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Search Senator Leahy’s press releases, floor statements, and Committee speeches by date or by subject.
USA FREEDOM ACT: A Bipartisan Compromise the Senate Must Pass
(Saturday, May 16, 2015) - The Republican-led House voted overwhelmingly this week in favor of the USA FREEDOM Act, a bipartisan compromise that restores Americans' privacy rights by ending the government's dragnet collection of phone records under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act. While the bill has the support of intelligence leaders, the administration, the technology industry, and privacy advocates, Senate Republican leaders are instead pushing for an extension of the National Security A… Continue Reading
05.14.15
Following Overwhelming House Vote, Bipartisan, Bicameral Authors of the USA FREEDOM Act Call For Senate to Pass the Legislation
(Thursday, May 14, 2015) -- Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah), Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.), and Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet Subcommittee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), issued the following statement Thursday urging t… Continue Reading
05.14.15
Marion Cross School
On May 14, 2015, Senator Leahy held an online chat with the second and fifth graders of Marion Cross School. He enjoyed their questions on his role as a U.S. Senator and his pathway to Congress. He was especially impressed by their questions regarding a nuclear agreement with Iran and on same-sex marriage.… Continue Reading
05.13.15
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On House Passage of the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015
[Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following comment Wednesday after the House overwhelmingly approved the bipartisan, bicameral USA FREEDOM Act to end the NSA's dragnet surveillance of Americans' phone records. Leahy is the lead Democratic coauthor of the legislation in the Senate, which he recently introduced with Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah). The White House endorsed the bill on Tuesday in a Statement of Administration Policy.] "The overwhelming vote i… Continue Reading
05.13.15
Leahy: Attorney General, DNI, And FBI Director All Support The USA FREEDOM Act
"This is not a game. After yesterday's briefing from intelligence officials, I am more convinced than ever that the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015 is the right approach for ending the NSA phone records program and making reforms to our surveillance programs. I would prefer more reforms as anyone can see from previous versions of the bill that I have introduced. Other Senators would prefer more dragnet surveillance. The USA FREEDOM Act of 2015 is a reasonable compromise that will pass today in the H… Continue Reading
05.13.15
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Eric H. Holder Jr.’s Service as Attorney General of the United States
Two weeks ago, Loretta Lynch was finally sworn in as the 83rd Attorney General of the United States. I am confident that she will be an exceptional Attorney General, and she has wasted no time getting to work on many of the most pressing law enforcement issues facing our nation. Given that is it Police Week, I wanted to say a few words in tribute to the remarkable service of Eric Holder, our outgoing Attorney General. He came to the Justice Department as a 25-year-old law school graduate in 1… Continue Reading
05.13.15
Leahy Calls On Senators To Support Nominee Sally Yates To Fill No. 2 Position At Justice Department
(Wednesday, May 13, 2015) -Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on Wednesday called for the Senate to confirm Sally Yates to serve as the Deputy Attorney General of the United States. The Deputy Attorney General is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Department of Justice, and is an essential partner to the Attorney General in safeguarding Americans. Yates was nominated to the No. 2 position at the Department in January and despite having broad bipartisan… Continue Reading
05.13.15
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, Hearing on “Protecting the Constitutional Right to Counsel for Indigents Charged with Misdemeanors”
Rarely does a hearing touch core constitutional obligations more directly than what we are discussing today. Our Founders were determined that the government's power be limited. The Sixth Amendment right to counsel is a cornerstone of that principle. It is a guarantee that before your liberty is taken, before the government can put you in jail, it must prove its case against you in what the Supreme Court has called the "crucible of meaningful adversarial testing." And that requires a lawyer. … Continue Reading
05.12.15
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On His Vote Against Cloture On The Fast-Track Trade Authority Bill (The Trade Priorities and Accountability Act)
"I cannot support moving to a debate that Senate Republican leaders have refused to define. I will not support writing a blank check for debate on an unspecified package of bills, without any assurances that American workers and our economy will be protected." # # # # #… Continue Reading
05.12.15
As House Prepares To Take Up NSA Reform This Week, Leahy Urges Senate To Act
(Tuesday, May 12, 2015) - This week, the House is poised to take up and pass the bipartisan USA FREEDOM Act of 2015. Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah), who coauthored the bill with leading House members to end the government's dragnet collection of phone records under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act, joined together Tuesday to call on the Senate to take up and pass the historic legislation after the House acts. "In the name of fighting terrorism, the government convinced … Continue Reading
05.11.15
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the USA FREEDOM ACT of 2015
Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act expires in a matter of weeks. Senator Lee and I have a bipartisan bill, the USA FREEDOM Act, that would end the use of Section 215 to authorize the bulk collection of Americans' phone records, and replace it with a more targeted program. It also would enact other important reforms to bring more accountability and transparency to government surveillance. The Speaker of the House of Representatives is bringing that same bill for a vote in the House on Wednesda… Continue Reading
05.11.15
Leahy And Nutrition Leaders Visit Milton Elementary School To Spotlight His New Bill To Renew And Expand The Farm To School Program
MILTON, Vt. (MONDAY, May 11, 2015) - On Monday, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) visited Milton Elementary School to join students for lunch, while taking the opportunity to spotlight his recently introduced bipartisan, bicameral bill aimed at extending a key nutrition program for school-aged children, in advance of the reauthorization of the Healthy and Hunger-Free Kids Act. Leahy, the most senior member of both the Senate Agriculture Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee, is the au… Continue Reading
05.07.15
Leahy Comment On Senate Republicans’ Insistence On Simply Extending Surveillance Authorities (NSA Dragnet Collection Of Americans’ Ph. Messages) Without Change
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Senate Republicans' Insistence To Reauthorize Surveillance Authorities Without Change May 7, 2015 "A handful of Senate Republicans took to the floor this morning to defend a dragnet surveillance program that intrudes on their constituents' privacy. In doing so, these Republicans are ignoring the findings of national security experts that this program is unnecessary, and the decision by a federal appellate … Continue Reading
05.07.15
Leahy Hosts The Tenth Annual ‘Taste Of Vermont’
(FRIDAY, May 8, 2015) -- Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Thursday night hosted the 10 annual "Taste of Vermont" on Capitol Hill, organized by the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Vermont Convention Bureau and the Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation. This year's exhibition drew 64 Vermont vendors to the Nation's Capital who shared their quality products with hundreds of invited guests. In the ten years since Leahy launched the exhibition of Vermont products, the annual even… Continue Reading
05.07.15
Leahy, Lee REAX On Circuit Court Ruling On NSA’s Phone Surveillance Program
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) On Circuit Court Ruling On The NSA's Telephone Surveillance Program May 7, 2015 [Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) issued the following comment Thursday after a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals found that the National Security Agency's (NSA) bulk collection of Americans' phone records goes beyond what is authorized under Section 215 … Continue Reading
05.07.15
Senate Judiciary Committee Holds Hearing On Bipartisan PATENT Act By Senators Grassley And Leahy
Senate Judiciary Committee Holds Hearing On Bipartisan PATENT Act By Senators Grassley And Leahy WASHINGTON (THURSDAY, May 7, 2015)-The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing this morning on the recently introduced PATENT Act (S. 1137), a bipartisan bill to protect businesses and innovators who are being improperly targeted by patent trolls. As chairman of the Judiciary Committee last Congress, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) led bipartisan negotiations to craft a comprehensive and balan… Continue Reading
05.06.15
Senate Unanimously Passes Leahy Bill To Renew Lifesaving Bulletproof Vest Grant Program
(WEDNESDAY, May 6, 2015) - The Senate on late Wednesday unanimously approved Senator Patrick Leahy's (D-Vt.) legislation to reauthorize the lifesaving Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program, which has helped Vermont law enforcement officers purchase nearly 4400 bulletproof vests. Leahy's bill would extend for five years the matching grant program that helps members of law enforcement purchase lifesaving bulletproof vests. The program has helped 13,000 state and local law enforcement agenci… Continue Reading
05.06.15
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Death Of Former House Speaker Jim Wright
Jim Wright mastered the legislative process to accomplish good and significant things that have made life better for generations of Americans. For instance, his legacy includes the substantial infrastructure investments made possible by the 'pay as you go' interstate highway system funding mechanism that he forged through legislative skill, a clear vision for the future, and sheer determination. That and other achievements helped to transform the nation and our economy. His contributions also… Continue Reading
05.06.15
Opening Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy -- SJC Hearing On Freedom Of Information Act
(Wednesday, May 6, 2015) - The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing entitled, "Ensuring an Informed Citizenry: Examining the Administration's Efforts to Improve Open Government." Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has long worked to improve government openness and transparency, and was inducted into the FOIA Hall of Fame in 1996 for his work. This year, Leahy again partnered with Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) to coauthor the bipartisan FOIA Improvement Act, which the Judiciary Com… Continue Reading
05.06.15
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Senate Passage of the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program Reauthorization Act of 2015
This week, the Senate is poised to pass the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program Reauthorization Act of 2015. The law enforcement community is unified in its support of this program because it quite simply saves lives. To date, this program has provided more than 13,000 state and local law enforcement agencies with nearly 1.2 million bulletproof vests, including nearly 4,400 to officers in Vermont. Senator Graham and I have been working to address any and all concerns that certain Repu… Continue Reading
