WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today called upon the Biden administration’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to investigate the Czechoslovak Group’s (CSG) proposed acquisition of U.S. ammunition producer Vista Outdoor Sporting Products.
Kennedy wrote Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Chair of the CFIUS, about concerns regarding the deal because it would lead to an unprecedented consolidation in the global ammunitions market.
“I write to draw your attention to potential national security concerns arising from the proposed acquisition of Vista Outdoor's Sporting Products business (‘Vista Sporting Products’) to Czechoslovak Group (‘CSG’), a foreign arms dealer with ties to China that has been recently acquiring key suppliers of ammunition and primers used by the U.S. military and law enforcement,” Kennedy wrote.
The senator highlighted three main concerns about the acquisition, including that it would give CSG immediately control over nearly 70% of production capacity for primers in the western world. That means that the U.S. Army could become reliant on a sole U.S. contractor for ammunition and U.S. law enforcement agencies would become more reliant on foreign providers of primers and ammunition.
“Further complicating this matter, questions have arisen in recent weeks related to CSG's relationships with China. It appears the company has taken actions to obscure its past relationships with China and insist it has no current relationships with our adversaries,”the senator continued.
“For these reasons, I request CFIUS to carefully examine national security concerns of the proposed acquisition, specifically concerning the potential impact of the transaction on the U.S. military and law enforcement's reliable access to an affordable supply of primers and ammunition, and the company's attempts to obfuscate its relationship with China,” Kennedy concluded.
Background:
- On Oct. 16, 2023, Vista Outdoor announced an agreement to sell its Sporting Products business to CSG for $1.9 billion.
- The proposed acquisition is the latest example of unprecedented consolidation in the global ammunition market occurring in Europe. For example, Beretta acquired the Ammotec division of RUAG International in March 2022, and CSG gained a majority stake investment in Fiocchi Munizioni in Nov. 2023.
- The proposed acquisition must undergo shareholder and regulatory approvals, including a national security review, by CFIUS.
- In Dec. 2023, Vista Outdoor and CSG disclosed that they received antitrust approval from U.S. antitrust regulators. However, the proposed acquisition did not happen within the initial 45-day CFIUS review window.
The full letter is available here.
Kennedy, colleagues demand Schumer hold fair and full impeachment trial over Mayorkas charges
Apr 11 2024
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined more than 40 of his Republican colleagues in calling on Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to allow the Senate to hold a full and fair trial over the House of Representatives’ articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Kennedy introduced a resolution on the floor this week to give the Senate the procedural tools it needs to conduct a full and fair trial over the charges against Mayorkas.
Senate Democrats blocked the resolution, indicating that they intend to break centuries of precedent by dismissing or tabling the House’s impeachment charges against Mayorkas.
“Encounters in fiscal year 2023 increased a startling 440% over fiscal year 2020. The border crisis under Secretary Mayorkas has become a nightmare for the American people,” the senators wrote.
“The House of Representatives has considered this evidence and impeached Secretary Mayorkas. Our constitutional duty requires the Senate to hold a trial. In every previous congressional impeachment of the past 227 years, Congress has been faithful to the process set out by the framers . . . Never before has the Senate abandoned this duty, even when certain members believed the basis for impeachment was tenuous at best,” they continued.
“In the face of the disaster that mounts daily at our southern border, and in communities across America, the House of Representatives has formally accused Alejandro Mayorkas of demeaning his office. The American people deserve to hear the evidence through a Senate trial in the Court of Impeachment,” the senators concluded.
Full text of the letter is available here.
Kennedy introduces bill to block funding for medical schools that force students to adopt DEI
Apr 11 2024
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Budget Committee, today introduced the Embracing anti-Discrimination, Unbiased Curricula and Advancing Truth in Education (EDUCATE) Act to block federal funding for medical schools and accrediting institutions that force students to affirm ideological beliefs and prioritize Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).
“Woke universities are forcing America’s future doctors to care more about race and gender than saving lives. The EDUCATE Act would make sure taxpayer dollars don’t fund medical schools that discriminate against talented students or peddle progressive nonsense at the expense of science,” said Kennedy.
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) is co-leading the legislation.
“The medical field has traditionally been one driven by core tenants of merit, academic excellence, and superb scientific achievement, but that has not stopped the left from their malpractice of injecting DEI into every aspect of education in America. To cheapen medical schools with woke politics and DEI would be to put the lives of countless Americans in danger as students of extraordinary achievement and meticulous discipline in the field will be cast aside in the name of social justice and equity,” said Schmitt.
Rep. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.) introduced the legislation in the House of Representatives.
“American medical schools are the best in the world and no place for discrimination. The EDUCATE Act compels medical schools and accrediting agencies to uphold colorblind admissions processes and prohibits the coercion of students who hold certain political opinions. Diversity strengthens medicine, but not if it’s achieved through exclusionary practices. Medicine is about serving others and doing the best job possible in every circumstance. We cannot afford to sacrifice the excellence and quality of medical education at the hands of prejudice and divisive ideology,” said Murphy.
The EDUCATE Act would block federal funding from medical schools that:
- Direct, compel or incentivize students, faculty or staff to affirm or adopt certain ideological tenets.
- Take any action that would deprive a student of educational opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his or her status as a student on the basis of race or ethnicity.
- Require a course of instruction that directs or compels students, faculty or staff to affirm or adopt certain ideological tenets.
- Maintain a DEI or equivalent office within the medical school.
- Require or incentivize an individual to complete a diversity statement that affirms or capitulates to DEI as a condition of the person’s being admitted to or employed by a school.
Full text of the EDUCATE Act is available here.
Kennedy, Booker introduce bipartisan bill to help Americans get help for opioid overdoses
Apr 11 2024
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today along with Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) introduced the bipartisan Samaritan Efforts to Ensure Key Health Emergency and Life-saving Protections (SEEK HELP) Act to provide Americans with life-saving treatment during an opioid overdose.
“In 2022 alone, about 1,400 Louisianians lost their lives to opioid overdoses. The SEEK HELP Act would get more Americans the life-saving treatment they need when they fall victim to an opioid overdose, and the Senate should pass it immediately,” said Kennedy.
“The drug overdose crisis is ravaging communities across the nation, and far too many Americans have lost their lives as a tragic consequence. We can and must do more. I'm proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to help combat this crisis, protect those seeking to help others, and ultimately save more lives,” said Booker.
Sens. Shelly Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) cosponsored the legislation.
The SEEK HELP Act would:
- Create civil liability protections for individuals who administer an opioid reversal drug.
- Offer criminal immunity to an individual who seeks medical help for someone experiencing an opioid overdose.
- Requires the Department of Health and Human Services to carry out a public awareness campaign about these liability protections to encourage more Americans to get medical assistance when experiencing a drug overdose.
The National District Attorneys Association, Americans for Prosperity, Association for Prosecuting Attorneys, Due Process Institute, Law Enforcement Action Partnership, R Street and Vera Institute support the bill.
“The SEEK HELP Act is a significant stride in our battle against the opioid epidemic. With its provision of legal protections during overdose situations and efforts to raise awareness of Good Samaritan Laws, this legislation not only saves lives but also strengthens trust between law enforcement and communities. Ultimately, the SEEK HELP Act enhances public safety and fosters healthier, more resilient communities,” said Nelson Bunn, Executive Director of the National District Attorneys Association.
Full text of the SEEK HELP Act is available here.
Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats today blocked S. Res. 623, a resolution from Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) that would establish efficient and fair trial procedures for the impeachment of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Senate Democrats have indicated they intend to break centuries of Senate precedent by dismissing or tabling the impeachment charges against Mayorkas rather than holding a trial. Such a dismissal has never happened before in the history of the U.S. Senate.
“Our government is one of laws, not people—laws, not people—and, as you also know, Madam President, the United States Senate is built on precedent and custom and history and the law—not political expedience.
“We in the Senate are supposed to listen to the American people—not ignore them. And one of the ways we do that, Madam President, is by playing by the rules that we’ve all agreed to. All of the rules. All of the time.
“Now, my Senate Democratic colleagues today—or at least very shortly—however, may be willing to jeopardize centuries of this stability—the stability that this body has brought and lives by—for a short-term political advantage.
“We all know what’s going on here. . . . For the very first time in our nation’s history, my Senate Democratic colleagues are seeking to table—maybe even dismiss—an impeachment by the United States House of Representatives of a sitting cabinet official without holding a full trial. If my Senate colleagues do that, they will be summoning spirits they won’t be able to control.”
. . .
“Senate Democrats, I’m afraid, are silencing the American people who want their country’s secure border back.
“The truth is that the Americans are tired of the drug trafficking. They’re tired of the human trafficking. They’re tired of the sexual abuse of women and children. They’re tired of the widespread illnesses. They’re tired of the death. They’re tired of the behavior of President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas, with respect to the border. They’re tired of the chaos. They believe it’s chaotic by design, and they believe it is undermining their national security—and they’re right.”
. . .
“If they choose to ignore this impeachment, they will have placed their seal of approval on the lawlessness at the border and the chaos it has brought to so many American communities. And they will have ignored 200 years of Senate precedent.
“A charitable interpretation based on policy does not exist for what my Democratic colleagues are going to try to do. It is all based on raw, gut politics. They know it, and I know it.”
Read Kennedy’s impeachment resolution here.
Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Budget Committee, today joined Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and their Republican colleagues on the Budget Committee in calling for committee chairman Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) to focus hearing topics on the committee’s jurisdiction, namely, fiscal matters.
This Congress, the Democratic majority has convened just three hearings on the budget and held 15 on climate policy. Republicans raised their concerns earlier this Congress by writing to Whitehouse.
On March 25, the chairman wrote Republicans, defending the committee’s obsession with climate policy. Below are excerpts from Republicans’ response to Whitehouse’s most recent letter.
“Your frustration with our complaints regarding the committee’s climate change hearings would be understandable if such hearings were commensurate with the time spent on core committee responsibilities. After fifteen climate change hearings in a span of thirteen months, our request that the committee turn its attention to the nation’s dire fiscal outlook is more than reasonable,” the senators wrote.
“Publicly-held debt is projected to soar from 99 percent of total GDP this year to 166 percent by 2054. Net interest costs have nearly doubled since President Biden took office, and they are expected to increase another 147 percent by 2034. Starting this year, the cost of paying the interest due on our debts will surpass what we spend on national defense. By 2025, interest is expected to make up a larger share of U.S. GDP than any other year on record and an additional $20 trillion will be added to our national debt over the next ten years. It would be folly for this committee not to focus attention on the immediate dangers that fall under the committee’s prime responsibility, our fiscal house,” they continued.
The senators also addressed Whitehouse’s references to climate-related bills that Democratic senators on the committee introduced.
“We acknowledge the multiple bills introduced by Budget Committee Democrats listed in your letter, none of which have been referred to the Committee on the Budget or processed in their respective Democrat-controlled committees this Congress. None of these bills have been brought up for consideration by the Democrat Majority Leader. Not only does this reveal the nonexistent role of the Senate Budget Committee in legislating climate change policy, but the evident lack of popularity of these climate change proposals,” the senators concluded.
Background:
Hearing witnesses are meant to provide expert testimony on subjects to legislators, but these climate change meetings have failed to provide that insight. During a recent hearing on outdoor recreation and climate change, Kennedy questioned Democrats’ witness. The majority’s witness could not provide an accurate answer to Kennedy’s questioning on carbon dioxide.
The full letter is available here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $27,792,440 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.
“Hurricane Laura wreaked havoc to McNeese University, and Hurricane Zeta battered Louisiana State University’s Health Sciences Center. This $27.8 million will help Louisianians rebuild their schools and get back in their classrooms,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $26,352,723 to the Office of Risk Management for the replacement of the McNeese University Farrar Hall building due to Hurricane Laura.
- $1,439,717 to the Office of Risk Management to repair damages to the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center caused by Hurricane Zeta.
View Kennedy’s full remarks here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined Republican colleagues in calling on Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to hold a full, fair trial in the Senate to consider the House of Representatives’ articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
The House of Representatives has impeached Mayorkas for “high crimes and misdemeanors,” which are outlined in two articles of impeachment. The U.S. Constitution, within Article I, Section 3, Clause 6, vests the Senate with the sole power to “try all Impeachments.”
“A charitable interpretation of what Sen. Schumer is planning to do does not exist. It doesn’t. He is going to either make a motion to table or to dismiss the work done by the U.S. House of Representatives,” explained Kennedy, in light of Senate Democrats’ apparent plans to bury the impeachment charges without a full trial.
The Senate has held a full trial in every impeachment except in four cases where the official was either removed or resigned, so dismissing or tabling the articles against Mayorkas would be unprecedented.
“I fully expect Senator Schumer to try to muddy up the water, to try to make it look deep, but this is really very simple: We’re either going to follow Senate custom, Senate rules and Senate history, or we are not,” Kennedy said.
“Now, originally, Senator Schumer had planned to do this on the Thursday when everybody is trying to get back to their districts. Isn't that special? Wonder why he picked a Thursday. . . . This is unconscionable, people. This ranks right up there with getting rid of the filibuster. We’re either going to have a United States Senate as set up by our founders or we’re not, and that’s what’s going on here,” Kennedy concluded.
Background:
In March, Kennedy explained why it would be unprecedented for the Senate to dismiss the impeachment charges the House has leveled against Mayorkas without holding a trial.
Watch Kennedy’s full remarks here.
Kennedy warns Senate Democrats against burying Mayorkas impeachment: “They’ll regret it”
Apr 08 2024
Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today urged his colleagues not to break centuries of Senate precedent by burying the articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas without a trial.
Kennedy encouraged his colleagues to adopt his resolution, S. Res. 623, which would establish fair and efficient trial procedures for this impeachment according to longstanding Senate precedent.
Key excerpts from Kennedy’s speech are below:
“I fear, though, that Senate Democrats are going to try to take the articles of impeachment that our colleagues in the United States House of Representatives thoughtfully crafted and passed with a majority vote and toss them into the trash without hearing from either side.
“They don’t want to let the House impeachment managers make their case. They don’t want to let Secretary Mayorkas make his case. They just want to ignore the House’s evidence summarily, sweep it under the rug and move on. And that is wrong.
“The Senate has never in its history tabled an impeachment. Never. In the more than 200 years that this body has existed, the House of Representatives has impeached an official 21 times, and we have never once tabled the impeachment. Not once.
“Now, Senator Schumer may also try to dismiss these charges instead of tabling them, but that’s never been done before either. If the Senate dismisses these charges without a trial, it will be the first time in the Senate’s long history that it has dismissed impeachment charges against an official it has jurisdiction over without that official first resigning—and that’s a fact.”
. . .
“Americans need to hear what I’m about to say, even if my Democrat colleagues won’t listen. Let me say it again: A majority of the duly elected members of the United States House of Representatives—who represent all the different communities across America—spent months investigating the allegations against Secretary Mayorkas. They spent months crafting the articles of impeachment, and a majority of the House then voted ‘yes’ to bring two very serious charges. The Senate Democrats are now treating those charges—those articles of impeachment—like spam that landed in their inbox.
“Americans, however, are not nearly so sanguine about the border crisis that has brought death, drugs, violence, chaos, criminals and mayhem into their neighborhoods. The Biden administration’s border crisis is as unprecedented as the majority leader’s move to bury the evidence of who could be to blame here.
“I, for one, want to hear the House’s evidence, and so do the American people.”
. . .
“I’m going to have a resolution—if I’m allowed to present it, Madam President—that will give us the procedures we need to conduct this trial fairly and efficiently . . . It’ll be efficient. It’ll be fair. It’ll be honest. It won’t uproot the longstanding precedent we have to give articles of impeachment in the past.
“If the majority leader and my Democratic colleagues table or dismiss these charges and destroy Senate precedent, a precedent we’ve established to conduct full and fair impeachment trials, they will regret it. They will regret it. Senate Democrats, if they do that, will show the world that their proclamations about protecting democracy and upholding the rule of law are just tools of their own political expedience and arrogance.
“Senate Democrats will let people, the American people, know that they endorse the lawlessness and misery the Biden administration’s broken border has brought to this country.”
Read Kennedy’s impeachment resolution here.
View Kennedy’s full speech here.
MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $1,462,148 in a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grant for Louisiana disaster aid.
“When Hurricane Ida struck Jefferson Parish, Louisianians bravely weathered the storm. This $1.5 million will help cover the costs of disaster recovery management in our communities,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $1,462,148 to Jefferson Parish for management costs as a result of Hurricane Ida.
