Press Releases

Van Hollen, Merkley, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Protect Aid Workers in Conflict Zones

WASHINGTON – Today, on Human Rights Day, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced legislation to protect humanitarian aid workers operating in conflict zones. The lawmakers’ legislation, the Commitment to Aid Workers Act, would strengthen U.S. efforts to safeguard those who risk their

Senate Republicans Block Merkley’s Bill to Prevent War with Venezuela

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement after Senate Republicans blocked consideration of his Prohibiting Unauthorized Military Action in Venezuela Act of 2025, which would block federal funds from being used for military actions in Venezuela: “As the Constitution so clearly says, Congress has the power

Senators Blunt Rochester, Merkley, Warnock Introduce Bill to Repair Infrastructure, Bridge Communities

Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) today introduced the Restoring Essential Public Access and Improving Resilient (REPAIR) Infrastructure Program Act. The bill would reauthorize and expand the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Reconnecting Communities Program as the REPAIR Infrastructure Program,

Heinrich, Murray, Klobuchar, Merkley Slam USDA for Evasive Response on Wildfire Mitigation Projects, Workforce Cuts, and Funding Freezes

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, along with U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Committee; Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; and U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley

Merkley Remarks at Department of the Interior Budget Hearing with Secretary Burgum

Washington, D.C. – Today, Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Jeff Merkley (D-OR) delivered the following remarks at the hearing reviewing the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request for the U.S. Department of the Interior with Secretary Doug Burgum: Senator Merkley’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below: “Thank you,

Merkley Statement on the Republican Economy

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, released the below statement after the latest troubling economic news on the Republican economy. “We are in the grip of the Trump Slump. Americans’ optimism on the economy has reached a near-record low, Moody’s has

Sullivan, Merkley, Curtis Condemn CCP’s Transnational Repression, Press for Sanctions on Hong Kong Judiciary Officials

WASHINGTON—This week, U.S. Senators Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), incoming chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), co-chair of the CECC, and John Curtis (R-Utah) introduced the Hong Kong Judicial Sanctions Act, which would hold officials of Hong Kong’s judiciary accountable for human rights violations and support Hong Kongers

Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Slam Trump Administration’s Attacks on Senior Nutrition Programs

“The cuts will exacerbate hunger, poor health, and social isolation” Washington D.C.—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both D-Ore, said today they have joined fellow Senate leaders to call on Republicans to reconsider disastrous cuts and attacks on programs and agencies that support seniors with food assistance among other necessities. “We are writing today to express our

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