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Every person who calls Michigan home is all too familiar with relentless winters and harsh freezes. This is especially true for our captains on the Great Lakes who regularly deal with dangerous conditions and heavy ice accumulation that only icebreaker ships can navigate through. This creates a serious problem when it comes to keeping shipping lanes open, protecting our borders, and performing life-saving rescues on the Great Lakes.
Washington, D.C. — Today, Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) sent a bipartisan letter with Congresswoman Hillary Scholten (MI-03) commending the Trump administration for reaching a historic agreement with Finland to acquire up to 11 new icebreaker ships for use in the United States. In their letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought, the lawmakers requested that at least one of the newly procured icebreaker ships be allocated for the Great Lakes in an effort to support the U.S.
In case you missed it, Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) wrote an op-ed published in The Argus-Press last week about the government shutdown, calling on Senate Democrats to support the clean funding bill that he and his colleagues passed in the House. This continuing resolution has support from bipartisan majorities in both the House and Senate.
Despite my vote to keep it open, the federal government shut down after midnight on October 1 after Senate Democrats blocked bipartisan legislation that would fund the government until November 21.
Washington, D.C. — Today, Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) directed the House of Representatives to withhold his pay should a lapse in appropriations result in a shutdown of the federal government at midnight tonight.
Barrett noted that more than 5,000 federal employees live in Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, none of whom would be paid throughout the duration of the shutdown. Additionally, troops and federal law enforcement officers would be forced to put their safety on the line without a paycheck.
Veterans put it all on the line in service to our country. The last thing they should face when they return home is never-ending delays and hurdles just to access the benefits they earned.
Washington, D.C. — Today, Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) voted in favor of a clean continuing resolution (H.R. 5371) that passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 217-212.
The U.S.
Washington, D.C. — This week, Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) introduced the VA Extenders Act of 2025 (H.R. 5420) to maintain essential benefits, health care, and services for veterans.
Washington, D.C. — This week, Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) continued his leadership for veterans in the U.S. House of Representatives with the unanimous passage of his bipartisan Delivering Digitally to Our Veterans Act (H.R. 3481). This is Barrett’s fifth piece of legislation to pass the House of Representatives this year.