Sixth District Perspectives with Congressman Ben Cline – March 29, 2021

It was great to be home in the Sixth District as the House met for a Committee Work Week. In between several virtual Appropriation subcommittee hearings, I met with various advocacy groups and constituents about the issues that matter most to them. And while Members of Congress were home in their Districts, that does not mean legislative work is not ongoing. I continue to monitor the crisis at our border, and I am following developments on a potential infrastructure package that may come before the House when Congress returns to Washington. With Spring weather right around the corner, I was pleased that the Governor plans to lift some capacity restrictions on recreational activities, but I would encourage him to go further in restoring the freedoms that Virginians enjoy. As always, I appreciate the opportunity to serve as the Sixth District’s representative and look forward to connecting with folks in-person over the next two weeks before returning to the session.

Immigration Crisis:
President Biden stopped the construction of the border wall, rescinded Trump-era policies that prevented the mass flow of migrants into our country, and promised a pathway to citizenship for more than 11 million illegal immigrants. Now, just less than 90 days into his presidency, our country is facing a historic crisis at our southern border – more than 16,000 migrant children are in U.S. custody, migrants are being released into our country without a court date, and even his own DHS secretary admits “we are on pace to encounter more individuals on the southwest border than we have in the last 20 years.” This entire situation poses a humanitarian, economic, and national security threat to our Nation. With CBP encountering more than 3,000 migrants illegally crossing the border a day and 200,000 already having entered the country in 2021, it’s time for President Biden to act. We must finish building the wall and invest resources to ensure border patrol agents have the tools necessary to do their jobs safely and effectively.

More Reckless Spending?:
The next big push by the Biden Administration seems to be to pass portions of the “Green New Deal” and call it an infrastructure package. While improving our roads and bridges is necessary, early reports indicate that the proposal will have a massive price tag of $3 trillion and will include countless unrelated initiatives, including charging stations for electric vehicles, free community college, and expanding the failed Obamacare policies. To make matters worse, President Biden plans to pass the largest tax increase in the past 30 years – in the middle of a pandemic. At a time when millions of Americans are struggling with COVID-19, imposing hefty tax increases on families and businesses will cost hundreds of thousands of jobs and hurt our fragile economy. Further, on the heels of a $1.9 trillion spending boondoggle that spent little on programs to actually combat COVID-19, our Nation cannot afford to maintain these levels of spending. Even drunken sailors are embarrassed by Biden’s outrageous spending plans.

Reopen Virginia:
This week Governor Northam announced that he would be rolling back certain COVID-related capacity restrictions throughout the Commonwealth. This comes on the heels of writing to the Governor encouraging him to increase the maximum number of spectators allowed at outdoor recreational sporting events like high school football – a copy of the letter can be found here. While I’m pleased that the Governor upped maximum attendance at high school football games to 500, I’m disappointed occupancy will still be capped at 30% capacity and that cheerleaders and band members will continue to be considered spectators. As a whole, lifting some of these restrictions was a good start, but the Governor did not go far enough. With vaccination rates rising and case numbers dropping, I encourage the Governor to continue restoring the freedoms that Virginians enjoy by fully reopening our economy and schools. It’s time to get folks back to work, kids back in the classroom, and allow residents of the Commonwealth to go about their daily lives.

Constituent Meetings:
Regardless of whether I’m in Washington or home in the Sixth District, I always make time to meet with constituents. This week I met with a number of Sixth District residents to discuss several health care-related initiatives. Among the many groups, I met with this week were the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the American Academy of Physician Assistants, the GO2 Foundation of Lung Cancer, VCU Health System, the American Society of Addiction Medicine, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. I also met with members from the Energy Independence Summit, the Citizens Climate Lobby, and the leadership of the University of Virginia. As the Commonwealth begins to reopen, I look forward to meeting with constituents in person again. If you would like to schedule a meeting with me or my staff, please do not hesitate to reach out to one of my offices listed at the bottom of this page.

American Association of Colleges of Nursing

American Academy of Physician Assistants

GO2 Foundation of Lung Cancer

VCU Health System

American Society of Addiction Medicine

COVID-19 Update:
As of March 28, 2021, Virginia has had 615,336 total cases of COVID-19, including confirmed lab tests and clinical diagnoses, according to the Virginia Department of Health. The current death toll in the Commonwealth stands at 10,198. Further, according to the VDH’s COVID-19 vaccine data dashboard, as of March 27th, 2,337,858 people have been vaccinated with at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 1,253,021 people are fully vaccinated.

This week President Biden signed the Save Lives Act into law, which recently passed through Congress unanimously. This legislation removes legal barriers that prevented veterans who were not enrolled in the VA system from receiving a COVID-19 vaccine at one of the Department’s facilities. This bill now makes all veterans, their spouses, and their caregivers eligible to receive a vaccine at a VA facility.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your congressman. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for the latest updates.