Dear Friend,
Across the country, rental assistance through the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program helps millions of low- and moderate-income families find affordable housing each year. Nearly 50,000 families in Washington state used the HCV program in the last year alone.
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Dear Friend, Yesterday, Congress failed to reauthorize the U.S. Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank before its charter expired. The Bank serves as the export credit agency of the federal government, providing financial assistance both to U.S. businesses and foreign buyers, all while reducing the deficit. Just last year, Ex-Im supported more than 3,800 business and 160,000 American jobs while generating a $675 million surplus for taxpayers. In Congress, I have continuously emphasized the importance of re...
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Dear Friend, Today was a truly monumental day. The U.S. Supreme Court decision that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry was long-overdue. This is a landmark ruling that puts the United States on the right side of history and makes a meaningful difference in the lives of millions of Americans. I’m overjoyed that the Court recognized what Washingtonians have known for years — that love is love and all couples deserve equality under our laws. Washington state voted in 2012 to leg...
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Dear Friend, As another election cycle nears, the need for campaign finance reform is stronger than ever. The U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision was a devastating blow to our democratic electoral system. The 2010 ruling struck down restrictions that had barred corporations from spending unlimited amounts of money in elections. With the Justices divided five to four, the Court’s conservative majority used the First Amendment to justify its controversial ruling, saying money is speech ...
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Dear Friend, This past weekend, I celebrated National Trails Day by restoring trails in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness with members of the Washington Trails Association, The Wilderness Society, American Whitewater, and Mountains to Sound Greenway. The Alpine Lakes Wilderness consists of more than 400,000 acres and 700 lakes in the North Cascades, and it’s just one of the First Congressional District’s many natural treasures. I am pleased to have been an original cosponsor, along with Congressman D...
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Dear Friend, This week, the Associated Press reported that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has repeatedly used aircraft for surveillance missions over a number of U.S. cities, including Seattle. As your representative in Congress, protecting civil liberties is one of my highest priorities. That’s why I led 15 of my colleagues in sending a letter to FBI Director James Comey, requesting a briefing on the Bureau’s aircraft surveillance program and the legal authority behind it. The repor...
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Dear Friend, Recently, I was in Mount Vernon volunteering for Women Build Week hosted by Skagit Habitat for Humanity. Women Build is a program for women to learn construction skills and help build homes for families in need of adequate housing. I was honored to join a group of mostly women in helping frame a three-bedroom, two-bath house for Estela Flores, a single mother of three. Estela was chosen as a one of Skagit Habitat’s partner families, allowing her help to build a home and purchase it...
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Dear Friend, As I'm sure you notice every time you drive on roads like I-5, SR 522, or any of our bridges, our nation's transportation infrastructure is at a breaking point. It's time for us to invest in our future economic growth by repairing our crumbling roads and bridges. An accessible and efficient infrastructure is crucial to attracting businesses, creating jobs, and promoting economic growth in Washington's 1st Congressional District. Without viable transportation infrastructure, our man...
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Dear Friend, The costs of higher education continue to rise, posing serious challenges to millions of students and their families – many of whom are being forced to take out larger loans to pay for tuition, fees, textbooks and housing. That’s why one of my top priorities in Congress is working to provide relief for borrowers who are struggling under the weight of student loan debt. Earlier this year, I cosponsored the Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act to allow borrowers with exist...
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Dear Friend, On June 1, three of the most controversial provisions in the USA PATRIOT Act will expire. As we now know, the government has been interpreting Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act to enact far-reaching and invasive government surveillance programs that secretly obtain personal data from U.S. citizens, whether or not they are suspected of any illegal activity. Just last week, I wrote an op-ed that was published in The Hill, outlining standards I believe must be reached for any surveil...
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