Senator Coons chairs Foreign Relations nominations hearing

Today, Senator Coons chaired a confirmation hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hear from the President’s nominees to serve as ambassador to Rwanda, Djibouti, Malawi, Senegal and Guinea-Bissau, as well as USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health. 

This hearing was timely, coming just a day after Chris returned from an official visit along with Georgia Senator Johnny Isakson to the West African states of Nigeria, Benin and Ghana. There he met with American personnel, local leaders, and human rights workers to observe their work firsthand and discuss a range of regional issues.  The visit focused on issues related to our engagement with Africa and the implementation of critical food security, global health, and economic development programs, as well as U.S. policies aimed at improving democratic governance and the growth of markets for American products. Chris was selected earlier this year to chair the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs, and Senator Isakson serves as the Subcommittee’s ranking Republican.  

The nominees who appeared before the Committee today were Donald W. Koran to be ambassador to Rwanda, Geeta Pasi to be ambassador to Djibouti, Jeanine Jackson to be ambassador to Malawi, Lewis A. Lukens to be ambassador to Senegal and concurrently Guinea-Bissau, and Dr. Pablos-Mendez to be the Assistant Administrator for Global Health at USAID.

At the hearing, the nominees answered questions on a range of issues from LGBT rights to the drug trade’s effect on government corruption. The senators were keen to press the nominees on how to increase efficiency in their missions in light of our rising debt and efforts to reduce federal spending.

To watch a full video of the proceedings, go to click here.

The Senator’s week ahead schedule: June 6 to June 12

Monday, June 6 at 2:00 p.m. – The Senator will preside over the Senate. Washington, DC – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate gallery.

Tuesday, June 7 at 10:00 a.m. — The Senator will chair the Senate Foreign Relations Committee nomination hearing. The nominees at Tuesday’s hearing include Geeta Pasi, of New York, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Djibouti; Donald Koran, of California, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Rwanda; Lewis Lukens, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Republics of Senegal and to serve concurrently as Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea-Bissau; Ariel Pablos-Mendez, of New York, to be Assistant Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development; The Honorable Jeanine E. Jackson,  to be Ambassador to the Republic of Malawi. 419 Senate Dirksen Office Building, Washington, DC – Open to press.

Tuesday, June 7 at 4:30 p.m. — The Senator will speak at the 10^th Annual Delaware Service Academy Reception. The reception will honor the young men and women from Delaware who have received a Congressional nomination and who have accepted their appointment to a United States Service Academy. 210 Senate Visitors Center, Washington, DC – Open to press.

Wednesday, June 8 at 9:30 a.m. — The Senator will attend the Senate Foreign Relations Committee nomination hearing of the Honorable Ryan C. Crocker to be Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC – Open to press.

Thursday, June 9 at 9:30 a.m. — The Senator will attend the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee hearing on federal and private sector energy efficiency programs and alternative fuel vehicles. 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC – Open to press. 

Thursday, June 9 at 10:30 a.m. — The Senator will attend the Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting. 226 Senate Dirksen Office Building, Washington, DC – Open to press.

Friday, June 10 at 9:30 a.m. – The Senator will preside over the Senate, if in session. Washington, DC – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate gallery.

Saturday, June 11 at 7:45 a.m. – The Senator will attend the kickoff for Habitat for Humanity’s Bike to Build.  Tubman-Garrett Riverfront Park, Wilmington, DE – Open to press.

Saturday, June 11 at 11:00 a.m. – The Senator will attend the State of Delaware’s Separation Day Parade. Historic New Castle, DE – Open to press.

Sunday, June 12 at 5:00 p.m. – The Senator will volunteer at the St. Anthony’s Italian Festival.  St. Anthony’s Church, 9^th and DuPont Street, Wilmington, DE – Open to press.

Celebrating Delaware Adolescent Program graduates

WILMINGTON — Senator Coons was the keynote speaker at the Delaware Adolescent Program, Inc. (DAPI) graduation ceremony on May 27th. He addressed the eight graduates, all of them new mothers who have earned high school diplomas.

Chris offered words of encouragement for each of the graduates, and pointed out that they are on a journey not only for themselves but for their babies as well. Chris encouraged them to accept support from others, “Let other people in to help you. Let them take that walk with you.”

Statistics show that DAPI students are more likely to graduate, more likely to have better parenting skills, and more likely to have stronger life and financial skills. In recent years, DAPI has graduated 100 percent of its seniors.

Learning about alternative energy in an outdoor classroom

ODESSA — Senator Coons spoke at the opening of the Appoquinimink School District Outdoor Classroom on Friday, May 20th. Chris joined Governor Markell, Appoquinimink School District Superintendent Tony Marchio, and students for the dedication of Delaware’s first renewable energy classroom. 

The outdoor classroom is designed to teach students in grades K-12 about alternative energy sources. It is equipped with solar roof panels, a photo voltaic solar tree, a windmill and radiant floor heating.  Hands-on lessons taught in the outdoor classroom will enable students to gain a further understanding of energy conservation, the economic and environmental effects of energy use, and renewable energy technologies. 

Chris noted how important it is to teach our children about alternative energy in a way that goes beyond the textbook. “Your generation is inheriting complicated environmental challenges,” Chris said to the students there. “You are fortunate to have access to a place like this outdoor classroom where you can learn to not only be good stewards of the environment but also gain first-hand, in depth knowledge of emerging jobs in these cutting-edge technologies.”

Dover job fair draws more than 1,100

DOVER — Senator Coons teamed up with Senator Tom Carper and U.S. Representative John Carney to host a job fair in Kent County at Delaware Technical and Community College. More than 1,100 jobseekers connected with 80 employers from across Delaware.

For Chris, it’s all about creating jobs.  “I look forward to hearing from folks who made connections at the job fair, turned them into interviews and, ultimately, job offers.  With 35,000 Delawareans still looking for work, we still have a lot more to do.  Jobs remain my top priority.”

The delegation was joined at the job fair by Governor Jack Markell and Dover Mayor Carleton Carey, Sr.

Chris hosted a similar job fair in Wilmington in April.  Working together, the Congressional delegation will hold another fair in Georgetown later this year.

Senator Coons dedicates garden for families of the fallen

DOVER — Senator Coons was at Dover Air Force Base Tuesday to help dedicate the Memorial Garden for the Fallen, a carefully groomed outdoor space adjacent to the building where fallen service members’ families await their loved ones’ arrival back on American soil.

“May this be ever like that prophetic garden, to bring strength and comfort to those who come here in their darkest hour,” Senator Coons said in a ceremony dedicating the garden. “May it be a place where they can feel the strength of our support and the peace of healing.”

The garden itself was planned and tended by the Delaware Federation of Garden Clubs, which raised funds for the project on its own.

Read more on WHYY Newsworks and in the Daily Times.

Honoring our fallen heroes

As we pause this Memorial Day to honor service members who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the protection of our freedoms, we remember that every generation of this great country has borne heroes who have answered the call to defend her. Too many have given their lives in the process.

Annie and I pray every night for the hundreds of Delawareans currently still serving in harm’s way.

As we reflect on those who have sacrificed so much, today I will participate in the Wilmington Memorial Day Parade and the Delaware Commission of Veterans Affairs Memorial Day Service at Memorial Bridge Plaza in New Castle.

Both of these events are open to the public. The Memorial Day Bridge event starts at 10:30 am and the parade kickoff is at 6:00 pm at Woodlawn & Delaware Avenue.

Senator Coons offers support for DoE Office of Science

Senator Coons today joined several of his colleagues in signing onto a letter to the Senate Energy and Water (E&W) Appropriations Committee in support of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science.

“The DOE Office of Science has been integral to the development of several innovative technologies,” Senator Coons said, “including MRI machines and PET scans, leading supercomputing research, new composite materials for military hardware and motor vehicles, medical and industrial isotopes, drop-in biofuel technologies, DNA sequencing technologies, more aerodynamic and fuel efficient long-haul trucks, electric vehicle battery technology, an artificial retina, newer and safer nuclear reactor designs, 3-D models of pathogens for vaccine development, tools to manufacture nanomaterials, and better sensors and detectors for biological, chemical, and radioactive materials.”

The DOE Office of Science also supports a first-rate workforce of research scientists, engineers, and support personnel who work as teams on long-term solutions to some of the nation’s greatest challenges. Moreover, it plays a unique and critical role in the education of the next generation of American scientific talent, including thousands of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers at hundreds of U.S. institutions who depend upon DOE Office of Science support and facilities for their research and training. For Fiscal Year 2010, the Office of Science funded 17 research projects at The University of Delaware totaling nearly $4 million.

Support for the DOE Office of Science is consistent with Chris’ leadership in using the best possible science to solve the nation’s most pressing problems and to boost the U.S. innovation economy to compete in the 21st century.

The Senator’s week ahead schedule: May 30 to June 5

Monday, May 30 at 10:30 a.m. – The Senator will speak at the Memorial Day Bridge Plaza Service. Memorial Bridge Plaza, Delaware Memorial Bridge, New Castle, DE.

Monday, May 30 at 6:00 p.m. — The Senator will attend the Wilmington Memorial Day Parade. Kickoff: Woodlawn & Delaware Avenue, Wilmington, DE.

Tuesday, May 31 at 9:00 a.m. — The Senator will join Senator Carper and Representative Carney in hosting a job fair at Delaware Technical and Community College in Dover. More than 70 employers are scheduled to attend. Del Tech Conference Center, 100 Campus Drive, Dover, DE.

Tuesday, May 31 at 11:00 a.m. — The Senator will speak at the DAFB Memorial Garden for the Fallen Dedication Ceremony. This is event is a dedication ceremony for the new Memorial Garden they have installed at the Center for Families of the Fallen. Dover Air Force Base, Dover, DE.

In his capacity as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Africa, Senator Coons and Ranking Member Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) will visit Nigeria, Benin and Ghana from June 1 to June 5. For security reasons, we are unable to disclose the times and specific locations of the Senators’ travel during his CODEL.

Video: Why Chris voted against the four-year Patriot Act extension

Senator Coons spoke on the floor this afternoon about why he was voting against the four-year renewal of the PATRIOT Act. In the moments before this video clip begins, Chris asked for unanimous consent to extend the law for one month to allow for additional debate without the provisions of PATRIOT lapsing.

He didn’t have enough time to deliver his full remarks, but entered them into the record. You can read them here.