News Coverage
Boston Globe: Trump promises opioid fight, but Warren and others ask, ‘Where’s the money?’
President Trump made a lofty promise in Tuesday night's State of the Union to "fight the drug epidemic," but Senator Elizabeth Warren wants to know what his administration has actually done to address the issue. The Trump administration declared a public health emergency last year but has yet to officially allocate any new funds to address the opioid crisis, the Massachusetts Democrat said in a letter to the Government Accountability Office. "Given the severity of the crisis, we have grown … Continue Reading
January 29, 2018
Brockton Enterprise: He’s gone from Haiti to Brockton’s council -- now, Trump’s State of the Union
BROCKTON - After coming to the U.S. in the wake of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, learning English, going to college, gaining his citizenship and then making history at age 27 by getting elected to the Brockton City Council last year, Jean Bradley Derenoncourt was heading to President Trump's State of the Union address as the guest of Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., on Tuesday night. "I'm excited about it," said Derenoncourt, reached on Monday morning. "I think it's a wonderful opportunity … Continue Reading
January 25, 2018
The Hill: Warren rips Trump immigration proposal: It's 'insulting'
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) ripped the immigration proposal unveiled by President Trump's White House on Thursday, calling the plan "insulting." "By ending DACA, @realdonaldtrump subjected 800k Dreamers to deportation. Now he wants to hold them hostage to Steven Miller's anti-immigrant wish list. It's insulting," Warren wrote on Twitter. "We already have a bipartisan solution to the Trump-created crisis: it's called the Dream Act. #DreamActNow" Read the full article on The Hill's website … Continue Reading
January 25, 2018
Boston Globe: Led by Warren, lawmakers urge Trump to overrule Sessions on pot
A bipartisan group of 54 members of Congress led by Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and Colorado Representative Jared Polis is demanding that President Trump restore the federal government's previous hands-off approach to marijuana. Trump's attorney general, Jeff Sessions, shook the foundation of the blossoming cannabis industry earlier this month when he rescinded Obama-era policies that had discouraged federal prosecutions of marijuana operations that are legal at the state level. … Continue Reading
January 25, 2018
Huffington Post: Elizabeth Warren Lays Out Plan To Hold Health Insurers Accountable
WASHINGTON - In a speech to a liberal health policy conference on Thursday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) proposed new rules to force private insurers to be more responsive to Americans' health care needs. Warren spoke at the annual gathering of the consumer advocacy group Families USA. She emphasized that she wholeheartedly supports efforts to expand public health insurance programs, including a "single-payer" bill introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) that would expand Medicare to the … Continue Reading
January 18, 2018
CNN: Senate Democrats call for hearings on workplace sexual misconduct
Washington (CNN) - Some Senate Democrats are calling for hearings to evaluate sexual assault and harassment in the workplace, as the #MeToo movement brings the discussion to the national forefront. In a letter sent by Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren and signed by all Democrats on the US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, the lawmakers call for the committee "to play a leadership role in tackling the problem of workplace sexual harassment and assault." ... "As members … Continue Reading
January 18, 2018
The Hill: Warren leads Senate Dem call for sexual harassment hearings
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is leading a call for hearings on sexual misconduct in the workplace in a letter signed by all Democrats on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. "As members of the committee, it is our duty to ensure that workers are protected from sexual assault and harassment in their jobs," the letter said. "The deluge of workers who have come forward to report incidents of workplace sexual harassment and assault in recent months has rightly caused Congress to … Continue Reading
January 18, 2018
Associated Press: Delegation: More mental health help needed for Puerto Rico
BOSTON (AP) - The state's all-Democratic congressional delegation is pressing federal officials on efforts to address mental health challenges in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands following Hurricanes Irma and Maria. In a letter Friday to Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use Elinore McCance-Katz, the 11-member delegation, led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, points out hurricanes and tropical storms can trigger emotional distress. The letter notes Puerto Rico's single suicide … Continue Reading
January 18, 2018
The Intercept: Elizabeth Warren Wants to Know Why a Banned Banker is a Senior Adviser at the EPA
SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN is questioning whether Albert Kelly, a senior adviser at the Environmental Protection Agency, is fit for his job. Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, sent Kelly a letter requesting information from Kelly in light of The Intercept's December investigation that revealed he had been banned from the financial industry. "Given your troubled financial history, as well as your lack of experience in environmental policy and regulation, I am concerned that you served as Chairman of … Continue Reading
January 12, 2018
Springfield Republican: US Sens. Ed Markey, Elizabeth Warren push bill to repeal medical device tax
U.S. Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, announced legislation this week that seeks to end the Affordable Care Act's excise tax on medical devices. The senators, who unveiled their so-called "No Taxation on Device Innovation Act" Thursday, said the measure would eliminate the 2.3 percent excise tax the controversial health care law imposed on devices ranging from surgical tools to pacemakers. The bill, they added, would offset the cost of repealing the tax, which was … Continue Reading
January 12, 2018
Boston Globe: Senator Elizabeth Warren leads Mass. delegation to Puerto Rico
WASHINGTON - Senator Elizabeth Warren is leading most of Massachusetts' congressional delegation on a trip to storm-ravaged Puerto Rico, where the group will tour a children's hospital and shelter Friday. In a joint statement, the lawmakers said Massachusetts is the "proud home" of 300,000 Puerto Ricans, with thousands more journeying to the state after Hurricane Maria hit. "We're going to Puerto Rico to see firsthand the devastation on the island and how we can help our fellow citizens along … Continue Reading
January 12, 2018
Springfield Republican: Elizabeth Warren, Thom Tillis offer bipartisan Senate bill to protect veterans from predatory lending
U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, and Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, announced legislation this week that aims to protect veterans from predatory home loan practices by requiring lenders to show how borrowers would benefit from refinancing their mortgages. The lawmakers said the proposed bill, known as the Protecting Veterans from Predatory Lending Act of 2018, would target lenders abusing the Department of Veteran's Affairs' home loan program through misleading advertisements and … Continue Reading
January 10, 2018
Reuters: U.S. Senate Democrats propose fines for credit reporting agency hacks
WASHINGTON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Two Senate Democrats are proposing large new fines for credit reporting agencies that lose consumers' personal information in data breaches, according to a bill they introduced on Wednesday. ... Senators Mark Warner and Elizabeth Warren's bill is in response to a data breach at Equifax that put the information of 145 million Americans at risk. The bill faces an uphill climb in a Republican-led Congress, but if it became law, would allow the government to fine as … Continue Reading
January 10, 2018
American Banker: Warren, Warner propose 'massive' fines for breaches at credit bureaus
WASHINGTON - Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Mark Warner, D-Va., are set Wednesday to introduce a bill that would create mandatory penalties for data breaches at credit reporting agencies. "Our bill imposes massive and mandatory penalties for data breaches at companies like Equifax - and provides robust compensation for affected consumers - which will put money back into people's pockets and help stop these kinds of breaches from happening again," Warren said in a press release. The Data … Continue Reading
January 09, 2018
Springfield Republican: Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno, others join Elizabeth Warren in speaking out against proposed federal funding cuts
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno joined U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, and other mayors from across the state this week in raising concerns about the impacts proposed federal funding cuts could have on local cities and towns. The Democrat, in a video released by Warren's office, again urged President Donald Trump against ending funding for the the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant program, which helps cities and towns ensure … Continue Reading
January 09, 2018
Reuters: Senator Warren says U.S. needs to 'rethink' money laundering laws
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren said on Tuesday the United States needed to review outdated laws for combating money laundering which are creating an undue compliance burden for small and community banks. During a Congressional hearing on Tuesday, Warren said she supported more stringent company ownership disclosure requirements and changing the threshold for reporting suspicious transactions in order to make life easier for small lenders and law enforcement. "Money … Continue Reading
January 08, 2018
Springfield Republican: U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren pushes for community health center funding stalled in Congress
BOSTON -- After touring a Roxbury community health center, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, called on Congress to provide long-term funding to community health centers and a children's health insurance program. "Right now, Congress has failed in its responsibility to you and the people of Massachusetts and the people of America," Warren said during a roundtable with health care professionals at the Dimock Center. Funding for community health centers and a children's health … Continue Reading
January 08, 2018
Springfield Republican: U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren: AG Jeff Sessions' marijuana policy shift is 'incredibly destructive'
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, on Monday called Attorney General Jeff Sessions' elimination of rules that allowed states to legalize marijuana "an incredibly destructive thing to do." Sessions last week rescinded an Obama-era memo that said the Department of Justice would not prosecute marijuana users and businesses who were conforming with state law in states that legalized recreational marijuana use. Instead, Sessions is leaving it up to each U.S. Attorney how to prosecute … Continue Reading
January 08, 2018
The Hill: Warren blasts Mulvaney for 'unjustified' actions at consumer bureau
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) accused the acting director of the consumer bureau of using concerns about cybersecurity to sabotage the agency's oversight of the financial sector. Warren, in a letter released Monday, said acting Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Mick Mulvaney had been "hobbling the agency" by suspending data collection. "I fear that the freeze in data collection has in practice fundamentally changed how the CFPB interacts with its regulated entities," wrote Warren … Continue Reading
January 05, 2018
The Hill: Warren rips Trump over immigration demands: 'Dreamers aren't bargaining chips'
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) slammed President Trump on Friday over his newly released priorities for an immigration deal. Warren tweeted that recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, commonly referred to as "Dreamers," should not be used as "bargaining chips." "Dreamers aren't bargaining chips," Warren tweeted. "They aren't pawns in @realDonaldTrump's game. We made a promise. We said come out of the shadows & be fully woven into the fabric of America … Continue Reading