I have outlined many of these actions in my reports from Washington.  This milestone week, many people have written useful summaries of the first 100 days of the Trump administration, with more detail and analysis that I can include here.  But they make clear that during this short period, President Trump has failed to focus on improving the lives of Americans or lowering prices and is instead crashing our economy, dismantling essential federal programs and agencies, withholding funding Congress has appropriated (see this tracker) ignoring the rule of law, defying the courts, jeopardizing our national security, and destabilizing the economy.

This week, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, a nonpartisan federal agency, released a report that showed U.S. GDP shrank by 0.3% in the first quarter of this year—a real contrast from strong 3.4% growth in the fourth quarter of last year.  The report also noted that prices rose for the second straight quarter–jumping from 2.4% to 3.6%—and core inflation climbed to 3.5%.  In just 100 days, the stock market has lost nearly $10 trillion in value. 

I encourage you to read this important coverage because the impacts of these actions matter in our district, across the country, and around the world.  I have heard from so many of you with concerns about these actions and what they mean for our future.  I share those concerns, and will continue to share information in this email each week I am in Washington.

Much of the focus for the last one hundred days has been on what is happening in the White House, and with good reason – Republicans in Congress have largely rubber stamped the unprecedented actions from the White House.  But, having voted on a budget resolution directing committees in Congress to make major spending cuts and tax cuts, committees throughout the House of Representatives are in the process of or preparing their parts of House Republicans’ reconciliation package. 

As I have mentioned before, and as you will see in the Committee Work section below, the Energy & Commerce Committee has been charged with finding at least $880 billion in cuts, most of which are expected to come from Medicaid.  We were scheduled to mark up the legislation (which we have not yet seen) next week, but that markup has been delayed. 

The House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure, directed to cut at least $10 billion, did meet this week.  Among other programs, Republicans on the committee voted to cut the Neighborhood Access and Equity Program, a $3.3 billion federal program meant to reconnect underserved inner-city neighborhoods.  Congress created the Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant Program as part of the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022 to reconnect and improve communities.  Houston benefitted from a $43 million grant award—much of it directed to the Gulfton community in our district to build and repair sidewalks and plant trees for shade, to improve drainage, safety, and mobility, and to connect people.  (I have advocated for this funding for Gulfton since 2023.)

This vote to take away funding for this investment in the densest and hottest part of Houston is part of a much larger effort to divert Congressional funding from investments like these and funding for programs that our community relies on.  This is just the first of many disastrous cuts for our community in this budget reconciliation process in Congress.  I will keep you posted as this process progresses.

This week, the House considered several resolutions under the Congressional Review Act (CRA).  These resolutions are a way for Congress to overturn recently finalized rules from federal agencies and prevent agencies from issuing similar rules in the future.  I voted against all of them:

• A resolution (H.J.Res.60) overturning a recent National Park Service (NPS) final rule prohibiting the use of all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) on 24 miles of roads within the 1.25 acres of land that make up Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.  This rule puts safeguards in place for only 6 percent of the roads in the area, to balance recreational access with the preservation of natural and cultural resources. I voted against this resolution, which would weaken protections for our public lands.  The bill passed 219-205.
• Three resolutions (H.J.Res. 87) (H.J.Res.88) (H.J.Res.89) overturning waivers the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Clean Air Act granted to the state of California to set vehicle emissions standards that are more stringent than national standards.  H.J.Res. 87 passed 231-191, H.J.Res. 88 passed 246-164, and H.J.Res. 89 passed 225-196.
• A resolution (H.J.Res.78) overturning a recent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service final rule listing the San Francisco longfin smelt as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act.  This bill passed 216-195.

The House also voted on several bills under suspension of the rules, many of which passed out of the Energy & Commerce committee earlier this month, including the TICKET Act (H.R. 1402), which requires all event ticket sellers to display the total ticket price—including all required fees—upfront, provide refunds for canceled or postponed events, and protect consumers from deceptive ticketing websites; the Youth Poisoning Prevention Act (H.R. 1442), which bans the consumer sale of products containing high concentrations of sodium nitrite, a meat-curing chemical that can be lethal when ingested; and the TAKE IT DOWN Act (S. 146), which criminalizes the publication of non-consensual intimate imagery, including AI-generated images and “deep fakes,” and requires social media platforms to remove the images within 48 hours.

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, Law Day—a day each year where we celebrate the rule of law and educate Americans about our legal system—I joined lawyers from across the country (including from Houston) in front of the U.S. Supreme Court to retake the oath I took when I was sworn in to the State Bar of Texas to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, to protect the constitutional rights of all who live here, to ensure due process and oppose laws or actions that undermine it, and to act with integrity and honesty. 

Our Energy & Commerce Committee was busy this week, and will be in the weeks ahead.  On Tuesday, we had a full committee markup of six health care bills. One of these bills, the SUPPORT Act, was included in the end of year package of bills that fell apart because Elon Musk tweeted that he did not like it (not that he knew what was in it).  The SUPPORT Act, H.R. 2483, authorizes important programs related to substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery, but the Trump administration is right now dismantling the agency that is responsible for supporting these programs.  Just a few weeks ago President Trump fired hundreds of staff across the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).  So, this markup struck me and my Democratic colleagues as deeply problematic because the Republicans on the committee have remained silent about the staffing cuts and failed to conduct oversight, as we should do.  I mentioned this issue at the beginning of my remarks on my amendment to the bill to protect access to this care for people with Medicaid, joining my colleagues who pointed out that the Republicans are scheduling these markups as if these are normal times, but what is happening right now is not normal. 

During this markup I offered an amendment to the SUPPORT Act that would prohibit the Department of Health and Human Services from taking actions to reduce eligibility, enrollment, covered benefits, cost-sharing, or federal funding for medical assistance for people eligible for Medicaid or CHIP, which you can watch below.  The amendment prohibited the administration from making cuts to the Medicaid program.  All of my Republican colleagues on the committee voted against this amendment and it failed.  As I mentioned at the top of this email, in the next few weeks we are supposed to consider legislation cutting $880 billion from programs under the Energy and Commerce Committee’s jurisdiction, the majority coming from the Medicaid program. 

On Wednesday, the Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Energy held a legislative hearing on “Assuring Abundant, Reliable American Energy to Power Innovation.”  Two panels of witnesses testified about bills intended to improve Americans’ access to electricity.  As I noted in my comments, which you can watch here or by clicking on the images below, I was disappointed that many of the bills were designed to limit certain generation technologies from connecting to the grid.  As energy demand continues to grow, it’s clear that the U.S. needs more, not less, energy coming online from a variety of sources.  I also asked the witnesses about how the Trump Administration’s staffing cuts and attempted clawback of energy project funding will hurt the energy sector’s ability to provide abundant, affordable energy.

With full days in the committee room, I was glad to get to see a few Houstonians on the Hill between sessions.  I was glad to meet with Houstonian representatives from Friends of the Children and Houston METRO, as well as others in town advocating on issues and supporting the rule of law.

And I was also glad to meet Texans affiliated with the Texas Farm Bureau who were in town to discuss the Farm Bill, impacts of tariffs, and much more.

In Washington, Team TX-07 held three dozen meetings with constituents and groups advocating on their behalf, including breast cancer awareness advocate Lashelle Scott, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, the US Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO), the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology, the National TPS Alliance, the NTCA Rural Broadband Association, UNICEF USA, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the National Down Syndrome Society, the National Automobile Dealers Association, Easter Seals - Houston, American Golf Industry Coalition, and Alliance for Vietnam's Democracy, pictured below.

Back home in the district, our team was out and about across the district, helping constituents, including hosting constituent services pop-ups at the Alief Community Center and Burnett Bayland Community Center, meeting with folks in our office, and attending community events, including the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce’s luncheon, the Asian Chamber of Commerce’s AANHPI Heritage Month luncheon, the Texas Africa Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors Swearing-In Ceremony, as well as a 100th birthday party at Tarrytowne Estates, a ribbon cuttings with the Central Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce at Blue Ribbon ENT Center, and more!

May is going to be busy – in Washington and at home.  We’ve got a few things going on around here!  Save the date for the following events that we have lined up in May, including our next Town Hall meeting.  Space is limited, so please RSVP here or by clicking the image below.

With hurricane season around the corner, I am hosing a webinar on the 2025 hurricane season outlook and preparedness.  Click here or on the graphic below to sign up!

Team TX-07 constituent advocates will be at the Chinese Community Center on Monday, May 19 to help residents who need us!  You can also visit fletcher.house.gov/casework or call my Houston office for help any time.

We are gearing up for a major fight over Medicaid funding.  As Congress debates the future of Medicaid over the next several weeks, I want to hear your thoughts and stories.  How has Medicaid has impacted your life or the life of someone you know?  To share your story, please fill out this form. 

The House will be back in session next week, and I will be back in Washington.  We have two bills scheduled for consideration, a bill to restrict the Confucius Institutes and a bill from Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.

As always, I am proud to represent you and I am here to help you.  Please call my office at (713) 353-8680 or (202) 225-2571 or email here at any time to ask for assistance or share your thoughts.  I look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes,