To commemorate the fifth anniversary of the attack on Arkansas troops stationed in Little Rock, a wreath was laid at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery today.  On June 1, 2009, Army Private William Long and Private Quinton Ezeagwula were shot outside the Army Navy Career Center in Little Rock. Private Long was killed and Private Ezeagwula was wounded.  They were shot by an American Muslim convert, Abdulhakim Muhammad, who told authorities his goal was to kill as many soldiers as possible.  Their attacker was a terrorist that claimed Al-Qaeda connections.

The murder of Private Long was an act of domestic terrorism but the federal government failed to prosecute Muhammad as a terrorist. In an interview with Little Rock’s KATV Private Long’s father said, “They weren’t on the battlefield; but apparently, the battlefield’s here.” Private Long was deliberately targeted for serving his country, and as such he deserves all the respect and honor that entails. That is why in 2013, Senator Pryor and I introduced the “Honoring Ezeagwula and Long (HEAL) Act.” This would allow Private Long and Private Ezeagwula to be eligible for the Purple Heart. Congressman Griffin (AR-2) also introduced similar legislation in the House. Though the current administration opposes recognizing this tragedy as an act of war, we owe it to these brave Arkansans to honor their sacrifice.

Last week, Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker returned from a diplomatic mission to Africa that concluded with a stop in Ethiopia, where she met with President Mulatu Teshome and private sector leaders to discuss ways to increase bilateral trade and investment between the U.S. and Ethiopia.

Prior to her stop in Ethiopia, Secretary Pritzker also visited Ghana and Nigeria where she focused on ways that U.S. companies can launch or increase their business in West Africa’s energy sector.

It’s no coincidence that Secretary Pritzker’s first visit to Africa included Ethiopia, Africa’s second-fastest growing economy, and Nigeria, the continent’s largest economy. These are markets ripe for U.S. companies, including many small businesses in Arkansas, that could benefit dramatically if we increased trade with our allies in Africa.

In Arkansas, we already export $5.6 billion in merchandise each year. One of the ways that we are going to climb out of the economic doldrums that we're in and create jobs is by raising that number even higher. The potential for U.S. companies in African markets is enormous, so I am pleased to see the Secretary working with her counterparts in these countries to create opportunities for new partnerships. Trade abroad truly does equal jobs at home.

Despite the United States’ considerable involvement throughout the African continent, our current system of export promotion and finance with these nations is little more than a poorly coordinated patchwork of more than a dozen government agencies that businesses find too difficult to navigate and that fails to provide support to exporters. Bottom line: The United States does not have a harmonized export strategy for Africa while our global competitors do.

This is why I joined my colleagues Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Senator Christopher Coons (D-DE) to introduce a bill to increase America’s competiveness throughout Africa by forcing better coordination between U.S. government agencies and departments, establishing comprehensive strategic goals, and marshaling private investments to improve U.S.-Africa business activities. This bill challenges us to increase exports to Africa by 200 percent and gives us the incentive and a template for how to reach that goal.

A key provision of our legislation—establish a White House-designated senior coordinator to review current export strategies with the ultimate goal of significantly increasing our imports to Africa—was included in the law that authorized defense spending for this year.  

A robust trade strategy with Africa is vital for our economic prosperity. Africa is developing a healthy middle class. This newfound wealth has generated a huge demand for American products throughout Africa. We just need a comprehensive strategy to allow U.S. companies to reach these growing markets.  It is my hope that the first visit to Africa by a U.S. Secretary of Commerce in over a decade is a signal of a newfound intention toward this goal.

Read more about the Durbin-Boozman-Coons bill.

Our veterans have earned the best medical care available. We must continue our commitment to provide our military personnel and retired servicemembers with the quality health services they deserve. 

However, recent news reports detailing failure in the VA health care system can’t be ignored. The Inspector General is investigating 29 VA facilities for poor management practices that failed our veterans’ medical needs.

I have asked Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki for assurance that Arkansas veterans receiving care at VA facilities are not falling victim to these practices. 

VA needs to correct these problems immediately and those responsible for this misconduct must be held accountable. Current law makes it next to impossible to remove employees of the Senior Executive Service who are responsible for these failures. While one official has resigned, just one month before scheduled retirement, no one has been fired. That’s why the VA Secretary must have the authority to fire these managers whose incompetence has negatively impacted the lives of our veterans and their families. 

Last week the House overwhelmingly approved legislation by a vote of 390-33 that does this. I urge the Senate Leader to bring up the Senate companion, S. 2013, the Department of Veterans Affairs Management Accountability Act. I am a proud cosponsor of this legislation because I believe VA management who abuse their power and put our veterans in danger is unacceptable. 

Our veterans deserve a system that proves their care is our top priority. We need to restore faith in the VA health system and that begins with accountability. Providing a mechanism to remove or demote managers who fail our veterans will allow us to better serve the men and women who sacrificed for us.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced it will revise previously proposed rules intended to curb the political speech of tax-exempt groups. This is welcomed news.

I’m pleased the agency backed off its proposal that challenges the Constitution and political speech of 501(c)(4) organizations. More than 150,000 comments on the regulation, the most on any proposed rule, rightfully led the agency to reevaluate this proposal and back off this rule.

The attack of First Amendment rights by the IRS is unacceptable. That’s why I joined my colleagues earlier this year in efforts to prevent this abuse of power. As a cosponsor of the Stop Targeting of Political Beliefs by the IRS Act of 2014, I will continue to follow the progress on this rule and prevent overreach by this agency.