Weekly Columns

News on the worsening situation on our southern border continues to break this week. McAllen, Texas, the small town I just recently visited, has declared a local disaster as it struggles to manage the sheer number of COVID-positive migrants flooding into downtown McAllen, where the migrant shelter is 500% overcapacity. Officials report that in just one week, 1,500 COVID-19 positive migrants were released into the community. In the same week, another 7,000 migrants who tested negative for COVID-19 were given plane tickets or bus tickets to wherever they desired to go in the country.

Last weekend I had the opportunity to lead a trip to McCallen, Texas, with several other Congress members to see for ourselves the results of the immigration crisis at our southern border. What we witnessed was shocking. In my position as Ranking Member of the Natural Resources Committee, in which we oversee nearly all federal lands, I initially went to see the environmental impact of the thousands of people flooding the area. While we did see significant environmental degradation and pollution, the human cost of the emergency was much worse.

For 45 years, Democrats and Republicans have come together to protect the consciences of Americans who believe that unborn children are human beings worthy of life. The Hyde Amendment, which was first introduced by Republican Congressman Henry Hyde in 1976, prevents federal tax dollars from being used to fund abortions within the Medicaid program. Estimates today find this law has saved nearly 2.5 million children from the horrors of abortion.

If you ever doubt that members of Congress can work together across the political aisle for the betterment of their communities, look no further than an announcement last week from the Biden Administration's Office of Management and Budget (OMB). A few months ago, our neighbors in the Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce, the Texarkana Chamber of Commerce, and the Jefferson County Alliance brought to my attention a proposed rule that OMB was hoping to implement. The rule would have doubled the minimum population threshold necessary to define a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).

This past week, I had the opportunity to meet with farmers who had been affected by last month's devastating floods, which caused an estimated $200 million to $250 million in damages to crops and property. Hearing directly from the men and women whose livelihoods were interrupted and letting them know how we will move forward together to ensure they receive the assistance they need, was a moving experience. The situation is urgent. There are some farmers who lost every acre they had, leaving them with nothing.

This Fourth of July, I find myself recalling the story of Nathan Hale, an American patriot during the American Revolution who, at the young age of 21-years-old, served his nation by spying on the British. Hale posed as a Dutch schoolmaster while gathering information, but was later captured while trying to return to the Americans and sentenced to be hanged. On September 22, 1776, Nathan Hale reportedly delivered his famous last words, "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."

For too long, those on the Left have pushed the false narrative that only they care about our environment, attempting to dominate the environmental policy conversation. This could not be further from the truth. Conservation is a core tenant of Conservatism. Republican President Teddy Roosevelt, widely considered the father of conservation, established the National Park System. Republican President Richard Nixon established the Environmental Protection Agency.

Freshman year of college is hard for any young person. A child leaves home, often for the first time, to face a brand new world of independence and new ideas. While college should be a challenging experience, it should also be an environment open to exploring new concepts and refining one's own perspectives. Unfortunately, it seems more and more frequently that I hear stories of students who voice beliefs contrary to the school's, or a particular professor, or the "majority" of the student body's thinking, and are told to sit down and be quiet, or worse.