Press Releases
Obscene Oil Company Profits Cost Rhode Islanders at the Pump, Whitehouse Says
Washington, D.C. - Oil giant ExxonMobil's record-high second-quarter profits amount to a quarterly tax of $47 on every car and truck in the country, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) said today. "If you've ever wondered where the $60, $80, or $100 that it costs to fill up your tank goes, take a look at this: as gas prices have risen, oil company profits have soared," Whitehouse said in a speech on the Senate floor. "If Exxon continues to reap profits at this level, in 2008 alone, you will… Continue Reading
08.01.08
Attorney General Asked to Assess Damage Done to Justice Department by Illegal, Politicized Hiring Practices
Washington, D.C. - In the wake of reports that Justice Department officials used political and ideological screening tests to fill career positions, seven Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee today asked Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey to assess whether this illegal hiring practice has done long-term damage to the mission of the Department. The letter to Mukasey was signed by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Edw… Continue Reading
07.31.08
Senate Panel Approves Over $6 Million for Rhode Island in New Energy Technology and Water Conservation Bill
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today announced that the Appropriations Committee has approved legislation including $3.05 million in funding for Rhode Island alternative energy, flood prevention, and water restoration initiatives they requested as part of the 2009 Energy and Water Development spending bill. The bill also includes $3 million that Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee, secured for key programs throughout the state. "Reliabl… Continue Reading
07.30.08
Bipartisan Group of Senators Calls for Olympic Truce in Darfur
Washington, D.C. - A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators is urging the international community to use the world stage provided by the upcoming Olympic Games to call for an end to the violence in Darfur, Sudan and the wider region. As the world prepares to come together for the Olympic Games in Beijing, China on August 8th, the group of Senators including Russ Feingold (D-WI) Norm Coleman (R-MN), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Olympia Sn… Continue Reading
07.29.08
Senators Call for EPA Administrator's Resignation
Washington, D.C. - Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and committee members Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) called for the resignation of Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen L. Johnson today, charging that Johnson had given misleading testimony before Congress; refused to cooperate with Congressional oversight; and based agency decisionmaking on political considerations rather than scientific … Continue Reading
07.28.08
Latest DOJ Report Shows Bush Administration Was Too Willing to Break the Rules, Whitehouse Says
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a former U.S. Attorney who helped lead the Senate Judiciary Committee's investigation into widespread political interference at the Department of Justice, commented today on a report by the Inspector General's office that found that former top official Monica Goodling discriminated against job applicants based on their political affiliation, in violation of federal law and department policy: "The Bush Administration has shown over and o… Continue Reading
07.23.08
Whitehouse Urges Senate to Act to Bring Down Oil Prices
Washington, D.C. - Cracking down on an explosion in speculative trading in energy markets could help lower prices at the pump, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) said on the Senate floor today. The Senate is debating legislation that would strengthen the federal government's authority to oversee and investigate energy commodities markets. "Families in Rhode Island and across the country are having to choose between filling their tank and feeding their families; between heating their home a… Continue Reading
07.15.08
Senate Overrides Bush’s Veto of Medicare Bill
Washington, D.C. - Doctors and seniors in Rhode Island and around the country were spared deep cuts in Medicare reimbursements today, when the United States Senate voted to override a presidential veto on legislation blocking the cuts from taking effect. The Senate initially passed the bill last week, as U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) returned for the first time since undergoing surgery for brain cancer to cast a critical vote. U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who voted to overri… Continue Reading
07.14.08
Whitehouse Sponsors Bill to Help Relieve Credit Crunch
Providence, R.I. - As the U.S. economy struggles with a deepening credit crisis, Rhode Islanders saddled with high-interest loans are finding it almost impossible to repay their debts. During a visit today to the Urban League of Rhode Island, which counsels people facing credit or repayment problems, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) announced new legislation aimed at offering consumers some relief from sky-high interest rates. "With working families in Rhode Island and across the country… Continue Reading
07.11.08
Senate Panel Approves $7.85 Million for Rhode Island in Transportation and Housing Spending Plan
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today announced that the Appropriations Committee has approved legislation including $4.7 million in funding for Rhode Island transportation, housing, and infrastructure improvement initiatives they requested as part of the 2009 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) spending bill. The bill also includes $3.15 million that Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee, secured for key programs throughou… Continue Reading
07.11.08
Whitehouse Statement on EPA’s Refusal to Address Global Warming
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, issued a statement today criticizing the announcement by Stephen Johnson, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), that the EPA will not take any action to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles before the end of this year. In April 2007, the United States Supreme Court held that EPA was required under the Clean Air Act to regulate greenh… Continue Reading
07.09.08
Senate Passes Legislation Blocking Cuts in Medicare Reimbursements
Washington, D.C. - The United States Senate today passed legislation blocking Medicare physician payment cuts from going into effect. U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a consistent advocate for health care reform during his time in the Senate, voted in favor of the legislation. Senator Edward M. Kennedy returned to the Senate for the first time since undergoing surgery for brain cancer to cast a critical vote for the bill. "It was an electrifying moment in the Senate, with Senator Kenne… Continue Reading
07.09.08
Whitehouse Statement on Allegations that Cheney Interfered with Global Warming Testimony by CDC Official
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, issued a statement today on the recent allegations by a former high-level Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official that the office of Vice President Cheney may have pressured Julie L. Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to remove specific sections from her congressional testimony in order to downplay the health affects of global… Continue Reading
07.01.08
Kerry, Corker, Whitehouse Announce Nelson Mandela Will Be Removed From Terror Watch Lists
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Sens. John Kerry, Bob Corker, and Sheldon Whitehouse today announced that former South African President Nelson Mandela will be removed from U.S. terrorism watch lists. President Bush today signed H.R. 5690, a law authorizing the U.S. Department of State to waive U.S. travel restrictions on President Mandela and other members of the African National Congress (ANC.) Mandela and many ANC members remained on the lists for activities they conducted against South Africa's aparthe… Continue Reading
07.01.08
Whitehouse Statement on Supreme Court’s Reversal of Lead Paint Verdict
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) issued the following statement today in response to the decision by the Rhode Island Supreme Court in State of Rhode Island v. Lead Industries Association, Inc., et al: "There is no doubt that lead paint manufactured by these companies caused grave harm to thousands of Rhode Island children. It has for years been Rhode Island's worst public health problem for children. The Court's decision to overturn a jury verdict holding the paint ma… Continue Reading
06.27.08
Senate Panel Approves $4.5 Million for Rhode Island in Labor-HHS Spending Plan
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today announced that the Appropriations Committee has approved legislation including $2.75 million in funding for Rhode Island health care initiatives they requested as part of the 2009 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education spending bill. The bill also includes $1.75 million that Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee, secured for key education and workforce training programs throughout the state. "… Continue Reading
06.27.08
Whitehouse Votes to Pass New G.I. Bill for Iraq Veterans
Washington, D.C. - In an historic step forward for Americans who have served our country in uniform since September 11th, the Senate yesterday passed landmark legislation that includes giving these veterans the same opportunities for higher education and job training available to the G.I.s of World War II. U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) applauded the Senate's 92 to 6 vote, which sends the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act to the President's desk as part of an emer… Continue Reading
06.27.08
Congress Passes Kerry-Corker Legislation To Remove Nelson Mandela from Terror Watch List
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Sens. John Kerry, Bob Corker, and Sheldon Whitehouse today announced the passage of their legislation to remove former South African President Nelson Mandela from the terror watch list. The bill grants the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security, the authority to waive U.S. travel restrictions on President Mandela and other members of the African National Congress (ANC.) Mandela and his fellow ANC members remain on the list fo… Continue Reading
06.26.08
Senators, Representatives Call for an End to Oil/Gas Market Manipulation and Excessive Speculation
WASHINGTON, DC - On Thursday, U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Bernard Sanders (I-VT), and Bill Nelson (D-FL), were joined by Representatives Bart Stupak (D-MI-01) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD-08) and representatives from the airline and farming industries, and labor urging swift Congressional action to close loopholes that may be responsible for market manipulation of the oil and gas markets and/or excessive speculation. Earlier this week, Cantwell introduced the P… Continue Reading
06.25.08
Whitehouse Statement on Intelligence Assessment on Security Risks of Global Warming
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the Select Committee on Intelligence, issued a statement today about a National Intelligence Assessment on the security implications of global climate change: "The intelligence community has found that global warming threatens the security of nations and peoples around the world. Changing weather patterns, rising seas, and warming temperatures are projected to, among othe… Continue Reading
