Rep. Slotkin has spent her career in national service. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which took place during her first week of graduate school in New York City, Rep. Slotkin knew that national service would define her career. She was recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to be a Middle East analyst and went on to devote her career to protecting the United States from national security threats. In her role at the CIA, Rep. Slotkin worked alongside the U.S. military during three tours in Iraq as a militia expert. In between her tours in Iraq, Rep. Slotkin held various defense and intelligence positions under President Bush and President Obama, including roles at the White House and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. In 2011, Rep. Slotkin took a senior position at the Pentagon and, until January 2017, she served as Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs. In this role, Rep. Slotkin oversaw policy on Russia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa at the Pentagon and participated in negotiations on some of the country’s most pressing national security issues.
H.R. 1, or the “For the People Act,” is a once-in-a-generation reform bill that seeks to restore legitimacy to our democracy. I am a co-sponsor of the bill, along with over 220 other Members of Congress. On March 8, 2019, H.R. 1 was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.
This comprehensive bill addresses campaign finance reform, accountability, and voting rights in order to root out corruption, increase transparency, and ensure that we return to a government of, by, and for the people. Some of the bill’s proposed measures include enhancing federal support for voting-system security, upgrading political-contribution disclosure requirements, removing obstacles to voting by making Election Day a national holiday, and closing loopholes for lobbyists and foreign agents.
I believe that people have started to lose faith that their government truly represents them because of unlimited money in politics and a belief that too many elected officials have forgotten that they are public servants.
I was proud to offer an amendment to H.R. 1 that would close loopholes that currently allow foreign governments and corporations to legally purchase campaign ads for the purpose of influencing U.S. elections. This amendment has significant national security implications, and I was pleased to see that it received broad bipartisan support and was included in the final bill.
While I continue to hope that the U.S. Senate will take up and pass H.R. 1 as a comprehensive bill, on April 4, 2019, I, along with Rep. Elise Stefanik, introduced my amendment as a standalone bill, the Preventing Adversaries Internationally from Disbursing Advertising Dollars Act, or the PAID AD Act. I believe this will give us the best chance of making immediate progress on this national security issue while we continue to fight for the more comprehensive government and campaign finance reform that our country so desperately needs.