Press Releases
Whitehouse Brings Stories of RI’s Opioid Crisis to Senate Floor
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today took to the Senate floor to share the stories of Rhode Islanders whose lives have been turned upside down by the opioid crisis gripping states across the country, putting a national spotlight on the need for resources to curb addiction to save lives. Whitehouse is one of a bipartisan group of senators led by Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) who shared stories of addiction in the their home states on the floor this afternoon. A video of Whitehous… Continue Reading
05.25.17
Money Laundering Bill Targets Terrorists, Tax Evaders, Cartels & Crooks
WASHINGTON - Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein, along with Senators John Cornyn and Sheldon Whitehouse, today introduced legislation that modernizes and strengthens criminal laws against money laundering - a critical source of funding for terrorist organizations, drug cartels and other organized crime syndicates. The Combating Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, and Counterfeiting Act of 2017 updates criminal money laundering and counterfe… Continue Reading
05.25.17
Whitehouse, Senators Reintroduce Legislation to Help Students Burdened by Debt
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Al Franken (D-MN), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) reintroduced legislation to help address America's student debt crisis. The Fairness for Struggling Students Act would once again allow privately issued student loans to be discharged in bankruptcy, giving them the same treatment as nearly all other f… Continue Reading
05.24.17
Whitehouse Statement on CBO Trumpcare Score
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) score of Republicans' American Health Care Act, which CBO reports would "increase the number of people who are uninsured by 23 million in 2026 relative to current law": "It's no surprise the Republicans' health care bill would cause millions of Americans to lose their health coverage. House Republicans … Continue Reading
05.23.17
Senators Demand Explanation of White House Attempt to Block Ethics Waiver Disclosure
Washington, DC - If the White House succeeds in blocking the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) from discovering who has received waivers of President Donald Trump's ethics pledge, we will get it ourselves, said a group of Senators in a letter to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Mick Mulvaney today. Their letter comes in response to Mulvaney's request to "stay" OGE's collection of information on executive branch ethics waivers, which previous presidents made public as a matter of c… Continue Reading
05.23.17
Whitehouse Statement on Trump Budget
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following statement on President Donald Trump's budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2018: "This budget is reckless, plain and simple. The President proposes massive cuts to Medicaid, breaking yet another campaign promise. He seeks to decimate the federal government's central command in the battle against the opioid crisis affecting communities from Burrillville to Westerly. He pursues tens of … Continue Reading
05.22.17
Whitehouse Statement on Trump Request That Coats and Rogers Push Back on Russia Investigation
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on news from the Washington Post that President Donald Trump asked Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats and National Security Agency Director Admiral Michael Rogers to push back on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election: "This is yet another data point in a more and more intricate pattern of attempts to dis… Continue Reading
05.19.17
Whitehouse Marks 25th Anniversary of RI Workers’ Compensation Reform
Providence, RI - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse this morning joined representatives of the Rhode Island Workers' Compensation Court for a breakfast marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of Rhode Island's successful 1992 workers' compensation reforms. Whitehouse had a key role in crafting the sweeping reforms as director of the Department of Business Regulation under the late Governor Bruce Sundlun. A transcript of Whitehouse's remarks at the event is below. In January of 1991, readers… Continue Reading
05.18.17
Whitehouse Statement on Rosenstein Briefing
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein's briefing of the Senate on matters related to the firing of Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey today: "Congress has a constitutional oversight role separate from the Department of Justice's role prosecuting crimes. Special counsels don't change that. "Today the Deputy Attorney General acknowledged that con… Continue Reading
05.18.17
Whitehouse, Deutch Introduce Conflicts from Political Fundraising Act
Washington, DC - Today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Congressman Ted Deutch (D-FL) unveiled legislation to close a glaring ethics loophole that allows executive branch appointees to avoid disclosing their ties to shadowy political spending groups and other interests they may oversee as federal officials. The Conflicts from Political Fundraising Act would require presidentially appointed executive branch officials to disclose whether they have solicited donations for or contributed fund… Continue Reading
05.18.17
Whitehouse Statement on Appointment of Robert Mueller as Special Counsel for Russia Investigation
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on the selection of former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert Mueller to serve as special counsel to investigate Russian meddling in the election: "This is the best call Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein could have made. Russian interference in our election and the troubling actions of this White House demand the fullest accounting of the truth. Mr. Mu… Continue Reading
05.17.17
Judiciary Committee Leaders Seek Copies of Reported Comey Memos and Possible Trump Tapes
Washington, DC - Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein along with Crime and Terrorism Subcommittee Chairman Lindsey Graham and Ranking Member Sheldon Whitehouse today called on the FBI to provide all memos relating to former FBI Director Comey's interactions with his superiors in both the Trump and Obama administrations. They also called on the White House to provide records of interactions with former Director Comey, including any audio recordin… Continue Reading
05.17.17
Senate Passes Whitehouse-Cassidy Resolution Declaring May 15-19 National Senior Corps Week
Washington, DC - The Senate has passed a bipartisan resolution introduced by Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) declaring May 15 through May 19, 2017, National Senior Corps Week in recognition of the valuable contributions of the more than 250,000 senior volunteers across the country. "This resolution celebrates the hundreds of thousands of seniors who have dedicated their golden years to making our nation a better place," said Whitehouse, who serves on the Senate Specia… Continue Reading
05.17.17
Reed & Whitehouse Seek to Strengthen Pell Grant and Make College More Affordable
WASHINGTON, DC - In an effort to help make college more affordable, U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), and Patty Murray (D-WA) introduced the Pell Grant Preservation & Expansion Act. The legislation seeks to expand and permanently safeguard the Pell Grant program, helping millions of low-income students offset the rising costs of college. The bill would improve the purchasing power of Pell Grants, permanently index the maximum grant to inflati… Continue Reading
05.16.17
Senators from States Hit Hardest by Opioid Epidemic Discuss Disastrous Impact Healthcare Repeal Would Have on the Fight to Curb the Crisis
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Edward Markey (D-MA) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH), whose states have been hit hard by the opioid epidemic, held a press conference today to highlight the disastrous impact that repealing the Affordable Care Act would have on this crisis in their states and around the country. In light of House Republicans passing the President Trump-endorsed American Health Care Act two weeks … Continue Reading
05.16.17
Whitehouse Introduces Bipartisan Legislation to Equip Students and Families with Better Data for Making College Choices College Transparency Act would improve reporting of student outcomes
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) introduced bipartisan legislation to overhaul and modernize the college reporting system for postsecondary data and provide greater transparency for students, families, institutions, and policymakers. The College Transparency Act is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Bill Cassidy (R-La.). "College administrators tell me they spend too much of their time and resources on federal data report… Continue Reading
05.16.17
Whitehouse Statement on Trump Request to End Flynn Investigation
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on the New York Times report that President Donald Trump asked then-Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey to end the Bureau's investigation of General Michael Flynn: "On its face, this is a textbook, prima facie case of an attempt to obstruct justice. Whether there are mitigating circumstances remains to be seen. I look forward to hearing more details … Continue Reading
05.16.17
Whitehouse, Merkley Ask How EPA Appointee Could Possibly Do Her Job Given Extensive Ethics Conflicts
Washington, DC - Today, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt requesting information on an EPA appointee who appears to be unable to perform virtually any of the duties of the job due to her ethics conflicts. The letter concerns Elizabeth "Tate" Bennett, who has been appointed to serve as Deputy Associate Administrator of EPA's Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations. Bennett … Continue Reading
05.15.17
Whitehouse, Langevin Highlight Bill to Invest $170 Million in Fixing RI Bridges, Creating Jobs
West Warwick, RI - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressman Jim Langevin today joined with state, town, and labor officials by the Factory Bridge in West Warwick to call on Congress to pass the Strengthen and Fortify Existing (SAFE) Bridges Act. The SAFE Bridges Act was introduced in the Senate by Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Whitehouse, and others last month and will be introduced in the House this week by Langevin. The bill would deliver up to $170 million to repair Rhode Island's defici… Continue Reading
05.15.17
Whitehouse Statement on Reported Disclosure of “Highly Classified” Information to Russian Officials
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) released the following statement on news from the Washington Post that President Donald Trump disclosed "highly classified" information to Russia's Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, and Ambassador to the U.S., Sergey Kislyak, during a meeting last week: "President Trump has long been careless with the truth, but now he appears to have gone further: he's been reckless with highly classified information. That not only threatens to expose intelli… Continue Reading
