Chairman's Press
Menendez Opening Remarks at Hearing Examining US-Iran Policy
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered the following opening remarks at a committee hearing this morning titled, "An Examination of US-Iran Policy." Menendez used his remarks to elevate a request from all committee Democrats for Chairman Risch to allow the Committee to convene hearings on the Trump-Ukraine scandal, and also to highlight President Trump's reported directive for the State Department to coordinate with Rudy G… Continue Reading
October 15, 2019
Menendez, Young, Engel, McCaul Introduce Joint Measure Opposing Decision on Northern Syria
WASHINGTON- Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.), Representative Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Representative Michael T. McCaul (R-Texas), the Committee's Ranking Member, today introduced a bicameral, bipartisan measure opposing the decision to allow the Turkish military to attack America's Syrian Kurdish partners. The resolution calls on the White House to put forward… Continue Reading
October 13, 2019
Menendez Statement on Pres. Trump’s Reckless Withdrawal of U.S. Forces from Northern Syria
ELIZABETH, N.J. - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper announced on Sunday that President Donald Trump had ordered the full withdrawal of U.S. forces from northern Syria: "With this withdrawal, President Trump is further weakening the United States' position on the global stage, actively weakening our national security and further undermining our credibility with partners and… Continue Reading
October 11, 2019
As State Dept. Morale Plummets, Menendez Demands Accountability from Pompeo on Employee Retaliation
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today called on Secretary Pompeo to seek the resignation of Assistant Secretary Kevin Moley, head of the Bureau of International Organization Affairs (IO), for his targeting of career public servants at the State Department based on their perceived lack of loyalty to President Trump. In August, the State Department Inspector General (OIG) released a scathing report outlining Moley and other poli… Continue Reading
October 10, 2019
Ten Senators Call on Pompeo to Explain Dismissal of U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine and Stand Up for Whistleblowers
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today led a group of ten of his Senate Democratic colleagues in seeking answers from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo about the Trump Administration's politically-motivated removal of former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie "Masha" Yovanovitch. In light of Ambassador Yovanovitch's scheduled deposition to Congress, the Senators' letter calls on Secretary Pompeo not to impede her testimony in the H… Continue Reading
October 09, 2019
SFRC Dems Call on Chairman Risch to Convene Committee Hearings on Trump-Ukraine Scandal
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), today was joined by all Democratic members of the Committee in sending a letter to Committee Chairman Jim Risch (R-Idaho) to request he immediately convene hearings on the Trump-Ukraine scandal. As the Senate committee of jurisdiction responsible for conducting oversight of the conduct of U.S. diplomacy and foreign policy, the Foreign Relations Committee Democrats requested prompt hearing… Continue Reading
October 08, 2019
Top National Security Democrats Warn Trump Admin Against U.S. Withdrawal from Key Euro-Atlantic Security Treaty
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Representative Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.), Chairman of the House Armed Service Committee, today sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Esper strongly opposing withdrawal from the Open Skies Tr… Continue Reading
October 08, 2019
Sens Menendez and Rubio Request Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States Review Transactions of Brazilian Meat-Processing Conglomerate
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, today sent a letter to Secretary of Treasury Steven Mnuchin requesting that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) formally open a review of the transactions of Brazilian meat-processing conglomerate, JBS S.A. Over the last twelve years, JBS S.A. has become… Continue Reading
October 08, 2019
FACT SHEET: Secretary Pompeo v. Congressman Pompeo on Stonewalling Congress
Today, the State Department reportedly directed Ambassador Gordon Sondland to obstruct the House inquiry into the Trump-Ukraine scandal. Although Ambassador Sondland reportedly wanted to testify and provide documents, and despite Secretary Pompeo's obvious conflict of interest as a participant in the Trump-Ukraine scandal, the State Department directed Ambassador Sondland not to show up. The Department is also refusing to turn over documents that Ambassador Sondland reportedly voluntarily provid… Continue Reading
October 08, 2019
Menendez Statement on Trump Admin Blocking State Department Officials from Speaking with Congress
MUMBAI, INDIA - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after the Trump Administration blocked the deposition of Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, as part of the ongoing impeachment inquiry on the Trump-Ukraine scandal: "It is an affront to our constitution to claim Congress does not deserve an opportunity to question Ambassador Sondland and other State Department officials who have informa… Continue Reading
October 07, 2019
Menendez Responds to Trump Abandonment of Kurdish Forces in Turkey-Syria Border
MUMBAI, INDIA - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement in reaction to the announcement by the White House that the Trump Administration will withdraw United States forces from northern Syria and drop its support for American-backed Kurdish forces. "Once again, the Trump Administration has upended longstanding policy with an impulsive, politically-driven decision that will sacrifice long-term U.S. national secu… Continue Reading
October 03, 2019
Menendez Requests State Department IG Open Formal Investigation into Trump-Ukraine Scandal
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today requested the State Department Inspector General open a formal inquiry into the Department's withholding of security assistance to Ukraine. In a letter addressed to Inspector General Steve Linick, Ranking Member Menendez also requested the investigation include the specific role of senior State Department officials, including that of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his Counselor Ulrich … Continue Reading
October 03, 2019
Menendez Statement on Growing Unrest in Iraq amid Internet Blackout
New Delhi, India - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on the developing situation in Iraq, where growing unrest has reportedly led to a death toll of over 18 after Iraqi authorities imposed a curfew and blocked off access to the internet. "The people of Iraq have a fundamental right to protest peacefully, and advocate for legitimate and long-standing grievances. I urge all Iraqis, including those in the g… Continue Reading
October 02, 2019
Menendez Statement Following Briefing from State Department Inspector General
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after the State Department Inspector General Steve A. Linick briefed Senate and House committee staff. At today's briefing, Congressional staff was provided a number of unclassified documents related to now-debunked theories and false statements about the former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, and the President's political opponents. "We are just beginning to exa… Continue Reading
October 02, 2019
Menendez Calls on Secretary Pompeo to Recuse Himself from All Matters Related to Ukraine
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today called on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to immediately recuse himself from all Ukraine related-matters given his direct conflict of interest in the Trump-Zelensky scandal. "There are serious questions concerning your role in the leveraging of U.S. security assistance - taxpayer dollars - to advance President Trump's personal and political agenda," wrote Menendez. "The American people ne… Continue Reading
October 02, 2019
Senators Menendez, Cruz introduce Senate Resolution Commemorating the 150th Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s Birth
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD HI-RES PHOTOS Menendez visited Raj Ghat, India, today in observance of the national holiday WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), introduced a Senate Resolution celebrating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi on October 2nd, 1869. The Bipartisan Resolution lays out Gandhi's decades-long struggle for Indian independence from Great Britain, and his pioneering of n… Continue Reading
October 01, 2019
Menendez Questions VP Pence and Sec. Perry’s Role in Trump-Ukraine Controversy
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today raised a series of questions to Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of Energy Rick Perry about whether they played any role in pushing President Trump's personal political agenda in Ukraine, including pressuring Ukrainian President Zelensky to bolster Trump's 2020 election prospects. Citing the summary of the President's call with President Zelensky and the whistleblower complaint, th… Continue Reading
September 30, 2019
Weeks Before Pres. Trump Can Officially Withdraw from Paris Climate Agreement, SFRC Democrats Insist U.S. Remain in Fight against Global Warming
WASHINGTON - With less than 40 days until President Trump can officially begin to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Accords, Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) Ranking Member, Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), led the full Democratic membership of the SFRC in sending a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo once again calling on the Trump Administration to provide valid justification for the United States' withdrawal from the international accord. "Climate change is an existential … Continue Reading
September 30, 2019
Menendez Op-Ed: Trump Betrayed U.S. Moral Leadership. So Congress Had to Act
WASHINGTON - In an Op-Ed for the Washington Post, Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today marked the one-year anniversary of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. In recommitting himself to hold accountable those responsible for the death of Mr. Khashoggi, Menendez condemned the Trump Administration for betraying U.S. moral leadership, stonewalling Congressional efforts to seek justice for the murder, and its continued attacks on our nation's demo… Continue Reading
September 27, 2019
Menendez to Sec. Pompeo: When Did You Know and What Did You Do about Pres. Trump’s Foreign Interference Effort?
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today demanded Secretary of State Mike Pompeo explain what actions he and the State Department took when they became involved in President Donald Trump's coercion of a foreign leader to investigate his domestic political opponents. In a letter requesting the Secretary immediately testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Ranking Member Menendez posed a series of critical natio… Continue Reading
