and pay my respects to a man who lifted up our entire nation and changed countless lives.

 

Back in 1934, Billy Graham’s father welcomed North Carolina businessmen from Charlotte to their family dairy farm so they could gather for prayer. When they met to pray, they asked God to bring someone up out of Charlotte who would share His message “to the ends of the earth.” Billy Graham was 15 years old when the businessmen sat on his father’s farm and prayed that prayer. A few months later, Billy made an incredible and personal decision that would change the whole world… he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. That North Carolina farm boy walked off of the dairy farm and into history, following the Lord each step of the way.

 

Billy Graham was America’s pastor, a true man of faith who was committed to family while having a profound impact on many, many people. He held his last crusade in St. Louis in 1999. Busloads of believers from all over Missouri and beyond made the trip to hear him preach during a 4-night crusade at the old TWA Dome. Some Missourians made the trip early so they could sing in the crusade choir. Most just came to hear for themselves the preacher they had watched share the Good News on TV for decades. 

 

As the son of a pastor, I remember Billy Graham’s sermons well. Like my family, many of Graham’s faithful followers have stories of sitting in their living rooms with their parents and grandparents, watching the crusades on television or listening to his sermons on the radio. I still remember the way Reverend Graham made with his messages about faith and Jesus’ love so relatable. When you listened to him preach, it was like you were sitting right next to Billy in the kitchen and hearing the best message, “God loves you,” from across the table.

 

America is a nation of prayer. Whether it was our Founding Father George Washington, President Lincoln, President Eisenhower or Dr. King, our nation has been led through many hard times with the power of prayer. After the ceremony honoring Reverend Graham at the U.S. Capitol, I headed back home to visit the folks in Matthews and Malden and surveyed damage from recent severe weather. As I walked through town and saw homes and businesses that were destroyed by high winds, rain and tornadoes, I was reminded of what Reverend Graham once said, “Take one day at a time. Today, after all, is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.” While the road to rebuilding will be long, there is nothing material that cannot be replaced. These communities are strong and will come out on the other side of this natural disaster through the help of friends and neighbors.

 

Billy Graham was an ambassador for Christ who shared the power of prayer and the gift of God’s grace with the world. As we give thanks for his extraordinary life on earth, let us pray that the Lord will raise up more men and women like Billy Graham who will continue to share the message of eternal life in Jesus Christ. Reverend Graham left an incredible legacy here on earth, and I know when he saw the face of Jesus, he was welcomed with the words, “Well done my good and faithful servant, well done.”

 

Rural America is roaring back. A recent report from the Department of Agriculture shows that for only the second time in the last century, we are actually increasing the number of farmers under the age of 35. With the President’s leadership, we have been able to deliver tax cuts for American farmers, reduced federal regulations at a rate of 22:1, driven down energy prices and have grown the economy to bring jobs back to rural America.

 

Personally, I experienced this resurgence first hand during my annual farm tour last August. The tenor of the farms I visited changed from the previous year’s visits – no longer was there a clamor to stop this regulation or slow down a new federal rule, more it was optimism for what a limited government approach in both Jefferson City and Washington DC would bring.  

 

This past week, I was at the White House with President Trump where we discussed the priorities of rural America when it comes to negotiating fair deals for our farmers and rural based businesses. We talked specifically about ending unfair practices from foreign countries that are hurting the American worker. I told him about how some of these foreign practices aided in us losing our Aluminum smelter plant in New Madrid and with it, 900 jobs. We discussed how with a stronger economy, a better tax code, fewer regulations, lower energy prices and new, fairer trade deals, we believe that we can bring back the domestic aluminum and steel industries and with it, jobs.

 

By sharp contrast, for eight years, I watched the Obama Administration wage a war on rural America. Seeing folks back home struggle under the crushing burden of Obama Administration rules and regulations is one of the reasons I ran for office. Obama gave us stringent overtime rules, tried to regulate kids working on their family farm, wanted to treat spilled cow milk like a leaking oil tanker and even tried to put federal mandates on every drop of water on a farmer’s land. These rules were strangling locally-owned businesses and making it nearly impossible for folks to keep the doors open, the lights on and the cows fed. Despite these challenges, the work ethic of Missourians never faltered. In fact, they just fought harder to keep their businesses going. 

 

It’s incredible to now be working with a White House actually interested in strengthening the business climate here in the U.S. and improving the prospect of farming and our rural way of life back home. As a result of our tax cuts legislation, farmers have more money to invest in their fields and families, American workers are receiving larger paychecks, benefits and bonuses, and businesses large and small are looking to expand and grow here in the U.S. We’ve also made major progress on cutting Obama-era regulations. In fact, more than 1,500 regulations have been withdrawn completely or delayed. Regulatory repeals by Congress and the President will save Americans $8.1 billion over their lifetimes, and more than $9.8 billion is expected to be saved through regulations we are working to repeal in 2018. I am also working directly with the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Ajit Pai, to expand rural broadband across southeast and south central Missouri, an important advancement in order to improve the education and job prospects of today and tomorrow. 

 

I am encouraged by the President’s strong policies to ensure rural America stays open for business and helps Missourians thrive. His commitment to fight for fair deals on every front for American workers is amazing, and I’m proud to stand alongside him in the fight. Whether I’m holding a small business roundtable in Salem or Hillsboro, making stops on my listening tour in Jackson, Farmington or Poplar Bluff, traveling to farm operations in each of our 30 counties or hosting a rural broadband discussion with the Trump Administration in West Plains, I hear over and over again about just how much easier it is to operate a business or family farm with President Trump in office. While we have many more steps and actions to take, rural America is once again open for business.

Congressman Smith Capitol Report

Turn Over Enough Stones…

February 9, 2018

 

The United States of America was born out of a revolt by the original colonies against their British controllers - controllers who taxed too much, took away too many rights and asked too much. When our new country rose from that great war for independence, we formed a nation which believed in individual rights over the rights of the state and a country who put protecting the constitutional liberties of each and every American above all else.  Unfortunately, as it relates to the most recent presidential election, we are beginning to learn more and more about how those rights were trampled upon by actors at some of the most integral levels of your government.

 

The American public deserves to know how this was allowed to happen. With the release last week of the memo from the U.S. House Select Committee on Intelligence, we now know more than we ever did before – with even more still to come. What was shared with the declassification of the report from the Intelligence Committee was information that government entities requested and were granted the right to spy and surveil a component of President Trump’s campaign. We now know that some of the information they used to convince a judge to grant that right was a dossier written about President Trump by someone who had a strong bias against Donald Trump, and that he was paid to do it by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and the Hillary Clinton Campaign. That’s right, a government agency used a campaign opposition research piece to convince a judge to allow them to spy on the campaign of our next President of the United States.

 

Oversight, or making sure our government is doing the right thing for the people, is one of the top responsibilities of Congress. What we have uncovered so far is that the author of the dossier on President Trump is someone who has said in meetings during the months leading up to the November 2016 election that he was “desperate” for Donald Trump to not get elected and “passionate about him not being president.” Yet it was this same individual’s ‘report’ which was used and presented as evidence in a court in order to have a judge grant permission for the government to spy on associates of the Trump campaign. Beyond that, the dossier’s author was someone who even the FBI had themselves earlier fired for being a leaker and for serving as an unauthorized source to media. In other words, the government used fake information, written by an anti-Trump activist, funded by the Clinton campaign to get authorization from a secret court to spy on the Trump Campaign.

 

As if a politically motivated, fake dossier wasn’t enough, using that information to justify spying on a United States citizen is even more concerning. It eats away at the core foundation of our nation. You have a right to know what happened and what reforms will make sure it never happens again. You also deserve to know who authorized what and how they will be legally required to answer for their actions. Whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, Independent or not politically affiliated at all, every American should want answers, want action and want accountability for this very disturbing revelation. Justice is not supposed to be biased, it is not supposed to have a party affiliation, it is supposed to be exactly what it is – fair, impartial, and by definition incorruptible. As your voice in Congress, it is my responsibility to continue to get these answers for you and ensure no one in Washington tramples on your freedoms while running away with an unchecked amount of power. 

 

Last Tuesday night‎ I was honored to join many of you in witnessing President Trump’s very first State of the Union address to Congress. Leading up to the speech there were many things I thought the President could say, what he should say, and ultimately what he would say. But as I thought and reflected on the 12 months since President Trump entered the Oval Office, I realized that with the lowest level of unemployment in close to 20 years, an economy on the cusp of growing at rates never seen in my lifetime, and a strengthened military with ISIS on the run...that above all else, the state of our great union, was, for the first time in a long time, strong.

 

In 2017, we repealed regulations at a rate of 22:1 and saved American taxpayers more than four billion dollars. We passed historic tax cuts legislation that is just over one month old and already putting more money in Missourians’ pockets. Just last week, I visited businesses in Dent and Texas counties where employers were handing out bonuses, increasing wages or strengthening their employee benefits as a direct result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. We put an end to the bad deals America was getting from rogue nations like Iran and North Korea. Our military members received the largest pay raise in 8 years and ISIS who started the year with more than 35,000 fighters in its ranks now has less than 1,000. At the same time, we have made it clear that America stands united with her allies like Israel. ‎ 

 

It is amazing the difference a change in administrations makes. After one year in office, the Trump presidency has led to the creation of 2.4 million new jobs, a growing economy and a cut in the unemployment rate from 4.8% to 4.1%. By sharp contrast, at the end of President Obama’s first year in office we had lost 4 million jobs, the American economy was actually experiencing negative growth and the percent of unemployed Americans had risen up from 7.8% to almost 10%.

 

But the work is far from over. During his State of the Union address, the President outlined several major policy priorities for this year – policies that I am already hard at work on and ready to get done. The President mentioned things like increasing price transparency to lower the cost of prescription drugs and medical services, a major theme I heard during my healthcare roundtables last year. The President also discussed ending the tragic opioid epidemic, getting more Americans in the workforce by attaching work requirements to federal benefit recipients and ensuring your tax dollars fund only the most productive and qualified federal workers. These are all issues I have helped coauthor solutions to and advance in the House of Representatives. I remain hopeful the Senate obstructionists will soon see the value in tackling these important issues. In addition, the President mentioned investing in our country’s infrastructure, making sure our federal assistance only goes to countries who actually support our priorities and securing our borders. These are all priorities for this year the President mentioned and are important matters which I have both publically and privately discussed with him. 

 

As the President said, “The people dreamed this country. The people built this country. And it is the people who are making America great again.” This is something we cannot forget as we work for the people and take care of the country we call home. There were many opportunities during the speech for my colleagues to stand and join with our President in what should be bipartisan efforts on behalf of all Americans. Sadly, we did not see much support from across the aisle. I hope they will realize that the agenda this President puts above all else isn’t Republican and isn’t Democrat. It is truly America First.

 

On Friday night, January 19th, Senate obstructionism was on full display for all of America to see as a handful of Senators voted to shut down the United States government in order to advocate for unrelated illegal immigration policies.  That’s right, they chose to prioritize illegal immigration over paying our troops and making sure our men and women in uniform had the tools they needed to protect our freedoms. They also said no to funding important Children’s Health Insurance Programs that more than 87,000 kids in Missouri rely on every day –something I have supported during numerous different votes in the House of Representatives dating back to last year.  

 

In reality, the bipartisan proposal to keep the government open and running had nothing to do with the immigration policies liberals were advocating for. However, since a deal had yet to be finalized regarding the status of illegal immigrants brought here at a young age, an issue not facing an immediate deadline until later this spring, Chuck Schumer, Dick Durbin, Elizabeth Warren and the rest of their Senate followers decided it was more important to stand with their progressive base than pay our troops on time, than allow the government to process new social security benefit claims, than to keep your government agencies open and running.

 

Already, weeks of bipartisan talks had been taking place to fund a border wall, increase border security forces, end chain migration, end the visa lottery program and to find a solution to the illegal immigrant community given temporary status through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The Democrats had a choice, and they chose to stomp their feet, throw a fit and shut down the government instead of keeping the government open and continuing the bipartisan talks which had already begun.

 

It was especially frustrating since just a day earlier the House of Representatives had voted in bipartisan fashion to keep the government running and open – this is on top of passing numerous pieces of legislation with both Republicans and Democrats to fund agencies like the Department of Defense, Department of Transportation and Department of Agriculture for the entire year. Simply put, the Senate had ample time to figure out how to fund the government, but failed to act.

 

The truth of the matter is that arcane Senate rules are leaving the White House, House of Representatives, and the Senate hostage to the demands of just a handful of Senators in the minority party. A Senate parliamentary tool found nowhere in the U.S. Constitution allows the minority to require 60 votes on virtually any piece of legislation they choose. When it comes to funding your government, from 1984 to 2007 the Senate minority party only utilized the 60-vote parliamentary tactic on 4% of government funding bills, since 2007 that has grown to 89% - that’s right, Senate Swamp rules have been abused to virtually require every vote of the Senate to require a 60-vote threshold.  

 

Liberal obstructionists took advantage of arcane Senate rules and held healthcare for children and funding for the military hostage in order to appeal to their progressive base, not because they actually objected to any policies contained within the bill to keep your government open. This kind of gridlock and obstruction cannot continue to happen, we must change the swampy-Senate rules and require a simple majority to move forward on government funding bills. Not only would this help keep your government open and running, but also help us cut additional waste, fraud and abuse rampant throughout the government, it would also help us attach work requirements to significant welfare programs and allow us to protect taxpayer resources from typical Washington waste. While this government shutdown ended after three days, another deadline is fast approaching because the Senate funding bill only keeps the government open until February 8th. Americans expect action. In the House, I’m proud we’ve delivered on that, but it’s time for the Senate to pick up the pace and do the same.