Brian Babin is a life-long resident of East Texas. He was born in Port Arthur, Texas and grew up in Beaumont. He graduated with a bachelor of science from Lamar University and completed dental school at the University of Texas Dental Branch in Houston, Texas.
Dr. Babin served as an airborne artilleryman in the Texas Army National Guard and held various jobs to put himself through school, including merchant seaman, janitor, musician, disc jockey and U.S. Post Office letter carrier. Following his graduation from dental school, Dr. Babin was commissioned as a Captain in the United States Air Force and stationed overseas at Ramstein, Germany.
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As a lifelong resident of Southeast Texas, I understand the importance of agriculture to our great state. It is a $100 billion industry in Texas, and is absolutely vital to our national security, economy, and the health and well-being of our citizens. |
As a military veteran and the father of a decorated Navy SEAL, I understand first-hand the importance of maintaining a strong, robust national defense. Our military must be second to none and fully prepared at all times to defend the U.S. and our interests at home and abroad. We must ensure that when our troops are called into action they have superiority on the battlefield.
The sequestration cuts that were allowed to take effect during the Obama Administration took a toll on our military, undermining readiness and our ability to secure America’s freedoms. Along with a stronger commitment to funding our military needs and rebuilding our Armed Forces, we must eliminate waste and mismanagement within the Department of Defense to ensure that every dollar spent on national security is for the good of our troops and the American taxpayer.
As someone who served on my local school board, I understand that parents, teachers, and local school boards are in the best position to implement school policies. Since the creation of the federal Department of Education in Washington under then-President Jimmy Carter in 1980, things have gotten worse – not better. The Obama administration made clear it was only interested in consolidating this decision-making authority in Washington.
To combat this failed approach, I worked tirelessly with Trump administration officials to decentralize our education system and return the power back to where it belongs.
Simply put, I trust local school boards, parents, and teachers more than bureaucrats in Washington, DC.
They are more accountable to the voters and to parents, and they are more responsive and attentive to the needs of students. Anyone who is a parent understands that each child is different and learns differently. The one-size-fits-all approaches increasingly dictated from Washington over the past several decades have failed our children, and it is long past due that we return more power and authority to states and localities.
Providing reliable, affordable energy that powers our country, and the world, is what Texas does best. I am truly honored to represent an area that is a leader in producing the oil and gas we use daily and at the forefront of creating the next generation of domestic energy that will carry us into the future.
The refineries and petrochemical plants in and around the 36th Congressional District are unmatched in the world. Advancing policies that keep our refineries free from expensive, ineffective, and burdensome regulations is important to our local and national economy. Projects like the LNG export facility in Sabine Pass are vital in creating job opportunities for those of us who call East Texas home and work to make America stronger and more secure.
Unfortunately, one of President Biden's first actions on January 20, 2021, was cancelling the Keystone XL Pipeline – another job-creator in the region – killing thousands of good-paying U.S. jobs.
While the Trump administration worked relentlessly to achieve American energy independence, the current administration has launched an all-out war on our oil and gas industry. Gas prices are soaring as Biden requests production boosts from OPEC – foreign oil – rather than investing in our own facilities. We do not need OPEC, and relying on other nations, some of which are our enemies, puts our national security at great and unnecessary risk.
I will fight this administration's anti-energy agenda in Congress and remain committed to a real, long-term energy strategy that maximizes domestic energy production, eliminates inefficient and ineffective regulations, and continues to make the U.S. energy independent by reducing our reliance on Middle Eastern oil.
Today, our national debt stands at nearly $20 trillion. That is more than $60,000 for every man, woman and child in America. Looked at another way, it amounts to $225,000 for every family in America. In January 2009, the month that President Obama took office, the national debt stood at $10.6 trillion. He left office after doubling the national debt.
There is enough blame to go around for both parties and it is long past due that we curb this appetite for spending money we simply do not have. The former Chairman of the Joints Chiefs of Staff, Mike Mullen, stated in 2011 that the national debt was the greatest threat to our nation. It is immoral to burden future generations of Americans – our grandchildren and great grandchildren – with debt that this generation incurred.
America’s level of debt is unsustainable. The legacy of too much spending by both political parties continues to harm our economy, undermine economic growth and hamper job creation. Putting our nation on a sustainable path toward a balanced budget is necessary to create a healthy economy and build a stronger America.
Balancing our budget and paying down the debt will require that we make hard choices about what we can and cannot afford. The federal government continues to bring in more in tax dollars each year than the year before, but it has failed to curb spending. Clearly, Washington’s problem is that it has an addiction to spending money it does not have.
We must continue to oppose efforts by liberals in Washington to raise taxes – and instead focus on curbing spending and growing our economy. A strong and robust economy will help us grow our way out of the fiscal problems created under the Obama Administration.
I promised the people of the 36th District of Texas that I would repeal Obamacare and replace it with a workable, affordable solution which lowers premiums while protecting those with preexisting conditions. President Trump was elected on this same platform. With the passage of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) in the House on May 4, 2017, we took an important first step in fulfilling that promise. This was perhaps the most important and consequential non-security domestic policy legislation any of us will ever see.
This bill served as the largest entitlement reform of the Medicaid program in the program's history and eliminated the individual and employer mandate penalties. It also stopped mandatory spending on large abortion businesses, such as Planned Parenthood, for one year.
It isn't the exact bill I would have written, but I am proud to say that I voted “yes” on the AHCA. While Republicans alone provided the votes to pass this bill, it was still the product of finding common ground to provide the American people with relief from Obamacare. Members of our conference from every ideological stripe and every type of district came together to improve the bill and to secure its passage.
While we certainly could have written a more ideal bill that allows for insurance sales across state lines, gives consumers better choices about the plans and benefits they want, and tears down the anti-trust exemption for insurers, the absurd tightrope we must walk to comply with the Senate's reconciliation rules forced us to write this bill with one hand tied behind our back.
Despite its flaws, this bill remained a monumental step forward. Unfortunately, the Senate defeated this bill by a single vote, and the fight to repeal Obamacare continues.
When crafting immigration policy, lawmakers should ask the same question as when handling any other issue: what is in the best interests of the American people? For too long, our immigration policy has been set by lawmakers with other priorities that have undermined our heritage of law and order and our security. Promises of mass amnesty, refusal to follow our immigration laws, and failure to deport criminal aliens has incentivized illegality, fueling illegal immigration levels unprecedented in our modern history even while our generous legal immigration reaches record levels as well. The Trump Administration has done much to reverse detrimental policies, but more work is needed from Congress. We must end “catch and release”, through which illegal border crossers, immediately upon setting foot on our soil, can make unjustified claims of persecution and be released into our nation. To little surprise, the number who disappear into our interior never to show for their court date is astounding.
The recent migrant caravan crisis is a sobering example of the inevitable result of our misguided policies. Migrants vowing allegiance to foreign lands, burning American flags, and claiming that no “American law” can stop them are demanding entry into our nation. Have we no sovereignty as a free nation to determine who we allow into our nation? Is it in our best interest to concede to those boldly proclaiming no respect for our legal system? If it is truly humanitarian aid these migrants seek, can we not better help them in their home countries? We can’t depopulate entire regions of the globe every time civic unrest, economic depression, or other disaster occurs.
Lawlessness is antithetical to our system of government. It is imperative we keep our promise to the American people to build the wall and enforce our borders by utilizing new technology and supporting our law enforcement agencies. We must disincentivize so-called sanctuary cities as well as maintain and utilize state-of-the-art methods to keep out those who seek to harm Americans.
Our nation requires a merit-based legal immigration system through which both the method for selection and setting of caps is determined by asking who will best enrich our vibrant, diverse society without harming the prospects of our citizens. We should prioritize admitting those who can contribute to our economy without being a public charge and will acclimate to our way of life and contribute to our rich cultural heritage, not retreat into separate, isolated communities that too often are susceptible to radicalization. We must put a stop to chain migration, and it is imperative we work to prevent visa abuses and overstays. And we must end birthright citizenship by returning to the original meaning and interpretation of the 14th Amendment which lasted for a century.
I was elected and swore an oath to represent the people of our district, and it is their interests I place above all others. I will pursue immigration policies that are welcoming to those who share our values of self-government and allegiance to flag and country while protecting and strengthening our people’s economic and national security interests.
I am committed to seeing that the American people have greater opportunity to get a good job and earn a larger paycheck. We do this by promoting a healthier and stronger economy, not through overregulating. As a former small business owner, I understand the challenges facing both American workers and job creators. Fortunately, the Trump Administration is seeking to empower the American people, not bureaucrats in Washington.
As the Administration and Congress have successfully rolled back job-killing Obama-era regulations that have hampered American employers, our economy has growing stronger, unemployment has gone down, and wages have risen. The steps we have taken to eliminate misguided and overburdensome regulations have freed America’s job creators to do what they do best – innovate, produce, and grow, rather than divert time and money to meet the demands of overzealous regulators.
To grow America’s economy, we are working to lower taxes for hardworking families and small businesses while also taking steps to reform America’s tax code so it is fairer and simpler. I am thrilled we passed pro-growth tax reform which will benefit low- and middle-income earners. The House also passed legislation to make those lower tax rates permanent, as well as double the Child Tax Credit with expanded eligibility for more families and create the first ever Paid Family Leave Tax Credit.
We have made incredible progress in a short time, and I look forward to continuing our economic growth.
As the proud representative of NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC), I understand the importance of human spaceflight to Americans.
That's why as the Ranking Member of the House Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee on the Science, Space, and Technology Committee, I have worked hard to pass legislation to reauthorize NASA, restore human space flight as NASA’s top priority, and advance commercial space by shepherding the Commercial Space Launch Act Amendments through Congress and into law.
A priority for me is ending our reliance on the Russians for getting astronauts to the International Space Station, so that we can launch American Astronauts on American rockets from American soil.
Thanks to the leadership of President Trump and Vice-President Pence, the U.S. is on its way to reclaiming its rightful place as the world leader in human spaceflight and exploration. This will bolster thousands of high-tech American jobs, build a stronger economy, advance technological leadership, and strengthen our nation’s industrial base. This is imperative not only for our economy, but our national security as well.
In March of 2017, President Trump signed into law the NASA Transition Authorization Act of 2017 (S.442), creating certainty and long-term stability for NASA and America’s human space flight programs. I am proud that this bill includes continued support for the Space Station, the Space Launch System vehicle, the Orion crew capsule and the commercial crew and cargo programs. In addition, my TREAT Astronauts Act was included in the new law and will ensure that our nation’s astronauts receive support for medical issues associated with their service while also advancing research in long-term space mission.
Serving JSC, the people who work there, and their mission is one of my top priorities in Congress. Our investments in human space flight advance our technology development, maintain our economic competitiveness and contribute to a stronger American economy. I believe that the American entrepreneurial spirit can be propelled forward beyond our world and into the final frontier.
As someone with strong pro-life convictions and a Member of the House Pro-Life Caucus, I am committed to advancing a pro-life agenda. I am very encouraged to have the Trump Administration in the White House who shares those convictions. Under President Obama, we saw the largest expansion of taxpayer funding of abortion in U.S history with the passage of Obamacare.
This is why one of my first steps in advancing a pro-life agenda is supporting and cosponsoring legislation to ensure that your tax dollars are not used to subsidize abortions. Around two-thirds of Americans oppose taxpayer funding of abortion, yet under the previous Administration taxpayers were subsidizing abortions each year through subsidies to the Obamacare exchanges. I am working to have provisions codified into law that would prevent taxpayer funding of abortions altogether.
I am working with my colleagues in the House Pro-Life Caucus to protect unborn life and strengthen protections for those with a pro-life conscience. Permanently defunding Planned Parenthood and its affiliates is a top priority for me, as well codifying protections for pro-life individuals so that they are not coerced by their employer or any government entity to perform or be involved in any way in abortion-related activities. We are working to enact these pro-life policies so that our nation can truly be a defender of life and freedom.
As a lifelong Texan, gun-owner and avid hunter, I know firsthand the importance of gun ownership to those of us who call the Lone Star State home. I am fully committed to supporting the Second Amendment as a protected right guaranteed to individuals in the U.S. Constitution.
My work in the Congress has earned me top ratings from the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Gun Owners of America (GOA). I am pleased to join with like-minded Members of the Congress to advance important legislation to protect the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans. As a Member of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus and the Congressional Second Amendment Caucus, we are working to protect these rights from gun-grabbing extremists.
I am actively supporting legislation to ensure that those with conceal carry permits are able to carry from state to state. I have also cosponsored legislation to ensure that firearms owners are able to transport their firearms from one state to another without having them confiscated.
The Second Amendment states very clearly that “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” I will continue fighting to ensure that law-abiding citizens maintain this right.
Social Security and Medicare are promises – a contract – between seniors and the federal government. According to the Social Security Administration both of these programs face significant budget challenges in the years ahead, Medicare sooner than Social Security. Thus, we must work to address the long-term solvency of these programs to ensure this promise is upheld for current and future beneficiaries.
We must also work to restore and save Medicare choices for the millions of seniors who have chosen to enroll in a Medicare Advantage (MA) plan. MA plans differ from traditional fee-for-service Medicare giving seniors greater choices and often at a savings to seniors and the Medicare program. Seniors should continue to have access to MA plans and I support reversing Obamacare’s cuts to MA plans.
Safeguarding Medicare also means approving bipartisan legislation to repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). Obamacare created IPAB as an unelected 15-member panel empowered to cut Medicare services to seniors. They were empowered in such a way that their decisions could only be repealed with a supermajority of the Congress. IPAB must be repealed to safeguard seniors’ medical care and I have cosponsored legislation to do this.
H.R. 838, the Threat Assessment, Prevention, and Safety (TAPS) Act
Whether it’s a shooting, stabbing, weaponized vehicle, or bombing, mass casualty events are occurring too often. These horrific tragedies are impacting our nation indiscriminately. Americans want a solution – I believe we’ve found one.
For decades, a process to identify, investigate, assess, and mitigate threats has been in place to counter targeted violence. Pioneered by the U.S. Secret Service, behavioral threat assessment and management has proven successful in protecting our presidents and foreign dignitaries. If this process works to protect the president, elected officials, foreign dignitaries, and even celebrities, why aren’t we using it to protect our children and local communities?
The TAPS Act:
• Will identify a behavioral threat assessment and management process that can be adapted and used across the nation while recognizing the unique needs of different communities
• Will provide States the training, resources, and support needed to stand up community-based, multidisciplinary behavioral threat assessment and management units
• Recognizes that the behavioral threat assessment and management concept should become part of the culture and fabric of contemporary law enforcement
• Urges that this is a matter of national security – if we act now and work together, we can save lives
As a veteran myself and father of a decorated Navy SEAL, I have a deep appreciation for the brave men and women who willingly put their lives on the line to defend our nation. In Congress, I am proud to represent over 50,000 veterans that call the 36th Congressional District home. I am committed to seeing that all of our nation’s veterans and their families receive the respect and treatment they have undoubtedly earned and deserve.
Each year, we hold veterans town hall meetings across the 36th District to bring the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) directly to our local veterans. We have an experienced staff dedicated to serving veterans and advocating on their behalf before the VA. Any veteran with a casework issue should call my office immediately at the phone numbers on this website for assistance.
Our office hears firsthand from our local veterans about the specific problems they are having with VA medical care, compensation and simply not getting answers to their questions. That’s why I have actively supported and voted for legislation making it easier to fire VA employees who are failing to properly serve veterans. While most VA employees are trying to do their best to serve veterans, we must do more to change the culture at the VA to ensure our veterans have timely access to the services and benefits they have earned.