Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Today, during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on President Trump’s proposed rescission request to Congress, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) warned colleagues against rescinding foreign assistance funding for programs that have long had bipartisan support. Schatz, who is a senior member of the committee and ranking member of the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee which oversees much of the funding being cut in the package, questioned White...

WASHINGTON — During a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing today entitled, “A Review of the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request for the Navy,” U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) pressed top military officials on Middle East operations and partisan budget maneuvers. The witnesses included Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan, Commandant of the Marine Corps General Eric M. Smith, and Acting Chief of Naval Operations Admiral James W. Kilby. Addressing the current...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) spoke on the Senate floor today to warn Senate Republicans against passing a tax plan that would kick more than 16 million Americans off of health insurance, raise monthly health care and energy costs across the country, and slash nutritional assistance for those in need – all in order to cut taxes for billionaires. He highlighted the voices of Americans in red states imploring their representatives to preserve Medicaid which is a lifeline for...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement on U.S. military action in Iran. “This strike ordered by President Trump is a reckless and dangerous escalation that puts American lives at risk and threatens our national security. It was carried out without congressional approval and with no clear plan for what comes next beyond more chaos and bloodshed. “We’ve all seen what happens when the United States...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) reintroduced legislation to create a new progressive tax on financial transactions that would curb high-risk trading practices, reduce economic inequality, and generate $752 billion in new federal revenue over ten years once phased in. The bill comes as congressional Republicans advance a plan to cut taxes for billionaires and corporations by kicking more than 16 million Americans off of health insurance, raising health care and...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement after Senate Republicans released new details on their tax legislation that would raise energy costs for Americans and gut health care and food assistance to fund tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy. “Democrats took historic action to contain energy costs and fight the climate crisis through the Inflation Reduction Act. Now, Trump’s bill to cut taxes for billionaires will upend our progress – pulling the rug out from...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) spoke on the Senate floor after U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) was manhandled by federal agents for asking a question at a public press conference in his home state with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. “This is the stuff of dictatorships,” said Senator Schatz. “There is no context that justifies this action.” Senator Schatz continued, “As Trump's Department of Homeland Security raises the stakes and continues with a...

Republican Tax Plan Would Kick 16 Million Americans Off Of Health Insurance; Drive Up Monthly Premiums, Out-Of-Pocket Costs WASHINGTON – As Republicans advance a tax plan that would kick 16 million Americans off of health insurance – including 8 million from Medicaid – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) today reintroduced the State Public Option Act, bicameral legislation to create a Medicaid-based public health insurance option by providing...

WASHINGTON – At a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) challenged Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Dan Caine on President Trump’s deployment of the National Guard to respond to protests in Los Angeles. He also questioned the administration’s acceptance of a luxury aircraft from the government of Qatar to be used as Air Force One. “Is the United States being invaded by a foreign nation?” Schatz...

WASHINGTON — In a speech on the Senate floor today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) condemned President Donald Trump’s use of authoritarian tactics in response to protests in Los Angeles and exposed Republican efforts to push through an unpopular bill that slashes health care and food assistance in order to fund tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy. “If you heard that a leader of a foreign country was sending armed soldiers into his own cities, you would correctly call it authoritarian...

WASHINGTON — In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) warned that the Republican tax bill would raise costs for working families and cut critical programs like Medicaid and food assistance in order to pay for tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. “No one asked for this. No one asked for the biggest wealth transfer in American history — from the poorest people in the country to the richest people to ever exist. No one asked for the biggest ever cuts to Medicaid —...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations, released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s request to Congress to rescind nearly $10 billion in previously-enacted funding. “The Trump administration is seeking to codify its evisceration of American foreign assistance. Make no mistake: doing so will make Americans less safe, less secure, and less prosperous. “Gutting global health...

HONOLULU — U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) joined a group of his colleagues in urging the Trump Administration to immediately reverse course on its plan to illegally and unilaterally terminate the ENERGY STAR program. In their letter, the Senators highlight the cost-saving benefits of the program, which is projected to save the average American household $450 on utility bills each year simply by choosing ENERGY STAR certified products.  “The Trump administration’s plan to get rid of ENERGY...

KAHULUI – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) joined state and local leaders at a groundbreaking ceremony for the Kahului Airport South Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Checkpoint Project. Schatz, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, helped secure more than $30 million in federal funding for the project which will expand security lanes and add air conditioning at checkpoints. “This new checkpoint will reduce wait times and improve people’s experience at Kahului...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai‘i) and U.S. Representatives Jill Tokuda (D-Hawai‘i) and Ed Case (D-Hawai‘i) pressed the U.S. Navy to publicly justify its ongoing training on Ka‘ula and the proposal to more than double the number of inert bombing and gunfire training exercises conducted on Ka‘ula in Kaua‘i County. The lawmakers called on the Navy to conduct a full environmental impact statement (EIS) and provide a clear national security rationale...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) reintroduced the Deliver for Veterans Act. The bipartisan legislation expands an existing Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) grant program to cover shipping costs for disabled veterans who require modified vehicles for transportation. “Disabled veterans deserve access to every benefit they have earned – regardless of where they live,” said Senator Schatz. “Our bill is about basic fairness and will help disabled...

WASHINGTON — In a speech on the Senate floor yesterday, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) called out House Republicans for holding a committee meeting at 1 a.m. to quietly advance then pass a bill that would cut health care and reduce food assistance for millions, as well as promote a dying and dirty fossil fuel energy agenda — all to pay for tax breaks for billionaires. “This is a sort of general rule in politics, which is that if you start your meeting at 1 a.m., you're probably not proud...

WASHINGTON – At two separate Senate hearings today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), questioned Secretary of State Marco Rubio, pressing him on his role in foreign assistance decisions and securing a commitment that Rubio and other foreign assistance officials come back before Congress and work together to write and pass a bipartisan funding bill that protects foreign aid and maintains U.S influence and leadership around the world. At the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and...

WASHINGTON – Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations, condemned the Trump administration’s wholesale dismantling of American foreign assistance and its abrupt departure from generations of bipartisan American foreign policy consensus. He underscored the various ways the administration’s cuts are costing lives and disrupting work critical to American interests...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement after voting for a resolution led by U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.) to demand answers on the Trump administration’s compliance with court orders regarding illegal deportations of American citizens and residents as well as more information about El Salvador’s human rights record. The resolution was blocked by Senate Republicans. “President Trump’s disappearing of American residents to Salvadoran prisons without...