Senator Coons congratulates Delaware Boys & Girls Nation Participants

Senator Coons congratulated four Delaware American Legion Auxiliary Boys and Girls Nation leaders Thursday in Washington. The young leaders from the First State are Lael Houston, Rachel Defroda, Donald Wiegner and Christopher Clifton.

“I am always excited to meet our nation’s future leaders, and programs like Boys Nation and Girls Nation are terrific ways for the next generation to learn about our government,” Chris said. “These young men and women will develop essential leadership skills and cultivate strong bonds. This experience puts them on the road to success in their future endeavors.”

Lael Houston, of Dover High School, and Rachel Defroda, of Delaware Military Academy, were the two Delawarean women ‘Senators’ elected out of the 49 Girls State participants. Donald Wiegner, of Delaware Military Academy, and Christopher Clifton, of Sussex Technical High School JROTC, were elected out of 98 Boys State participants. 

The week-long immersion program held in the nation’s capital teaches ambitious young men and women about how the federal government works. Two participants per state, known as “Senators,” are chosen from the Boys and Girls State program. The men and women create a mock legislature where they run for office and elect a mock U.S. Boys or Girls Nation President. The students campaign for the passage of bills, participate in Senate sessions, and more. The highlight of the week includes field trips to monuments, meetings with state senators and representatives, and a visit to the White House.

Supporting innovation to fuel job creation

The most important responsibility I have as your senator is to support job creation. Our economy is starting to recover, but there are still far too many Delawareans out of work. That is why we are continuing to host job fairs across the state, connecting job seekers with employers ready to hire, and working to help Delaware businesses access the capital they need to grow and create new jobs.

One of the keys to fueling American economic growth and ensuring we remain competitive in the global economy is putting in place policies that support and sustain innovation. American ingenuity has always been at the core of our economic success. From inventing the light bulb to perfecting the search engine, we have never lacked good ideas. The challenges of the global economy may be new, but America’s advantage – our entrepreneurs and innovators – remains the same. We just have to support their work so they can continue to grow and create jobs.

Over the last few months, I’ve partnered with Republicans and Democrats alike to introduce legislation that will support our most innovative companies – the ones with the highest job-creation potential.

Watching cable news, it would be easy to think the Senate is stuck in partisan gridlock, and to an extent, that is true. Yet there are also decent people of both parties who want to get things done, especially when it comes to our economy. To those of us in Delaware, that is the rule, rather than the exception, but unfortunately, Washington doesn’t always work the same way.

That is why I was so glad to find partners like Senator Marco Rubio from Florida and Senator Jerry Moran from Kansas. They are both conservative Republicans, but I’ve worked with them and Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat from Virginia, on a series of job-creation proposals we bundled together in a bill called the Startup Act 2.0.

The Startup Act 2.0 is designed to promote innovation and jumpstart the economy through the creation and growth of new businesses and jobs. It is based on research showing that for almost 30 years, companies less than five years old have created almost all the net new jobs in America – at an average of about three million new jobs a year. So we pulled together ideas that help bring university research from the lab to the marketplace, ideas that encourage investments in new startup companies and more in the hopes of creating an environment where entrepreneurs can succeed.

Our bill contains an array of job-creating measures for small businesses, such as exempting capital gains taxes on investments in startups, which the independent Kauffman Foundation tells us would unlock $7.5 billion of new investment. It also supports innovative small businesses with an expanded research and development tax credit, an idea Senator Rubio and I introduced together last fall as part of our bipartisan AGREE Act and something I will continue fighting to pass because it is critical for Delaware small business.

With the right resources, American products can be manufactured in Delaware and remain competitive in the global marketplace. It is happening every day across our state, at companies of all sizes, including Miller Metal in Bridgeville, a local shop that is going head-to-head with Chinese metal fabricators – and winning.

We have to continue to support this kind of entrepreneurship and innovation in all sectors of our economy, including in the energy sector. There is going to be a clean energy economy in the years ahead, the only question is whether American businesses, families and workers will be at the center or the periphery. If we want to stay competitive in the race for homegrown, affordable, renewable sources of energy, we have to make sure our financial innovation keeps up with our technological innovation.

That is why this spring, I introduced bipartisan legislation to level the playing field and make a tax credit that has long supported oil and gas projects available to renewable energy projects like wind, solar and biofuels. The bill I wrote with Senator Moran, the Master Limited Partnership Parity Act, could bring significant capital off the sidelines to give clean energy innovators and projects the critical private sector support they need to get their product to the marketplace.

The bottom line is that America’s researchers, business leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs are already working to help create jobs and ensure American competitiveness in the global economy. We just have to support and sustain their hard work, and we cannot take the rest of the year off just because there’s an election coming up. Even in this difficult, partisan atmosphere, we have to find ways to work together and get things done. Innovation will drive American economic competitiveness for generations to come, and our job is to help our innovators and entrepreneurs do their jobs.

What We’re Reading: Delaware swimmer goes to London

The News Journal published an article on Tuesday about Andrew Gemmell, the 21-year-old Wilmington native who will represent the USA swim team in the 2012 London Olympics. Andrew, who is the sole Delaware native represented in the 2012 Olympics, will compete in the 1,500 freestyle qualifying heats on August 3. The top eight swimmers will comprise the field in the finals on August 4 at the London Aquatics Centre.

Delaware has not won an Olympic swimming gold since Dave Johnson earned two at Mexico City in 1968.

The Olympics promise to be the culmination of a life-long love affair with the water for the long-distance swimmer.

“I’ve been taking [swimming] lessons since I was 1 or 2,” he said. “My dad was a swimmer and he was sort-of coaching some and he just took me into lessons and I’ve been doing it ever since. He probably started coaching me as my primary coach at around 8 to 10, somewhere in that range.”

Nowadays, those training sessions include 20 hours per week in the water and four to five hours of weight training out of the pool. In all, Gemmell swims 8,000 meters/yards a day, six days a week.

That much training takes dedication and often also takes a team – and Gemmell has found that with his family.

Click here to read the full article on The News Journal’s website.

Video: Senator Coons calls for a balanced approach to deficit reduction

U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) took to the Senate floor on July 25, 2012 to urge his Senate colleagues to stand together to vote for a tax proposal that will help create fairness in our nation’s tax code by extending the so-called “Bush tax cuts” and other tax breaks for the middle class and low-income families, while allowing income tax, dividend, and capital gains rates to rise on earnings greater than $250,000.

Come see us at the State Fair

If you go to the State Fair in Harrington before it wraps up on Saturday, we hope you’ll stop by the Delaware Building to see us!

Here are Grace and Megan, staff assistants in our Washington office, meeting a baby goat in the Kent Building at the Fair on Sunday!

Senator Coons urges students to use new financial aid tools

The U.S. Department of Education announced on Friday a new streamlined website and social media tools that will make it easier for students and families to navigate the financial aid process and make informed decisions about paying for college. Senator Coons encouraged Delaware students and families to take advantage of these new tools, which are designed to be fully accessible on tablets and smartphones.

Included on the new website is an interactive tool to help borrowers who have fallen behind on their federal or private student loan payments. The tool provides tips to borrowers with private student loans on how to negotiate with debt collectors.

Students now have more online options to learn about financial aid, including on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

Chris has been a longtime advocate for college accessibility. Earlier this year, he introduced the American Dream Accounts Act to help increase the number of low-income students able to access and complete a college education. The bill would authorize the Department of Education to award three-year competitive grants to support innovative and comprehensive partnerships that support low-income students in preparation for a college education.

Click here to learn more about Chris’ work on improving America’s education system. 

Senator Coons calls for research on pancreatic cancer

As a strong advocate for science-based research, Senator Coons this week joined a bipartisan group of 56 Senators – more than half the Senate – to urge quick action on legislation to combat pancreatic cancer.  The group came together to sign a letter urging their colleagues to move forward on the Pancreatic Cancer Research & Education Act, which would require the National Institutes of Health to lead a strategic plan to address this disease.

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States and will strike 43,000 Americans this year, 74 percent of whom will die within a year of diagnosis.

The letter, addressed to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, stated that pancreatic cancer is “unique biologically and requires focused research. Because pancreatic cancer is one of the most scientifically-complicate cancers, the advances we make in understanding the disease may have spillover effects in understanding treatments and cures for other cancers.”

The proposed pancreatic cancer legislation follows in the footsteps of other legislative actions to eradicate other pernicious diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, breast cancer, autism, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS. The legislation would “provide a critical tool for making progress in this terrible disease,” but the strategic plan would not compel the NIH, Centers for Disease Control (CDC), or National Cancer Institute (NCI) to allocate taxpayer dollars for disease specific research. Rather, funds would be allocated “on a peer-reviewed basis.”

During a Democratic Steering Committee meeting this week, Chris engaged leaders of the biomedical research community, including NIH Director Francis Collins, in a dialogue on biotech research and what Congressional action would best facilitate academic research. The panel of experts, which included two Delawareans, unanimously agreed that greater government funding will spur economic growth. Dr. Collins also pointed out that every dollar of NIH funding yields a return of $2.25 in the first year alone. 

The Senator’s week ahead schedule: July 23 to July 29

Monday, July 23 at 12:00 p.m. — The Senator will speak at a press event announcing $13 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for Christiana Care and Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children.  Senator Coons will join Senator Carper, Congressman Carney, Governor Markell and hospital officials as they recognize Christiana Care and Nemours as recipients of the Health Care Innovation Awards.  The hospitals will use the funding to implement programs that will result in more accurate and efficient care for patients.  University of Delaware’s STAR Campus, Newark, DE.  Open to press.

Tuesday, July 24 at 2:30 p.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the Supreme Court’s ruling of Citizens United. The Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights hearing is entitled “Taking Back Our Democracy: Responding to Citizens United and the Rise of Super PACs.” 216 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC. Open to press.

Wednesday, July 25 at 9:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee meeting with leaders in the Native American community.  S-207, United States Capitol, Washington, DC.

Wednesday, July 25 at 10:00 a.m. —The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on judicial independence.  The hearing, which is entitled “Ensuring Judicial Independence Through Civics Education,” will feature Sandra Day O’Connor, retired justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. 216 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.  Open to press.

Wednesday, July 25 at 1:00 p.m. — The Senator will participate in a panel discussion at the XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington. Senator Coons will join Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA-09) in a panel discussion on Congressional efforts to cure HIV/AIDS globally. The International AIDS Conference is the premier gathering for those working in the field of HIV, as well as policy makers, persons living with HIV and other individuals committed to ending the pandemic. It is a chance to assess where we are, evaluate recent scientific developments and lessons learned, and collectively chart a course forward. Convention Center, 801 Mount Vernon Place, NW, Washington, DC. Open to press.

Wednesday, July 25 at 3:00 p.m. —The Senator will chair a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on African economic statecraft. Witnesses will include: Francisco Sanchez, Under Secretary of International Trade, Department of Commerce; Elizabeth Littlefield, President and CEO, of Overseas Private Investment Corporation; Fred Hochberg, Chairman and President, Export-Import Bank; Steven Hayes, President and CEO, Corporate Council on Africa; Mwangi Kimenyi, Senior Fellow and Director of the Africa Growth Initiative, Brookings Institution; and Scott Eisner, Executive Director of Africa Business Initiative, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington D.C. Open to press.

Thursday, July 26 at 10:00 a.m. —The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting. 226 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC. Open to press.

Thursday, July 26 at 11:30 a.m. — The Senator will meet with Delaware members of Boys and Girls State. American Legion Boys State and American Legion Auxiliary Girls State are the premier programs for teaching how government works while developing leadership skills and an appreciation for your rights as a citizen. Open to press. 

Thursday, July 26 at 4:00 p.m. — The Senator will preside over the Senate until 5:00 p.m. Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Friday, July 27 at 9:30 a.m. — The Senator will preside over the Senate, if in session. Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Note: Schedule is subject to change.

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Senator Coons makes waves on privacy protection

Thursday wasn’t the first time Senator Coons came out swinging to protect Americans’ right to privacy, but the day certainly highlighted Chris’ reputation as one of the Senate’s emerging privacy leaders.

The first moment came during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s debate over several amendments to Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Amendments Act Sunset Extensions Act. (Seriously, that’s what the bill is called.)

Quick background: FISA was passed in 1978 after President Nixon was found to have used federal intelligence resources to spy on political enemies. It defined the role of the courts and of Congress in setting parameters for use of those spy tools. Fast forward to post-9/11 2001, when the PATRIOT Act expanded FISA to include the new threat of non-state-sponsored terrorism. Those powers were expanded again in 2007, when Congress removed the requirement of a court-issued warrant for the government to surveil foreign intelligence targets in the United States. Abuses of these new powers during the Bush Administration resulted in the FISA Amendments Act in 2008. That law is scheduled to expire (“sunset”) in 2012, and the Senate is now considering legislation to extend it, either to 2015 or 2017 (depending on which version passes).

Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah), with whom Senator Coons rarely agrees, proposed an amendment that would have prohibited the U.S. government from using communications obtained through wiretaps and foreign intelligence operations to search for information on U.S. citizens without a warrant. Put another way, let’s say you’re an American citizen your name happens to appear in records the intelligence community collected while surveilling a suspected terrorist. You’re not suspected of terrorism, but for some reason, you’re name is dragged into it. This measure would prevent the government from searching for your name and using what it found against you without a court order.

“The FISA Amendments Act is an important and valuable law for our national security,” Senator Coons said. “But its use needs to be watched closely to prevent abuses like the ones we saw in 2008.”

Senator Coons voted for Senator Lee’s amendment. As did Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), but they were the only three to vote for this privacy-protection measure, and the amendment failed, 15-3.

The second moment Thursday came as the Senate was winding down for the week. Senators Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) have been working on the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 for quite some time, and after studying it earlier this year, Senator Coons determined it lacked the privacy protections a bill of this importance should have.

He was determined not to let Congress repeat some of the mistakes of the previous decade, when it dramatically expanded the government’s power to spy on U.S. citizens, but didn’t include sufficient protections for Americans’ privacy.

“For months,” Senator Coons said, “I have worked with several of my colleagues on language that strikes a better balance between than what was proposed in earlier drafts of the legislation, which would have enabled greater information sharing, but at too significant a cost to personal privacy. Senators Lieberman and Collins have worked with us with in earnest to find a better balance, and with the version introduced today, S.3414, I believe we have found it.”

The new version of the legislation features an array of improvements for which Senator Coons appealed, centering on the information-sharing provisions under Title VII of the bill. The result is a stronger version of the Cybersecurity Act, and a significantly stronger bill than the House-supported CISPA.

For a first-term freshman, Senator Coons is certainly starting to show he deserves a seat at the table on the most complex privacy issues facing our nation. Thursday was evidence of that.

Video: Senator Coons participates in a Senate colloquy on cybersecurity

U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) took to the Senate floor on July 19, 2012 to discuss strengthening our national cybersecurity in order to prevent cyber crime and cyber attacks.