In 2014, former Defense Secretary Robert Gates – in his book, Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War – offered a pointed and wholly appropriate assessment of then-Vice President Joe Biden that still rings true today:

“I think he has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades.”

Fast forward to today, nine years later, and he’s been wrong on foreign policy and national security for now over half a century.

Almost two weeks ago, just north of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska, the now shot down Chinese spy balloon was first identified over U.S. airspace. Attached to this balloon were solar panels, motors, propellers, and surveillance equipment that allowed it to travel and suspend over specific locations. Over the past few years, these kinds of spy balloons were sighted hovering over five separate continents, but the difference here is that this balloon was allowed to remain airborne and transverse across the United States for a longer duration of time. But why?

President Biden was alerted by the Defense Department on January 31^st about different military options available to shoot the balloon out of the sky, but he waited until February 4^th to take action. During that time, imagine what kind of surveillance was being conducted by the Chinese Communist Party. Given this heightened threat, why did he fail to escalate a response? What pillars of our national security posture have been compromised due to this stark level of inaction?

While the spy balloon was removed from our skies by a F-22 stealth fighter jet, and the intelligence community is planning to assess its contents, it is abundantly clear that this is yet another example of President Biden’s weakness on foreign policy. Think about what kind of message was sent to our adversaries across the world by allowing this spy balloon to penetrate the United States’ sovereign air space for multiple days. I firmly believe that a thorough explanation on this matter should be presented to every American – and fast. The United States should never tolerate provocation from China or any of our other adversaries. President Biden would do well to remember that.

Our New Amicus Brief

Recently, I filed an amicus brief – alongside Representative Jeff Duncan (R-SC) and 126 House Republicans – to the Supreme Court of the United States in the upcoming case considering the Biden administration’s student loan bailout, which exploits legislation drafted in the wake of September 11, 2001, meant to assist service members and veterans. The Biden administration’s student loan bailout is a political gambit engineered by special interest groups; abusing the HEROES Act for such a ploy is shameful. Moreover, this administration is bypassing Congress, which is elected by the American people to protect their interests. Congress is the only body with the authority to enact sweeping and fundamental changes of this nature, and it is ludicrous for President Biden to assume he can simply bypass the will of the American people.

To read our amicus brief, click here.

ICYMI: Protecting Women’s Sports

On National Girls and Women in Sports Day, I joined House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and a panel of House Republicans to highlight the importance of protecting Title IX against the Left’s attacks on the landmark legislation. Our panel was moderated by Riley Gaines, a 12-time National Collegiate Athletics Association All-American swimmer who spoke out against the erosion of women’s sports after competing against Lia Thomas, a biological male swimmer. Simply put, women’s sports should not be collateral damage in the Left’s campaign to redefine gender.

To watch the full panel discussion, click here.

Quote of The Week

“America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our country.”

­-President George W. Bush

Have a blessed weekend,