Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In remarks on the Senate floor today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine reiterated his opposition to legislation that would mandate approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. In advance of a procedural vote on the bill this evening, Kaine praised the United States for its recent global energy leadership and warned that approval of Keystone XL would accelerate the development of dirty tar sands oil and move U.S. energy policy in the wrong direction. “Why embrace dirty energy when A...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine announced the two Virginia students selected to represent Virginia in the 53rd Annual United States Senate Youth Program. David Patterson Cohn of Charlottesville High School in Charlottesville and Caleb Alexander Visser of Jamestown High School in Williamsburg will each receive a $5,000 scholarship, as well as spend a week in March participating in many enriching activities in Washington. These activities will include major ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, co-chair of the bipartisan Senate Career and Technical Education (CTE) Caucus, released the following statement on the America’s College Promise proposal President Obama will announce today: “I applaud the President for his bold proposals to make two years of community college free to responsible students and to fund technical training programs that focus on work-based learning opportunities. In Virginia alone, community and technical ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, was named Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Readiness for the 114th Congress. The subcommittee, which Kaine has been a member of for the past two years, has jurisdiction over training, logistics and maintenance issues for our Armed Forces, as well as military construction projects, contracting and acquisition issues, base realignment consideration, resourcing of shipyards and arsenals, su...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement today, five months after the start of U.S.-led airstrikes against ISIL on August 8, 2014:   “Today we enter the sixth month of war against ISIL without Congressional authorization. Until December, when the Senate Foreign Relations Committee took the important first step of debating and approving a specific Authorization For Use of Mi...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, along with U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and 40 of their Senate colleagues, have introduced the Respect for Marriage Act, which would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in the new 114th Congress and provide equal treatment for all married couples. Kaine had co-sponsored the original version of the Respect for Marriage Act when it was introduced in the 113th Congress following the Supreme Court’s ruling in United States v. Windsor, whi...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Budget and Aging Committees, joined U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar and four other colleagues to introduce the Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act, legislation that would empower Medicare to negotiate for the best possible price of prescription medication for America’s seniors who are enrolled in Medicare Part D. Current law bans Medicare from bargaining with pharmaceutical companies for lower prices. Th...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine has joined Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) and six other colleagues to introduce the LNG Permitting Certainty and Transparency Act. The bipartisan legislation will speed up the approval process for exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that do not have free trade agreements with the United States. It specifically requires the Secretary of Energy to make a decision on any LNG export application within 45 days after the environmental review ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine are now accepting applications for the position of U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia to fill the seat left vacant by Timothy Heaphy, who left office in December after five years of distinguished service. “The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia plays an integral role in protecting a geographically diverse region on a wide range of issues – from human trafficking, narcotics, and ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine joined 20 of his colleagues to write a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Sylvia Mathews Burwell on the national strategy to address opioid abuse being developed by HHS. In the letter, Kaine and his colleagues urged HHS to focus on overdose education, access to substance abuse treatment services, and the distribution of naloxone, an antidote that stops the effects of an opioid overdose for a short period of time. Specifically, they en...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a joint letter, U.S. Senators Mark Warner, Tim Kaine and U.S. Congressmen Bobby Scott, Randy Forbes, Scott Rigell, Rob Wittman and Gerry Connolly urged the Director of the Air National Guard to consider the Virginia Air National Guard at Joint Base Langley-Eustis as a designation for an Air Force Space Command’s Cyber Operations Squadron (COS).   “Our nation’s defense depends upon a robust and innovative cyber force that is trained and ready to ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Battlefield Protection Program Amendments Act, a bipartisan bill introduced by U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Thad Cochran (R-MS) and U.S. Representatives Rob Wittman (R-VA) and Rush Holt (D-NJ), was signed into law by President Obama today following passage by both houses of Congress as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2015 last week. The legislation reauthorizes a National Park Service program that partners with landowners to pr...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine continued his three-day tour through Virginia with a visit to Melfa to deliver remarks at the Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce Eggs & Issues breakfast. Throughout his remarks, Kaine highlighted the importance of workforce development and economic growth in the region. Following the Eggs & Issues breakfast, Kaine traveled to Norfolk to receive a briefing on the city’s efforts to plan for sea level rise and visit the s...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Members of Virginia’s congressional delegation applauded news that U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has closed on the final two low-interest loans to fund construction of Phase Two of the Metrorail Silver Line extension to Dulles Airport and Loudoun County.  Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, Congressman Gerry Connolly, and retiring Congressmen Jim Moran and Frank Wolf worked for months with Secretary Foxx and his predecessor Ray LaHood to secure a total ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine began his three-day tour through Virginia with a visit to the Wallops Flight Facility to tour the damaged launch pad and meet with representatives from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, NASA, Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority, and Orbital Sciences. Kaine also met with first responders who were on call the night of the launch failure on October 28 and helped put out the fires caused by the explosion. Last week, Kaine and Senator M...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, DC - El senador Tim Kaine, un miembro del Comité de Relaciones Exteriores del Senado, hizo las siguientes declaraciones sobre Cuba:  "Estoy muy contento sobre el anuncio hoy de la liberación de Alan Gross y le deseo lo mejor mientras se reúne con su familia y seres queridos. Su liberación marca una victoria para la diplomacia estadounidense. Me gustaría darle gracias a el Papa Francisco y al gobierno Canadiense por su papel como intermedia...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement on Cuba: “I am overjoyed by today’s announcement of Alan Gross’s release and wish him the very best as he reunites with his family and loved ones. His release marks a victory for American diplomacy. I’d like to especially thank Pope Francis and the Canadian government for their role as intermediaries in this effort.” “Our ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine today applauded the Senate’s confirmation of Elizabeth K. Dillon to serve as a United States District Judge for the Western District of Virginia. Ms. Dillon, an attorney in Salem and a former assistant city attorney for Roanoke, will be the first woman to serve as a judge for the Western District in its nearly 200 years of existence. “We are pleased that the Senate has confirmed an exceptionally qualified individual to ...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 and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement on today’s terrorist attack in Peshawar.  “I extend my deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims of today’s heinous terrorist attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar, Pakistan.  I am shocked and a...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine submitted a letter to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan addressing the current issues associated with sexual violence on college campuses. In the letter, Kaine applauded the Department of Education (ED) for initiating its Title IX investigations into how campuses handle sexual assault but requested that ED disclose more information regarding the progress of these investigations. “Sexual violence is a serious issue facing our nation...Continue Reading