MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $16,225,957 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.
“Hurricanes Ida and Laura dealt a massive blow to Louisianians in Lake Charles and in Jefferson and St. Tammany Parishes, and I’m grateful that this $16.2 million will support their recovery efforts,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $4,741,389 to the Louisiana Children’s Medical Center DBA LCMC Health for generator repairs required as a result of Hurricane Ida.
- $4,736,923 to Jefferson Parish for debris removal operations required as a result of Hurricane Ida.
- $3,064,768 to Washington - St. Tammany Electric Cooperative for Alternative Procedure Debris Removal required as a result of Hurricane Ida.
- $2,284,504 to the Southwest Louisiana Hospital Association DBA Lake Charles Memorial Hospital for campus wide emergency protective measures as a result of Hurricane Laura.
- $1,398,373 to the Louisiana Children’s Medical Center DBA LCMC Health for emergency protective measures required as a result of Hurricane Ida.
Kennedy, Graham, Durbin question Zuckerberg about child sexual abuse material on Instagram
Jun 30 2023
MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and others on the committee in writing to Meta Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg regarding recent reporting that Instagram’s algorithm promotes and facilitates sexual interest in and activity with children, including the production and sharing of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
“We are gravely concerned that Instagram’s failure to prevent this perverse use of its algorithms is not due to a lack of ability, but instead a lack of initiative and motivation. In other contexts, Meta has taken steps to map out user networks facilitated by its algorithm, and has even been able to suppress unlawful user content within those networks,” the senators wrote.
“Nevertheless, the Stanford experts determined that Instagram has been ‘ineffective’ in preventing the growth of Self-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Material (SG-CSAM) networks on its platform, largely because of a ‘general lack of resources devoted to detecting SG-CSAM and associated commercial activity.’ It is alarming that online child sexual exploitation and the proliferation of CSAM, including SGCSAM, is not among Meta’s highest priorities—especially when its platform directly facilitates and bolsters the black market for child sexual abuse material,” they continued.
“This Committee has united across the political aisle to combat the evil of online child sexual exploitation. Tech companies cannot assist malevolent actors who seek to take advantage of children. As the experts at Stanford so succinctly articulated, ‘minors do not have the ability to meaningfully consent to the implications of having widely distributed explicit material and the other harms for which it puts them at risk.’ We refuse to let those who traffic in CSAM subject children to these harms and alter the course of their lives. And we refuse to accept Meta’s facilitation of these crimes. We therefore urge Meta to join us in combatting this threat,” the senators concluded.
Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) also signed the letter.
The letter is available here.
ICYMI: Kennedy in Ouachita Citizen: Washington’s soft-on-crime policies are hurting Louisiana
Jun 29 2023
MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) penned this op-ed in the Ouachita Citizen explaining how Washington’s soft-on-crime policies and rhetoric have harmed Louisiana. He argues that his colleagues in Congress must do more to support law enforcement and promote policies that maintain law and order.
Key excerpts of the op-ed are below:
“Some people in power who should know better think cops are a bigger problem than criminals. And they’ve got more empathy for criminals than they do for the law-abiding people those criminals robbed, maimed, or killed. It’s pure lunacy. And it’s making life worse for Louisianians.
“Louisiana has the second-highest homicide rate in the nation. As a city, New Orleans led the nation in homicides in 2022. Baton Rouge’s burglary rate is 330 percent higher than the national average. Shreveport landed on a list of the most dangerous metro areas after a 21.3 percent increase in violent crime.”
. . .
“You don’t need to be Einstein’s cousin to understand what’s driving this crime wave: anti-cop rhetoric, soft-on-crime policies, and the idea that criminal justice is usually unjust.
“Hating cops has become a status symbol for the loon wing of the progressive movement. They have spent years spewing vitriol at law enforcement and working to defund the police.
“Now, we face a severe police officer shortage nationwide, especially in Louisiana. The Louisiana State Police were 300 officers short of the recommended staffing levels. New Orleans is short hundreds of officers, too. Baton Rouge’s police vacancy rate climbed from 30 officers in 2016 to 105 officers in 2022. Shreveport needed 135 additional officers as of March.”
. . .
“Only in Washington would someone be more worried about a criminal’s comfort than a victim’s pain. Or find concerned parents at school board meetings more dangerous than terrorists sneaking across our open border. Or think policing is a bigger threat than crime.
“The government’s first job is to protect people and their property. By demonizing law enforcement while coddling criminals, woke lawmakers and prosecutors have endangered innocent Americans.
“I won’t let Washington ignore the carnage that has unfolded, and I’ll keep fighting for policies that restore safety and order to our country and our state. Without order, there can be no justice.”
Sen. Kennedy has introduced and supported several bills aimed at restoring law and order in America, including the Fairness in Fentanyl Sentencing Act and the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act. He also has a strong record of opposing reforms that shorten sentences for criminals, including the First Step Act.
Read the full op-ed here.
MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $1,126,558 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.
“Louisianians are still rebuilding after Hurricane Laura, and I’m glad to see this $1.1 million go towards the facilities at the Lake Charles Memorial Hospital,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $1,126,558 in federal funding to the Southwest Louisiana Hospital Association for the Lake Charles Memorial Hospital for the second phase of installing temporary facilities as a result of Hurricane Laura.
MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $3,674,290 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.
“Hurricane Ida struck south Louisiana badly, and I am grateful that this $3.7 million will help cover the costs of protective measures for Louisianians,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $3,674,290 to South Louisiana Electric Cooperative Association for emergency protective measures required as a result of Hurricane Ida.
Watch Kennedy’s floor speech here.
WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats today blocked Sen. John Kennedy’s (R-La.) joint resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to prevent the Biden administration’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) from enforcing an anti-Second Amendment pistol brace rule.
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) and more than 40 Republican senators co-sponsored the resolution in the Senate, and the resolution previously passed with more than 180 co-sponsors in the House. Senate Democrats blocked the resolution by a vote of 50-49.
“Today, Senate Democrats protected the Biden administration’s misguided rule, which turns law-abiding gunowners in Louisiana and across the nation into criminals in the blink of an eye. Big Brother is demanding that responsible gunowners with pistol braces register their firearms, destroy the firearms, surrender their firearms to the ATF or effectively destroy their braces. President Biden’s assault on the Second Amendment isn’t going to stop,” said Kennedy.
Millions of law-abiding Americans use pistol braces, and many of those Americans rely on braces because they are disabled. The Biden administration’s rule, titled Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached Stabilizing Braces, reclassifies pistols as short-barreled rifles if those pistols have a stabilizing brace attachment, even though many disabled veterans and other Americans rely on these braces to use their firearms.
“So many people who are opposed to the Second Amendment, they say they're not opposed to the Second Amendment. They say they just want to regulate guns. They don’t. They want to abolish guns,” Kennedy explained ahead of the vote on the resolution.
“Now why is that important? Because some Americans don't have two hands or the use of two hands or two arms. Pistol braces were invented to help handicapped people, particularly handicapped veterans who don't have use of both of their own,” he continued.
“Now, this pistol brace, other than stabilizing the pistol, it doesn’t change the pistol in any way. The pistol brace doesn't change the caliber of the pistol, doesn't make it more powerful. The pistol brace doesn't change the number of rounds that the pistol can hold. The pistol brace doesn't make the pistol an automatic pistol. . . . And the pistol brace doesn't make the pistol fire any faster. The pistol brace also does not help the shooter load the pistol more quickly. Except for stabilizing the pistol, it doesn't change the pistol in any way. It just makes it easier to hold, which is important particularly if you're handicapped,” the senator told his colleagues.
Under the Biden ATF rule, gun owners could face up to 10 years in jail and thousands of dollars in fines if they fail to register pistols with stabilizing braces with the ATF. If gun owners do not register their firearms, they have to destroy the firearm, surrender their firearm to the ATF or remove the brace in such a way that it cannot be reattached.
“The Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Bureau has never had a problem with pistol braces. None Zero. Zilch. Nada. Until President Biden became president. Now, President Biden and his ATF have promulgated a rule. It says attaching a pistol brace to a pistol somehow magically stops the pistol from being a pistol and turns it into a short-barreled rifle,” said Kennedy.
“Now, why does it matter? . . . They want to start a gun registry for law-abiding Americans. Hello! They want to start a gun registry,” the senator explained.
“A regulatory agency like the ATF does not have the power under our Constitution to decide major questions like banning pistol braces unless Congress says it's okay through the text of the statute that the agency is relying on,” concluded Kennedy.
Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) introduced Kennedy’s resolution in the House of Representatives, where it passed earlier this month.
Background
In 2012, the Obama-Biden administration’s ATF determined that pistol-brace attachments do not change the classification of a pistol to that of a rifle. Despite this, the Biden administration in 2021 directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to propose a rule that clarifies when a pistol with a brace attachment should be designated as a rifle.
Earlier this year, the DOJ announced the “stabilizing braces” final rule.
Text of Kennedy’s resolution is available here.
Kennedy, Menendez, Cassidy introduce bipartisan legislation to reauthorize NFIP, bring down policy rates
Jun 22 2023
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, today joined Sens. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) in introducing the National Flood Insurance Program Reauthorization (NFIP Re) Act of 2023.
“By making flood insurance unaffordable, the Biden administration’s Risk Rating 2.0 is making it impossible for Louisianians to protect their biggest assets—their homes. We must make sure that the NFIP works for the people who depend on it, and this bill would do that,” said Kennedy.
“Congress can no longer afford to punt long-term reauthorization and reform of the NFIP. It’s time to put policyholders first and address the longstanding systemic issues with the program that came under the national spotlight in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. With disastrous flooding events becoming all the more common, we must work to create a more sustainable, resilient, and affordable flood insurance program that invests in prevention and mitigation efforts, and all while ensure hard-working Americans can have peace of mind in the event of a disaster,” said Menendez.
“Reforming the NFIP means making it affordable again. We need to ensure families are not priced out of the program,” said Cassidy.
The legislation:
- Reauthorizes the NFIP for five years.
- Caps annual policy premiums hikes at nine percent.
- Freezes interest payments on the NFIP debt to reduce borrowing.
- Increases the maximum limit for increased cost of compliance coverage.
- Funds mitigation efforts.
Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fl.) also cosponsored the legislation.
Reps. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Clay Higgins (R-La.) are leading the legislation in the House of Representatives.
Text of the NFIP Re Act is available here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) introduced the Accountability for Long Term Medicare Solvency Act to increase transparency within the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to ensure that taxpayers are getting the best value for their money.
“Thanks to out-of-control spending, America’s Medicare program could be insolvent within a decade. Yet CMS continues to add billions of dollars in new services to be covered by Medicare without any legislative oversight to ensure that the American people are getting the best value possible. Rather than raising taxes to cover this spending spree, Congress should provide better oversight on CMS to ensure current spending is done in the best interest of the American people,” Kennedy said.
The Accountability for Long Term Medicare Solvency Act would require the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to deliver an annual study to Congress on CMS’s processes for adding, modifying and removing service billing codes under Medicare.
The bill also requires the HHS Secretary to submit a report of each new billing code added to Medicare and its respective costs to Congress, which CMS will make publicly available on its website.
Background
- Recent projections show that Medicare Part A could be insolvent by 2031 if Congress does not take steps to curb spending.
- CMS spending on Medicare programs continues to grow. By 2032, the cost of Medicare is expected to double to nearly $1.9 trillion—more than the U.S. currently spends on defense.
- The increase in Medicare spending is driven largely by the addition of new products or procedures. From 1997 to 2011, 85% of real per capita spending increases were tied to newly created bill codes for treatments, procedures and services not previously covered by Medicare. New billing codes applied through CMS rulemaking increased the cost of Medicare by $6 billion in 2016, $10 billion in 2017 and $6 billion again in 2018. All this spending occurred without legislative oversight.
The text of the bill is available here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today joined Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) and other Republican senators in introducing the Iran Sanctions Relief Review Act (ISSRA). The legislation would require Congress to review any actions the Biden White House takes to terminate or waive sanctions on Iran.
“Iran is the world’s biggest sponsor of terrorism, and its leaders are actively working with China and Russia to undermine stability across the globe. Congress cannot allow the Biden administration to blink when it comes to the threat that this new axis of evil poses to the United States’ national security. The Iran Sanctions Relief Review Act would ensure that Congress reviews any effort the Biden White House makes to weaken sanctions on Iran,” said Kennedy.
“As Iran’s terror-sponsoring regime continues to pursue nuclear weapons to harm Americans and our regional partners and allies, it is critical to provide insurance if President Biden keeps trying to run around Congress and relieve sanctions on Iran. My legislation will make it abundantly clear to the Biden Administration that any agreement made with Iran that involves sanctions relief must be submitted for Congressional review,” said Hagerty.
This bill would provide insurance should the Biden administration attempt to circumvent congressional review under the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act by making a deal with the Iranian regime that includes relieving sanctions.
Congress used this approach to review Russia sanctions relief under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act of 2017, which passed both the House and Senate with broad bipartisan support.
Background:
- This week, foreign leaders alleged that Iran and the U.S. are engaging in indirect talks regarding Iran’s nuclear program.
- Last month, Biden administration officials briefed senators in a classified discussion on Iran.
Full text of the ISSRA is here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today introduced the Exposing China’s Belt and Road Investment in America Act of 2023 to review investments that businesses controlled by the Chinese Communist Party make on U.S. soil. China routinely makes such “greenfield” investments while buying land, building factories and taking advantage of state and local tax breaks in America to expand China’s influence. Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) is the bill’s lead co-sponsor.
“The Chinese Communist Party is both aggressive and manipulative. Beijing uses greenfield investments to gain leverage over America’s economy and job market. We can’t be blind to the ways China is gaming our system to take American assets, real estate and innovation away from U.S. businesses. The Exposing China’s Belt and Road Investment in America Act is key to countering the threat China’s regime poses to our economy and national security,” said Kennedy.
“Every land acquisition, investment, corporate merger, and building of agricultural facilities, influenced by foreign adversaries, is another step away from American ownership and sovereignty over our own food systems and supply chain. Placing greenfield investments under CFIUS review will enhance the review process of purchases from Chinese-operated enterprises. Let’s fend off bad, foreign investment once and for all,” said Cramer.
Greenfield projects involve a parent company in one country establishing a subsidiary in another country. These are the most common way that Chinese companies enter the American market. They are quickly becoming Beijing’s preferred method for expanding influence under its Belt and Road Initiative, the international infrastructure plan the regime is using to increase its global power. At the same time, the Chinese government keeps its domestic markets largely insulated from foreign influence.
China’s state-operated enterprises use the greenfield model to siphon intellectual property, influence and other assets away from U.S. businesses.
The Exposing China’s Belt and Road Investment in America Act of 2023 would put Chinese greenfield initiatives under the review of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The legislation would also require greenfield investments to file a declaration with CFIUS if China’s government controls or has a substantial interest in the investment. CFIUS would review these investments for national security purposes.
Specifically, the bill would require a CFIUS review for any investment that is made by a foreign person that both:
- involves the acquisition of real estate in the U.S. and the establishment of a U.S. business on such real estate, and
- results in China’s direct or indirect control of that U.S. business.
Text of the Exposing China’s Belt and Road Investment in America Act is available here.
