Votes

Migration and Refugee Assistance  |  H.R. 4665

During consideration of the fiscal 2024 state-foreign operations appropriations bill (H.R. 4665), Representative Scott Perry (R-Pa.) offered an amendment to eliminate all $2,548,250,000 of funding for the State Department’s Migration and Refugee Assistance program.

The House rejected Perry’s amendment on September 28, 2023 by a vote of 121 to 311 (Roll Call 469). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because this program encourages increased immigration, which is a tool of the Deep State to fundamentally transform the United States by deliberately changing the country’s demographics, thus radically altering the voting patterns of the nation.

Electronic Identification Ear Tag Mandate  |  H.R. 4368

During consideration of the fiscal 2024 agriculture appropriations bill (H.R. 4368), Representative Harriet Hageman (R-Wy.) offered an amendment to prevent funds from being used to mandate electronic identification ear tags for cattle and bison.

The House rejected Hageman’s amendment on September 27, 2023 by a vote of 97 to 336 (Roll Call 419). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the federal government has no authority under the Constitution to regulate agriculture. Furthermore, Hageman’s amendment would push back against the United Nations’ Agenda 2030, which is inherently contrary to the Constitution. Congress should eliminate all federal involvement in agriculture.

Covid Vaccine Mandates  |  S. 2226

During consideration of the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (S. 2226), Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) offered an amendment to “Prohibit the Secretary of Defense from issuing any replacement Covid-19 vaccine mandate without Congressional approval.” Cruz’ amendment would also require the Department of Defense to (1) “reinstate any service member separated solely for Covid-19 vaccine status who wants to return to service”; (2) “restore the rank of any service member demoted solely for Covid-19 vaccine status”; (3) adjust to “honorable” any “general” discharge given due to Covid-19 vaccine status; (4) “expunge … any adverse action based solely on Covid-19 vaccine status”; and (5) “make every effort to retain service members not vaccinated against Covid-19.”

The Senate rejected Cruz’ amendment on July 26, 2023 by a vote of 46 to 53 (Roll Call 199). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because it is unconstitutional to force vaccinations on people.

FAA Reauthorization  |  H.R. 3935

The Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act (H.R. 3935) would reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) through fiscal year 2028. It would gradually increase annual authorizations for federal aviation programs from $12.7 billion in fiscal 2024 to $14 billion in fiscal 2028. It would also transfer federal oversight authority over unmanned aircraft systems, which support and control unmanned aerial vehicles or drones, from the Department of Transportation to the FAA.

The House passed H.R. 3935 on July 20, 2023 by a vote of 351 to 69 (Roll Call 364). We have assigned pluses to the nays because of the bill’s unconstitutional federal overreach. The federal government should stay out of the regulation of unmanned aerial systems and vehicles, which should instead be managed by local ordinances or (at most) state laws. Ultimately, the Constitution does not authorize the federal government to control or regulate private or commercial aviation. Instead, such matters should be under the auspices of local and state governments, and left up to the market to determine.

Declaration of War  |  S. 2226

During consideration of the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (S. 2226), Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) offered an amendment “to express the sense of Congress that Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty does not supersede the constitutional requirement that Congress declare war before the United States engages in war.” Under Article 5, member nations of NATO “agree that an armed attack against one or more of them … shall be considered an attack against them all and consequently they agree that, if such an armed attack occurs, each of them … will assist the Party or Parties so attacked.”

The Senate rejected Paul’s amendment on July 19, 2023 by a vote of 16 to 83 (Roll Call 191). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because according to the U.S. Constitution only Congress has the authority to declare war. U.S. membership in NATO increases the likelihood of the United States being dragged into a war that neither the American people nor Congress wants. Rather than allowing NATO and its UN parent to determine when we go to war, we should get out of both organizations.

DEI Funding  |  H.R. 3935

During consideration of a bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (H.R. 3935), Representative Mary Miller (R-Ill.) offered an amendment to prevent funds in the bill from being used to hire diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) officials or conduct DEI training.

The House rejected Miller’s amendment on July 19, 2023 by a vote of 181 to 254 (Roll Call 353). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because nowhere in the Constitution is Congress authorized to allocate federal funding for DEI initiatives. Moreover, DEI is part of the broader Marxist-inspired “Black Lives Matter” agenda and has its roots in Marxist “Critical Theory.” The federal government has no business promoting this extremist, anti-American agenda — including in aviation.

Ukraine  |  H.R. 2670

During consideration of the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 2670), Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) offered an amendment that would prohibit the use of federal funds to provide security assistance to Ukraine.

The House rejected Gaetz’ amendment on July 13, 2023 by a vote of 70 to 358 (Roll Call 304). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because using American taxpayer dollars to provide financial and military support to Ukraine is unconstitutional. Providing foreign aid, including the more than $113 billion in funding for Ukraine, is not one of the enumerated powers delegated to Congress under Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution. Moreover, the United States should pursue a sound, traditional foreign policy of noninterventionism, based on U.S. national interests and the intent of the Founding Fathers.

Abortion Services  |  H.R. 2670

During consideration of the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 2670), Representative Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) offered an amendment to prohibit the Department of Defense from paying or reimbursing expenses for abortion services. It would also repeal an October 2022 Defense Department memo titled “Ensuring Access to Reproductive Health Care.” Under the policy established by this memo, the Defense Department reimburses travel expenses for service members who travel to get an abortion in another state where abortion is legal.

The House adopted Jackson’s amendment on July 13, 2023 by a vote of 221 to 213 (Roll Call 300). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the right to life is the most fundamental, God-given, and unalienable right asserted in the Declaration of Independence and guaranteed by the Fifth and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

ATF Firearm Brace Rule  |  H. J. Res. 44

H. J. Res. 44 would formally disapprove of a January 2023 Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) rule expanding the definition of a “short-barreled rifle” to include those with stabilizing braces, and requiring such firearms to comply with various requirements under the National Firearms Act (NFA).

The Senate rejected H. J. Res. 44 on June 22, 2023 by a vote of 49 to 50 (Roll Call 171). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the ATF’s stabilizing-brace rule violates the Second Amendment-protected right to keep and bear arms. Furthermore, there is no constitutional basis for the ATF’s or NFA’s existence.

EPA Truck Emissions Rule (Veto Override)  |  S. J. Res. 11

S. J. Res. 11 would formally disapprove of an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule mandating stricter emissions standards on heavy-duty vehicles and engines. The rule aims to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions from such vehicles by nearly 50 percent by 2045.

The Senate failed to override President Biden’s veto of S. J. Res. 11 on June 21, 2023 by a vote of 50 to 50 (Roll Call 167). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the federal government has no authority under the Constitution to implement environmental regulations. Furthermore, the EPA’s rule feeds right into the climate-change hoax and, by extension, the UN’s Agenda 2030, and would impose onerous regulations on businesses.

Bipartisan Debt-limit Deal  |  H.R. 3746

H.R. 3746, titled the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, would suspend the debt limit through January 1, 2025 and create caps on “discretionary” spending for fiscal years 2024 and 2025. In fiscal 2024, defense spending would increase three percent, to $886.4 billion, and nondefense spending would decrease five percent, to $703.7 billion; both limits would increase by one percent for fiscal 2025. Among multiple other provisions, H.R. 3746 would provide $44.8 billion for the veterans’ toxic exposure fund and $22 billion for a Commerce Department fund, rescind $27.7 billion in unspent federal Covid-related funds, rescind $1.4 billion of the $79.3 billion provided in 2022 for IRS enforcement, enact time limits on environmental reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act, and raises the age of SNAP work requirements for able-bodied individuals to 55 while exempting certain other groups. Furthermore, the bill requires discretionary spending to decrease by one percent if Congress fails to enact on-time appropriations legislation for fiscal years 2024 and 2025. In an April 28, 2023 op-ed opposing a previous iteration of the bill, Representative Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) stated, “Going off the cliff at the Republicans’ 60-mph or the Democrats’ 80-mph results in the same thing: A horrific crash.”

The Senate passed H.R. 3746 on June 1, 2023 by a vote of 63 to 36 (Roll Call 146). We have assigned pluses to the nays because continuing reckless spending and debt accumulation will result in economic catastrophe, and most federal spending is for programs not authorized by the Constitution.

Spending Reductions  |  H.R. 3746

During consideration of the bipartisan debt-limit deal (H.R. 3746), Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) offered a substitute amendment to increase the debt limit by $500 billion (rather than suspend the limit through January 1, 2025) and limit federal outlays to $4.8 trillion for fiscal 2024, decreasing this limit annually by five percent through fiscal 2028, at $3.9 trillion. Among other provisions, Paul’s amendment would require the Office of Management and Budget to report annually whether actual outlays exceeded these limits and, if so, require the president to issue a sequestration order to cut spending by the same amount as the excess spending.

The Senate rejected Paul’s amendment on June 1, 2023 by a vote of 21 to 75 (Roll Call 136). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because runaway, deficit-laden federal spending, most of which is unconstitutional, must be brought under control, and Paul’s proposal would have been a step in the right direction.

Bipartisan Debt-limit Deal  |  H.R. 3746

H.R. 3746, titled the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, would suspend the debt limit through January 1, 2025 and create caps on “discretionary” spending for fiscal years 2024 and 2025. In fiscal 2024, defense spending would increase three percent, to $886.4 billion, and nondefense spending would decrease five percent, to $703.7 billion; both limits would increase by one percent for fiscal 2025. Among multiple other provisions, H.R. 3746 would provide $44.8 billion for the veterans’ toxic exposure fund and $22 billion for a Commerce Department fund, rescind $27.7 billion in unspent federal Covid-related funds, rescind $1.4 billion of the $79.3 billion provided in 2022 for IRS enforcement, enact time limits on environmental reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act, and raises the age of SNAP work requirements for able-bodied individuals to 55 while exempting certain other groups. Furthermore, the bill requires discretionary spending to decrease by one percent if Congress fails to enact on-time appropriations legislation for fiscal years 2024 and 2025. In an April 28, 2023 op-ed opposing a previous iteration of the bill, Representative Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) stated, “Going off the cliff at the Republicans’ 60-mph or the Democrats’ 80-mph results in the same thing: A horrific crash.”

The House passed H.R. 3746 on May 31, 2023 by a vote of 314 to 117 (Roll Call 243). We have assigned pluses to the nays because continuing reckless spending and debt accumulation will result in economic catastrophe, and most federal spending is for programs not authorized by the Constitution.

Equal Rights Amendment  |  S. J. Res. 4

This resolution (S. J. Res 4) purports that the Equal Rights Amendment “is valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution, having been ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States.”

The Senate did not vote directly on S. J. Res. 4, but on a motion to invoke cloture (and thus limit debate) so the bill could be voted on. The motion to invoke cloture was rejected on April 27, 2023 by a vote of 51 to 47 (Roll Call 99; a three-fifths majority of the entire Senate is required to invoke cloture). We have assigned pluses to the nays because the claim that the ERA is a “valid … part of the Constitution” is a sham. When Congress submitted the ERA to the states for ratification in 1972, it set a seven-year ratification period that ended on March 22, 1979. During that period, 35 states ratified the ERA, but four of those states reconsidered and rescinded their ratifications. This left the ERA seven states short of the three-fourths majority (38 states) needed to become part of the Constitution. Prior to the deadline, when it became apparent the 38-state threshold would not be reached, Congress extended the deadline to June 30, 1982. This legally dubious extension caused a fifth state to rescind, and during the extension period no new states ratified. In recent years, three new states have ratified the ERA. But to claim that this makes the ERA part of the Constitution is to ignore the long-expired deadlines, as well as the five states that rescinded.

Federal Firefighter Grants  |  S. 870

S. 870 would authorize $95 million annually through fiscal 2030 for the U.S. Fire Administration, increasing the agency’s funding levels by 24 percent. Among other provisions, S. 870 would authorize $3.4 million to create standards for assessing new firefighting technologies, reauthorize through fiscal 2030 two Federal Emergency Management Agency grant programs assisting local fire departments, and ban Chinese entities from receiving any of these funds.

The Senate passed S. 870 on April 20, 2023 by a vote of 95 to 2 (Roll Call 94). We have assigned pluses to the nays because Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution does not authorize any federal spending for firefighting. Furthermore, the strings that come attached to grants for local fire departments move the United States closer to federalizing firefighting.