Fighting Alzheimer's

I am proud to announce that I am now a co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer's disease. The Task Force was founded in 1999 to advance research and awareness of Alzheimer's disease in Congress.

Along with many Pennsylvanians, I share the confident hope we can find a cure for this terrible disease. Most people I meet are familiar with it, but they might not know just how widespread it is in our state. In fact, Pennsylvania has the fifth highest total in the nation of people suffering from Alzheimer's. Fortunately, Pennsylvania is also a leading state in the commitment of volunteers and caregivers to fight it.

This is a personal issue for me. Not long ago, my father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. It is a tragic illness that robs its victims of one of life's greatest possessions - their memories. Working together with fellow Pennsylvanians and my colleagues in Congress on both sides of the aisle, I am committed to fighting this disease and finding a cure.

I met this week with members of the Alzheimer's Association from across Pennsylvania. It was great to speak with so many dedicated advocates raising awareness.

This week, I welcomed Staff Sergeant Earl Granville (Scott Township, Lackawanna County) to my office and he attended Afghani President Ashraf Ghani's address to Congress as my guest. Prior to the speech, SSG Granville and I took some time to discuss his time serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the important work he has been doing here in the United States.

SSG Granville lost his left leg when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Iraq in 2008. In December 2010, SSG Granville's twin brother, Joe, took his own life at age 27 after suffering from undiagnosed post-traumatic stress. These two brothers served alongside each other in Bosnia and Iraq, and I have so much respect and appreciation for their heroic service to our country. I have just as much admiration for the work SSG Granville is doing now to improve awareness of mental health issues and the very high suicide rate among veterans.

SSG Granville is a true American hero. You can read more about his visit here.

I am working to protect our kids from sexual and violent predators. This week, I was proud to see the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette endorse my bipartisan legislation to require background checks for all school employees who have unsupervised contact with children.

My bipartisan bill, Protecting Students from Sexual and Violent Predators Act, would also end "passing the trash" - the unthinkable practice of a school helping a known child predator obtain a new job in a different school district or state. This common sense legislation is long past due, and I will continue to fight for it until it becomes law.

When any of my three children get on the school bus to go to school in the morning, I have every right as a parent to know they are going somewhere safe. Every single parent in America shares this right. You can read more about my efforts in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

This week, I sat down with Major General James Joseph - the Adjutant General of the Pennsylvania National Guard - to discuss the current state of our National Guard.

In light of the many national security challenges we face, the American people need a strong Army and Air National Guard as well as Army and Air Force Reserve. Our reserves provide a combat-proven, cost-effective force that can rapidly and effectively augment our armed forces abroad as well as respond to natural and manmade disasters at home.

We discussed ways we can work together to ensure the Pennsylvania National Guard is properly prepared to support the United States military and protect Pennsylvanians from potential disasters in the Commonwealth.

When traveling across Pennsylvania, I often hear from constituents that Washington needs to take serious and substantive steps to rein in our country's out-of-control spending. It is time the government started living within its means. This week, I was proud to support Senate passage of a budget plan that reaches a balance within 10 years, honors bipartisan spending caps, does not raise taxes, and makes it easier for Congress to pass legislation dismantling Obamacare.

By taking these steps, America will be a more fiscally sound and prosperous nation, which will undoubtedly benefit our state's economy and the well-being of all Pennsylvanians.