During consideration of the Iranian and Russian sanctions bill (S. 722), Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) introduced an amendment to “affirm that the United States remains fully committed to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and will honor its obligations enshrined in Article 5.” Under Article 5, the member nations of the NATO military alliance “agree that an armed attack against one or more of them ... shall be considered an attack against them all.”

The Senate adopted Graham’s amendment on June 15, 2017 by a unanimous vote of 100 to 0 (Roll Call 146). That not a single senator voted nay is appalling, since that is the constitutionally sound position. The reason: Not only should the United States stay clear of entangling alliances such as NATO, but the NATO provision that obligates the United States to go to war if any member of NATO is attacked undermines the provision in the U.S. Constitution that assigns to Congress the power to declare war. Moreover, the number of nations that the United States has pledged to defend under NATO has grown from 11 to 28 over the years, as the alliance itself has grown from 12 member nations (including the United States) when NATO was created in 1949 to 29 today. Although NATO was ostensibly formed to counter the threat from the Soviet bloc of nations, some of the nations the United States is now pledged to defend under NATO were once part of that bloc, including Albania, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic (as part of Czechoslovakia), Hungary, Poland, and Romania.

President Donald Trump nominated John Kenneth Bush to be a judge on the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. As chairman of the Louisville chapter of the Federalist Society, Bush is a strict constructionist. He has previously called for the repeal of ObamaCare, opposes public financing of campaign elections, opposes gay marriage, and is staunchly pro-life. On an online conservative blog, Bush equated abortion to slavery, describing them as the “two greatest tragedies in our country.”

The Senate confirmed Bush on July 20, 2017 by a vote of 51 to 47 (Roll Call 164). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because more judges are needed who will uphold the U.S. Constitution, as Bush intends.

During consideration of the healthcare bill (H.R. 1628), Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) introduced an amendment that would have expired the expansion of Medicaid and certain taxes created under ObamaCare, prohibited healthcare plans that provide abortion coverage from qualifying for certain tax credits, banned federal funding of abortion, and repealed the individual and employer mandates created under ObamaCare.

The Senate rejected Paul’s amendment on July 26, 2017 by a vote of 45 to 55 (Roll Call 169). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because government should not subsidize the killing of innocent human life, and also because Senator Paul’s amendment would have repealed extensive portions of the unconstitutional ObamaCare law.

This bill (H.R. 3364) would establish new sanctions, and codify certain existing sanctions, on Russia. The bill cites an intelligence community assessment saying that “Putin ordered an influence campaign in 2016 aimed at the United States presidential election.” It also expresses the sense of Congress that President Trump call on Russia to withdraw from Ukraine, and it states that “it is the policy of the United States … to support the Government of Ukraine in restoring its sovereign and territorial integrity.” In addition to Russia, H.R. 3364 also establishes and expands sanctions on Iran and North Korea.

The Senate passed H.R. 3364 on July 27, 2017 by a vote of 98 to 2 (Roll Call 175). We have assigned pluses to the nays because imposing new sanctions in the name of punishing the regimes’ provocations and aggression could itself be viewed as provocative and could result in push-back further involving the United States in the affairs of other countries and regions. Instead of acting as a global cop, America would be best served by returning to our traditional and constitutionally sound foreign policy of staying clear of foreign quarrels.

During consideration of the National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 2810), Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) offered an amendment to repeal, six months after the bill’s enactment, the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF). Enacted in the wake of 9/11, the AUMF authorized the president to use military force against the terrorists involved, including those who aided and harbored them, and was used as the legal authority for U.S. military entry into Afghanistan. Paul’s amendment would also have ended, six months after the bill’s enactment, the 2002 AUMF for the invasion of Iraq to disarm Saddam Hussein of his reputed weapons of mass destruction.

The Senate agreed to a motion to table (kill) Paul’s amendment on September 13, 2017 by a vote of 61 to 36 (Roll Call 195). We have assigned pluses to the nays because the 2001 AUMF in particular has been used by presidents ever since as a blank check not only for continued U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan, but for new military interventions elsewhere, including Libya, Syria, and Yemen — despite the fact that constitutionally authorized power to declare war belongs to Congress, not the president. “This is your constitutional role,” Paul said on the Senate floor prior to the vote on his amendment. “Let’s let these [AUMFs] expire, and over the next six months, let’s debate whether we should be at war and where.”

On March 7, 2017, President Donald Trump re-nominated Ajit Pai to serve another five-year term on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). One of President Trump’s first official acts was designating Commissioner Pai as the new FCC chairman to replace outgoing Obama-pick Tom Wheeler. As an outspoken opponent of “Net Neutrality,” Pai’s appointment as FCC chairman marked a major milestone toward ending government regulation of the Internet. On December 14, 2017, the FCC — with Pai at the helm — voted 3-2 to end Net Neutrality.

The Senate confirmed Ajit Pai on October 2, 2017 by a vote of 52 to 41 (Roll Call 209). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the U.S. Constitution does not authorize the federal government to get involved in the Internet, which operates best without intrusive government regulation.

During consideration of the budget resolution (House Concurrent Resolution 71), Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced an amendment to authorize $20.6 billion in new spending for healthcare programs, including Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program, for fiscal 2018.

The Senate rejected Sanders’ amendment on October 18, 2017 by a vote of 47 to 51 (Roll Call 221). We have assigned pluses to the nays because the U.S. Constitution does not authorize the federal government to get involved in healthcare, and all government meddling causes more healthcare problems, such as rising healthcare costs.

During consideration of the budget resolution (House Concurrent Resolution 71), Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) introduced an amendment to cut $43 billion in budget authority in fiscal 2018. Senator Paul remarked on October 17, 2017, “I want a big, big very bold tax cut. I’m for the bigger the better. And I will settle for less than I want. But I do want the biggest. And I will agitate to make sure that everybody across-the-board gets a tax cut… I can’t get a Republican to sign on, because they give lip service to smaller government, but they’re afraid of their shadow. And not a damn one of them really are for cutting spending.”

The Senate rejected Paul’s amendment on October 19, 2017 by a vote of 5 to 95 (Roll Call 236). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because federal spending, much of which is unconstitutional, is out of control and needs to be reined in. While a $43 billion budget cut is small in comparison to the trillion-dollar-plus budgets in recent years, it is a symbolic act that should be applauded.

This bill (H.R. 2266) would make available $36.5 billion in emergency supplemental funding for fiscal 2018 to partially cover the costs of responding to multiple natural disasters, including hurricanes and wildfires. It would include $18.7 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Disaster Relief Fund and would cancel $16 billion of the Treasury debt incurred by FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program.

The Senate agreed to pass H.R. 2266 on October 24, 2017 by a vote of 82 to 17 (Roll Call 248). We have assigned pluses to the nays because federal involvement in natural disaster relief is not only unconstitutional, but also wasteful, inefficient, ineffective, and often harmful, as The New American has pointed out numerous times. Federal intervention into natural disaster recovery efforts typically makes matters worse for those who are afflicted by the disaster, as federal bureaucrats are often ill-informed of the needs of those affected and attempt to take control of relief efforts away from state and local organizations that better understand the situation. Disaster relief is much better handled by states, counties, and local communities, coupled with volunteer efforts from across the country. As it stands now, most disaster relief work is already done by private entities.

This bill, known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1), would slash the corporate income-tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, cut individual income-tax rates through 2025, and effectively eliminate the tax penalty on Americans who do not purchase health insurance by reducing the penalty amount to zero. The latter was a cornerstone of the 2010 ObamaCare legislation.

The Senate passed the final version of H.R. 1 on December 20, 2017 by a vote of 51 to 48 (Roll Call 323). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the tax cuts in this bill will keep more money in the hands of American businesses and consumers, where it can be invested into the economy, thus spurring economic growth. Unfortunately, however, the bill does not address federal spending, which needs to be reined in via other legislation.