Wishing Everyone Happy Holidays and Welcoming 2026
Dear Friend,
As the end of the year draws near, I wish everyone happy holidays. This week, I wrote a column for Newsweek about my concerns about the energy use of datacenters and cryptominers and my proposed legislative remedy, reintroduced the Home Lead Safety Tax Credit Act, urged Donald Trump to reject renaming the Kennedy Center in Washington as the “Trump-Kennedy Center,” congratulated the Memphis River Parks Partnership on another prestigious award for Tom Lee Park, expressed concern about organized retail theft, pursued a federal court case to hold Donald Trump accountable for the January 6 insurrection, commiserated with House colleagues about the Chanukah mass shooting in Australia, welcomed the release of political prisoners in Belarus, defended the Southern Poverty Law Center at a Judiciary Subcommittee hearing, wrote a letter to the editor of The Washington Post on Trump’s White House ballroom, stated my agriculture policy priorities, and offered a Friday Flashback, a Bill Day cartoon and a weekly health tip. Keep reading and follow me on Bluesky, Facebook and Instagram to see what I am doing as it happens.
Wishing Everyone Happy Holidays and Welcoming 2026
Writing Newsweek Column on My Clean Cloud Act
Reintroducing the Home Lead Safety Tax Credit Act
Congratulating Memphis River Parks Partnership
Expressing Concern at Thefts from Railroad Boxcars
Holding Trump Accountable for January 6 U.S. Capitol Insurrection
Lamenting Chanukah Mass Shooting in Australia
Welcoming the Release of Belarusian Political Prisoners
Defending the Southern Poverty Law Center from Ideological Attacks
Correcting the Record on Trump’s White House Ballroom
Stating My Agriculture Policy Priorities
Wishing Everyone Happy Holidays and Welcoming 2026
As an eventful year draws to a close, I wish everyone a Happy Chanukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year. There have been many challenges for our country this year and my thoughts are always with those most in need of our help, particularly immigrants. I am looking forward to real progress toward restoring civility and normalcy to our public life in 2026.
Writing Newsweek Column on My Clean Cloud Act
On Tuesday, Newsweek magazine published “A Bipartisan Roadmap for Cleaning Up the Cloud,” an opinion column I wrote with New York University Professor Michael Shank. It describes the need to address the insatiable appetite for electrical power from data centers and cryptomining facilities and focuses on my legislation, the Clean Cloud Act, aimed at implementing solutions. Read the article here.
Reintroducing the Home Lead Safety Tax Credit Act
On Wednesday, I reintroduced the Home Lead Safety Tax Credit Act, legislation to help American families cover the cost of eliminating lead from their homes. The Home Lead Safety Tax Credit Act would significantly broaden the national response to this threat to public health by providing refundable tax credits for homeowners, landlords, and tenants to remove lead from homes. See my release here.
Urging President Trump to Reject Renaming the Kennedy Center
On Thursday, I learned of plans to rename the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts the “Trump-Kennedy Center.” As one who lived through the national trauma of Kennedy’s assassination, the crass renaming is a sacrilege, an insult to his memory and an offense to the American people. What’s next, the Trump Washington Monument? The Trump Lincoln Memorial? See my statement on the proposal here. I later went to the House floor to address the issue. See those remarks here.
Congratulating Memphis River Parks Partnership
Tom Lee Park received another major international award this month — the World Urban Parks’ Large Urban Park Award for North America. It’s one of more than a dozen honors since its $61 million transformation, and it’s great to see Memphis’s riverfront getting recognized on a global stage. The award was announced December 4 in Istanbul, Turkey. Congratulations to the Memphis River Parks Partnership on the recognition and thanks to everyone who helped make the improvements to the park possible, especially Carol Coletta.
Expressing Concern at Thefts from Railroad Boxcars
On Wednesday, the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime held a hearing on organized retail crime. Acting as the subcommittee’s ranking member, I described the breadth of organized retail crime and its impact on Memphis as a transportation and logistics hub. I also discussed the importance of a carefully calibrated federal policy that respects state and local public safety efforts and how having the National Guard in our streets is not helpful. See my release and questions about thefts from railroad boxcars here.
Holding Trump Accountable for January 6 U.S. Capitol Insurrection
This morning in federal court in Washington, a judge convened a hearing in a lawsuit I filed in 2021 with 10 other members of Congress against Donald Trump for his role in fomenting the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. After the U.S. Supreme Court gave presidents immunity for the consequences of their official acts, our lawsuit seeks to hold Trump accountable personally under the so-called Ku Klux Klan Act intended to protect against conspiracies using violence and intimidation to prevent members of Congress from discharging their official duties – in our case, counting the votes of the Electoral College and making Joe Biden president. I will keep you apprised as the case moves forward.
Lamenting Chanukah Mass Shooting in Australia
Members of Congress held a press conference on Tuesday to lament the loss of life in a mass shooting on the first day of Chanukah in Sydney, Australia. While some speakers noted that the shooters were evidently motivated by Islamic State extremism, in my remarks I noted that the bystander who subdued one of the gunmen was Muslim. I hope all the victims find peace.
Welcoming the Release of Belarusian Political Prisoners
As the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly’s Special Representative on Political Prisoners, I welcomed the release of 123 political prisoners in Belarus last weekend. See my statement on their release here.
Defending the Southern Poverty Law Center from Ideological Attacks
The Republican-controlled Judiciary Committee convened a hearing Tuesday to disparage the work of the Southern Poverty Law Center. I noted that the venerable civil rights organization has successfully gone after white supremacists like the Ku Klux Klan with court victories. When some witnesses suggested that the SPLC is “anti-Christian,” I noted that COGIC, C.M.E., A.M.E., and Black Baptist congregations support it. See my release on the hearing here.
Correcting the Record on Trump's on White House Ballroom
Trump has said repeatedly that prior presidents have dreamed of building a ballroom at the White House -- both before and after he demolished the historic East Wing in October. I wrote a letter to the editor of The Washington Post published on Wednesday after a Congressional Research Service report I requested established that no president in the last 150 years has sought to build a ballroom at the White House.
Stating My Agriculture Policy Priorities
On Thursday, I submitted my priorities for 2026 to the leadership of the House Committee on Agriculture. Those priorities are strengthening nutrition assistance programs to reduce hunger and improve public health; supporting successful reentry and reducing recidivism through access to basic needs; expanding summer nutrition for children; and protecting vulnerable families from nutrition assistance disruptions caused by shutdowns and partisan gridlock.
In May 2019, as the Chairman of the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, I presided at a hearing on extending the deadline for states to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment and invited actress Alyssa Milano to testify as a witness. I later appeared on her podcast “Sorry Not Sorry.” We remain good friends. Today is her birthday.
A Bill Day Cartoon – “He’s a Crook”
While often merry and bright, the holidays can also be stressful. During the season, be sure to also take time for yourself. Here are some tips and resources that may help: https://www.cdc.gov/healthy-weight-growth/about/healthier-holidays-in-1-2-3.html.
“I’ll have what she’s having.” – The iconic line spoken by Estelle Reiner in “When Harry Met Sally…,” directed by Rob Reiner
Happy Holidays.
As always, I remain…
Sincerely,
|
Steve Cohen
Member of Congress