MONROE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, spoke with constituents at the Monroe Chamber and West Monroe-West Ouachita Chambers luncheon about their priorities for northeast Louisiana, including delivering economic wins for the area.
“I sit on the Appropriations Committee. I never ask for a penny more than [Louisiana] needs, but I never, ever accept a penny less than we deserve—and I’ll continue to do that,” said Kennedy.
Since 2022, Kennedy has delivered the following wins for northeast Louisiana through his role as an appropriator:
- $219 million from the Department of Transportation to improve highways, roads and local airports in Monroe and Bastrop.
- $54.5 million in Department of Education grants as well as health and science research grants for post-secondary schools in the area, including Louisiana Tech, Grambling University and Louisiana Delta Community College.
- $10.8 million to the region from the Department of Agriculture for research, conservation and business development.
- $10.7 million to improve economic conditions through the Economic Development Administration and Small Business Administration grants.
- $8 million in Delta Regional Authority investments for road improvement projects and a rail spur at the Port of Columbia.
WASHINGTON – A new Morning Consult survey reports that Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) is one of the 10 most popular U.S. Senators. The survey represents “the industry’s only comprehensive look at the popularity of America’s top statewide federal officials in all 50 states.”
“Our latest definitive ranking of America’s most popular senators, where Wyoming’s John Barrasso remains No. 1 for the fourth quarter in a row. He is joined by three new faces—Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Chris Murphy of Connecticut and John Kennedy of Louisiana,” says Morning Consult.
The survey looks to each senator’s own constituents to understand how well the people of each state feel they are being served by their senators.
According to the report, it ranks policymakers by prioritizing the highest approval rating and breaking ties with net approval, the share of constituents who approve minus the share of those who disapprove.
WASHINGTON – Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) today introduced the Ammunition Supply Chain Act to require the Biden administration to submit a report to Congress about the state of the domestic supply of the chemical ingredients used in smokeless gunpowder.
The legislation responds to recent strains on the global supply chain of these components, including nitrocellulose, the most common ingredient in modern, smokeless gunpowder.
“The U.S. military depends on a reliable gunpowder supply chain to keep our country safe. The Ammunition Supply Chain Act would ensure that the Biden administration evaluates the threats to our gunpowder supply chain and is honest with Congress about them,” said Kennedy.
“This administration creates as many ridiculous hurdles as possible to restrict law-abiding gun owners’ access to affordable guns and ammunition. The Ammunition Supply Chain Act forces transparency from the Biden administration about the status of our domestic ammunition supply chain. This is vital to protect our right to bear arms and to ensure our military has the ammunition it needs to protect our country,” said Risch.
Sens. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) cosponsored the legislation. Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
Background:
- The U.S. and its allies have faced nitrocellulose supply chain threats in recent years, in part because of the strategic partnership between the Russian and Chinese governments.
- The U.S. military, along with domestic firearms and ammunition producers, relies on the availability of nitrocellulose and other components to produce gunpowder.
- Nitrocellulose has a variety of other applications for American industry, including uses in health care and in paint and wood finishes.
Full text of the Ammunition Supply Chain Act can be found here.
Kennedy announces $14.7 million in Hurricanes Laura, Ida aid for Calcasieu, Lafourche Parishes
Apr 18 2024
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $14,730,190 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.
“Hurricane Laura ripped through southwest Louisiana, and Hurricane Ida struck southeast. This $14.7 million will help Louisianians in Calcasieu and Lafourche Parishes rebuild their communities,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $8,248,845 to the Calcasieu Parish School Board for replacement of the DeQuincy High School Gymnasium as a result of Hurricane Laura.
- 3,634,143 to the Lafourche Parish Hospital Service District No. 1 for interest fees on disaster recovery loans as a result of Hurricane Ida.
- $1,624,371 to Moss Bluff Pentecostal Church for the replacement of their main building as a result of Hurricane Laura.
- $1,222,831 to the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury for repairs to their Lake Charles Health Unit facilities as a result of Hurricane Laura.
Kennedy, Scott introduce resolution to block Biden SEC from enforcing woke climate disclosure rule
Apr 18 2024
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, joined Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) in introducing a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) for the Biden administration’s Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) climate disclosure rule. The rule would require companies to make public disclosures about certain climate-related risks such as their greenhouse gas emissions and the financial impact of natural disasters like hurricanes, floods and tornadoes.
“At every opportunity, the Biden administration abuses its rulemaking power to force a radical climate agenda down Americans’ throats. The Senate should move quickly to correct the SEC’s misguided regulation, which will cost companies billions of dollars to comply with and will force investors to prioritize politics in their decision making,” said Kennedy.
In March, the SEC finalized its rule titled, The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors. If Congress does not block it, the rule will soon require more than 7,000 American companies to make climate disclosures. The move will cost companies across the U.S. economy billions of dollars in compliance efforts.
“The SEC’s final climate disclosure rule threatens economic opportunity across the country, and it must be overturned. Over and over again, SEC Chair Gensler has disregarded the real-world impacts of his aggressive regulatory agenda in his dogged pursuit of left-wing political priorities. This rule is no exception. The SEC’s mission is to regulate our capital markets and ensure all Americans can safely share in their economic success—not to force a partisan climate agenda on American businesses. This rule is federal overreach at its worst, and the SEC should stay in its lane,” said Scott.
Background:
- Under Chairman Gary Gensler, the SEC is implementing an aggressive regulatory agenda and has proposed more than 60 rules that are on track to be finalized.
- In Sept. 2022, Kennedy questioned Gensler about the cost of compliance of the SEC’s climate disclosure rule in the Senate Banking Committee. Gensler admitted that the rule would cost billions of dollars across the economy to implement.
Sens. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), John Cornyn (R-Texas), John Thune (R-S.D.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.) and Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.) also signed onto the resolution of disapproval.
Full text of the bill is available here.
WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats today blocked Sen. John Kennedy’s (R-La.) attempts today to stop them from effectively dismissing two impeachment articles against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas without a full Senate trial.
In order to dismiss the impeachment articles, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) claimed that no high crime or misdemeanor had been charged, meaning that the matter didn’t deserve a trial.
Kennedy pointed out, however, that the House of Representatives impeached Mayorkas for lying to Congress, which is a federal felony and, therefore, a crime. Explained Kennedy, “even though lying to the United States Congress is a felony, under the precedent that the majority leader and our Democratic colleagues established, it’s not a high crime [or] misdemeanor” in the eyes of Senate Democrats.
Democrats’ actions have established a new loophole for excusing officials for impeachable offenses.
“I'm trying to follow the Senate majority leader’s logic: What do you have to do to get impeached now? I mean, a felony is not sufficient [according to Democrats]. What’s above a felony?” added Kennedy.
Kennedy made three motions that would have prevented Senate Democrats from shutting down the impeachment proceedings without giving House impeachment managers the opportunity to present their evidence to Senators or Mayorkas the opportunity to defend himself against the impeachment charges.
“I predicted that Sen. Schumer—for the first time in Senate history—was going to bury the articles of impeachment against a sitting official without a full trial, and he did. Democrats are destroying the Senate to keep Americans from seeing the evidence of how royally the Biden administration has screwed up our southern border—but the American people know a whitewash when they see it.
“Americans can’t escape the evidence of the crime, drugs, human trafficking and suffering surging through the open border and into their neighborhoods and families,” said Kennedy.
Kennedy also spoke about impeachment at a press conference yesterday, April 16. Watch those remarks here.
Kennedy announces $4.1 million in Hurricane Laura aid for McNeese University, Cameron Parish
Apr 16 2024
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $4,088,736 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.
“Hurricane Laura devastated southwest Louisiana. This $4.1 million will help McNeese University and Cameron Parish recover from the serious damage Laura left behind,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $3,039,347 to the Office of Risk Management for the replacement of various damaged contents in McNeese University buildings.
- $1,049,389 to Cameron Parish for repairs to the water tower in District 10.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today introduced a resolution urging North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members not to confirm the next secretary general unless the nominee is the former leader of a member country that spends at least two percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on defense.
“NATO can’t deter or answer aggression from hostile regimes if our own member nations show a lack of resolve. No leader from a country that fails to meet its own defense pledge should be able to lead NATO. It’s up to the Senate to deter Iran, China and Russia by ensuring that NATO’s secretary general hails from a country that’s already fulfilling its commitment to the alliance,” said Kennedy.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s term will expire in October. The Netherlands’ Mark Rutte is likely to replace Stoltenberg despite the fact that, throughout Rutte’s 13 years as prime minister, his administration failed to meet its NATO commitment to invest two percent of the Netherlands’ GDP in defense.
Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) have cosponsored the resolution.
Kennedy’s resolution:
- Recognizes that, in 2006 and 2014, NATO members agreed to invest two percent of their GDP in defense.
- Recognizes that, by 2022, only 11 countries had met this minimum defense spending goal.
- Recognizes that, by 2024, NATO expects 18 member countries to have met the minimum investment.
- Declares that NATO’s next secretary general should hail from a country that meets the alliance’s defense spending pledge.
- Declares that NATO will never be fully effective as long as its secretary general represents a member country that does not even fulfill its commitment to its own defense.
Background:
- In 2006, member countries of NATO first agreed to spend two percent of their respective GDP’s on defense. At the 2014 NATO Summit in Wales, all member countries once again committed to maintain or move toward meeting the two percent defense spending minimum within 10 years.
- As of 2023, only 11 member countries had met the two percent minimum, including the U.S., the United Kingdom, Poland and Finland.
- Many member countries issued statements pledging to meet the minimum investment following Russia’s invading Ukraine, yet many member countries may not reach the minimum contribution until 2035.
- Kennedy recently commended NATO allies for increasing defense spending and has consistently called on other countries to meet their commitments.
- Kennedy recently led a bipartisan resolution urging NATO allies to spend a minimum of two percent of their GDP on defense spending.
Full text of the senator’s resolution is available here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today introduced the Consensus in Sentencing Act to require the U.S. Sentencing Commission to achieve bipartisan agreement to make major policy changes.
The legislation would amend 28 U.S.C. § 994(a) to require that amendments to the Sentencing Guidelines receive five votes from the Commission’s seven voting members.
“The Sentencing Commission for decades strove to achieve bipartisan agreement when adopting amendments to the Sentencing Guidelines. In recent years, the Commission has lost its way and begun forcing through amendments on party-line votes. My bill would help the Sentencing Commission revive its consensus-building culture,” said Kennedy.
Background:
- The Sentencing Commission is made up of seven voting members. No more than four members can belong to the same political party.
- In a sharp break from its traditional bipartisan practices, the Commission’s current leadership has forced through several major policy changes to federal sentencing law on a party-line basis.
- The Commission is currently considering several other major proposed changes.
Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) cosponsored the legislation.
Full text of the Consensus in Sentencing Act is available here.
Kennedy issues final warning against Mayorkas impeachment dismissal: “It’s an insult to the Senate”
Apr 16 2024
Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today cautioned his colleagues against breaking centuries of Senate precedent by quashing the impeachment of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas without allowing a full trial.
Kennedy delivered his remarks shortly after the House of Representatives presented the articles of impeachment to the Senate.
Key excerpts from Kennedy’s speech are below:
“This doesn’t happen every day or every week or every month or even every year around here. Our country is almost 250 years old. This has only happened 22 times. . . . Every single time, except for when the public official has quit, the United States Senate has done its job—through thick and thin, whether the Democrats were in the majority or the Republicans were in the majority.
“It didn't matter who the president was. We did our job because we respect the institution of the Constitution. We respect the three branches of government. We respect the United States House of Representatives. We respect them enough to do our job.”
. . .
“Now, in the next two days, you’re going to hear one of my colleagues, the majority leader, say we don’t need to hold a trial. He’s going to say the evidence is insufficient: It’s not worth our time.
“I want you to think for a moment. Just ask yourself this question: How does he know the evidence isn’t sufficient? How does he know? He hasn’t heard the evidence.”
. . .
“It’s about raw, gut politics. Some of my colleagues in this body do not want us to talk about the border in an election year, and we all know that. You know that. I know that. Everybody watching knows that. The American people know that. They may be poorer under President Biden, but they’re not stupid. They can see that. And that’s not right. . . . Regardless of what you think or what you may think you think without having heard the evidence, the United States Senate should do its job. We should hold a trial.”
. . .
“They’ve got the majority. I believe in the rule of law and the rules are the rules, but sometimes the majority just means that all of the fools are on the same side. That’s why we have a Bill of Rights in our Constitution to protect our rights. . . . This is a political decision, and it’s an insult to the Senate. It’s one more step of the United States Senate rotting from within where we don’t do our job for political reasons.”
Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.
Kennedy also spoke about impeachment at an earlier press conference on Tuesday. Watch those remarks here.
