U.S. Will Draw Closer to UK after Brexit Vote

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In an appearance on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday, Senator Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, anticipated the U.S. would draw closer to the United Kingdom in the aftermath of the referendum to leave the European Union. He also pushed back on previous threats from President Obama that the UK’s departure from the EU would force to them to the “back of the queue” on negotiating future trade agreements with Europe and the U.S.

“To make comments about them going to the back of the queue, sort of sophomoric threats, I mean…if anything, my guess is the response of the American people is going to be to draw closer to…[the] United Kingdom,” said Corker. “Change is under way, and it's our job…to make something very, very good come out of this, and that's my goal.”

He also argued that the dynamics that shaped the outcome of the UK’s referendum reflect similar anxieties among the American people about government not responding to their needs.

“There's something happening in our society,” he added. “It's happening in Western societies, where there's tremendous anxiety over economic stagnation, the whole issue of refugees and immigration that's changing the context of countries, and then this faceless bureaucracy that's not really responding to people.”

On Friday, Senator Corker released the following statement about the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union:  

"A free people should choose their own way, and we respect the British decision to leave the European Union," said Corker. “Today's referendum will not change our special relationship with the United Kingdom. That close partnership will endure, and we will continue to work together to strengthen a robust trade relationship and to address our common security interests."

Strongly Opposing the President’s Executive Actions on Immigration

Senator Corker last Thursday released the following statement after a 4-4 decision by the United States Supreme Court affirmed an appeals court ruling that blocks President Obama’s executive actions on immigration.

“I strongly oppose President Obama’s unilateral actions, which effectively changed immigration laws without going through Congress, and I am pleased that the Supreme Court affirmed the lower court ruling blocking these actions from moving forward,” said Corker. “This result is a victory for separation of powers and the democratic process.”

The Supreme Court took up the case (United States of America v. State of Texas) after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in November of 2015 affirmed a preliminary injunction by a federal district court in Brownsville, Texas, blocking the Obama administration from moving forward with its executive actions on immigration.

In April 2016, Corker joined U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and 41 other Senate Republicans in filing an amicus brief in the Supreme Court in support of a challenge by a majority of the nation’s governors and attorneys general of the states, including Tennessee, to the Obama administration’s November 2014 executive actions on immigration.

Voting to Deny Terrorists Guns and Explosives

Senator Corker last Thursday supported an amendment authored by Senator Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), and cosponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas) and James Lankford (R-Okla.), to allow law enforcement to stop suspected terrorists from purchasing guns and explosives while putting in place due process protections for law-abiding American citizens.

“From the beginning of this debate, I have said that I would only support legislation that prevents terrorists from obtaining firearms and protects the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens,” said Corker. “I supported the Johnson amendment because it meets that test and provides a practical solution that could have prevented the terror attack in Orlando while ensuring strong due process protections for all Americans.”

The amendment would give the attorney general the authority to block – and permanently deny after due process before a judge – the purchase of a firearm or explosives for anyone on the No Fly or Selectee lists if they pose a credible threat of committing an act of terrorism, or there is reasonable basis to believe, based on specific and articulable information and credible evidence, that the person is or has been engaged in terrorism. It also would notify federal, state and local law enforcement immediately when anyone listed on the Terrorist Watchlist in the past five years attempts to purchase a gun.

Last Monday, Corker voted for amendments authored by Cornyn and Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), which would have allowed law enforcement to stop terrorists from purchasing guns and improve the background check system, respectively.

Meeting with the Polk County Chamber of Commerce

Senator Corker met last Monday with Tennesseans in Polk County to discuss the major challenges facing our nation.

Welcoming Tennesseans to Washington

Last week, Senators Corker and Alexander hosted more than 45 Tennesseans at “Tennessee Tuesday,” a regular breakfast held on Capitol Hill every week the Senate is in session for visitors from the Volunteer State. For more information, click here.

Five-year-old Lizzie Gray stopped by Senator Corker’s office last Wednesday to share her experience at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis.

Last Wednesday, Senator Corker met with leaders from five Tennessee minor league baseball teams, including: the Memphis Redbirds, the Nashville Sounds, the Greeneville Astros, the Tennessee Smokies and the Chattanooga Lookouts.