Jacob Ogles
Horses won’t be on the menu in America, thanks to legislative language introduced by U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan.
Provisions originally included in Buchanan’s Safeguarding American Food Exports Act were signed into law as part of a consolidated appropriations bill.
That makes the bill one of five the Sarasota Republican managed to get to the Oval Office and signed by President Donald Trump in 2019.
Buchanan touted the bipartisan nature of the legislative victories this year.
“We have far more that unites us than divides us,” Buchanan said. “We need more civility and less partisanship in Washington.”
Work on issues with broad support made for a successful session for Buchanan, despite this being the first time in nearly a decade he went to Washington part of the minority caucus. But a seat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee and knowledge of the process achieved over the course of seven terms let Buchanan get legislation across the finish line.
Often, legislation that originated in Buchanan’s office ended up on Trump’s desk as part of larger bills.
His Fentanyl Sanctions Act passed as part of the National Defense Authorization. That lays out economic penalties for Chinese pharmaceutical companies knowingly shipping synthetic opioids into the U.S.
The Retirement Security for Workers Act, which expands availability of benefits packages, and the Rescuing Animals With Rewards Act, which boosts bounties on poachers, were signed as part of budget bills.
But he also got legislation passed all on its own. He championed a ban on extreme forms of animal abuse, the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act, along with Boca Raton Democrat Ted Deutch, and went to the Oval Office as the President signed the bill into law.
In total, Buchanan’s office said the Representative has seen 22 initiatives signed into law over the course of three presidential administrations. A dozen of those were signed into law by Trump.
But Democratic President Barack Obama also signed six Buchanan bills into law. And even as a freshman lawmaker, Buchanan saw four initiatives passed under Republican President George W. Bush.
