Sen. Coons votes to permanently authorize and fund the Patrick Leahy Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program for local law enforcement agencies

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a co-founder of the Senate Law Enforcement Caucus, voted yesterday to pass a permanent reauthorization of the Patrick Leahy Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program, which provides bulletproof vests to local law enforcement agencies.  Thousands of vests have been purchased by Delaware law enforcement through the partnership over its 20-year history, including more than 2,000 in the last five years.  On February 11, 2013, bulletproof vests purchased through the program saved the lives of two Capitol Police officers during a shooting at the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington.  Both officers were struck, but survived because of their vests. The bill has passed the House and is expected to be signed into law in the coming weeks.

“The men and women of law enforcement put their lives on the line every day to protect our communities, so the least we can do is ensure that they have the equipment they need to do their jobs safely and effectively,” said Senator Coons. “Since I was elected to the Senate, I’ve fought to fund and expand the bulletproof vest partnership program, and I’m proud that this week, as we celebrate the men and women of law enforcement all across the country, the Senate has acted to increase funding for the program and make it permanent.”

More than one million vests have been purchased with the help of this program, and according to the Government Accountability Office, bulletproof vests have saved the lives of more than 3,000 law enforcement officers since 1987.  The Bulletproof Vest Partnership has helped provide resources to law enforcement officers in over 13,000 jurisdictions for the purchase of lifesaving vests that their departments may not be able to afford otherwise.  In recent years, demand for bulletproof vests has been outpacing funding for the program.

Sens. Coons, Gardner, Gillibrand, Tillis, Hassan, Peters, Moran, and Rubio introduce bipartisan bill to increase U.S. advanced manufacturing’s global competitiveness

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) today introduced the Global Leadership in Advanced Manufacturing Act, which will promote expansion of the national network of Manufacturing USA institutes and strengthen American manufacturing. 

The Manufacturing USA program is a national network of 14 public-private partnership institutes with 1,300-member companies and institutions working to keep the U.S. on the cutting edge of advanced manufacturing. The institutes have generated $2 billion in industry-matched funding to transition innovative technologies from lab to market and to expand the production of goods made in America.  

The successful Manufacturing USA program is being copied by China, with the “Made in China 2025” plan directly replicating the U.S. institutes. China is making enormous investments in its manufacturing capabilities and has committed to establishing 40 Manufacturing USA-like institutes by 2025. This bill continues U.S. investments to develop new Manufacturing USA institutes and strengthen advanced manufacturing resources for the national network to compete globally and maintain U.S. economic and national security.  

This legislation also enables extended federal funding for Delaware’s flagship National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL). NIIMBL supports industry-leading research with 115 members from industry, academic institutes, nonprofit organizations, and states. The Delaware-based manufacturing hub connects local manufacturers to national resources to spur local innovation and create new high-skill, high-paying jobs for Delawareans. 

The bill also embeds a liaison of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) in each Manufacturing USA institute to assist with cybersecurity training, workforce development and technology transfer for small- and medium-sized manufacturers. 

A summary of the bill can be found here.

The bill text can be found here. 

“Manufacturing is a cornerstone of American economic security and investment in advanced manufacturing is critical to ensure the future of U.S. global competitiveness,” said Senator Coons. “This bill will help expand the national network of public-private partnerships and continue NIIMBL’s work in Delaware to commercialize cutting-edge research and create new, well-paying manufacturing jobs. Support for manufacturing is bipartisan, and the Manufacturing USA program is where Congress and the Administration can find common ground.” 

“The United States must remain a global leader in manufacturing, and we need to commit to investing in public-private partnerships to boost this critical sector,” said Senator Gardner. “The Manufacturing USA program has already benefitted Colorado-based partners like NREL, and this bipartisan legislation will help bolster these programs across Colorado and the country.” 

“America has always been a global leader in manufacturing, and we need to do everything we can to make sure our country remains competitive to continue that leadership in the 21st century,” said Senator Gillibrand. “I am proud to partner with Senator Coons to introduce the bipartisan Global Leadership in Advanced Manufacturing Act, which would expand the successful network of manufacturing institutes that promotes innovation and helps ensure new technologies will be developed and made in the United States. This legislation would improve job training programs and support entrepreneurs, creating more opportunities for our workers to succeed in manufacturing. These are the types of investments that strengthen our nation’s economy and ensure our products and workers can compete in the global market, and I urge my colleagues to join together to pass this bill.” 

“This legislation will give a boost to New Hampshire’s manufacturing sector, which creates good jobs and the innovative products that are crucial to our state’s economic success,” Senator Hassan said. “By expanding the national network of Manufacturing USA institutes – which includes Manchester’s own biofabrication manufacturer, BioFabUSA – we can help drive economic growth and expand opportunity for hard-working Granite Staters and Americans.” 

“Michigan is home to advanced manufacturers that will transform how our society operates in the future,” said Senator Peters. “In order to keep our country at the forefront of innovation, it is critical we have the workforce and technology that can strengthen our competitiveness in the world. This legislation will ensure we stay on the cutting-edge in advanced manufacturing.” 

“Kansas continues to demonstrate leadership in a number of advanced manufacturing sectors, including aerospace, defense, technology and agriculture,” said Senator Moran. “As the Chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee for Manufacturing, I remain committed to ensuring federal programs such as the Manufacturing USA network are well-resourced and modernized while also accounting for our small- and mid-sized manufacturers to contend with foreign competitors that threaten not only our economic security, but our national security as well.” 

Senator Coons is a leading advocate for boosting manufacturing in the United States. As the co-chair of the Senate Competitiveness Caucus, the Senator has encouraged his colleagues to work together to advance bipartisan legislation to help U.S. competitiveness through manufacturing. 

The legislation is supported by Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), American Small Manufacturers Coalition (ASMC), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Association for Advancing Automation, Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT), Association of American Universities (AAU), Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), Binghamton University, Bipartisan Policy Center Action, Boston Scientific Corporation, Delaware Manufacturing Association, Delaware Manufacturing Extension Partnership (DEMEP), Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Intelligent Manufacturing Systems International (IMS-I), International Society of Automation (ISA), Mac Arthur Corporation, Manufacturing Alliance of Communities (MAC), National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM), National Council for Advanced Manufacturing (NACFAM), National Tooling & Machining Association, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rockwell Automation, SEMI, State Science and Technology Institute (SSTI), University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Delaware, and the SUNY Polytechnic Institute. Supporting quotes can be found here.

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[VIDEO] Sen. Coons: Trump “is genuinely pushing the boundaries of presidential power.”

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined CNN New Day.

“What worries is me is that we have two new Supreme Court justices, and an Attorney General, who have publicly and repeatedly asserted a view of presidential power that I think is historically overbroad. Meaning they support this unitary executive theory idea, that when Justice Scalia first wrote about it in a dissent, was very much a minority view. They are now in a position to potentially make it the law of the land if there were a Supreme Court decision resolving this fight,” said Senator Coons. 

Audio and video available here.  

Excerpts from the interview below: 

Sen. Coons on if the DOJ has a legal case: I don’t think that it’s possible to assert executive privilege over everything that Congress might be seeking to get from the executive branch. Look, one of the fundamental powers of Congress is a power of oversight, a power to investigate actions by the executive branch. It’s part of our balance of powers, it’s something that has been well established over many administrations of both parties. There’s always skirmishes, boundary-line issues — famously, the fight by Richard Nixon to say that he shouldn’t have to give up recordings of discussions in the Oval Office, which led to US v. Nixon. There’s always been some disagreements, but this is a wholescale effort to exert executive privilege across an entire investigation, and a whole range of things. And John, this fits into a broader approach by the Trump White House to declare Congress’ oversight power illegitimate. That’s more of a threat to our separation of powers than any specific fight we might be having.  

Sen. Coons on whether this is a constitutional crisis. We keep coming up against constitutional crises here, over the last two years. I’ll put it this way: President Trump has taken a series of actions over his two years as president where he has genuinely pushed the boundaries, across a whole range of things — criticizing sitting federal court judges, the way he talks about the media, and now the way that he is challenging the power of Congress. He’s done this previously, in terms of spending decisions, he’s done it in other ways, in terms of the reach and scope of his executive orders. This is, I think, just another way in which he is genuinely pushing the boundaries of presidential power. John, what worries is me is that we have two new Supreme Court justices, and an Attorney General, who have publicly and repeatedly asserted a view of presidential power that I think is historically overbroad. Meaning they support this unitary executive theory idea, that when Justice Scalia first wrote about it in a dissent, was very much a minority view. They are now in a position to potentially make it the law of the land if there were a Supreme Court decision resolving this fight. 

Sen. Coons on the Supreme Court: He might. Exactly why I voted against Justice Gorsuch and Justice Kavanaugh after vigorous questioning on this, was their views on executive power, which I think are significantly overbroad, and in fact pose a threat to the ways in which our constitutional order has always worked. 

Sen. Coons on Iran: This is a significant moment in our many years long effort to try and contain, or hopefully stop, Iran’s race towards a nuclear weapon. Iran is a very dangerous, destabilizing power in the region. They export their view of terrorism and their engagement with the region in a way that is extremely harmful to our allies and our interests, and the announcement that they may well go back to enrichment, and enrichment possibly to weapons-grade levels, is very concerning. The JCPOA, the Iran Deal, is something that was cobbled together between Russia, China, our European allies, and the United States, and at its most positive it gave us searching inspections — insight into what Iran was doing, and they committed to not develop a nuclear weapon. It was flawed, in that it didn’t include or cover ballistic missiles, and it didn’t provide enough controls over Iran’s other destabilizing actions. But on balance I thought it was the right thing for us to do, and unfortunately by leaving it, and by some of the recent actions of the administration, I think the Iranians are now testing our resolve, and the resolve of our allies, to continue to work to contain them. 

More on Iran: I’m not going to pre-judge yet what the current actions are. I haven’t been briefed on the intelligence that’s been talked about in the press and by some senior administration officials, that they say justified sending an aircraft carrier group and a wing of bombers to the region. I have no doubt that Iran is a dangerous and destabilizing force, but there are ways in which our escalating rhetoric and actions will almost certainly be met by escalation on the Iranian side. The question is, is this the right path towards ultimately finding some resolution with Iran. In the first year of the Trump administration, the heated rhetoric between President Trump and Kim Jong-Un of North Korea was pretty stunning. It has turned to negotiations. It is my hope that that’s ultimately where they intend to go with this.  

Sen. Coons on Trump’s financial losses: It’s pretty striking, I have to say. Back during the campaign, I had a friend who was a big fan of Donald Trump, saying “He’s such a great businessman,” and I remember saying “He literally ran three casinos into the ground.” What do you know about casinos — they always make money. That he went bankrupt so spectacularly in a number of his biggest ventures does raise one question, which Jeffery Toobin was just raising on your last roundtable: how was he bailed out? Who funded a gentleman who lost so much money across so many different undertakings? That’s really the question that’s worth asking at this point. Yes, it was a striking report in the New York Times.  

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Sens. Carper, Coons join landmark legislation to protect workers’ right to organize

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined House and Senate Democrats in introducing the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act – comprehensive legislation to strengthen protections for workers’ right to organize a union and bargain for higher wages, better benefits, and safer working conditions. As wage inequality continues to leave workers and middle-class families behind, this legislation would empower millions of Americans to stand together and ensure hardworking people are getting their fair share of economic growth. 

“Our country was built by hardworking men and women who, over the years, organized and fought hard for workers’ rights,” said Senator Carper. “Unfortunately, today, instead of working to protect Delaware’s middle-class families, the Trump Administration is focusing its energy on ensuring that wealthy shareholders and executives can take an even bigger cut of corporate profits. That’s why I’m proud to join Senator Coons and my Democratic colleagues to introduce the PRO Act, which will protect millions of Americans’ right to organize and negotiate fair wages and working conditions.” 

“Unions helped create America’s middle class and have fought to ensure that generations of workers receive better wages and benefits,” said Senator Coons. “I was proud to join Senator Carper and our Democratic colleagues in introducing the PRO Act to protect the rights of Delaware’s workers to form unions and negotiate fair working conditions.” 

Specifically, the PRO Act would:

• Establish penalties on predatory corporations that violate workers’ rights, and combat misclassification of workers as supervisors and independent contractors.
• Strengthen workers’ right to strike for basic workplace improvements, including higher wages and better working conditions.
• Create a mandatory mediation and arbitration process to ensure corporations and newly formed unions reach a first contract.
• Authorize unions and employers to negotiate agreements that allow unions to collect fair-share fees that cover the costs of representation.
• Streamline the National Labor Relation Board’s (NLRB) procedures to secure worker freedoms and effectively prevent violations.
• Protect the integrity of union elections against coercive captive audience meetings.

In the House, the PRO Act was introduced by Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor; Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (FL-24), chairwoman of the Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee; Congressman Andy Levin (MI-09), vice chair of the Education and Labor Committee; Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus; and Congressman Brendan Boyle (PA-02). 

The Senate companion was introduced by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), ranking member of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; and Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV).

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ICYMI: Sen. Coons op-ed in Delaware State News: ‘Reimagining our commitment to national service’

WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) published an op-ed in the Delaware State News on the ACTION for National Service Act that will make it possible for young people to earn funds for college tuition by giving back to their country through national service programs, like AmeriCorps.  

Delaware State News: Reimagining our commitment to national service

By Chris Coons

Our nation’s young people face several challenges: the high cost of college and the burden of student loans, concerns about how to develop the skills and experience to launch a successful career, and our country’s bitter partisan divisions that make many question our future. 

I have long been confident that the answers to these and a number of other problems may lie in something that helped previous generations of Americans come together, make a difference and afford a higher education: national service. 

For decades, military service, now in combination with the GI Bill, has connected veterans to skills, a better understanding of their fellow citizens, and access to higher education. 

My dad once told me that he didn’t fully understand what it meant to be an American until he was serving in the Army, responsible for a squad of men who were black and white, Northern, Southern, Western, Catholic, and Protestant. “We had to live together, work together, and serve together,” he said, explaining how military service shaped his life and deepened his commitment to our country and its citizens.

You can read the full column here. 

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Coons, Blunt introduce National Law Enforcement Museum Commemorative Coin Act

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (Del.) and Roy Blunt (Mo.), co-chairs of the Senate Law Enforcement Caucus, yesterday introduced their bipartisan National Law Enforcement Museum Commemorative Coin Act, legislation authorizing the Treasury Department to mint coins to commemorate the opening of the National Law Enforcement Museum. The museum is dedicated to highlighting and honoring past, present, and future law enforcement officers.

“The women and men of law enforcement protect and serve each of our communities every day,” said Coons. “I’m proud to join with Sen. Blunt to recognize the achievements and sacrifices of officers from around the country on display at the National Law Enforcement Museum.” 

“The National Law Enforcement Museum is a powerful tribute to the countless sacrifices made every day by the men and women who keep us safe,” said Blunt. “The commemorative coin will help celebrate and honor law enforcement officers and their families. I hope more Americans will visit the museum and gain a deeper appreciation for all our law enforcement does. I encourage my colleagues to support this effort to show our gratitude for those who risk their lives to save others.”

The coin comes at no cost to taxpayers and the Treasury Department will be reimbursed for the costs of issuing the coins. Proceeds from the coin will support the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund’s educational and outreach programs.

The museum opened last year and is located in Washington, D.C.

The bill is supported by many of the nation’s top law enforcement advocacy groups, including the Concerns of Police Survivors, the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, the Fraternal Order of Police, the Fraternal Order of Police Auxiliary, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, the International Union of Police Associations, the National Association of Police Organizations, the National Black Police Association, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, the National Sheriffs’ Association, the National Troopers Coalition, the Police Executive Research Forum, the Police Foundation, the Police Unity Tour, and the United Federation of Police Officers.

In addition to Blunt and Coons, original cosponsors include U.S. Sens. Tammy Baldwin (Wis.), John Boozman (Ark.), Shelley Moore Capito (W. Va.), Ben Cardin (Md.), Bob Casey (Pa.), Bill Cassidy (La.), Susan Collins (Maine), John Cornyn (Texas), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.), Kevin Cramer (N.D.), Mike Crapo (Idaho), Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), Joni Ernst (Iowa), Deb Fischer (Neb.), Cory Gardner (Colo.), John Kennedy (La.), Angus King (Vt.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Maggie Hassan (N.H.), Josh Hawley (Mo.), John Hoeven (N.D.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Miss.), Jim Inhofe (Okla.), Johnny Isakson (Ga.), Doug Jones (Ala.), Patrick Leahy (Vt.), Jerry Moran (Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), David Perdue (Ga.), Gary Peters (Mich.), Rob Portman (Ohio), Pat Roberts (Kan.), Jacky Rosen (Nev.), Mike Rounds (S.D.), Marco Rubio (Fla.), Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.), Tina Smith (Minn.), Debbie Stabenow (Mich.), Jon Tester (Mont.), and Thom Tillis (N.C.).

U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell (N.J.) introduced companion legislation in the House. 

[VIDEO]: Sen. Coons to AG Barr: “The President ordered the White House counsel to have Special Counsel Mueller fired. He fabricated evidence to cover it up. And, whether or not you could make a criminal charge of this, it is unacceptable”

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today questioned Attorney General William Barr in the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Russian interference with the 2016 presidential election. 

“I frankly, Mr. Attorney General, have concerns that your March 24 letter obscured that conduct, and as a result worked to protect the President for several weeks rather than give the full truth to the American people as I now believe Special Counsel Mueller was urging you to do as reflected in the letter we just received today,” said Senator Coons.

“The President ordered the White House counsel to have Special Counsel Mueller fired. He fabricated evidence to cover it up. And, whether or not you could make a criminal charge of this, it is unacceptable. And everyone who said we didn’t have to worry about President Trump firing the special counsel was flat out wrong,” said Senator Coons.

Video and audio available here.  

Excerpts from the Senator’s questioning below:

Senator Coons: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The special counsel was appointed first to investigate Russia’s attack on our 2016 election, and potential coordination with the Trump campaign. And I’m glad the chairman started this hearing by recognizing we needed to focus on that demonstrable assault on our democracy, and to protect our elections going forward, and I look forward to working with my colleagues, whether it’s on sanctions, bills, or the Lankford-Klobuchar bill. But we genuinely need leadership from you, Mr. Attorney General, and from the White House and our president to make sure that we are doing everything we can to protect our next election.  But frankly, we also can’t ignore volume 2 of this report, which I think details unacceptable conduct by the president and his campaign — and that includes trying to fire the special counsel without cause. I appreciated the leadership of Senators Graham and Tillis, Booker and I, in a bill to try and protect the special counsel, something that I think is still worth doing for future special counsels. We were told by many of our colleagues there was nothing to worry about, because the president wasn’t going to fire the special counsel, but I was particularly struck by some reports in the second volume that the president attempted to do exactly that. And I frankly, Mr. Attorney General, have concerns that your March 24 letter obscured that conduct, and as a result worked to protect the president for several weeks rather than give the full truth to the American people, as I now believe Special Counsel Mueller was urging you to do, as reflected in the letter we just received today. So, I’m going to ask you some questions about the report, but the bottom line is that I think we need to hear more about the special counsel’s work from the special counsel. According to Special Counsel Mueller’s report, in June of 2017, President Trump called White House Counsel McGahn and directed him to have the special counsel removed. And I quote, and this is from about page 85, 86. McGahn called the president, called him at home twice and on both occasions directed him to call Rosenstein and say that Mueller had conflicts and could no longer serve as special counsel. There were no credible conflicts. McGahn testified that he had shared that these conflicts were silly, were not real and Chris Christie advised President Trump, about the same time, that there were no substantive bases, no good cause, to fire the special counsel. In one call the president said, “Call Rod. Tell Rod Mueller has conflicts, can’t be the special counsel.” Quote, “Mueller has to go.” And I assume he didn’t mean go to Cleveland or go to Seattle, he meant go, be fired. Call me back when you do it. I think the president’s demands to fire Mueller without cause are alarming and unacceptable. And Mr. Attorney General, not one bit of what I just described was in your March 24th letter to this committee, was it? 

Attorney General Barr: No. 

Coons: But it was in the summaries that were offered to you by Special Counsel Mueller and his team which you chose not to release, is that correct? 

Barr: They were in complete form in the final report which I was striving to make public and which I did make public. 

Coons: Which I respect and appreciate. But a critical three weeks passed between when you delivered the letter with the focus on the principal conclusions and when we ultimately got the redacted report. And what I take from the Mueller letter to you — 

Barr: Why are they critical? 

Coons: I would think that the volume 2 summary would have revealed to the general public a whole range of inappropriate actions by the president and his core team. I’ll go to a second episode that I think is important. On February 5 of 2018, over a week after the story broke publicly, that the president ordered his White House counsel to fire the special counsel investigating the president, the president demanded that McGahn create a false record saying the president never directed McGahn to fire the special counsel. The president wasn’t looking for a press statement here, he wasn’t looking to correct the record, he wanted a fraudulent record for White House records, a letter that wasn’t true. McGahn refused to do it. Again, there is nothing about the president’s request to create a false record in your March 24th letter, is there? 

Barr: Well, that’s your characterization of it, and I’ve been through it a couple of times. And, I think it would be difficult for the government to prove that beyond a reasonable doubt. I think there are very plausible alternative explanations. But what I was trying to get out was the final report, and have one issuance of the complete report. I made it clear in the March 24th letter that Bob Mueller didn’t make a decision, but that he felt he could not exonerate the president. 

Coons: That’s right. 

Barr: I wasn’t hiding that Mueller was presenting both sides of the issue, all of the evidence, but he was not making a call, but he felt he could not exonerate the president. Then I briefly described the process we went through to make a judgment, internal and to the Department of Justice. And as I say, from the public interest standpoint, I felt there should be only one thing issued and it should be the complete report, as complete as it could be. 

Coons:  And I know we differ in our conclusions about what that meant, but my concern is that that gave President Trump and his folks more than three weeks of an open field to say, I was completely exonerated, when, had you released the summaries of the first and second volume, we would have been more motivated than ever based on the first volume to work cooperatively to protect our next election, and more concerned than ever about misdeeds, about inappropriate actions by the president and by some of his core team as a result of the summary of the second volume. And at the end of the day, you’ve had a number of exchanges with colleagues where you’ve said, I can’t tell you why Mueller chose not to charge. I want to hear that from Bob Mueller. I think we should hear from Special Counsel Mueller. Let me move on to a point that Senator Sasse was just asking but that I think is worth revisiting, about foreign intelligence and the role in our elections. The reason we had this investigation in the first place, was George Papadopoulos was told the Russians had dirt on Hillary Clinton, the Russians had a direct contact to Donald Trump Jr., and offered to give dirt about his father’s opponent. Donald Trump Jr. said, “I love it,” and invited the campaign chairman and the president’s son-in-law to a meeting with the Russians to get it. 

Barr: Who did you say offered it? Who did you say offered it? 

Coons: In the second instance, Russians made an offer to Donald Trump. I have 30 seconds. Let me get to a question if I could. Going forward, what if a foreign adversary, let’s now say North Korea, offers a presidential candidate dirt on a competitor in 2020? Do you agree with me the campaign should immediately contact the FBI? If a foreign intelligence service, a representative of a foreign government says, “we have dirt on your opponent,” should they say, “I love it, let’s meet,” or should they contact the FBI? 

Barr: If a foreign intelligence service does, yes. 

Coons:  Here’s my core concern. The president ordered the White House counsel to have Special Counsel Mueller fired. He fabricated evidence to cover it up. And whether or not you could make a criminal charge of this, it is unacceptable. And everyone who said we didn’t have to worry about President Trump firing the special counsel was flat out wrong. The Russians offered the Trump campaign dirt on Hillary Clinton and the Trump campaign never reported that to the FBI. Instead they tried to conceal the meeting, and misled the American people. And I think we have to work on a bipartisan basis going forward, to protect our elections from a repeat on this. And we need your leadership and the president’s. You somehow concluded that the president didn’t obstruct justice, and you announced you had cleared the president 25 days before the public could read the Mueller report for themselves. I think it’s no wonder Special Counsel Mueller thought your four-page letter created public confusion about critical aspects of the results of the investigation, and that that threatened to undermine the central purpose for which he was appointed. I think we need to hear from Special Counsel Mueller, I think we need to hear from Don McGahn, and I think we need to how we are going to handle, going forward, the fact that you are supervising 12 ongoing cases that came out of the Mueller investigation and that have been referred. This body has a central role in oversight that I believe we need to exercise given your recent record. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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[VIDEO] Sen. Coons: “The Attorney General is conceiving of himself as the President’s lawyer, not the people’s lawyer.”

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined CNN New Day to preview the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with Attorney General William Barr.

“I am now convinced that the Attorney General is conceiving of himself as the President’s lawyer, not the people’s lawyer. As someone who really was trying out for the role of President’s attorney by sending in an unsolicited 19-page memo attacking Robert Mueller’s theory of obstruction and then his conduct since becoming Attorney General suggests that he thinks his central role here is to defend the President and to make the best case he can on the evidence given to him by Mueller that the President was cleared even though there was voluminous evidence that misdeeds, inappropriate actions did in fact happen at the White House,” said Senator Coons. 

“It’s blindingly clear from Robert Mueller’s report that Russia directly interfered in our 2016 Presidential election. That’s been the conclusion of our intelligence committee for a long time but in great detail, Robert Mueller lays out the many ways in which Russia interfered in our election. What is the President doing to protect our country for the next election from foreign interference? There are things from folks at Homeland Security or NSA or FBI are doing but I don’t believe President Trump has ever directly said this is a threat, we need to confront it, and we need to invest in securing our next election,” said Senator Coons. 

Audio and video available here.

Excerpts from the interview: 

Sen. Coons on Barr’s handling of the report: That’s one of the things I think we should explore today. He certainly wasn’t fully forthcoming because he did know that Robert Mueller reached out to him first in a letter and second in a phone call to convey that he was upset or disappointed that William Barr’s summary, his four-page summary to Congress, was creating what he called public confusion. That it didn’t fully reflect the context, substance, nature of the important work of the Special Counsel.

Sen. Coons on the timing of Mueller’s letter:  So, one of the first questions I want to get to this morning John, is whether it was that letter from Special Counselor Mueller that propelled Attorney General Barr to release much of this report and commit to testifying in front of Congress. One of my thoughts is that the timing of the release of this letter is quite telling. It was released yesterday on the eve of Attorney General Barr’s testimony and suggest that at least some on Mueller’s team was very upset at the ways in which this four-page summary released by Attorney General Barr weeks ago was significantly misleading about the conclusion of the Special Counsels work.

Sen. Coons on questioning Barr: Yes, it does. That first question I just suggested did this letter from Mueller telling the Attorney General that he was unhappy with the characterization of his work lead to him agreeing or testify or to release the content. 

Sen. Coons on Russian election interference: There are two other things that I hope to get to, as you know John, there are lots of members of Judiciary and so it’s tough to predict what exactly I’ll get the chance to question but first it’s blindingly clear from Robert Mueller’s report that Russia directly interfered in our 2016 Presidential election. That’s been the conclusion of our intelligence committee for a long time but in great detail, Robert Mueller lays out the many ways in which Russia interfered in our election. What is the President doing to protect our country for the next election from foreign interference? There are things from folks at Homeland Security or NSA or FBI are doing but I don’t believe President Trump has ever directly said this is a threat, we need to confront it, and we need to invest in securing our next election.

Sen. Coons on obstruction of justice: Second, if part of what Robert Mueller report was supposed to do was clarify whether there was wrong doing or misdeeds, there’s ten different instances detailed in Mueller’s report of actions that amount to an attempt by the President to obstruct justice. One that really stood out to me was two instances; when he directed White House Counsel Don McGahn to fire the Special Counsel. The only reason that didn’t happen is that Don McGahn refused to carry out that order. To me, the many, many months that I was trying to get a bill passed to protect the Special Counsel and many Republicans said there’s no need to worry about that, Trump would never do something like that. This is clear hard evidence that Trump tried to do exactly that and the only reason we’re not sitting here talking about an obstruction prosecution is that Trump’s own deputies, his White House Counsel in this case, didn’t carry out his directive. That’s stunning and John that deserves some discussion today. 

Sen. Coons on Barr’s and Mueller’s relationship: Well, they had a long professional relationship. I think he trusted the Attorney General to represent the work of the Special Counsel faithfully. I’ll choose to be thankful for the hard work of the Special Counsel and his team and for the evidence that’s in front of us today in the report that we have even with the redactions that we have. 

Sen. Coons on Barr’s role: Absolutely, that is the conclusion I was heading for John. I am now convinced that the Attorney General is conceiving of himself as the President’s lawyer, not the people’s lawyer. As someone who really was trying out for the role of President’s attorney by sending in an unsolicited 19-page memo attacking Robert Mueller’s theory of obstruction and then his conduct since becoming Attorney General, suggest that he thinks his central role here is to defend the President and to make the best case he can on the evidence given to him by Mueller that the President was cleared even though there was voluminous evidence that misdeeds, inappropriate actions did in fact happen at the White House.  

Sen. Coons on Venezuela: That’s as much as I know about it. Russia and Cuba have played a fairly heavy hand here in supporting the Maduro regime and the regional pressure that has been assembled in no smart due to Secretary Pompeo, I think is an important piece of this. There is strong bipartisan support for what the administration is doing and for the demonstrations and protests of the Venezuelan people as they seek to restore legitimate constitutional government in their country. My hope is that this will come to an end soon. But this is just one of many countries where we see Vladimir Putin interfering to prevent legitimate constitutional elections.

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Sens. Coons, Wicker reintroduce Maritime SAFE Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) today reintroduced the Maritime Security and Fisheries Enforcement (Maritime SAFE) Act that would promote a whole-of-government strategy to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. IUU fishing threatens the national security of the United States and food security around the world. Actors involved in IUU fishing have been known to conduct other illicit activities such as weapons, drugs, and human trafficking.

“The Maritime SAFE Act would give federal agencies greater tools to protect maritime security, lawful fishing, and the global seafood supply chain” Wicker said. “We cannot let illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing jeopardize the livelihoods of America’s honest fishermen or fund other criminal activities.”

“IUU fishing is an issue that not only poses a serious threat to our own national security, but also contributes to instability in regions important to United States interests,” said Senator Coons. “This legislation allows the United States to combat a multi-billion dollar criminal industry that undercuts the economic livelihoods of legitimate fishermen and threatens food security for communities around the world. By establishing an interagency working group and allowing federal agencies to improve law enforcement, develop a system for sharing information, and coordinate regional, national, and local action in countries affected by IUU fishing, this bill provides the United States with the requisite tools to address this important issue.”

The bipartisan Maritime SAFE Act establishes an interagency working group to provide federal agencies with a coordinated framework to effectively combat IUU fishing and authorizes a range of agency activities, including building capacity for law enforcement and port security, improving transparency and traceability in the seafood supply chain, promoting the use of technology to combat IUU fishing, and encouraging better information sharing among agencies and other organizations.

Sen. Coons co-sponsors permanent bulletproof vest partnership reauthorization

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) is proud to co-sponsor a bill that would permanently reauthorize the Bulletproof Vest Partnership with an increase of $5 million to raise the investment to $30 million nationally. As the founder and member of the Senate Law Enforcement Caucus, Senator Coons has continually championed this program that benefits local law enforcement agencies in Delaware and around the county.

“The Bulletproof Vest Partnership is a critical program that highlights the importance of the Federal government benefitting local governments,” said Sen. Coons. “I’ve met with officers whose lives have literally been saved by the vests purchased by the program, and I could not be more proud to continue to advance federal investment for this program.”

Over a million vest have been purchased with this help of this program, and according to the Government Accountability Office, bulletproof vests have saved the lives of more than 3,000 law enforcement officers since 1987. The Bulletproof Vest Partnership has helped provide resources to law enforcement officers in over 13,000 jurisdictions for the purchase of lifesaving vests that their departments may not be able to afford otherwise.  In recent years, demand for bulletproof vests has been outpacing funding for the program.  With state and local law enforcement already struggling under significant budget constraints, it is imperative that Congress continue to invest in this lifesaving program.

Thousands of vests have been purchased by Delaware law enforcement through the partnership over its 20-year history, including over 2,000 in the last five years.  On February 11, 2013, bulletproof vests purchased through the federal Bulletproof Vest Partnership saved the lives of two Capitol Police officers during a shooting at the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington.  Both officers were struck, but survived because of their vests.