Year In Review: Congressman Hamadeh Advances America First Principles and Practices

Since before taking office, FOX News named Congressman Abe Hamadeh as one of the "rising stars" in the Democratic and Republican parties expected to emerge in 2025, and that is what he set about doing.

From working with President Trump and his Cabinet members to securing wins on the legislative front, Congressman Hamadeh has advanced America First principles and practices on behalf of his constituents in the nation's Capitol.

"I came to D.C. committed to fight for the principles embodied in the America First agenda as laid out by President Trump; the principles that best serve my constituents. I hit the ground running, and within a very short period of time, I was able to successfully secure a ban on Chinese propaganda from the People's House. The popularity of the ban even prompted a ban in the UK House of Commons, proving that these fundamental principles are universally what the public wants and following them will keep us on the right track," stated Congressman Hamadeh.

Buoyed by that initial and almost immediate win, Congressman Hamadeh continued working tirelessly in a bipartisan manner to fight for his constituents' top priorities.

In his first year, Congressman Hamadeh and his team met with thousands of residents, conducting over 450 tours for visitors from Congressional District 8.

Congressman Hamadeh's team has successfully closed over 600 constituent cases to date and returned nearly $2 million to constituents despite the democrats' government shutdown.

Keeping his promise to veterans, two of the very first bills he introduced as a Member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, the Edith Nourse Rogers STEM Scholarship Opportunity Act and the Health Professionals Scholarship Program (HPSP) Improvement Act of 2025, were unanimously passed in the U.S. House of Representatives.

In March, Congressman Hamadeh reached out to FBI Director Kash Patel, advocating for the men and women of the Phoenix Police Department who had been the victims of the Biden Administration's weaponization of the Department of Justice. Thanks to Congressman Hamadeh's doggedness, the DOJ officially ended its investigation into the Phoenix Police Department (PPD, retracting previous Biden-era findings of widespread constitutional violations, citing the move as ending a "failed experiment" with consent decrees and upholding local control.

That same month, Congressman Hamadeh's Congressional Fitness Challenge bill won the support of NFL Hall of Famer Brett Favre and former NFL player Antonio Brown ("AB"). "Iron Mike" Tyson threw his support behind H.Con.Res.20, which establishes the Congressional Fitness Challenge, calling it "bold" and necessary. It was deemed so necessary that President Trump followed suit and reinstated the Presidential Fitness Challenge. Congressman Hamadeh and his team are preparing to support the President in bringing the fitness initiative to Congressional District 8 in order to build a stronger, healthier future for our kids.

At the end of the month, Congressman Hamadeh was honored to be invited to meet with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. Over dinner, Congressman Hamadeh participated in a discussion about how to advance President Trump's intelligence agenda.

In April, keeping his vow to his constituents to secure election integrity, Congressman Hamadeh introduced the Proving Residency for Overseas Voter Eligibility (PROVE) Act.

The legislation will amend the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) to require non-military overseas citizens to prove their current residency in a state in which they are attempting to vote.

If they are unable to prove a current resident status by themselves, their spouse, parent, or legal guardian, U.S. citizens may still vote a federal ballot only in the District of Columbia.

Congressman Hamadeh also co-led the Preventing Ranked Choice Corruption Act. The legislation, which amends the Help America Vote Act, will help American citizens vote by prohibiting the confusing and disenfranchising voting scheme of Ranked Choice Voting.

Congressman Hamadeh then co-sponsored a bill to support and codify President Donald Trump's election integrity agenda.

By codifying President Trump's Executive Order 14248, entitled Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections, Congressman Hamadeh's bill would make law an extensive list of necessary measures, including government-issued proof of U.S. citizenship, security standards for voting equipment, enforcement of the voter-list maintenance, requiring voter-verifiable paper ballots, and prosecuting non-citizen voting and related crimes.

In May, Congressman Hamadeh joined President Donald Trump, along with top executives from companies including Nvidia, Johnson & Johnson, Eli Lilly, GE Aerospace, and SoftBank, to celebrate their increasing investment in the U.S.

Congressman Hamadeh thanked President Trump for his bold leadership, which led to TSMC making the largest single foreign direct investment in U.S. history. Much of TSMC's investment is made in Congressional District 8.

Congressman Hamadeh had the pleasure of meeting with Secretary of Veterans Affair Doug Collins in May to share the concerns of veterans in Congressional District 8 and how the VA can best serve them. They also discussed what legislative actions the Congressman could take to facilitate the vital reforms sought by the Trump administration.

Peace through strength is a priority for both Congressman Hamadeh and President Trump; in fact, it is what CD8 residents voted for. As a result, Congressman Hamadeh has worked closely with Ambassador Tom Barrack Tom Barrack, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, to gain the Syrian government's assistance in locating and returning USA citizens or their remains, including the body of Kayla Mueller.

In August, Congressman Hamadeh made an unprecedented trip from Jerusalem to Damascus to meet with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani to discuss the Congressman's continuing effort to bring Kayla Mueller's body to her family in Arizona. Kayla was abducted by terrorists in 2013 while leaving a Doctors Without Borders hospital in Aleppo, Syria.

Over the course of his first year in office, as a member of the House Armed Services Committee, Congressman Hamadeh worked across the aisle to secure wins for our national security, Arizona industry, and servicemembers during the National Defense Authorization Act development process.

In September, the FY26 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was passed on a bipartisan vote of 231-196. Congressman Hamadeh was proud to vote in favor of this historic legislation that includes key support for our service members.

Congressman Hamadeh successfully led the charge for Arizona's military communities, installations, and defense industrial base-delivering bipartisan wins for Arizona:

• Reliable Air Conditioning for Luke Air Force Base
• Investment in the Sharpest Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance Satellite Imagery
• Suicide Prevention Oversight for Servicemembers
• Collaborative Combat Aircraft Propulsion Development
• Increased Investment in Dump Trucks for the Arizona Army National Guard
• Recognition of Arizona State University-Led Irregular Warfare Consortium
• Saving Mesa's Apache Helicopter Factory Jobs

Congressman Hamadeh was honored to be among a handful of Republican lawmakers who joined President Donald Trump for the inaugural event of the new "Rose Garden Club" in September.

Closing out the year, Congressman Hamadeh once again earned constituents' support and national attention when he was joined by Angel families in December to announce the introduction of the American Border Story Memorial Act.

"Angel families" are those families who have lost loved ones to the ravages created by former President Joe Biden's broken border and the cartels' deadly drug trade. The bill has already amassed an impressive number of cosponsors.

This legislation would establish a permanent memorial in Washington, D.C. to honor the victims of the open border and illegal immigration. No taxpayer dollars will be used to build the memorial wall. The memorial complies fully with the Commemorative Works Act and will be established by The American Border Story (TABS), a nonprofit organization.

Congressman Hamadeh believes that while these families are often featured in discussions advocating stricter immigration enforcement and border security, their personal loss should be memorialized, and the wall will also serve as a reminder of the costs of bad policy.

Angel family members in attendance included Mary Ann Mendoza; mother of Sgt. Brandon Mendoza, Agnes Judit Gibboney; mother of Ronald Da Silva, Joe Abraham; father of Katie Abraham, Anne Fundner; mother of Weston Fundner, Jane Gray; mother of Nicole Gray, Wanda Dequardo; mother of Christian Knight, and Anatoly Varfolomeev; father of Anya Varfolomeev. The families shared their stories of loss and what this bill means to them during the holiday season.

Now, Congressman Hamadeh is urging his colleagues to pass two bills he introduced, the Service Members Tax Relief Act and the Tax Cuts for Veterans Act, which amend the tax code to exempt all military income earned by active-duty and reserve service members and all service-related retirement payments from federal income taxes.

"These bills are in keeping with my commitment to America First principles and advance President Trump's Peace Through Strength agenda by alleviating the burdens on our service members in some small measure," stated Congressman Hamadeh. "Our service members face high operational demands and cost-of-living pressures that outpace pay tables. So, anything we can cost-effectively do to ease those pressures should be done."

"These bills are fiscally conservative in that they offer relief through the tax code instead of new spending," explained Congressman Hamadeh. "It is a win-win; the exemption instantly improves take-home pay, while helping with recruitment and retention, which in turn keeps our war fighters strong."

"I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish this year, but there is more to do, and my team and I are ready," stated Congressman Hamadeh. "I have full confidence that my bills to amend the tax code to exempt all military income earned by active-duty and reserve service members and all service-related retirement payments from federal income taxes will have wide support in 2026 from my fellow Republicans and even a few Democrats."

"2025 was exciting. I have learned so much from my constituents and colleagues about what we need to do to put America first and how to get that done," stated Congressman Hamadeh. "For 2026, my New Year's resolution is to never stop putting America First and never stop fighting for my constituents."