Applauding Passage of Bipartisan Reform Legislation to Fix No Child Left Behind

Senator Corker released the following statement on Wednesday regarding passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act, a bipartisan education reform bill authored by Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) to reauthorize and fix flaws in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, commonly known as No Child Left Behind. The legislation was signed into law by the president on Thursday.

“Congress has made clear that decisions regarding student achievement should be made at the state and local level, not in Washington,” said Corker. “Under Governor Haslam’s leadership, Tennessee has seen great success in recent years due to the hard work of our students, educators and parents, and I am pleased this legislation will limit the power and influence of federal bureaucrats and will provide states greater flexibility to work with local school districts to determine what is best for our students. I applaud Senator Alexander for his work on this important legislation.”

Responding to President Obama’s Oval Office Address on Terrorism

Senator Corker issued the following statement about President Obama’s Sunday night Oval Office address on the threat of terrorism and the fight against ISIS.

“From Chattanooga to San Bernardino and across the country, Americans rightly are deeply worried about the security of our country,” said Corker. “For years now, the president’s policy toward ISIS has been to ‘contain,’ and it's clear that is not a winning strategy. What the president needed to do tonight, but failed to do, is to articulate to the American people a new, clear strategy to defeat ISIS and protect our country and our allies from more terrorist attacks. Instead, what we heard was more of the same containment strategy. The president also must work with Congress to ensure our intelligence community and law enforcement have the tools they need to thwart attacks and save American lives, including eliminating security gaps in our procedures for those entering the country that could be exploited by terrorists. The threat of ISIS and its followers is not just something we see across our shores; it's here in our homeland, and it demands a more robust strategy, stronger U.S. leadership, and the resolve of both the president and the American people to fight—and win—this battle against terrorism. The administration has said over and over again it already has congressional authorization to defeat ISIS. The American people are still trying to understand how he intends to do so.”

Congratulating Travis McDonough on Senate Confirmation

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On Monday, Senator Corker applauded Senate confirmation of Travis Randall McDonough, of Chattanooga, to serve as a United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee. McDonough was confirmed by a vote of 89 to 0.

“I have known Travis McDonough personally for years and am confident he will serve the people of Tennessee honorably in this new role,” said Corker. “We had a number of conversations during his confirmation process, and he assured me he will be a fair and independent judge. I am pleased the Senate confirmed his nomination and am proud to congratulate him as he begins this new journey.”

In advance of the vote, Corker spoke on the Senate floor in support of McDonough’s nomination.

Condemning Lack of U.S. Response to Illicit Iranian Ballistic Missile Tests

Senator Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, this week condemned the lack of a U.S. response to repeated Iranian ballistic missile tests that violate existing U.N. Security Council Resolutions (UNSCR). U.S. officials confirmed in media reports that Iran conducted an illicit ballistic missile test on November 21, which represents the second such launch since the Iran nuclear agreement was reached in July.

“Iran violates U.N. Security Council resolutions because it knows neither this administration nor the U.N. Security Council is likely to take any action,” said Corker. “Instead, the administration remains paralyzed and responds to Iran's violations with empty words of condemnation and concern. These continued violations without consequences also validate concern that all leverage will shift to Iran once sanctions are removed. If we cannot respond to a clear violation of a U.N. Security Council resolution, I have no faith that the U.N. and the Obama administration will implement any form of snapback in response to Iranian violations of the nuclear agreement.

“The administration has the authority to penalize foreign individuals who engage in proliferation-related activities like ballistic missile launches,” added Corker. “They have used that authority in the past, and should do so again.”

Senator Corker opposed President Obama's nuclear deal with Iran because rather than end Iran's nuclear program, the agreement paves the path for the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism to industrialize its nuclear program with a U.S. stamp of approval. Unfortunately, despite bipartisan opposition, the president went forward with advancing his nuclear agreement with Iran. Last week, Corker and Senator Ben Cardin, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, sent a letter to President Obama detailing the committee’s plans for rigorous oversight of the Iran nuclear deal. The Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, which Corker authored and passed through the Senate 98 to 1, provides Congress significant leverage to hold Iran and the Obama administration accountable. Read more here.

Meeting with State Representatives Visiting Washington

On Thursday, Senator Corker welcomed Tennessee State Representatives Brenda Gilmore of Davidson County and Kevin Brooks of Bradley County to Capitol Hill. They were in D.C. to attend the National Conference of State Legislators.