Sen. Coons: “It’s disappointing that the President continues to step back when he really should step forward.”
Sen. Coons on his faith: “Part of what motivates me to keep fighting for the Affordable Care Act, and part of what motivates me to keep fighting for economic opportunity, is a personal belief motivated by my religious faith that those are the folks in our society we are called to tend to.”
WASHINGTON – This morning, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) joined Morning Joe to discuss the recent violence in Charlottesville and his op-ed in The Atlantic that published yesterday.
“Presidents have rare moments where they get to speak not just to our nation, but to the world,” said Senator Coons. “I’ve been struck that President Trump is in the middle of two unfolding crises, and in one he’s been too belligerent and ahead of his team, and in the other, he’s failed to step up and speak in a moral and in a positive way about how we confront the evil that is white nationalism. In confronting North Korea’s expanding and aggressive nuclear program, President Trump has repeatedly over-performed, and in making it clear that all Americans stand united in opposing Neo-Nazism and white supremacy, he’s really failed to step up to the plate.”
Senator Coons on President Trump’s reaction to the violence in Charlottesville: Presidents have rare moments where they get to speak not just to our nation, but to the world. I’ve been struck that President Trump is in the middle of two unfolding crises, and in one he’s been too belligerent and ahead of his team, and in the other, he’s failed to step up and speak in a moral and in a positive way about how we confront the evil that is white nationalism. In confronting North Korea’s expanding and aggressive nuclear program, President Trump has repeatedly over-performed, and in making it clear that all Americans stand united in opposing Neo-Nazism and white supremacy, he’s really failed to step up to the plate. Many other Republicans in the Senate, many other elected leaders, gave sharp, clear denunciations of what happened in Charlottesville. It’s disappointing that the President continues to step back when he really should step forward.
Senator Coons on Republican support for the President: Well I think it gets harder and harder for his colleagues, certainly those I serve with in the Senate, to openly and enthusiastically embrace the President, when on such vital, moral challenges, as whether or not to stand up to Nazism, he doesn’t meet the same level of engagement that they do. I’ll remind you that Orrin Hatch, the most senior Republican senator, gave one of the clearest statements denouncing Nazism when he said that his older brother didn’t die fighting Nazism in Europe simply to have that ideology tolerated here at home. I do think this is going to make it harder with his own party and the Congress going forward.
Senator Coons on how faith guides his political practices: Well, one of the things that I bring to legislating is a sense of humility, a sense of humility that is at the core of my faith, and a sense of commitment to caring for those on the margins of our society, those who are either in need of economic help, those who are in need of medical help… Part of what motivates me to keep fighting for the Affordable Care Act, and part of what motivates me to keep fighting for economic opportunity, is a personal belief motivated by my religious faith that those are the folks in our society we are called to tend to.
WILMINGTON, Del. – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) published an op-ed in The Atlantic entitled, “Progressive Values Can’t Be Just Secular Values.” In the op-ed, Senator Coons emphasizes the need for progressives to open their hearts and minds to their allies in the faith community and look for areas of common ground on which they can work together to advance their shared goals.
For a generation, the Democratic Party of which I’m a member has steadily moved away from communities of faith. Today, according to a recent Pew study, more than one-third of Democrats—including 44 percent of self-described liberal Democrats—think churches and religious organizations actually have a “negative impact” on the United States.
But the beliefs of those liberal Democrats don’t reflect the views of most American voters. The fact of the matter is this: The vast majority of Americans—including the majority of Democrats—are people of faith. According to a recent Pew study, for example, nearly 80 percent of Americans identify with a religious faith. Two-thirds of them pray every day.
That’s why if progressives are to achieve our goals, we have to open our hearts and minds to our allies in the faith community. Doing so won’t just advance our shared policy goals—it might also help heal a nation deeply divided along political lines.
Like many Americans, I’m a progressive Democrat and a Christian. That’s why I know that progressive values aren’t just secular values. We can get to some of our most important public-policy priorities through both secular and scriptural routes.
WILMINGTON, Del. – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s recent comments regarding the expulsion of U.S. diplomats from Russia.
“In my visits to U.S. embassies overseas, I’ve been consistently impressed with the professionalism and dedication of our nonpartisan career foreign service officers. Our diplomats’ presence around the world promotes American values, ensures security, and helps deter the proliferation of nuclear weapons—efforts that are vital in our world right now. President Trump’s comments thanking Russian President Vladimir Putin for expelling U.S. diplomats, whether sarcastic or not, are uncalled for and do not support our foreign service professionals. I look forward to the day that our president begins to carefully calibrate his statements and actions in world affairs.”
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Judiciary Committees, joined Hugh Hewitt this morning to discuss the prospect of bipartisanship in the Senate.
“But I think we’ll be successful in tackling issues from tax reform to health care to infrastructure if we approach it in a more bipartisan way. I’ll take Lindsey Graham’s comments. I don’t have hatred for President Donald Trump. I pray for our president,” said Senator Coons. “I do oppose him on a number of issues, but I think that’s, you know, that’s part of the political process. I do think that the very direct threat to the American homeland that Kim Jong-un poses is exactly the sort of thing that requires us to put aside our temporary partisan political differences and try to find a strategy and an approach together that can reassure the American people, that can keep us safe, and that can strengthen our leadership regionally.”
“You know, the thing I hear most often from Delawareans is why can’t you all work together. That’s why I keep introducing bipartisan bills,” said Senator Coons. “I’ve got a bill to advance American manufacturing with Senator Roberts of Kansas, a former Marine, 30-year veteran of the United States Senate, and a very conservative senator. I find ways to work across the aisle on issues that matter.”
Senator Coons on the prospect of bipartisanship on infrastructure and North Korea: I agree with the president that if we’re going to have a strong infrastructure bill, it’s going to have to be bipartisan. There are some concerns about exactly how we might finance infrastructure, what its scope might be, how much we prioritize buy American, how central it is that we actually build things rather than finance things. But I think we’ll be successful in tackling issues from tax reform to health care to infrastructure if we approach it in a more bipartisan way. I’ll take Lindsey Graham’s comments. I don’t have hatred for President Donald Trump. I pray for our president. I do oppose him on a number of issues, but I think that’s, you know, that’s part of the political process. I do think that the very direct threat to the American homeland that Kim Jong-un poses is exactly the sort of thing that requires us to put aside our temporary partisan political differences and try to find a strategy and an approach together that can reassure the American people, that can keep us safe, and that can strengthen our leadership regionally.
Senator Coons on appropriations: Well, Hugh, you know you’re playing to my sympathies, because as a former county executive, I often felt that the local level of government was the most likely to get it right when it came to land use decisions, to housing, to infrastructure, and I think we might find a common way forward for infrastructure by looking at bloc grants to local government. Of course, in some areas, you have to coordinate regionally. I happen to be from Delaware, a very small state. I can be in three other states in 15 minutes. And for us to have local infrastructure projects where you don’t coordinate or plan with the county next door or the state next door, you can end up with some inefficiencies. But that’s different from compelling that planning. Encouraging it, incentivizing it, making sure that your local governments are talking to the next county over, and they don’t just go on a vanity project that serves the interest of that local leader or community is a way that we can end up with a more efficient network of infrastructure investments. I’m also a big fan of matching when the local government has some skin in the game. When the private sector has some skin in the game, you’re much more likely to end up with an infrastructure project that both puts people to work and strengthens our competitiveness regionally and nationally.
Senator Coons on the prospect of bipartisan immigration reform: I actually had a two hour lunch with President Trump several months ago with a bipartisan group of senators, and this ended up being the main topic of that conversation – whether or not we could come to a common agreement. A comprehensive immigration reform bill that I co-sponsored and supported had billions of dollars for border security in it. And I don’t oppose the idea of strengthening our border security and closing the border. I don’t think that physically building a 2,000 concrete barrier is the most efficient way to do it, or even the wise way to do it. But I do think we can come to an agreement that having an open border, having a border that isn’t fully secure, is not in our national security interest. But the place we’re most likely to have real tension is the difference between DACA and a family reunion-oriented immigration policy, and what Senator Cotton has proposed, which would dramatically cut the number of people allowed into our country through legal immigration, and shift it towards high skill. In past Congresses, I have co-sponsored with Orrin Hatch a high-skilled immigration bill, because as someone who worked in manufacturing at an advanced manufacturing company, I see the significant need in our private sector for folks with STEM degrees, for folks with advanced skills. I first want to make sure we’re investing in American education so that we strengthen STEM skills and the number of Americans who are pursuing degrees that make it possible for our cutting edge private sector companies to continue to be strong. But I think we need to balance between family reunification and skilled immigration. The way to do that isn’t to cut in in half, but to find a middle ground that actually meets the needs of American families of the private sector and some humanitarian accommodation of the young people who were brought here when they were too young to know that they were being brought here in a way that violated our laws.
More on immigration: You know, the thing I hear most often from Delawareans is why can’t you all work together. That’s why I keep introducing bipartisan bills. I’ve got a bill to advance American manufacturing with Senator Roberts of Kansas, a former Marine, 30-year veteran of the United States Senate, and a very conservative senator. I find ways to work across the aisle on issues that matter. This is one that I think just cries out for us to find a middle path that can be supported by the vast majority of Americans.
Senator Coons on blue slips: Well, blue slips are not in the Constitution, but like the filibuster, they are an important part of the traditions of the Senate that empower senators to represent their state and their state’s interests. I’m looking forward to meeting the president’s nominee for the 3rd Circuit. I may return a blue slip on him, but you know, I’m not going to say that I would welcome the end of an important tradition that allows the senators a key voice in the determination about who’s going to sit on district courts and circuit courts. That’s something we’re going to have to agree to disagree on.
Sen. Coons: “It’s important for President Trump to tweet less and coordinate closely with our regional allies, South Korea and Japan, and to carefully calibrate statements, threats, and actions.”
Sen. Coons: “That’s a very high threat level, indeed, and I think this is exactly the sort of thing that calls for measured, careful but decisive American leadership in the region.”
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary and Foreign Relations Committees, joined Wolf Blitzer on CNN to discuss recent breaking news regarding North Korea and the Special Counsel Integrity Act, which he introduced last week with Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.).
“I was reminded that, as a candidate, President Trump promised that he would be unpredictable and unconventional. And, his first seven months in office have certainly demonstrated that he has kept to that promise. I think this is a very dangerous moment. It’s important for our president not to be unpredictable,” said Senator Coons. “It’s important for President Trump to tweet less and coordinate closely with our regional allies, South Korea and Japan, and to carefully calibrate statements, threats, and actions. It’s clear that the response from North Korea could impose punishing losses on South Korean civilians, potentially on American troops in the Korean peninsula. So I think we need to proceed very carefully.”
“At the same time that we prepare for a possible military confrontation with North Korea, it’s my hope that we’re continuing an all-hands-on-deck diplomatic front in order to push China to take a more decisive role here in pressing the North Korean regime to take down its rhetoric and to step back from further confrontation with South Korea, Japan and the United States,” said Senator Coons.“I think we should engage in direct talks as long as the possibility of their relinquishing their nuclear weapons ambitions is on the table for negotiation.”
Senator Coons on President Trump’s comments regarding North Korea: Well, I was reminded that, as a candidate, President Trump promised that he would be unpredictable and unconventional. And, his first seven months in office have certainly demonstrated that he has kept to that promise. I think this is a very dangerous moment. It’s important for our president not to be unpredictable. It’s important for President Trump to tweet less and coordinate closely with our regional allies, South Korea and Japan, and to carefully calibrate statements, threats, and actions. It’s clear that the response from North Korea could impose punishing losses on South Korean civilians, potentially on American troops in the Korean peninsula. So I think we need to proceed very carefully. I’ll congratulate the Trump administration on having secured a 15-0 vote in the United Nations Security Council last weekend and moving forward with tough sanctions on North Korea, but I think this is a time for us to redouble our diplomatic efforts with China and to make sure that we are coordinating closely with our regional allies to avoid a miscalculation.
More on President Trump’s comments: As you just discussed in this segment, North Korea is known for having an isolated leadership. Kim Jong-un is 35 years old, we think, we don’t even know his exact birthday. He’s only been in control of the country since 2011. He’s given to very bellicose, aggressive rhetoric. He’s now, according to some intelligence reports, managed to marry their recent nuclear developments and ICBM developments with potentially an ICBM capable of delivering a nuclear weapon to the American homeland. This is a very destabilizing development. I think we need to proceed carefully, and President Trump needs to deliver a clear strategy to the American people, and certainly to his partners in Congress, so that we can move forward in a way that is measured, thoughtful, and doesn’t lead to an unexpected conflict with North Korea.
More on North Korea: I can only repeat to you open-source reporting, which, as you’ve already covered, is somewhere between 2-dozen and 50 or 60. In any event, they certainly have dozens of nuclear warheads and they’ve detonated several in recent years, so, I don’t think we can question whether or not North Korea has nuclear weapons. The question is can they accurately deliver them and this makes them an increasingly destabilized Korean peninsula and region. The likelihood they could strike the American homeland makes this an extremely dangerous situation and one where I hope the president will proceed cautiously.
Senator Coons on whether there is a good military option on the table: There is no good military option. Because North Korea has thousands, I think roughly 8,000 artillery and rocket pieces that are embedded deeply in the hillside north of Seoul, they could exact a punishing revenge on South Korea almost immediately after a first strike by the United States. So there is no good or easy option here. A conflict with North Korea would not be quick, would not be painless, but we do have to measure the very real possibility that North Korea’s dictator might directly threaten America’s homeland and our civilian population. That’s a very high threat level, indeed, and I think this is exactly the sort of thing that calls for measured, careful but decisive American leadership in the region.
Senator Coons on whether he believes North Korea will retaliate: I believe that Kim Jong-un is someone who believes his back is to the wall, who has been raised in a country that has believed for decades that the United States would like to affect a regime change, so I think this paranoid, militaristic, and capable young leader is someone whose threats we should take very seriously.
More on North Korea: I’m not sure exactly how Secretary Tillerson is proceeding on his diplomatic strategy with North Korea. My hope would be we later learn there were side meetings and that there are side channels being explored. At the same time that we prepare for a possible military confrontation with North Korea, it’s my hope that we’re continuing an all-hands-on-deck diplomatic front in order to push China to take a more decisive role here in pressing the North Korean regime to take down its rhetoric and to step back from further confrontation with South Korea, Japan and the United States. I think we should engage in direct talks as long as the possibility of their relinquishing their nuclear weapons ambitions is on the table for negotiation.
More on North Korea: Well, I think they misperceive America’s aggressive stance towards them. We’ve previously made statements that regime change is not our goal. Secretary Tillerson has recently made statements that we don’t intend to invade North Korea, we don’t intend to seek regime change in North Korea. So I do think there are things we can discuss. But I also think we need to be prepared for the worst. We need to recognize that North Korea is an isolated, heavily militarized nation that is paranoid and that sees threats all around it. Even China- who is amping up its pressure against North Korea by joining with the United States and Russia in a UN Security Council- imposed sanctions regime- has not persuaded them to back off. So this is a very difficult and treacherous situation.
Senator Coons on President Trump’s comments about the Russia investigation: That seems an odd choice. I really think that the best course of action for the President is to stay away from the Russia investigation and Special Counsel Mueller all together. Allow him to conduct his investigation and to reach whatever conclusion the evidence justifies. As you know, I introduced a bipartisan bill with Republican Senator Thom Tillis just before we went out for Augustin order to buttress Special Counsel Mueller and to make sure that a strong bipartisan signal was sent to protect him from any sort of interference from the Executive.
Senator Coons on Special Counsel Mueller and his bill: We don’t have a commitment yet from the Committee Chairman. Senator Tillis has reached out to Chairman Grassley, I’ve heard from Ranking Member Feinstein, she’s willing to go ahead and support the bill, and I’m waiting to hear from Senator Tillis about how their conversation went. There is another bill that Senators Graham and Booker also introduced right before we left that similarly protects the Special Counsel, and I think that suggests a widening number of senators interested in this topic and willing to legislate to protect Special Council Bob Mueller from any interference.
More on the bill: I do intend to reach out to the Chairman as well. And given the way that Chairman Grassley has conducted himself in leading the Judiciary Committee in pursuing obstruction of justice and pursuing some of the leads around failure to report for former senior administration officials, I think he is interested in acting to defend this investigation. The judiciary committee has jurisdiction over the Department of Justice, and the Chairman has acted actively to make sure that the jurisdiction of the Committee is protected, and I would expect him to ultimately come to a point of being supported.
“Credible, free, and fair elections are the cornerstone of a democratic society. As members of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s Africa and Global Health Policy subcommittee, we congratulate the people of Kenya for holding county, parliamentary, and presidential elections yesterday. In the coming days, we urge all parties to respect the will of the Kenyan people and to remain calm as votes are counted.
“Today, Kenya stands at an important crossroads. It will either be a beacon of democracy, economic vitality, and political stability, or it will falter to violence that could destabilize the country and its neighbors. We urge the candidates and all Kenyans to resolve any disputes through the judiciary and promote national unity by avoiding incitement of violence. We also urge a full investigation of any credible irregularities to be completed within the timeframe allowed by the electoral commission.
“We commend the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) for its preparations and for holding elections on time. We were appalled by the horrifying death of IEBC official Christopher Msando days before the election and call for the perpetrators of this crime to be brought to justice.
“Kenya is a critical strategic partner of the United States. We applaud the State Department and U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Robert Godec’s efforts to bring the international community together to provide technical assistance and resources to support the Kenyan election. We are also grateful for the delegation of international election observers who are monitoring the election process, including former Secretary of State John Kerry, Representative Karen Bass, and former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman. Finally, we congratulate USAID for its critical work leading up to the election, and the members of Kenya’s robust civil society who have demonstrated to the world that demands for voter education, transparent electoral systems, and inclusive processes make civil society an indispensable element of vigorous and healthy democracies.”
Sen. Coons: “[Robert Mueller] is also not a shrinking violet; I think he’s fully capable of publicly complaining if he faces interference from President Trump.”
Sen. Coons: “Given some of the experts recently hired by Robert Mueller, who are experts in real estate transactions and transnational money laundering and in foreign bribery, there’s reason to believe that that is exactly what Bob Mueller is looking into.”
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined NPR Morning Edition to discuss his new bill, the Special Counsel Integrity Act. Introduced with Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), the legislation would create a judicial review process to prevent the removal of Special Counsels without good cause. Senator Coons also discussed potential collusion between the 2016 Trump Campaign and the Russian government.
“The bill was introduced by Senator Tillis and myself right before we went on recess to send a strong bipartisan signal that there would be real pushback from the Senate if Robert Mueller was fired,”said Senator Coons. “[Robert Mueller] is also not a shrinking violet; I think he’s fully capable of publicly complaining if he faces interference from President Trump.”
“That would be the link… that close relationships developed between President Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and other folks who were leaders in his business organization… allowed the close working relationship, the transfer of information that’s alleged to be at the heart of some collusion, between the Trump campaign and Russian intelligence,” said Senator Coons.
Senator Coons on his bill with Senator Tillis to protect the Special Counsel: Well my bill with Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina puts in place a remedy if the Special Counsel is abruptly fired without cause. The Special Counsel can go to a federal district court and get a three judge panel of federal judges to review whether or not his firing, within the different restrictions that we put in the statute- there’s a fourteen day period from when he files to when the decision should be rendered- and most importantly, if the three judge panel determines he was inappropriately fired, they can direct his reinstitution.
Senator Coons on why this bill was introduced: President Trump engaged in a series of harassing tweets against his Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, and it was widely believed he was on the verge of firing Jeff Sessions a few weeks ago. I think it is exactly that sort of language from Kellyanne Conway and others in the Administration suggesting that this is “an unwarranted witch hunt;” the particular point is that the President and some of his representatives said that it would be a “red line” if Robert Mueller began looking into his family finances and Trump’s real estate holdings. There’s reason to believe that now that a grand jury has been impaneled and given some of the experts recently hired by Robert Mueller, who are experts in real estate transactions and transnational money laundering and in foreign bribery, there’s reason to believe that that is exactly what Bob Mueller is looking into.
Senator Coons on a potential link between the Trump campaign and Russia: Well there’s been public reporting on the idea that significant amounts of Russian money went into real estate deals after Donald Trump went bankrupt, lost several of his major properties a few decades ago, he had real difficulty getting financing for some of his major developments, and part of how he was able to resurrect his businesses, allegedly, was through significant amounts of illegal laundered money. That’s just allegation at this point. There’s been some reporting on that, but that would be the link, the suggestion that somehow, close relationships developed between President Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and other folks who were leaders in his business organization, and that those relationships then allowed the close working relationship, the transfer of information that’s alleged to be at the heart of some collusion, between the Trump campaign and Russian intelligence, and a recognized Russian campaign to interfere in our 2016 Presidential election.
Senator Coons on the substance and politics of his bill: Well the bill was introduced by Senator Tillis and myself right before we went on recess to send a strong bipartisan signal that there would be real pushback from the Senate if Robert Mueller was fired. He’s also not a shrinking violet; I think he’s fully capable of publicly complaining if he faces interference from President Trump.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined CNN New Day this morning to discuss the Special Counsel Integrity Act, bipartisan legislation that supports the integrity of independent investigations by allowing judicial review if a special counsel is removed. Senator Coons and Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) introduced this bill last week.
“Look, frankly, the president has this situation. If he’s concerned about this situation, the only person he has to blame is himself. His repeated threats on Twitter against Attorney General Sessions, his repeated expressions that this Russia investigation is a fabrication, have clearly run into opposition from both Republicans and Democrats in the Senate,” said Senator Coons.“It is in everyone’s best interest—the president’s and the country’s—that Bob Mueller be allowed to continue this investigation to its logical conclusion. If there’s nothing there, then that conclusion will be broadly accepted by Republicans and Democrats. If there is something there, then it’s in the best interest of the country for it to come to light.”
Senator Coons on the Special Counsel Integrity Act: Well, right now, the reasons why the president, through the attorney general, can’t just randomly fired the special counsel, if he has a bad day or gets in a bad mood, is embedded in some regulations in the Department of Justice. What we’re doing is taking those standards and putting them into law. So that it’s clear that we, as a co-equal branch in the Senate, support checks and balances and the rule of law. Look, frankly, the president has this situation. If he’s concerned about this situation, the only person he has to blame is himself. His repeated threats on Twitter against Attorney General Sessions, his repeated expressions that this Russia investigation is a fabrication, have clearly run into opposition from both Republicans and Democrats in the Senate. It is in everyone’s best interest—the president’s and the country’s—that Bob Mueller be allowed to continue this investigation to its logical conclusion. If there’s nothing there, then that conclusion will be broadly accepted by Republicans and Democrats. If there is something there, then it’s in the best interest of the country for it to come to light. And I think this modest step by Senator Tillis and myself, that’s mirrored by another bill, that Senators Graham and Booker also introduced, is one way of asserting ourselves as the Senate just as we did with the Russia sanctions bill.
Senator Coons on the bill compared to what already exists in DOJ regulations: We’re going further on providing a specific remedy. If the special counsel is fired, he would, within two weeks, can go to a three-judge panel. That panel looks at why he was fired. And if they decide it was an inappropriate firing, they can direct his reinstatement. There isn’t currently a clear remedy, and it’s not is a swift remedy. But this bill would introduce a clear and swift remedy, which is intended to be a deterrent against this president and future presidents, from an inappropriate firing of a special counsel. This is also a part of just strengthening the Department of Justice and its independence.
Senator Coons on why this would be constitutional: There are ways that the Congress can legislate, that limits executive power. And I do think that in this particular case, what we’re doing is simply putting in statute a process that allows a judicial review of whether or not a firing was inappropriate. There are already standards in executive branch regulations for when a firing is or isn’t appropriate. This is simply clarifying what the remedy would be.
More on the bill: If the president respects the rule of law and the process, he would direct the deputy attorney general, since the attorney general, Jeff Sessions, is recused from this matter. He would direct him to fire the special counsel. Now, the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, has already said publicly, he would not fire Robert Mueller for anything short of cause. So there was concern among some of us in the Senate that he might fire either the attorney general given the tweets that he was issuing a few weeks ago, threatening Jeff Sessions’ job or that he might move against Rod Rosenstein. What he can actually do is indirect, under the regulations of the Department of Justice. But the president, because he is the president, has the power to fire people at the Department of Justice, until he finds someone who is willing to override those regulations, and willing to override the traditional independence of the Department of Justice. That’s roughly what happened with the so-called Saturday Night Massacre, back in 1973, when President Nixon fired a series of senior Department of Justice officials, until he found someone willing to do his bidding.
WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) published an op-ed in Science entitled, “Scientists can’t be silent.” In the op-ed, Senator Coons highlights the importance of science and the role that scientists must play in making the case for science in addressing our national and international policy challenges.
In an era of rapid technological change and an increasingly global economy, investments in research and development are crucial for spurring economic growth and sustaining competitiveness. Yet, across the U.S. federal government, scientists are playing a decreasing role in the policymaking that supports this investment, often being pushed out by a political agenda that is stridently antiscience. Meanwhile, Americans are becoming more distrustful of democratic institutions, the scientific method, and basic facts—three core beliefs on which the research enterprise depends. The United States remains the unquestioned global leader in science and innovation, but given a White House that disregards the value of science and an American public that questions the very concept of scientific consensus, sustaining the U.S. commitment to science won’t happen without a fight.
Many Americans take for granted the ways in which the United States supports its scientists, but that hasn’t always been the case. Before 1940, the United States had only 13 Nobel laureates in science. Since World War II, however, the country has won over 180 scientific Nobel Prizes, far more than any other nation. That’s not a direct proxy for achievement, but it reflects a fundamental change in the way Americans understand the value of research. This transformation didn’t happen by accident. Immigration laws have allowed aspiring scientists from around the world to study and innovate in the United States. Long-term, sustained investments in research and development have been supported by a network of universities, national laboratories, and federal research institutions such as the National Institutes of Health. Strong intellectual property laws have evolved to protect groundbreaking ideas. These efforts haven’t just won Nobel Prizes. Federal investments in diverse scientific and human capital have unleashed economic growth, created tens of millions of jobs, and returned taxpayer money invested many times over.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced the Reach Every Mother and Child Act to strengthen U.S. government efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, newborns, and young children in developing nations around the world.
Every day, approximately 800 women, almost entirely from developing countries, die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, and the risk of a woman dying in childbirth is 47 times higher in Africa than in the United States. In addition, more than 16,000 children under five years old will die each day of treatable conditions.
“For too many women and families, pregnancy and childbirth are risky, life-threatening conditions that are filled with stress rather than joy and expectation,”said Senator Coons.“The Reach Act directs USAID to deliver a comprehensive strategy that prioritizes cost-effective, proven interventions to prevent these tragic deaths. This bipartisan bill will bring relief to mothers who can safely carry, deliver, and raise their newborns knowing that the care they need is now available.”
“Although progress has been made in improving the health of mothers and children, it is a tragedy that so many preventable deaths still occur,”said Senator Collins.“By supporting simple, proven, and cost-effective interventions, our bipartisan legislation will improve the health and well-being of mothers and children in developing countries and bring us closer to achieving the goal of ending preventable maternal and child deaths worldwide.”
The United States has been a global leader in reaching mothers and children in developing countries with life-saving interventions, including skill birth attendants, basic resuscitation options for newborns, vaccinations, and other cost-effective, evidence-based interventions.
The Reach Act has been endorsed by CARE International, PATH, RESULTS, Save the Children Action Network, and WorldVision. The bill would provide the focus and tools necessary to accelerate progress toward ending preventable maternal and child deaths by:
·Establishing the goal of ending preventable maternal, newborn, and child deaths by 2030;
·Requiring the Administration to implement a strategy to achieve this goal by scaling up the most-effective evidence-based interventions;
·Permitting USAID greater flexibility to use “pay-for-success” financing models where foreign aid is only expended for results rather than inputs, and
·Establishing a permanent Maternal and Child Survival Coordinator at USAID who would be focused on implementing the strategy and verify that the most effective interventions are scaled up in target countries.
Senators Collins and Coons’ legislation was cosponsored by Senators Jerry Moran (R-KS), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mike Enzi (R-WY), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Chris Murphy (D-CT).