Rep. Tim Burchett Demands FEMA Provide ‘Receipts of Hurricane Helene Disaster Relief Spending

Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN) says he’s sent a letter to FEMA asking for a detailed account of its spending in Tennessee and North Carolina counties impacted by Hurricane Helene. “This department has a $40 billion budget and now they’re asking for more money and we found five or six billion additional dollars they could use. They’re not even looking at that,” he says.

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FEMA Denies Confiscating Hurricane Relief Supplies, Contradicting Claims by SpaceX Engineer Shared by Elon Musk

FEMA worker

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) twice denied to The Tennessee Star that it is confiscating hurricane relief supplies in Tennessee, North Carolina, or any area recovering from the destruction wrought by Hurricane Helene.

The denials come despite Elon Musk, the owner of Space X, reporting that one of his company’s engineers said supplies were confiscated by the federal agency in Asheville, North Carolina, where the world’s richest man is supplying volunteers with Starlink devices to restore Internet connectivity to the rural communities.

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Tennessee Congressional Delegation Urges President Biden to Approve Updated Disaster Declaration Submitted by Governor Bill Lee

Joe Biden TN

All 11 members of the Tennessee congressional delegation sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Tuesday requesting the “swift approval” of Governor Bill Lee’s request for an updated major disaster declaration in the wake of flash flooding caused by the remnants of Hurricane Helene.

Lee initially requested federal assistance for Carter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Hawkins, Johnson, Unicoi, and Washington counties following the flash flooding that devastated buildings and roads in East Tennessee on September 26 and September 27, which the president approved on Saturday.

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Tennessee Congressional Delegation Honor the ‘Scarboro 85’ on 69th Anniversary of Desegregation at Oak Ridge Public Schools

Classroom Students

The entire Tennessee congressional delegation sponsored a resolution this week celebrating the Scarboro 85 students from the Scarboro neighborhood in Oak Ridge. Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, these students made history by entering all-white classrooms.

On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that separating children in public schools based on race was unconstitutional.

In a second opinion issued on May 31, 1955, the Supreme Court decreed that schools should be desegregated “with all deliberate speed.”

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Tennessee U.S. Reps. Vote to Condemn Vice President Kamala Harris’ Failed Duty as Border Czar

Kamala Harris

All eight Republican members of Tennessee’s congressional delegation serving in the U.S. House of Representatives voted on Thursday to condemn the failure of the Biden administration and “border czar” Vice President Kamala Harris to secure the United States border.

The resolution, H.Res.1371, passed the House by a 220-196 vote. Six Democrats joined the majority vote.

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Tennessee Congressional Delegation Members React to U.S. Secret Service Director’s Resignation

Kimberly Cheatle

Eight members of the Tennessee congressional delegation reacted to U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle’s resignation on Tuesday, agreeing that her decision to step down was in the agency’s best interest.

Cheatle’s resignation came 10 days after former President Donald Trump was grazed by a single bullet in his upper right ear in what is formally being investigated as a failed assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

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Tennessee Congressional Delegation Urges President Biden to Approve Governor Lee’s Disaster Declaration

Tennessee Tornado Damage

All 11 members of the Tennessee congressional delegation sent a letter to President Joe Biden requesting the “swift approval” of Governor Bill Lee’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration due to severe storms that devastated communities across the Volunteer State last month.

On May 8 and May 9, several rounds of significant severe weather impacted 13 Tennessee counties, causing three fatalities and damage to 459 homes in Tennessee.

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U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn Leads Tennessee Colleagues in Demanding Answers from DHS After Illegal Alien Assaults Woman at the Nashville Sundae Club

DHS Sec Alejandro Mayorkas, Senator Marsha Blackburn

Tennessee U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) led a letter signed by eight other members of the Tennessee Congressional delegation to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas demanding answers regarding the immigration status of a 23-year old illegal alien who allegedly followed a woman into a bathroom at the Nashville Sundae Club and groped her

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Tennessee Republican Delegation Members Vote to Advance Bill Requiring Citizenship Question on the U.S. Census

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

All eight Republicans representing Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives voted with the majority of members to pass a bill requiring the U.S. Census to include a question asking if the person is a United States citizen.

The Census determines how many congressional districts and electoral college votes each state gets to help ensure American votes are equally represented in Congress.

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Tennessee U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett Requests ‘Full Investigation’ into the CIA Based on Claims Made in Undercover Video

Tim Burchett CIA

Tennessee U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) sent letters to the chairmans of the House Judiciary Committee and House Oversight Committee on Thursday requesting that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) be investigated after an employee of the CIA’s Cyber Operations Division made bombshell accusations about the intel agency when it comes to its covert relationship with former President Donald Trump – both during and after his presidency.

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Tennessee U.S. Rep Andy Ogles Among 19 Republicans Who Voted to Kill FISA, Warrantless Surveillance

Andy Ogles

U.S. Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) joined 18 other Republicans in voting against reauthorizing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) on Wednesday. He told The Tennessee Star his vote would protect Tennesseans from “unreasonable searches and seizures by the federal government.”

Ogles explained his decision to break with the majority of Republicans and vote against reauthorizing FISA came after House leadership “chose to keep the doors closed and did not allow an open amendment process.” He noted he had six amendments that were all ignored by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA-04).

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‘We Have Been Sold Out’: Tennessee U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles Slams Passage of Minibus Spending Bill

Andy Ogles Speaking

U.S. Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) slammed the passage of a “minibus” $1.2 trillion spending bill on Friday that would fund six of the 12 appropriations divisions for Fiscal Year 2024.

Moments before the House passed the bill by a 286-134 vote, Ogles, along with other members of the Freedom Caucus, held a press conference where he said the American people had been “sold out.”

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Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett Supports Bipartisan Resolution to Allow New Mothers in Congress to Vote by Proxy

Burchett Luna

Tennessee U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) joined a group of bipartisan representatives on Thursday to announce his support for a resolution allowing new moms in Congress to vote by proxy up to six weeks postpartum.

Clause 2 of rule III of the Rules of the House of Representatives currently reads as follows:

A vote by a member of a committee or subcommittee with respect to any measure or matter may not be cast by proxy.

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Tennessee Congressional Delegation Sends Letter to President Biden Urging Approval of Disaster Declaration Following Deadly Tornadoes

All 11 members of the Tennessee congressional delegation sent a letter to President Joe Biden requesting the “swift approval” of Governor Bill Lee’s request for a major disaster declaration due to severe storms that devastated communities across Middle Tennessee over the weekend.

On December 9, severe thunderstorms and tornadoes ripped through Middle Tennessee. The storms caused six fatalities and dozens of injuries, produced significant damage to nearly 1,900 homes, and destroyed over 500 homes, according to initial reports.

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Tennessee U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett Asks House Oversight Committee Chairman to Subpoena Jeffrey Epstein’s Flight Logs

U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) sent a letter to James Comer (R-KY-01), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, requesting he subpoena the flight logs associated with the late billionaire Jeffrey Epstein’s private plane.

“As you are aware, there have long been unanswered questions surrounding the sex trafficking ring spearheaded by the late Jeffrey Epstein,” Burchett wrote. “We know that Epstein and his associates engaged in child sex trafficking and catered to the rich and powerful elite from around the globe. Many of Epstein’s clients are alleged to be some of America’s most powerful and well-known people.”

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U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett Introduces the No Tax Dollars for the Taliban Act

U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) introduced a bill this week that would discourage countries that receive U.S. foreign aid from sending money to the Taliban.

Burchett’s No Tax Dollars for the Taliban Act (H.R.6586) would require the Secretary of State to report on countries that have “provided the Taliban with assistance, the amount of assistance, and how the Taliban has used that assistance.”

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Ethics Complaint Filed Against Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy After He Allegedly Elbowed Tennessee U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett in the Back

Florida U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01) filed a formal ethics complaint against former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-20) on Tuesday after the California congressman allegedly elbowed Tennessee U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) in the back while passing him in a hallway.

While being interviewed by NPR reporter Claudia Grisales, Burchett alleged McCarthy elbowed him in the back, saying it caught him “off guard” as the hit was a “clean shot to the kidneys.”

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Tennessee Congressional Delegation Members Push Back on President Biden’s Lump Funding Request for Israel, Ukraine, and Border Security

A group of Tennessee congressional lawmakers have criticized President Joe Biden’s budget request for Congress to fund an aid package for both Ukraine and Israel.

On Friday, the White House announced the details of Biden’s $105 billion funding request, with the majority of the funding – $61.4 billion – intended for Ukraine. Further, under Biden’s request, Israel would receive $14.3 billion. The rest of the requested funds would go towards humanitarian efforts in Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, and other places and fund various initiatives geared toward the Indo-Pacific.

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Fiscal Conservatives from Arizona and Tennessee Helped Depose Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House

U.S. Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) laid it all on the line Tuesday afternoon in supporting a motion to vacate to remove Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-23) from the post he has tenuously held for less than a year.

“Speaker McCarthy has failed to demonstrate himself as an effective leader who will change the status quo. He has gone against many of the promises he made in January and can no longer be trusted at the helm,” Biggs said.

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Tennessee Lawmakers Propose Increasing Teacher Classroom Supply Deduction Limit to $1K

U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tennessee, is a co-sponsor of bipartisan legislation to increase the amount schoolteachers can deduct for classroom supplies to $1,000 per year.

The Educators Expense Deduction Modernization Act of 2023, is sponsored by U.S. Rep. Sean Casten, D-Illinois, and the companion bill is sponsored by Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.

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