Press Room
Press Releases
Search Senator Leahy’s press releases, floor statements, and Committee speeches by date or by subject.
Comment On White House Release Of Summary Of The Inventory Files Related To Fort Hood Shooting
"The preliminary findings on the Fort Hood shooting that were released by the White House today once again reflect the critical need for effective information sharing and analysis by government agencies. The administration has already identified similar concerns in connection with the failed Christmas Day incident in Detroit. As I have said in recent weeks, I am concerned that, more than eight years after 9/11, we are not yet adequately analyzing critical information related to threats … Continue Reading
01.15.10
Vermont Congressional Delegation Requests NRC Investigation Into Radioactive Leak Risks At Vermont Yankee
Vermont's Congressional Delegation - Sen. Patrick Leahy (D), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I), and Rep. Peter Welch (D) - Friday asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to conduct a thorough investigation into whether there was any attempt by Vermont Yankee officials to mislead state officials regarding the plant's safety and underground piping. Press reports have suggested that officials from Entergy, which owns the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, may have provided inaccurate information to i… Continue Reading
01.15.10
Comments On Temporary Protected Status for Haitian Nationals in the United States
"I commend Secretary Napolitano for granting temporary protected status to Haitian nationals in the United States. The overwhelming devastation of Tuesday's earthquake calls for a humanitarian response at every level, including through immediate search and rescue, medical assistance, food and shelter, and long-term rebuilding. The Secretary's action today bolsters the Administration's swift humanitarian response and I applaud the Secretary for making this decision without undue delay. … Continue Reading
01.15.10
President To Nominate Veteran Economic Development Specialist Molly Lambert As USDA Rural Development State Director For Vermont And New Hampshire
- The White House announced Friday that President Obama has accepted the recommendation of Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and will nominate veteran economic development specialist Molly Lambert to be the U.S. Department of Agriculture's State Director for Rural Development for Vermont and New Hampshire. Leahy said, "For more than two decades, Molly Lambert has invested her time and skills in advancing economic development in Vermont. She has already cemented long-lasting partnerships around… Continue Reading
01.14.10
Leahy Leads a Repeal Effort
Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont and chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and 18 other senators sent a letter to President Obama and Democratic Congressional leaders on Wednesday urging them to repeal the limited exemption for insurers from federal antitrust laws in the final version of major health care legislation. Mr. Leahy had put forward a proposal to repeal the antitrust exemption, which was approved by Congress in 1945. But the proposal was dropped from the Senate version of… Continue Reading
01.14.10
Comments On President Obama’s Remarks On The Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee
"I share President Obama's commitment to recovering taxpayers' investment in sustaining the nation's top financial institutions. I supported efforts to respond to the financial crisis in order to prevent the country from sliding into a possible economic depression. While our economy has shown signs of progress in recent months, I with all Vermonters am outraged by reports of continued misuses of government funds by companies that received taxpayers' dollars. This is the same type of greed and… Continue Reading
01.14.10
Vermont’s Rhino Foods To Receive $1.2 Million In Loan Assistance
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded Vermont's Rhino Foods, Inc. $1.2 million in loan assistance through the Rural Development's Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan Program, Senator Patrick Leahy, Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Peter Welch announced Thursday. The loan guarantee was made possible through funding available in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Rhino Foods, Inc., located in Burlington, produces and distributes ice cream novelties and ingredients. … Continue Reading
01.13.10
Leahy, 18 Senators Press For Antitrust Repeal In Health Care Compromise
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and 18 Senators today sent a letter to President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging the leaders to press for inclusion of language to repeal the federal antitrust exemption for health insurers and medical malpractice insurers in the final compromise on health reform legislation. Leaders in the Senate and House are working with the administration to negotiate final compromise language to reconcile the differing health ref… Continue Reading
01.13.10
Leahy Applauds State Action On Pilot Program To Get Heavy Trucks Out Of Vermont Downtowns
U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Wednesday applauded the Vermont Legislature and Governor Douglas for moving quickly to implement a federal pilot program to reduce heavy truck traffic in downtown communities across Vermont. The bill won approval in the Vermont House and Senate on Tuesday, and Governor Douglas signed it into law Wednesday afternoon. In December, Leahy authored federal legislation to establish a one-year pilot program in Vermont to allow heavier trucks to travel on the state's… Continue Reading
01.13.10
Vermont Receives $3.7 Million in LIHEAP Home Heating Funds
The Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday released $3.7 million in home heating assistance to Vermont, announced Sen. Patrick Leahy, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Peter Welch. The grant is part of a nationwide release of $1.2 billion in Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding to help eligible families pay for the cost of heating their homes. The funds are the second installment of regular LIHEAP block grants to be released this fiscal year. The program was funded… Continue Reading
01.12.10
Leahy: Burlington Coast Guard Station To Receive New Rescue Air Boat
BURLINGTON, Vt. - U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and the U.S. Coast Guard announced Tuesday that the Coast Guard will soon deploy an air boat to Station Burlington to assist in ice rescues on Lake Champlain. The new air boat will enable Coast Guard personnel to respond more quickly to incidents on the ice. The importance of the new rescue equipment was highlighted last weekend when a tragic snowmobile accident on Lake Dunmore claimed three lives. In addition to unusually thin ice this ye… Continue Reading
01.11.10
Leahy: I-89 North Corridor Excels During Tough Economy
MILTON, Vt. - During a visit to Milton's Ascension Technology Monday, U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy got a firsthand look at the work Ascension Technology, Milton's Omni Medical Systems, and Georgia (Vt.)-based Liquid Measurement Systems (LMS) are delivering for the Department of Defense using $8.4 million in Leahy-secured funding for research and development. Leahy met with the firms' leadership and economic development professionals from the Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation and the Frank… Continue Reading
01.08.10
Comment On The Death Of Vermont Artist Stephen Huneck
"Stephen and Gwen Huneck have long been two of Vermont's most talented citizens. Marcelle and I enjoyed visiting them at their home in the Northeast Kingdom and especially loved seeing their dog chapel. Stephen's unique art has brought years of pleasure to the Leahy family, as it has to thousands of people around the world. Stephen was a friend whose work I have displayed in my offices in Washington and Vermont, and in our home. People always enjoy seeing his distinctive work, and few can re… Continue Reading
01.08.10
GE in Rutland Wins $12 Million Clean Energy Stimulus
General Electric Aviation in Rutland, Vt., was awarded $11.9 million in tax credits for a clean energy manufacturing project, Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) announced today. GE Aviation will take advantage of the tax credit to buy machinery and equipment for manufacturing a new aircraft engine designed to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce fuel consumption. The award to the Vermont manufacturer was one of 183 for proj… Continue Reading
01.07.10
Vermont Delegation Urges President Obama to Release Emergency Home Heating Funds
, January 7 - Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) today signed a letter to President Obama urging him to release $590 million in emergency home heating assistance. Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) signed a separate House letter making the same request. Sanders last year authored legislation cosponsored by Leahy that doubled funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program to $5.1 billion, the highest funding level in the program's history. Welch sponsored companion legislati… Continue Reading
01.07.10
Comments On Preliminary Report On Christmas Day Airline Plot
"The preliminary findings outlined in the unclassified report released by the Obama administration present a chilling narrative of how, once again, information that could have prevented the incident in Detroit on Christmas Day was not adequately integrated and analyzed by our intelligence agencies. The failure to both share information and to connect the dots were singled out after September 11th. Eight years later, inadequate analysis of critical information remains of paramount concern. "In… Continue Reading
01.06.10
Vermonter Picked For New USDA Dairy Advisory Committee
(WEDNESDAY, Jan. 6) - Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said Wednesday that a Vermonter -- Paul C. Bourbeau of Swanton -- has been selected as one of 17 members of the newly established and long awaited U.S. Department of Agriculture Dairy Industry Advisory Committee. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced creation of the panel last August to review the issues of farm milk price volatility, and dairy farmer profitability, and the committee's members were announced Wednesday. The committe… Continue Reading
01.06.10
New Year Brings Good News In A Tough Economy To Vermont’s Revision Eyewear:
ESSEX, Vt. - During a tour Wednesday of the firm's newly expanded manufacturing facility in Essex, Senator Patrick Leahy and Revision Eyewear CEO Jonathan Blanshay Wednesday announced $2.4 million in additional funding has been made available for the U.S. Army to supply soldiers with state-of-the-art protective goggles. The new funding, written into law by Leahy in this year's defense appropriations bill, comes less than a month after Revision delivered 26,000 sets of protective eyewear to the … Continue Reading
01.06.10
Vermont Green Jobs Training Awarded $5 Million
, January 6 - A $4.8 million economic stimulus grant awarded today to the Central Vermont Community Action Council will train about 2,400 Vermonters under a green jobs program authored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). The Vermont grant - one of 25 announced by the U.S. Department of Labor - was among the largest awarded under the $100 million Energy Training Partnership program. The awards ranged from $1.4 million to $5 million. "One way to move our country toward energy independence, slow globa… Continue Reading
01.05.10
Comment On On President Obama’s Announcement Of Increased Airline Security Measures
"Americans understand the need for increased vigilance and heightened security following the Christmas Day plot in Detroit. The administration is undertaking efforts to investigate where inter-agency communication and airline screening may have broken down to allow for such a serious breach in security. "President Obama was right to call this a 'systemic failure' of our security procedures. This incident reveals the serious issues with airline security methods and information sharing that stil… Continue Reading
