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Smith Statement on Gov. Gregoire's Appointment of Brigadier General Bret Daugherty as Adjutant General of Washington State

July 23, 2012

Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09) made the following statement after Gov. Chris Gregoire announced Brigadier General Bret D. Daugherty as Adjutant General of the State of Washington. General Daugherty will replace Major General Timothy J. Lowenberg who is retiring after 44 years of military service:
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Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09) made the following statement after Gov. Chris Gregoire announced Brigadier General Bret D. Daugherty as Adjutant General of the State of Washington. General Daugherty will replace Major General Timothy J. Lowenberg who is retiring after 44 years of military service:

“General Daugherty is a respected leader whose lifetime of service and background in military issues will allow him to serve the soldiers and airmen within the Washington National Guard well. He has proven his commitment to the training and development of our troops and will now use his skills to maintain the high quality of our state’s emergency preparedness.

“I congratulate General Daugherty on his appointment and thank General Lowenberg for four decades of outstanding service to our state. I also look forward to working closely with General Daugherty within the coming months."

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Smith Statement on Introduction of House Bipartisan Legislation on PNTR for Russia and Moldova

July 20, 2012

Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09), Ranking Member of the Armed Services Committee, made the following statement after the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee announced they are cosponsoring legislation to terminate Jackson-Vanik status for Russia and Moldova, allowing Permanent Normal Trade Relations to be granted. They expect to mark up the legislation next week.
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Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09), Ranking Member of the Armed Services Committee, made the following statement  after the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee announced they are cosponsoring legislation to terminate Jackson-Vanik status for Russia and Moldova, allowing Permanent Normal Trade Relations to be granted. They expect to mark up the legislation next week.

"While this legislation removes Russia from the Jackson-Vanik amendment, I am pleased the leadership of the Ways and Means Committee has indicated they support including the Magnitsky legislation on human rights before it comes to the floor. The underlying bill promotes rule of law in Russia and addresses significant enforcement concerns, particularly on the protection of intellectual property rights and Russia’s compliance with WTO obligations. If Russia joins the WTO in the next few weeks as expected, passage of this legislation will mean growth for American industry and workers by taking advantage of reduction in barriers to U.S. exports from the beginning.

"While this is a positive step forward for American job growth, I remain particularly concerned about Russian international engagement and the ongoing violence in Syria. Russia must continue to work diligenty with the international community to arrive at an acceptable solution to the humanitarian crisis."

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Ranking Member Adam Smith Spearheads Effort for Equal Treatment of Military Spouses

June 28, 2012

House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Adam Smith has introduced the Military Spouses Equal Treatment Act of 2012, a bill designed to ensure equality for military and veteran benefits for all military spouses.

“While the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ was a tremendous step forward, there is more that can be done to ensure that the rights of all of our services members and their spouse, regardless of whether they are of the same-sex or opposite-sex as the service member, are protected,” said Ranking Member Adam Smith. “What this bill does is simple: if veterans or service members have a spouse of the same-sex, then their spouse will be afforded the same benefits as their heterosexual counterparts. Spouses of service members should not be prevented from receiving the benefits they have earned simply because they are the same sex as their partner. This discriminatory practice must come to an end.”

Currently, the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs are limited in what benefits may be made available to the spouses of same-sex couples. The Military Spouses Equal Treatment Act of 2012 remedies this discriminatory practice by changing the definition of spouse in the relevant sections of United States code to state: “an individual shall be considered a ‘spouse’ if the marriage of the individual is valid in the State in which the marriage was entered into or, in the case of a marriage entered into outside any State, if the marriage is valid in the place in which the marriage was entered into and the marriage could have been entered into in a State.”

This change will require the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs to recognize any marriage that has been recognized by a state or the District of Columbia and provide the same benefits to the spouses of all service members.

Read the full text of the bill here. 

Smith Statement on Supreme Court Ruling Upholding the Affordable Care Act

June 28, 2012

Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09) released the following statement on the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act.
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Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09) released the following statement on the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act:

"I’m pleased the Supreme Court has upheld the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act.  This law is the best available step forward for our health care system that is in dire need of reform.

"The Affordable Care Act will help nearly 30 million uninsured Americans obtain health insurance and will cut our deficit by more than $1 trillion in the long-term with mechanisms in place to curb fraudulent and wasteful medical spending.  It gives Americans the promise of better care by keeping health care and insurance providers accountable for the well being of their patients. The law has also established free preventative care and has empowered states to create new and more efficient methods to deliver the highest quality options for health care.

"The problems with our current health care system will not disappear, and if we do not continue to make decisions in the best interest of all Americans, it will only get worse. I am disappointed that attorney generals across this country including Robert McKenna, decided to waste precious state dollars to fight expanding access to affordable and quality health care for all Americans instead of working to improve our broken health insurance system. Instead of challenging parts of the law that will only move us closer to ensuring all Americans have the health care they need, we should strengthen the provisions that increase efficiencies and decrease costs, and modify sections that would be most burdensome to Americans.

"Maintaining our antiquated, inefficient health care system that has drained our economy and leaves millions without health care is no longer an option. Congress must now work to continue finding ways to improve our health care system by putting the health and well being of Americans first. "

Smith Statement on the House Holding Attorney General Eric Holder in Contempt

June 28, 2012

Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09) released the following statement after the House of Representatives voted to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt.
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Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09) released the following statement after the House of Representatives voted to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt:

"Today, for the first time in history, the House of Representatives held a cabinet member in contempt of Congress.  This vote achieved nothing, but was done to prove a political point.  We are no closer to finding the truth of what happened in 2010, when a U.S. Border Patrol Agent was tragically killed using guns from a botched government operation. 

"I am disappointed my Republican colleagues felt it necessary to hold this vote, instead of addressing the real issue of investigating what went wrong, and how we can bring those responsible to justice."

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