LAST 2 WEEKS IN REVIEW

I’m your representative in Congress and I write to keep you informed.

• Voting to avoid a government shutdown
• Making the case for TikTok divestment
• Grace's first trip to Washington
• Extending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian migrants
• Preserving the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP)

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• Visiting Fall River
• On Stewardship Health's sale to UnitedHealth Group
• Congressional Art Competition

On the Hill

Voting to avoid a government shutdown: Before leaving Washington for the District Work Period, I voted for the government funding ‘minibus’ because it is a responsible compromise that avoids an unnecessary shutdown. 

The minibus cuts the Nonprofit Security Grant Program by more than $30 million at a time when the United States is witnessing a steep rise in antisemitism. It also prohibits funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) under any circumstance, failing to account for any reforms that this deeply flawed agency will be required to take following the ongoing investigation into some of its employees’ involvement in the October 7th attacks. While the minibus provides $175 million in humanitarian assistance for Gaza, more aid is needed. 

The president’s national security supplemental request includes robust funding for both nonprofit security grants and humanitarian aid for Gaza. It also includes security assistance that Ukraine urgently needs to win its fight for freedom and would strengthen the U.S. industrial base, creating jobs and upgrading our military capabilities. The supplemental request supports our allies, including Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, surges humanitarian assistance to Gaza, and demonstrates U.S. leadership against the autocratic axis of Iran, Russia, and China.

Making the case for TikTok divestment: I joined NBC 10 Boston to discuss how social media corporations like TikTok profit by keeping kids hooked on their screens – corroding youth mental health while platforming disinformation and decimating local journalism. Forcing the sale of TikTok would ensure that an entire generation’s worldview can no longer be shaped by an algorithm that’s controlled by a foreign adversary. This legislation is the first step toward comprehensive social media regulation. As the youngest Democratic parent in Congress, I understand the need for Congress to fight back on behalf of families. 

I shared my views in a recent op-ed for the Boston Globe: 

“TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, X, YouTube, Twitch, Discord, Reddit, and other platforms have wealth and power that is unprecedented, but they are not using it responsibly. Since 2012, around when social media-equipped smartphones became ubiquitous, youth mental health has plummeted. This isn’t just one generation hand-wringing over the next; Gen Z really is struggling. Being attention-fracked during adolescence is partly to blame.

While they’ve been productizing children’s attention for the benefit of advertisers, social media platforms have also plundered our civil discourse. They devoured the business model of journalism, then substituted viral misinformation for shoe-leather reporting. Societal trust has withered. As with youth mental health, the blame for our epistemological crisis is multifaceted. It would be simplistic to settle on one cause, but both social science and common sense indicate that social media is a driver.

TikTok is a special instance of the general problem. Controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, TikTok is not just a platform for user-generated content; it is also a tool of censorship and propaganda for our adversary. Americans would recoil if Fox, CBS, ABC, NBC, or CNN were controlled by the CCP. In aggregate, these TV stations don’t reach as many Americans daily as TikTok does — about one-third of US adults use TikTok.

Critics cry foul on the First Amendment. Freedom of speech, however, does not mean freedom of reach: US citizens have the sacrosanct right to post what they believe, but there is no concomitant right for that post to be amplified, especially by adversaries. An algorithm controlled by an adversary isn’t protected by the Constitution.”

Extending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian migrants: I led a letter on behalf of the Massachusetts congressional delegation urging the Biden Administration to renew and extend TPS for Haitian nationals fleeing violence amid the country’s volatile and ongoing coup. TPS allows people fleeing violence and natural disasters to legally and temporarily live and work in the United States, providing safety and security for migrants and additional economic value for our communities. Haiti has faced catastrophe after catastrophe – from mass hunger that’s left nearly 1 million Haitians close to famine to the assassination of their president and the violent gangs that have taken hold of their capital – warranting the renewal and extension of TPS status for Haitians temporarily sheltering in Massachusetts. 

Governor Healey has declared a state of emergency due, in part, to the influx of Haitian nationals seeking temporary shelter in Massachusetts. I joined my colleagues in the Massachusetts delegation to send a letter to the Biden Administration urging DHS and FEMA to immediately allocate Shelter and Services Program (SSP) funding to provide our local municipalities with the necessary resources to welcome and care for new arrivals. The Commonwealth is committed to welcoming Haitians and other migrants seeking temporary shelter, as well as immigrant families seeking a better life for their children. But Massachusetts needs federal support that reflects the true scale of the cost to care for new arrivals and existing residents alike.

Preserving the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP): I showed my support for the successful ACP by signing onto a letter to House and Senate leadership to urge them to provide sufficient funds for the program to stay afloat before it runs out of funding on April 30th. The Affordable Connectivity Program supports eligible low-income households struggling to afford monthly internet service and ensures they have the connections necessary for work, school, health care, and more. Negotiations for the program’s future are still ongoing, but providing sufficient funding for the remainder of 2024 is crucial.

Make your voice heard → I want to hear from you.

Do you support extending the Affordable Connectivity Program to bridge the digital divide?

Around the Fourth

Visiting Fall River: I started the day at Fonseca Elementary School. I also watched several English-as-a-learning-language classrooms in action. As Fall River becomes home to an increasing Spanish-speaking immigrant population, it’s vital that these children have the necessary tools to gain fluency in English and build a strong academic and socioemotional foundation. 

As always with visits to schools, my biggest takeaway was gratitude for educators. I am exhausted at the end of a day caring for my three young children; seeing teachers and aides instructing dozens of students – day after day – with poise and professionalism is inspiring. I wouldn’t have what it takes to be a teacher, and I’m thankful for those who do.

Next, I stopped by Klear Vu, a three-generation manufacturer of home textiles. I visited the factory to hear firsthand from owners Ben and Sam Cooper about how the abuse of the de minimis tariff exemption by Chinese producers, like Temu and Shein, is undermining U.S. manufacturing. The de minimis tariff provision was conceived as a convenience for individuals engaged in low-value, small-volume international transactions; it was not intended as a loophole for corporations in non-market economies to evade billions in duties and undercut competitors playing by the rules. I support legislation to level the playing field of trade with China in general, and to close the de minimis tariff loophole in particular.

My favorite part of the visit to Klear Vu was speaking with Cidalisa Andrade, the Retired Plant Manager. An immigrant from the Azores, Ms. Andrade worked for over forty years at Klear Vu, starting as a seamstress who didn’t know how to sew and finishing as the boss. She has known all three generations of owners and remains close with Ben and Sam.

Cidalisa told me that, when her husband fell ill as a young man, she worked two jobs while raising two children. They are grown now, with children of their own, succeeding because of her commitment to family and work ethic. Cidalisa’s story echoes the tens of thousands of women in Fall River – many immigrants – who have worked in the textile industry throughout the last century.

I closed out the day on Pleasant Street, where I joined Mayor Coogan, Rep. Schmid, and Rep. Fiola to see plans for the Pleasant Street Neighborhood Stabilization Plan Streetscapes Improvement Project. Pleasant Street is home to several cherished retailers, but the streetscape needs improvement to attract more visitors and businesses. With help from the mayor and the state delegation, I secured $1.6 million in federal funding for walkability, stormwater, and signage upgrades. This targeted government investment will kickstart a wave of economic development for Fall River’s second downtown.

On Stewardship Health’s sale to UnitedHealth Group: Last week, I shared my views on Steward Health’s reported deal to sell its nationwide physician network to health insurance giant UnitedHealth: 

“Steward's physician-led practices provide critical medical care to Greater Fall River & Greater Taunton and should continue to operate. But the prospect of UnitedHealth Group purchasing Stewardship Health is alarming. UnitedHealth, a Fortune 5 leviathan already under federal antitrust investigation, has spent five decades corporatizing healthcare to the detriment of patients and physicians. My constituents in southeastern Massachusetts should not be next in line.”

Collecting submissions for the Congressional Art Competition: Last week, my office began accepting submissions for the annual Congressional Art Competition, which recognizes and celebrates young Americans’ artistic talent. Since 1982, High School students from each district across the country have created works of art to be displayed in our nation’s Capitol. For more information, please visit auchincloss.house.gov/art-competition. 

Onwards,

Jake