In 2021, Atrium Health, Charlotte officials, and Mecklenburg County pledged affordable housing in a $75 million public-private deal. Four years later, no affordable housing has been built, and city, c...

Text SIGN PGDNXI to 50409 — I’m writing to urge you to investigate DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s awarding of contracts from a $220 million taxpayer-funded ad campaign to a firm with extensive personal and business ties to her and her senior staff. The Strategy Group’s CEO is married to Noem’s chief spokesperson at DHS, Tricia McLaughlin. The firm played a central role in Noem’s last gubernatorial campaign and has worked closely with her top DHS aide, Corey Lewandowski. DHS bypassed normal competitive bidding when awarding these contracts, allocating most of the money to a mysterious Delaware LLC created days before the deal was finalized. The Strategy Group does not appear on public documents about the deal despite running a shoot for an ad featuring Noem on horseback at Mount Rushmore. Multiple federal contracting experts told ProPublica that these extensive ties suggest major potential violations of ethics rules. McLaughlin claims she recused herself and has no visibility into why the Strategy Group was chosen, yet the office funding the ad contracts is listed as the DHS Office of Public Affairs, which she runs. Five senators and two representatives have already requested documents and formal investigations. Senate Democrats wrote that the public deserves to know government officials aren’t using taxpayer dollars to enrich themselves and their friends, calling for investigation into whether DHS officials violated federal laws designed to prevent self-dealing. I’m calling on you to demand the DHS inspector general investigate this contract, subpoena all communications between Noem, her aides, and anyone associated with the Strategy Group or the Delaware LLC, and hold public hearings on how a firm with these conflicts of interest secured taxpayer money without competitive bidding.

Text SIGN PNWJFG to 50409 — I am urging you to stop the Department of Education’s attempt to quietly redefine “professional degrees” in a way that strips nursing, education, social work, audiology, public health, and other essential fields of their longstanding professional status. This change will limit students’ access to federal loan programs and choke off the talent pipeline for critically important jobs. But it is also clear this is part of a larger effort to break apart the Department and shift its financial responsibilities to private contractors and politically connected firms. That is the opposite of fiscal responsibility. It opens the door to waste, abuse, and sweetheart deals — exactly the kind of Washington insider behavior voters across the political spectrum rejected. Multiple reports confirm that the Department is already pushing major programs into agencies with no education mission. At the same time, they’re attempting to downgrade entire fields that overwhelmingly serve our communities: nurses, teachers, speech-language pathologists, social workers, and public-health professionals. These fields rely on advanced degrees and specialized training. Calling these degrees “non-professional” doesn’t make sense unless the goal is to make sure fewer students qualify for federal support — which in turn shrinks the public workforce and weakens the Department’s internal capacity. When federal expertise dries up, the next step is predictable: contract the work out. And in recent years we’ve seen how “reorganizations” in multiple agencies have led to expensive no-bid or limited-bid contracts, often handed to firms with close political ties. It creates a system where taxpayers pay more and get less, while insiders profit. This reclassification also hits the workforce that American families depend on: • Nursing: We face a nationwide shortage that affects hospitals, clinics, and veterans’ care. • Teaching: Schools everywhere struggle to hire qualified educators, especially in special education and STEM. • Public health and social work: These fields support seniors, veterans, children, and families in crisis. Reducing the ability of students to train for these jobs is not conservative, it’s not constitutional, and it’s not smart policy. It weakens national preparedness, undermines local communities, and forces states to shoulder even greater burdens. I’m asking Congress to: 1. Nullify the Department’s redefinition of “professional degrees” and restore long-standing standards recognized by accreditation and licensing bodies. 2. Ensure that federal student-aid programs cannot be privatized or outsourced without clear congressional approval. 3. Stop any attempt to dismantle the Department of Education through piecemeal actions that force essential functions into private hands. 4. Protect taxpayers by preventing back-room contracting, no-bid deals, and giveaways to political insiders. This issue should unite all sides: we need transparency, accountability, and a stable workforce in the fields that keep our communities strong. Congress must make sure no agency can hollow itself out and hand its responsibilities to private interests without oversight. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Text SIGN PBMUDS to 50409 to send this to your officials.

Text SIGN PPIEGI to 50409 to send this to your officials.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said he will not support speedy passage of a deal to reopen the government because of a provision that would make some THC products illegal.

Text SIGN PUJTAR to 50409 to send this to your officials.

Text SIGN PSYVKS to 50409 to send this to your officials.

Text SIGN PGXGMV to 50409 to send this to your officials.

Text SIGN PWTQXG to 50409 to send this to your officials.

Text SIGN PETIXI to 50409 to send this to your officials.

Text SIGN PJMCXS to 50409 to send this to your officials.