Press Releases

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) took to the Senate floor today to detail how President Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., spread dangerous lies about vaccines which directly led to disease outbreaks and caused preventable deaths. Schatz recounted the story of how Kennedy traveled to Samoa in 2019 to discourage people from taking the measles vaccine which ultimately led to an outbreak in which thousands of people were...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the following statement after meeting with the Ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez. “Ambassador Romualdez and I had a constructive discussion about opportunities and challenges in the Indo-Pacific. We discussed how we can better coordinate and strengthen U.S. military and economic support to the Philippines and further elevate...

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Chair of the Senate Korea Caucus, released the following statement after meeting with a bipartisan delegation from the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee of the Republic of Korea’s National Assembly. “I had a productive and substantive conversation with a bipartisan delegation from the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee of the Republic of Korea’s National Assembly. We...

WASHINGTON — At today’s Senate Foreign Relations Committee nomination hearing for U.S. Representative to the United Nations nominee U.S. Representative Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) urged Stefanik to commit to strengthening relations with key Pacific Islands partners and countering China through international organizations. He pressed her on the Trump administration’s 90-day blanket aid pause executive action, arguing that it may cause dire human and geopolitical...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s recent executive actions. “Nothing Trump did on his first day in office will lower costs for people. Instead, his actions will threaten people’s constitutional citizenship rights, separate families, and reverse hard-fought progress to save our planet. One thing is clear: it was never about the price of eggs for them.” ###

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement after U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) was confirmed by a vote of 99-0 to serve as Secretary of State. “Having served with Senator Marco Rubio on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I know he has the experience to advance American interests around the world. “During the confirmation process, Senator Rubio recognized the importance of deepening our...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, released the following statement after President Biden commuted Native American activist Leonard Peltier’s sentence. Peltier, now 80 years old, has been imprisoned for the past 49 years after he was convicted of murder in 1977 following a controversial investigation and trial, which many civil rights leaders and legal experts have called unjust, including the U.S. Attorney who prosecuted the...

WASHINGTON – During his tenure as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs from 2021-2025, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) led the passage of 26 Tribal-specific bills and helped secure over $45 billion – making historic investments in health care, housing, education, languages, infrastructure, and public safety – that will benefit Native communities for generations to come. “Together, Senate Democrats made historic progress over the past four years, helping pass dozens of bills...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced the names of 65 students he nominated to attend the nation’s military service academies. “These students represent the very best of Hawai‘i, and it’s an honor to nominate them to our nation’s military service academies,” said Senator Schatz. “I commend them for their commitment to serving our country, and wish them the very best.” The United States Air Force Academy, United States Merchant Marine Academy, the United States...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and U.S. Representative Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) reintroduced the Federal Adjustment of Income Rates (FAIR) Act, a bill that would provide federal employees with a 4.3 percent pay increase in calendar year 2026. Schatz and Connolly previously introduced similar legislation in the 115th, 116th, 117th, and 118th congresses. For more than a decade, federal employees have endured government shutdowns, pay freezes, hiring freezes, and lost pay...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today joined Senate Democratic colleagues to highlight Republicans’ disastrous plan to cut taxes for billionaires by making enormous cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and other critical assistance that everyday Americans rely on. Schatz underscored the wide range of cuts being proposed to pay for the tax bill, including nearly $500 billion from Medicare and $150 billion from Affordable Care Act funding. “After months of swearing up and down...

WASHINGTON — At today’s Senate Foreign Relations Committee nomination hearing for Secretary of State nominee, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) questioned Rubio on his approach to strengthening relations with key Pacific Islands partners, elevating the U.S. alliance with the Philippines, and rethinking the United States’ North Korea policy. Schatz requested Rubio’s views on continuing to strengthen the United States’ relations with Pacific Island nations,...

WASHINGTON – During a nomination hearing for Sean Duffy, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be U.S. Secretary of Transportation, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) secured commitments to continue the longstanding tradition of bipartisanship at the U.S. Department of Transportation, as well as to keep funding from the bipartisan infrastructure law flowing to states. Schatz, a senior member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, asked Duffy, “I’d like for you to...

HONOLULU – In 2024, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) helped secure more than $6 billion in federal funding for Hawai‘i as he led efforts to deliver resources to support Maui’s recovery from last year’s fires and advance a range of other priorities for the state. Earlier this month, Schatz announced an estimated $1.6 billion in new funding for Maui’s continued recovery, aimed at building permanent housing for survivors, in addition to almost $500 million to support economic development,...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) issued the following statement after the death of former President Jimmy Carter: “I join Americans across the country in mourning the loss of former President Jimmy Carter. As president, he worked to protect the environment, expand clean energy, champion human rights, and advance Middle East peace. After leaving office, he spent decades helping the less fortunate, in America and around the world. His legacy of service, kindness, and generosity...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, voted to pass more than $110 billion in new long-term recovery funding for disaster-impacted communities nationwide. Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, worked to include an estimated $1.6 billion in new Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funding for housing on Maui and an estimated $480 million more for economic development, small business...

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Senate passed the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2024, which includes several provisions secured by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) to benefit Hawaii’s communities and strengthen the state’s disaster resilience. The bill authorizes the Secretary of the Army, through the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, to conduct studies, construct projects, and research activities to improve U.S. waterways. The...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has released an additional $250 million to the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) as part of its Amended Full Funding Grant Agreement signed in February. The funding follows February’s initial release of $125 million and was delivered after HART completed the contract award for the City Center Guideway and Stations. “HART and the City continue to make good progress...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), and Peter Welch (D-Vt.) introduced a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College system and restore democracy by allowing the direct election of presidents through popular vote alone. “In an election, the person who gets the most votes should win. It’s that simple,” said Senator Schatz. “No one’s vote should count for more based on where they live. The Electoral College is outdated and it’s undemocratic....

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and U.S. Representative Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee renewed efforts to urge President Joe Biden to pardon Leonard Peltier, a Native American activist convicted of murder in 1977 following a controversial investigation and trial, which many civil rights leaders and legal experts have called unjust, including the U.S. Attorney who prosecuted...