I spent the week of Independence Day working throughout the First District. In between working in my district offices, I was honored to spend time with the Coast Guard, take a tour and meet with officials at William & Mary, visit Ferry Farm for the unveiling of archaeological discovery of George Washington's boyhood home, and to meet with constituents in Fredericksburg about gas prices.
I started the week off with the Coast Guard in Hampton Roads. There, I took part in the ceremony to introduce the Rescue 21 advanced command, control and communications system in Virginia. The deployment of this technology will provide enhanced search and rescue capabilities along our coast and allow much faster response by the Coast Guard to respond to emergency and distress calls.
On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to spend a large part of the day at the College of William & Mary. I met with Interim President Reveley, toured both the historic campus and the new construction on the academic campus, and received interesting presentations on Health Policy, Marine Science and Applied Science. William & Mary is the premier publicly funded institution in the nation, and I will continue working in Washington to ensure they have the support they need.
I was thrilled to be a part of the Ferry Farm event on Wednesday, where Governor Kaine announced that archeologists have discovered the remains of George Washington's boyhood home. This was an impressive event and a wonderful opportunity to highlight the depth of the First District's historical heritage and the value it will have to Virginia's tourism economy.
Later Wednesday evening, I spent a couple hours in Fredericksburg pumping gas for constituents and listening to their concerns about energy prices. It is clear to me that residents of the First District want Congress to act on a comprehensive energy policy - one that includes developing American energy, alternative and clean, renewable energy and aggressive measures to promote conservation. I will continue working with my colleagues in Congress to adopt meaningful legislation to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and lower energy prices.
On Friday, I was honored to be a part of several Independence Day celebrations all over the First District. That evening, I took part in the Newport News Fourth of July Celebration, which was held in conjunction with Ft Eustis Army community. It was a wonderful ceremony and a fitting way to honor our men and women in uniform and celebrate our nation's birthday.
This week, Congress gets back to work in Washington. As always, if you have any questions, comments or concerns, I hope you'll contact my office at (202) 225-4261 or visit my website at /.
