It was another eventful week in the Capitol, and there was a lot of drama on the House floor.

When the House returned on Tuesday, the House also voted on two bills under suspension of the rules, as is the usual pattern.  Consistent with my messages to you in recent weeks, I voted against these bills as a procedural—not substantive matter.  Some people may have been confused about my views on the substance of the bills.  My objection is not, of course, to the substance, but to the Speaker’s refusal to put bills on the floor that address the lawless actions of the Trump administration and to the false impression these votes may give that Congress is working diligently and functioning as it should.  It is not.  As explained below, once again the Speaker tried to undermine Congress to protect the President’s lawlessness and muzzle Congress again this week. 

Speaker Johnson has now taken the position that following the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution is not necessary in the context of immigration enforcement activities and a “non-starter” in negotiations around Homeland Security funding.  I believe he called it an additional level of bureaucracy.  These are the protections in the Constitution for every person in the United States.  They are the starting point, not a negotiating point.  His position is untenable and his failure to uphold the Constitution is inexcusable.  So, I am protesting by voting no on bills brought “under suspension of the House Rules.”

Next, to the Rule vote.  As I have explained before, each week, the House considers a resolution that sets the rules for debate on the floor for the week (hence, it’s called “the Rule.”)  This week, the Speaker added provisions to the Rule to bar the House from considering legislation challenging President Trump’s tariffs for months (again).  Three Republican members joined all Democrats in voting down the Rule. 

After going back to the drawing board on the week’s Rule, the House passed an amended rule and considered several pieces of legislation. 

Up first, the House was able to consider joint resolution to terminate the national emergency President Trump declared to impose tariffs on Canada (H.J.Res.72).  House Democrats forced this vote by using a procedure that forced the speaker to bring it to the House floor.  I voted for this bill, which passed the House by a vote of 219-211 and now heads to the Senate.  If the bill becomes law, the purported “emergency” will be terminated and the tariffs on Canada resulting from it will no longer be in place. President Trump abused his authority in levying these tariffs in the first place, and this vote is an important step in reasserting Congressional authority and making life more affordable for the people in Texas’ Seventh Congressional District and across our country.

The House also considered the SAVE America Act, H.R. 7296.  The House voted on a similar version of this bill in April of last year.  This bill adds burdensome documentation requirements for every American seeking to register or re-register to vote, including those who have moved, changed parties, or changed their names.  Under this bill, when registering or re-registering to vote, Americans would have to provide documents proving their citizenship like a passport or birth certificate.  This would create significant barriers for the 50 percent of Americans that do not have a passport, as well as for the nearly 70 million married women that have changed their names and whose birth certificates no longer use match their legal names. 

Only American citizens are eligible to vote in federal elections.  That is already the law, and I agree with it.  But the bill’s sponsors showed no evidence that this is actually a problem.  This bill is a solution in search of a problem.  Worse than that, it is a solution that creates problems.  It creates problems for women who have gotten married and whose birth certificate required to prove citizenship no longer match their legal names.  It creates problems and adds expense for Americans who do not have passports to prove citizenship.  In that sense, it is a modern-day poll tax, which is not permitted by law.  And now, it includes new provisions requiring states to give voter rolls to the Trump administration after the President’s claim that he wants to take over elections.  For all these reasons, I voted against this legislation, but it passed the House by a vote of 218-213.

The House also voted on the Securing America’s Critical Minerals Supply Act  (H.R. 3617), which directs the Department of Energy (DOE) to conduct ongoing assessments and facilitate the development of strategies to strengthen critical energy resource supply chains.  Because the bill gives the Trump administration open-ended authorities to increase the domestic production of critical materials without any proper definitions or substantive guardrails, because the Trump administration has consistently disregarded the law, and because this bill would open the door for more corruption and lawlessness, I voted against it, but it passed 223 - 206.

The House also voted on the Undersea Cable Protection Act of 2025 (H.R. 261), which prohibits the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) from requiring special use permits (SUPs) for undersea fiber optic cables in national marine sanctuaries.  Removing NOAA’s environmental review authority will significantly hinder protections for our country’s federally protected marine sanctuaries, and for these reasons, I voted against the bill, which passed the House by a vote of 218-212.

On Thursday, the House considered the Law-Enforcement Innovate to De-Escalate Act, H.R. 2189, which alters the definition of "firearm” under the Gun Control Act of 1968 by excluding "less-than-lethal projectile devices" from its definition of firearm.  While this bill is framed as a way to help law enforcement access less-than-lethal devices, like TASERs, and promote de-escalation, this bill does not actually mention law enforcement in its bill text and there is currently no legal constraint on law enforcement’s ability to obtain less-than-lethal devices that are classified as firearms under current law.  Instead, this new broad definition of “less-than-lethal projectile devices" will create a loophole in our country's primary federal firearms law and deregulate certain firearms classified as less-than-lethal devices. This bill also does not prohibit modification of less-than-lethal devices, which could result in a new legal market for untraceable and unregulated ghost guns.  I voted against this bill, which passed the House by a vote of 233-185. 

As a reminder, you can always find a list of all of the votes I have taken for the district on my website.

On Thursday, I joined Congressman Emanuel Cleaver (MO-05) and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), in assembling a group of 81 members of Congress in filing an amicus brief in support of Harris County’s lawsuit against the Trump administration for terminating the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA’s) Solar for All program.

Solar for All is one of the most important affordable energy programs in our country’s history.  The Trump administration’s decision to terminate Solar for All was not just reckless—it was unlawful.  Congress established the Solar for All program.  Congress appropriated the funds for it.  No president or political appointee can unilaterally eliminate a program Congress has created.  That is why Harris County is suing—not for politics, but for principle—and why I was glad to join Congressman Cleaver and Senator Whitehouse in this effort to support Harris County. 

I also joined my colleagues this week in filing two additional briefs: a brief to the D.C. Circuit Court in support of the Climate United Fund in their lawsuit against Citibank over the Trump administration’s termination of the IRA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Program and a brief submitted to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in defense of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in the matter of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), et al. v. CFPB Acting Director Russell Vought, et al. urging the court to uphold a lower court’s preliminary injunction to prevent CFPB’s dismantling.

In Washington, Team TX-07 held more than 20 meetings with constituents and groups advocating on their behalf, including United to Beat Malaria, the Shot@Life Campaign, and AFGE 1003, pictured below.  Back home in the district, our team was out and about across the district delivering Valentines for Veterans cards written by grateful neighbors from all over TX-07, pictured below.

Monday, we will observe Presidents' Day, and our office will be closed for the holiday.  The holiday gives us the opportunity to reflect on the presidents of the United States who have shaped our values and of vision of our country.  Congress first created this holiday honoring President George Washington in 1879.  It is an important opportunity to reflect on leadership and American democracy and those who have established, defended, and advanced it.

On Tuesday, early voting for the Republican and Democratic primary elections begins, and it lasts until February 27.  Election Day is March 3, 2026.  No matter who you plan to vote for, make sure to make your voice heard.  For more information, including on polling locations and how to vote by mail, click here.