WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $2,619,792 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana National Guard emergency protective measures and the restoration of a damaged building in Lafourche Parish.
“Louisiana communities depend on the Louisiana National Guard during disasters. This $2.6 million will help cover costs the Guard sustained during Hurricane Francine and restore a facility in Lafourche Parish that Hurricane Ida damaged,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $1,500,842 to the Louisiana Department of Military for emergency protective measures that the Louisiana National Guard undertook during Hurricane Francine.
- $1,118,950 to the Greater Lafourche Port Commission for repairs to the Galliano Main Administrative Office Building due to Hurricane Ida damage.
Kennedy introduces bipartisan bill to help rural small businesses secure capital, create jobs
Feb 13 2025
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, today introduced the Expanding Access to Capital for Rural Job Creators Act to help remove the hurdles that rural small businesses face when they try to access capital.
“Small businesses keep Louisiana’s economy running, and Congress should make sure our rural entrepreneurs aren’t facing unnecessary hurdles to securing capital. Our bill would help rural job creators get their businesses off the ground and better serve American communities,” said Kennedy.
The bill would amend the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to require the Securities and Exchange Commission Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation to submit an annual report on the unique challenges rural businesses face when trying to secure capital. These reports would allow Congress to better weigh legislative action to expand small businesses’ access to capital.
Sens. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) cosponsored the bill.
Kennedy previously introduced the Expanding Access to Capital for Rural Job Creators Act in the 117th and 118th Congresses. The Senate passed the bill in the 118th Congress.
The full bill text is available here.
Kennedy: Congress should not be picking winners and losers in the news media by funding PBS, NPR
Feb 13 2025
Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) argued that the federal government should not continue to use taxpayer dollars to subsidize the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CBP), including the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR), on the Senate floor.
Key excerpts of the speech are below:
“It might have made sense many, many, many years ago for the federal government to subsidize and fund public broadcasting. Fifty years ago, that might have made sense, but the ability of the American people today to access whatever news they would like to hear from whatever form of media they choose is no longer limited. It is virtually unlimited—only by the imagination.
“So here is my question, Mr. President. . . . If all this is true, if media has changed and it is accessible to everyone, why is the U.S. Congress still spending half a billion dollars a year—not half a million a year—half a billion dollars a year to fund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting? It makes no sense.”
. . .
“Congress does not send taxpayer money to the most popular podcast host in America. We don’t. The anchors on Fox News, the anchors on CNN, the anchors on MSNBC, nor their stations—they don’t get any taxpayer dollars. Nor do any of the journalists that ask me questions every day in the hallway in this building—unless they work for NPR or PBS or their affiliates or the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Congress should not be picking winners and losers in the news media, but that is what we are doing.”
. . .
“President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency is looking for fat to trim, Mr. President. As far as I am concerned, this gravy train—this gravy train with biscuit wheels called the Corporation for Public Broadcasting—is the perfect example of a project the American people no longer need and should not fund.”
Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.
Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) celebrated the Trump administration’s effort to expose wasteful spending within the federal government in a speech on the Senate floor.
Key excerpts of the speech are below:
“I want to make a brief comment about the continuing saga that our new president is doing, in my judgment, a good job of prosecuting here in Washington. I am talking about his audits of federal government spending and all of the wasteful spending—I call it spending porn—that he is finding.”
. . .
“The battle lines are drawn. Some of my colleagues have decided to support the bureaucracy and the spending porn over the American taxpayer. . . . That is their right.
“It is not against the law or unconstitutional to be foolish in America, but these are the same people . . . who chose to support illegal immigration over the rule of law. These are the same people who have chosen to support teachers’ unions over parents and kids. These are the same people who have chosen to support criminals over cops and victims. These are the same people who have chosen to support transgender athletes over women’s sports. These are the same people who have chosen to support Hamas over Israel.
“They think they are winning. Maybe in this town they are—if you listen to a lot of the pundits up here, if you listen to a lot of the members of the ‘wokerati’ in Washington—but they are not winning in America. The justice stick is coming, and I am very proud to be a part of that effort.”
Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today introduced a bill to repeal the Biden administration’s Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rule that would implement Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Section 1071 amends the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) to require financial institutions to collect certain personal information on small businesses when they seek a loan.
In 2023, Congress passed Kennedy’s joint resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act to reverse the Biden administration’s rule, which requires banks to report to the CFPB on small business owners’ race, ethnicity and sex; and whether a business is minority-owned, women-owned or LGBT-owned. However, President Joe Biden vetoed the resolution, and the rule remains in effect.
“President Biden’s woke CFPB put small business owners’ information at risk by requiring their personal details to be exposed online. My bill would repeal the last administration’s misguided regulation so that job creators’ private information isn’t public, and government doesn’t stand in the way of Main Street’s access to loans,” Kennedy said.
Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas) introduced the bill in the House of Representatives.
Background:
- On March 30, 2023, the CFPB promulgated the final rule implementing Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act, which amends the ECOA. The rule was published in the Federal Register on May 31, 2023.
- Section 1071 requires covered financial institutions to collect and report certain personal information on small business loan applicants and report that to the CFPB. The CFPB may then make certain parts of that information public, including data that could publicly identify the small business credit applicant.
- In order to comply with the Biden CFPB rule, financial institutions would have to collect information about applicants, including the applicant's census tract, North American Industry Classification System and years in business, among other personal information.
- The rule applies to financial institutions that originated at least 100 small business loans in each of the two preceding calendar years.
- Based on the number of credit transactions for small businesses, covered financial institutions must comply with the final rule beginning Oct. 1, 2024; April 1, 2025; or Jan. 1, 2026.
- A small business is defined as a company with $5 million or less in revenue from the previous fiscal year.
- Among the many concerns about the CFPB’s collecting and storing such personal information is that the agency recently experienced a data breach including the personally identifiable information of 256,000 consumers and failed to properly inform them for two months.
- The implementation of this rule may reduce the availability and accessibility of small business credit by increasing compliance costs of lenders.
Sens. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) cosponsored the bill.
Text of the bill is here.
Kennedy champions No Propaganda Act to end taxpayer funding of partisan government broadcasting network
Feb 11 2025
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, introduced the Senate companion to the No Propaganda Act to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). The bill would block federal funding for the CPB, which funnels taxpayer dollars to National Public Radio (NPR), because of the organization’s chronically biased content.
“The Corporation for Public Broadcasting should not be funneling Louisianians’ hard-earned tax dollars to outlets with one-sided coverage that clearly aim to promote a leftist political agenda. The No Propaganda Act would make sure that Americans aren’t footing the bill for biased, government media,” said Kennedy.
Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) introduced the bill in the House of Representatives.
“The American Taxpayer continues to provide handouts through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to media outlets that have actively pushed Chinese propaganda and have prioritized fighting disinformation over free speech. CPB must be defunded to end the stream of taxpayer funds to biased, anti-American public radio and television stations,” said Perry.
Congress has appropriated more than $15 billion to fund the CPB since 1969, which it allocates to NPR and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). CPB states that its goal is to “educate, inform, foster curiosity, and promote civil discourse essential to American society.”
However, in April, a whistleblower exposed NPR’s decision not to broadcast the Hunter Biden laptop scandal because NPR believed covering the story would help presidential candidate Donald Trump during the 2020 election cycle.
In 2020, reports also revealed that PBS used taxpayer dollars to partner with a Chinese Communist Party-controlled media outlet, CGTN, to produce a pro-Beijing film.
The full bill text is available here.
Kennedy announces $17.9 million for flood mitigation, generators and Hurricanes Ida, Laura aid
Feb 10 2025
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $17,860,797 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for flood mitigation projects and emergency power generator installations in Louisiana.
“Our communities depend on projects to help them prepare for storms and recover from disasters. This $17.9 million will help Louisianians with flood mitigation, emergency generators and permanent repairs after Hurricanes Ida and Laura,” said Kennedy
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $7,239,362 to Lake Charles for permanent repairs to the Purple Heart Recreation Center and Gymnasium due to Hurricane Laura.
- $3,632,990 to St. John the Baptist Parish for the elevation of 21 residential structures.
- $1,908,921 to the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness for the instillation of two permanent generators in Monroe, La.
- $1,906,342 to St. John the Baptist Parish for management costs as a result of Hurricane Ida.
- $1,492,935 to Livingston Parish for the replacement of the Lod Stafford Road Bridge as a result of Hurricane Ida.
- $1,421,300 to Winn Parish for the installation of 15 emergency power generator systems.
- $201,832 to St. John the Baptist Parish for management costs associated with the elevation of 21 residential structures.
- $57,115 to Winn Parish for management costs associated with the installation of the 15 emergency power generator systems.
WASHINGTON – Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, today led 14 colleagues in introducing the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act. The bill would prevent veterans from losing their Second Amendment right to purchase or own firearms when they receive help managing their Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits.
“Our veterans should not receive less due process rights than other Americans just because they served our country and asked the federal government for a helping hand. Under the VA’s interpretation of the law, however, unelected bureaucrats punish Louisiana and America’s veterans by forcing them to choose between their Second Amendment rights and getting the help they need as they manage their financial affairs. I’m proud to introduce the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act to stand up for veterans’ constitutional rights by ending this unfair practice,” said Kennedy.
"Veterans should never be forced to choose between receiving assistance from VA to manage their benefits and their fundamental Second Amendment rights. Our nation should be encouraging veterans to utilize VA services, not discouraging them by denying them due process. The Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act makes certain that the rights of those who have served are protected, and that veterans are not penalized for receiving support that they have earned and deserve. I thank Sen. Kennedy for his partnership in this effort,” said Moran.
Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.), Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, introduced the bill in the House of Representatives.
“It should go without saying that veterans should not be treated like second-class citizens simply because they need help managing their books—but under current law they are. Without a permanent fix in place, VA bureaucrats can continue to strip veterans with fiduciaries of their Second Amendment right with no court ruling in place that they are a danger to themselves or others. It’s as simple as that. I have heard from too many veterans that VA’s current NICS reporting measures prevent them from seeking mental health care at VA—we must change that. I want to thank Chairman Moran, Senator Kennedy, and my House colleagues for working with me last Congress to pass a temporary solution, but veterans need a permanent fix. House and Senate Republicans will fulfill the American people’s mandate to get this bill to President Trump’s desk to protect veterans’ due process and constitutional rights for good,” said Bost.
Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Mike Rounds (S.D.), Kevin Cramer (N.D.), Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) cosponsored the legislation.
“I take the constitutional right to bear arms very seriously. Our bill would preserve due process for veterans and put a stop to unelected bureaucrats unjustifiably stripping away the Second Amendment rights of those who’ve served,” said Grassley.
“Veterans must not be required to forfeit the Second Amendment without a careful, constitutional process. Attempting to deprive former servicemembers of firearms for protection or recreation simply because they require assistance managing the benefits they have earned is bureaucracy at its worst. Our legislation would correct this injustice and preserve these law-abiding patriots’ rights,” said Boozman.
“The veterans who served our country shouldn’t lose their 2nd Amendment rights just because they need financial help,” said Cassidy.
“Veterans who have served our country deserve the same Second Amendment rights and protections as every other American. This commonsense legislation ensures that veterans aren’t punished simply because they need assistance managing their benefits and guarantees they are not denied their constitutional rights without due process,” said Tillis.
“Our veterans have sacrificed so much to defend this great country, and it is critical their God-given right to protect themselves and their families doesn’t rest on judgement of unelected bureaucrats. It takes a lot of courage and humility for our brave veterans to admit that they need help managing their financial benefits. But it shouldn’t place their constitutional freedoms in jeopardy. This bill ends the ability of government workers to take away the Second Amendment freedoms of our veterans when they ask for help with their money unless a judge finds them to be a danger to himself or others. I stand with our veterans and will continue to fight to preserve the freedoms they fought for on the battlefield,” said Tuberville.
“I’m proud to stand with our veterans to ensure equal protection of their rights with the Second Amendment Protection Act. Our veterans have fought to protect our nation and defend our rights, and they deserve to be treated fairly with the same due process under the law,” said Scott.
Because of the VA’s interpretation of current law, the VA sends a beneficiary’s name to the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) whenever a fiduciary is appointed to help a beneficiary manage his or her VA benefit payments.
Ultimately, VA employees decide whether veterans receive help from a fiduciary.
The bill would prohibit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from transmitting a veteran’s personal information to NICS unless a relevant judicial authority rules that the beneficiary is a danger to himself or others.
Vietnam Veterans of America, National Association of County Veterans Service Officers, Veterans of Foreign Wars, The American Legion, Black Veterans Empowerment Council, Military Order of the Purple Heart, National Shooting Sports Foundation, National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of America, AMAC Action, Turning Point Action, Firearms Regulatory Accountability Coalition, National Disability Rights Network and the National Association for Gun Rights support the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act.
Background:
- In the 116th Congress, Kennedy introduced the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act.
- In the 118th Congress, Kennedy and Moran re-introduced the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act with six co-sponsors.
- In Oct. 2023, the Senate passed Kennedy and Moran’s amendment to the Consolidated Appropriations Act based on the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act. The same language passed into law as part of an appropriations package in March 2024.
- The language included in the appropriations package only provided a temporary solution tied to appropriations. The Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act would make the fix permanent and prevent future VA administrations from undoing the work to restore veterans’ due process and Second Amendment rights.
The bill text is available here.
Kennedy: Americans understand what DOGE is doing
Feb 06 2025
Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) explained why many Americans support the efforts of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to uncover wasteful spending at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in a speech on the Senate floor.
Key excerpts of the speech are below:
“[Americans] have had to live through 20% inflation under President Biden. They understand what [Elon] Musk is doing. They understand spending porn and wasting taxpayer money.
“Now, Mr. Musk started with USAID. . . . He found that USAID gave money to support electric vehicles in Vietnam—our money, taxpayer money. He found that USAID gave money to a transgender clinic in India. I didn’t know that. I bet you the American people didn’t know that.
“He found that USAID gave $1.5 million to a Serbian LGBTQ group. . . . They got $1.5 million to ‘advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities.’ What else did Mr. Musk find that my colleagues don’t want to talk about?”
. . .
“Now, I am not saying everything that USAID does is wasted, but I am saying a lot of it is—a hell of a lot of it is—and we ought to be on the floor of this United States Senate thanking Mr. Musk, and we ought to be asking him to go through every agency and look at everybody’s budget—everybody’s budget.
“That is what the American people want. They don’t want to talk about process. They don’t want to continue with the Washington way. They want to save some money.”
Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.
Watch Kennedy’s comments here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) warned the United Kingdom that it could damage its relationship with the United States if it threatens the future of the joint U.S.-U.K. military base on the island of Diego Garcia by ceding sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
Key excerpts of the speech are below:
“Do you know who is loving all of this? China, because China has a close relationship with Mauritius. And do you know what? It is going to get a lot closer.
“This is insane. This is cell-deep stupid. This is bone-deep, down-to-the-marrow stupid. Because the United Nations wants the United Kingdom to feel guilty, they want to give our military base and their military base to Mauritius. Now, the prime minister of the United Kingdom can stop this.”
. . .
“Please, Mr. Prime Minister, don’t do this. Don’t do this. We will stand with you in telling the United Nations, who is upset with you, to go fill out a hurt feelings report because we are not doing it. We will stand with you. Please say no. Don’t give our military base away. It is going to really hurt the relationship between the United States of America and the United Kingdom.”
Background
- The U.K. had previously announced on Oct. 3, 2024, that it had reached a deal with Mauritius to cede the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands. This deal between the U.K. and Mauritius would jeopardize the security of a key U.S.-U.K. military base on Deigo Garcia by potentially exposing the island to Chinese espionage efforts, according to a report from the Policy Exchange.
- Negotiations between the U.K. and Mauritius followed a years-long pressure campaign from the United Nations to get England out of the Chagos Islands. The Biden administration also reportedly pressured the U.K. to enter the deal with Mauritius before the American and Mauritian elections took place—an idea Prime Minister Keir Starmer initially endorsed.
- On Oct. 23, 2024, Kennedy wrote to then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken seeking answers about the Biden administration’s involvement in the deal between the U.K. and Mauritius.
- Kennedy also penned this op-ed in Oct. 2024 arguing that the Biden administration owes the American people an explanation for its decision to allow this deal between the U.K. and Mauritius to move forward.
- On Jan. 15, 2025, Starmer announced that he wanted President Trump and his administration to weigh in on any deal struck between the U.K. and Mauritius regarding the transfer of the Chagos Islands, including the transfer of the U.S.-U.K. shared military base on the island of Diego Garcia.
- Kennedy published this op-ed in Jan. 2025 welcoming the U.K.’s change of heart after Starmer announced that he would include the Trump administration in the ongoing negotiations with Mauritius.
- Former Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.), President Trump’s nominee for National Security Advisor, has criticized the deal, saying, “Should the U.K. cede control of the Chagos to Mauritius, I have no doubt that China will take advantage of the resulting vacuum.”
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio has similarly condemned the deal and said it “poses a serious threat to our national security interests in the Indian Ocean and threatens critical U.S. military posture in the region.”
Watch Kennedy’s full speech here.
