Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a letter sent to Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine demanded answers about the status of travelers being detained at Dulles International and other airports across the country as a result of President Trump’s executive order.   “In the two days since the issuance of the executive order, there has been widespread confusion and distress, as well as the reported detention of legal permanen...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement on President Trump’s executive order on refugee programs: “I am appalled by the cruelty the Trump Administration has demonstrated over the past 24 hours. By indefinitely suspending the Syrian refugee program and imposing a religious test at our borders, he has defied everything our nation stands for. He's also weakened o...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a letter to President Trump citing the devastating impact his federal hiring freeze will have on veterans and their families, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine urged the President to exempt the entire VA and all veterans seeking federal jobs from his executive order. Warner and Kaine emphasized that the hiring freeze will add to the chronic workforce shortages that are plaguing the VA, and that more administrative and medical support staff are needed at VA facil...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON— U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA), along with Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and 14 other Senators, reintroduced the bipartisan Providing Veterans Overdue Care Act, legislation that would authorize pending leases for 24 Department of Veterans Affairs (V-A) medical facilities in 15 states. The bill seeks to improve veteran’s access to healthcare through the approval of these medical leases, which would allow the V-A to open needed healthcare facilities for whi...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH), co-chairs of the Senate Career and Technical Education (CTE) Caucus, introduced the Jumpstart Our Businesses By Supporting Students (JOBS) Act, a bill that would help students access training for the 5.5 million vacant jobs that are unfilled in part due to a shortage of qualified workers. The JOBS Act would close this “skills-gap&...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released the following statement today on the nomination of Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education:  “I will oppose Betsy DeVos’s nomination. She failed to meet three requirements I consider essential to serving as Secretary of Education – someone who is pro-public schools, pro-accountability and pro-civil rights. Over 90 percent of our nation’s ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – One day after President Trump issued an executive order to reinstate the Global Gag Rule, U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA), joined Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Susan Collins (R-ME) and 39 other Senators to introduce the Global Health, Empowerment, and Rights (HER) Act, which would permanently repeal the harmful policy. The Global Gag Rule, also known as the Mexico City Policy, bans foreign non-governmental organizations that receive U.S. aid from using their ow...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Budget Committee, participated in a hearing on the nomination of U.S. Representative Mick Mulvaney to serve as Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Pressing Mulvaney on his record on federal workforce issues as well as recent Trump Administration actions that would hurt federal employees – including 170,000 Virginians – Kaine asked, “How is calling federal employees ‘corrupt a...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine provided testimony at the International Trade Commission (ITC) in support of the United Steelworkers in their case against unfairly traded Chinese imports of truck and bus tires. Kaine represents more than 2,000 Virginia workers at the Goodyear truck and bus tire plant in Danville and over 1,800 of these workers are members of USW Local 831. Danville’s workers are looking for the chance to compete fairly and on a level playing field wi...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement today after President Trump signed executive orders to advance the construction of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access Pipelines: “President Trump’s decision on the Dakota Access Pipeline today is particularly concerning given his and Energy Secretary nominee Rick Perry’s longstanding ties to the builder of the pipeline. “I opposed Keystone XL because it would accelerate the development of tar ...Continue Reading

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Tim Kaine (D-VA), members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today reintroduced the Combating European Anti-Semitism Act, legislation that addresses the growing problem of anti-Semitism across Europe. Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO), Bob Menendez (D-NJ),  David Perdue (R-GA), Bill Nelson (D-FL), John Boozman (R-AR), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), James Lankford (R-OK), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Brian Schatz (D-HI) are cospon...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Marco Rubio (R-Fl.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), and James Lankford (R-Okla.) introduced a resolution yesterday that reaffirms the partnership between the United States and Argentina and recognizes the economic reforms implemented by Argentina since its election of President Mauricio Macri in November 2015. Representatives Jeff Duncan (R-S.C. 3) and Albio Sires (D-N.J. 8), the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Western Hemisphere subcommittee of the ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined his colleagues in calling on HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander to hold an additional hearing on the nomination of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and include more witnesses for any hearing on Labor Secretary nominee Andrew Puzder so that the American people have the information needed to determine whether President Trump’s nominees are fit for ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, released the following statement today on his vote to confirm Representative Mike Pompeo as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA): “I voted in favor of the nomination of Representative Mike Pompeo for Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. With his experience on the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Pompeo has a keen understanding of the CIA’s ro...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, released the following statement today on his vote to confirm General John Kelly as Secretary of Homeland Security: “I voted in favor of the nomination of General John Kelly for Secretary of Homeland Security.  General Kelly is well-prepared to maintain strong security operations at Virginia’s two global ports of entry—Dulles International Airport and th...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine announced $818,090 in funding to preserve African American Civil Rights Movement sites at the Williams Community Resource Center in Danville and the Third Street Bethel AME Church in Richmond. “Virginia is home to many sites that were key in the fight for civil rights and equality. I am pleased that this funding will help protect this part of American history for many generations to come,” said Warner. “Afr...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine announced $6,236,062 in funding for infrastructure development, health services and Head Start programs throughout Virginia. Today’s funding is available through the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). “We’re proud to announce this funding to make improvements in public health, critical infrastructure projects and early childhood educati...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced that the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) has awarded more than $3 million to promote manufacturing, higher education, and workforce development programs in Southwest Virginia. The funding comes as part of the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative, a multi-agency effort aligning and targeting federal economic and workforce development resources to communities an...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committees, released the following statement today on the nominations of Nikki Haley to be Ambassador to the United Nations, Tom Price to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education after participating in the three nominees’ confirmation hearings this week: “I will support the nomination of Governor Ha...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, participated in a hearing on the nomination of Governor Nikki Haley to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (UN). Kaine questioned Haley on the importance of freedom of the press – both at home and abroad - as well as her views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and her commitment to protecting the integrity of nations’ electoral processes and to ...Continue Reading