Congressman Rick W. Allen (GA-12) held a telephone town hall Monday night to answer questions from residents of Georgia's 12th District. Congressman Allen gave an update on the recent district work period, and the last six weeks that he spent meeting with businesses, farmers, schools, VA medical centers, and more. For those who were unable to participate in the call, here are some of the highlights:
Betty from Augusta asked if any funding for Fort Gordon will be reprogrammed to build a wall along the Southern Border.
Congressman Allen: “My office has been monitoring the situation closely and has been reassured it is highly unlikely the border will impact any funding for its cybersecurity mission or anything at Fort Gordon.
“Our office stays in close communication with the Army about timelines and construction bids, and we were told that the project has not been awarded due to the construction bids being higher than the amount that Congress appropriated. The most recent update we’ve seen is that they are working on trying to get more money reprogrammed to be able to cover the change in price and then they would rebid the contracts. We will make sure Fort Gordon is not affected.”
Claude from Augusta shared his thoughts on social security reform and asked for help receiving his benefits.
Congressman Allen: “Let me give you a phone number to call, and we do this for all of our constituents. Our number is 706-228-1980… what we would like to do for you is open a Congressional inquiry regarding your social security.
“I will say, as you well know, the President and our then majority had a part in creating the best economy in the world in the 115th Congress. That has further extended social security and in fact, we can actually extend social security, but we have more jobs than people looking for jobs right now. If we can get people back to work, it would mean more people paying in than taking out. That’s the secret to the success of social security and that’s what the President and our [republican] conference is working on, and I hope we will be able to return in 2020 to make that happen.”
Joseph from Augusta asked about social media censorship.
Congressman Allen: “I am aware of these actions among social media networks and have been told that they are either going to voluntarily stop, or the federal government will have to get involved.
“Social media platforms are growing because they are unregulated, but if it’s going to infringe on the First Amendment then they need to be held responsible. I believe that point has been made, and President Trump and the Justice Department are investigating the conservative censorship by social media. That’s what we are doing, and we will see how these folks perform in the future and we are monitoring this situation.”
James in Evans expressed concern about drugs from China.
Congressman Allen: “Fentanyl is killing 160 [people] a day in this country. Any drugs sold in this country legally have to be approved by the FDA, no matter where they come from...This is an epidemic that I believe is affecting everything in the country. H.R. 6 is a bill [that was signed into law] that addresses many of these issues you raised, and we will continue to support this legislation.”
If you would like to sign up for the next telephone town hall, please sign up here. If you would like to learn more about the work Congressman Allen is doing in Washington and for the 12th District, please sign up for his weekly e-newsletter here.
