Dear Friends,

Never in a million years would I have guessed that I’d become pen pals with Senator Chuck Grassley (R- Cedar Rapids, IA)! Who! Where? Having spent most of the past few decades more focussed on the shenanigans of Canadian and British politicians, somehow Chuck was not on my radar. Now, however, it feels like I’m engaged in one of those Victorian-era letter-writing relationships where individuals who never actually meet irl regularly exchange thoughts and ideas through letters. At the ripe old age of nearly 92, I wonder if my new buddy Chuck grew up when this was an actual thing and has continued the tradition throughout his many, many years of life. He sure does like to correspond, and he’s met his match in me! Even though I send hundreds of emails to politicians, I’m never certain how many are read. Senator Chuck Grassley’s copious responses are a reminder that I'm on the right track and I need to keep being noisy!

My thing, of course, is to gather information from reliable sources on any of the latest infuriating crimes coming out of the Oval Office and then compose strongly worded emails (I know! So scary!) to challenge the senators into some kind of action. Maybe it’s working. Maybe it’s not. What I do know is that if they are not repeatedly bombarded with noisy objections from the public, those weasels in DC will do whatever the hell they want and continue kissing the ass of the Great Orange Menace. It’s our job to challenge them and speak up for those who need our support. The noisier we are, the harder it is to ignore us!

While many of my concerns may have landed on deaf ears, I present to you, a small selection of back and forth conversations with Senator Chuck Grassley (or maybe his office hand) that have occurred since I started my letter-writing campaign in February. Before you get all het up over Chuck’s mostly bullshit responses, I’d expect nothing less from him and his Republican colleagues. For the most part, when senators do respond, they adhere to strict party lines, but I am delighted to say that I am starting to see cracks where the occasional senator is starting to break from their orange Fuhrer. The main thing for me is that I’m being noisy and their responses are evidence that I’m being heard.

Just a wee warning - this post is loooooonnnngggg because ol' Chuck is even more verbose than I am! Feel free to skim some of his emails.

Me & Chuck discussing Signalgate: 

Me, to all Republican senators:

March 25^th, 2025

Dear Senator,

Perhaps you’ve heard this proverb that has become quite popular in the past few months - “When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king. The palace becomes a circus”.  After yesterday’s news about the most egregious security breaches in American history, I’d say truer words were never spoken. With your blessings and approval, Trump has filled the highest offices in the country with buffoons and idiots, turning the US government into the stupidest circus on earth.

It would be funny if it wasn’t so terrifying. Pete Hesgeth, JD Vance, Marco Rubio, Tulsi Gabbard, Scott Bessent, Brian McCormack, John Ratcliffe, Steve Witkoff, Suzy Wiles, Joe Kent and Stephen Miller have all been implicated in violating The Espionage Act and endangering our national security in their idiotic and careless use of the Signal app to convey highly sensitive security information and their detailed plans for a military attack on Yemen. These clowns are a hazard to our national security and have no business holding some of the most important offices in our government. This security breach is a gross violation of the law, and I am counting on you to hold the perpetrators involved accountable.  I say LOCK THEM UP. Jessica

Chuck’s very lengthy and extremely detailed response:

April 11^th, 2025

Dear Jessica:

Thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding plans for Houthi strikes being discussed through the open-source encrypted messaging system called Signal. As your senator, it is important to me that I hear from you. 

On Saturday, March 15, 2025, President Trump ordered air and naval strikes against the Houthis. In a post made on Truth Social, Trump said "Today, I have ordered the United States Military to launch decisive and powerful Military action against the Houthi terrorists in Yemen. They have waged an unrelenting campaign of piracy, violence, and terrorism against American, and other, ships, aircraft, and drones". According to National Security Advisor (NSA) Michael Waltz, the strikes had successfully targeted "multiple" Houthi leaders. You can view his full post here: https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114167864888304754. 

It was revealed soon after that detailed plans of these US-strikes were discussed through the messaging app Signal among top administration officials. The messaging included a total of 18 accounts that belonged to cabinet members and national security officials including Vice-President Vance, Defense Secretary Hegseth, CIA Director Ratcliffe, Director of National Intelligence Gabbard, and Secretary of State Rubio. The group chat also included one journalist, the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg. 

On March 24, Mr. Goldberg published an article that outlined the leak of information and his inclusion in the official messaging about the Houthi strikes. He stated that on March 11, NSA Waltz connected with him on Signal, and on March 13, NSA Waltz invited Mr. Goldberg to a group chain called “Houthi PC small group”. Mr. Goldberg has since published screenshots of the group chat which detailed minute-by-minute operational details and exact weapons that would be used in the strikes, hours before the attacks actually began.

I can certainly understand concerns about this and can agree that some kind of screw up did occur with this information being discussed with a journalist. It seems to me that what I know of the information, more care should have been taken to ensure unauthorized individuals did not see it. However, I cannot speak to the extent at which it actually hurt our national security given that the White House has maintained there was no classified information shared. 

It may interest you to know that Spokesman Brian Hughes for the National Security Council has stated they are “reviewing how an inadvertent number was added to this official chain.” White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, reiterated this saying “the White House is looking into how Goldberg’s number was inadvertently added to the thread”. 

I know that the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has already questioned some members of the group chat about this situation. The Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee sent a letter to the acting Inspector General of the Department of Defense asking for an inquiry into the full circumstances.   In response, the DoD Office of the Inspector General announced and evaluation of the situation, stating “The objective of this evaluation is to determine the extent to which the Secretary of Defense and other DoD personnel complied with DoD policies and procedures for the use of a commercial messaging application for official business. Additionally, we will review compliance with classification and records retention requirements.”

I certainly expect the administration to review how this was allowed to happen and make sure that all security and recordkeeping protocols are scrupulously followed going forward. The number one responsibility of the federal government is to protect national security and American citizens. You can rest assured, I will continue to closely follow developments. 

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me. As your senator, it is important to me that I hear from you. 

My response to Chuck’s response:

April 13^th, 2025

Dear Senator Grassley,

Thank you for responding to my concerns about the very serious security breach and all-around incompetence of Trump’s top brass. I can see that you take this seriously and I hold you to your word that you will continue to follow this situation closely. It seems many of your colleagues have brushed it off as a silly bit of carelessness rather than addressing the magnitude of the incompetence and illegality of this “screw up”.

The evidence provided by the journalist showed that neither Trump nor the acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was on the chat, and that White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller apparently made the decision to strike based on his interpretation of what Trump wanted, presumably from reading one of Trump’s all-caps tirades on his social media platform. And, as if accidentally including a journalist in blow-by-blow details of a planned military attack wasn’t already a massive violation of national security, the app was set to delete the messages which is an indisputable violation of the Presidential Records Act. To top it all off, there is evidence that Hegseth and his gang have been using Signal for all kinds of top-secret communications, and this isn’t a one-off “screw up”.

In your email you say, “Goldberg has since published screenshots of the group chat which detailed minute-by-minute operational details and exact weapons that would be used in the strikes, hours before the attacks actually began” and then you follow that with, “the White House has maintained there was no classified information shared”.  Let me get this straight. The journalist who was inadvertently added to this national security chat captured screenshots of highly classified details of the planned operation, yet you believe the Whitehouse spin saying that no classified information was shared? To quote George Orwell in his novel about totalitarianism, “The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command."  I, and millions of others are refusing to reject the evidence of our eyes and ears. We refuse to believe the incessant lies and falsehoods coming out of the Whitehouse. I trust that you are intelligent enough to be able to also discern truth from lies.

I hope that you will take this for the serious breach that it is and will push to have those who were involved removed from office. Jessica

Me, to all Republican senators re Signalgate cont’d:

April 21^st, 2025

Dear Senator,

Hi honey! We’re bombing the Houthis!

Really? Hegseth’s wife was allowed access to this highly sensitive information? Certainly you must have had an inkling that Pete Hegseth was a disastrous choice for Secretary of Defense, and yet, you approved his nomination for this top position. What the hell were you thinking?

As if ‘Signalgate One’ wasn’t bad enough where Hegseth and his top advisors shared blow-by-blow military plans with a journalist (WTF!) and then tried to lie their way out of this reckless security breach, we are now learning that Hegseth has been including his wife Jennifer and brother Philip in other top-security military Signal chats from his PERSONAL phone. What the hell is he doing including his wife and brother – neither of whom have security clearance – in top security chats and meetings (yes, we now know that both of them have attended high-security defence meetings). This man is in charge of our national security but doesn’t have the sense to follow security protocol. This man is a danger to the entire country and must be removed before he creates any other security risks.

I realize that I am using the word ‘security’ excessively but that is because I am absolutely horrified that you are allowing this utterly incompetent DUI hire to continue in office, breaking laws while risking our national security. You must speak up and demand that Hegseth is immediately removed from office and tried for every single law he has broken in his capacity as Secretary of Defense.

Going forward, I expect you to make better choices and do better by your constituents and upholding the Constitution. Jessica

Not surprisingly, no one responded to this email, not even Chuck. 

Me & Chuck discussing Trump’s stupid choice of cabinet nominees:

 Me, to all Republican senators re approving Unqualified Cabinet Appointees:

February 14^th, 2025

 Congratulations Senator!

By approving the most unqualified, dangerous grifters for cabinet you have proven that you are:

a)     A spineless weasel

b)     Corrupt and uncaring

c)     A total idiot

d)     All of the above.

In less than a full month in office, your president and his UNELECTED billionaire buddy (with YOUR blessings and support) have done more damage to, not only the USA, but across the globe, than any other US president in the country’s long history.

So, what now? Now we will see what happens when an insatiably greedy UNELECTED billionaire illegally strips the government of funding for all the social structures that hold America together. Now we will see what happens when the Dept of Health is overseen by an insane and corrupt conspiracy theorist, when the Dept of Defence is overseen by a TV host, when the EPA is overseen by a climate denier. Your constituents are going to start facing previously unknown levels of poverty and sickness. Your constituents will start dying from lack of access to proper health care, and YOU will be responsible for this. Shame on you!

You took an oath to serve your constituents, not blindly follow your autocratic leader and his UNELECTED billionaire buddy. You have no business holding public office. You have failed the people who voted for you and all Americans. Shame on you!

May you grow a spine, Jessica

Chuck must have sent a lame excuse for okaying Trump’s nominees in response, but because Letters From A Canadian wasn’t even a consideration until just a few weeks ago, I must’ve deleted it after penning this response on March 14^th:

            March 14^th, 2025

Dear Senator Grassley,

Thank you for your informative response to my concerns about Trump’s nominees. In your email you say, “The President of the United States has the responsibility to nominate qualified individuals to serve in his cabinet who he believes share his views on the relevant issues, and who will uphold the law.” I think we can all agree that not a single one of Trump’s nominees is remotely qualified for the office they have been put in charge of, and most of them are more interested in catering to Trump’s petty whims than upholding the law. Hegseth – a TV host with an alcohol problem and a history of sexual violence has been put in charge of national defense. McMahon of WWF fame is now in charge of gutting the department of education. Zeldin, a renowned climate denier is running the EPA (into the ground).  Dog-shooter Kristi Noem responsible for Homeland Security.  And all-around loony tunes conspiracy theorist anti-vaxxer Kennedy Jr. is in charge of HHS!  Allowing the country to be run by this circus of seriously unqualified, vindictive, and morally deficient individuals is very dangerous and definitely not in the best interest of the American people.

 My question to you is which cabinet nominees did you vote in favour of and which ones did you oppose?

I look forward to your response, Jessica

Well, Chuck’s a busy man, so I didn’t receive a response until just last week. Here’s what our aged friend from Cedar Rapids, Iowa had to say when I pressed him about the Clown Show characters put in charge of running the US of A.

There was no way I was going to let this one go! Here’s what I fired back the very next day:

            May 7^th, 2025

Dear Senator Grassley,

Thank you for responding to my concerns about Trump’s incompetent cabinet nominees. Unfortunately, they were all approved and have quickly proven themselves to be unqualified and dangerous.

You said in your email, “I still agree that the President of the United States has the responsibility to nominate qualified individuals to serve in his cabinet who he believes share his views on the relevant issues, and who will uphold the law.”  I think we can all agree now that not a single member of Trump’s cabinet is even remotely qualified, and that the mayhem they have caused in the brief time they have been in office was totally preventable had the Republican members of the Senate voted with conscience rather than blind loyalty to their unhinged leader. Not only are they incompetent, but they are refusing to uphold the law (which is in complete alignment with our felonious president!). Hegseth has repeatedly broken security laws with his reckless and idiotic use of Signal to share with friends and family top security information. Yesterday, Noem, like the president, refused to commit to upholding the Constitution (DUE PROCESS!). RFK is a crazed conspiracy theorist who is single-handedly responsible for the skyrocketing number of children dying from measles. The list goes on. None of this is a surprise. And still, you voted for them.

We are barely 100 days into this presidency. We cannot continue to allow Trump to destroy everything in his path. As an elected official, I expect you to throw your support behind the Constitution. Jessica

At this point, most of Trump’s cabinet is filled with his nincompoop cronies from Fox (oi!), and now the sycophantic senators who approved all of these ridiculous nominees are left facing the public as the entirely incompetent cabinet destroys the country.

Me & Chuck discussing Putin and Zelensky and Trump’s shitty international relations: 

Me, to all Republican senators re the Trump/Vance shit show with Zelensky in the Oval Office:

March 3^rd, 2025

Dear Senator,

Well, that was embarrassing! Watching the Trump-Vance schoolyard bullies teaming up against Ukraine’s President Zelensky on Friday was just gross, and a total embarrassment for the USA. Trump and Vance were rude, aggressive, utterly nonsensical, and downright vile in their public treatment of a statesman who has courageously been defending his country from a hostile takeover from the Russian dictator for the past three years. The result? The world has now emphatically backed Ukraine (and rightfully so) while backing away from the hot mess that the US has become in just over a month of Trump’s unruly reign of terror.

To quote your colleague Senator Schiff, “We are reduced to some kind of an extortionary protectionist racket where a leader of a country whose citizens have fought and died valiantly standing up to a Kremlin dictator, is so abused where we stand for nothing but using our might to extort the weak or the vulnerable.” And the whole world is watching in disgust.

I am pleased to see some of your Republican colleagues coming to their senses and calling out Trump and Musk’s dangerous behaviour for what it is. I would strongly encourage you to join them. Anyone who has studied history will tell you that those who choose to support Trump’s abusive, chaotic actions rather than speaking up for the American people will not be looked upon favourably when this mess is over. Jessica

I got a handful of replies calling Putin all kinds of nasty names and showing some support for Ukraine, so, of course I wrote back.

March 14^th, 2025 

Dear Senator,

I appreciate you and your Republican colleagues acknowledging that Putin’s unprovoked assault on Ukraine is completely unacceptable. You have stated that Putin is a tyrant whose attempt to annex a sovereign nation is breaking international law and cannot be condoned. I agree.

While we have witnessed and protested Putin’s illegal attacks on Ukraine, we are now also witnessing Trump threatening the exact same action on Canada, Greenland, and Panama. I hope you are as outraged about this Putin-like behaviour as you are about Putin’s ongoing attempt to annex Ukraine. Trump’s threats are a vile assault against our allies, and absolutely no one should be condoning them. In fact, I hope you are openly challenging this extremely dangerous threat to global peace and the sovereignty of our allies.

Please respond with your stance on Trump’s threat against Canada, Panama, and Greenland, and what you are doing to stop them. Jessica

 Not surprisingly, Chuck had a few things to say on the matter!

April 30th, 2025

Dear Jessica:

Thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding President Donald Trump’s comments on foreign nations. As your senator, it is important to me that I hear from you. 

I understand from your message that you are opposed to comments Trump has made regarding several foreign nations or territories including Canada, Greenland, Panama, and Ukraine. I understand why Americans might have concerns with the impact of these comments on our international relations. However, the United States is not in the business of territorial acquisition by force, so it is not productive to speculate about that.

On December 10, 2024, Trump posted on the social media platform Truth Social poking fun at the Prime Minister of Canada referring to him as “Governor”. In the post, he also referred to Canada as “the Great State”. You can view the post here: https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/113626786987358864. Since then, he has continued rhetoric that Canada should become the 51st state of the U.S. For example, in another post made on December 18, he said, “Many Canadians want Canada to become the 51st State... I think it is a great idea. 51st State!!!” You can view that post here: https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/113672861551554010.

I understand you have concerns surrounding this rhetoric and the impact it could have on U.S.-Canada relations. I certainly understand that the United States and Canada have one of the most extensive bilateral relationships. Building upon a shared history and geography, the U.S. and Canada work closely together on numerous issues including in trade, border and national security, defense arrangements, global alliances, and even health care issues like the opioid crisis. While I believe that the United States and Canada can work to improve our relationships, I don’t think that Canada should have to join the U.S. in order to do that. You can rest assured, I will keep your thoughts in mind should there be any legislation in the Senate regarding foreign policy with Canada. 

I also understand that Trump has made comments about purchasing Greenland, an autonomous territory under the Kingdom of Denmark. Greenland plays an important strategic role in the Arctic Ocean, serving as a gateway to the North Atlantic. Both Russia and China have an invested interest in this region, and to that extent, I understand that Trump’s comments were made in regard to the importance of protecting U.S. national security.

This is not the first time Trump has proposed purchasing Greenland. In 2019, Trump offered a proposal to purchase Greenland again citing national security. Following a rebuke from the Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, that the territory was not for sale, President Trump cancelled a planned state visit to Denmark citing his dissatisfaction with her response.

More recently, Trump has again floated the idea of purchasing Greenland. In a post made on December 22, he said “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity”. You can view the post here:  https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/113698764270730405. The Prime Minister of Greenland, Mute Egede, responded saying “Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom.”

The last time the United States purchased territory from another country was 1917 when the United States purchased the Virgin Islands, also from the Kingdom of Denmark. The last time a president proposed to purchase Greenland, besides Trump in 2019, was in 1946 when Harry Truman made the offer, also for strategic reasons. Regardless of the way the situation unfolds, I hope that the United States and Greenland can continue to build on its close strategic cooperation to counter Russian and Chinese activity in the Arctic.

In a similar matter, I am also aware that Trump has made comments on re-obtaining control of the Panama Canal due to increased Chinese companies controlling a lot of the traffic in the canal. In 1903, the United States and Panama signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty which granted the U.S. possession and control of the Panama Canal Zone in exchange for $10 million and the guarantee of Panama's independence. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter agreed to slowly transition Canal operations and defense to the Panama Canal Authority and the Republic of Panama. This transition ended on December 31, 1999.

However, in similar posts to those before, Trump said the following about the canal:

The Panama Canal is considered a VITAL National Asset for the United States, due to its critical role to America’s Economy and National Security. A secure Panama Canal is crucial for U.S. Commerce, and rapid deployment of the Navy, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and drastically cuts shipping times to U.S. ports…We would and will NEVER let it fall into the wrong hands! It was not given for the benefit of others, but merely as a token of cooperation with us and Panama. If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full, and without question. 

It may interest you to know that on February 2, 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino and Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha. It was reported that Secretary Rubio discussed with the President and Foreign Minister the importance of curbing the Chinese Communist Party influence over the Panama Canal.

That said, I hope that the United States can work with Panama to check Chinese influence over the canal. I will be sure to keep your thoughts in mind should the Senate consider legislation regarding U.S. policy related to the Panama Canal. 

You can rest assured, I understand the importance of strengthening and supporting our allies, including Canada, Denmark/Greenland, and Panama. That said, under the Constitution, the President, as the Commander in Chief, has the number one responsibility of maintaining national security. From that standpoint, President Trump has the right to raise questions regarding these matters. However, Congress would need to approve any new treaty or most other actions that would fundamentally change our relations with these countries and territories, and I certainly have not made any determination that these situations rise to that level at this time. Should Congress consider such things in the future, I will be sure to keep your thoughts in mind.

In regard to Ukraine, I would like to take this opportunity to state emphatically that I feel for everyone fighting for their independence and way of life in the face of brutal Russian aggression. I certainly want to see an end to the war, and I support calls for the United States to stand firm in its unwavering support for Ukraine to push Russia back into its borders. I met with President Zelensky on February 28 as part of a senatorial delegation, and reaffirmed my long-held position that Putin is a dictator who is not interested in giving up his imperial ambitions. 

It may interest you to know that in light of the barrage of missiles launched by Russia into Kyiv on the night of April 23-24, the largest launch since July of 2024, I urged President Trump to place the toughest sanctions on the brutal thug Putin. (I love that Chuck just called Putin a brutal thug!)

While I wish sanctions would have been implemented sooner, I am supportive of the aggressive action the U.S. has taken against Russia since its initial attack in 2022. Following the numerous sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and our international allies, the Russian ruble plummeted in value. However, the ruble has since rebounded, indicating that international sanctions to date have not been sufficient to cripple the Russian economy. I believe President Trump has the ability to turn this around by placing the toughest sanctions we’ve seen on Russia to date.

I am aware that this barrage of missiles and drones took place amidst ongoing talks of a ceasefire deal. For weeks, President Trump has made comments about negotiating a quick to end the war, and under the U.S. Constitution, international negotiations are his responsibility. I certainly want peace, and nobody wants peace more than the Ukrainian people. But, from my standpoint, I do not believe it is for the United States to negotiate the fate of Ukraine. In the wake of the revelations of the horrific mass shootings, torture, and rape of civilians in Russian occupied areas, Ukrainians overwhelmingly oppose ceding any territory to Russia. Putin's stated aim, which he repeats constantly, is to wipe out Ukrainian national identity, which is in fact widely held throughout Ukraine, including in predominantly Russian-speaking areas. It is hard to envision Putin agreeing to a stable, permanent peace that results in an independent, democratic Ukraine, and no Ukrainian leader can accept anything less. However, I hope that I am wrong.

There has been a lot of rhetoric about Ukraine recently, but what I am concerned about is policy. I criticized President Trump during his first administration when he made comments that were weak toward Russia, but President Trump did reverse the Obama policy of refusing lethal aid to Ukraine. That said, I do not agree with all of President Trump’s rhetoric on Russia and Ukraine today. I previously gave a speech that criticized actions by Presidents on both sides of the aisle that I think sent inappropriate, if unintentional, signals of weakness. 

I believe we must stand up to Putin's aggression. I am proud to be an original co-sponsor of S.Res.91, introduced by Senator Shaheen, which acknowledges the third anniversary of Russia's invasion and expresses support for the people of Ukraine. It also commends NATO, the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, and the international community for their continued efforts to support Ukraine's defense and the protection of human rights on its territory.

To date, the United States has only spent roughly 5% of the US military’s own budget. Ukraine remains in control of roughly 83% of its territory and U.S. intelligence believes the war has severely degraded Russia’s military power and its ability to threaten NATO allies. In fact, according to defense calculations, at the current rate, it would cost Russia 39 million soldiers, and take 83 years to reach the capital in Kyiv. This is certainly reflective of the will of Ukrainians and allies alike who wish to stand up against Russia. Unless the West abandons support to Ukraine, it is hard to see how Russian can achieve its repeatedly stated goal of toppling the elected government of Ukraine and installing a pro-Russian puppet government.

If the United States and our NATO allies allow Putin to succeed in any way in his unjust war against Ukraine, then it will only encourage Putin to ignore the borders of other sovereign nations and jeopardize our national security. Equipping Ukrainian forces with effective military equipment will bolster their efforts to push back Russia and defend their nation. Failure to do so, as in the case of the invasion and occupation of parts of Georgia in 2008, and Ukraine in 2014, will simply provoke further aggression.

As Putin continues bombing Ukraine and murdering innocent civilians, there is no reason we should be supporting any sector of Russia's economy. It may interest you to know that I have introduced legislation to hold bad actors accountable that violate U.S. sanctions and choose to do business with Russia by violating U.S. sanctions. My legislation expands on anti-money laundering whistleblower program by adding support for whistleblowers who report violations of U.S. sanction laws, providing a funding mechanism to pay whistleblower awards and guaranteeing a minimum award amount paid to whistleblowers. The United States has enacted heavy sanctions against Russia for its unjust war in Ukraine, and it is critical that these sanctions are enforced to the fullest extent.

I certainly support the efforts by the United States and NATO allies to strengthen our alliance and to support Ukraine. If Putin is able to gain territory or anything he did not have before, it will only encourage future aggression. As Putin continues to choose to inflict his unjust war against Ukraine, I will certainly keep your comments in mind regarding U.S. foreign policy with Russia and Ukraine.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me. I value your input and ask that you keep in touch. 

Well! What could I possibly say back to this epic rant?

This is just a small sampling of the conversations I’ve been having with my new BFF. I have a lot to say, but it looks like I’ve met my match with Chuck and he’s met his with me. I will continue to hold him accountable until he is voted out of office, or finally succumbs to his increasingly senior years. If you feel like dropping him a line and getting a conversation going, you can access him on his website. Just be sure to say you’re his constituent from Cedar Rapids, Iowa and your zip code is 52401!

Go be noisy!