WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 -- Rep. Ed Case, D-Hawaii, issued the following statement on Sept. 30, 2023: * * * U.S. Representative Ed Case (Hawai'i-01) made the following statement on his vote today in the U.S. House to prevent a federal government shutdown tonight and add $16 billion to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA's) Disaster Relief Fund: "The deep division and polarization on Capitol Hill should never have been allowed to take Congress to the brink of still another damaging feder  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 -- Rep. Ed Case, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release on Oct. 3, 2023: U.S. Representative Ed Case (Hawai'i-1st) today voted to remove U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (California-20th) as Speaker of the House. "I considered my vote every which way, take no pleasure in it, and worked for alternatives" said Case, Vice Chair of the bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus. "The last thing I want to do is support the small minority within my Republican colleagues who ini  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 -- Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Illinois, issued the following news release: U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the nominations of Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, to be United States District Judge for the District of Oregon; Judge John Kazen, to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of Texas; Judge Shanlyn Park, to be United States Di  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 -- Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Illinois, issued the following news release: During today's Senate Judiciary Committee nominations hearing, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, nominated to be United States District Judge for the District of Oregon; Judge John Kazen, nominated to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of Texas; and Judge Shanlyn Park, nominated to be United St  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 -- Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined Senators Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) and U.S. Representative Norma Torres (D-CA) in introducing legislation to replace the official holiday recognized on the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples' Day. The bill would also replace any mention of Columbus Day in all federal laws or regulations with Indigenous Peoples' D  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 3 -- Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) led eight of her Senate colleagues in introducing a bill to strengthen a program connecting participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) with fresh produce. The GusNIP Improvement Act of 2023 updates the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP) to help existing grantees expand participation and spending, while also giv  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 5 -- Rep. Jill Tokuda, D-Hawaii, issued the following statement on Oct. 3, 2023: * * * Today, Rep. Jill Tokuda (HI-02) voted yes on the Resolution to Declare the Office of the Speaker Vacant (also known as the Motion to Vacate), thereby removing Rep. Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. Rep. Tokuda's statement is as follows: "Since the beginning of his Speakership, Kevin McCarthy has been more concerned about keeping the gavel by catering to a hand  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) today helped introduce Micah Smith and Judge Shanlyn Park to the Senate Judiciary Committee during a hearing to consider their nominations to the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawai'i. "They have the legal acumen as well as the character and temperament required to fulfill the duties of U.S. District Court judges. It's for these reasons that I'm proud to support  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 3 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) today announced that eight Native Hawaiian organizations working to preserve and share Native Hawaiian culture and traditions with visitors will receive $1 million in funding from the U.S. Department of the Interior to implement the NATIVE Act, 2016 legislation authored by Senator Schatz to help empower Native communities through cultural tourism. "These grants are making  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) released the following statement after the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) awarded $17.3 million in funding to the Hawai'i State Department of Health for emergency behavioral health support in the aftermath of the Maui fires. "The people of Maui have experienced so much loss, trauma, and grief, and addressing the mental health toll is ju  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) released the following statement after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that because of the short-term government spending deal, which contained an additional $16 billion in new funding and was signed into law over the weekend, the agency would end its pause on funding for some long-term disaster recovery efforts outside of Maui. FEMA had delayed de  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 5 -- Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Illinois, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following news release on Oct. 4, 2023: U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the nominations of Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, to be United States District Judge for the District of Oregon; Judge John Kazen, to be United States District Judge for the Southern D  more

WASHINGTON, Oct. 5 -- Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Illinois, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following news release on Oct. 4, 2023: During today's Senate Judiciary Committee nominations hearing, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, nominated to be United States District Judge for the District of Oregon; Judge John Kazen, nominated to be United States District Judge for the Southern District  more

WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 -- Sen. Katie Britt, R-Alabama, issued the following statement after the Senate's vote to pass a continuing resolution and avert a government shutdown: * * * "After completely unnecessary political fire drills, ultimately both chambers were able to come together not only to keep the federal government open but reject President Biden's misguided supplemental request. "Now, we will be able to pay our troops, the Border Patrol, and Capitol Police and help our neighbors in Fl  more