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Search Senator Leahy’s press releases, floor statements, and Committee speeches by date or by subject.
Comment of Senator Patrick Leahy On the Firing of Acting Attorney General Sally Yates
"Federal courts have already found President Trump's immigration order is very likely unconstitutional, and Acting Attorney General Yates concluded that it was not legally defensible. She was fired for recognizing that her oath is to the Constitution and not to President Trump. His accusation that she has 'betrayed the Department of Justice' is wrong and it is dangerous. "President Trump has now put his Cabinet on notice: If you adhere to your oath of office to defend the Constitution, you … Continue Reading
01.30.17
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy on President Trump, the Press, and Putin
President Trump's Executive Order banning Muslims from 7 countries, none of which was a source of terrorists who have carried out attacks in this country, was un-American, arbitrary, inhumane, and it will likely spur an increase in violence targeting Americans. I will have plenty more to say about it and other reckless actions by this White House in the days and weeks ahead. In the meantime, I want to say a few words about the bizarre back and forth between the Trump Administration and the ne… Continue Reading
01.30.17
Leahy Announces He Will OPPOSE Sessions Nomination For A.G.
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), a former chairman and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, announced on Monday his opposition to the nomination of Senator Jeff Sessions to be the next Attorney General of the United States. "The Attorney General must faithfully serve all Americans. After carefully reviewing Senator Sessions' extensive record, I am not convinced that he meets that threshold standard. So I must oppose this nomination," Leahy said. Sessions' nomination has raised si… Continue Reading
01.27.17
Leahy, Sanders And Welch Issue Joint Statement On President Trump’s Move to Halt Refugee Resettlements In Vermont And Across The Country
"We deplore President Trump's decision to unilaterally halt the refugee resettlement program and specifically target Muslim countries. By imposing a blanket ban on entire nationalities of men, women and children facing horrific violence and devastation, he has allowed fear to triumph over compassion and common sense. Struggling families, fleeing peril and motivated to start their lives anew, have enriched America and contribute immeasurably to our state. Vermont has successfully resettled alm… Continue Reading
01.26.17
Comment Of Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy On The Departure Of Senior Managers At The State Department
"Any incoming Secretary of State needs the institutional memory of key managerial staff, and all the more so when a new secretary lacks government and foreign policy experience," said Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Appropriations subcommittee that funds the State Department. (Leahy also is the Vice Chairman of the full Appropriations Committee.) "Whether Mr. Tillerson, if he is confirmed, keeps them in the long run is up to him, but it is regrettable that a decision was m… Continue Reading
01.26.17
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Nomination Of Nikki Haley To Be United States Ambassador To The United Nations
Mr. President, it has become fashionable, particularly among supporters of the Trump Administration, to accuse the United Nations of just about everything. This is, however, nothing new. The UN has been an easy target, especially for some Republicans, for a long time, because like any unwieldy international organization comprised of member states with very different priorities and interests it will probably never be as efficient or effective as we would like. But there is simply no question t… Continue Reading
01.25.17
Comments Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On Reports Of Draft Executive Order To Review Interrogation Policies And Revive Black Site Prisons
"President Trump should put this draft executive order in the trash where it belongs. No President should even consider reinstating the CIA's so-called enhanced interrogation techniques by redefining torture, reopening the 'black sites' where the CIA secretly detained and tortured human beings in the name of fighting terrorism, or sending more people to the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay. These same practices stripped America of its standing in the world as a leader in promoting and prot… Continue Reading
01.25.17
Statement Of Senate Appropriations Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy On President Trump’s Executive Order On ‘The Wall’
"Our broken immigration system demands a sensible, comprehensive and carefully crafted solution, not expensive political stunts. As a candidate Donald Trump repeatedly claimed that Mexico would pay for an enormously costly wall. Now as President, he plans to have the American taxpayers to pay for it. Billions upon billions of wasted tax dollars. A troubling pattern is quickly emerging, with the fuzzy talk about killing the Affordable Care Act, and now with 'the wall.' It's jump first, and m… Continue Reading
01.25.17
Sen. Franken and Colleagues Pressure AT&T & Time Warner to Prove Mega-Merger is in Public Interest
Today, a group of Senate Democrats led by Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and including Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), put pressure on AT&T and Time Warner to prove that their proposed mega-merger is in the American public's interest. Troublingly, because of how the two companies have signaled they are structuring the deal, they are no longer legally required to prove that their consolidation would serve the public interest-which Sen. Franken and 12 of his colleagues … Continue Reading
01.25.17
Senator Markey Leads Senators In Calling On Trump To Ensure Open And Transparent Communications Between Federal Agencies And Public And Members Of Congress
Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) Wednesday led a letter with 11 senators decrying reports of instructions provided to all federal agencies to silence communications with the public and members of Congress. According to media reports, the Trump transition team has sent memos to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Departments of Transportation, Agriculture, Health and Human Services and Interior imposing a gag order on career federal employees. These memos instructed employees to, … Continue Reading
01.25.17
After Senator Sessions Fails To Provide Clear Answers, Senator Leahy Demands Answers From AG Nominee
Senator Patrick Leahy on Wednesday released additional written questions to Senator Jeff Sessions after the Attorney General nominee failed to directly answer Leahy's questions about his views on the Violence Against Women Act, anti-Muslim extremist groups, Russia's interference with the presidential election, ethics concerns with the new Trump administration, and other matters. Today's follow up comes days after Senator Sessions failed to provide clear answers to written questions, refusing ev… Continue Reading
01.25.17
Comments Of Senator Patrick Leahy On Unfounded Claims Of Voter Fraud
"President Trump's call for an investigation into his latest conspiracy theory is absurd, even for him. The President's own press secretary could offer no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the 2016 election. No studies support the President's view. No Secretary of State anywhere in this country, Republican or Democrat, has reported any evidence that supports the President's view. Even the President's own lawyers stated in a court filing that, 'All available evidence suggests that the 201… Continue Reading
01.24.17
Leahy, Sanders And Other Leading Senate Democrats Unveil $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan
---VIDEO / AUDIO Available--- Leahy, Sanders And Other Leading Senate Democrats Unveil $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan WASHINGTON (TUESDAY, Jan. 24, 2017) - Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) Tuesday joined Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and other leading Senate Democrats in unveiling a $1 trillion infrastructure plan. The Blueprint to Rebuild America's Infrastructure would create more than 15 mi… Continue Reading
01.24.17
Remarks of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Vice Chairman, Senate Appropriations Committee Press Conference – A Blueprint to Rebuild America’s Infrastructure
It wasn't that long ago when there was general agreement in our country and in Congress about the importance of investing in American infrastructure. The infrastructure that is needed for workers to get to their jobs, and American products to our markets. The investments that are needed to help drive our economy forward. In more recent times, the bipartisanship that used to make that possible has been corrosively undermined by obstructionism. Letting our infrastructure wind down and whither … Continue Reading
01.24.17
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy On Vermonters In The Women’s Marches In Montpelier And Washington
This weekend, Marcelle and I had the pleasure of hosting hundreds of Vermonters for coffee before the Women's March on Washington. I could not be prouder of the thousands more who marched in the Green Mountain State in Montpelier, our state capital, and those who drove through the night to show that our brave little state says no to hate. I was inspired by the sight of hundreds of thousands of pink hats showing the President that they are paying attention, they want their voices to be heard, a… Continue Reading
01.23.17
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On the Nomination of Mike Pompeo to be Director of the CIA
Tonight, the Senate will vote on the President's nominee to be the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. As I said on Friday, I do not believe the Senate should rush to confirm such a critical position, without the opportunity for debate or discussion. We are having that debate today, and that is why on Friday, I supported a motion to proceed to this nomination. Our intelligence agencies have an enormous task ahead. The challenges they face range from state-sponsored information warfa… Continue Reading
01.21.17
Leahy Welcomes Hundreds Of Vermonters To Nation’s Capital For The Women’s March
(SATURDAY, Jan. 21, 2017 ) - Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Marcelle Saturday welcomed hundreds of Vermonters to the Nation's Capital for the Women's March. More than 800 Vermonters registered for the event. Speaking to the Vermont marchers, Leahy said: "Our brave little state says NO to hate." He said he was reminded of this quote from Martin Luther King Jr.: "We have to accept finite disappointment, but not give up infinite hope. Only light can crowd out darkness." You can view a gal… Continue Reading
01.20.17
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Nomination of James Mattis To Be Secretary Of Defense
Today I will vote for James Mattis to be the next Secretary of Defense. General Mattis stands out as a top-practitioner in his field. He has earned - and rightly deserves - near-universal respect. While I opposed the hurried waiving of a carefully considered statutory cooling off period for members of the military before they can become eligible for this civilian position, I made clear then, and restate now, that my opposition to this waiver was never about General Mattis himself. I was grat… Continue Reading
01.20.17
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Nomination of General John Kelly To Be Secretary Of Homeland Security
General Kelly is no stranger to the problems we face along the southern border. As the commander of U.S. Southern Command, he is familiar not only with immigration challenges, but with drug trafficking. While I am grateful that he has not subscribed to the singular approach that President Trump has thus far proposed with respect to constructing a wall along our southern border, I am deeply concerned that he has admonished so-called sanctuary cities and has testified that accelerating the depor… Continue Reading
01.17.17
Leahy Releases Follow Up Questions To AG Nominee Sessions
(Tuesday, January 17, 2017) - Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Tuesday released written questions submitted for the record to the Attorney General nominee, Senator Jeff Sessions. The written queries focus on topics addressed in last week's confirmation hearings - including Senator Sessions' opposition to the Violence Against Women Act - as well as other subjects. During last week's confirmation hearings Leahy, the lead author of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act, pressed Sessions abo… Continue Reading
