Dear Friend, 

It was good to be with members of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C., last week.

I always appreciate the opportunity to meet with business and community leaders in our state.  We discussed important topics including infrastructure plans, workforce COVID-related mandates in the state, international trade disruptions impacting our community, and a variety of other issues currently before the House and Senate.

Making your voice heard in Congress is one of my top priorities.

As of October 24^th, those with a landline with the 501 area code will now have to dial the complete ten-digit phone number they are hoping to reach. This will include the area code and the telephone number.

This is the only area code in Arkansas that will be affected by the change.

The Congressional App Challenge is now open to 8th to 12th grade students. The purpose of the App Challenge is to get students interested in the world of coding, app development, and computer science, and to start building industry connections early.

The App Challenge highlights and supports students interested in the knowledge industry including coding and computer science.  I am proud to support this program again this year.

The deadline for app submission is November 1. To sign up, or to find more information, visit https://www.congressionalappchallenge.us or contact my Little Rock Office at (501) 324-5941.

As a member of Congress, one of my greatest honors is nominating students across central Arkansas to the U.S. service academies. Throughout my time in Congress, I have had the privilege of nominating over 150 young leaders applying to attend the U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Military Academy, U.S. Air Force Academy, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.

Applicants must apply to my office for a nomination by November 1, of their senior year and must also apply to the academies by January 31.

I applaud the young men and women that answer the call of duty to serve our country. Thank you for serving our nation to ensure all central Arkansans and Americans may enjoy the freedoms afforded to us in this country.

For more information about the nominations process, please click here or call my Little Rock office at (501) 324-5941.

I spoke with Maria Bartiromo of Mornings with Maria on Fox Business. I highlighted the Democrats’ inability to work together to reach a consensus within their own party over how much they plan to spend in their tax and spending spree. Their latest bill will hurt American families and businesses.

We also discussed my concern with the Democrats’ proposal to allow the IRS to monitor the personal finances of central Arkansans to pay for their trillions of spending to expand the reach of the federal government. This is wrong and an invasion of privacy.

You can watch my full interview by clicking here.

Friday morning, I delivered a keynote speech on U.S.-China Economic Competition at an event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). I reflected on our relationship with China over the past few decades, and how we have seen the relationship develop.

China is a major player in our global markets, and it is important to continue fostering a relationship with the nation. However, during the pandemic it became clear that the United States was too dependent on foreign nations for both goods and necessities. I have authored legislation, including the SAVE Act, which will help boost production in the United States and make us less reliant on other nations.

Ultimately, the United States and policy leaders cannot lose the moment we have in taking a deeper look into our relationship with China and building a consensus in both the American government and across our nation over our role in the global market and what we can do to put the United States in the strongest position.

The full panel, including my keynote address, can be viewed by clicking on the video below or clicking here.