Press Releases
Floor Speech on Judge Kavanaugh
I’m on the Senate floor to talk about why Judge Kavanaugh is not fit to sit on the Supreme Court and why sexual assault survivors should be heard, not silenced. Tune in:Posted by Chris Van Hollen on Saturday, October 6, 2018Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. President, article II, section 2 of the Constitution gives this body, the Senate, the responsibility to advise and consent on judicial appointments. It is an important check on executive power. We are invested with this special responsibility to ensure … Continue Reading
October 08, 2018
Van Hollen Statement on the Passing of Maryland Senator Joseph Tydings
U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) released the following statement on the passing of Maryland Senator Joseph Tydings: “Today, Maryland lost a favorite son, Joe Tydings. Senator Tydings grew up in a well-established Maryland family but was never afraid to take on the establishment. He cut against the grain and had the courage of his convictions to fight for civil rights, equality, and sensible gun laws in the turbulent 1960s. His progressive battles cost him his Senate seat … Continue Reading
October 06, 2018
Van Hollen Statement on the Kavanaugh Confirmation
Today U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen issued the following statement in opposition to the confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh. He also shared stories from Marylanders who wrote in about their sexual assault experiences on the Senator floor, which are available here: “The U.S. Senate is tasked with the special responsibility to ensure that individuals nominated by the President to be Supreme Court Justices will be people who make decisions fairly and impartially, without favor and … Continue Reading
October 06, 2018
Van Hollen Statement on the Kavanaugh Confirmation
Today U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen issued the following statement in opposition to the confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh. He also shared stories from Marylanders who wrote in about their sexual assault experiences on the Senator floor, which are available here: “The U.S. Senate is tasked with the special responsibility to ensure that individuals nominated by the President to be Supreme Court Justices will be people who make decisions fairly and impartially, without favor and … Continue Reading
October 05, 2018
Van Hollen Statement on Vote to Move Forward on Kavanaugh Nomination
Today U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen issued the following statement in opposition to the vote to move forward with the confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court: “From day one, I have opposed Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court. His positions on everything from health care and a woman’s right to choose to expansive presidential powers are outside of the judicial mainstream. But in recent weeks, with credible and deeply concerning allegations of sexual … Continue Reading
October 03, 2018
Van Hollen, Cardin Say FAA Reauthorization Will Boost Maryland Airports and Protect Passengers
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (Both D-Md.) today lauded Senate passage of a bipartisan, five-year reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that will now go to the president for his signature. In addition to stabilizing grant funding for airport improvements and passenger safety and right-to-know measures, the legislation includes provisions put forward by both Cardin and Van Hollen to mitigate the noise levels from incoming and outgoing flights at both … Continue Reading
October 03, 2018
Van Hollen, Whitehouse Ask GAO to Dig Deeper into Issue of Money Laundering and Real Estate
Today U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) wrote to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) asking it to further study the issue of whether vulnerabilities in anti-money laundering laws applicable to the real estate sector present increased risk of criminal activity. The luxury real estate market attracts money launderers because all-cash deals through shell corporations allow criminals to mask their ownership information. Cash-only real estate … Continue Reading
October 02, 2018
Van Hollen, Cardin Announce $50,000 for Garrett Trails
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) have announced $50,000 in grant funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) for Garrett Trails, which manages the recreational trail network in Garrett County, Md. The funds will be used to conduct a Trail Feasibility Study of the Casselman River Railroad project, which will assess the viability of bridging a gap between several miles of trail that would connect users of the Great Allegheny Passage trail to the 150 … Continue Reading
September 27, 2018
Van Hollen Statement on Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh Testimonies
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) released the following statement regarding the testimonies of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Kavanaugh:"Today we saw powerful testimony from a courageous Dr. Christine Blasey Ford—testimony that she knew would turn her life upside down, but that she felt compelled to give anyway because it was her civic duty to make sure the American people knew the truth. Thank you, Dr. Ford, for your strength and your honesty.Judge Kavanaugh’s time … Continue Reading
September 21, 2018
Van Hollen: Senate Passage of Opioid Legislation Includes Important Resources for Maryland
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) applauded the Senate’s passage of the bipartisan Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018, which will help address this public health epidemic and the ripple effects of the crisis on children, families, and communities. In addition, as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Van Hollen helped secure over $3.8 billion for Fiscal Year 2019 in legislation that was passed by Congress last week. This funding will go directly to fighting … Continue Reading
September 21, 2018
Van Hollen, Cardin Call For DOJ To Investigate FBI Headquarters Consolidation Project
U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (Both D-Md.) yesterday joined with Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on the Environment and Public Works Committee, leading a group of senators in requesting that the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Justice investigate a decision by the General Services Administration (GSA), made at the request of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), to rescind a long-studied proposal for consolidation of the FBI Headquarters. … Continue Reading
September 21, 2018
Van Hollen, Feinstein, Coons Lead Letter from 34 Senators Strongly Opposing Cuts to Aid to Palestinian People
WASHINGTON - Today U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.) led a letter of 34 Democratic Senators to President Trump to express strong opposition to his decision to cut more than $500 million in aid to the Palestinian people - funding that was passed into law to provide clean water, food, education, and critical medical services to families in the West Bank and Gaza. “We are deeply concerned that your strategy of attempting to … Continue Reading
September 18, 2018
Van Hollen, Rubio, Colleagues Introduce Bill To Enforce Commerce Deal With Chinese Telecom Firm ZTE
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Susan Collins (R-ME), Mark Warner (D-VA), James Lankford (R-OK), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) today introduced the ZTE Enforcement Review and Oversight (ZERO) Act, a bipartisan bill to enforce full compliance by ZTE, a Chinese state-directed telecommunications firm that repeatedly violated U.S. laws, with all probationary conditions in the Commerce Department’s deal to lift the denial order’s seven-year ban against the export of U.S. … Continue Reading
September 17, 2018
Van Hollen Secures Funding for Veterans’ Services and Health Care in Congress-Passed Appropriations Bill
U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) has announced the inclusion of over $86 billion for veterans services and health care as a part of the funding legislation passed by the Senate last week. Senator Van Hollen also secured language in the text of the legislation urging the Veterans Affairs (VA) Inspector General to provide rigorous oversight of the Washington, DC VA Medical Center (DC VAMC), which has been recently plagued with issues. Senator Van Hollen has written to the VA twice … Continue Reading
September 14, 2018
Van Hollen: Turkey F-35 Provision in DoD Appropriations Falls Short
Today U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen issued the following statement on the provision in Fiscal Year 2019 Defense Appropriations bill regarding the transfer of the F-35 aircraft to Turkey, as Russia expedites the delivery of the S-400 Russian missile defense system to Turkey by mid-2019. Senator Van Hollen authored stronger language in the Senate-passed bill that would have fully barred any federal spending to transfer, or to facilitate the transfer of, F-35 aircraft to Turkey until the … Continue Reading
September 12, 2018
Van Hollen, Rubio Statement on Election Security Executive Order
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) today released a joint statement after President Trump signed an Executive Order to impose sanctions-in-waiting against foreign individuals, entities, or governments that meddle in future U.S. elections: “There is no question that protecting our elections from foreign interference is one of the most pressing issues facing our country today. Today’s announcement by the Administration recognizes the threat, but does not go far enough … Continue Reading
September 12, 2018
Van Hollen, Baltimore’s Congressional Delegation Announces More Than $400,000 for National Aquarium Education Program
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin, along with U.S. Representatives John Sarbanes, Elijah Cummings and C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger (all D-Md.), have announced $432,627 in federal funding over three years for What Lies in the Harbor, an environmental education program sponsored by a partnership between Baltimore’s National Aquarium and Baltimore City Public Schools. The program will provide the opportunity for all City Schools 6th graders to visit the National Aquarium and … Continue Reading
September 12, 2018
Van Hollen Statement on Charles Rettig
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen released the following statement in opposition to the confirmation of Charles Rettig to become Commissioner of Internal Revenue. I opposed the confirmation of Charles Rettig to become the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, because I am concerned about the flow of secret money in our elections. Mr. Rettig refused to give a clear answer on whether the IRS would take steps to address this problem under his leadership, which is especially concerning in light of … Continue Reading
September 11, 2018
Van Hollen, Baltimore’s Congressional Delegation Announces More Than $400,000 for National Aquarium Education Program
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin, along with U.S. Representatives John Sarbanes, Elijah Cummings and C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger (all D-Md.), have announced $432,627 in federal funding over three years for What Lies in the Harbor, an environmental education program sponsored by a partnership between Baltimore’s National Aquarium and Baltimore City Public Schools. The program will provide the opportunity for all City Schools 6th graders to visit the National Aquarium and … Continue Reading
September 11, 2018
Van Hollen Seeks Update from Governor on MARC Safety Measures
This week, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen wrote to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan seeking answers on the implementation of positive train control (PTC) measures on the Maryland Area Regional Commuter (MARC) rail system. PTC hardware helps improve railroad safety, and in 2008, Congress passed legislation requiring PTC implementation on highly-trafficked and passenger railroads across the United States. In the letter, Senator Van Hollen notes that MARC is “at risk” of missing the December … Continue Reading
