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In response to widespread voting problems in last November’s election, Rep. George Miller (D-CA) announced he will be introducing legislation to shorten wait times at polling stations across the nation.

The SIMPLE Voting Act, introduced by Reps. Miller and James Clyburn (D-SC), mandates at least 15 early voting days in each state for federal elections prior to Election Day and would ensure states provide all voting precincts adequate resources to guarantee that no voter must wait in line for more than one hour to vote.

Moment of Silence for Sandy Hook Victims

 

This morning, my staff and I observed a moment of silence at 9:30 AM in honor of the Sandy Hook victims.

The nation watched in horror last Friday and our hearts were broken as we witnessed one of the worst tragedies in the history of the nation. I am grieving alongside the parents, families, school employees, and community as a whole as they continue to grapple with the horrific loss of life in Newtown, Connecticut.

Rep. George Miller (D-CA) made the following statement on today’s mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut:

“Today, my thoughts and prayers are with the parents, families and school employees dealing with the horrific loss of life in Newtown, Connecticut. I join all Americans in grieving for this community suffering from this incomprehensible tragedy.  

Gun Control

America has an unacceptably high rate of gun violence. George believes there are several aspects of our nation's gun laws that need close scrutiny and reform. He knows there are reasonable steps that Congress can take to keep deadly weapons and ammunition out of the hands of those who would misuse them and harm innocent victims and law enforcement officers. For example, he supports legislation to close the ‘gun show’ loophole by requiring criminal background checks on all gun buyers. He supports the prohibition of large capacity ammunition clips like the ones used in Arizona when Rep. Gabby Giffords was shot. And he supports requiring child safety locks or storage containers for handguns and tough trigger lock standards to keep children safe.

LGBT Community

George believes that same-sex couples should be able to be married and that the government should not interfere in the personal relationships between two loving and consenting adults. He spoke out in favor of President Obama’s support of equal rights for gay marriage. He supports repealing the decades-old discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) to ensure that the federal government recognizes all marriages – including same-sex marriages performed in the states that currently allow for it.

In addition, George is supportive of additional legislation important to LGBT families, including supporting and moving the Employment Non-Discrimination Act through his Education and Workforce committee, co-sponsoring legislation that would ensure that same sex partners have access to their partner’s health benefits in the same way married couples do, and legislation that would prohibit discrimination against adoptive parents.

Pro-Choice / Abortion

George is sensitive to the many different and strongly held views on abortion. His view is that abortion should remain and safe and legal so that a woman and her doctor can make the right decision about whether or not to carry a pregnancy to term. George has always believed that at the same we must do everything we can to reduce the rate of unwanted pregnancies. Restricting access to safe and legal abortion could endanger the lives of women who might be forced to seek an unsafe procedure.

Immigration Reform

George believes that our county must pass comprehensive immigration reform. Comprehensive reform means that workers would be protected, businesses would have greater certainty, families could be reunited, and a path to citizenship could be created. He supports President Obama’s call for a bipartisan effort to fix our immigration system, but understands that obstructionist Washington politics make reform a tough reality at this time. He knows that Band-aid solutions can't address the 12 million undocumented immigrants currently here, the enormous backlogs in our legal immigration system.

George is a strong supporter of the Federal DREAM Act to allow immigrants who were brought here as children through no fault of their own to earn a path to citizenship. He voted for the Act when it passed a Democratic-held house in 2010, but the bill was blocked by Senate Republicans. George is supportive of President Obama’s historic announcement on June 15 to allow DREAMer students to apply for “deferred action” and has held workshops to help the nearly 3,500 students in his district who are eligible for deferred status. Read more about George’s work for DREAMers.

Legalization of Marijuana

George has a history of supporting some efforts to eliminate federal penalties for responsible marijuana use. George believes that we can no longer afford to spend money on an ineffective drug enforcement strategy of criminalizing responsible personal adult marijuana use that the public no longer supports and which consumes law enforcement's limited resources and time. He is a long-time supporter of legislation by Rep. Barney Frank to eliminate a federal prohibition on federal financial for any person with a drug conviction, believing it is against our interests to deny an education to young people who want to improve their lives and participate on our economy.

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