WASHINGTON — Here’s a look at how area members of Congress voted over the week ending Nov. 19.
House
VETERANS AND EDUCATION: The House has passed the Col. John M. McHugh Tuition Fairness for Survivors Act (S. 1095), sponsored by Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., to provide greater tuition and job training benefits for survivors of deceased military veterans. A supporter, Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., said the bill would “ensure the survivors and dependents of those who bravely serve our country are not hindered by tuition costs when pursuing their education.” The vote, on Nov. 15, was unanimous with 424 yeas.
NOT VOTING
Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-3rd
CENSURING REPRESENTATIVE: The House has passed a resolution (H. Res. 789), sponsored by Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., to censure Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., and remove him from two committees, after he posted an altered cartoon video on his social media accounts that showed him attacking Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and President Joe Biden. Speier said: “Inciting violence begets violence.” An opponent, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said Gosar deleted the video on his own and affirmed that “he does not believe in violence to anyone,” and McCarthy claimed that the House had failed to censure Democrats for similarly inflammatory behavior toward President Donald Trump. The vote, on Nov. 17, was 223 yeas to 207 nays.
NAYS
Herrera Beutler
VETERANS IN U.S. TERRITORIES: The House has passed a bill (H.R. 3730), sponsored by Del. Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan, D-Northern Mariana Islands. It would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to form an advisory committee to consult the agency on issues facing veterans who live in Puerto Rico and the other U.S. territories. The vote, on Nov. 18, was 420 yeas to 4 nays.