Keeping America Safe

As a Member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I am committed to keeping Americans safe and secure. As a member of the Subcommittee on Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection, I want to hold the Department of Homeland Security accountable for the security of our air travelers, chemical plants, refineries, hospitals and other critical infrastructures.   As a member of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, Security Technologies, I am determined to keep our nation's computer systems incorruptible through thoughtful cybersecurity policy.
 
The Committee also has oversight of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Hurricane Katrina illustrated our nation’s vulnerabilities in addressing natural disasters.  I am dedicated to ensuring those inadequacies are continuously addressed. I believe that Gulf Coast homes must be protected by sound levees, Louisiana critical infrastructure must be strengthened, and that FEMA must have the necessary resources to swiftly respond to disasters.

To that end, I am fighting to ensure that political budget cuts are not required to offset future disaster assistance. I published an editorial opposing the GOP idea of requiring offsets to emergency spending. I also presented the Humanitarian Aid for Americans Act (H.R. 2455), an amendment in the Committee on Homeland Security, and an amendment on the House Floor to preemptively block any such proposal, video of which can be found here.
As I stated on the House Floor:

“It should be the policy of this body that we're going to be wherever our citizens need us. … I ask both sides of the aisle to join together in unity and let the people of this country know that if a tornado knocks down your house through no fault of your own, we're going to be there to help you.”

Additional Resources on Homeland Security: 

House Committee on Homeland Security—Democratic Site

Department of Homeland Security

Federal Emergency Management Agency