What is the NDAA?

Last week, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) – Congress’ annual defense policy bill –passed out of committee with an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 58 -1. While I did not personally agree with everything in the bill, overall it was a balanced compromise bill capable of garnering support across the aisle. 

Unfortunately, after the bill left the Armed Services Committee and got to the floor, that spirit of compromise changed dramatically.

This year, my colleagues submitted 1500 amendments, including 2 of mine, but less than 400 were approved for floor consideration. Unfortunately, House Republicans stripped common-sense provisions, like my two amendments to expand funding for Pancreatic Cancer research and to protect American journalists abroad. Instead, they added far-right poison pills meant to score political points instead of strengthening national defense. 

Those poison pills include policies removing all diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts to strengthen our military by ensuring it reflects all the people of our country, not just a select few; prohibiting the Secretary of Defense from paying for or reimbursing expenses related to reproductive health care for female service members; blocking transgender service members from receiving hormone treatments; and even banning certain books from being allowed to be taught in military schools.

To top it all off, an amendment was included that would keep Confederate names on military facilities – a disturbing reminder that extremists would rather honor our country’s racist past instead of working towards a more equitable future.

Year after year, the NDAA has passed out of the House with widespread bipartisan support. Year after year, Congress has been able to put our differences aside to come up with a bill we can all vote for, united by our desire to have a strong military and strong national security.

This year, a small group of ideological extremists made that consensus impossible. Their amendments reflected an extremist minority – not what a majority of Americans believe, or even what a majority of their own constituents believe.

Last week was a tough week for America, but make no mistake – I’ll continue fighting for a return to common sense, bipartisanship, and a future we can all be proud of.

Inflation is Down! 

The numbers are in – inflation is down for the 12th consecutive month! Earlier this month, I wrote about “Bidenomics” and growing the economy from the bottom up and middle out, and it’s clear our efforts are paying off.  And we’ve made this progress while unemployment remains near record lows and a higher share of working age Americans are in jobs now than in 20 years. Real wages for the average American worker are now higher than they were before the pandemic, with lower wage workers seeing the largest gains. I’ll continue advocating to lower costs and supporting new, better-paying jobs.

Taking Care of Our Veterans 

We’ve hit a milestone with casework for constituents – over $5 million secured for Indianapolis veterans and their families towards medical care, survivor pensions, and more. I’ll keep fighting to take care of the veterans who have so bravely served our country. Last year, I voted for the PACT Act to expand VA health care and benefits for Veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances. This bill will make nearly 3.5 million veterans eligible right now for the care and benefits they’ve earned. 

For more information, contact our office or click here. 

Success Story of the Week:

“Congressman Carson’s office helped me with my Social Security number, which was not getting processed. I am grateful for their support and regular follow-ups. The people at the office I interacted with were patient and did their best to provide solutions to my problems. They also kept me updated from time to time about the entire process. I would like to extend my gratitude to Mr. André Carson and his office.”

--District 7 Constituent
 

Need assistance navigating a federal agency, accessing benefits, or helping a community member recognize a milestone? We can help! Get in touch with our district office at 317-283-6516. 

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Your Friend,

André