U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s eNewsletter - - Week of January 1, 2017

Majority Leader McConnell Welcomes 115th Congress

'The Horizon of a New Era'

This week the 115th Congress convened. Senator McConnell will continue to serve as the U.S. Senate Majority Leader for the 115th Congress and will serve on the following committees:

• Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry: This committee develops legislation on a diverse range of issues affecting our nation’s farmers, ranchers and rural communities including food production, energy, resource conservation, forestry and economic development.
• Appropriations: This committee is tasked with writing the legislation that allocates federal funds to the numerous government agencies, departments, and organizations on an annual basis.  Once the annual funding levels are set by the Senate Budget Committee, the Appropriations Committee works to ensure that important projects and services are appropriately funded.
• Rules and Administration: This committee oversees the rules and administrative functions of the U.S. Senate and is the committee primarily responsible for federal election law, among other important issues.

Senator McConnell delivered remarks on the Senate floor welcoming the new Congress, saying, “We know that the coming days are going to require hard work and cooperation from both sides. But, if we work together, we’ll be able to continue a record of achievement for our constituents, for our states, and for our country.”

He also said, “We now stand on the horizon of a new era. We seated a new Congress...We’ll inaugurate a new president later this month. The challenges ahead are great and the work to come will be hard, but — just as we heard the voices of the American people in 2014 — we heard their message this last election too. Americans called for change from the last eight years and for hope at long last, and each of us — regardless of party — has a mandate to help and a role to play.”

Obamacare Has Failed the American People

GOP Determined to Provide Relief, Live Up to the Promise to the American People and Repeal Obamacare

On Wednesday, Senator McConnell and the Senate GOP leadership team hosted a media stakeout in the U.S. Capitol. Vice President-elect Mike Pence and incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus joined them in speaking about passing the legislative tools necessary to repeal Obamacare and begin to transition to more sensible health care solutions.

On Thursday, Senator McConnell spoke on the Senate floor regarding the failures of Obamacare, saying, "History will record Obamacare as a failed partisan experiment, an attack on the American middle class, a lesson to future generations about how not to legislate...We didn’t cause this problem, but we’re now determined to provide relief. We’re determined to live up to our promise to the American people and repeal this failed law."

During his speech, Senator McConnell shared Obamacare's negative impact on Kentucky:

“Just look at my home state as an example. Kentucky was once held up as the shining jewel of Obamacare. Well, no longer. Obamacare, predictably, has become a mess in Kentucky just as it has across the nation — and that’s proved a bit confounding for some of our friends on the Left.  The technical rate of the insured ticked up, they say, so why are so many Kentuckians upset?

“Well, when you force Kentuckians into Obamacare plans that many of their doctors won’t accept, what did you think would happen? When you shoehorn folks with modest incomes into plans with ever-growing premiums and deductibles so high they’re afraid to even get sick, what did you expect?...Obamacare is making things worse, and we now have a moral imperative to repeal and replace it — to bring relief to families now.”

Click the image below to view the Senator's floor speech

Majority Leader McConnell Meets with Kentucky Native Tapped to Lead EPA

On Friday, Senator McConnell welcomed to his office in the U.S. Capitol President-elect Trump’s intended nominee for administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Scott Pruitt, a fellow Bluegrass state native and graduate of Kentucky’s Georgetown College. They had a great meeting regarding issues important to jobs in our state. Senator McConnell said, “The EPA is the posterchild for agencies in need of immediate reform and Scott has the resume and energy to turn this bureaucracy around. Scott already stood up to the EPA in instances of federal overreach in his and other states, and I’m confident he will work to find reasonable solutions rather than simply working to grow the reach and power of the federal bureaucracy.”

Majority Leader McConnell Thanks Washington, D.C. Pages

This week, Senator McConnell thanked the Senate Pages for their service in the United States Senate Page Program. The highly competitive Page Program is composed of students who are juniors in high school. Pages are appointed and sponsored by a senator and their duties consist primarily of delivery of correspondence and legislative material within the Congressional Complex.

For more information on the U.S. Senate Page Program and the internship program in Senator McConnell's office, visit the Senator’s website HERE.

Visiting Washington, D.C.

Every week, many Kentuckians from across the Commonwealth visit Senator McConnell's office in the U.S. Capitol. If you’re planning a trip to Washington, D.C., please check out Senator McConnell's website and visit his office while you are in town. Also, the Senator’s office has information on tours, places to visit and local restaurants to help make your trip to the nation’s capital one to remember.

Keeping Up With Senator McConnell

Keep up with things happening in our nation's capital and Kentucky by becoming a fan of Senator McConnell’s Facebook page and following on Instagram at @McConnellPress. Receive news updates and alerts from Senator McConnell’s Press Office by following on Twitter at @McConnellPress.

For a more behind-the-scenes view of the Senate Majority Leader's office, be sure to follow @SenateMajLdr on Twitter and @SenateMajLdr on Instagram.

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