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Search Senator Leahy’s press releases, floor statements, and Committee speeches by date or by subject.
REAX of Appropriations Vice Chair Patrick Leahy To Guatemalan Govt’s Request That UN SecGen Propose A Replacement For The CICIG Commissioner
"The Constitutional Court of Guatemala has rightly rejected attempts by President Morales to summarily expel the CICIG Commissioner. For a public official to remove an international prosecutor who, jointly with the Attorney General, has initiated a criminal investigation against that official, threatens the judicial process. Absent a showing of misconduct, such interference would undermine the office of the Commissioner and deter future prosecutors from carrying out their responsibilities inde… Continue Reading
09.17.18
REAX Of Senator Leahy To The Trump Administration's Announcement Of The Lowest Number Of Refugees To Be Admitted In U.S. History
"In so many ways, this White House has shown a particular contempt for the world's most vulnerable people seeking refuge from persecution and war. What previous Republican and Democratic administrations believed was a moral responsibility - and a way to demonstrate that unmatched American power is derived in part from how we treat the powerless among us - the Trump administration shamelessly treats as a burden to be callously discarded. "As disheartening as this abdication of leadership is, s… Continue Reading
09.17.18
Judiciary Committee Democrats (including Senator Leahy): Reopen Kavanaugh FBI Background Investigatio
All 10 Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee today urged White House Counsel Don McGahn to request that the FBI reopen Brett Kavanaugh's background investigation. The senators wrote: "It is our understanding that the FBI conducts background investigations of nominees at the White House's request. Accordingly, the President can request an appropriate follow-up, even after a background investigation may be closed. We ask that the President immediately do so here." Full text of the… Continue Reading
09.17.18
Leahy And Other Senators File Suit For Hidden Kavanaugh Documents
U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), joined by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and others, are filing a lawsuit to compel the National Archives and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to release all records involving Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh during his time as an associate in the White House Counsel's office and as White House Staff Secretary. The senators are represented in this effort by American Oversight, a nonpartisan ethics and accountability watchdog. Also joining the l… Continue Reading
09.17.18
BREAKING: Comment Of Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), On Judiciary Committee Democrats Demanding That Kavanaugh Vote Be Postponed Due To New Allegations
Dr. Ford has shown courage and deserves to be heard, to be treated with respect, and to have her detailed allegations evaluated by professionals trained on trauma-informed investigations. The integrity of our nation's highest court is on the line. We cannot brush aside these extraordinarily serious allegations in an unseemly rush to confirm Judge Kavanaugh to a lifetime seat. Unimpeachable integrity must never be in doubt. I join my fellow Democratic senators on the Judiciary Committee to d… Continue Reading
09.17.18
BREAKING: Leahy And Other Judiciary Committee Democrats to Grassley: Postpone Kavanaugh Vote, Investigate Allegations
All 10 Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, including Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Monday urged Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to postpone Thursday's vote on Brett Kavanaugh's nomination, to allow the FBI to investigate Dr. Ford's allegations and follow up on Kavanaugh's false and misleading committee testimony. The senators wrote: "As you are aware, Dr. Ford's serious allegations were submitted to the FBI for investigation last week. Now that her story is public, it is e… Continue Reading
09.14.18
Senator Patrick Leahy Gives The Weekly Democratic Address, On The Kavanaugh Supreme Court Nomination
"The American people just witnessed an unprecedented week of Supreme Court hearings for President Trump's nominee, Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Now I have been in the Senate for 44 years, that's a time that includes 19 nominations to the Supreme Court - more than any other sitting Senator. And I do not use the word unprecedented lightly," said Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT). "We must protect women's constitutional rights, vulnerable individuals with pre-existing conditions, protect the rule of law from … Continue Reading
09.13.18
Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Releases Summary For Defense/LHHS “Minibus” Appropriations Package
Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) released a summary compiled by the Senate Appropriations Committee Minority staff of the conference agreement for the Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies "minibus" appropriations package. Leahy said: "This agreement invests in the American people and ensures that the government remains open into December. Just as importantly, Congress, Republicans and Democrats, rejected President Trump'… Continue Reading
09.13.18
Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Leahy Statement At House-Senate Conference On The Interior, FSGG, Agriculture, T-HUD Minibus Appropriations Bill
I am pleased to be here at the third appropriations conference of Fiscal Year 2019. We have made a lot of progress toward an agreement on the four bills before us - Interior, Financial Services, Agriculture, and Transportation-HUD - that will allow us to move this package forward, but we still have work to do and differences to resolve. Together these bills demonstrate the importance of the bipartisan budget agreement reached earlier this year. In these four bills, the priorities outlined in … Continue Reading
09.13.18
Appropriations Package Includes “E-File” Campaign Finance Requirement For Senate Candidates
The Senate passed a package of appropriations bills Thursday that contained a provision requiring Senate candidates to electronically file campaign finance forms directly to the Federal Election Commission, announced Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). Under current law, candidates for the United States Senate must submit paper copies to the Secretary of the Senate who then files the forms to the Federal Election Commission. This process can delay the public re… Continue Reading
09.13.18
Leahy Protects Funding For Vermont-Based PTSD Research And Treatment Facility
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced a package of appropriations bills approved by the Senate Thursday protects $40 million in funding for the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Consultation Program, run out of the National Center for PTSD at White River Junction, Vt. The PTSD Consultation Program was created by Leahy in fiscal year 2013 and faced a $20 million, or 50 percent, cut in President Trump's fiscal year 2019 budget. With bi… Continue Reading
09.13.18
Appropriations Vice Chair Leahy Wins Significant Increase In Funding For Economic Development In Vermont Border Counties
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced Thursday that a package of appropriations bills approved by the Senate includes $20 million in Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC) grant funding, a $5 million increase over the previous year. The grants are part of a continuing effort, long supported by Leahy, to revitalize communities in Northern Vermont. It included an increase of $1 million, for a total $4 million, for a second year of funding… Continue Reading
09.13.18
Appropriations Vice Chair Leahy Announces Funding To Pay All Congressional Interns
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced Thursday that a package of appropriations bills approved by the Senate includes funding to pay congressional interns for the first time. The package includes $8.8 million to pay House interns and $5 million to pay Senate interns. The Senate funds will be in included in accounts used to pay staff and provides an average of $50,000 to each Senate office, an amount which varies by state. The $8.8 mill… Continue Reading
09.13.18
Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy Statement on the Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Conference Report
I am pleased to be here at the second appropriations conference of Fiscal Year 2019. The two bills before us-the Defense Appropriations bill, and the Labor, HHS, and Education bills-are the product of months of hard work and bipartisan cooperation, and I am pleased that we have been able to work out all of the differences between the House and Senate bills. These bills make important investments not only in our national security but also in the future of our country. Together they demons… Continue Reading
09.10.18
REAX Of Senator Leahy (D-Vt.) To The State Department's Announcement That The U.S. Will Order The Closure Of The PLO Office In Washington, DC
"A year and 9 months after President Trump's inauguration we have yet to see anything remotely resembling a credible plan for peace in the Middle East. Instead, all sides, including the White House, have taken unnecessary and provocative steps that make good-faith negotiations less likely and that have harmed innocent people. Forcing the PLO office in Washington to close will make the situation worse by cutting off one of the few official channels of communication with the Palestinians. Cutti… Continue Reading
09.06.18
Leahy Statement On Defending The Rule Of Law In Guatemala
The decision, announced last Friday, by Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales to not renew the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) after its current term expires next September, was a profound mistake. That mistake was further compounded on Tuesday when the government announced that the CICIG Commissioner, Ivan Velasquez, a respected Colombian jurist, had been summarily declared a "national security threat" and barred from re-entering the country. That is the kind of f… Continue Reading
09.06.18
Senate Floor Remarks Of Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy On FY 2019 Appropriations Bills: “A Path Forward”
In the last few months, the Senate has achieved record progress in processing appropriations bills. As we return from the Labor Day weekend, the Senate has already passed 9 of the 12 Appropriations bills by overwhelming margins and the Appropriations Committee has reported the remaining 3 bills with bipartisan support. The end of the fiscal year is only few short weeks away, but, because of the record pace of our work, there is no reason that we cannot conference all of these bills with th… Continue Reading
09.05.18
Opening Statement Of Senator Leahy At The 2018 Farm Bill Conference
I am glad we are convening today to reconcile our differences and enact a meaningful Farm Bill. Chairman Roberts and Ranking Member Stabenow, thank you for your commitment to a bipartisan process in crafting the Senate Farm Bill. As a former Chairman of this Committee, I know how much work goes into crafting a bill of this scope and substance. I have every expectation that if we work in the same bipartisan spirit that has guided the first seven Farm Bill conferences that I have been a part, we … Continue Reading
09.05.18
Leahy: $1 Million Granted To Vermont And Other States To Combat White Nose Syndrome
U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) announced Wednesday that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service continues to support the fight against the bat-killing fungal disease white nose syndrome (WNS) by awarding $1 million in grants to 39 states, including Vermont, and the District of Columbia. Leahy, Vice Chairman of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, has championed research and prevention of WNS, adding $1 million to this year's FWS science support budget, for a total of $3.5 million. The Sta… Continue Reading
09.05.18
Statement of Vice Chairman Leahy On The Conference Meeting For The "Minibus I" Appropriations Bill
I am pleased to be here for the first conference of the FY 2019 Appropriations season. The "minibus" before us contains three important appropriations bills. This minibus provides important resources for the support and care of our Nation's veterans, and it makes critical investments in our country's water infrastructure and energy programs. It also provides support to numerous agencies under the umbrella of the Legislative Branch. We have made a lot of progress toward an agreement that wil… Continue Reading
