I sent a email to Congressman Fleischmann well before election day and just received my response today. I asked several questions about his voting record and why I should vote for him. This is his response.
Sincerely,
Chuck Fleischmann
Member of Congress
Dear
Samuel
:
Thank
you for taking the time and write to me with concerns about
four
of
my
votes.
The
legislation that you specifically had
question
s about are
:
HR
6233,
the
Agricultural
Disaster Assistance Act of 2012
,
HR
6169, the Pathway
to Job Creation through a Simpler, Fairer Tax Code Act of 2012
,
House
Amendment 1416,
Prohibits
Use of Funds in Contravention of the Defense of Marriage Act
,
and
HR
5896, the
Department
of Defense Appropriations Act of 2013
.
Your
input is appreciated, and it is an honor to represent you in Congress.
HR
6233 was introduced by Representative Frank Lucas, has passed through the House, and is currently pending
in the Senate Committee on Agriculture. I understand that many in the Third District are farmers and
support their families by agricultural means. In these difficult economic times, that can be difficult.
Unfortunately, HR 6233 was brought to the House floor on Election Day, and I was unable to be there.
My 98.2% voting record shows that I take my job as your representative very seriously and I hope that
you will continue to watch my votes.
HR
6169 was introduced by Representative David Dreier and has passed through the House, but has not yet
been reported to the Senate. Creating jobs and getting America back to work is my top priority as your
Congressman.
Similar to HR 6233
,
I did
not
vote on this bill because it was brought to the
House
f
loor on Election Day. On a
more
personal
note,
I have co-sponsored and voted
on several bills to create jobs, such as H.R. 1229, H.R. 1230, and H.R. 1231. All of these bills would
increase our capacity to drill offshore and create high paying jobs in the oil industry. I also voted
on H.R. 1938, the NAMES Act, which would direct the Secretary of Energy to complete the permitting for
the Keystone XL pipeline. TransCanada, the pipeline's creator, is expected to quickly hire 13,000 American
construction workers once the permit is approved.
The
House Amendment 1416 was introduced by Representative Steve King to support the Defense of Marriage Act
(DOMA).
I am
staunch
supporter of DOMA and
committed
to maintaining traditional marriage as the family centerpiece.
Recently,
I signed on to a
House
resolution
exp
ressing concern with the Obama A
dministration's
refusal to uphold DOMA.
Rest
assured, I will continue working to ensure that marriage remains
an
institution between
one man and one
woman. This should be our guiding principal
,
whether in the military or in the civilian world.
HR
5896,
Department
of Defense Appropriations Act of 2013
(
NDAA
),
extends and reaffirms the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF). There have been many
allegations about the detention of United States citizens without trial in relation to this bill.
The
statutory langue of Section 1021 (e) reads as follows:
(e)
Authorities.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect existing law or authorities relating
to the detention of United States citizens, lawful resident aliens of the United States, or any other
persons who are captured or arrested in the United States.
This
language, which is what I voted for, makes it clear that the detention provisions for American citizens
have not changed from previous years. Under
Hamdi
v. Rumsfeld, US citizens are guaranteed the right to challenge their detention, including when they captured
abroad while fighting for the Taliban (as was the case with Mr.
Hamdi
).
I believe the right to challenge detention is a fun
damental
right in this country.
Additionally
,
Section 1021 (b) makes it clear that the detention provisions only apply to "al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or
associated forces.
I
hope this information answers your questions. I cannot represent you well without knowing your concerns.
Thanks again for reaching out to me, and please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of any additional
assistance in the future.
Sincerely,
Chuck Fleischmann
Member of Congress
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