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Earlier this year, CPAC joined a broad coalition with other conservative groups urging Texas lawmakers to pass legislation which empowers parents with Education Savings Accounts (ESA) which can be used by parents to pick the best education option for their kids. After failing to pass ESA legislation during the regular session, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has called for a special session beginning on October 9th. Educational choice, popularized by Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman, has become a leading policy among conservative legislators as a way to stand up to failing government schools and to put a stop to the growing embrace of Marxism in the classroom by teachers’ unions. The policy now enjoys overwhelming support, even across party lines. Numerous studies on parental choice in education demonstrate its successes in improving test scores and academic achievement both for students in alternative programs and those who remain in public schools. A study on the effectiveness of school choice found that school choice programs had a positive effect in 31 of 33 cases. A strong correlation between state school choice laws and academic improvement makes a compelling case for the implementation of comprehensive parental choice in education in every state. Parental choice in education has not only found success in suburban and urban areas. From 2007-2019, rural Arizonans saw a 21-point increase in math and reading test scores after K-12 Educational Scholarship Accounts (ESA) were introduced in 2011, while other schools across the country saw a decline by 2 points. Even post-pandemic, Arizona’s rural schools have seen a 9-point increase in test scores, while other rural areas outside Arizona dropped 17. Recently, North Carolina became the tenth state to pass a version of universal school choice. Texas Republicans should stick together in the upcoming special session to join the growing list of states that fund students, not systems, by passing universal school choice.

What happens when the federal government refuses to take trafficking seriously? Our communities are left exposed to danger, and victims are left behind. We saw, just this week, the consequences are very real as an Arizona Sheriff’s Deputy was seriously injured stopping a smuggler attempting to traffic children across our southern border. In the same state where law enforcement heroes are sacrificing life and limb to keep communities safe, survivors of this abuse have little recourse to sue their abusers and receive relief from the criminal justice system. We cannot bring an end to modern day slavery if we allow criminals to abuse our open borders and refuse to offer victims of trafficking a way back into society. Although many Federal and state officials are falling short, thankfully, we are not alone in this fight, as Senator Cruz (R-TX) is working to bring an end to this horrific crime. By increasing accountability for offenders and providing more resources for victims, the United States can set a true example on how to win the fight against traffickers.

It’s no secret that human trafficking has emerged as the fastest growing threat to public safety in America. But just how big of a problem has this become? To paint a picture, more than 1,000 kids have been reported missing in the state of Ohio in the last year alone. So, there’s little surprise that both conservatives and liberals believe trafficking is a crisis in America. Yet the Biden Administration has done little to solve the problem and worse yet has exacerbated it by allowing the open flow of trafficking across our southern border. Tim Ballard, the subject of the hit movie Sound of Freedom, has been on the front lines of the fight to save children and told the House Homeland Security Committee last week that these open borders are “feeding the growth” of child slavery in America. At the Center for Combatting Human Trafficking, we are working daily to hold Biden accountable for leaving our country vulnerable to invasion from cartels and ensuring we take steps to remove these criminal traffickers from harming this nation’s most important asset: our children.

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Last week, I had the opportunity to testify before the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. They're proposing new fuel economy standards (also known as "CAFE" standards)--standards that would essentially destroy whatever remains of the family car. My first car was a station wagon. Yes, similar to Clark Griswold's "Family Truckster" from the Vacation movies. No, it didn't have wood paneling or come in "Metallic Pea", but it was a land yacht. And I loved it because I could carry all my friends. Did you ever wonder why the station wagon largely disappeared from the American marketplace? CAFE standards. While the earliest iterations of CAFE standards were enacted to deal with America's gas crisis of the 1970s, later iterations were centered on nebulous environmental reasons. Automakers, faced with a choice of giving up on popular station wagons or being penalized by the federal government, chose to phase them out in favor of minivans and so-called "crossover" SUVs (which can be categorized as trucks). Honestly, I'm one of those guys that loved my minivans, too. We had two of them over the years, and our second minivan lasted just under ten years and just over 300,000 miles before I had to give it up. As Dan Ackroyd's character in "Sneakers" put it, I always wanted a cool car that I could fit into. In his case, it was a Winnebago. In my case, it was a minivan. But the left hates minivans. They hate station wagons. I mean, they hate cars, generally, and want everyone on public transportation (everyone else, that is. They love their cars and will keep their cars). If people want control over where and how they go from point A to point B, then they can take bikes--regardless of the climate, the weather, whether they need to transport kids, etc. Thus these new CAFE standards--which go hand-in-hand with the Biden Administration's electric vehicle mandates. They will kill the family car (and the freedom that goes along with it). This, despite the fact that EVs lose money, their batteries are prohibitively expensive and require slave labor and massive environmental destruction to create. Despite the fact that last year, nearly 80% of new vehicle purchases were either a truck or SUV. Last week was all about truth telling (please check out my testimony on the Center for Regulatory Freedom's page here at CPAC). In a few months, we're going to ask you to do the same: tell the truth to the Biden Administration that you will not accept their destruction of the family car.

“Bidenomics” is wreaking havoc on American families. Inflation alone has the average American family now spending $709 more a month than it did two years ago. One of the key drivers of these increases has been the rapidly rising cost of energy, which under the Biden administration, has ballooned the price of gasoline by more than 50 percent. Earlier this year, CPAC supported Majority Leader Steve Scalise’s (CPAC Conservative 91%) House-passed H.R. 1 “The Lower Energy Costs Act” which would make massive leaps toward restoring American energy dominance. With the “The Lower Energy Costs Act” being held up by the Senate, it is vitally important for Congress to use the power of the purse to ensure policies which unleash the American energy sector and dampen the blow of inflation for American families are included in the budget. The Biden administration has made clear of their intentions to harm American energy producers and increase reliance on energy which makes us dependent on adversarial nations like China. As the Biden administration’s new rules and regulations have cost the Americans nearly $10,000 per household, it is imperative to provide immediate relief. Below are examples of the Biden Administration’s overreach in the energy sector. These rules and regulations should have their implementation defunded as a part of the FY24 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Bill: The DOI’s cancelation of oil and gas leases for National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWAR). The EPA’s Clean Power Plan 2.0; which is a clear attempt by the Biden administration to revive the illegal Clean Power Plan. The EPA’s proposed “Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later LightDuty and Medium-Duty Vehicles;” which would require that the majority of new cars and trucks sold in the United States be electric by 2032. The EPA’s rule under the “Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program,” which creates new costs on oil refiners which will be passed along to consumers with higher prices at the pump. The EPA’s proposed changes to the EnergySTAR program, which would eliminate efficient natural gas furnaces from the program. The BOEM’s “Risk Management and Financial Assurance for Outer Continental Shelf Lease and Grant Obligations,” which would deter oil production in the OCS. The DOE’s proposed “Energy Conservation Standards for Consumer Conventional Cooking Products” which would attempt to phase-out and ban gas stoves. The DOE’s proposed “Energy Conservation Standards for Consumer Water Heaters,” which uses junk economics to justify the costly new rule. The DOE’s proposed “Energy Conservation Standards for Residential Clothes Washers,” which would make washing cycles longer and clothes dirtier. The NHTSA’s proposed CAFE standards, which would limit the production of affordable and gas-powered vehicles. The BLM’s Conservation and Landscape Health rule; which would hinder access to public lands for energy and critical mineral development.

The Nolan Center for Justice recently teamed up with the Masters in Applied Economics Program at Florida State University. Graduate students conducted a cost benefit analysis of a clean slate law in Florida. Students found that the State of Florida stands to gain up to $95 million by implementing Clean Slate. Aside from the benefits to taxpayers, the Nolan Center believes that Clean Slate laws provide the opportunity for people to move on past a mistake and become productive members of their community. The Clean Slate team won the Best Applied Research at the annual symposium.

Over the last few months, CPAC has called on the North Carolina General Assembly to secure tax cuts and conservative policy wins for the people without linking these policies to special-interest projects. Thankfully, conservatives in the legislature stood their ground and were victorious. Because of them, North Carolina families can now rejoice as the recently-passed state budget brings the state's personal tax rate down to 3.99% by 2026, while implementing revenue triggers which could drop the rate as low as 2.49%. Additionally, in one of the most positive public policy trends currently sweeping through the country, North Carolina has become the tenth state to pass a version of universal school choice. This pro-family policy allows parents, rather than the government, to decide the best educational option for their kids. North Carolina's conservative legislators deserve credit for sticking together in this fight. They did not let the threats from special interest groups or Democrat Governor Roy Cooper stop them from putting together a package which delivers for North Carolina's families.

CPAC, through our partnership with Eduardo Verastegui with CPAC Mexico, was made aware of the unique and compelling opportunity to host a Screening for Sound of Freedom. The event was held at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. with our supporters and VIPs for an early preview of the movie that would shake the country and world. At this event, CPAC launched the Center for Combating Human Trafficking, which works to protect and save children all over the world.

80 Percent of Americans now believe the U.S. has a two-tiered justice system. This is because under the Biden Administration, America’s institutions are under attack. One of the clearest examples of this is how, under the guidance of Attorney General Merrick Garland, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has become increasingly politicized and weaponized against the opponents of the Regime. For example, the DOJ is engaging in electoral interference and lawfare against President Donald J. Trump, while protecting Hunter Biden from the consequences of his documented crimes. Additionally, Attorney General Garland has directed the FBI to investigate and label American schoolboard parents as “domestic terrorists,” targeted Catholics by conducting surveillance during church services, and colluded with big tech companies to censor or restrict the speech of law-abiding Americans who dare to criticize the narrative of the Biden Administration. Attorney General Garland’s DOJ also brought lenient charges against ‘Black Lives Matter' rioters who destroyed cities in 2020, while selectively choosing to prosecute peaceful pro-life advocates, and refusing to protect Supreme Court Justices and their families whose lives were threatened following the Dobbs decision. With a litany of examples of abuse of power, it is time for Congress to call for the impeachment of Attorney General Merrick Garland. Join CPAC in this fight by visiting CPAC.org/garland

The CPAC Foundation's Center for Regulatory Freedom (CRF) is always on the alert for potential policy overreaches. The Biden Administration's recent actions, via the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), have raised eyebrows and concerns for many who believe in a strict interpretation of the law. The crux of the matter lies in the EEOC's recent interpretation of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act of 2022. This act, designed to shield pregnant women from undue workplace discrimination, specifically calls for businesses to make "reasonable accommodations" for limitations tied to pregnancy. In its essence, the act seems to be tailored to cover conditions like hypertension, gestational diabetes, or other ailments that might arise due to pregnancy. However, in what can be described as a sweeping interpretation, the EEOC, under the Biden Administration, is suggesting that the termination of a pregnancy via abortion is a "pregnancy-related illness." By doing so, they have expanded the protections meant for expectant mothers facing challenges to women seeking abortion procedures. This is arguably a bold leap and not one that seems immediately evident in the language or the spirit of the act. It’s worth noting that the act is named the Pregnant Workers’ Fairness Act, not the “Pregnant Women’s Fairness Act.” Many feel this is not just a matter of overreach but also brings up ethical considerations. To equate abortion with pregnancy-related illnesses feels incongruous to the intent behind the PWFA. It's a distinction that can potentially reshape the narrative around the act and detract from its original purpose: to protect pregnant workers from discrimination. This current interpretation seems to indicate a disregard for the primary focus of the act and raises ethical questions around the value and regard for human life. The CRF believes that this extension of protections is beyond the intended scope of the statute. We urge everyone who shares this concern to voice their opinions. By submitting a comment to the Biden Administration, you can have a say in the regulatory process and ensure that laws are executed in a manner consistent with their intent and the values they represent. Your voice matters. The CRF has simplified the process to make it easy for you to weigh in on this critical matter. Stand up for regulatory clarity, the integrity of our laws, and the sanctity of life.

We know that policymakers want to pass laws that that are meaningful and effective in combatting human trafficking. However, achieving this goal requires an approach that considers the needs of victims while also creating swift and effective penalties for criminal offenders. If we are to reverse the unsettling speed in which men, women, and, children are caught in the horrors of labor, sex, and financial trafficking, we must expose and replace the misguided policies that fail to provide victims a safe pathway back to society while proportionally punishing their traffickers. For example, lawmakers have the opportunity to provide pathways to ensure survivors are provided mental health and substance abuse treatment in lieu of harsh prison sentences. By ensuring open resources to victims of trafficking who are often coerced into committing other criminal offenses as a part of their trafficking, lawmakers can ensure we do not exacerbate the cycle of crime for survivors. These survivors then serve as advocates to assist law enforcement in holding their traffickers accountable and supporting other victims to escape the cycle of abuse. By removing these collateral consequences that hang over the heads of survivors, we can ensure that the real criminals are punished, which makes communities safer and more prosperous.