Monticello Live

Congress Should Help Seniors Make Ends Meet

 Almost 75 years ago, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed into law our nation’s Social Security system to provide retirement protection for all Americans. Read the rest of this entry »

As Members of the House of Representatives returned to Washington this week from the holiday district work period, U.S. Representative Mike Ross, D-Ark., on Wednesday honored former state legislator James T. Jordan of Monticello in the U.S. House of Representatives Congressional Record – the official proceedings of the House. Jordan died on December 27, 2009, at the age of 84.

This is the text of the Congressional Record entry:

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of James Terrell Jordan of Monticello, Arkansas, who passed away on December 27, 2009, at the age of 84. Having fought for freedom in World War II, James then committed his life to the people of Arkansas through public office for over five decades.

James was born in Drew County, Arkansas, to his late parents Alvin and Linnie Jordan, and attended schools in Monticello and California. He was a member of the 101st Airborne Division in World War II, serving as a paratrooper and receiving a Purple Heart Medal. Read the rest of this entry »

U.S. Representative Mike Ross  is now accepting applications for the 2010 Congressional Summer Internship Program in his Washington, D.C., congressional office. This highly selective program is designed to give college students an opportunity not only to learn the legislative process, but also to experience it firsthand.

The 2010 Congressional Summer Internship Program is split into two sessions, offering this unique opportunity to as many students as possible. The first summer session runs from June 1 – July 2, 2010, and the second summer session runs from July 6 – August 6, 2010. Interns may coordinate academic credit directly with their college or university. Read the rest of this entry »

Congressman Mike Ross held a meeting at the University of Arkansas at Monticello to discuss a few controversial issues with the people of Monticello and answer any questions people might have about these issues.

The first issue Ross discussed was the new healthcare plan that the congress is trying to pass. Ross thinks we need healthcare reform, but that we need to be sensible about the changes we make. Ross said that there are three parts to the reform. One part is ensuring that everyone has insurance. They want to help cover the uninsured. The second part is reforming health insurance. Ross said that it is wrong for insurance companies to exclude someone because they had an illness in the past. The last part is managing healthcare cost. According to Ross, healthcare has an inflation that is twice that of other businesses. He restated that we need healthcare reform; we just need to do it right. Read the rest of this entry »

Congress Wraps Up Busy Legislative Year, More to Come Read the rest of this entry »

This is a press release from Congressman Mike Ross’ office on the health care bill. Read the rest of this entry »

U.S. Representative Mike Ross  has appointed Monticello native Kristen Yeiser as his scheduler and executive assistant in his Washington, D.C., congressional office. Read the rest of this entry »

U.S. Representative Mike Ross (AR-04) has successfully secured $366,564 for Drew County in the Fiscal Year 2010 House Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Bill. The bill recently passed the full U.S. House of Representatives.

Ross said the funds will be used to provide weather and other related disaster education as well as to purchase outdoor weather sirens that will alert residents of approaching severe weather.

“Given the unpredictability of Arkansas weather, we should be as prepared as possible for any number of emergency weather situations,” said Ross. “This investment in Drew County will help local leaders prepare for the worst by working to reduce the loss of property and to protect lives during a storm.” Read the rest of this entry »

U.S. Representative Mike announced that he has hired Monticello native Zach Baumgarten as his Director of Constituent Services in his Washington, D.C., Congressional Office.  Baumgarten completed the first session of Ross’s Washington, D.C., Congressional internship program in 2007. Read the rest of this entry »

Four members of Arkansas’s Congressional Delegation traveled this week to Iraq as part of an official trip to visit the roughly 3,000 members of the 39th Infantry Brigade of the Arkansas National Guard on their second deployment to Iraq within four years.
U.S. Senator Mark Pryor along with U.S. Representatives Marion Berry (AR-01), John Boozman (AR-03) and Mike Ross (AR-04), traveled to Iraq August 2 – 4, 2008.

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This week I helped pass an important bill in the U.S. House of Representatives to assist homeowners who are struggling amidst a deteriorating housing market. The American Housing Rescue & Foreclosure Prevention Act (H.R. 3221) is the most comprehensive response yet to the American mortgage crisis and I was proud to support it to help families facing foreclosure keep their homes. This bill will also help the recovery of communities harmed by empty homes caught in the foreclosure process.

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U.S. Representative Mike Ross supported legislation Thursday to significantly increase our nation’s domestic energy production. The DRILL Act would have increased oil and natural gas production in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A), as well as oil production on federal lands already leased by oil companies.
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