e-News 6/10/16

• A Better Way: Enhancing U.S. Security and Keeping Americans Safe at Home
• “At least 12 released Guantanamo detainees implicated in attacks on Americans”
• A Better Way: Lifting People out of Poverty
• Taking Aim at Airport Wait Times
• ICYMI: NJ Task Force -1 finally gets federal recognition
• Congress Welcomes India’s Prime Minister
• “China, Sure of its Allure, Shrugs Off American Critics”
• “Obama, Pentagon ‘dangerously’ miscalculating China’s militarycapabilities”
• Salute: Picatinny Arsenal Garrison Commander COL. Ingrid Parker

A Better Way: Enhancing U.S. Security and Keeping Americans Safe at Home

Readers of this weekly eNewsletter and my Op Ed columns in various local newspapers know that I have long had serious problems with this Administration’s foreign and national security decisions. 

Characterized by a new and novel policy concept – “leading from behind,” known to some as the “Obama Doctrine” – American leadership across the globe appears to be in retreat.  On all fronts, we see enemies, potential adversaries, rivals and bad actors filling the void:

• A more aggressive and more militarily capable Russia;
• An expansionist China;
• Emboldened states like Iran;
• Rogue nations like North Korea;

At the same time, and despite some media reports to the contrary, ISIS, al Qaeda and other Islamic terrorist groups remain a very real danger to Americans across the globe and here at home.

In short, our enemies no longer fear us and some of our allies no longer trust us.

Recognizing this sad and dangerous reality, a few weeks ago, Speaker Paul Ryan (WI) appointed a Task Force on National Security to chart a better course for America’s foreign policy and national security that keeps its people safe, and keeps the peace in a dangerous world.

This is the second plank of A Better Way, a policy agenda to tackle some of the country’s biggest challenges.

This plan—available now at better.gop—includes 67 recommendations for Congress and the President, including ideas to:

• Protect the Homeland. We must keep terrorists out of America, secure our borders, and stop cyberattacks.
• Defeat the Terrorists. We must make it our top national security priority to prevail in the war against radical Islamic extremism.
• Tackle New Threats. We must make sure our country is ready to tackle the threats of our time and beyond.
• Defend Freedom. We must restore American influence, advance free enterprise, and expand the community of free nations.

Read the report of the Task Force on National Security here.

“At least 12 released Guantanamo detainees implicated in attacks on Americans”

The Washington Post reported yesterday that the “Obama administration believes that at least 12 detainees released from the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have launched attacks against U.S. or allied forces in Afghanistan, killing about a half-dozen Americans, according to current and former U.S. officials.” 

This is what we always suspected and this might be a low figure.

Read the story by Adam Goldman and Missy Ryan here.

A Better Way: Lifting People out of Poverty

This week, House Republicans also unveiled an initiative aimed at lifting people out of poverty and onto the ladder of opportunity. It was the first plank of A Better Way, a new policy agenda to tackle some of the country’s biggest challenges.

The plan includes ideas to:

• Reward work. A good job is the surest way out of poverty. If you are capable, we will expect you to work or prepare for work.
• Tailor benefits to people’s needs. Instead of the same failed one-size-fits-all approach, we will match poverty-fighting programs with needs more effectively so that it’s easier to keep a job and start a family.
• Improve skills and schools. To help protect the next generation from poverty, we will make sure that poor kids have more opportunities to succeed at every stage, from childhood through college.
• Plan and save for the future. To help you stay on the path from dependence to independence, we will make it easier for you and your family to plan for the future and be retirement-ready.
• Demand results. We will open up the system to accountability and collaboration with local communities, backing ideas that work on the front lines every day.

To learn more about this plank of “A better way” click here. 

Taking Aim at Airport Wait Times

The House this week passed legislation to overhaul Transportation Security Administration (TSA) bureaucracy and help relieve congestion at airports as peak travel season approaches.  The bipartisan Checkpoint Optimization and Efficiency Act directly addresses the effectiveness of the TSA, as well as the current, flawed staffing model used by this agency. 

It’s no secret that air travelers are frustrated with TSA’s bureaucracy – facing longer lines, and in some cases, missing flights or having to stay overnight in the airport.  This is a developing trend that must be addressed before we head into the busy summer months of travel and this bill takes the first step in requiring greater coordination between the TSA and local airports.

This measure provides greater flexibility and accountability to the TSA – allowing the agency to better utilize its personnel by collaborating with local airports and air carriers to ensure that staffing is best allocated at each individual airport.  Our twin goals are minimal wait times andenhanced security!  

To learn more about H.R. 5338, the Checkpoint Optimization and Efficiency Act, click here.   

ICYMI: NJ Task Force -1 finally gets federal recognition

Read the Star-Ledger story here.

This team was the first Urban Search and Rescue unit on duty at “Ground Zero” in Lower Manhattan on September 11, 2001.

Congress Welcomes India’s Prime Minister

Congress gathered in a Joint Session Wednesday morning to receive the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi who told us that the world’s two largest democracies can anchor stability and prosperity from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific.  

In an increasingly unstable world, the relationship between the oldest democracy (ours) and the largest democracy (India’s) is extremely important. I share his commitment to strengthening our economic and security partnership, and I thank him for addressing Congress. I also share his pride in the contributions of so many Indian-Americans to the prosperity of our nation, and New Jersey, in particular!

Read the Prime Minister’s address to the U.S. Congress here.

“China, Sure of its Allure, Shrugs Off American Critics”

Andrew Browne’s column in the Wednesday Wall Street Journal is certainly worth a read!

“Obama, Pentagon ‘dangerously’ miscalculating China’s military goals and capabilities”

Read Carlos Munoz’s piece in the Monday Washington Times here.

Salute: Congratulations and best wishes to Colonel Ingrid Parker, as she passes Command of the Garrison at Picatinny Arsenal to her successor, Lt.Col. Jeffrey Ivey next week.  When she arrived at Picatinny, she became half of the first all-female command team in the base’s history, along with Command Sgt. Maj. Rosalba Dumont-Carrion.  Since 2014, Col. Parker has been in charge of welfare, maintenance and security of 6,500 acres, 84 miles of roads, 900 structures and over 6,000 employees at Picatinny.  We wish her the best in her next assignment.