Category: US Senate

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Romney, Colleagues Condemn Malign Actions of Putin Regime, Call for Release of Alexei Navalny

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Romney, Colleagues Condemn Malign Actions of Putin Regime, Call for Release of Alexei Navalny

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT), Chris Coons (D-DE), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the bipartisan Holding Russia Accountable for Malign Activities Act of 2021, a targeted bill that would impose sanctions on Russian officials complicit in brazen violations of international law including the poisoning and imprisonment of opposition leader and anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny. The bill directs the administration to determine if the Kremlin has violated U.S. laws prohibiting the use of chemical and biological weapons. The bill also requires a report on the assassination of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, and on the personal wealth amassed by the corrupt practices of Vladimir Putin and his inner circle.
 
“Strong leaders do not have to jail their adversaries to maintain power,” said Senator Romney. “Putin and his cronies first poisoned Alexei Navalny and when they were unsuccessful at that, they set up a sham trial and sentenced him to several years in prison. We must hold the Putin regime accountable for these acts, which are a shameless attempt to silence the voice of the Russian people fighting against corruption and for freedom and truth.”

“Putin’s government has a long and sordid history of using murder and attempted murder to silence Russian citizens at home and abroad who have called attention to the regime’s corrupt and abusive practices,”

said Senator Coons. “The Russian people are now demonstrating against the imprisonment of Alexei Navalny through peaceful protests across their country. Instead of listening to their real grievances, Putin’s security forces have responded with unbridled brutality and arrested thousands. This bipartisan bill seeks to hold Putin and his inner circle accountable, while sending a clear message that the Russian government should immediately release Navalny and halt its repressive actions.”

“Following yesterday’s outrageous sentencing of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, I’m proud to join Senator Coons in standing with the Russian people,”

said Senator Rubio. “The Holding Russia Accountable for Malign Activities Act will impose a cost on Putin, and his thugs, for their corruption and targeting of opponents.”

“Russia will continue to use the tools of government to violently repress the opposition until the United States and the world say enough is enough. Poisoning or otherwise attempting to kill your critics and putting them in prison are not acceptable behaviors in any country,”

said Senator Cardin, author of the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. “One of the ways Putin has maintained his ironclad grip on Russia is through corruption, which is why the United States must defend anti-corruption activists like Alexei Navalny in their pursuit of justice and rule of law. I’m proud to join my colleagues in introducing this legislation that would hold Russia accountable for its violations of international law.”
 
“Putin’s imprisonment and attempted murder of Alexei Navalny cannot go unanswered. The United States and the international community must hold him accountable for his efforts to squash movement toward democracy and freedom. I urge my colleagues to immediately pass this bipartisan bill, and I look forward to working with the Biden Administration to implement this measure,” said Senator Van Hollen.

“Alexei Navalny’s only crime is that he represents a strong democratic opposition to President Putin. He should be allowed to call attention to the regime’s corrupt practices and run for office without being jailed or poisoned,” Senator Durbin said. “I’m proud to introduce this bill with my colleagues to help hold Putin accountable and ensure that the Russian people can enjoy basic democratic freedoms.”

The full text of the bill is available here.

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Romney and Sinema Reintroduce Legislation to Support Navajo Nation During COVID-19 Pandemic

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Romney and Sinema Reintroduce Legislation to Support Navajo Nation During COVID-19 Pandemic

Boosts funding for water and sanitation projects for tribal communities

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) reintroduced bipartisan legislation which would invest $1.3 billion in strengthening the Sanitation Facilities Construction Program to support water and sanitation projects for tribal communities.
 
“With some of the highest COVID-19 infection rates in the country, the Navajo Nation faces a dire situation—due in large part to a lack of water infrastructure and sanitation facilities,” Senator Romney said. “Our legislation will address this issue head on by authorizing the construction and renovation of water and sewer sanitation facilities in Native communities in Utah and throughout the country.”
 
“COVID-19 continues to spread across Arizona, and has devastated Tribal communities like the Navajo Nation. Strengthening the Sanitation Facilities Construction Program ensures Tribal communities have access to safe running water and adequate sanitation to help stop the spread of COVID-19,” said Senator Sinema.
 
BACKGROUND:

  • The 2020 end-of-the-year funding legislation signed into law included the Navajo Utah Water Rights Settlement Act, Romney’s legislation to settle a decades-long negotiation among the Navajo Nation, federal government, and the State of Utah over water rights for Utah Navajos, which unanimously passed the Senate.
  • An estimated 130,000 homes on Indian reservations lack access to running water and adequate sanitation. Additionally, the Navajo Nation, where 30 percent of the reservation population lacks access to running water, has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 infections per capita when compared to states throughout the country.
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Group of 10 Republican Senators Announces Sixth Bipartisan COVID-19 Relief Proposal

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Group of 10 Republican Senators Announces Sixth Bipartisan COVID-19 Relief Proposal

WASHINGTON – The group of 10 Republican senators, including Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), unveiled the details of their COVID-19 relief proposal this morning. At the President’s invitation, the group will meet with President Biden this afternoon at the White House to discuss the proposal in further detail.
      
“Mr. President, we recognize your calls for unity and want to work in good faith with your Administration to meet the health, economic, and societal challenges of the COVID crisis,” the senators said. “We share many of your priorities, and our plan includes: increasing funding for the production and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine; providing economic relief for Americans with the greatest need; extending enhanced federal unemployment benefits; providing nutrition assistance to help struggling families; providing additional assistance for our small businesses; getting our children safely back to school and ensuring they can stay open; and increasing resources for child care, which is critical to getting Americans back to work.  We look forward to discussing our proposal in detail with you this afternoon at the White House.”
   
Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Rob Portman (R-OH), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Todd Young (R-IN), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Thom Tillis (R-NC) sent a letter to President Biden on Sunday, January 31, outlining their COVID-19 relief compromise and requesting a meeting.
  
Since March 2019, Congress has passed five bipartisan COVID-19 relief bills and provided more than $4 trillion in COVID-19 relief.  The latest COVID-19 relief packaged provided $900 billion in additional resources and was signed into law on December 27, 2020. Much of that assistance is only now being disbursed.
    
Details of the senators’ proposal can be found here.

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Senators Accept President Biden’s Invitation to Discuss COVID-19 Relief at White House

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Senators Accept President Biden’s Invitation to Discuss COVID-19 Relief at White House

WASHINGTON – This evening, a group of 10 Republican senators, including Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), accepted an invitation from President Biden to come to the White House to discuss their COVID-19 relief proposal.
    
“We appreciate the President’s quick response to our letter, and we are pleased to accept his invitation to the White House tomorrow afternoon to discuss the path forward for the sixth bipartisan COVID-19 relief package,” said the ten senators in a joint statement.
     
Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Rob Portman (R-OH), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Todd Young (R-IN), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Thom Tillis (R-NC) sent a letter to President Biden earlier today outlining their COVID-19 relief compromise and requesting a meeting.   

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Romney, Colleagues Outline COVID-19 Relief Compromise, Request Meeting with President

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Romney, Colleagues Outline COVID-19 Relief Compromise, Request Meeting with President

WASHINGTON – A group of 10 Republican senators, including Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), wrote to President Biden today to propose an alternative COVID-19 relief proposal that they believe is capable of garnering bipartisan support. The group also requested a meeting with the President to discuss the proposal in detail.
   
The letter’s signatories also include Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Rob Portman (R-OH), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Todd Young (R-IN), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Thom Tillis (R-NC).
   
“In the spirit of bipartisanship and unity, we have developed a COVID-19 relief framework that builds on prior COVID assistance laws, all of which passed with bipartisan support,” the senators wrote to the President. “Our proposal reflects many of your stated priorities, and with your support, we believe that this plan could be approved quickly by Congress with bipartisan support.  We request the opportunity to meet with you to discuss our proposal in greater detail and how we can work together to meet the needs of the American people during this persistent pandemic.”
   
The senators plan to unveil the details of their proposal on Monday, February 1.
    
The full text of the letter can be found below.
  
Dear Mr. President:
  
As you proclaimed in your Inaugural Address, overcoming the challenges facing our nation “requires the most elusive of things in a democracy: Unity.”  Heeding that important call, we welcome the opportunity to work with you in a bipartisan manner to combat the COVID-19 virus and provide continued support to families struggling during the pandemic.
    
In the spirit of bipartisanship and unity, we have developed a COVID-19 relief framework that builds on prior COVID assistance laws, all of which passed with bipartisan support.  Our proposal reflects many of your stated priorities, and with your support, we believe that this plan could be approved quickly by Congress with bipartisan support.  We request the opportunity to meet with you to discuss our proposal in greater detail and how we can work together to meet the needs of the American people during this persistent pandemic.
    
Addressing this public health crisis has required robust and rapid support for vaccine development and distribution, testing and tracing, treatment and supplies, including the production and deployment of personal protective equipment.  We agree with you that continuing to build our capacity in these areas is crucial to overcoming the pandemic.  Like your plan, our proposal includes a total of $160 billion to enhance our capabilities in these areas as well as to support our health care providers, who are on the front lines of the pandemic.  Our plan mirrors your request for $4 billion to bolster our behavioral health and substance abuse services.
  
Our proposal also includes economic relief for those Americans with the greatest need, providing more targeted assistance than in the Administration’s plan. We propose an additional round of economic impact payments for those families who need assistance the most, including their dependent children and adults.  Our plan also includes extending enhanced federal unemployment benefits at the current level and fully funding your request for nutrition assistance to help struggling families.
  
We share your goal of providing additional assistance for our small businesses. Included in our plan are additional resources to help our small businesses and their employees through the successful Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program.
  
Getting our children back to school and making sure that schools are able to stay open safely are priorities that we strongly support.  Our plan includes resources for these purposes as well as for child care, which is a critical component to getting Americans back to work. 
  
Finally, we note that billions of dollars remain unspent from the previous COVID relief packages.  Just last month, Congress provided $900 billion in additional resources, and communities are only now receiving much of that assistance.  Some of the spending appropriated through the CARES Act, passed last March, also has yet to be exhausted. The proposal we have outlined is mindful of these past efforts, while also acknowledging the priorities that need additional support right now.
   
In 2020, Members of the House and Senate and the previous Administration came together on a bipartisan basis five times to direct the resources of the federal government toward combatting the urgent COVID-19 pandemic.  Each of these laws received the support of members from both political parties. With your support, we believe Congress can once again craft a relief package that will provide meaningful, effective assistance to the American people and set us on a path to recovery.
  
We recognize your calls for unity and want to work in good faith with your Administration to meet the health, economic, and societal challenges of the COVID crisis.
   
Thank you for your consideration of this request.

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Romney Pushes Effort to Permanently End Taxpayer Funded Abortions

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Romney Pushes Effort to Permanently End Taxpayer Funded Abortions

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) joined his colleagues, led by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), in reintroducing the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act, which would make restrictions on using federal taxpayer dollars to fund abortions permanent.
     
“The lives of our children, both born and unborn, deserve our protection,” Senator Romney said. “I am proud to join my colleagues in reintroducing this effort which would prevent taxpayer dollars from being used to fund abortions.”
   
The legislation is cosponsored also by Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Roy Blunt (R-MO), John Boozman (R-AR), Mike Braun (R-IN), Shelley Capito (R-WV), Bill Cassidy (R-La), John Cornyn (R-TX), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Steve Daines (R-MT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Josh Hawley (R-MO), John Hoeven (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Ron Johnson (R-WI), John Kennedy (R-LA), James Lankford (R-OK), Mike Lee (R-UT), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Rand Paul (R-KY), Rob Portman (R-OH), James Risch (R-ID), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ben Sasse (R-NE), Rick Scott (R-FL), Richard Shelby (R-AL), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), John Thune (R-SD), Tom Tillis (R-NC), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), and Todd Young (R-IN.)
   
BACKGROUND:
Currently, policies that regulate federal funding for abortions, like the long-standing Hyde Amendment, have to be reapproved each year and can be terminated at any time. This bill would eliminate the need for annual action and ensure a permanent, government-wide prohibition on funding for abortions.

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Romney and Lee Join Effort to Prevent President from Unilaterally Suspending Energy Leases on Federal Lands

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Romney and Lee Join Effort to Prevent President from Unilaterally Suspending Energy Leases on Federal Lands

Legislation would require Congressional approval for lease mineral development on BLM and USFS land

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Mike Lee (R-UT) joined their colleagues, led by Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), in introducing the Protecting our Wealth of Energy Resources (POWER) Act of 2021. The POWER Act would prohibit the president or his secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture, and Energy departments from blocking energy or mineral leasing and permitting on federal lands and waters without Congressional approval. Text of the legislation can be found here. 
        
“The economic impacts of the suspension of oil and gas leasing on federal lands will be devastating to Utah’s rural communities, tribes, and small businesses,” Senator Romney said. “And they will be detrimental to Utah’s energy industry, which is struggling to stay afloat and keep Utahns employed during the pandemic. Long-term decisions or pauses to energy leases should be considered and approved by Congress, not by the stroke of a pen through executive order.”
 
“President Biden’s energy moratorium has already done considerable damage to Utah’s economy. Presidents should not have the unilateral power to kill jobs like this. The POWER Act will check the president’s power by giving Congress a say in future leasing disruptions,” Senator Lee said.
 
The POWER Act is also cosponsored by Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), John Boozman (R-AR), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Tom Cotton (R-AR), John Cornyn (R-TX), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Steve Daines (R-MT), John Hoeven (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Ron Johnson (R-WI), John Kennedy (R-LA), Roger Marshall (R-KS), James Risch (R-ID), Dan Sullivan (R-AK) Pat Toomey (R-PA), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), and Roger Wicker (R-MS).

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Romney, Colleagues Reintroduce Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

Romney, Colleagues Reintroduce Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) and his colleagues today reintroduced the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, legislation which would protect unborn children at 20 weeks after fertilization, a point at which scientific evidence suggests the unborn child is able to feel pain.
 
“We must enact policies that protect the lives of our children, both born and unborn,” Senator Romney said. “I am proud to join my colleagues in reintroducing this legislation to prohibit abortions at 20 weeks, the point at which scientific evidence suggests an unborn child is able to feel pain.”
 
The legislation, led by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-UT) is also cosponsored by U.S. Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Roy Blunt (R-MO), John Boozman (R-AR), Mike Braun (R-IN), John Cornyn (R-TX), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Steve Daines (R-MT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Josh Hawley (R-MO), John Hoeven (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), James Inhofe (R-OK), Ron Johnson (R-WI), John Kennedy (R-LA), James Lankford (R-OK), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Rand Paul (R-KY), Rob Portman (R-OH), James Risch (R-ID), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ben Sasse (R-NE), Rick Scott (R-FL), Tim Scott (R-SC), Richard Shelby (R-AL), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), John Thune (R-SD), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Todd Young (R-IN).

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Romney, Lee Reintroduce the Protect Utah’s Rural Economy (PURE) Act

Source: United States Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT)

WASHINGTON–U.S. Senators Mitt Romney and Mike Lee (R-UT) reintroduced the Protect Utah’s Rural Economy (PURE) Act, legislation that would protect Utah from presidential Antiquities Act abuse in much the same way Alaska and Wyoming are currently protected.

“Roughly two-thirds of Utah is owned by the federal government, putting our state at a disadvantage when it comes to decisions on management of our public lands,” Senator Romney said. “National monuments in particular have become a political football that gets tossed back and forth as presidential administrations change. Given the recent executive order to review Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, it’s even more important that we work together to end the political back and forth. The legislative process is the best way to achieve this, and I will continue seeking opportunities to work with our federal, state and local elected leaders to come to a permanent solution.”
   
“Rural Americans want what all Americans want: a dignified decent-paying job, a family to love and support, and a healthy community whose future is determined by local residents – not their self-styled betters thousands of miles away,” Senator Lee said. “That is why I am introducing the Protecting Utah’s Rural Economy Act today, a bill that would protect Utah from future abuses under the Antiquities Act by prohibiting the president from establishing or expanding a national monument in Utah unless the proposed monument has been authorized by an act of Congress and the state legislature.”
  
BACKGROUND:
Passed in 1906, the Antiquities Act was originally intended to protect objects of historic and cultural interest like artifacts and religious sites. Unfortunately, what was once a narrowly targeted tool for preventing looting on federal lands has become a weapon urban elites use against hard working rural Americans. Two states, Alaska and Wyoming, both received protections from future Antiquities Act designations after millions of acres were restricted in those states. The PURE Act would give Utah’s rural communities a real voice in local land management policies, a voice they currently do not have today.