Interviews

El Nuevo Día - 7-17-19 - House Committee on Energy and Commerce approves draft legislation to provide approximately $12 billion for 5 years to address Puerto Rico Medicaid cliff. Read more

Politico - 12-17-17 The House on Monday night disclosed the details of a staggering $81  billion disaster aid package, the largest single funding request for  natural calamities in U.S. history. Read more

NPR - 5-23-14 - Congress passes H.R. 1786 to award the Congressional Gold Medal to the 65th Infantry Regiment Borinqueneers. Read more

It  is a little-known fact that over a century ago, a coalition of labor  movement leaders led the charge to extend U.S. citizenship to the people  of Puerto Rico. This Labor Day, we should honor the legacy of this  hard-fought victory, while recognizing that the 3.2 million U.S.  citizens living in Puerto Rico today are still being denied full  equality, democracy and voting rights over 100 years after becoming  citizens of our great nation.  Read more

The State Senate chamber in the Oregon Capitol is  adorned with a mural depicting the moment when Oregonians first learned  that Congress had voted to make Oregon the 33rd state of the United  States. It is a moment that is worth remembering.

Statehood  meant that Oregonians would finally have voting representation in  Congress; until then, Oregon’s only voice in national affairs was a  non-voting congressman. Read more

On November 3rd — after 122 years under the American flag and for the first time — the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico will be asked whether they favor statehood with a simple "YES" or "NO" question. This vote will mark a historic moment not just for Puerto Rico, but for America as a whole, made obvious by the amount of national public attention Puerto Rico statehood has received. Both Presidential candidates have addressed the topic as well as the leaders of the U.S. Senate on both sides of the aisle. Read more

The rapid growth of the Hispanic population in the United States during  the last several decades, which is projected to continue increasing in  the years ahead, presents significant challenges as well as huge opportunities for our country. Read more

As part of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) I work to  engage Congressional, state and local officials to help create favorable  conditions for minority businesses and entrepreneurs to grow and  prosper. Read more

Since approximately 2006 the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico has been  mired in a persistent recession which has now escalated into an all-out fiscal, economic and demographic crisis of  unprecedented proportions. Read more