Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a Senate Budget Committee hearing today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine questioned leading economists Dr. Mark Zandi of Moody’s Analytics, Dr. Chad Stone of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and Dr. Allan Meltzer of Carnegie Mellon University, on the serious economic consequences of crisis-budgeting.  With last week’s action in the House of Representatives proving that many in that body – as well as some Republican Senators - are willing t...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine joined a bipartisan group of 33 U.S. Senators in an effort to ensure that in the midst of a potential government shutdown, low-income Americans who need heating assistance are not left out in the cold.  As Congress considers a short-term spending plan, the group of Senators is seeking to ensure it restores vital federal heating aid funds. The Senators sent a bipartisan letter urging a level of $3.46 billion for the Low Income Home Energy...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement today on action taken in the House of Representatives this week regarding food assistance and the continuing resolution: "This week, the United States House of Representatives voted to slash food assistance to poor families and also defund the Affordable Care Act. Many in that body are willing to shut down the government because they are opposed to a health care law that Congress passed, that the President signed, t...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine joined Senator Ron Wyden and nine other Senators in urging the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to examine the protections for consumers facing tax liens and foreclosure in light of consumer abuses revealed in recent media reports. A letter from Warner, Kaine, Wyden, and Senators Jeff Merkley, Ed Markey, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Robert Menendez, Christopher Murphy, Bill N...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement in response to the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed rule on future power plants: "This summer, I asked EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy to release separate carbon standards for new coal and gas power plants to reflect key differences in those technologies. I appreciate that the EPA has done so and will now begin a dialogue with constituents and energy experts to determine whether the announced standar...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, discussed the importance of security training for State Department personnel during the confirmation hearing today for Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security nominee Gregory Starr. During his questioning, Kaine highlighted a July 2013 hearing where Starr described the advantages of building a Foreign Affairs Security Training Center (FASTC) in Fort Pickett, Virginia. According to Starr, Fo...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement on today's shooting at the Washington Navy Yard:  "My thoughts and prayers are with everyone impacted by today’s tragic shooting at the Washington Navy Yard. As we learn more about the horrific events that unfolded this morning, my deepest sympathies go out to the friends and families of the victims, as well as the surrounding community. I am thankful for the bravery of the first responders ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Mark R. Warner (D-VA) sent a letter to Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan urging him to take additional steps to help Virginia housing authorities alleviate the worst effects of severe budget cuts caused in part by sequestration. Sens. Warner and Kaine called on HUD to help authorities streamline program operations while ensuring resident and community needs are met. In addition to serving as a safety net for Virgin...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. --  Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, released the following statement on the U.S.-Russian agreement on a framework for the elimination of Syrian chemical weapons:  "The announcement of a tentative deal between the U.S. and Russia regarding Syria's chemical weapons is promising and demonstrates real progress. While much work remains, we would not have reached this point without American resolve to ensure that use of che...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, discussed the situation in Syria today on the Senate floor, outlining why he believes Bashar Al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons to kill Syrian civilians must have consequences, as well as praising current efforts to pursue a diplomatic path with Russia and Syria – an opportunity he argues would not have been possible without American pressure and resolve. “The Ameri...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Mark R. Warner (D-VA) sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel urging him to consider relocating the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) from Germany to Hampton Roads. The joint letter followed the release of a U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report  on Monday which was critical of the Defense Department’s lack of transparency when it decided earlier this year to maintain its AFRICOM headquarters in Europe. GAO est...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement today in commemoration of the 12th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001:  “It’s been twelve years since thousands of lives were lost in New York, Pennsylvania, and Northern Virginia. As we continue to mourn those we lost, we honor their memories and keep their friends and families in our prayers. Today we give thanks for the heroic effort...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, released the following statement in response to President Obama’s address to the nation on Syria tonight:   “Tonight the President made a strong case to the American people for why Bashar Al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons to kill Syrian civilians must have consequences. At stake is an international norm against chemical weapons that’s not only protected ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs, released the following statement today on the proposal that Syria place its chemical weapons under international control and abide by the terms of the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention.   “I’m pleased that the President’s decision to seek congressional authorization for a military strike in Syria – and a subsequent...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark R. Warner are urging the White House to include funds in the President’s Fiscal Year 2015 budget to move forward on the Craney Island eastward expansion project at the Port of Virginia.   The Virginia senators made their request in a joint letter today to Sylvia Mathews Burwell, director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Jo-Ellen Darcy, the Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Army for Civil Works. The text of the letter is be...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, held a roundtable today with veterans and members of the Norfolk community to discuss the issue of war powers and the process of consultation between the executive and legislative branches on military action. Kaine has long called for the President to fully consult with Congress before initiating military action in response to the Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons in viola...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, traveled to Petersburg for a campus tour of Virginia State University and met with Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) cadets. During his visit, Kaine discussed the ongoing debate in Congress over the use of military force in Syria to respond to the Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons to kill civilians, listening to the perspective of cadets and members of th...Continue Reading

U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner announced today that the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has awarded a $12 million grant to strengthen and re-deck two structurally deficient Interstate 64 bridges over the Maury River in Rockbridge County. More than 9,000 vehicles a day travel across these I-64 eastbound and westbound bridges connecting Covington and Lexington. The bridges, which were built in 1976, recently rated a score of 4 on a scale of 9 in terms of their structural integrity ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs, released the following statement today after a resolution authorizing use of military force in Syria was passed out of the Foreign Relations Committee: “Today I voted for a limited authorization for the use of military force in Syria to respond to Bashar al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons to kill civilians, including more tha...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs, participated in a Foreign Relations Committee hearing today on the President’s request for authorization of the use of military force in Syria. During the hearing, Kaine questioned Secretary of State John Kerry, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey about the use of chemical w...Continue Reading