Support for First District Family in Ukraine |
Over the past two weeks, my office has received many calls from constituents who have loved ones trapped in Ukraine or are trying to figure out their options as they have fled to neighboring countries. This week, my office had the opportunity to assist Jon Cook, whose family resides in the First District, and Anastasiia Lushchevska in their efforts to bring Anastasiia’s mother, Mrs. Lushchevska, to the United States. The couple was able to rescue Mrs. Lushchevska out of the war-torn Ukraine and bring her to Poland to safety. The couple contacted my office for direction as to what their options were for bringing Mrs. Lushchevska to the United States. We were able to provide them the information as to what visas were available to her and assisted her in scheduling an appointment at the consulate in Poland. Thursday, our office received a call that Mrs. Lushchevska was approved for her visitor visa and will be traveling to the U.S. soon! |
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The “Security Division” included funding for Departments of Commerce, Justice, Defense, Homeland Security, the Intelligence Authorization Act, and military assistance for Ukraine and Israel. It included:
- 6% budget increase for Defense
- 2.7% military pay raise
- 11% budget increase for Homeland Security
- over $15 billion for Customs and Border Patrol and to address the current Border surge
- $13.6 billion for Ukraine
- $1 billion for Israel’s Iron Dome
The “Non-Security Division” included funding for Financial Services, the Legislative Branch, Departments of Energy & Water, Interior & Environment, Labor, HHSS, Education, State, and Transportation. It included:
- 6.7% increase for non-defense discretionary programs – the largest increase in 4 years.
- $286 million for the Title X Family Planning program, allowing taxpayer funds to ultimately go to Planned Parenthood despite the inclusion of the Hyde Amendment.
- $32 million for UNFPA’s “Global Health Programs,” including money for reproductive health activities.
- Creates the “Task Force on Sexual Violence in Education” that will develop recommendations for schools on sex education that include “considerations of race, ethnicity, national original, religion, immigrant status, LGBT status, etc.”
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This week, I announced the guidelines for my annual Congressional Art Competition, open to all high school students (grades 9-12) in the First Congressional District.
The "Best-in-Show" overall winner of the competition will have their winning artwork piece displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol, and the student artist will receive paid airfare for two to travel to Washington D.C. to attend the national Congressional Art Competition winners' reception. The winners of each of the competition’s seven medium categories will be publicly displayed at a venue in the district this summer.
The competition’s seven medium categories are: collage, drawing, digital design, mixed media, painting, photography, and print. Teachers or homeschooled students may submit artwork by going to my website and completing the submission form: https://crawford.house.gov/congressional-art-competition. At this link you can also find the additional guidelines. The competition’s submission deadline is April 14, 2022. Please contact sherrie.mitchell@mail.house.gov for any questions.
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CyberScoop
China’s increasing progression toward so-called chip independence — which, if achieved, would give the Chinese more leverage to act as they please without fear of sanctions — poses a threat, Nakasone told Congress Tuesday. Rep. Rick Crawford, an Arkansas Republican who sits on the Intelligence Committee, told CyberScoop that Nakasone’s private remarks in a subsequent closed-door session made clear that American reliance on Russia and Ukraine for the neon gas needed to make chip component parts is among the “broader impacts” the general referenced.
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