Booker and “Senate Six” “Declare War on Iran War”

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) and six of his Democratic colleagues are “on the war powers warpath” in response to President Trump’s reckless and unconstitutional war on Iran, readying a “volley of war powers resolutions,” and “threatening to use every procedural tool at their disposal” in order to exercise the Senate’s constitutional role in matters of war and peace, hold this administration accountable and require debate over the Iran War in the Senate.

SEE FOR YOURSELF:

MS NOW The Rachel Maddow Show:Cory Booker Calls Out Trump's Dangerous, Strategic Blunders on The Rachel Maddow Show

March 16, 2026

Sen. Booker: “I think what we are witnessing here is the most monumental strategic stupidity exhibited by any president in our lifetime. I mean it is utterly outrageous that he is at one time begging people to come help with the mess that he created, causing the worst oil shock we have seen in our lifetime, begging people to help and then when they are not racing to help him, after he has already unleashed chaotic tariffs on them, after he has already insulted them before, demeaned and degraded them, didn’t go America first but America alone.”

POLITICO

Dems on the War Powers Warpath

By: Daniella Cheslow and Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing

March 16, 2026

The war powers push Senate Democrats are leading this week is nearly bound to fail. But they’re out for concessions like public hearings from Secretary of State MARCO RUBIO and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and to put Republicans on the record as supporting U.S. military action in Iran.

“We are optimistic that more public scrutiny of the administration’s lack of rationale and planning will hasten the end of this unnecessary war,” Sens. Tammy Tammy Baldwin (Wis.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), Tim Kaine (Va.), Adam Schiff (Calif.) And Chris Murphy (Conn.) wrote to NatSec Daily in a joint statement. They are all sponsors or cosponsors of half a dozen individual resolutions to rein in the administration’s Iran operations that they can begin to force votes on this week.

CNN State of the Union:

Booker: ‘The Senate should not be operating as business as usual’ amid Iran war

March 15, 2026

Sen. Booker: I understand past presidents have drifted and taken power from the article one branch of government. But at this scale, at this magnitude, at this cost, why is Congress just laying down and doing nothing? Because if we allow this to happen, then we give Trump the permission to say, "Okay, I finished with Venezuela. I went to Iran. Now I'm going to go to Cuba. Now I'm going to go to North Korea." It is outrageous and I never conceived that we could have this level of a military engagement without the people's house, Congress, doing something about it.”

The Hill

Senate Democrat: Congress ‘feckless’ in handing over war powers

By: Ashleigh Fields

March 15, 2026

Sen. Booker: “This is a massive military undertaking, costing American taxpayers billions and billions of dollars and tragically costing 13 lives. So I understand past presidents have drifted and taken power from the Article 1 branch of government. But at this scale, at this magnitude, at this cost, why is Congress just laying down and doing nothing?”

JAMIE STIEHM

Senate Six declare war on Iran War

By: Jamie Stiehm

March 13, 2026

Senator Booker voiced the strongest case against the escalating war in the Middle East.

Sen. Booker: "The president jumped into a war of choice with no oversight, no hearings. The Senate has to do our job."

Sen. Booker: "This is the choice of one reckless individual. All that an authoritarian government needs is for the Senate and House to do nothing."

MS NOW Morning Joe

Cory Booker And Tim Kaine Call for Public Hearings on Iran

March 10, 2026

Sen. Booker: “You know what we're demanding is what the American people want. Like you have people sitting at home watching this president drive up their health care costs, drive up their fuel costs, cut their student lunch programs for their kids, cut the VA benefits for people who've been to war and come home. All while now he's expending billions and billions of dollars on this unilateral decision to go to war. and they're saying, "Hey, where's my Congress? You're supposed to provide a check and a balance. You're supposed to provide oversight. You're supposed to provide investigation. Damn, you're the most deliberative body and you're not even deliberating over this war. That's unacceptable." And so what we hope to do is bring these leaders before Congress and provide that oversight that is urgent right now when Americans are paying the ultimate sacrifice for Donald Trump's war. And let me say one last thing. I don't think this is defensible.”

CNN The Source with Kaitlan Collins:

Sen. Booker joins Colleagues to discuss Trump's illegal war with Iran and War Powers Push

March 9, 2026

Sen. Booker: “This is a major military conflict with a major power in the Middle East that American lives are being lost and the Senate of the United States of America is rolling over and doing nothing. No oversight, no hearings, no checks and balances. Republicans in the Senate are letting this president act unilaterally, which the Constitution says there's no way you a president can indiscriminately pick countries he wants to invade. That power lies with Congress. But Congress has got to use their power. And that's why the four of us along with Senator Murphy, Senator Duckworth, and others are saying enough. No more business as usual. Our country is in crisis. The costs for average Americans are skyrocketing. And this president wants to spend tens of billions of dollars in his adventures overseas without coming to Congress.”

Semafor

Senate Democrats vow to force Iran war votes if Republicans don’t hold hearings

By: Burgess Everett

March 9, 2026

Senate Democrats are threatening to force repeated votes on President Donald Trump’s war with Iran unless Republicans agree to hold committee hearings about the ongoing war.

Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Tim Kaine of Virginia, Adam Schiff of California, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, and Chris Murphy of Connecticut introduced the resolutions last week. They will be ready for floor action in the coming days and weeks.

Now is the time for Democrats to use all the leverage we have to try to stop this unnecessary war,’all five senators and Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., said in a statement for this story.

NOTUS

Senate Democrats Threaten to Gum Up the Works With Repeat Iran War Powers Votes

By: Hahmed Ahmadi

March 9, 2026

Sen. Booker: “We’re not going to let the Senate go on with business as usual.”

CNBC

Democrats threaten more Iran war powers votes, call for Hegseth, Rubio to testify

By: Justin Papp

March 9, 2026

A group of Senate Democrats is vowing to force a series of war powers votes to block further military activity in Iran unless Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio testify publicly.

Six Democrats in the U.S. The Senate on Monday said they are embarking on an intensified campaign for public hearings on the Iran war, with top Trump administration officials testifying under oath and to take steps to interrupt regular Senate business if Republicans resist.

The Hill

Democrats vow to shut down Senate over Iran conflict

By: Alexander Bolton

March 9, 2026

A group of Senate Democrats are threatening to use every procedural tool at their disposal to hold up business on the Senate floor unless Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and other senior officials testify before key committees under oath on the military conflict with Iran.


Booker, Durbin Reintroduce Legislation Aimed at Increasing Membership within the U.S. Sentencing Commission

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) reintroduced the Sentencing Commission Improvements Act, legislation that would add a nonvoting member with a public defender background to the U.S. Sentencing Commission. This addition would bring a critical perspective from those who represent people accused of crimes and have hands-on experience navigating the criminal justice system, ensuring federal sentencing policies are grounded in real-world experiences.

The U.S. Sentencing Commission, an independent agency within the federal judiciary, was created to establish policies and practices to help reduce sentencing disparities. It specifically collects and analyzes information on federal sentencing practices to help develop fairer and more effective criminal justice policies.

Currently, the Commission consists of seven members from both political parties appointed by the President and two ex officio, nonvoting members, the Attorney General or a designee and the U.S. Parole Commission chair. However, unlike most state sentencing commissions, the federal Commission lacks a representative from a public defender background who would provide an essential perspective on the criminal justice system“Public defenders are on the frontlines, witnessing firsthand how sentencing policies impact low-income communities and communities of color, and can offer critical insight into issues like overcharging, plea pressure, and unequal access to resources,” said Senator Booker. “Adding a public defender to the Commission will help fill this blind spot and help ensure sentencing practices move toward a fairer, more balanced, and truly just system.”

“While tasked with establishing fair policies that reduce disparities in sentencing, the U.S. Sentencing Commission is missing a crucial perspective from the federal public defender system. It’s time we balanced the Commission’s membership by adding a nonvoting federal defender,” said Senator Durbin. “The Sentencing Commission Improvements Act will remedy the Commission’s blind spot and move us toward a fairer sentencing process.”


U.S. Senator Katie Britt Attends Dignified Transfer of Six American Heroes, Including Alabamian Maj. Alex Klinner

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) today joined President Donald J. Trump, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General John D. Caine, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.), Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), and other members of Congress at Dover Air Force Base for the dignified transfer of six American heroes who served the United States Air Force and tragically lost their lives last week during Operation Epic Fury, including Alabama-native Major Alex Klinner.

Maj. Klinner, 33, an eight-year U.S. Air Force veteran from Trussville, was a graduate of Auburn University. He leaves behind a loving wife, Libby, and three young children. He was deployed in 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2026, having flown 362 combat hours and 181 combat support hours.

“Attending the dignified transfer of Maj. Alex Klinner today was humbling and heartbreaking. In recent days, I’ve learned more about Maj. Klinner—the many lives he touched, the devoted family man he was, and his deep love of country,” said Senator Britt.

Along with Maj. Alex Klinner, Captain Ariana G. Savino, 31, and Technical Sergeant Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, served in the 99th Refueling Squadron of the 117th Air Refueling Wing located at Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base in Birmingham.

As the Chief of Current Operations Pilot and the 99th Air Refueling Squad, Capt. Savino played a critical role in refueling operations. She had flown 348 combat hours over multiple deployments in 2020 and 2026.

TSgt. Ashley B. Pruitt—a wife and mother—oversaw aircrew readiness, training, and flight operations. She flew 888 combat flight hours over several deployments in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2026.

Senator Britt continued, saying that “Capt. Savino and TSgt. Pruitt were dedicated servicemembers whose lives were tragically cut short in devoted service to their nation. They were part of our community and exemplified the very best of what it means to be an Alabamian.

“Wesley and I will be forever grateful to Ariana, Ashley, and Alex for their exemplary service and ultimate sacrifice, and we ask that all Alabamians join us in continuing to pray for their families and loved ones during this unthinkable time.”

Senator Britt and her family also remember and honor the sacrifice and service of Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Indiana, Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio, and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio. All three were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base based in Ohio, and also died in the loss of a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft over western Iraq.

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Budd, Klobuchar, Cortez Masto Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Modernize Outdated Technology at 9-1-1 Call Centers Nationwide

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ted Budd (R-N.C.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), co-chairs of the Senate Next Generation 9-1-1 Caucus and members of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, were joined by Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) in introducing the bipartisan Next Generation 9-1-1 Act to accelerate federal efforts to modernize our nation’s outdated 9-1-1 systems. This bill provides funding to state and local governments to deploy modern technology upgrades at 9-1-1 call centers to enable operators to utilize text messages, pictures, videos, and other information sent by smartphones, tablets, and other devices during an emergency.

“Our nation’s 9-1-1 call centers are on the front lines of emergency response, but outdated technologies have limited the ability of operators to best assist callers in crisis and support first responders in the field. It’s time to bring 9-1-1 systems into the digital age so emergency personnel can respond faster and more effectively to medical emergencies, crimes, and natural disasters in our communities. I am proud to join Senators Klobuchar and Cortez Masto in introducing practical legislation to modernize our 9-1-1 systems to meet the demands of the 21st Century and help save lives,” said Senator Budd.

“Infrastructure is more than just roads and bridges—it also includes critical technologies. We must bring our 9-1-1 systems into the 21st century by providing state and local governments with the resources they need to update our emergency response networks and keep our communities safe. In a crisis, no one should be put in danger because of outdated 9-1-1 systems, and first responders, public safety officials, and law enforcement must be able to communicate seamlessly. This legislation will enable them to do just that,” said Senator Klobuchar.

“Recent communications technology advancements have helped us stay connected and support our first responders. Unfortunately, our 9-1-1 systems haven’t kept up. This bipartisan legislation will support updated networks that improve safe and efficient responses to Nevadans facing emergencies,” said Senator Cortez Masto.

The Next Generation 9-1-1 Act is led by Representatives Richard Hudson (R-N.C.-09) and Troy Carter (D-La.-02) in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The bill is endorsed by the Association of Public-Safety Communication Officials (APCO) International, the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), the National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA), the Public Safety Next Generation 9-1-1 Coalition, and Intrado.

“NG9-1-1 is more than an upgrade in technology; it is a commitment to saving lives and strengthening public safety. Senators Klobuchar, Budd and Cortez Masto’s leadership in introducing the Next Generation 9-1-1 Act moves the country closer to a fully interoperable, reliable, innovative 9-1-1 environment, and we extend our sincere appreciation for their dedication to the advancement of public safety communications,” said Jack Varnado, President, APCO International.

“We thank Senators Klobuchar, Budd, and Cortez-Masto for their leadership on this legislation, which is essential and long overdue. Every delay in meaningful federal funding for 9-1-1 leaves local governments struggling to do two difficult things at once: maintain aging, legacy 9-1-1 systems and make progress toward 21st-century, lifesaving NG9-1-1. We call on Congressional leaders to act quickly on this legislation and to provide initial funding to ensure that every community has digital, interoperable 9-1-1 infrastructure—covering everyone from citizens in crisis, to the first responders in 9-1-1 centers, to police, fire, and emergency medical responders in the field,” said John Provenzano, Chief Executive Officer, NENA.

“Where you are located in the U.S. should not determine what level of emergency response Americans receive when an emergency strikes. But today, too many localities and communities lack the resources necessary to transition fully to Next Generation 911. Ensuring that every state in our nation can implement this critical public safety technology is paramount to our national security and public safety. We are grateful to the bipartisan leaders in the Senate, including Senator Klobuchar, Senator Budd, and Senator Cortez Masto, for supporting this legislation. Thank you, Senators, for working to keep our nation safe,” said L.V. Pokey Harris, President, NASNA.

“Modernizing our nation’s decades-old 9-1-1 systems to NG9-1-1 is a national security and public safety imperative. True, end-to-end, nationwide NG9-1-1 implementation will ensure that all communities have access to modern, reliable emergency communications services. The Coalition thanks Senators Klobuchar, Budd and Cortez Masto for their leadership in introducing this important legislation and advancing a framework to support nationwide NG9-1-1 deployment that aligns with the needs of the public safety community,” said Mel Maier, Spokesman, Public Safety Next Generation 9-1-1 Coalition.

“Next Generation 9-1-1 is a national public safety priority. We are grateful to Senator Klobuchar, Senator Budd, and Senator Cortez Masto for their leadership and commitment to this critical issue. Next Generation 9-1-1 supports tools and technologies that will save lives and will protect our critical infrastructure from foreign threats and cyberattacks. Now more than ever, Americans need robust, reliable, secure, and resilient 9-1-1 and we are eager to see this legislation move forward,” said Brian Davenport, Chief Strategy Officer, Intrado.

Read the full bill text HERE.

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Cantwell Convenes Elected Officials & Nonpartisan Democracy Defenders From TX, ME, NC, OH, MT, & WA for Virtual Press Conference on Protecting Voting Access

Senate voted 51-48 to open debate on GOP-led voter suppression bill this afternoon; Senate now debating ‘SAVE America Act,’ which could disenfranchise an estimated 21 million legal American voters

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) convened a group of current and former elected officials and representatives of nonpartisan voter advocacy groups for a virtual press conference on defending voter access in the face of the “SAVE America Act,” a GOP-led voter suppression bill that could block an estimated 21 million legal American voters from casting ballots and sow chaos in the 2026 elections.

“The hallmark of a democracy is free and fair elections. And when you start to undermine that, and you start to question whether you have free and fair elections, you are truly undermining our power as a democracy,” said Sen. Cantwell. “Why would you disenfranchise 20 million people when you have a system that is working successfully [and] has strong deterrence?”

“The SAVE America Act would create a particular hardship for older Mainers who rely on absentee voting,” said Chrissy Hart, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Maine. “It would also uniquely impact our older northern Mainers born in Canadian hospitals whose documents may not satisfy the SAVE America Act’s rigid requirements. These are American citizens who could find themselves unable to vote.”

“The saddest and maybe most sinister element of [The SAVE America Act] is the in-person voter registration requirement,” said Elisabeth Warner, Communications Director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio. “Ohio has major cities, but we are also deeply rural. Each of our 88 counties has just one election office, usually in its largest city, and that leaves many rural Ohioans who account for a quarter of our population, disadvantaged in registering and re-registering to vote.”

“Texas just got a real-life example of how changing the rules right before an election can cause people's votes not to count,” said Veronikah Warms, Voting Rights Policy Attorney at the Texas Civil Rights Project, referring to the chaos of the state’s Senate primary earlier this month. “Pulling the rug out from under eligible voters does not advance election integrity. It only weakens our democracy. If the SAVE America Act passes, that confusion will be voters’ realities as we go into the 2026 midterm election and every election cycle thereafter.”

“Many of the most disruptive and expensive provisions to this bill go into effect immediately upon enactment, with no runway for implementation or preparation,” said Karen Brinson Bell, former Executive Director of the North Carolina Board of Elections & Co-Founder of Advance Elections, LLC. “Please do not set our country or these public servants up for failure.”

“I'm just struck by how pleased I am that I live in the state of Washington, where our laws really provide very good accessibility to elections process, while also creating a system that has the highest level of security, transparency and accountability,” said Greg Kimsey, Auditor of Clark County, WA. “Our country should be moving more in the direction of Washington [state] and not in the direction of Ohio and Texas.”

“We've made it easy for you to convince the rest of your senators that possibly they ought to concern themselves about, oh, I don't know, some other things that affect America -- actually affect America,” said former Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer. “I don't know if you folks have noticed, but the price of my gasoline doubled here during the last two weeks.”

The SAVE America Act was narrowly passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Feb. 11. If it were to pass the Senate it would impose new barriers to voting:

A requirement that all mail-in ballots include a printed copy of the voter's picture ID.

A requirement that anyone registering to vote, or changing their registration details, present a birth certificate, passport, or other proof of citizenship documents in person to their county elections office. A driver’s license, even a standard REAL ID one, is not proof of citizenship.

A new private right of action provision that would allow anyone to personally sue an elections worker who they claim registered a noncitizen, even erroneously – opening elections workers up to politically-motivated witch hunts.

These requirements may disenfranchise at least 21.3 million legal American voters. In Washington state, for example, 2.8 million citizens do not have a passport or an original or certified copy of their birth certificate that matches the name on their ID. The burden would especially fall on:

The 1.6 million women in Washington state who have taken their spouse’s name and whose birth certificate doesn’t match their legal name;

Rural voters, who in some parts of Washington state will need to make time for a round trip of up to six hours to their county elections office to register or change their documentation in person ahead of Election Day. Currently, those voters are able to make changes online;

Young people, who are more likely to frequently change addresses.

Last month, Sen. Cantwell released a snapshot report detailing the burdens the SAVE America Act would impose on Washington voters – that report can be read in full HERE.

And this week, Sen. Cantwell released a snapshot report with new data breaking down just how much the SAVE America Act – a voter suppression bill that the GOP Senate majority intends to take up this coming week – would require from Washington state taxpayers.

According to a new analysis compiled jointly by the Washington Secretary of State’s Elections Office and the Washington Association of County Auditors, the State of Washington and its 39 counties together would be forced to spend at least $35.7 million this year alone to comply with the burdens imposed by the SAVE America Act. Subsequent elections would cost at least $9.5 million and up to $14.6 million more than currently spent to administer. That report can be read in full HERE.

Despite President Donald Trump’s consistent claims to the contrary, voter fraud is so vanishingly rare in the United States as to be statistically nonexistent. Even the Heritage Foundation, the right-wing thinktank behind Project 2025, found that an average of 36 fraudulent ballots have been cast every year over the last 40 years – nationwide. For context, around 154 million Americans voted in the 2024 election.

The same Heritage Foundation analysis found that Washington state sees an average of one case of voter fraud every three years. That amounts to an error rate of 0.000006% -- fewer than one in 10 million.

An election-by-election breakdown of when fraudulent ballots have been cast in Washington state can be found in today’s snapshot report HERE.

Video of today’s entire virtual press conference is HERE; video of Sen. Cantwell’s statement is HERE; and a transcript of Sen. Cantwell’s statement is HERE.

Sen. Cantwell has been a staunch defender of Washingtonians’ voting rights and the vote-by-mail system and has been sounding the alarm about how the SAVE America Act would be disastrous for free and fair elections:


Chairman Capito Participates in EPW Fisheries, Water, and Wildlife Subcommittee Hearing on Endangered Species Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, participated in an EPW Fisheries, Water, and Wildlife Subcommittee hearing examining the challenges and opportunities with implementing the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

During the hearing, Chairman Capito asked witnesses about the increased role that states could play in protecting endangered species rather than relying on federal support. She also asked witnesses about the listing of species who are suffering from natural causes and not any man-made environment. Finally, she questioned the witnesses about the varying ways the ESA is implemented across different regions of the country.

HIGHLIGHTS:

ROLE OF STATES IN ESA IMPLEMENTATION

Chairman Capito:

“Certainly, coming from a state like West Virginia, we’re very, as every state is, familiar with the Endangered Species Act and some of the pluses and some of the minuses. Because, in some cases, the ESA has, at times, been used to unnecessarily slow down progress, particularly in our timbering and our energy industries […] and actually some of our construction on our highways going through the mountains. […] And so those impacts are felt everywhere. […] It seems like there’s a lot of agreement on the panel on directions that can make for improvements […] I am curious to know, I think, Mr. Yablonski, you mentioned that the states could play maybe a bigger role here. Could you elaborate on that a little bit in what kind of capacities […]?”

Brian Yablonski, Chief Executive Officer of Property and Environmental Research Center:

“I’m a former state wildlife chairman in Florida, so I’m a little partial to states being able to manage wildlife. There’s something like 200,000 species, domestic species, in North America. The states probably manage 99% of those species, and they do it pretty well. But I think there’s another provision in the ESA under Section 6 that allows for ESA cooperative agreements that could be used more robustly, and, essentially, think of it as how we delegate authority under Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act. […] Within the statute, it lays out, sort of, five requirements that the states would have to hit in order for the Fish and Wildlife Service to shift management of species, oversight of species, take permitting of species to the states. And I think in a state like Florida, all five of those are very doable. Some of those are like habitat acquisition programs and public process and an agency to actually do this.”

Chairman Capito:

“Why do you think that’s not occurring? […] Is there a lack of trust? That the states don’t have the capacity, or they’re not going to oversee properly? Why is it still so federalized?”

Brian Yablonski, Chief Executive Officer of Property and Environmental Research Center:

“Yeah, I would say part of it is a mindset at the agency itself. It’s hard to just kind of shift something directly back to the states. The other is litigation. We actually tried this in Florida in 2012. And the service at that time, under President Obama, actually agreed to do it, but the state of Florida was sued. The agency was sued right away, and Florida ended up backing off of it because of the litigation.”

PROTECTION OF DISEASED SPECIES

Chairman Capito:

“You know, one thing I’ve always been curious about…the [northern long-eared bat] – it has a white-nose syndrome. It has an illness that’s making this species die out. Yet it is on a list, so you have to watch it. How do you see that as conflicting, when you have a species that has an inherent disease that’s killing it, and it has nothing to do with the development around it or the environment or the habitat or any kind of activity. How do we balance that? Because this has been an issue for us.”

Jake Li, Vice President of Conservation Policy at Defenders of Wildlife:

“Thank you for that question, Senator Capito. Actually, this is very close to me because one of the last things I did at the Fish and Wildlife Service was to sign a policy that gives flexibility in that very situation. The example there is that we know the northern long-eared bat and many other bat species are listed because of white-nose syndrome. If it weren’t for white-nose syndrome, they wouldn’t be on the list at all. So, the policy we signed was actually to allow, in this case, wind energy companies to fund mitigation measures for white-nose syndrome as a way to meet the ESA requirements for mortality from wind turbines. So that’s an example of flexibility because you’re actually funding the most important needs of the species, i.e. white-nose syndrome, even though your take is actually from something completely different, which is wind turbine operations. So that gives a lot more flexibility to energy companies.”

Chairman Capito:

“[…] I think there has to be some flexibility here. Because in the end, if the bat is still suffering from a terminal disease, […] the numbers are going to go down, whether it’s getting hit by a windmill or not. I’ve always kind of wondered about that. How do you solve that problem? I’m sure if we went back 200,000 years ago, there’s species that are no longer here because of the evolutionary nature of life.

ENFORCEMENT ACROSS STATES

Chairman Capito:

I’m going to ask, […] what do you see in terms of differences as we go [across the country]? Just really generally, is there a big difference in terms of looking at species, comparing the East [Coast], Midwest, or West [Coast]? Because I’ve always thought it’s more of an issue out West. Maybe it’s because there are more federal lands. Does anybody have an answer to that?”

Brian Yablonski, Chief Executive Officer of Property and Environmental Research Center:

“I think it’s interesting that one of the commonalities are large, charismatic species. Whether I was in Florida dealing with Florida panther and manatee, [I] woke up the next day and was dealing with grizzly bears and wolves out in Montana. They tend to get all the attention and suck the oxygen out of the room. But it also drains a lot of the resources of the agency where some of these species should be coming off [the] list, and we should be putting resources toward other species that really need it.”

Click HEREto view Chairman Capito’s questions.

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Cassidy Introduces Bill to Expand Mental Health Care for Seniors

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) introduced the Removing Medicare Mental Health Inpatient Limitations Act to eliminate the Medicare 190-day lifetime cap on inpatient psychiatric care.

“Louisiana seniors deserve easier access to the care they need,” said Dr. Cassidy. “By removing barriers to mental health care, we’re making their lives easier and providing peace of mind for their families.”

Under Section 1812 of the Social Security Act, inpatient psychiatric care under Medicare is limited to 190 days over a lifetime. The Removing Medicare Mental Health Impatient Limitations Act would erase this cap, ensuring seniors have complete and uninterrupted access to the mental health care they need.

The Removing Medicare Mental Health Inpatient Limitations Act is supported by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Legal Action Center, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, Mental Health America, American Nurses Association, American Psychiatric Association, REDC Consortium, Oceans Healthcare, and the Eating Disorders Coalition for Research, Policy & Action.

“Medicare’s 190-day lifetime limit on inpatient psychiatric care is an outdated policy that creates an arbitrary barrier we would never accept for patients with cancer or any other chronic disease — and patients with serious behavioral health needs deserve no less. As Louisiana’s leading provider of inpatient psychiatric services, Oceans Healthcare has witnessed this inequity firsthand and Senator Cassidy’s bill is an important step in patient care, and we urge Congress to move it forward,” said Stuart Archer, CEO of Oceans Healthcare.

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Cassidy, Ricketts Introduce Bill to Ban Congressional Stock Trading, Restore Trust in Congress

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE) today introduced the Stop Insider Trading Act to prohibit Members of Congress, their spouses, and dependent children from purchasing publicly traded stocks and mandate a seven-day public notice period before any stock sales can be executed.

“Members of Congress shouldn’t cash in on information the public doesn’t have. That’s wrong,” said Dr. Cassidy. “Let’s put a stop to it.”

“No lawmaker should ever profit from insider information. Nebraskans send us to Congress to build a better country. Public service is a privilege, not a profit center,” said Senator Ricketts. “Trust in Congress remains at an all-time low. To fix that, we need to prove we are playing by the same rules as everyone else.”

The Stop Insider Trading Act will:

Prohibit Members, spouses, and dependent children from purchasing any new stocks in publicly traded companies.

Require public notice at least seven days, but no more than 14 days, in advance of any intended sale.

Establish a penalty of $2,000 or 10% of the investment value, whichever is greater, plus the forfeiture of any net gain realized from the sale.

Stop insider trading without preventing successful people from the private sector from serving.

Cassidy and Ricketts were joined by U.S. Senators Dave McCormick (R-PA), Jon Husted (R-OH), Deb Fisher (R-NE), Roger Marshall (R-KS), and Todd Young (R-IN) in introducing the legislation. This is the Senate companion bill to legislation led by U.S. Representative Bryan Steil (R-WI-01) in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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Senator Collins Announces Senior Staff Updates

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Susan Collins today announced updates to her senior leadership team for the remainder of the 119th Congress.

Senator Collins’ longtime Chief of Staff Steve Abbott will manage her reelection campaign. Katie Brown, currently the Senator’s Legislative Director and Chief Counsel, will serve as Chief of Staff. Annie Clark, the Senator’s former Communications Director, will return to serve as Deputy Chief of Staff.

“I am so fortunate to have a trusted team of advisors stepping into these important positions as we continue addressing the serious challenges facing Maine and our nation,” said Senator Collins. “Their experience, judgment, and dedication will help ensure that I continue to serve the people of Maine effectively.”

Steve Abbott, a native of Orono and resident of Portland, Maine, is an attorney who has served as Senator Collins’ Chief of Staff for the past 25 years. Abbott previously managed all of Senator Collins’ successful reelection campaigns in 2002, 2008, 2014, and 2020.

Katie Brown has served as a senior policy advisor to Senator Collins since 2013, most recently as Legislative Director and Chief Counsel. She brings broad expertise to the role, including work on appropriations, education, and other key legislative priorities.

Annie Clark served as Senator Collins’ Communications Director from 2015 to 2025. She also served as Communications Director for Senator Collins’ successful 2020 reelection campaign.

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Senator Collins Questions Intelligence Community Leaders on Global Threats

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Susan Collins today questioned Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard and FBI Director Kash Patel at a hearing of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) to review the Intelligence Community’s annual global threat assessment. Her questioning focused on various threats to our homeland, including terrorist recruitment, potential attacks on critical infrastructure, and the Intelligence Community’s efforts to detect and prevent emerging threats from foreign adversaries and extremist groups.

Q&A on Countering Terrorism Threats to the Homeland

Click HERE to watch and HERE to download

Sen. Collins: Director Gabbard, you just testified that ISIS and Al Qaeda are significantly weaker, and reflecting that view, you have devoted declining budgets, personnel, and emphasis on countering terrorism. Yet the fact is that ISIS is growing and operating in Somalia, Afghanistan, Syria, Pakistan, and Iraq. Al Qaeda is surging in Afghanistan, the Arabian Peninsula, and throughout Central Africa. The Houthis in Yemen and the rest of the Iranian proxies remain a serious threat. Focusing, as you have done, on great power competitors seems to have diverted resources from the fight against terrorism, a fight that's very much still going on. As I have said repeatedly, it is terrorists who want and can kill Americans today--we've just seen the terrorists in Michigan attacking the synagogue. In addition, it appears that a more stove piped effort in the Intelligence Committee has returned. How are you ensuring that Americans are safe and that you are countering counterterrorism threats to our homeland and to US citizens abroad?

DNI Gabbard: Thank you, Senator Collins, for your question and the opportunity to clarify the comments in my opening statement. My reference to the size of ISIS and Al Qaeda organizationally is smaller and weaker than it was during its peak over a decade ago. However, I completely concur with your remarks about the threat of ISIS, Al Qaeda, and other Islamist terrorist groups around the world, and the threat that they pose to U.S. interests, service members, and directly to the homeland. Our ODNI National Counterterrorism Center has been at the forefront of ramping up, and I believe, is more active today than it has been, certainly in a long time. We are dedicating every resource that they ask for, as well as the counterterrorism elements across the IC to make sure that we are never taking our eye off of this persistent threat to the American people. The change in tactics based on the current environment is something we continue to be most concerned about. Increasingly, we are seeing less indicators of large-scale, organized, complex threats or attacks, and instead, efforts focused on individuals, either who have been radicalized by Islamist propaganda and may not have ever had contact with ISIS or Al Qaeda, for example, and others who have had contact, of which we are able to have more indications of. This remains, and as we come to present our budgets to you, a foremost and primary priority. The integration across the Intelligence Community on the counterterrorism threat occurs every single day, with our teams working very effectively together to thwart terrorist attacks, as we have over the last year.

Q&A on Countering Terrorism Recruitment

Click HERE to watch and HERE to download

Sen. Collins: Director Patel, I'm going to follow up on this issue with you. ISIS targets potential recruits online through social media, gaming platforms, and encrypted messaging apps. ISIS even facilitated a network online to smuggle illegal immigrants into the United States. Since April 2021, there have been more than 52 jihadist inspired cases across 30 states. What measures is the FBI taking to prevent foreign terrorist organizations from recruiting or influencing Americans, while also ensuring the protection of individual's right to privacy?

FBI Director Patel: Thank you, Senator—and I think you said it best. They have transferred their capabilities in terms of personal recruitments to online recruitments, which makes any terrorist organization, including ISIS, all the more powerful. What we have done is extended and expanded resources to environments like the Threat Screening Center, which allows us to collect biometric capabilities from all over the world. We've had a double-digit increase in that, and a double-digit increase in intelligence production. But what we've also done in the CT space specifically is expand the number of agents and intel analysts that go online and detect based on our biometric capabilities and intelligence that we have from the interagency. And what that leads us to is what we saw in December of last year, Senator, where we at the FBI stopped four terrorist attacks, four: in California, Texas, North Carolina and Pennsylvania, three of which were ISIS-inspired. We were able to detect these individuals, both online and in-person, using our covert platforms, and we shuttered a bombing campaign in Southern California and two mass casualty events for New Year's Eve.

Q&A on Protecting Critical U.S. Infrastructure

Click HERE to watch and HERE to download

Sen. Collins: Director Gabbard, the Intelligence Community did not detect an extremely serious breach affecting our telecommunications industry due to the Chinese Salt Typhoon incursions for a very long time. In addition, the Chinese Volt Typhoon threat poses a terrible threat to U.S. critical infrastructure. Specific sectors throughout the United States have been overlooked and under-protected. What are you doing to deal with the threat to critical infrastructure, our electric grid, our communication systems, given this huge mess by our talented Intelligence Community.

DNI Gabbard: Thank you, Senator Collins, for the question. You know, working with our partners at NSA and others to detect these threats and how they may be evolved or developing is something we're continuing to work on. Building strong partnerships with the private sector, whether it be in the telecom industry, the financial sector, the healthcare sector, the energy sector, is something that I'm rebuilding. We've seen some of these ongoing relationships falter over previous years. I've personally been astounded by some of the conversations I've had with leaders from these industries who are just as concerned as we are about these threats to our critical infrastructure, and yet, don't feel that they have the connectivity or the information to be able to secure their own infrastructure. So, in short, building those stronger partnerships, integrating and being able to share information intelligence where we can, is critical for us to be able to secure our country from these threats.

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Senator Coons, Curtis celebrate passage of key section of innovation bill

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and John Curtis (R-Utah) celebrated the passage of a bill to reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs that contained a key section of his Research Advancing to Market Production (RAMP) for Innovators Act. The House passed the bill, the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act, this week, following Senate passage in early March.

SBIR and STTR are crucial programs that drive federal R&D investments to small businesses and startups. As part of the bill to reauthorize them, Congress approved a portion of Senator Coons’ bipartisan RAMP for Innovators Act, improving technical and business assistance for awardees and helping more small businesses turn federally supported research into market-ready products. The effort was led in the House by Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.)

“Delaware’s incredible small businesses are making discoveries, inventing new products, supporting our communities, and growing our economy every day,” said Senator Coons. “When the federal government helps small businesses access federal research funds – and our small businesses have the opportunity to provide cutting-edge products to the federal government – everybody wins. I’m glad the House and Senate passed this crucial bill for our small businesses, and I urge the president to sign it.”

“America’s small businesses are turning big ideas into real-world solutions that strengthen our economy and national security,” said Senator Curtis. “Our bipartisan legislation to make it easier for entrepreneurs to move research from the lab to the marketplace has now passed the House and Senate. Next stop: the White House.”

“Pennsylvania’s Sixth District is home to world-class research institutions and innovative small businesses, but too often great discoveries struggle to reach the marketplace. After years of bipartisan and bicameral collaboration, I’m proud that key provisions from my RAMP for Innovators Act are included in the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act now headed to the President’s desk,” said Representative Houlahan. “These reforms give entrepreneurs more flexibility to use Technical and Business Assistance funding to hire the expertise they need to scale and open the door to I-Corps training – the startup ‘bootcamp’ that helps innovators turn promising research into real products and companies. I’m grateful to Senator Chris Coons and Representative Troy Balderson for their continued partnership in advancing this work and helping ensure American innovators can bring the next generation of technologies to market.”

The SBIR and STTR programs, often referred to as America’s seed fund, help small businesses develop cutting-edge technologies while addressing federal research and development needs. These programs have played a critical role in supporting breakthroughs in areas including defense, health care, energy, and advanced manufacturing.

Senator Coons has long championed policies that help entrepreneurs, researchers, and small manufacturers scale their ideas, create jobs, and strengthen U.S. competitiveness. His RAMP for Innovators Act aims to help small businesses that receive SBIR and STTR funds commercialize their federally-funded innovations. The legislation extending the SBIR and STTR programs includes key provisions from his bill that will expand and improve small businesses’ access to the technical and business assistance they need to bring their innovations to market while integrating the SBIR and STTR programs with other key federal innovation programs.

Senator Coons is a member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.


Cornyn Calls Out Dems for Opposing SAVE America Act, Wanting Illegals to Vote in American Elections

WASHINGTON – Today on the floor, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) called out Democrats for opposing the SAVE America Act, landmark legislation currently on the Senate floor that would secure America’s elections by requiring individuals to present proof of citizenship when registering to vote as well as photo identification before voting in a federal election. Excerpts of Sen. Cornyn’s remarks are below, and video can be found here.

“Here we are on a bill that would require only American citizens to vote and that you need a photo I.D. in order to cast your ballot. Well, our Democratic colleagues are, of course, doing what they usually do under these circumstances and saying this legislation will disenfranchise voters.”

“It will disenfranchise noncitizens. That’s the point. And they don’t want to do that? Well, again, you have to wonder why? Is that because they want noncitizens, illegal immigrants, to be able to vote?”

“The majority of Americans, including a majority of many Democrats and Independents, support the SAVE America Act and its goals.”

“Americans need a government issued I.D. in order to drive a car, to buy a phone, open a bank account, to buy a six-pack of beer, to get on an airplane, and the list goes on.”

“We all deserve to know that when we go to the polling place and cast a vote that our vote is not being diluted by fraudulent voters who are voting early and often or by somebody who’s not qualified to vote by virtue of the fact that they’re not a citizen.”

“I’m grateful to our leadership in the state of Texas Governor Abbott and the rest, who make sure that we have safe and secure elections through secure mail-in voting, and I’m proud we’ve taken this issue seriously and required voter I.D.”

“The Senate must do whatever it takes for this monumental legislation, this commonsense legislation, to become the law of the land.”


Cornyn Introduces the End Special Treatment for Congress at Airports Act

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) introduced the End Special Treatment for Congress at Airports Act, which would require Members of Congress to undergo the same Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screening procedures as all other airline passengers and prohibit the use of federal funds to provide U.S. Senators and House members with expedited or preferential access at airport security checkpoints:

“Nobody should be above the rules and regulations imposed on the American people, and a Member pin on your lapel should not give you carte blanche to skip airport screening lines while everyday Americans are forced to patiently wait their turn,” said Sen. Cornyn. “I’m proud to introduce this legislation to end the unfair practice of allowing Members of Congress to receive expedited airport security screening, and I urge my colleagues to join me in restoring democracy at the TSA security line.”

Background:

Historically, Members of Congress have received special treatment at airports, including expedited security screening. In some cases, they also receive “courtesy escorts” through airport terminals provided by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) or airport police. Amid the partial federal government shutdown and staffing shortages, the TSA suspended special escort services for Members of Congress. The ongoing partial shutdown of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has brought to light the fundamental issue of fairness between Americans – who have been forced to wait in hours-long security screening lines, endure travel disruptions, and face grueling flight delays – and the Members of Congress who represent them.

The End Special Treatment for Congress at Airports Act would:


Cornyn Questions Trump Admin on Iran, Effects of Democrats’ DHS Shutdown on Counterterrorism

WASHINGTON – Today during the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Open Hearing on Worldwide Threats, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) discussed with Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel the national security threats posed by Iran’s nuclear ambitions and Democrats’ ongoing obstruction in refusing to fund and reopen the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Excerpts are below, and video can be found here.

On the Threat Posed by Iran:

CORNYN: “Director Ratcliffe, yesterday, the head of the National Counterterrorism Center resigned, saying that Iran did not represent an imminent threat to the United States. Is there anything to indicate that Iran had ceased in its nuclear ambitions or in its desire to continue to build ballistic missiles capable of threatening American troops and allies in the Middle East?”

RATCLIFFE: “Senator, no. In fact, the intelligence reflects the contrary… Iran has been a constant threat to the United States for an extended period of time, and posed an immediate threat at this time.”

On the Effects of Democrats’ DHS Shutdown on Counterterrorism:

CORNYN: “Director Patel, it seems like there’s been a raft of incidents recently. On March the first in Austin, Texas, where I live, a lone gunman, wearing a sweatshirt saying, ‘Property of Allah,’ and the t-shirt he wore underneath had an Iranian flag, killed three innocent people and injured 12 more. And then we know in Virginia, the Old Dominion shooting – somebody who, unbelievably, was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison for attempting to support ISIS but then was released only to commit another terrorist attack. We all are familiar with what’s happened in Michigan, in New York, and I applaud the important role that the FBI has played in stopping some terrorist attacks.”

“Are you aware that Senate Democrats have uniformly voted not to fund the Department of Homeland Security, including Homeland Security Investigations, TSA, FEMA, and other functions of the Department of Homeland Security?”

PATEL: “Senator, I’m aware that employees of DHS are one month without pay.”

CORNYN: “We were all seeing what’s happening at airports, where people are having to wait hours at a time because of the fact that these TSA agents are overburdened, but what I wanted to focus on with you: is the refusal to fund the functions of the Department of Homeland Security, including Homeland Security Investigations, making Americans less safe?”

PATEL: “Absolutely.”

CORNYN: “I’m looking at an article here that talks about the 190,000 Afghan nationals that were admitted to the United States, literally unvetted, and there are examples of individuals within that 190,000 who committed to terrorist attacks against the United States and against American citizens. Is that the sort of thing that you are investigating with HSI?”

PATEL: “Senator, that’s one of the many things we’re investigating with HSI, DHS, CBP, ICE.”

“What we’re able to do is remove these individuals off the streets in every single state across the country to include violent gang members, to include Tren de Aragua, to include ISIS-affiliated individuals, to include Al-Qaeda related affiliated individuals. And hopefully, we do it before and not after, like the tragedy that we witnessed in Washington, D.C., where an individual from Afghanistan was allowed to enter into our country and shot multiple members of our uniform military service.”


DOW Awards Over $63 Million for Pavement Repair at Grand Forks Air Force Base

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of War (DOW) awarded a $63,966,205 contract to United Crane & Excavation Inc., for maintenance, repair, and design of paving projects at Grand Forks Air Force Base. Work is expected to be completed by March 15, 2031.

U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), chair of the Senate Armed Services Airland Subcommittee, issued the following statement recognizing the need for the contract:

“With the 319th Reconnaissance Wing delivering crucial intelligence and warfighting capabilities orvisiting B-1 units flying strategic bomber missions to anywhere in the world, Grand Forks Air Force Base stands at the forefront of modern defense. But mission dominance starts from the ground up. High-quality infrastructure ensures our Airmen and Guardians can execute without delay.”


Federal Highway Administration Awards $2,057,009 to North Dakota Tribes

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) awarded$2,057,009 to two North Dakota tribal nations through the Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund. The funds are distributed as follows:

$1,280,819 to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) 3400 Roadway Realignment Safety Project. These funds will be used for engineering and construction to realign an approximately 0.8-mile section of BIA 3400 to address slope, drainage, and crash history.

$776,190 to the Spirit Lake Tribe for the Oyate Walkway Thin Lift Overlay & Accessibility Improvements. These funds will be used to restore the surfacing, add accessible landings with detectable warning panels, and improve crosswalks, signage, and pavement markings. The North Dakota Department of Transportation is working on a $20 million project to extend a pathway from Fort Totten to Devils Lake, and the Oyate Walkway which connects to the pathway at two locations.


Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Advances Cramer’s Bill to Improve Access to Care for Rural Veterans

WASHINGTON, D.C. – For veterans living in highly rural states, accessing timely health care can be a daily struggle. Long drives, excessive wait times, and backlogged U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities often make receiving timely routine care a major challenge. Today, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC) overwhelmingly advanced U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Tim Sheehy’s (R-MT) Critical Access for Veterans Care Act, which is designed to support veteran care closer to home.

The legislation establishes a five-year pilot program to improve care coordination and simplify access for veterans receiving care at Critical Access Hospitals through the VA Community Care Program. Specifically, it creates a preauthorization pathway for outpatient services at participating facilities for veterans who live within 35 miles of a Critical Access Hospital and are eligible under community care criteria. This means fewer administrative barriers, shorter waits, and easier access to the care veterans deserve.

The Critical Access for Veterans Care Act focuses on Medicare frontier states like North Dakota, Nevada, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, and Alaska, areas where travel distances and limited VA resources make access especially difficult.

“The Critical Access for Veterans Care Act recognizes the barriers veterans face in rural North Dakota and tests a more efficient way of delivering the care they were promised through local Critical Access Hospitals,” said Cramer. “It’s about making health care accessible, convenient, and practical for those who have served our country.”

In North Dakota, there’s just one VA Medical Center in Fargo with eight Community-Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) spread across the state inBismarck, Devils Lake, Dickinson, Grafton, Grand Forks, Jamestown, Minot, and Williston. North Dakota has 37 Critical Access Hospitals across the state, but only five of those towns also host a VA CBOC. This leaves veterans in the remaining communities with less access to care than other citizens.

As part of a SVAC legislative hearing on Dec. 11, the North Dakota Rural Health Association and a coalition of 22 rural North Dakota health care providers submitted letters of support for Cramer’s legislation. They wrote, “Far too long veterans have been stuck in a system where access has been overshadowed by bureaucratic procedure. This legislation offers a streamlined, practical approach which builds on existing infrastructure and recognized designations in rural health care to meaningfully improve veteran access to care.” The American Hospital Association, America’s Warrior Partnership, and the National Rural Health Association also supported the legislation.


Working Families Tax Cuts Put Taxpayers in the Driver’s Seat

Washington, D.C.—In addition to preventing the largest tax hike in American history and lowering tax rates across the board, the Working Families Tax Cuts championed by U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) are making everyday expenses more affordable. Fulfilling one of President Trump’s campaign promises, the law allows working-class taxpayers to deduct interest on loans for new, U.S.-made cars, trucks and motorcycles from their taxes. With this deduction, Republicans are making it easier for Idahoans to get to work, take their children to school or enjoy a drive down one of Idaho’s scenic byways.

“This policy is a win-win for Americans: it further boosts domestic manufacturing and helps families meet their expenses,” said Crapo. “Combined with permanently lower tax rates and provisions like no tax on tips and overtime, the new deduction for car loan interest helps make low- and middle-income Americans the biggest winners under this bill.”

How it works:

Eligibility: Deduction is available regardless of whether taxpayers itemize or claim the standard deduction.

Maximum annual deduction is $10,000.

Deduction phases out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income over $100,000 ($200,000 for joint filers).

Qualified Interest: To qualify for the deduction, the interest must be paid on a loan that is:

Originated after December 31, 2024,

Used to purchase a new vehicle,

For a personal use vehicle (not for business or commercial use), and

Secured by a lien on the vehicle.

Qualified Vehicle: A qualified vehicle is a car, minivan, van, SUV, pick-up truck or motorcycle, with a gross vehicle weight rating of less than 14,000 pounds, and that has undergone final assembly in the United States.

The location of final assembly will be listed on the vehicle information label attached to each vehicle on a dealer’s premises.

Alternatively, taxpayers can use the Vehicle Identification Number Decoder website from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which provides plant of manufacture information.

Click HERE to learn more about how the Working Families Tax Cuts get Americans on the road.

Click HERE to learn more about the Finance Committee provisions in the Working Families Tax Cuts.

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Curtis Lauds $100 Million Investment in Central Utah Water Infrastructure

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator John Curtis (R-UT) applauded a $100 million federal investment, made possible by Republicans’ Working Families Tax Cuts Act, to replace the century-old Strawberry High Line Canal with an enclosed pipeline to improve safety and water delivery efficiency. The funding will support critical upgrades to water delivery systems, strengthening reliability, efficiency, and safety for communities and agriculture across the region.

“Reliable water infrastructure is essential to Utah’s communities, farmers, and our growing economy,” said Senator Curtis. “The bold and practical measures included in Republicans’ Big Beautiful Bill will modernize central Utah’s century-old system, conserve water, and help ensure the Uinta Basin is better prepared to meet future water demand.”

Background:

The Working Families Tax Cuts Act, enacted by Republicans in 2025, provided $1 billion to the Department of the Interior (DOI) to restore and expand water conveyance systems and increase surface water storage capacity across the West.

In Utah, the $100 million investment will replace the Strawberry High Line Canal with a modern enclosed pipeline system, improving water delivery efficiency, reducing water loss and, enhancing long-term reliability for local users. The funding reflects ongoing efforts to strengthen water infrastructure and drought resilience across the West—an agenda Senator Curtis continues to work with federal, state, and local partners to advance.


Daines on Fox Business: “We Should Not Allow Democrats to Use a Shutdown to Put Pain on the American People”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Steve Daines today spoke with Larry Kudlow on Fox Business to discuss Senator Markwayne Mullin’s hearing to be DHS Secretary and the effects of the DHS shutdown across the nation.

Watch the full interview HERE.

Daines on the DHS shutdown:

It’s nuts, Larry. I call this “reindeer games” up here on Capitol Hill. This is now day 33. The Democrats decided to shut down DHS at a time when our nation needs those kind of resources on the front lines. Look what’s going on in TSA. I understand right now the Houston airport, three to four hour delays because the TSA agents aren’t getting paid. God bless those TSA agents around our country who are not getting paid but still showing up for work. We should not allow the Democrats to use a shutdown to put the pain on the American people because they’re making political points after what happened with ICE up in Minneapolis. Let’s remember something, Tom Homan and his leadership have already made a number of changes in response to what happened in Minneapolis. They’re putting new leadership in place. They’re talking about body cameras. They’re being a little more judicious in terms of where they lean in, where they lean back. They’ve done all the right things. But one other thing, Larry, let’s remember there’s 22,000 ICE agents who show up to work every day. They’ve taken 150,000 dangerous illegals off of our streets already. The death threats against ICE agents are up 8,000 percent from where they were a year ago. They’ve got one of the toughest jobs in America to keep us safe. It’s terrible that Chuck Schumer and the Democrats are using them as a political pawn for their political objectives. I think just me personally, no matter what Mr. Schumer and the other Dems say, they basically want to defund ICE, even to end ICE. That’s what I think, and they want to reopen the borders. That’s what I think their underlying mission is.

Daines on continued Democratic nonsense:

They don’t want to solve the problem. They want to keep inflicting pain. They want to keep their base riled up. This radical left base. And you’re exactly right, Larry. This is a group of leaders in our country that if given power again, whether in the presidency or the United States Senate, the borders will be wide open again and they would defund ICE. It’s insanity. As a father and grandfather now of seven, I want my children and grandchildren safe. Thank God for President Trump and his leadership that’s made our nation safer. That’s what I think their ideological objective is.

Daines on Senator Mullin’s confirmation hearing:

As we say out in Montana, Larry, things got a little western up here on the Hill today. But let me say this. Markwayne Mullin, the great senator from Oklahoma, is a close friend of mine. In fact, we got elected to the U.S. House together back in 2012. I served one term in the House and came to the Senate in 2014 and Markwayne came several years later. I’ve known him a long time. He is a great patriot. This guy is a fighter and he’s the kind of guy you want to have leading DHS for this country because, as you know, the world is increasingly dangerous. After Joe Biden let in over 10 million illegals into our country, we’ve got our work cut out for us. Think about the Iranian sleeper cells in our country at the moment. You want to have a guy like Markwayne Mullin at the top of that organization. He is a man of high integrity, he’s a compassionate father…

… He’s going to have even bipartisan support. Senator Fetterman of Pennsylvania has indicated he’s going to support the nomination at the committee level, and that means we’ll see his support most likely on the floor level, but Markwayne Mullin will be the next Secretary of Homeland Security.

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Amid Trump’s Attacks on Vital Agriculture Support Programs, Duckworth Discusses Agricultural Priorities with Illinois Farm Bureau

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—founding co-chair of the Senate Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Caucus—met with Illinois Farm Bureau (IFB) members to discuss shared priorities to grow Illinois’s agriculture industry and support our farmers. Duckworth and the members discussed the importance of supporting our family farmers by expanding the biofuels market, increasing agricultural exports and improving farm safety net programs as Donald Trump continues to attack critical federal agricultural programs. Photos from today’s meeting can be found on the Senator’s website.

“Donald Trump promised no new wars and lower costs, yet the cost of everything from gas to food to key agricultural inputs continues to skyrocket while he’s focused on building a ballroom for his billionaire buddies,” Duckworth said. “America has always depended on our nation’s farmers to grow the food and fuel we need, and I’m proud to advocate for them on both the national and international stage regardless of who is in the White House. I will continue to do everything I can to support the Illinois Farm Bureau and farmers across the state at the federal level.”

In the Senate, Duckworth has been a leader in supporting biofuels. As a founding co-chair of the Senate Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Caucus, she has been a strong advocate for expansion of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) by utilizing the biofuels and agricultural sectors. To help increase the availability of E15 biofuels, Duckworth helped introduce the bipartisan Nationwide Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act of 2025 and the bipartisan Next Generations Fuel Act to allow the year-round, nationwide sale of ethanol blends higher than 10 percent. Duckworth additionally helped introduce the bipartisan Home Front Energy Independence Act to ban Russian oil and expand use and production of biofuel that’s grown in the American heartland, while providing American families with a less expensive option to fuel their vehicles. In 2024, she helped introduced the Farm to Fly Act to help accelerate the production and development of SAF. Earlier this year, Duckworth slammed Republicans after Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson secretly stripped a bipartisan compromise on E15 gasoline from must-pass government funding legislation that would have supported American farmers and lowered costs.

As a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Duckworth has been an advocate for Illinois pork, biofuels and agriculture industries across the globe and helped secure significant wins for Illinois and American agriculture. After Duckworth’s visit in 2023, Japan announced a regulatory change that will lead to an increase in imports from U.S. biofuel producers, supporting our farmers and growing Illinois’s economy, and following a prior trip to Taiwan in 2022, she helped secure a commitment from Taiwan to purchase an estimated $2.6 billion of our Illinois’s corn and soybeans.

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Duckworth Again Calls to End Trump’s Illegal and Unjustified War in Iran

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services (SASC) and Foreign Relations Committees (SFRC)—once again slammed Donald Trump for launching an illegal attack against Iran without Constitutionally-required authorization from Congress, without any known imminent threat to our national security and without a plan to mitigate the instability that will come next as the Administration continues to spend more than one billion taxpayer dollars a day. In her remarks on the Senate floor, Duckworth pleaded with her Republican colleagues to consider the lives of our servicemembers and help stop this Trump-manufactured conflict by voting in support of Senator Booker’s War Powers Resolution to withdraw American military forces from the conflict, which failed without their support on a vote of 47-53 tonight. Duckworth’s full remarks can be found on the Senator’s YouTube.

Key Quotes:

“We all agree that [our troops] are doing an incredible job in very dangerous circumstances. But they deserve leaders in Washington who will do their jobs and actually ensure that their mission is justified, actually feasible and worthy of the sacrifices we are asking them—and their families—to make. They don’t deserve a Commander in Chief who hides his draft-dodging incompetence behind their valor by acting as if criticizing his bad, and even illegal, decisions is the same thing as criticizing our troops. Because it’s not.”

“While this Administration avoids accountability to the public, American heroes keep dying, American diplomats have been targeted and displaced and American families stranded in the region are fearful of their safety. And here at home, American farmers heading into planting season are facing skyrocketing costs for fertilizer and diesel fuel trapped in the Strait of Hormuz, a challenge that will result in many of them losing their family farms.”

“If [the Trump Administration] actually believe that this war is justified, then they need to come to Congress and do their jobs—explain their case and give the American people a say through their elected representatives. They need to respect the American people enough to actually tell them why they’re being forced to bear the costs of this conflict. They need to prove that they’ve thought this through enough, that they can tell us what their plan is to stop this war and get to an end-state in Iran that would make us safer, not more threatened. Then, when their case has been made… when Congress’ debate is done… we must vote.”

Senator Duckworth’s full remarks as delivered:

Thank you, Senator.

It wasn’t too long ago that Donald Trump won the 2024 election in large part due to his promise to get our nation out of foreign wars and bring prices down.

Well, 18 days into his war of choice in Iran that’s costing taxpayers over $1 billion each day, the American people can see with their own eyes that he has broken—and continues breaking—those promises.

Gas, food, housing, basic everyday necessities? Costs are skyrocketing, not falling.

Wars? Thirteen servicemembers are dead, over 200 have been wounded and thousands more Americans in the Middle East with a target on their backs because of his choice to start a war with Iran. A choice he simply had no right to make unilaterally—but that didn’t stop him.

Thirteen American lives and at least one billion taxpayer dollars a day are far too high a price to pay for an unauthorized and needless war that Trump himself cannot even articulate a coherent or consistent justification for.

So I’m here today to support the Senator from New Jersey’s War Powers Resolution that would reassert the American people’s constitutional say over decisions of war and peace—through their elected representatives—and put an end to this unjustified, illegal war.

And I join Senator Booker in demanding that the Majority Leader immediately hold public hearings that bring members of the Trump Administration under oath and force them to justify why they are sending our sons and daughters into harm’s way halfway around the world and tell us their plan for keeping Americans safe.

The truth is, I wish I didn’t have to be here doing this—and I’m angry that it’s not even the first time this month I’ve come here to beg my Republican colleagues to do their jobs and stop shirking their constitutional duty to the American people and our troops to hold a public debate on the immediate risks, ongoing objectives and plan to end Trump’s illegal war.

Look, our troops will always do their jobs to the best of their abilities, just as they have since Operation Epic Fury began. We all agree that they are doing an incredible job in very dangerous circumstances.

But they deserve leaders in Washington who will do their jobs and actually ensure that their mission is justified, actually feasible and worthy of the sacrifices we are asking them—and their families—to make.

They don’t deserve a Commander in Chief who hides his draft-dodging incompetence behind their valor by acting as if criticizing his bad, and even illegal, decisions is the same thing as criticizing our troops. Because it’s not.

My Republican colleagues know as well as I do that the Constitution gave the American people the authority to send our troops to war—through their elected representatives in Congress.

We are the ones tasked with deciding when and how Americans are sent into combat.

We are the ones charged with that most solemn duty.

Yet Trump is acting as if Article I simply doesn’t exist… as if obeying the Constitution is optional... as if our founding document is just a yellowing, crumbling piece of paper he can crumple up at will.

Refusing to allow him to get away with this should not—must not—be a partisan issue.

I ran for Congress so that when the drums of war started beating, I’d be in a position to make sure that our elected officials fully considered the true costs of war—not just in dollars and cents, but in human lives as well.

Look, I am no dove. I know there are certain solemn, urgent times when our military must be called upon to defend our nation.

There are certain moments when the threat in question is significant and imminent…

When military force is the most effective tool at hand—when using it is necessary to protect America and her interests.

And when using military force will not backfire and create more threats than it eliminates.

Trump has shown no evidence that this was one of those times.

He’s had weeks. And while this Administration avoids accountability to the public, American heroes keep dying, American diplomats have been targeted and displaced and American families stranded in the region are fearful of their safety.

And here at home, American farmers heading into planting season are facing skyrocketing costs for fertilizer and diesel fuel trapped in the Strait of Hormuz, a challenge that will result in many of them losing their family farms.

If they actually believe that this war is justified, then they need to come to Congress and do their jobs – explain their case and give the American people a say through their elected representatives.

They need to respect the American people enough to actually tell them why they’re being forced to bear the costs of this conflict.

They need to prove that they’ve thought this through enough, that they can tell us what their plan is to stop this war and get to an end-state in Iran that would make us safer, not more threatened.

Then, when their case has been made… when Congress’ debate is done… we must vote.

It’s our burden.

It’s our responsibility.

It’s the least we can do for those willing to sacrifice everything to safeguard our democracy.

But until—and unless—they do that, we need to do everything we can to force the Administration to do their part.

And we can start by passing this War Powers Resolution offered by Senator Booker.

So to my Republican colleagues, please—join us in finally reining in this unjustified war and demanding they come before the American people and publicly attempt to convince us the mission is worthy of the sacrifices it requires.

Then, after we’ve had that debate, we can show a fraction of the courage of our warriors and cast the tough votes.

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Durbin, Cortez Masto Lead 39 Senate Colleagues In Demanding DHS Reduce Delays For DACA Renewals

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and author of the Dream Act, and U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) led 39 of their Senate Democratic Caucus colleagues in a letter to outgoing U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Joseph Edlow demanding DHS reduce the delays in processing renewal applications under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA recipients across the country are experiencing increasing delays in renewing their status. Created in 2012, DACA protects individuals who came to the United States as children from deportation.

“DACA has allowed hundreds of thousands of Dreamers an opportunity to pursue higher education and meaningful careers while remaining in the only home they have ever known,” wrote the Senators. “Delays in processing DACA renewals are increasing the instability and uncertainty that DACA recipients already face. These delays can have profound consequences. When renewals are not processed before expiration, recipients lose employment authorization and, in many cases, their jobs. Employers experience workforce disruptions, including in sectors such as health care and education and in small businesses. Hundreds of thousands of U.S. citizen children have a parent with DACA, and when their work authorization lapses due to slow renewals, families endure heightened financial instability.”

In their letter, the Senators also called attention to the increased risk of detention and deportation faced by DACA recipients when their renewal applications are not processed before their status expires. According to DHS, as many as 270 DACA recipients have been detained and 174 have been deported.

“DACA recipients contribute billions of dollars annually to the national economy and serve vital roles in our communities. Administrative delays in DACA renewals undermine not only individual stability but also broader economic resilience,” concluded the Senators. “To reduce these disruptions and risks for DACA recipients, we urge you to reduce processing times for DACA renewal applications and reduce the volume of pending cases through timely renewals.”

Along with Durbin and Cortez Masto, the letter was signed by Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Chris Coons (D-DE), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Angus King (I-ME), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brain Schatz (D-HI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).

U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), President Trump’s nominee to replace Secretary Noem, also received a copy of this letter.

Full text of the letter is available here.

Last month, Durbin called out DHS for wrongfully targeting and removing DACA recipients. According to DHS, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested 261 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients and 86 have been removed from the country between January 1, 2025, and November 19, 2025.

Beginning in 2001, Durbin introduced the Dream Act to give young immigrants the chance to earn U.S. citizenship. He has introduced the legislation every Congress since. Over the years, Durbin has told the stories of 150 Dreamers on the Senate Floor. In 2012, Durbin worked with then-President Obama to establish the DACA program to allow these young people to gain temporary status. The most current available government data shows that the number of DACA holders has fallen from roughly 530,000 in September 2024 to roughly 515,000 in June 2025.

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Durbin Criticizes President Trump’s Decision To Lift Sanctions On Russian Oil As Putin’s War In Ukraine Continues

During a speech on the Senate floor, Durbin criticizes President Trump’s foreign policy decisions including his war of choice in Iran

WASHINGTON –U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Co-Chair of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, today delivered a speech on the Senate floor criticizing President Trump’s recent foreign policy decisions including lifting sanctions on Russian oil as gas prices continue to climb due to Trump’s war against Iran. Trump’s decision to lift these sanctions comes despite Vladimir Putin’s continued assault on Ukraine and his sharing intelligence with Iran, which is being used to target American service members. Durbin began his speech by reflecting on Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“I remember that morning vividly, sitting with Senator Coons, the senior Senator from Delaware on a dark, early morning at the airport in Lithuania—a country that knows all too well the threat posed by Russia throughout history. The loss of life from Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has been staggering, with nearly two million total casualties. Millions more Ukrainians have been displaced, and thousands of Ukrainian children have been abducted to Russia. President Trump bragged more times than I can remember that he would end the Ukrainian war on day one if re-elected. To his credit, the U.S. has fostered a series of talks between Ukraine and Russia,” said Durbin.

Durbin continued, “While I strongly support American help to ensure Ukraine can defend itself, a diplomatic resolution is always preferable. [But] it is devastatingly clear to everyone—except, it seems, to the President—that Putin isn’t serious about reaching a peace deal in Ukraine. Putin continues to play for time calling and manipulating President Trump at key moments, including last week to brazenly offer help in the Middle East while simultaneously [giving] Iran intelligence to target Americans—time and again, President Trump has only pressed Ukraine to reach a deal, [and] never pressed Putin.”

“And last week, Trump defied common sense when he lifted sanctions on Russian oil because of what should have been foreseeable chaos in the energy markets due to his invasion in Iran. And for reasons I simply cannot explain, this chamber has refused to pass Russia sanctions legislation with more than 85 cosponsors. Let me be clear: Putin only responds to strength. He is stringing along U.S.-led peace negotiations while relentlessly bombing Ukraine while helping Iran target American service members. It’s time for President Trump to finally learn this lesson and for the Senate to pass legislation increasing pressure on Putin to negotiate,” Durbin concluded.

Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.

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Durbin, Grassley Introduce The Baltic Security Assessment Act To Strengthen Diplomatic Relations, Security Cooperation Between U.S. & Baltic States

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Co-Chairs of the Senate Baltic Freedom Caucus, introduced the Baltic Security Assessment Act of 2026, legislation that requires the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, to submit a report to the House and Senate Committees on Armed Services, Foreign Relations and Affairs, and Appropriations on emerging threats posed to the Baltic countries—Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The report must detail the role of malign actors such as Russia, Belarus, China, and Iran regarding military, cyber, hybrid, and political threats. It also would require reporting on the current regional deterrence posture of the United States and NATO and opportunities to enhance bilateral and multilateral defense cooperation between the United States and the Baltic countries, including through Durbin’s Baltic Security Initiative.

“Not only do I have strong personal ties to the region, but the Baltic countries are essential NATO partners in upholding democratic values and transatlantic security. Our bill encourages coordination between Congress and the Administration on the threats posed to the Baltic countries by bad actors such as Russia, Belarus, China, and Iran,” said Durbin. “Considering the Trump Administration’s foreign policy views, we must remain steadfast in support of the NATO alliance and the Baltic States as they work to combat increasing Russian aggression around the region.”

“The United States, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are all united by the principles of democracy and the free market. For decades, these Baltic nations have contributed to the region’s security and stability, and it’s critical for America to stand with them against Putin’s ongoing aggression. This bipartisan legislation will strengthen our ties with the Baltics by ensuring the United States carefully assesses the evolving threats they face and identifies ways to bolster deterrence against Russia’s continued attempts to encroach on NATO territory,” Grassley said.

Along with Durbin and Grassley, the legislation is cosponsored by Senators Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), John Boozman (R-AR) Michael Bennet (D-CO), Susan Collins (R-ME), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Peter Welch (D-VT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), John Fetterman (D-PA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Cory Booker (D-NJ).

The son of a Lithuanian immigrant, Durbin has long been a supporter of the U.S.-Baltic alliance. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, he secured $231.5 million in defense appropriations funding for the Baltic Security Initiative. Durbin also secured $200 million for the BSI in the recently enacted FY 2026 defense appropriations bill.

Last March, Durbin and Grassley introduced the Baltic Security Initiative Act, bipartisan legislation to effectively codify the Baltic Security Initiative, which Durbin created in 2021 to enhance and strengthen U.S. security cooperation with the Baltics amid an increase of Russian hybrid attacks in the Baltics and across Europe, and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

In September, Durbin introduced a bipartisan amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2026 modeled after this bill as the Trump Administration aimed to suspend the program. Durbin successfully secured this provision codifying the Baltic Security Initiative in the FY 2026 NDAA conference agreement

Last Congress, Durbin and Grassley introduced a resolution recognizing the importance of the alliance between the United States and the Baltic States.

In 2022, Durbin traveled to Vilnius, Lithuania, where he received the Aleksandras Stulginskis Star Award—only the second individual and first American to receive this award. It was granted to Durbin for his decades-long support of Lithuanian independence and democracy and his promotion of parliamentary values. He was in Vilnius four years ago on the morning Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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Durbin Receives Joint Baltic American National Committee’s Baltic Freedom Award

WASHINGTON – Yesterday, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Co-Chair of the Senate Baltic Freedom Caucus, received the Baltic Freedom Award from the Joint Baltic American National Committee (JBANC) for his strong connections to the Baltic countries and his continued leadership in Congress to strengthen Baltic security. Durbin was presented the award from the Lithuania diaspora—the country his mother immigrated from.

“As a proud son of a Lithuanian immigrant, I was honored to receive JBANC’s Baltic Freedom Award,” said Durbin. “Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the security threats facing the region have become more urgent, including Russian and Belarussian efforts to destabilize the Baltics through disinformation campaigns, hybrid attacks, and airspace incursions. But Russian bullying has failed, and the Baltics remain among the strongest supporters of NATO and Ukraine, providing critical military, humanitarian, and diplomatic support. With my remaining time in Congress, I’ll work to ensure that the U.S. remains as committed to its Baltic friends.”

Photos of Durbin delivering his remarks can be found here.

Durbin has long been a supporter of the U.S.-Baltic alliance. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, he secured $231.5 million in defense appropriations funding for the Baltic Security Initiative. Durbin also secured $200 million for the BSI in the recently enacted FY 2026 defense appropriations bill.

Last March, Durbin and Grassley introduced the Baltic Security Initiative Act, bipartisan legislation to effectively codify the Baltic Security Initiative, which Durbin created in 2021 to enhance and strengthen U.S. security cooperation with the Baltics amid an increase of Russian hybrid attacks in the Baltics and across Europe, and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

In September, Durbin introduced a bipartisan amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2026 modeled after this bill as the Trump Administration aimed to suspend the program. Durbin successfully secured this provision codifying the Baltic Security Initiative in the FY 2026 NDAA conference agreement

Last Congress, Durbin and Grassley introduced a resolution recognizing the importance of the alliance between the United States and the Baltic States.

In 2022, Durbin traveled to Vilnius, Lithuania, where he received the Aleksandras Stulginskis Star Award—only the second individual and first American to receive this award. It was granted to Durbin for his decades-long support of Lithuanian independence and democracy and his promotion of parliamentary values. He was in Vilnius four years ago on the morning Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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Durbin Talks Farm Economy With Illinois Farm Bureau

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, today met with members of the Illinois Farm Bureau to discuss the current state of the farm economy as the military attacks on Iran, directed by President Trump, and the standstill of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz have increased expenses for diesel and fertilizer. Durbin and the members of the Farm Bureau also discussed the importance of transportation infrastructure, like locks and dams, expanding markets with permanent E15, more agricultural research, and preserving trade agreements with Canada and Mexico. They also discussed the disruptions and delays of the traditional five-year Farm Bill process in the current Congress that has left farmers waiting for a decision.

“I have never seen current policy issues in Washington come together like this against farmers,” said Durbin. “With this tariff policy and war in the Middle East, the Trump Administration keeps asking farmers to carry more of the costs of their decisions. I will keep joining my farm-state colleagues in the Senate to block these policies and restore some common sense back into the farm economy.”

Photos of the meeting are available here.

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Ernst Bills to Make Washington Spending More Transparent Passes Out of House Oversight Committee

WASHINGTON – During Sunshine Week, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform approved U.S. Senator Joni Ernst’s (R-Iowa) two bipartisan bills, Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act and Stop Secret Spending Act, an important step forward to increasing transparency and accountability within the federal government. Both bills will now move to the full House for consideration.

“Sunshine is the best disinfectant, and it is only fitting my pair of bills passed out of the House Oversight Committee during Sunshine Week,” said Ernst. “As I shine more light on wasteful Washington spending, I’m excited to continuing shepherding these bills to become law, so that our hardworking taxpayers know exactly where their money is going and that it’s not being wasted on pointless projects.”

"It’s simple: Americans deserve to know how their hard-earned tax dollars are spent,” said House Committee on Oversight and Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.). “That’s why I’m proud to support Senator Ernst’s legislation this week to increase transparency and ensure the federal government uses those dollars efficiently, effectively, and with full accountability."

Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) led the Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act in the House of Representatives.

"Washington bureaucrats have wasted billions of taxpayer dollars on misguided programs while hardworking Americans foot the bill," said Miller-Meeks. "I’m proud to work with Senator Ernst to expose these billion-dollar boondoggles and bring transparency and accountability back to Washington. I will always fight to protect taxpayers and ensure their hard-earned dollars are spent responsibly."

Ernst’s bipartisan Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act – which passed the Senate late last year – requires any taxpayer-funded project more than $1 billion over budget or more than five years behind schedule to be made public and scrutinized.

Her Stop Secret Spending Act boosts transparency in Washington by requiring all spending to be publicly disclosed. Currently, billions of dollars in spending are hidden from public disclosure by bureaucrats labeling it as an “Other Transactions Agreements,” including more than $18 billion in 2025. The bill was approved by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee last year.

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