Veterans’ Affairs
On Wednesday, I attended a hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. We had the chance to review the President’s FY 2013 budget request for the Department of Veterans Affairs with the Honorable Eric K. Shinseki, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and his leadership team. During the hearing, I asked Secretary Shinseki direct questions about this budget request, which includes a 4.5% increase in discretionary spending.
It is important that we continue to provide adequate funding so that veterans of all generations will be able to receive the benefits and services they have earned and deserve without hassles or delays. But, we also need to analyze the budget request to ensure that we spend the taxpayers’ money wisely and, more importantly, that the funding will actually lead to better outcomes for veterans, their families, and their survivors.
The bottom line is that, particularly in this time of record debt and deficits, we need to ensure that when we spend the limited money that we have we do it wisely, and that we make certain that the veterans are the ones that receive the benefits and services that have been earned and deserved.
You can watch my opening remarks below and read the full statement here.
Legislation to Strengthen Cybersecurity
On Thursday, I, along with Senators McCain (R-AZ), Hutchison (R-TX), Grassley (R-IA), Chambliss (R-GA), Murkowski (R-AK), Coats (R-IN), and Johnson (R-WI), introduced the Strengthening and Enhancing Cybersecurity by Using Research, Education, Information, and Technology Act (SECURE IT), a proposal to protect and secure our nation against cybersecurity attacks.
Cybersecurity is essential to our national security, and this bill takes a step in the right direction to ensure that our nation has the proper defenses in place to address threats to our nation’s systems and infrastructure. This bill takes fiscally responsible measures to protect against cyber threats by enhancing research and development, updating enforcement tools and penalties to reflect current threats, and promoting voluntary information sharing between the public and private sector without creating unnecessary bureaucracy or regulations.
Learn more about the bill in this press release.
Respect for Rights of Conscience Act
Also on Thursday, I voted in favor of Senator Blunt’s amendment to repeal the unprecedented and unconstitutional mandate under ObamaCare that infringes on religious liberty and violates the First Amendment rights of American citizens.
The President’s recent mandate under the new health care law violates religious liberties and conscience rights of faith-based institutions and individuals by forcing them to offer their employees insurance coverage for contraception free of charge. While the Administration has back peddled a little by saying that some religious organizations would be exempt, we do not know how broad this exemption will be and who will be left out of it.
Unfortunately, Senate Democrats chose partisanship over protection of First Amendment rights, and Senator Blunt’s amendment was tabled by a vote of 51 to 48. Even though tabling the amendment prevented the mandate from being reversed legislatively, this is not the end of the fight. The government does not have the power to trump the Constitution, and I am confident that the constitutionality of this mandate will be successfully challenged.
I discussed this amendment along with other issues in an interview with Jerri Jameson on WWNC. In case you missed it, be sure to listen here.
Association of American Museums Award
I was honored to receive an award from the Association of American Museums (AAM) this week, and I thank them for the important work they do. Museums, aquariums and historical sites are economic and educational engines for local communities and we owe it to all Americans to protect these vital resources and ensure they are around for future generations as well. You can read more about the AAM and the award on my blog.
Military Academy Nominations
This week, I was proud to announce the nomination of sixty-nine North Carolinians to serve at one of our nation’s military academies. The nominees were selected after an application and interview process conducted by my Academy Selection Committee, which is comprised of military academy graduates, veterans, and community leaders from across the state.
The nominees, their hometown, high school and parents’ names are listed here.