Brendan Boyle

One only needs to read Brendan’s name to become aware of his Irish descent (his dad was an immigrant in the 1970s), but he goes one step further in his role in Congress by fighting for better relations between the U.S. and Ireland. He has reintroduced legislation that would allot certain visas currently reserved for Australian immigrants to the U.S. to Irish immigrants as well. The E-3 visa program allows up to 10,500 Australians in specialty occupations to enter the U.S., though only half of those are typically used. Brendan would like to extend the remaining visas to Irish people in the same capacity. The bill previously died in the Senate, as it needed to pass unanimously and fellow Political Playlist leader (and staunch anti-immigration lawmaker) Tom Cotton (R-AK) voted against it, but Brendan is hopeful that with Democratic control of the Senate he can get it passed.

Being an Irishman from Philly, Brendan ain’t one to mince words, which is why he was among the first to label the events at the Capitol an insurrection. He immediately called for Trump to be impeached, which he later voted for, has said the Senate must convict him, and now he has introduced a resolution in the House calling for a criminal investigation and possible prosecution of the former President. Brendan believes there is already sufficient public evidence to indict, arrest and put Trump on trial, “and if convicted, he should go to prison.” And speaking of Irishmen from Philly, Brendan had some poignant praise for President Biden, putting in perspective his family origins to where his clan now resides: The White House.

After the Constitutional Convention of 1787 Benjamin Franklin said, ‘Doctor, what have we got? A republic or a monarchy?’ Franklin’s oft-repeated reply: ‘A republic if you can keep it.’ Brendan cited Franklin in his official statement, which also calls for an inquiry into the House members who claimed election fraud, saying it was “a ridiculous fantasy” and “nothing short of a seditious subversion of the will of the American people.” Brendan echoed Franklin’s words (as well as throwing in some expletives) on the House floor to defend the Pennsylvania electoral votes. He was also asked by Speaker Pelosi to deliver last week’s National Democratic Address, in which he stated that certifying the election results was about “the survival of our democracy” before voting to impeach the president yesterday.

You need look no further than Brendan’s name to know his Irish heritage and he has been one of the leading voices in Congress to address US-Ireland relations. Recently, he spoke about the US-Britain relationship post-Brexit – namely that the Biden administration will prioritize a deal with the EU over the UK because the EU economy is so much larger. Brendan previously expressed strong opposition to a US-UK trade deal if Brexit violated the 1998 Belfast Agreement (which settled the relationship between Ireland and Northern Ireland and led to peace in Northern Ireland after over 30 years of violence). This violation looks unlikely now, but Brendan is still hoping for a special envoy to Ireland in the Biden administration… perhaps an ideal role for the only member of Congress with an Irish-born parent??

After countless protests swept our country over the summer, we all became well-versed in the crowd-control tactics of law enforcement. Brendan believes that one of the go-to non-lethal tactics – the use of rubber bullets – is in fact rather lethal, which is why he introduced legislation to ban the use of non-lethal (rubber or plastic) bullets in crowd-control situations. According to a National Institute of Health study, of approximately 1,984 people shot between 1990 and 2017 with rubber bullets, 53 of them died from injuries, supporting Brendan’s that these bullets are anything but Non-lethal. Brendan believes that this police tactic sends a dangerously wrong, and sometimes fatal message to citizens exercising the first amendment rights.

How many dog hotels have you seen popping up in your neighborhood? At this point, animals are basically humans, right? Brendan introduced bipartisan legislation called Alternatives to Animals for Regulatory Fairness (AARF) Act to modernize the drug approval process. The act ensures that pharmaceutical companies are allowed to use high-tech and humane alternatives to outdated testing on dogs and other animals to fulfill Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory requirements. Thanks to Brendan, the days of turning a blind eye to some of these harsh but mandated experiences could be numbered.

With 70% of the vote, Brendan coasted to a victory in his Pennsylvania district, offering a stark contrast to the drama the state at-large posed for the presidential tally. With a stronghold on his district and a long resume in Pennsylvania politics (he served in the state House beforehand), Brendan could prove to be a difficult one to unseat in the years to come. This begs the question – what would the potential of Congressional term limits mean for shoe-ins like Brendan?

Brendan is the only member of Congress with an Irish-born parent. He has used his place on the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over international trade agreements, to stand up for Ireland’s interests as Britain threatens to leave the European Union without a deal. In 2019, he introduced legislation that doubled US funding in the International Fund for Ireland, an independent organization that supports economic regeneration and social development. “From my first day in the halls of Congress, I have made it a priority to use my position to address Irish-American issues and to further the U.S.-Ireland relationship.” The Fighting Irish, indeed.

Lung cancer continues to be one of the leading causes of death among Americans, especially young women and veterans. Brendan, co-chair of the Congressional Lung Cancer Caucus, along with his Republican colleague, John Rutherford (Florida), designated November as Lung Cancer Awareness month. Lung cancer is the second most common cancer and is a leading cause of death in the United States. Each year more people die of lung cancer than colon, breast, and prostate cancer combined. Have you or anyone in your life been affected by lung cancer? Looks like you’ll have a little more support now, thanks to Brendan.

There’s no question that our nation is in need of some serious healing right now and Brendan along with some of his Democratic colleagues think they have the answer. They’ve introduced the THRIVE agenda which lays out a roadmap to the creation of 16 million jobs, reviving our economy, and addressing the tornado of crises we find ourselves in (climate change, racial injustice, public health, and economic inequity). It’s backed by several grassroots groups, labor unions, and community leaders across the nation, but the real question is – will they ever be able to get the Republicans on board to support it?