Press Room
Press Releases
Search Senator Leahy’s press releases, floor statements, and Committee speeches by date or by subject.
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy Commemorating Data Privacy Day
Today I join privacy advocates, industry leaders and national, State and local government officials from across our Nation in celebrating Data Privacy Day -- a day to recognize the need to better secure our privacy and security in cyberspace. I am also pleased to join Senators on both sides of the aisle in cosponsoring a Senate resolution to commemorate Data Privacy Day. In the Digital Age, Americans face new threats to their digital privacy and security as consumers and businesses alike coll… Continue Reading
01.25.13
Leahy Announces Witnesses For January 30 Hearing On Gun Violence
(Friday, January 25, 2013) - The Senate Judiciary Committee Friday released a list of witnesses invited to appear at a January 30 Senate hearing focusing on gun violence in America. Earlier this month, in a speech laying out his priorities for the Committee at Georgetown University Law Center, Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) highlighted the need to examine national gun policies and announced his intention to hold the first congressional hearings on gun violence of the 113th Congress. … Continue Reading
01.25.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Report On LGBT Victims Of Domestic And Sexual Violence
[Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), lead author of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013, issued the following comment Friday after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released its first-ever report on domestic and sexual violence in the LGBT community. The study found that lesbians and gay men reported higher rates of intimate partner violence and sexual violence than heterosexuals. The VAWA bill that Leahy introduced Tuesday with Sena… Continue Reading
01.25.13
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy In Support of the Compromise on Senate Rules Reform
During my 38 years in the Senate, I have served with Democratic majorities and Republican majorities, during Republican administrations and Democratic ones. Whether in the majority or the minority, whether the Chairman or Ranking Member of a Committee, I have always stood for the protection of the rights of the minority. Even when the minority has voted differently than I have or opposed what I have supported, I have defended their rights and held to my belief that the best traditions of the S… Continue Reading
01.24.13
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Nomination Of Senator John Kerry To Be Secretary Of State
MR. LEAHY. Mr. President, I commend President Obama for nominating Senator Kerry to be our next Secretary of State. There are few, if any, people in America today who have had the breadth of experience that Senator Kerry has had - as a military officer, as a Lieutenant Governor, as a U.S. Senator, and as the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. He is exceptionally well qualified to be the next Secretary of State. John Kerry is a leader of extraordinary intellect, wisdom and insight… Continue Reading
01.24.13
The Leahy Letter -- Inauguration Photo Special Edition
This inaugural was all the more meaningful that it took place on our national day of remembrance of the life and example of Dr. Martin Luther King. Once again, it was moving especially to see the vast tapestry of so many people drawn together in common purpose on the Mall. And once again it was a special thrill and a point of pride to hear the Marine Band perform under the baton of a fellow Vermonter. The President's address was a bold call to action that he rooted in our enduring ideals. Th… Continue Reading
01.23.13
Leahy Unveils Legislation to Combat Illegal Straw Purchasing and Firearms Trafficking
- U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) introduced legislation Tuesday, the first day that bills can be introduced in the Senate in the new 113th Congress, that aims to combat the practice of straw purchasing and illegal trafficking in firearms. The Stop Illegal Trafficking in Firearms Act of 2013 provides law enforcement officials with the tools they need to investigate and prosecute the all-too-common practice of straw purchasing, where an individual buys a firearm fo… Continue Reading
01.23.13
Leahy, Grassley Introduce Legislation to Protect Whistleblowers in Criminal Antitrust Cases
U.S. Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, introduced legislation Tuesday to extend whistleblower protection for employees who provide information to the Department of Justice related to criminal antitrust violations. The Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act, which the Senators also introduced last Congress, seeks to protect whistleblowers in criminal antitrust cases. It would prohibit an employer from re… Continue Reading
01.23.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On House Stripping Of The Leahy Embassy Security Amendment
[Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., chairs the Subcommittee on the State Department and Foreign Operations of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He is the author of the Leahy Amendment on embassy security to the supplemental appropriations bill passed by the Senate in December, which was removed by Republican leaders in the counterpart bill passed by the House last week.] "In time when a terrorist attack in Algeria has led to security alerts for U.S. facilities abroad, House Republicans once … Continue Reading
01.22.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Judiciary, On The Nomination Of David Medine to be Chairman of The Privacy And Civil Liberties Oversight Board
[U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following comment Tuesday after David Medine was renominated to serve as chairman of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB). The Senate confirmed four PCLOB nominees last year, but Medine's nomination was ultimately returned to the White House.] "I commend President Obama for re-nominating David Medine to serve as the Chairman of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. The PCLOB is an essential… Continue Reading
01.22.13
Leahy, Crapo Reintroduce Bipartisan Bill To Reauthorize The Landmark Violence Against Women Act
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) reintroduced the bipartisan Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act Tuesday-the first day that bills can be introduced in the Senate in the new 113th Congress- and called for the Senate to take up the measure without delay. The bill, which reauthorizes the landmark Violence Against Women Act law that was enacted more than 20 years ago, strengthens and improves existing programs that assist victims and survivors of domestic violen… Continue Reading
01.17.13
Leahy Meets With Hagel -- Comment of Senator Patrick Leahy After His Meeting With Former Senator Chuck Hagel On His Nomination To Be Secretary Of Defense
[Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), President Pro Tem of the Senate, is the most senior member of the Pentagon's budget committee - the Appropriations Committee's Defense Subcommittee - and chairs the Senate National Guard Caucus. He also heads one of the Senate's two committees with responsibility in U.S. foreign affairs and overseas operations, the Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on the State Department and Foreign Operations. Leahy and former Senator Chuck Hagel, the President's nominee… Continue Reading
01.16.13
The Leahy Letter -- January 2013
Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy Outlines Committee's Priorities For The New 113th Congress Senator Patrick Leahy Wednesday listed issues ranging from immigration reform to renewing the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) among his top priorities for the Senate Judiciary Committee, which he will again chair in the new 113th Congress. Speaking before students, reporters and others at the Georgetown University Law Center has become a tradition for Senator Leahy at the start of each new two-year … Continue Reading
01.16.13
Sen. Patrick Leahy Exhibits His Photos From A Political Life
Sen. Patrick Leahy displays, on his own website, a digital gallery of photographs taken since 2008 - though he has, by his own recollection, wielded a camera "since age 4 or 5." The senator is now 72. His shutterbug habit has been noted numerous times in Vermont's media outlets, including this one. He's had photos of momentous events published in such august publications as theNew York Times. So why would Leahy bother with mounting a local exhibit, like the one that opened last Wednesday at the … Continue Reading
01.16.13
Leahy Lays Out Judiciary Committee Agenda For 113th Congress
NOTE: Prepared remarks include Chairman Leahy's announcement that the first Judiciary Committee hearing on issues relating to gun violence (and the first such hearing announced in Congress) will be two weeks from today, Jan. 30. A webcast of the speech can be viewed here. Address By Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee "The Agenda of the Senate Judiciary Committee for the 113th Congress" Georgetown University Law Center It is great to see so many stude… Continue Reading
01.11.13
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On President Obama’s Announcement Of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day
[U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following comment Friday to commemorate National Human Trafficking Awareness Day and reaffirm his commitment to passing the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA), which last year drew 56 cosponsors, including 15 Republicans.] "Trafficking is an affront to human dignity and a generator of human suffering that we cannot ignore. I was disappointed that Congress failed last year to pass the bipartisa… Continue Reading
01.11.13
Leahy, Sanders, Welch: Economic Development Administration Awards $1.8 M. To Help Businesses, Farms, Towns And Nonprofits Harness Online Tools To Bolster Disaster Resiliency
MONTPELIER, Vt. (Friday, Jan. 11, 2013) - Sen. Patrick Leahy, Sen. Bernie Sanders, and Rep. Peter Welch announced Friday that the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded Vermont a $1.8 million grant to help businesses, farms, towns and nonprofits use online resources to bolster disaster resiliency in the wake of Irene and other disasters that struck Vermont in 2011. The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) applied for the grant out of a pool of disaster funding Leahy, S… Continue Reading
01.09.13
Comments of Senator Patrick Leahy On Continuing His Chairmanship Of The Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee On The Department of State, Foreign Operations, And Related Programs
"Vermonters are outward looking and have a long history of working to make life better here at home and across the globe. I have been privileged to serve as a voice for Vermont on foreign policy matters. That is why I have chosen for so many years to head one of the two Senate committees responsible for U.S. foreign affairs and protecting our global interests. "This panel is where American values are put into action and funding decisions are made to advance our national security interests, to… Continue Reading
01.08.13
Leahy To Discuss Judiciary Committee Agenda For 113th Congress In Speech At Georgetown University Law Center
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) will speak on Wednesday, January 16, at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C., where he will discuss legislative priorities for the Senate Judiciary Committee in the 113th Congress. WHO: Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee Introduction by Georgetown University Law Center Dean William M. Treanor WHAT: Remarks on "The Agenda for the Senate Judiciary C… Continue Reading
01.07.13
Comments Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The President’s Intention To Nominate Former Senator Chuck Hagel To Be Secretary Of Defense
I've served with Senator Hagel and I know him to be a person of great ability and integrity. On the Appropriations Committee those of us charged with handling the Senate's work on the Pentagon budget will have to make more than a hundred billion dollars in cuts to begin with, and it will be good to work with someone like Chuck Hagel who can lead the Pentagon during a difficult time of transition. He is a combat veteran who still carries shrapnel in his body from his wounds - he will not need o… Continue Reading
