"Tonight, President Obama presented the right analysis of the situation in Afghanistan but reached the wrong conclusion.

Welch's visit to the Foodbank followed the release of a new U.S. Department of Agriculture report showing that 12.1 percent of Vermont households were food insecure for part of 2008 - up from 8.8 percent a decade ago. In the same time period, the number of Vermont households struggling with severe hunger jumped from 2.7 percent to 5.7 percent.

Rep. Peter Welch supported and the House passed legislation late Thursday to permanently reform the Medicare physician payment system.

Rep. Peter Welch on Wednesday urged President Obama to use existing authority and already appropriated recovery funds to create a national home retrofit program. The initiative would seek to make five million homes more energy efficient - creating more than 600,000 jobs and saving homeowners $3 billion a year in energy bills.

According to a New York Times report, Blackwater executives authorized $1 million in bribes to Iraqi Interior Ministry officials in order to silence criticism of the 2007 incident, during which 17 Iraqi civilians were killed.

Welch called for the investigation from Pakistan, where he is taking part in a delegation organized by the Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs.

With Rep. Peter Welch's support, the U.S. House on Saturday night passed historic legislation that will provide health care stability and security to all Americans. After months of debate, the Affordable Health Care for America Act (H.R. 3962) was approved by a vote of 220 to 215.

The landmark legislation will extend access to 36 million people, covering 96 percent of Americans. It will end abusive insurance company practices like denying coverage to those with preexisting conditions and dropping coverage of those who become sick.

H.R. 3962 includes a public health insurance option that will increase patient choice and drive down prices. The bill moves away from the fee-for-service model and focuses on improving patient care.

Rep. Peter Welch on Thursday voted to provide an additional 14 weeks of unemployment benefits to those hit hardest by the recession and to extend the popular First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit until the end of April.

The Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act (H.R. 3548) incorporates two provisions for which Welch has advocated in recent months. At the Essex home of Lindsey and Matt Wignall this October, Welch announced his support for legislation that would extend the First-time Homebuyer tax credit, which provides an $8,000 tax credit to qualifying families. Later that month, Welch sponsored legislation to extend unemployment benefits to nearly every state - not just the 27 states covered in a previously-passed House bill.

The Expedited CARD Reform for Consumers Act (H.R. 3693), which passed the House today by a vote of 331 to 92, will accelerate the implementation of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act (H.R. 627).

The three bills passed with overwhelming, bipartisan support.

"This common sense legislation strengthens our commitment to veterans and military families," Welch said. "By assisting those who have served our country so admirably, we are fulfilling our promise to the best and bravest among us."

Click here for the full text of health care reform legislation introduced today in the U.S. House.