I support the President’s decision to reject the current Keystone XL pipeline proposal.

This flawed idea would endanger the health of Americans along the path of the pipeline and in the cities and towns where gasoline produced from this toxic oil would be used.  The President’s critics have attacked him for this decision, but despite what they say, the reality is that gasoline prices in the Midwest would actually go up if the pipeline is built, and Canada isn’t going to ‘sell the oil elsewhere’ because of this decision – the whole reason TransCanada wants to build the pipeline is so it can transport its land-locked tar sands oil to refineries and on to the Gulf Coast of the US, where the oil will be shipped to other countries.

Long term environmental and economic health will come from deploying renewable energy technologies, which will create far more jobs than the overblown jobs estimates proponents of the Keystone XL pipeline have concocted.

Today, thousands of websites and millions of Americans are standing up to protest the internet censorship bills currently moving through Congress, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). As I have said since Day 1, SOPA and PIPA would set dangerous precedent and represent a big step backwards in Washington's efforts to foster growth in the digital sector. These bills would have a profound effect on how the internet functions on a basic level, undermining the legal process and overturning long-standing practices established in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

I have serious concerns about the overly broad definitions of theft included in both bills that could be used to shut down dozens of lawful exchange sites that are valuable outlets for small-scale buying and selling. I am also uneasy about the use of DNS blocking as a viable solution, especially within the lens of consumer security standards like DNSSEC. Finally, the complete immunity from federal and state laws granted in these pieces of legislation to several industries could set off an anti-consumer and anti-competitive wave that will strike at the very core of the internet.The fact that Congress is considering these haphazard bills is a cause for alarm.

Throughout the public debate for the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act, I have often stated that at heart of this issue are fundamental questions about what the internet and free speech means to Americans, intellectual property rights holders, and our economy; questions that are too important to haphazardly rush through Congress without a full and open debate. No one denies that copyright infringement and piracy are serious problems. What is under discussions is the protections that legitimate sites should have and by what method we expose these criminals while allowing lawful businesses and people, like the constituents in my District, to continue to innovate in ways that change the way we look at the world. This why I proudly support the OPEN Act. Not only for how it is crafted, properly targeting and defining rogue actors without putting innovation in danger, but also the way in which it was crafted: in a full open forum that has allowed for robust debate. It is my sincere hope that the introduction of this bill represents a critical point in this debate, where diverse groups of stakeholders come together and thoroughly work on a solution.

Read the bi-partisan letter I sent with my colleagues on SOPA

Find out more about SOPA/PIPA

Find out more about the OPEN Act

Join the protest

Today, January 16th, our nation honors the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a man whose tireless work for peace and freedom continues to inspire and enrich the lives of countless Americans.  Dr. King’s enduring vision of bridging ethnic and social divides is an incomparable guide as we continue to fight for civil rights and equality for all. 

I applaud President Obama’s announcement of an Executive Order and initiatives to update the United States’ non-immigrant visa application process for overseas visitors. For many years, I have heard from my constituents and local businesses who are concerned about our nation’s cumbersome and lengthy visa application process for overseas tourists and businesspeople. Their family members and friends, particularly from China, India, and Brazil, may wait over 100 days for a simple tourist visa interview. Travelers wishing to conduct business in the U.S. are similarly dissuaded. For instance, Chinese citizens must renew their U.S. visas annually. These frustrated potential visitors and businesspeople look elsewhere for their vacation and long-term business plans.

According to the Department of Commerce, inbound international travel currently supports 1.1 million U.S. jobs, and international travel is one of the nation’s largest exports, contributing approximately $134 billion to our economy in 2010. California enjoyed the economic benefits of 5.6 million overseas visitors (21% U.S. market share) in 2010. But over the past decade the U.S. lost an estimated $606 billion due to our highly inefficient visa application approval process. My dear friend and former Secretary of Commerce, U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke, highlighted these problems during my recent visit to China and urged Congress to authorize visa reforms and provide adequate resources to alleviate these constraints.

To sensibly modernize our tourist and business visa application process while maintaining security standards. I have partnered with Representative Joe Heck of Nevada to support the Welcoming Business Travelers and Tourists to America Act (H.R. 3039) which would ensure that the traditionally cumbersome visa application process for overseas visitors is updated allowing more foreign travelers to visit the U.S. and boost our economy. We also worked together to garner support among our Congressional colleagues for a provision, ultimately included in the final Fiscal Year 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act, to help reduce the wait time for interviews for visa applicants.

H.R. 3039 would enable the Secretary of State to hire the necessary number of Foreign Service officers to achieve and maintain a maximum 12 day visa processing standard, conduct a two-year pilot program for processing non-immigrant visas via video conferencing, and submit a report to Congress on the demand projections for non-immigrant visas, specifically from China, India, and Brazil and on its short and long term plans to meet forecast demand. Additionally, it would require that non-immigrant visa demand projections and yearly visitor arrival projections be compared and aligned, and it would allow the Secretary of State to modify agreements with countries to allow an increased visa validity period.

By fixing the visa system we will be able to attract 98 million more visitors and create 1.3 million U.S. jobs by 2020 while infusing $859 billion into the U.S. economy. This will enable more travelers to visit Silicon Valley and the rest of our nation for business, family and pleasure. Our country cannot afford to miss out on this opportunity to welcome millions of international travelers and grow our economy.

Exactly one year ago today, in Tucson, Arizona, a diverse group of Americans came together to meet their Member of Congress and to make their voices heard in the best tradition of our beloved democracy.  This great meeting of neighbors and friends, this great exchange of dialogue and discourse was shattered by a tragic act of mindless violence.

Today, at 10:11 A.M., bells rang all across Tucson in memory of the tragic shooting that took place one year ago.

Today is to remember the fallen – six beloved Americans whose passion and  purpose enriched the lives of so many others.  Today is to recount the heroic actions of ordinary Americans and first responders alike who jumped into the fray, saved lives and prevented even greater heartbreak.

Today is to give thanks for the thirteen Americans who survived.  One of those survivors, Representative Gabrielle Giffords, is a public servant whose dedication and determination is unsurpassed.  I am honored to call her both colleague and friend.

Today is to embrace the lessons of the shootings' aftermath – how the Tucson community, heartbroken but unbowed, came together as one and inspired an entire nation in the process.

Today is to promise that the best angels of our nature will always drive our actions.  A promise to protect our family, to honor our friends and to empower our community.  A promise to give thanks for the living and to honor John, Dorothy, Phyllis, Mavy, Gabe and Christina –  six brave Americans who animate what is right and true in all of us.

I’m encouraged by the latest employment numbers released this morning showing 22 straight months of private sector job growth.  Getting the unemployment rate down to 8.5.% is progress, but we still have a great deal of work to do.  With a new session of Congress upon us, I expect my Republican colleagues will come back prepared to work and quit playing political games at the American people’s expense.  Congress must preserve a payroll tax cut for the American worker and extend unemployment insurance for 2 million Americans for the remainder of the year.

 I support the Senate bipartisan compromise bill extending the payroll tax holiday, unemployment insurance, and the so-called “doc fix” for the next 2 months.  While this short-term extension is not ideal, it is the best course of action for the American people.  It received overwhelming bipartisan support in the United States Senate, the blessing of Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, and 39 Republican votes when it cleared the Senate.

As a former high school teacher, principal, and school board member, education has always been my top priority in Congress.  Fulfilling the American Dream begins with a great education. The American public school system must be the equalizer of economic opportunity throughout the United States, elevating each child’s creativity, skills and thought—inspiring her to dream, equipping her to succeed, empowering her to be a force on the world scene.

by Jack d'Annibale

Communications Director for Congressman Mike Honda

In Congressman Honda’s view, now is not the time for America to retreat from the values that have made us a great nation.  While the Republican party is focused solely on draconian, government wide cuts, Congressman Honda understands the difference between good and bad investments.  Treating all spending the same and pursuing fiscal balance only through one side of the budget ledger is insanity.  The extreme beliefs in Tea Party economics are dangerous for our recovery.

I join President Obama in saluting the end of the war in Iraq, with all U.S. troops being brought home from Iraq by December 31.   After nine years of war in Iraq, every American should be happy to hear that our troops are coming home to their families and that Iraq is on its way to independence.

We must commemorate the men and women who have given their lives in this conflict.  We must salute our troops and their families who have served and sacrificed over the past nine years.

We must also remember the large number of Iraqi civilian casualties in this war, now estimated at over 100,000.