Press Releases
Whitehouse Statement on Confirmation of Christopher Wray to be Eighth FBI Director
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on the confirmation of Christopher Wray to serve as the eighth Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Today, Whitehouse joined the majority in the Senate to confirm Wray 92-5. "Now more than ever, the Bureau needs a resolute and independent leader. Christopher Wray has assured us he can be that leader. "Mr. Wray met my core qualifications for the job. H… Continue Reading
07.31.17
RI Delegation Announces $2 Million to Hire More Firefighters in North Kingstown & Barrington
NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI - In an effort to enhance public safety, U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and U.S. Representatives Jim Langevin and David Cicilline today announced over $2 million in federal funding to help North Kingstown and Barrington hire and train new firefighters. This direct federal assistance, provided through the competitive Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant program, will help both communities pay for two years of salaries and benefits fo… Continue Reading
07.28.17
Whitehouse Statement on Failure of Vote to Repeal the Affordable Care Act
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the failure of Senate legislation to repeal critical components of the Affordable Care Act, the so-called "skinny" repeal: "Rather than work with Democrats to build on the gains we've made under the Affordable Care Act, the Republicans have engaged in the most partisan and secretive process I've ever seen in Congress. That process was … Continue Reading
07.27.17
Whitehouse Statement on Justice Department Argument Against Protections for LGBT Workers
Washington, DC - Today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on the Department of Justice's filing of a brief in federal court arguing that federal workplace discrimination law does not protect employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation: "Donald Trump promised the LGBT community he would fight for them. Now, on the same day he pledged to ban transgender Americans outright from serving in our armed forces,… Continue Reading
07.26.17
Whitehouse Statement on Transgender Americans Serving in the Military
Today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) released the following statement on President Donald Trump's announcement today via Twitter of a ban on transgender Americans serving in the armed services: "Once again, when President Trump fears the news on Russia or other scandals, he changes the subject, lashing out at a group he sees as vulnerable. But this move to reinstate discrimination in our armed services is an attack on the brave LGBT Americans who already serve with distinction. Their s… Continue Reading
07.26.17
American Opportunity Carbon Fee Act Introduced in Congress
Today, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Congressmen Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and David Cicilline (D-RI) introduced legislation to place a price on the carbon pollution driving global climate change and putting Americans' health and safety at risk. The American Opportunity Carbon Fee Act, which Schatz and Whitehouse will unveil at the American Enterprise Institute on Wednesday afternoon, would significantly lower the nation's greenhouse gas emissions while generating … Continue Reading
07.25.17
Whitehouse Statement on Vote to Proceed to ACA Repeal Bill
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the vote in the Senate today to advance to legislation that would repeal the Affordable Care Act: "Right now, many Rhode Islanders receive quality, affordable health care under the Affordable Care Act. I've heard from Rhode Islanders who feel secure that they don't have to worry about lifetime or annual caps, or being denied coverage for a pr… Continue Reading
07.20.17
Whitehouse Votes to Advance Nomination of Christopher Wray for FBI Director
Washington, DC - During a Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) voted in favor of President Donald Trump's pick for Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Christopher Wray. Judiciary Committee members advanced Wray's nomination by a unanimous vote. Whitehouse released the following statement on the vote: "I have carefully reviewed Christopher Wray's record as an attorney, his testimony before the Committee, and his responses to our writ… Continue Reading
07.19.17
DPCC Holds Hearing on Protecting American Elections From Foreign Interference by Strengthening Campaign Finance Laws
Washington, DC - With more details of Russia's interference in the 2016 election emerging daily, the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee (DPCC) held a hearing on Wednesday to examine the exposure of our democracy to foreign interference through lax campaign finance laws. DPCC Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow hosted the hearing, while Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) led the discussion with a slate of leading campaign finance experts. The hearing covered loopholes in existing law that all… Continue Reading
07.18.17
Federal Delegation Announces $125K to Grow Composites Industry, Create Jobs in RI
Bristol, RI - Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen David Cicilline and Jim Langevin today announced a $125,000 federal grant to develop a composites industry cluster that will support job creation and economic growth in Rhode Island. The grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) was awarded to the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association (RIMTA) and the town of Bristol to develop a strategic plan to maximize the competitiveness of the local composites indu… Continue Reading
07.18.17
Whitehouse Introduces Bill to Protect Children from Lead
Washington, DC - With more than 80 percent of Rhode Island children in low-income families living in homes built before the federal government banned consumer uses of lead paint in 1978, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today introduced legislation to help American families cover the cost of removing lead from their homes. About one in twenty Rhode Island children under age six has elevated blood lead levels, according to Rhode Island Kids Count. "The safest place for any child should be their … Continue Reading
07.18.17
Whitehouse Weighs In with Oklahoma Bar on Pruitt’s Pattern of Stonewalling and Dishonesty
Washington, DC - Today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) filed documents with the Oklahoma Bar Association to supplement a complaint filed against Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt, including new records suggesting Pruitt's former office stonewalled Senators during his confirmation process. Whitehouse, who is listed as a witness on the complaint, submitted a letter and exhibits to supplement the complaint showing how Pruitt evaded, misled, or obstructed members o… Continue Reading
07.17.17
Whitehouse Statement on Republican Health Care Bill
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the collapse of support for Senate Republicans' bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act: "This effort faltered - yet again - for the simple reason that erasing the gains we've made under the Affordable Care Act would be a disaster for our health care system and the American people. "Now it is time for Republicans to turn the page and j… Continue Reading
07.15.17
Nearly $1 Million Federal Grant Awarded to Providence for New Fire Truck & Ambulance
PROVIDENCE, RI - Today, U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline joined Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza in announcing over $974,000 in federal funding to help the Providence Fire Department purchase two new vehicles to bolster the efficiency of operations that save lives and better serve the community. The funding is made available through the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFG). The De… Continue Reading
07.14.17
Federal Delegation Announces Nearly $2 Million to Bolster RI Coastline
Providence, RI - Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, and Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline, today announced $1.98 million to prepare Rhode Island's coastline for rising seas. The funding comes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Coastal Resilience Grant program, which supports projects designed to help coastal communities prepare for extreme weather and climate-related hazards like sea level rise. The Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Cou… Continue Reading
07.13.17
Whitehouse Statement on Revised GOP Health Care Bill
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the latest iteration of Senate Republicans' bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act: "This is the same train wreck of a bill, just sprinkled with a few sweetheart deals to try to scrape together enough Republican support. The truth is there is no way to make this bill palatable to the American people. It still slashes Medicaid funding,… Continue Reading
07.12.17
Whitehouse Statement on Wray Confirmation Hearing
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on today's confirmation hearing for President Donald Trump's pick for Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Christopher Wray: "Christopher Wray fits the basic qualifications I announced for the next Director of the FBI: he knows the Justice Department, he's not a politician, and he has roots in law enforcement. Those qualifications were on display today a… Continue Reading
07.12.17
Whitehouse Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Capture & Productively Use Carbon Pollution
Washington, D.C. - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today introduced the Furthering carbon capture, Utilization, Technology, Underground storage, and Reduced Emissions (FUTURE) Act to spur investment in next-generation carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies. The bill would provide tax credits for the capture and sequestration of carbon emissions from electricity generation facilities and industrial sources, for direct air capture technologies, and for carbon utilization-the conv… Continue Reading
07.11.17
Crime and Terrorism Subcommittee’s Russia Probe Hears Lessons from Watergate & Iran-Contra Investigations
Washington, DC - On Tuesday, Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Ranking Member Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) led a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Climate and Terrorism that delved into the lessons congressional and criminal investigators learned during Watergate, Iran-Contra, and other major concurrent congressional and criminal investigations. Witnesses at the hearing included leaders of the Watergate Task Force, the U.S. House Iran-Contra Committee, the U.S. Department of Justice… Continue Reading
07.06.17
Senators Call on Government Watchdog to Examine Independence of EPA Advisory Committees
Washington, D.C. - Today, 10 Senators requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress's federal watchdog agency, examine whether the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the leadership of Administrator Scott Pruitt is protecting the independence and neutrality of its federal advisory committees. The EPA is home to 23 such committees, which advise the agency on environmental science, public health, safety, and other subjects central to the EPA's work. Federal law requ… Continue Reading
