Weekly Columns

If you've driven in Southwest Arkansas for any length of time, you've probably gotten stuck behind a log truck for a few miles. These trucks, stacked high with freshly cut trees, represent just one link in a long chain of timber production. As a forester by trade, I always look forward to Forest Products Week each year, since it's a dedicated time to celebrate the advancement of sustainable forestry from seed to sawmill.

After spending two weeks in Arkansas, I returned to D.C. ready to get to work and tackle legislation. Yet in a pattern that's become all too familiar, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi continued focusing on impeachment inquiries instead of bringing bipartisan bills to the floor that we can debate and pass to the Senate.

Impeachment is one of the most serious tools that Congress can use, but it's not the only thing we're elected to do. Our responsibility is to serve constituents by passing legislation that supports, protects, and provides for the needs of Americans around the country.

Food is a necessity for life, and agriculture is Arkansas's largest economic sector. The American economy and our basic existence depend on farmers. Almost everything that we use in our daily lives can be traced in some way to farm production or natural resource extraction. From crops to cattle, farmers support an economic chain that affects every single one of our lives.

I've lived in Arkansas my whole life and have spent years fishing and hunting in the best lakes and forests, but I am constantly taken aback by the beauty of our state when I visit new places. As members of Congress headed back to their districts for the beginning of October, I was able to see some of these new places through a tourism tour across the region.

While news stations focused on impeachment this week, a huge win for American farmers and ranchers slipped quietly under the radar. President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe signed phase one of a U.S.-Japan trade deal, and the agreement is set to go into effect this coming January.

Seasonal change always brings a new round of cleaning and organizing in my house, and the federal government would do well to follow this example. I often talk about bureaucracy and red tape slowing down good governance, and there is perhaps no better example of this than in the way the federal government catalogues its assets. That's why Wisconsin Congressman Ron Kind and I introduced the Federal Land Asset Inventory Reform (FLAIR) Act earlier this year, and the Natural Resources Committee debated the act this week.

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have played a critical role in our country for decades. These higher education institutions have long been dedicated to serving the African-American community, even before President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Fourth District is proud to be the home of the largest and oldest HBCU in the state, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Over the years, we've seen many of these colleges and universities grow into internationally-acclaimed schools, training hundreds of thousands of students for successful careers.

As Congress's August recess concludes, I've had the opportunity to wrap up some much-needed time in the district with a week of forestry meetings. Both Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) Chief Vicki Christiansen visited Arkansas this week, and their time in the Natural State highlighted the importance of forest management.