Douglas Butcher

Name: Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-LA) Media/Outlet: Fox News Sunday Reason: Nomination of Paul Watford, SCOTUS Issues I think it speaks volumes to the thought process of this president that we get a Paul Watford. President Obama looked to the California 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. That is essentially the Mad Hatter’s tea party of judicial review. Even if he stands out as moderate in that group – he’s not – it’s like being the best-looking guy at a Klingon bachelor party. Paul Watford has filed amicus briefs that boggle the mind. He worked for cop killers in 2007, filing an amicus brief through the ACLU’s involvement with Baez vs. Kentucky DOC. In that same vein, he worked on behalf of a man who killed a family including a two-year-old child. What kind of priority is that in how you choose to practice your craft as a legal mind. Paul Watford is the kind of legal animal that looks to the worst of us as if they are the best of us and fights for people who violate our social contract to such an egregious extent that it speaks to a broken sense of values gussied up to present as justice and righteousness. Strip away the clown makeup and it’s still just broken values. I know there is a proposal now to turn the Supreme Court into an elected office. Amend the constitution. Ok, whatever. I’ve seen judicial elections in Louisiana that would curl your hair in how destructive they can be. Let’s do that nationally. That being said, I would encourage Senator deSonido to put down the Disarronno and not write constitutional amendments when he’s drunk.

Name: Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-LA) Media/Outlet: The O’Reilly Factor Reason: Supreme Court Vacancy There are going to be some who talk about President Obama having the right to nominate a candidate and that the Senate has an obligation to hear it. The interesting thing about this is that the current siting vice president is the one who back in the Reagan years was talking about the inappropriate nature of nominating a Supreme Court candidate during an election. So, we have not established this so-called rule. It’s your vice president who established this rule. Or it could have been Neil Kinnock. Hard to tell. Despite an excellent smoke and mirrors campaign convincing people he’s statesman, nobody ever confused Joe Biden with Albert Einstein or pointed to him as a model of intellectual consistency. Some are going to be looking back on that nomination in 1988 when we saw Anthony Kennedy confirmed. People forget that the vacancy opened in 1987. It was the retirement of Justice Powell. Then, of course, we saw the Bork nomination which led to the Ginsburg nomination. Both of those were derailed by Democrats engaging in hyper-partisan nonsense. So, even then, Reagan wasn’t starting the nomination process in an election year. Anthony Kennedy was nominated on November, 11 1987. Anybody who says that 1987 is 1988 is just an idiot. The process will play out, Bill, and we will use our checks and balances to determine the right path forward. I have absolute confidence in that. If we invoke the Biden rule, we invoke the Biden rule. It’s not the Cheney rule or the Quayle rule is it?

Address To Tulane University Law School – New Orleans, Louisiana BUTCHER ON “MASS INCARCERATION” AT TULANE LAW SCHOOL Transcript of Sen. Douglas Butcher’s comments to the Tulane University Law School: Good afternoon. Thank you for allowing me to come and speak to future lawyers. For a decade, I practiced law in this state and I know that it can be challenging as you look ahead to the future. However, whatever side of the law you fall on – whether it’s criminal prosecution or criminal defense or in the arena of civil litigation – you are part of a system of laws which deal with individuals. Their responsibilities to society. Their responsibilities to their fellow citizens. Most importantly, their individual rights. There are a lot of people who will talk about mass incarceration in this upcoming election. You are going to hear that phrase a lot. As litigators, you need to remember that every person is in a jail cell because of their unique circumstances. Each crime was committed by an individual. An armed robbery in Shreveport is not a drug bust in Baton Rouge. If you allow yourself to approach the law in a way that believes we have a group incarcerated for some group crime, you will sight of your sacred commitment to the individual in the process. Every person who is incarcerated is incarcerated as an individual. That person is incarcerated as an individual because they were sentenced as an individual. They were sentenced as an individual because they were convicted as an individual. They were convicted because they were tried. They were tried because they were arraigned. They were arraigned because they were booked. They were booked because they were arrested. All of this as a process as individuals emanating from a unique set of circumstances. Language like “mass incarceration” which gets thrown around in our political discourse demonstrates a failure to understand the very underpinning of our laws. There are a lot of people in prison. Each one serves because of a unique moment in their lives. Whether it was a moment of stupidity resulting in poor judgement or a calculated act of evil, the role of the individual and accountability is paramount to our system of laws. And that has not changed. There is a philosophy which is gaining in our academia pushing the idea of a kind of “cultural Marxism” that views individuals as having no personal agency. Everything becomes a type of dialectic where everything becomes viewed through a lens of collectivism. That mentality will undermine our very foundation of laws and it must be resisted. There’s a great film called Network. Tremendous performance at its heart by Peter Finch. Its most famous scene is the “I’m Mad As Hell” speech. In that monologue, the most powerful line is “I’m a human being, God damn it, my life has value.” Every generation faces the challenge of whether we lose ourselves as individuals. We cannot fail to meet that challenge. The law, in that regard, is the singular expression of that obligation to be defenders of the individual. Whatever reforms or changes we make in Washington; it must also rest on that fundamental premise so important to our laws. Thank you.

Name: Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-LA) Media/Outlet: Glenn Beck Program Reason: Charleston Shooting & Confederate Symbolism The horrible events in Charleston can’t be diminished, but the idea that we are now taking down statues across the South is genuinely absurd. You can’t make the statues’ existence equal in measure to the dead being mourned. My view on those statues is very simple. I don’t care. If you are a person who wakes up every day and you are guided by the statue of Jebediah Beauregard Farquhar, I will never understand your world. Likewise, if you wake up every day and you believe that all your misfortunes are because that statue you drive by is the source of all evil, I will never understand you either. I just hope we don’t become consumed by nonsense, because doing one statue will lead to the next statue. And it’s just an endless line of nonsense and general bullcrap that ultimately has no meaning. Dylann Roof took a picture with a Confederate flag. Mark David Chapman read Catcher In The Rye. Hinckley loved Taxi Driver. That flag. That book. That movie. None pulled the trigger. I’ve never been one for boycotts. I’m a proud Catholic and I defend religious liberty. But sometimes I look at Bill Donahue trying to pull episodes of South Park and I just hang my head. I know that once you start pulling anything from the public square because enough angry people want something banned, that’s troubling. Being offended is a reaction. Congratulations, you as an adult had a reaction. Bravo.

PRESS OFFICE OF SENATOR DOUGLAS E. BUTCHER (R-LA) OFFICIAL PRESS STATEMENT ★ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Release: Senator Butcher Endorses Charles Walker For GOP Nomination Washington – Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-LA) issued a statement on the 2016 Presidential Election, announcing his endorsement for the Republican Nomination. Senator Butcher announced his endorsement of Gen. Charles Walker for President. Senator Butcher made his endorsement in a brief statement: “Today, I am announcing my support for Gen. Charles Walker as our next President. I have looked at the various platforms and I am pleased to see that we have a wide variety of exceptional candidates running. I also saw some red flags that made my decision easier. In the end, I look to General Walker’s military experience and the issues that he has chosen to fight for. He will bring those principles of leadership to match what I believe is the best stand on the issues facing us today. There are some issues I’ve seen in various platforms that I have some minor disagreement with, but one issue in particular troubles me. I proudly come from a Right-To-Work state. That approach to the work force is that individuals should have the ability to determine whether they want to be in a union or not. That is called self-determination. It is called individual liberty. To nationalize labor policy to create government imposed bureaucracies in any business with a certain number of employees is so anathema to the principles of conservativism, when those principles arose from the models of European socialism. In Germany, it is a principle called co-determination. I proudly stand with self-determination. Basically, as people have grown dissatisfied in EU nations with unions and union membership has declined, many unions have adapted in these countries and used the Work Council to create government imposed de facto union membership. This is the single worst idea being advanced in the current Republican primaries. As a proud Cajun I may very well say laissez le bon temps roullez and I may have practiced law under the Napoleonic Code, but I have no desire to create a national labor policy taken from the worst ideas of the Comité social et économique. Nonetheless, I firmly stand with General Walker. He will be a great leader for this nation and a great standard bearer for our party. I urge my fellow Republicans to join me in supporting a true pro-life patriot who will advance religious liberty, advocate for limited government, defend the free market and restore America’s dignity on the world stage. Thank you and God bless the United States of America.”

Address To Rotary Club Of New Orleans – New Orleans, Louisiana BUTCHER COMMENTS ON 2016 RACE AT NOLA ROTARY CLUB Transcript of Sen. Douglas Butcher’s address to the Rotary Club Of New Orleans: Good afternoon. It’s great to be here today and address this great civic organization. We are preparing for an important race in 2016 as we seek to replace President Obama. I believe it is critical that we set a new course for this nation – one that is pro-business, pro-life and which will secure our border and stand strong on the world stage. I look at the field of GOP candidates that have thrown their hats in the ring and there is a great opportunity for any one of them to lead. I am actually very interested to see how the Democrats progress. They have their own conflict over there with an independent senator seeking their nomination. First, he’s barely able to qualify under the Constitution. He’ll turn 35 a week before the inauguration. That’s troubling because it speaks to a almost psychotic level of ambition. When I was 33, I was still working in the legal profession as an attorney. I don’t know how I could have the audacity to make the assumption I could lead the free world. There are some things we can learn from that campaign as we watch it and watch the Democrats respond. Teachable moments are what we call them. He’s a registered independent and now some Democrats don’t trust him. Well, what was the reason you became independent? You made a choice. There had to be a reason. I have voted Republican in every election in this state except for one. When my candidate didn’t make the general election, I worked for the Democrat. That’s because I did not want my home state being run by a Ku Klux Klansman Nazi as governor. That's called a good reason. There was a reason I didn’t support my party in 1991. These aren't choices made in a vacuum. You better have a reason why you can explain to that party on the other side of the aisle why you detest being called a Democrat. I saw his speech about “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” You can talk all you want about the house, but you’re living on the veranda. So, this will be a fascinating election. In a couple of days, I will be making my endorsement after reviewing platforms and looking where every candidate stands. As we go forward, I know the Democrats are going to wallow in identity politics. It’s a toxic reality of what they do. I will be looking to see which candidate on our side can make an unapologetic argument for our core conservative values in a way that cuts through that swamp rot of that kind of pandering. Whoever does that can be the one to lead us forward. And I look forward to supporting them and working for that victory. Thank you and God bless.

PRESS OFFICE OF SENATOR DOUGLAS E. BUTCHER (R-LA) OFFICIAL PRESS STATEMENT ★ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Release: Statement On Glossip v. Gross And Capital Punishment Washington – Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-LA) issued a statement on the recent decision by the Supreme Court in Glossip v. Gross, upholding the constitutionality of the death penalty. Senator Butcher reaffirmed his commitment to capital punishment made the following remarks praising the decision: “I have long been a supporter of capital punishment. The recent decision by the high court speaks to that commitment. Very simply, there are crimes which rise to the level where such a punishment is the only measure of justice that can meet the heinousness of such crimes. The legal system must have the means to send such a message when it is proper and fitting. The Court acted wisely not to undermine states which pursue that course of action by invoking the Eighth Amendment. More importantly, they did not let arguments over the methods involved become a reversal of the law that would undermine that commitment. There will be some who will react to this decision with the argument that we must eliminate the death penalty. Let me say that I am not a fan of the president. President Obama has a record I have strong disagreement with. However, across the board, this was the president who killed Osama Bin Laden. President Obama deserves a tremendous amount of credit for that moment in history under his leadership. That being said, I would put forward this hypothetical. Suppose Bin Laden had surrendered to Seal Team 6. Suppose they had brought him back for trial in an American courtroom. What would the appropriate punishment be for masterminding the death of nearly 3,000 Americans? If you are going to state that the death penalty has no place, you must proudly declare that Osama Bin Laden should not be executed. That’s the essence of that argument. While it may not be 3,000 people dead in the streets of New York City, you can look at the particulars of this case and see the brutal bludgeoning of a man with a baseball bat orchestrated by Mr. Glossip. Another petitioner was Benjamin Cole who murdered his nine-month-old daughter. Or the case of John Grant, who killed a fellow inmate over a breakfast tray in prison. If you wish to argue the sanctity of human life, the person who cannot be the face of that argument is a man who believed a human life was worth less than a plate of prison-made scrambled eggs. So, if this decision by the Supreme Court leads to an effort to eliminate the death penalty from the entirety of our jurisprudence, there needs to be ownership of exactly what is being defended by those who seek its elimination. There are crimes which merit the full measure of justice, and any robust debate must be an honest examination of whether those crimes merit that punishment. Nothing less.”

PRESS OFFICE OF SENATOR DOUGLAS E. BUTCHER REPUBLICAN OF LOUISIANA PUBLIC EVENTS 2016 ★ Senator Butcher Comments On 2016 Race At NOLA Rotary Club ★ Senator Butcher On "Mass Incarceration" At Tulane Law School PRESS RELEASES 2016 ★ Press Release: Statement On Glossip v. Gross And Capital Punishment ★ Press Release: Senator Butcher Endorses Walker For GOP Nomination MEDIA APPEARANCES 2016 ★ Glenn Beck Program: Charleston Shooting & Confederate Symbolism (Q1) ★ The O'Reilly Factor: Supreme Court Vacancy (Q2) ★ Fox News Sunday: Nomination Of Paul Watford, SCOTUS Issues (Q3) EDITORIALS

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY SEN. DOUGLAS E. BUTCHER (R-LA) Name: Douglas Evan Butcher Seat: Louisiana, Class II Political Party: Republican Caucus: Freedom Caucus Born: October 31, 1970 in Lake Charles, Louisiana Residence: New Orleans, Louisiana Avatar: Chris Hipkins Gender: Male Sexuality: Straight Race: White Religion: Catholic Family History: Working Class Family 2009-Present: Married to Amber Bell (b. 1984), No Children Education 1988: Valedictorian – Sam Houston High School – Unincorporated Calcasieu Parish 1993: B.A. in History – College of William & Mary 1996: J.D. – College of William & Mary Law School Legal Career 1996-2006: Attorney At Law (Notable) Political Experience 1991: Volunteer, Roemer for Governor 1991: State Co-Chair, Louisiana College Republicans for Edwards 2006: Republican – Elected, House of Representatives, Louisiana 7th District 2007-2013: U.S. House Of Representatives, Louisiana 7th District (3 Terms) 2012: Republican – Elected, House of Representatives, Louisiana 3rd District 2013-2015: Representative – U.S. House of Representative, Louisiana 3rd District (1 Term) 2014: Republican – Elected, United States Senate, Louisiana Class II 2015-Present: United States Senator – Louisiana Class II Congressional Voting Record United States House Of Representatives 110th Congress 2007-2009 NAY: Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 (H.R. 976) 111th Congress 2009-2011 NAY: Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 112th Congress 2011-2013 AYE: American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 113th Congress 2013-2015 AYE: Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization NAY: Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 United States Senate 114th Congress 2015-2017 AYE: Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015 BIOGRAPHY OF SENATOR DOUGLAS BUTCHER Douglas Evan Butcher was born on Halloween in 1970 to working class parents in Lake Charles, Louisiana. An academic standout, he would graduate in 1988 from Sam Houston High School, a public high school in Calcasieu Parish as that school’s valedictorian. He would go on to attend the College of William & Mary on a full scholarship, graduating with a bachelor’s in history in 1992. During his senior year, Butcher would return home to participate in the 1991 gubernatorial election in Louisiana, working on behalf of incumbent Republican governor Buddy Roemer in one of the state’s most notorious elections. In the general election, Butcher would take a role in campaigning with the Louisiana College Republicans against former KKK grand dragon David Duke and encouraging conservatives to vote across party lines. Returning to college, he would graduate from William & Mary in 1993. He would go on to earn his law degree from William & Mary in 1996. Upon receiving his law degree, he would return to Louisiana and pass the bar. Over the next ten years, Butcher earned a solid reputation as a litigator, especially for his pro bono work with conservative activist groups on issues like religious freedom and Second Amendment rights. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, he became a major public critic of Army Corps of Engineers policy and the role of environmentalists in preventing upgrades to levees. He would serve as a legal consultant to court action on behalf of citizens in New Orleans’ Ninth Ward. In 2006, he was encouraged to run for Congress and was elected decisively in the 7th District. In 2012, Louisiana would lose a House seat and Butcher would run and win in the newly redrawn 3rd District. After four terms in the House, Butcher would run for the United States Senate. In 2014, he would face off against incumbent Mary Landrieu. Butcher would be the leading vote-getter in the jungle primary with 41 percent, going on to defeat Landrieu by a 56-44 margin in the general election. Doug Butcher has since served as Louisiana’s Class II senator since 2015. Sen. Douglas Butcher currently resides in New Orleans with his wife Amber, a notable interior designer. In his spare time, Senator Butcher enjoys deep sea fishing, painting, and playing the piano. BIOGRAPHY POINTS (82): 5 (Age 45-49), 5 (Married, No Children), 10 (Working Class), 5 (Public Ivy), 15 (J.D. – Public Ivy), 20 (Notable Lawyer), 10 (Activist) 12 (Four Terms, House)

PRESS OFFICE OF SENATOR DOUGLAS E. BUTCHER (R-MO) OFFICIAL PRESS STATEMENT ★ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Release: Accountability In Government Is Not A Sin Washington – Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-MO) commented on recent executive orders by President Ross on increasing government accountability, praising the efforts to make government workers more accountable to the taxpayers. Senator Butcher also took aim at recent progressive attacks on the measures. Senator Butcher made the following remarks on the issue: “Let me say that we have an obligation to demand more accountability and better performance from our government employees. The fact that President Ross has issued these executive orders demonstrates a commitment to improving the performance of government and how it relates to the people it purports to serve. I am particularly glad to see that it includes efforts to reward merit as a matter of policy. I am dismayed at the reactions to this, especially from the progressive members of Congress. They have taken the bold step of proclaiming the fundamental right of government workers to half-ass their job. It is now a bold progressive tenet of faith – a secular sacrament of the highest order – to defend laziness, incompetence and a lack of giving a damn. Holding government workers accountable is unimaginable to the progressive mind. Yet, these are the ones who want more and more government in your life. These are the people who believe the arc of moral history is long and bends toward bureaucracy. Shouldn’t they want those who serve our people to be doing the best they can. Shouldn’t somebody who left a portion of their body on the battlefield or is dealing with PTSD expect more from the Veterans Administration than somebody watching a clock and sitting on their thumbs? Don’t those people, like anyone who seeks the government, deserve the best? If it is now controversial to expect standards, we have reached the point where nothing matters. Nothing matters if trying to improve the way government impacts your life is controversial. Nothing matters to a group of progressives who don’t give a damn that the government they seek to expand is run as poorly as possible because the taxpayers should just expect government programs to be run by those with no incentive to serve them.”

Name: Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-MO) Media/Outlet: Glenn Beck Program Reason: Approaches To Border Security Here’s the thing, Glenn. Democrats know there is a problem. They know it. My legislation on human trafficking passed with a Democrat amendment on trans-border trafficking because it was a human trafficking bill. You start talking about a “border security” bill and attach President Ross’ name to it and they will do nothing because it's how they choose to pander. How out of touch are they? We have a plan to secure our border and shore up how we deal with these issues, and we are considered reactionary. Then, a Democrat senator from a very blue state is spearheading the effort to create a shadowy black op paramilitary group to invade Mexico and just start killing people. I don’t know if Senator Lewis was dropped on his head as a child, but he should probably look into a CT scan. I am totally on board with Senator Lewis’ goal to unleash a plan that could escalate into a full-fledged hot war on our Southern border and just take this crisis into full-scale apocalypse. Or, I guess I could just vote for our real, concrete plan rooted in solutions and reality. That might be a better option. We should probably do that.

SENATOR BUTCHER SPEAKS AT CPAC 2025 It’s great to be here today. After four years of a nation being mismanaged and misled, we can celebrate that we have a great leader like Leah Ross to move us forward. Today, we work to bring a real response to issues like border security and give her the tools to fight illegal immigration. I look forward to passing that legislation and standing for the needed infrastructure to move us away from one of Joe Biden’s many failures. One of the areas where we have also been working for our values is in combatting anti-Semitism. There are those who would use our principles and our commitment to our values to advance an agenda that goes against those very principles and values. I’m sure that a little worm like Nick Fuentes is probably holding his little ice cream social and Hitler hootenanny somewhere in this city. However, as we speak about our vision, we know that Nick Fuentes proves that nobody can bastardize conservative principles better than a bastard. In this Congress, I brought forward a resolution to stand with Israel. Senator Goreski brought a bill to the Senate to take on anti-Semitism on college campuses. We both looked at our alma mater Penn and what we saw was frightening. It was hundreds of angry left-wing sociopaths publicly calling for genocide and engaging in violent behavior along with the violent rhetoric. Smoke bombs! What peaceful protest brings smoke bombs? And were college administrators concerned? No, it was almost being celebrated as a form of diversity. Unfortunately, our response got sidetracked. You have Senator Starnes to thank for that and a series of votes we will have to account for. The things we are seeing right now are unique and they are singularly aimed at Jews on college campuses. There are not hundreds of angry people marching and calling for the deaths of homosexuals, the deaths of blacks, the deaths of women, or the deaths of Latinos. If you want to talk about the whole range of protected classes, throw in the disabled, veterans and people over 40. And if those things were happening, college administrators would be taking action to ensure that it was addressed and condemned. Wave a Palestinian flag and call for the deaths of Jews and its quiet time for these feckless college presidents. What you saw in that bill reminds me of a case I had back in the day when I was still in private practice before going to Congress. We had a case where we needed to find a handful of documents, so we used disclosure to get those documents. Those handful of documents came to us in 67 boxes on the back of a U-Haul. I get it, if Democrats give in to a Republican bill that condemns pro-Hamas demonstrators, you get Rashida Tlaib and the progressives raising hell. Make it about every protected class and you don’t have to go against the disgusting base that calls itself progressive and is no longer hiding their hatred of Jews. It’s the legislative equivalent of a document dump. Democrats can try to whistle past the graveyard, but that is their base. And that is their graveyard. In this gathering, we will be talking about conservative ideas. Speaker after speaker. We will talk about the things we fought for to get here and about the things we must keep fighting for to keep moving this nation forward. It is not about dead philosophies that sell the people of this nation on dependence and fear, but the idea that we can empower those things that work and shape this nation – a belief in free enterprise, a belief in a strong nation, and a belief in our traditional values that creates the foundation for success. And standing with President Ross and standing with you, America will succeed again. Thank you and God bless.

Name: Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-MO) Media/Outlet: Fox News Sunday Reason: Withdrawal Of S.27 Quite simply, this is the Democrats fearing the Progressive Caucus. We saw in the debate over the Israel resolution that the Progressive Caucus is fully on board with Hamas. Throw them some language on gays, blacks, and others – maybe you get them to summon some level of decency. Instead, pandering to these people created a fantasy bill that did nothing. Last time I checked, angry mobs of Hamas supporters are terrorizing Jewish students and engaging in acts of casual violence on college campuses. There are no throngs of people on these campuses advocating genocide against gays and lesbians. There is no widespread effort to call for genocide against blacks or Asians on college campuses. There are, however, angry pro-Hamas mobs intimidating Jewish students with violence and advocating genocide. That’s the reality Democrats don’t want to face because they have to keep Bruno Moron out in Colorado happy. The Progressive Caucus comes off very poorly in this whole debacle. I mentioned Senator deSonido, but this is a guy who got into politics based on making racial slurs against a white guy and calling him “pasty.” He’s perfectly willing to embrace ridiculous racial epithets if they are aimed at white people, Jews, whatever. So, the Progressive Caucus is reaching the intellectual level of a Chia pet and that’s who Democrats are choosing to pander to. In the end, it's just cowardice. Senator Starnes and Senator Krol must keep these people happy as a minority caucus. However, people will judge the fruits of that labor. Right now, it appears to be rotting on the vine.

Speech To The Jewish Federation Of Greater Kansas City – Kansas City, Missouri SENATOR BUTCHER SPEAKS AT JEWISH FEDERATION OF KC Transcript of Sen. Douglas Butcher’s address to the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City regarding Senate action on Israel and anti-Semitism: Good afternoon. One of the things I am proud of is our commitment in this session of Congress to highlighting the anti-Semitism that has seemingly become more mainstream. The problem with that particular form of hatred is that it can become an umbrella philosophy that lets people of otherwise disconnected philosophies find a common ground of hatred. Back in the 1990s, Khalid Muhammad was a national leader of the Nation Of Islam. It is well known that he had dialogue and working meetings with Tom Metzger, a notorious white supremacist who led White Aryan Resistance. They could overcome their ignorant racial hatreds and find a common ground of ignorance in their hatred of Jews. That was what anti-Semitism facilitated then and does so decades later. Two years ago, we watched with horror as Hamas began its onslaught against Israel. The history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the same, whether it is 1948 or 2023. There are forces that demand Israel ceases to exist from the river to the sea. Israel responds and is condemned for doing so, often more than the forces seeking its destruction. There is horrific violence prompting the Six Day War, the Yom Kippur War, the Intifada, and too many conflicts to count. When Israel and IDF defend their people and strike out at the forces of terrorism and genocide, they find people who believe that the conflict exists in some murky world of gray rather than a clear moral choice of black and white. I proudly sponsored the resolution currently being debated on the floor of the Senate recognizing Israel’s right to exist. This should be a simple and straightforward declaration of our principles, a reaffirmation of our commitment to basic tenets of civilization. Instead, there are voices on the left who are standing against this. The idiot senator from Colorado who has decided to join the voices of hatred. Other Democrats have joined with him in voting present. This should not be a controversial resolution as those in attendance today can attest. It should a simple and clear statement of where we stand in terms of terrorism, rape and murder. Of course, we also have a bill that was designed to address the rise of anti-Semitism, which has now become an amorphous bill about “protected classes” thanks to the Starnes Amendment. In that respect, I’ll ask these simple questions. Today, you have angry groups on college campuses terrorizing Jewish students and advocating genocide. Are there people openly suggesting the death of every gay and lesbian American being given credence on college campuses? Are they booking Fred Phelps at the student union? He is dead, so that would be tough. Are their mainstream voices on campuses advocating black people be exterminated? If you check the campus events calendar at Tufts or Mount Holyoke, have they scheduled a time for the Klan rally? Again, no. As we try to take on the rise of mainstream voices and institutions standing with genocide against Jews, Senator Starnes shirked a moral choice to pander on phantom menaces to so-called protected classes. As it is, he’s played parliamentary games and made a mockery of that legislation. That should be remembered. So, as we see these voices, we know they have a right to speak. There is still a first amendment. Yet, we as leaders have an obligation to speak to that moral clarity which is lacking in some circles. You can boycott Israel and call for divestment and sanctions, but it doesn’t mean you have the right to be funded by the government. This the balance that has always existed and always will, but there is a moral choice in that balance. Standing here today and knowing why, I can tell you that I proudly make that moral choice. Except for a few left-wing votes, the resolution on Israel’s right to exist should pass the Senate. I am proud to have introduced that resolution. John F. Kennedy once said, years before his brother Robert was slain by a Palestinian man angered over support for Israel, “Israel was not created in order to disappear - Israel will endure and flourish. It is the child of hope and the home of the brave. It can neither be broken by adversity nor demoralized by success. It carries the shield of democracy, and it honors the sword of freedom.” Those words ring true today – more than ever. In the clamor of hate-filled voices, it is our mission to ensure those words are remembered. And with hope and moral clarity, we will. Thank you and God bless.

PRESS OFFICE OF SENATOR DOUGLAS E. BUTCHER (R-MO) OFFICIAL PRESS STATEMENT ★ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Release: President Ross, GOP Majority Leading On Border Security Washington – Sen. Douglas Butcher (R-MO) issued a statement regarding S.66, the Republican border plan that turns back four years of failed leadership on our border by the Biden-Harris Administration. Senator Butcher praised the legislation and spoke on complaints from the Democrats that they weren’t consulted on the docket. Senator Butcher issued the following statement: “The legislation that our Senate Majority is working to pass on behalf of President Ross is a critical and important effort to secure our borders and ensure that we have safe communities along that border. It was a major part of President Ross’ campaign, and she is fulfilling that promise. It creates a legal and physical infrastructure to deal with illegal immigration which leads to trafficking, drug smuggling and gang violence that threaten the security of towns and cities along the border. Most likely, Democrats will say it goes against what we are as a nation. By taking this action and addressing the emergency we will establish justice for those who break our laws. By securing border communities, we are striving to insure their domestic tranquility. By bolstering our military capacity, we provide for their ability to provide for a common defense. All of what we are doing is contributing to the general welfare of this nation. So, obviously, Democrats find establishing justice, ensuring domestic tranquility, providing a common defense, and promoting our general welfare to be alien concepts to their philosophy of government. We will work to ensure that President Ross gets the border security plan in place that we need as a nation. We will fulfill that promise that she made to the nation and that we made as a Senate Majority. We will pass this bill and work for that goal that the president has set because our border security matters. In closing, let me say this about ridiculous statements from the Democrats. We are setting an agenda. As such, there is not a need to consult with those across the aisle in terms of where want the Senate to go. They can debate this legislation. They can offer amendments. And they have a right to vote – up or down – on whether this becomes a law. They are being consulted. This is not being passed by dictatorial edict, but by the deliberative process of the United States Senate. To be clear, at some point in this Congress, they will have legislation important to their agenda brought forward in the Senate for the same consideration. However, we are acting on an important issue, we are setting an agenda to achieve this goal, and we do not apologize for that. We do not have to raise our hand in class to ask teacher whether we can go to the restroom. It is my hope that we can finish this legislation and get the bill to the president’s desk. These are the tools necessary to secure this country and our borders and I am proud to stand with the president to that end.”