These hearings on illegal immigration and border security are six years late and millions of dollars short. With complete Republican control of legislation and enforcement of the law for six years, you would think that a party calling so vigorously for border security and enforcement of immigration law could have solved the problem of illegal immigration by now. But the Republican Party seems to be all talk on this subject. Today’s Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing was just another in the long list of hearings held and planned by this Republican-led Congress that produce absolutely no solutions to a problem the American public cares about.

I am disappointed that the Supreme Court is endorsing the idea that professional, partisan politicians can overhaul their state’s Congressional map whenever they feel it will benefit them personally. This will lead to a free-for-all through which the party in power in any state capitol at any time can negatively impact the people’s business in Washington. Partisan gerrymandering promotes ideologically extreme views, shrinking the political center in Washington. Few in Congress are willing to work together to accomplish the goals the American people expect us to accomplish. Read the rest of this entry »

The 9th Circuit is the most overburdened court we have in the country and it cannot effectively serve the geographic region it now covers. I am pleased that the Judiciary Committee is taking up the issue and commend Chairman Specter for moving ahead with a hearing. I am hopeful that there will be a prompt mark-up on the bill. The 9th Circuit is just too large to properly service the residents of Idaho and other states in the West. Idahoans and others who are now included in the 9th Circuit will be better served with this change that will provide smaller, more efficient courts. I have been committed to this structural reform for many years and look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to ensure that the legislation is enacted into law.

Passage of the Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization Act accomplished two very important goals: protecting homeowners by ensuring that a viable market for flood insurance continues to operate effectively and efficiently in the United States, while at the same time protecting taxpayers by increasing Congressional oversight of the flood insurance system.

By: Tom Donohue of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce

America is at risk of being left behind if it doesn’t improve its
education system. There are warning signs everywhere. Thirty percent of
our young people are not even graduating from high school. Our students
are lagging behind in math and science. In order to improve education, we
must first assess what works and what doesn’t.

The Chamber has assembled a bipartisan team of experts from the Center for
American Progress and the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy
Research to aggregate and analyze current data and supplement it with new
research that examines return on investment, budget transparency, and the
relationship between per pupil spending and student achievement. The
Chamber will use the results of the analysis to formulate and aggressively
advance public policies to improve state education systems across the
country.

America needs a world-class education system. Students deserve it, parents
demand it, and businesses require it if we are to compete and win in the
global economy.

This week, the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations is holding another set of hearings on the exploding problem of online child exploitation. This crime is growing at an alarming rate and is surpassing law enforcements best efforts to stop it. During these hearings we learned of many efforts by law enforcement officials to stop these predators. Unfortunately, many of these investigators have watched their cases reach a dead end because Internet Service Providers (ISPs) fail to retain subscriber data. Thankfully, due in part to these hearings certain ISPs have agreed to retain subscriber data for up to 180 days. We welcome their voluntary efforts, but there still needs to be a national standard.

That is why I am drafting legislation to require ISPs to retain limited customer data for one year. This would allow law enforcement officials, working through the proper legal channels, to obtain the information they need to solve these crimes. This bill is a step in the right direction in stopping this horrible epidemic and I hope members from both sides of the aisle will join me in supporting it.

Few symbols in our world stir up more emotion than the American flag. For Americans, it embodies all that we stand for. For our enemies, it represents all they seek to destroy. When Americans desecrate our flag in the name of free speech, they destroy the very symbol of the freedoms they seek to celebrate, inciting fellow Americans. While our Constitution protects speech, it does not protect every conceivable expression, and it was this capacity to incite that our anti-flag desecration laws were designed to protect us from.

I truly wish we did not have to do this, but the courts have driven us to it. It is the only option to protect the symbol of America and the freedoms she stands for and has fought to protect the world over.

America is the ‘land of the free and the home of the brave.’ Our flag reminds us of that every day, and it deserves the same protection as our inalienable rights.

I’ve been been to Iraq four times. The best kept secret in America is that there has always been a plan for training Iraqi forces and gradually lessening American forces’ presence
there.

I’ve always felt that we’ve been on a 2-5 year time table, and it’s looking more and more like that.

The President puts it very succinctly. If the Iraqi Forces step up, then we’ll step down. That’s always been the plan.

With all of the derision of us about being “cut and run,” they feel enough political pressure for General Casey to propose what is “slice and jog.”

It would be far more productive for Senator Nelson to talk about what he is for than what he is against. The bill that he filed provides for drilling that is only 25 miles different from the House bill. At some point, he needs to take off his campaign hat and start legislating.