WASHINGTON, June 17 (Sen.) -- Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, issued the following news release: Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding judicial nominations: "Unfortunately, the Democratic Leader has decided that instead of taking up the critical annual defense authorization, the Senate will dedicate floor time this week to the latest in the Biden Administration's parade of unfit nominations to the  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: DC [6/17/24] -Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) invites middle and high school students who live in or attend school in Oregon's First Congressional District to participate in the ninth annual Congressional App Challenge. The district includes all of Tillamook, Clatsop, and Columbia counties, and large portions of Washington and Multnomah counties. "Building an app inspires students to engage in cr  more

WASHINGTON, June 21 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they are co-sponsoring a Senate resolution that acknowledges and apologizes for the mistreatment of and discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals who have served the nation in the uniformed services, as civil servants, or in the Foreign Service. "Even as millions celebrate Pride Month, LGBTQ+ Americans are burdened by systemic discrimination that has prevented t  more

WASHINGTON, June 20 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley led members of the Oregon delegation, Senator Ron Wyden and U.S. Representatives Val Hoyle (OR-04), Andrea Salinas (OR-06), and Lori Chavez-DeRemer (OR-05), in a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) urging the agency's Portland District to prioritize hatchery fish production, as well as ensure that the USACE can request the full necessary funding for the Willam  more

WASHINGTON, June 18 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Indiana's Senator Mike Braun, along with U.S. Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19) and Rudy Yakym (R-IN-02), introduced a bipartisan, bicameral resolution to recognize the importance of pollinators to ecosystem health and agriculture in the United States by designating June 16 through June 22, 2024, as "National Pollinator Week." The resolution emphasizes the vital ro  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley--a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee--today led Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Ron Wyden (D-OR) in a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling for a strong diplomatic response following credible allegations of the Indian government's involvement in a foiled plot to assassinate an American ci  more

WASHINGTON, June 18 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and U.S. Representative Nikema Williams (D-GA-05) today issued the following statement to mark Juneteenth and the recent progress for their Abolition Amendment--a bipartisan, bicameral resolution that would strike the 'Slavery Clause' of the 13th Amendment, a constitutional loophole which allows slavery "as a punishment for crime" in the United States: "This country was fou  more

WASHINGTON, June 20 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today that the City of Portland received $611,536 as an initial award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to fund the replacement of two municipal aerial lift utility trucks with fully battery-electric vehicle (BEV) aerial trucks--the first BEV's in this vehicle class for the city. The investments will also be used to provide speciali  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is awarding Douglas County a total of $16,622,500 over the next few years through its Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. The investments will ensure Douglas County is able to upgrade its analog radio system to current digital technology that will allow for significan  more

WASHINGTON, June 20 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, alongside U.S. Representative Val Hoyle (OR-04), urge the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to urgently prioritize the application and funding for the Oregon Department of Veterans Affairs (ODVA) Roseburg Veterans' Home project in Fiscal Year 2025. Currently, ODVA operates two high-quality, award-winning Oregon Veterans' Homes: the Oregon Veterans' Ho  more

WASHINGTON, June 21 -- Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on June 20, 2024: Today the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a new report about sexual harassment and violence in college athletics. The report found that college athletes face unique barriers to reporting sexual harassment and violence, highlighting the need for increased protection and support for student athletes. House Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Robert C. "  more

WASHINGTON, June 20 -- Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, R-Oregon, issued the following news release: On Monday, Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (OR-05) toured the Portland VA Medical Center to learn more about various health care services offered to veterans. The visit followed Chavez-DeRemer's successful efforts to secure $523 million for the facility to expand specialty care services and improve accessibility. The following day, she hosted a Veterans Policy Forum in Bend to share federal resources and answ  more

WASHINGTON, June 19 -- Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-California, issued the following news release: U.S. Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19) and Rudy Yakym (R-IN-02) along with Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Indiana's Senator Mike Braun, introduced a bipartisan, bicameral resolution to recognize the importance of pollinators to ecosystem health and agriculture in the United States by designating June 16 through June 22, 2024, as "National Pollinator Week." The resolution emphasizes the vita  more

WASHINGTON, June 20 -- Rep. Andrea Salinas, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Rep. Salinas will host a series of briefings in every county in her congressional district. The first briefing will take place on Thursday, June 20th in Clackamas County, with additional briefings planned throughout the summer. "The fentanyl crisis has gripped communities across Oregon and put a huge burden on law enforcement and behavioral health providers who were already stretched thin. Now that Measur  more

WASHINGTON, June 21 -- Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, issued the following news on June 20, 2024: Today on the floor, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) exposed the radical judicial philosophy of Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, the Biden administration's nominee to the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, and reacted to the Majority Leader delaying Judge Kasubhai's confirmation vote after failing to rally enough support to confirm him. Excerpts of Sen. Cornyn's remarks are below. "For 13 years, I   more

WASHINGTON, June 18 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following statement at a finance committee hearing on work and social security: * * * This morning, the Finance Committee gathers to discuss how to update and strengthen Social Security disability programs to make it easier to work for Americans who have a severe disability and want to attempt to work again. When I talk to Americans with disabilities, they want to contribute to their communiti  more

WASHINGTON, June 18 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following statement on the final rules promoting good-paying clean energy jobs in America: * * * Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today issued the following statement today on the Treasury Department and IRS's release of final rules regarding prevailing Wage and apprenticeship requirements passed in the Inflation Reduction Act: "The Inflation Reduction Act is not only the big  more

WASHINGTON, June 19 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, released the following statement from a June 12, 2024, hearing entitled "Youth Residential Treatment Facilities: Examining Failures and Evaluating Solutions": * * * Today, the Finance Committee meets to discuss the horrific abuse and neglect of children at too many residential treatment facilities, or RTFs - places that say they provide behavioral health care to vulnerable children, but often leave kids   more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following statement: * * * Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today issued the following statement on the IRS's announcement of a new enforcement effort focused on large partnerships that avoid paying what they owe with abusive transactions and highly complicated structures: "This new effort by the IRS focused on large partnerships represents a major enforcement upgrade in one   more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and 15 Senate Democrats today released draft legislation to address a rising trend of rural hospitals and hospitals in underserved areas closing their labor and delivery units with significant consequences for expectant parents, families, and their local communities. "Too many rural communities have become maternity dese  more