• U.S. Sens. Adam Schiff (D-California), Dick Durbin (D-Illinois), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island) co-authored a recent letter that urges for Jared Wise’s employment with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to be terminated. The letter cites Wise among those who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. He was charged with multiple felony offenses, including aiding and abetting the assault of police while on Capitol grounds, the letter states. His case was dismissed after President Donald Trump’s blanket pardon of more than 1,500 insurrectionists. “We strongly object to the Department of Justice’s shameless hiring of Jared Wise as a senior adviser,” the senators wrote in the Sept. 4 letter. “Mr. Wise’s hiring serves as yet another example of DOJ’s ongoing efforts to whitewash the lawlessness that occurred on Jan. 6, when a violent mob ransacked the Capitol in an attempted insurrection that led to the deaths of multiple police officers and injuries to more than 140 others. Allowing Mr. Wise to perform any role at DOJ is an affront to those ably serving this country in law enforcement and can only be rectified by his immediate removal.”
• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, issued a statement following the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s passing of the bipartisan Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act of 2025. The FEMA Act represents “the most drastic legislative reform” of federal disaster assistance programs in decades, according to Carbajal’s office. “When disaster strikes, communities shouldn’t be forced to navigate layers of bureaucracy and red tape just to get help,” Carbajal said in a Sept. 4 statement. “This bipartisan legislation represents a major step forward in strengthening FEMA’s ability to respond quickly and effectively. I’ll keep working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get the FEMA Act across the finish line so those impacted by disasters receive the aid they need without delay.” The FEMA Act of 2025 restores FEMA’s original status as an independent agency, overseen by its own inspector general. Returning FEMA to a Cabinet-level agency will empower its administrator “to lead a coordinated government-wide response to disasters,” according to Carbajal’s office. “As one of the nation’s counties that is the most susceptible to natural disasters, we know all too well how lengthy the existing process of federal reimbursement can be,” Santa Barbara County 2nd District Supervisor Laura Capps said in a Sept. 4 statement. “Among other important provisions, the [FEMA] Act would streamline federal reimbursement, adding to financial predictability and easing administrative burdens, which would allow counties like Santa Barbara to focus resources on the provision of front-line services and preparedness for future events.”
• On Sept. 3, U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla (D-California) and Todd Young (R-Indiana) introduced a bipartisan package of six bills focused on protecting America’s food security and agriculture supply chains by strengthening and streamlining biotechnology applications in domestic food manufacturing and farming. “The security of our food systems is essential to our national security. We must prioritize American agricultural and emerging biotech innovation to strengthen our food supply chain as a critical infrastructure sector, while protecting our national security interests against rising global competition,” Padilla said in a statement. “Streamlining research and regulations on emerging biotechnology products is necessary to keep the United States at the forefront of safe, market-ready biotech development. Our bipartisan package will facilitate close interagency coordination to secure our agricultural sector and spur innovation.”
This article appears in Sep 11 – Sep 18, 2025.