Weekly Columns and Op-Eds

The right to an individual's life, liberty, and private property underpins any free society. It is a well-established principle enshrined in the Constitution's 5^th Amendment that under a limited government, no individual can be deprived of private property without just compensation.

Last Tuesday, I listened carefully as President Trump addressed the nation in his first State of the Union. The President's message aimed to unify Americans behind a common vision while sharing inspiring stories of service, heroism, and sacrifice.

On Friday, January 19^th, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators joined together and walked along the National Mall in Washington, D.C. for the 45^th annual March for Life. In full view of the Lincoln Memorial and the U.S.

As your representative in Congress, I take the responsibility to provide for the federal government's operations very seriously. Continuing Resolutions, or extensions of funding from previous fiscal years, are a terrible budgeting option for our country.

On Martin Luther King Day, we celebrate the contributions of the civil rights icon whose famous "I have a dream" speech reminded Americans that ours strives to be a nation where no one is judged by the color of our skin, but by the content of our character.

In our nation's capital, there is a beautiful memorial of sculpted lions keeping watch that honors to the nation's law enforcement officers. Among the quotes set in the memorial's stone is one from Tacitus: "In valor there is hope."

2017 is now behind us; we are mid-way through the 115^th Congress, and it is timely to take stock and focus on the progress made for Central Washington and the country during the past year.

For hard working families and entrepreneurs in Central Washington, keeping more of your own paycheck was my goal in supporting historic legislation approved by Congress, The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The last time the nation's federal tax system was overhauled was in 1986, under President Ronald Reagan.