The First Amendment Doesn’t Allow us to Silence Opposition

The assault on political free speech must stop. That was my message at a Senate Rules Committee hearing on the topic of campaign finance reform. In the hearing, Democrats argued that we need to amend the Constitution in order to limit free speech, more specifically political speech. I disagree.

At the hearing, I emphasized that the First Amendment to the Constitution protects the rights of citizens to express themselves. The exercise of those rights does not threaten our democracy. It is the attempt to restrict these rights that we must fear. 

We need to stop this fool’s errand of speech regulation. We need to stop trying to prevent people from criticizing Congress and candidates. We need to stop demonizing citizens who exercise their First Amendment rights. We need to stop pretending more speech somehow threatens our democracy. We have nothing to fear from a free marketplace of ideas. We do, however, need to fear a government empowered to investigate its own citizens for exercising their rights. The revelations of IRS targeting of conservative groups have shown this to be a real danger.

The First Amendment doesn’t allow us to silence those who oppose us. As I travel the state on my 105 county listening tour, Kansans tell me to keep up the fight for the Constitution. To hear more of my statement, please click on the link below.

Click Here to View Senator Roberts Statement

 

Remembering those who served on Memorial Day

I will be observing Memorial Day at the Penwell-Gabel Cemetery in Topeka.  

As the senior Marine in Congress, I have long fought to ensure our military heroes receive the care and benefits they deserve. Issues about backlogged claims, coupled with the breaking news about the Arizona VA hospital -- and now we are hearing other instances around the country – are unacceptable.

We must do better for our veterans. While Congress holds hearings and investigates these specific cases, I have joined my colleagues, proposing legislation that I believe would improve the Department of Veterans Affairs and the delivery of health care and benefits to our veterans.

Likewise, I support an independent investigation of the VA. We have to find out what went wrong and why; we have to find out who was responsible for the decisions that led to inattentive care or unscrupulous practices – and we must hold them accountable. And yes, that should include the possibility of criminal charges…but most importantly, we must fix the problems so that veterans receive the care they deserve – and that this country owes them. You can rest assured I will continue to fight for the over 200,000 Kansas veterans.

 

Keystone XL Pipeline

I recently joined eleven of my Senate colleagues on the Senate floor this month to express our deep disappointment in this Administration’s repeated delay of final approval of the Keystone XL pipeline.

If we want an actual solution to unemployment, here it is. The Keystone XL is ready to go, and providing eager Americans with a fulltime job making good money sounds like a pretty great jobs package to me. The pipeline has also been determined to be environmental sound. The Administration’s own State Department has indicated that construction of the pipeline will have no measureable impact on increasing global carbon emissions.

Click Here to Watch Senator Roberts Floor Statement on Approval of Keystone XL

Ukraine Instability Requires Bold Leadership to Curb Russian Aggression

In the absence of decisive leadership from the Obama Administration, I joined other Senate Republicans led by Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) in introducing a bill to provide a strategy of expanded NATO operations, broader sanctions and targeted military assistance to curb Russian aggression in Ukraine.

This legislation provides bold leadership and a comprehensive strategy where Europe and the President have failed to put Vladimir Putin in check. I have long called for a national security reset and for America to begin leading by leading once again. As a Marine, my first concern is about the security of our troops and force structure in Europe, including our NATO commitments.

Read more about the legislation here.

 

Introducing Bill to Block Bonuses to IRS Employees Who Break Tax Law or Have Tax Debt

According to the Treasury Department’s Inspector General for Tax Administration on Internal Revenue Service, the IRS has awarded millions of dollars in bonuses to staff who have violated tax laws or who have been subject to serious infractions of employee policy. Other personnel at the IRS received cash bonuses or other awards despite being cited for drug use, making violent threats, fraudulently claiming unemployment benefits, and misusing government credit cards.

To combat this clear abuse of taxpayer trust and funds, I introducedlegislationto prohibit the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from providing performance awards to employees who owe outstanding federal tax debt or who have violated U.S. tax law.

This isn’t a partisan issue – it’s just commonsense.

 

Honored by the 60 Plus Association

I was honored to receive recognition from the national, non-partisan 60 Plus Association for my fight to end the death tax and for voting on behalf of seniors and their families.

Our work to permanently repeal the death tax goes on. Farmers, ranchers, small business owners and Kansans from all walks of life ought to be able to keep more of the dollars they earn. This income and hard work should not be taxed twice.

 

Check Senator Roberts’ Website, YouTube and Facebook Sites for Updates

You can visit my YouTube site for more information on what’s happening in Washington, D.C., and Kansas by visiting www.youtube.com/SenPatRoberts. It's a great place to find speeches and debates on the Senate floor, press conferences, interviews and Senate hearings. You can also stay updated on all these happenings on my Facebook and Twitter pages.

If you wish to contact me about an issue or want more information, please visit my website, roberts.senate.gov.