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Search Senator Leahy’s press releases, floor statements, and Committee speeches by date or by subject.
Senate Panel Approves Nomination To D.C. Circuit
(Thursday, October 31, 2013) -- The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday continued its work of processing judicial vacancies by approving the nomination of Robert Wilkins to serve on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Wilkins would fill one of three vacancies on the 11-seat court. The Committee's approval of Judge Wilkins's nomination comes as the full Senate is poised to consider another nominee to the D.C. Circuit, Patricia Millett. Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said the Senate must confir… Continue Reading
10.31.13
Statement of Chairman Patrick Leahy Business Meeting Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act
The antitrust laws play a key role in promoting competition and protecting consumers. Criminal violations of these laws, which include offenses like price fixing, have a particularly negative effect on consumers. Proper enforcement of the antitrust laws ensures a free and fair marketplace where companies compete and consumers benefit. The bipartisan Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act will aid in the enforcement of these laws by protecting those who blow the whistle on criminal antitrust … Continue Reading
10.31.13
For Freedom's Sake
On Tuesday Senator Pat Leahy introduced the USA Freedom Act. It would dramatically curtail the National Security Agency's dragnet domestic surveillance programs by creating privacy advocates in the FISA Courts, requiring transparency of the secret court's decisions, and obligating the government to justify the collection of Americans' communications before doing so. A companion bill was introduced in the House by Wisconsin Representative Jim Sensenbrenner (R). The House bill is particularly no… Continue Reading
10.30.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On Reports Of NSA Break-In Of Email Data Centers
[Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following comment Wednesday responding to reports that communications links between the data centers of Internet companies Google and Yahoo were infiltrated by the National Security Administration. This week, Leahy introduced the bipartisan USA FREEDOM Act with Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.) that would require greater oversight, transparency, and accountability with respect to the government's surveillance authorities… Continue Reading
10.30.13
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), House-Senate Farm Bill Conference Committee
At long last, we are convening to reconcile our differences and enact a meaningful Farm Bill. I hope we will work in the same bipartisan spirit that has guided every Farm Bill conference of which I have been a part - and there have been seven of them since 1981. It has been 13 months since the last Farm Bill expired. I hear from farmers and rural communities in Vermont every day, telling me how imperative it is that we overcome our differences. This is not only a Farm Bill; it is a trade bill… Continue Reading
10.30.13
Leahy: Senate Should Confirm Millett To The D.C. Circuit Court
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Wednesday called on Republicans to support the nomination of Patricia Millett to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Millett is nominated to the court's ninth seat, a seat which was last filled by John Roberts, who was confirmed by voice vote in 2003 before his elevation to the Supreme Court. "Patricia Millett is an extraordinary nominee with impeccable credentials for this important appellate court," Leahy said. "I hope that her co… Continue Reading
10.30.13
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the United States Parole Commission Extension Act of 2013, H.R. 3190
The United States Parole Commission is scheduled to expire tomorrow. After significant bicameral negotiations, two weeks ago, the House of Representatives passed by unanimous consent a bipartisan bill, H.R. 3190, to reauthorize the Commission for five years. Public safety demands that we pass this legislation swiftly and I urge the Senate to support its immediate enactment. We should have passed this bill weeks ago, but a single Republican hold has placed us in the precarious position of seeki… Continue Reading
10.29.13
AT-A-GLANCE SUMMARY: THE USA FREEDOM ACT (LEAHY-SENSENBRENNER)
At-A-Glance SUMMARY: The USA FREEDOM Act (Leahy-Sensenbrenner) Public revelations about classified government surveillance programs have brought renewed attention to the powerful authorities contained in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), and in particular the implications for the privacy rights of law-abiding Americans. The bipartisan, bicameral USA FREEDOM Act will rein in the dragnet collection of data by the National Security Agency (NSA), increase the transparency of … Continue Reading
10.29.13
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Introduction of the USA FREEDOM Act of 2013
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, was enacted 35 years ago to limit the government's ability to engage in domestic surveillance operations. In the years since September 11, 2001, Congress has repeatedly expanded the scope of this law to provide the government with broad new powers to gather information about law-abiding Americans. No one underestimates the threat this country continues to face, and we can all agree that the intelligence community should be given necessary and… Continue Reading
10.29.13
Leahy & Sensenbrenner Join To Introduce USA FREEDOM Act
- Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.), chairman of the Crime and Terrorism Subcommittee in the House, introduced on Tuesday legislation that seeks to restore Americans' privacy rights by ending the government's dragnet collection of phone records and requiring greater oversight, transparency, and accountability with respect to domestic surveillance authorities. "The government surveillance programs conducted under the Foreign Su… Continue Reading
10.29.13
Leahy, Senators To Join With Military Spouses TODAY In Calling For The Confirmation Of Patricia Millett To The D.C. Circuit
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) will be joined by a host of Democratic Senators and military spouses at a press conference TODAY to call for the confirmation of Patricia Millett to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Millett's nomination will be debated in the Senate this week. Millett is nominated to fill one of three vacancies on the D.C. Circuit. If confirmed, she would fill the seat previously held by Chief Justice John Roberts. Millett has served in the Office of t… Continue Reading
10.28.13
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the 27th Anniversary of the Enactment Of The Electronic Communications Privacy Act
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), one of the Nation's premiere digital privacy laws, was enacted 27 years ago on October 21st. I join the many privacy advocates, technology organizations, legal scholars and other Americans who celebrate this milestone and all that ECPA has come to symbolize about the importance of safeguarding our privacy rights in cyberspace. When I introduced ECPA with former Republican Senator Charles Mathias in 1986, I said that "the privacy protections in … Continue Reading
10.25.13
SJC To Hold Oversight Hearing On Bureau Of Prisons
The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold an oversight hearing on the Bureau of Prisons in two weeks, Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) announced Friday. The hearing, which will be chaired by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), is part of the Committee's regular oversight function and will also explore cost-effective ways to reduce recidivism. The government spends $6.4 billion annually on federal prisons, which is around one-quarter of the Department of Justice budget. The Judiciary Committee held i… Continue Reading
10.25.13
Vermont Law Enforcement Agencies Receive Funds To Purchase Bulletproof Vests Under Leahy-Authored Grant Program
(FRIDAY, Oct. 25, 2013) - Law enforcement officers in 31 Vermont towns, cities and counties will receive critical funding to purchase bulletproof vests under the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), an original coauthor of the legislation creating the program, hailed the news and called on lawmakers to support the program by passing a reauthorization bill currently pending in the Senate. The Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program, established in 1998 th… Continue Reading
10.23.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, On The House Proposal To Combat Patent Trolls
[Judiciary Committee Chairman Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following comment Wednesday after introduction of legislation in the House to combat patent troll abuse. Leahy is working on bipartisan legislation to protect retailers and innovators from misuse of the patent system and has been coordinating with House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) on the issue.] "I commend Chairman Goodlatte on introduction of legislation to combat patent trolling. This is an issue on… Continue Reading
10.18.13
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, On The Nomination Of Jeh Johnson To Be The Secretary Of Homeland Security
The Department of Homeland Security is an agency charged with handling matters related to immigration, disaster relief and national security, and several of these issues have been at the forefront of the Judiciary Committee's legislative agenda this year. Jeh Johnson possesses many qualifications needed to lead the Department, and I intend to raise with him many of the Judiciary Committee's priorities. I appreciated his leadership and work related to the repeal of the Department of Defense's Don… Continue Reading
10.18.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Death Of Former House Speaker Tom Foley
Tom was a real leader in the House, and he knew how to bring both parties together for the good of all Americans. Marcelle and I send our best wishes to Heather and the family, to their friends, and to Tom's former staff. # # # # #… Continue Reading
10.16.13
Reaction Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt., President Pro Tempore) To The Senate’s Bipartisan Agreement To Reopen Government And Prevent Default
As the ripples of the Tea Party shutdown have cascaded through every community and across the nation, they have hurt families, workers and businesses everywhere. If this extremist faction had been able to push the United States into default, our economy could have been thrown back into a deep recession. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed in the Senate today. Now we can finally vote on the path forward that President Obama and congressional Democrats have long urged, to get past these manufa… Continue Reading
10.15.13
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy Local Economies and Natural Resources Hurt By The Artificial, Made-In-Washington Shutdown
Late last month, I was fortunate to enjoy the most lovely settings to be found anywhere, anytime, as Vermont's hillsides were painted orange, yellow and red by peak Fall colors, set against powder blue skies. Vermonters love these sublime few weeks, and happily welcome visitors from around the United States, and around the world, to share the experience, and to hike, bike, fish and hunt one our extensive conserved natural areas. But the "best of times" has become the "worst of times," as Ve… Continue Reading
10.14.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Arrest And Prosecution Of Abu Anas al-Libi
"The United States is the most powerful nation in the world, and we have a justice system that is second to none. The administration's decision to prosecute Anas al-Libi in an Article III Federal Court shows that the United States acts out of strength and not out of fear. We are not afraid of terrorists, nor are we afraid to bring them to justice in our courts. I commend the intelligence and law enforcement officials who have worked for more than a decade to bring al-Libi to face justice. Th… Continue Reading
