How many times have you waited in a long line to go through airport security? How many times have your sat in your seat, patiently waiting -- perhaps an hour or more -- for the plane to taxi down the runway and take off? How many times have your family members and friends waited in a long line to pick you up upon arrival? As travelers, we expect to move efficiently through airport security, depart on time, and arrive on time. When these things don’t happen due to weather or air traffic control (ATC) delays, we grow frustrated, breathe an exasperated sigh, and wonder aloud how this could happen.

The frustrations we experience, as travelers, are telltale signs that our aviation system is no longer meeting the needs of its users. And, the situation is only going to get worse -- the number of airline passengers is expected to increase from 688 million in 2004 to 1 billion in 2015. Some 11,000 air traffic controllers are going to retire over the next 10 years, and our air traffic control system must be updated to handle this increased traffic. Read more...

The President’s escalation plan to send more U.S. troops to Iraq is out of step with the American people and our allies.  Why are thousands of additional American troops being sent to Iraq at the same time that British troops are planning to leave?

The President’s escalation plan has been rejected by bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate and opposed by Americans all across the country.  The announcement by the British government confirms the doubts in the minds of the American people about the President’s decision to increase the number of U.S. soldiers in Iraq.

The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) is among the most pernicious part of the tax code for middle-class taxpayers.  Although created in 1969 to prevent tax avoidance by the very wealthiest of Americans, more and more middle-class families are now being ensnared by it.  In fact, one the worst parts about the AMT is most taxpayers don't know they have to pay it until they file their taxes, which is why I call it the "Stealth Tax".  This stealth tax is now unleashing an unprecedented sneak attack on millions of middle-income individuals and families.  Last year, I led the fight against this tax hike, and millions of middle-class taxpayers were saved from a massive tax increase.  Unfortunately, that relief only lasted through December 31, 2006, and unless Congress acts again, millions of middle-class Americans will face another stealth tax increase this year.  I look forward to working on this issue with my colleagues on the Ways & Means Committee, and ensuring that millions of middle-class Americans don't face a tax hike heading into 2008.  If you want more information on my bill, click here to visit the special section on my website about the Stealth Tax.

After a thorough review of its state's death penalty system, an Indiana assessment team today released its final report and said the state needs to temporarily halt executions until it improves its administration of death penalty cases.

The assessment team, which conducted its work over the course of 20 months, determined the State of Indiana is in full compliance with only 10 out of 93 protocols included in its report. The team conducted the study under the guidance of the American Bar Association’s Death Penalty Moratorium Implementation Project, a project of the ABA's Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities.

The full report and executive summary, including charts that identify specific recommendations and state compliance levels, are available on the ABA’s Web site here. Additional information about the Death Penalty Moratorium Implementation Project and the assessment project is also posted there. Read more...

With yesterday’s Circuit Court decision on habeas corpus rights in Lakhdar Boumediene v. George W. Bush, our nightmares about the Military Commissions Act of 2006 were realized.  The unfortunate end result of this round of appeals is that people will continue rotting in captivity without a right to meaningful due process.  The case will now likely go to the Supreme Court.  The Circuit Court’s decision, however, was not unanimous.  In her dissent, Judge Judith W. Rogers wrote, “While Congress may have intended to wipe out all the cases (of the detainees in Guantanamo) such a law violates the Constitution. The Military Commissions Act is therefore void and does not deprive this court or the district courts of jurisdiction.

As a nation, we've asked an awful lot of our soldiers and the least we can do is take care of them.  But unimaginable bungling by the Pentagon, and exposed by the news media, is cause for real concern- and outrage. In less than a week, we've learned of two colossal blunders that are an insult to every enlisted person in this country.

First, the Pentagon severed the electronic link that allowed doctors at the VA to access medical records stored on an incompatible computer system at DoD for treatment of wounded soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.  In the Senate, the Democratic chair and Ranking Member of the Veterans Affairs Subcommittee sounded the first alarm in a letter to the Pentagon, which was ignored until a reporter called for comment.  Within hours of the published report, Rep. Bob Filner, chair of the House Veterans Committee and I introduced legislation demanding the link be restored.

Then, we learned in a first rate piece of journalism by the Washington Post that as many as 80 outpatient veterans at Walter Reed Army Medical Center are staying in a building where the living conditions are utterly disgraceful. Read more...

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney (R) announced Tuesday that he will air the first television ad of the 2008 campaign, using the medium to portray himself as a Washington outsider with a record of accomplishment. The ads will begin running Wednesday and rotate through the early battleground states of New Hampshire, Iowa, South Carolina, Michigan and Florida.

Romney has recently come under scrutiny from other Republican presidential candidates for his previous statements on abortion and gay marriage. The video below highlights part of his debate with Democrat Shannon O'Brien in Massachusetts' 2002 gubernatorial race.

"I will preserve and protect a woman's right to choose," Romney says in the clip. "I want the voters to know exactly where I'm going to stand as governor. I am not going to change our pro-choice laws in Massachusetts in any way. I will preserve them. I will protect them. I will enforce them."

Last May I was privileged to visit the Islamic Republic of Iran at a time when tensions were rising over their nuclear power program. For the past 28 years, the United States and Iran have been locked in a virtual state of cold war with no diplomatic relations and very limited contact between Iranians and people from the United States. At that time, our delegation traveled to Iran in an attempt to thaw relations, deepen our understanding of Islam, and learn what we could of the hopes, fears and aspirations of the Iranian people. Ours was a nongovernmental delegation and our visits, meetings and purpose were focused on the people, religious communities and grassroots organizations.

Since that time relations between our two nations have worsened. On September 20, 2006, some 45 U.S. religious leaders met with Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in New York City to discuss the role that religious communities can play in reversing the deepening crisis between Iran and the U.S. At the end of that 75-minute conversation, President Ahmadinejad invited the group to come to Tehran for further conversations.

Following the meeting in New York, a smaller delegation of those present spent a day on Capitol Hill briefing the chief aides of both Democratic and Republican leaders in the House and Senate. The reception was overwhelmingly positive with all involved asking to meet with the group again and expressing thanks for keeping this "track two" type of diplomacy alive. Read more...

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has issued a dangerous and deplorable ruling, holding that foreign nationals held by the United States outside U.S. territory have no right to challenge their detention.  By upholding Congress' unprecedented attempt to allow the government the power to detain people unlawfully, the Court's ruling is a threat to liberty and the rule of law.

Under this ruling, the government may grab any non-citizen and lock him or her away forever without having to answer for its actions.  Even now, the Bush Administration has been holding individuals at Guantanamo Bay for years, even though the government acknowledges that some of them are not terrorists and pose no danger to the United States.

If Congress and the President can simply eliminate judicial review of a person's imprisonment, then liberty is in grave danger.  We are a great nation because we are a beacon to the world of freedom and the rule of law.  This decision strikes a terrible blow at the heart of our nation.