Media

When you turn on the news at night or check the headlines on your smart phone, you may notice that in nearly every region of the world events are unfolding that could have a profound impact on the safety of our nation. Indeed, one thing always on my mind as I serve you in Congress is that the world is not getting any safer.

Knowing of your interest in business and our economy, I wanted to update you on actions taking place in Washington to help hard-working Americans save for retirement.

We all like our privacy and the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees it. However it's not hard to see that the world around us is evolving. Technology gives us the opportunity to better ourselves and the communities in which we live. It helps us to connect with friends and family and do business at speeds we could never before imagine. But these developments shouldn't come at the cost of security or privacy.

In my last message to you, the federal employees of Virginia's First Congressional District, I promised that I would engage with the groups and leaders that represent your interests. Today I wanted to send you a brief update on those efforts.

First, I recently met with J. David Cox, President of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) to discuss the group's legislative priorities for this year. We discussed a number of issues including bargaining rights, dues deductions, and the pay system and raises.

The safety and security of Virginians is my greatest concern and top priority. We must never forget that there are individuals, groups, and indeed, entire countries that seek to do harm to our citizens and destroy our way of life. So we must be ever vigilant in protecting our homeland to ensure all of our citizens can live in peace and security. This is one of the fundamental roles of the federal government, and one which I am personally committed to working on every day on your behalf.