Congressman Michael McCaul
Our Nations Heroes
Texas Insider Report: WASHINGTON D.C. Over the weekend we celebrated Veterans Day. This national holiday is an important day in our country as it reminds us to reflect on the enormous gratitude we owe to those who have served and those currently serving in our nations armed forces. For it is because of their bravery and selfless sacrifice we are the land of the free and the home of the brave.
You can watch my short video thanking our veterans for their service by clicking
here or on the image below.
I attended a cake cutting ceremony for the 242nd birthday of the United States Marine Corps and had the privilege to meet the guest of honor Lt. Gen. George Christmas. He was the Company Commander in the Marines Corps touchstone Battle for Hue City Vietnam in February of 1968. Pictured below is also Gen. Robert Neller Commandant of the Marine Corps and Col. John Ostrowski.
ICYMI: I appeared on FOX News Americas Newsroom
I joined Americas Newsroom to discuss the Texas shooting and President Trumps trip to Asia. With respect to the horrific shooting my thoughts and prayers go out to all of those affected. This tragedy has shaken a small Texas town and yet as with Hurricane Harvey earlier this year we have also watched Texans do what we do best: lend a hand to our neighbor particularly in times of need.
Regarding the Presidents Asia trip he had very successful visits with the Prime Minister of Japan and the President of South Korea. As I note in the interview below if we can help arm our allies Japan and South Korea with missile defense systems then that would put pressure on China in turn to deal with the North Korean threat.
You can watch my full appearance by clicking
here or on the image below.
Keeping Our Transportation Systems Secure
I held a hearing on TSAs role in keeping our transportation systems secure. This hearing gave members the opportunity to hear from the newly confirmed TSA Administrator Ret. Vice Admiral David Pekoske about his plans for the administration because we need to do more to confront the growing threats aimed at the aviation sector.
If we are going to be successful in keeping our homeland safe we must make sure that TSA has the tools and resources it needs to carry out its mission. This is no easy task. Even though there are approximately 60000 TSA employees helping safeguard nearly 450 airports throughout the US our aviation sector remains the crown jewel of terrorist targets. Americas enemies only have to be right once while we have to be right 100.
You can watch my opening statement from this hearing by clicking
here or on the image below.
Legislative Update
Last week we passed important legislation and below are a few that may be of interest to you:
- H.R. 1066 - VA Management Alignment Act of 2017. This bill would require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to create and submit a one-time report to Congress on the Departments organizational structure.
- R. 3122- Veterans Care Financial Protection Act of 2017. This bill would require the VA to post notice on its website about dishonest individuals who prey on those who receive pension benefits with regular aid and attendance (A&A) and are at risk of financial exploitation.
- R. 3441- Save Local Business Act. This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to clarify that two or more employers may be considered a joint employer" only if they have actual direct and immediate" control over employees essential terms and conditions of employment.
- The House Republican tax reform planwas passed by the Ways & Means Committee after a week-long markup of the bill.
This week we are voting on a number of bills. Below are a few you may be interested in:
- R. 1 - Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This bill reforms the nations tax code for the first time in 31 years providing tax relief to all Americans and lowering corporate taxes on all businesses large and small. The bill lowers individual tax rates for all Americans and reduces the number of brackets from seven under the current code to four.
- R. 2874- 21st Century Flood Reform Act. This bill reauthorizes the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) for five years introduces private market competition and provides programmatic reform to help policyholders.
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- The NDAA for Fiscal Year 2018 also includes my bill the Cyber Scholarship Opportunities Act to aid in the shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals by expanding and enhancing an existing federal scholarship program for students pursuing degrees in cybersecurity fields.
- Consideration of Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 2810 -National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2018. This bill authorizes and prioritizes funding for the Department of Defense (DoD) and military activities and construction and prescribes military personnel strengths for Fiscal Year 2018; provides the necessary topline of nearly $700 billion.
I encourage you to visit my website
www.mccaul.house.gov for more information on constituent services and legislative updates. Also follow me on
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YouTube to get the latest updates on my work in Washington and the 10
th District of Texas. It continues to be a great honor to represent you in the United States House of Representatives.
