9-19-15 Rokita Report: Defunding Planned Parenthood and Honoring Our Constitution

Statement

Defunding Planned Parenthood

Yesterday the House took a landmark stand for the unborn by passing H.R. 3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015, a bill I cosponsored. H.R. 3134 places a moratorium on all federal funding for Planned Parenthood for one year while the organization's activities are investigated. This moratorium prohibits the use of any mandatory or discretionary funds by Planned Parenthood, affiliates, or associated clinics. Recent videos have caught Planned Parenthood staff participating in the horrific sale of fetal tissue and body parts.

A second bill that passed yesterday was H.R. 3504, the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. This bill protects the children born as a result of gruesome abortion practices by making a failure to provide these children with standard medical care after their birth a federal crime. To protect these children, I cosponsored H.R. 3504.

All life is sacred and I will not turn a blind eye to this callous disregard for human life. I will continue to lead efforts to investigate Planned Parenthood and hold the organization accountable.

Constitution Day

September 17th was Constitution Day. The day marks the ratification of the Constitution on September 17, 1787 by the delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.

Our Constitution was the first time that the most successful ideas for self-governance came together in the same place at the same time. These ideas have helped advance America and our values more rapidly than any other nation. American Exceptionalism is a fact. I stated this in my article, Disregard Naysayers; America is exceptional, and continue to maintain this belief.

We should be proud of our Constitution. It is among the world's most critical documents. As Americans, we were born with a special gift, the gift of American Citizenship, and it is our responsibility to exercise our rights and express our beliefs. Constitution Day should remind us to be proud of and protect our American Exceptionalism.

Tribal Impact Days

This week, I spoke at the National Congress of American Indians Tribal Impact Days. I provided the latest update on legislation that I introduced, H.R. 511, the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act. H.R. 511 would prevent the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from exerting jurisdiction over tribal businesses operated on tribal lands.

The NLRB asserting jurisdiction over enterprises owned and operated by these tribes violates their sovereignty. The Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act makes it very clear that tribal businesses on tribal lands are free to operate with the same autonomy provided to any other sovereign body. The bill amends the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to stipulate that the law does not apply to any enterprise or institution owned and operated by an Indian tribe and located on tribal land. Unfortunately, this clarification is necessary because of how activist pro-union NLRB bureaucrats have interpreted the NLRA. Their decision to give the NLRB jurisdiction over commercial enterprises operating on tribal lands is a gross overreach of the federal government and one that violates the sovereignty of tribal governments.

H.R. 511 was referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, of which I am a member. The Committee held a hearing on the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act and a markup to approve the bill. The Committee's approval allows the bill to move to the House floor for consideration.

We also discussed my participation in two recent House Committee on Education and the Workforce hearings that explored ways to address challenges faced by the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) and the schools under their jurisdiction. As Chairman of the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education, I recognize the importance of ensuring that all children have access to a quality education driven by parents and their local communities, not Washington bureaucrats. Strong oversight of BIE schools by Congress is one of the responsibilities of my subcommittee and ways to ensure that local communities have a say in education.

Papal Visit

Next week, Pope Francis will speak before a joint-session of Congress. His address to Congress on September 24th will be the first for a Pope, and many Hoosiers are eager to hear him speak.

To watch the address from home, tune-in at http://www.house.gov/ starting at 10:00 am.

If you plan on traveling to Washington to be a part of the visit, you may be interested to know that my office has tickets available to watch the speech from the National Mall. We have received many of requests but there are still some tickets available. My office will also be hosting an open house for Hoosiers who have traveled to D.C. Following the Pope's speech, refreshments and light snacks will be available at my Washington Office in 1717 Longworth House Office Building.

Source