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Pauls Valley Democrat: Big issues on table for Congress

August 14, 2015
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Pauls Valley Democrat - Barry Porterfield

Issues ranging from Planned Parenthood to negotiations with Iran were front and center for a U.S. Congressman’s brief town hall talk in Pauls Valley.

U.S. Rep. Tom Cole says Congress has actually been more productive in recent times, either getting bills on education, trade, veterans, human trafficking, cyber security and even the Keystone pipeline passed or positioned to move forward in the process.

Still, he views the big ones still on the table when Congress reconvenes in September.

“When we get back in the fall the biggest issue will be the nuclear deal with Iran,” Cole said to a small gathering Wednesday.

“My bold prediction is it won’t pass the House, it won’t pass the Senate. The real question is can (a presidential) veto be overridden.”

Cole is referring to the recent deal calling for relief in sanctions for Iran in exchange for a limit to its nuclear program. The deal is expected to go before Congress in a few weeks.

In an effort to get more input, Cole said he’s been meeting with officials on both sides of the Iranian deal.

That’s included meeting with foreign policy experts at the University of Oklahoma.

“We have that resources right here. I want to hear what they have to say about the issue,” Cole said.

“If I was voting today I would probably vote no. This issue is a challenge. It’s pretty hard to trust the Iranian regime. It concerns me to give then legitimacy. These are not our friends.

“They’re all worried,” he said about U.S. allies like Israel and Saudi Arabia. “Our friends don’t trust this deal.”

He believes President Obama has “got us in a bad spot” with negotiations for a deal Cole thinks isn’t fully supported by Democrats.

Another big issue these days is the Planned Parenthood controversy.

It involves an anti-abortion group using videos to support its claim that Planned Parenthood is selling the fetal body parts from abortions.

The Congressman knows the hot-button issue is an emotional one for a lot of Americans.

“I know there’s controversy with Planned Parenthood but there’s a lot of good there too with cancer screenings and a number of other things they do,” he said, adding it will likely take a change at the top to make a change in the agency’s funding.

“I think the only way you defund or restrict Planned Parenthood funding is to get a new president.”

That is needed, he says, because the president appoints people involved in the funding process for agencies like Planned Parenthood.

“I would rather take that money and spend it on things that unite us not divide us,” Cole said about the millions of federal dollars going to Planned Parenthood.

“It’s going to be quite an issue all the way through.”

Another big one could again be the national budget.

Cole says there are a trio of things that could lead to a budget deal later this year.

One is finding new ways to help a transportation fund, something he believes can be done with tax reform and redirecting some revenue.

Then there’s the possibility of lifting the debt ceiling and taking actions to lower the country’s deficit, while also looking at across-the-board spending cuts for all agencies except the military.

The 4th District Congressman is also keeping an eye on immigration, exported American oil and the possibility of a government shutdown — something Cole says should be avoided.

Online: Pauls Valley Democrat