Senator LeMieux's Weekly Update

 

January 26, 2010 It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your United States Senator. Thank you for subscribing to my weekly email update - a brief summary of some of the more notable events during the last seven days. I hope you'll find this useful and informative. You can also follow my regular updates from Florida and Washington via You Tube, Twitter, and Facebook.                If you want to share this newsletter with a friend, sign them up today at http://LeMieux.Senate.gov . The State of Our Union With President Obama set to deliver a state of the union speech Wednesday night, this is an appropriate time to take stock of where we are as a nation. A lot can be understood about the state of our union by our reaction to the recent crisis in Haiti. Even though we face difficult economic challenges here at home, millions of Americans have been willing to donate money and goods to survivors. It is that American spirit that keeps our union strong. I commend all groups and individuals who have given something to help bring comfort to the people of Haiti. Your charitable nature sends a strong and positive message to the rest of the world that we will help those in need, especially during times of great crisis. Click here to learn more about how you can help. http://lemieux.senate.gov Looking at our nation's challenges, the first focus must be on keeping and creating jobs. The national unemployment rate is 10 percent. Unemployment in Florida is at nearly 12 percent. The federal government should react by removing barriers to job creation. I have suggested Congress and the President move to immediately approve trade agreements pending between the U.S. and Colombia, Panama, and South Korea. Especially in Florida, trade agreements are job creators. More than 33,000 Florida companies - 95 percent of which are small and mid-sized businesses - export goods from our 14 deepwater ports. Washington can also respond to the jobs crisis by making the tax code more predictable. Business owners are afraid to invest in business growth for fear they will be penalized. I stand ready to work with my colleagues in Congress to advance job creation initiatives, but it's going to take leadership at all levels to get this done. Later this week, I will introduce a multi-faceted initiative focused on helping Floridians find jobs, helping people create jobs, and finding ways to promote economic development throughout our state. The state of our union also faces a challenging debt. Already our nation is $12 trillion in debt. This week we are debating whether to increase borrowing by another $1.9 trillion. I oppose raising the debt ceiling and support an initiative to not only stop the increase, but also cut spending across the board by $120 billion. Every day we avoid making the tough decisions to rein in spending is another day we put huge burdens on our children. We owe it to future generations to balance the federal budget and pay down the nation's debt. Our future depends on it. On Wednesday, I hope President Obama will talk about clearing the way for economic recovery. American families need jobs and job security, and we don't need more government programs or more government spending. We cannot afford to look to government as the solution to all our problems. Individual prosperity starts with individuals. I hope the President will recognize limiting the size and scope of government is in the best interest of Florida's families and a robust economic recovery. I stand ready to work with all of my colleagues and the President to achieve this goal. The Crisis in Haiti The tremendous outpouring of support for victims of the earthquake in Haiti is a reminder of the generosity of individuals. I recently met with students from St. Mary's School in Little Haiti, the largest Haitian community in South Florida. This tragedy personally touched many of the school's students, who have relatives in Haiti. Though many come from families with modest means, within the first 24 hours after the earthquake, students raised $500 for Haiti's relief efforts. This is just one of the many acts of generosity Floridians are undertaking to assist the Haitian people in their time of need. Visiting with Monsignor Hogan of the Archdiocese of Miami at St. Mary's Cathedral in Little Haiti & Sister Jane Stoecker and the children at St. Mary's Parish School. During this crisis, it is important we remove potential impediments to relief. That is why I joined with my Senate colleagues to adjust the federal tax code to make it easier for people to contribute directly to Haiti's recovery. The Senate unanimously approved this tax code fix and I am hopeful the House of Representatives will follow suit and send it to the president for his signature. The U.S. tax code should not stand in the way of humanitarian relief efforts. The people in Haiti continue to need a great deal of assistance and there are many generous Americans who want to help. Click here to learn more about how you can help. http://lemieux.senate.gov Fighting the War on Terror Unlawful foreign enemy combatants should not be treated as if they have the same rights as common criminals. During congressional oversight hearings last week, we learned that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Christmas Day bomber, was given Miranda rights - including the right to remain silent and the right to consult a lawyer - without the knowledge of the director of the FBI. At the advice of his counsel, Abdulmutallab then stopped providing information about his knowledge of al Qaeda. I am concerned our nation is losing critical opportunities to prevent future terrorist attacks by treating unlawful enemy combatants like common criminals. Nor should we try suspected terrorists in civilian courts. We should not be giving them Miranda rights or other constitutional protections guaranteed to American citizens. We should be fighting the war on terror as if our lives depend on it, because they do. My Position on Congressional Earmarks Due to the current budgetary and deficit crisis, I have decided that at this time, it is not appropriate to request earmarks for particular projects. In my time here, it has become clear that the federal government has an alarming and unsustainable spending problem. Last year alone our national deficit was $1.4 trillion, an amount larger than the deficits of the last four years combined. Our deficits will not disappear with the status quo. On the day I was sworn into the Senate, the national debt was $11.8 trillion; in 10 years it is projected to be greater than $24 trillion. I will continue to support Florida organizations' competitive grant applications with federal agencies and am happy to assist worthy Florida projects in obtaining federal funding through the competitive process, but until Congress takes meaningful measures to control spending I believe the principled approach is to refrain from earmarks. Florida Crops Disaster Declaration The unseasonably cold weather that swept through our State earlier this month resulted in substantial crop loss for many Florida farmers. During this already difficult economic time, the cold snap left many Florida growers scrambling to make ends meet in an industry that has an annual economic impact in our state of more than $87 billion dollars. In an effort to help these farmers reclaim a portion of their losses, I have urged U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to give careful consideration to the disaster relief declaration request sent to him by Florida Governor Charlie Crist. A federal disaster relief declaration is the first step in restoring lost proceeds and mitigating the economic damages these growers have shouldered. Without federal assistance, some family-owned and operated farms that have passed from generation to generation could potentially close. Our office continues to work with Governor Crist and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services as they assess crop damage and gather information that will be provided to the federal government as growers seek assistance in the coming weeks and months. Protecting Florida's Fishing Economy During my recent trip to the Florida panhandle, I spoke with area fishermen regarding new government regulations imposed on recreational fishing for red snapper, amberjack and other Gulf of Mexico fish. The decisions to close Florida fisheries to recreational fishing are disappointing and threaten the livelihood of a great number of Floridians. Besides the lack of sound science on which to base these decisions, closures of the South Atlantic grouper and red snapper fishery in January and the Gulf of Mexico grouper fishery in February come during Florida's peak recreational fishing and tourism months. Recreational saltwater fishing in Florida has an economic impact exceeding $5.3 billion annually and supports over 54,000 jobs. These closures will add to the problems of already difficult economic times, not only for fishermen, but for those local business owners and families who depend on the recreational fishing industry and connected services for their livelihoods. We need to improve the outdated systems currently used to manage our fisheries. Through more modern data collection, state and federal fishery managers will have access to the resources necessary to support science-based and proactive fisheries management decisions for the fisheries off Florida's coasts. I understand the necessity of making tough choices in order to maintain the fishery for the benefit of future generations, but drastic measures, such as fishery-wide closures, should be based on sound science. Casework Corner One of my primary goals is to make sure Floridians are well served by Federal agencies. From time to time, I will share accounts of how our office has helped a Floridian. Recently our office received a call from a veteran who had applied for post 9/11 GI Bill benefits in July 2009. As of December 2009, he still had yet to receive assistance and contacted our office for help. My office immediately contacted the Veterans' Affairs Educational Office regarding this matter. Upon reviewing the constituent's paperwork, the VA processed and paid the veteran's claim ten days later for over $3,000 dollars in tuition and books. If you have a concern involving a federal agency, please contact our Orlando Regional Office by calling (407) 254-2573 to speak with a member of the Casework Department. The toll-free number for Florida residents is (866) 630-7106. To find out more about how my office can help you, go to http://lemieux.senate.gov  or stop by one of our scheduled Community Office Hours events in your area.

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