Ranking Member's Press
***VIDEO*** Menendez Responds to Sec. Pompeo’s Claim that He Briefed Senate on Imminent Threat Justifying Soleimani Killing
NEWARK - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, responded live on MSNBC to a press conference by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday morning. While announcing new sanctions against Iran, Secretary Pompeo claimed he had provided Congress all the intelligence needed to prove the Administration's claim of an imminent threat justifying President Trump's approval of an airstrike that killed Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani. On the A… Continue Reading
January 09, 2020
Save Our Seas 2.0 Act Passes Senate Unanimously
WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Senate today voted unanimously to pass the Save Our Seas (SOS) 2.0 Act, S. 1982, legislation introduced by Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) to address the plastic debris crisis threatening coastal economies and harming marine life. SOS 2.0 builds on the success of the Save Our Seas Act, introduced by Senators Sullivan and Whitehouse, and signed into law by President Trump in October 2018. "As marine debris and pla… Continue Reading
January 09, 2020
Menendez and Engel Request New Threat Assessment for U.S. Diplomatic Personnel and Compounds Created by Soleimani Killing
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Representative Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today sent a letter requesting the Trump Administration provide them an updated assessment within the next 7 days of the current risk and threat matrix created by the killing of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani. In a letter addressed to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the Members requested a detailed e… Continue Reading
January 07, 2020
Menendez Delivers Remarks on President Trump’s Spiraling Foreign Policy
"Simply put, President Trump's foreign policy, like President Trump himself, is completely shortsighted, self-interested and transactional." "I know that national security is not a popularity contest, but the erosion of America's standing in the world makes it less safe for Americans. It undermines our diplomacy. It hinders economic opportunity. And it undercuts our ability to promote our values; betraying our centuries-long vision of our nation as a City on a Hill." WASHINGTON - Senator Bo… Continue Reading
January 07, 2020
***ICYMI*** Ranking Member Menendez Discusses Latest on Iran Crisis Following Soleimani Killing
WASHINGTON - In multiple interviews with MSNBC and CNN, Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, discussed the latest in the escalating crisis with Iran and the increased threat to our national and homeland security resulting from President Trump's approval of an airstrike that killed Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani. The Senator's media appearances follow a letter he and Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) sent to President Trump calling on him to d… Continue Reading
January 06, 2020
Menendez on Juan Guaidó’s Reelection as Head of Venezuela’s National Assembly and Interim President
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on the successful reelection of Juan Guaidó as the head of Venezuela's National Assembly. The successful vote to reelect Guaidó came hours after the Maduro regime tried imposing a new leader by forcefully blocking the Interim President's entrance into the National Assembly. "Yesterday, democratic members of Venezuela's National Assembly overw… Continue Reading
January 06, 2020
Menendez and Schumer Call on President Trump to Declassify War Powers Act Notification Letter
WASHINGTON - In a letter to President Donald Trump, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Bob Menendez and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called for the Trump administration to immediately declassify the White House notification to Congress of the initiation of hostilities against Iran, pursuant to the War Powers Act of 1973. In the letter to President Trump, the senators said it is critical for the Trump administration to share additional information in a timely manner with… Continue Reading
January 05, 2020
Menendez Statement on Terrorist Attack Against U.S.-Kenyan Military Base in Nairobi
NEWARK - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, released the below statement Sunday following an attack on the Manda Bay Airfield military base in Kenya. The airstrip attack, which killed a U.S. military member and injured two other U.S. contractors, comes on the heels of a car bombing in Mogadishu that claimed nearly 80 lives last week. Al Shabaab has claimed credit for both attacks. "I condemn the attack in Kenya today that claimed th… Continue Reading
January 03, 2020
***ICYMI*** On MSNBC, Ranking Member Menendez Discusses Qassem Soleimani
NEWARK - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today spoke with Hallie Jackson on MSNBC to give his reaction to the airstrike that killed Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani and the potential implications of the escalating situation in the Middle East. "Qassem Soleimani was a terrorist. He caused the lives of hundreds of Americans and civilians throughout the region. His direction of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force wa… Continue Reading
January 01, 2020
Ranking Member Menendez Statement on Attack on U.S. Embassy Compound in Baghdad
NEWARK - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today issued the following statement following the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq: "I condemn in the strongest and most forceful of terms these violent attacks against the American Embassy in Baghdad, and the Iranians who are backing this siege. The top priority for the United States must remain ensuring that our American diplomats and personnel at Embassy Baghdad are protected a… Continue Reading
December 20, 2019
Congress Passes Menendez-Rubio Bill Reshaping U.S. Policy in Eastern Mediterranean
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) issued the following statements after the Congress last night approved their Eastern Mediterranean Security and Energy Partnership Act of 2019, which was included in a bipartisan legislative package to fund the government through September 2020. The legislation is a comprehensive recalibration of American diplomatic, military, and economic policy towards the East… Continue Reading
December 19, 2019
Senate Passes Sweeping Menendez-Rubio Legislation to Address Maduro’s Humanitarian Crisis in Venezuela and Advance International Effort
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fl.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, issued the following statements following final passage of a bipartisan deal on federal government spending, which included the VERDAD Act to address the political, economic, and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela. "I am incredibly proud to have led the effort to pass the… Continue Reading
December 18, 2019
In New Letter To President Trump, Senate Democrats Urge Pres. Trump to Establish And Execute a Serious Diplomatic Plan To Secure Path To Denuclearization For North Korea
WASHINGTON - Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA), Senate Committee on Appropriations Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Senate Committee on Armed Services Jack Reed (D-RI), ), Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Ranking Member Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Senate Committee on the Judiciary R… Continue Reading
December 18, 2019
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Approves Comprehensive Russian Sanctions Bill
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), ), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) issued the following statements after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee overwhelmingly voted to approve the Defending American Security from Kremlin Aggression Act (DASKA) of 2019. Adopted in a vote of 17-5, the comprehensive, bipartisan bill significantly increases the political, dipl… Continue Reading
December 17, 2019
Menendez Blasts Pompeo for Reportedly Trying to Recall U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Again
WASHINGTON - US. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, this morning sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo following reports that the Trump Administration is currently planning to recall U.S. Ambassador William Taylor from his post in Kyiv, Ukraine. Recalling Ambassador Taylor would leave a critical vacancy at a time when the U.S.-Ukraine relationship remains under scrutiny, and as President Trump has failed to grant President Zelensky … Continue Reading
December 16, 2019
Menendez Secures Major Foreign Policy Priorities in Congressional Deal to Keep Government Open
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement applauding Senate and House appropriators after they announced a bipartisan deal on federal government spending. Comprised of 12 separate appropriations bills, the legislation includes key priorities championed by Menendez: legislation to reshape U.S. strategy in the Eastern Mediterranean; the largest assistance package to date in response to the Venezuelan crisis;… Continue Reading
December 16, 2019
Senators Menendez, Young, Van Hollen Request Intelligence Review on Not Extending Nuclear Arms Treaty with Russia
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was joined by Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) in requesting Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire formally conduct a National Intelligence Estimate on how Russia and China will react if the United States allows the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) to expire in February 2021. Since it entered into force in 2011, New START has significant… Continue Reading
December 13, 2019
Menendez to Block Trump Admin from Exporting U.S. Firearms with less Oversight and Accountability
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today announced he will again block the Trump Administration from drastically weakening firearms export regulations, stopping an imminent change to strip oversight authority of U.S. firearm sales abroad from the State Department's Munitions List (USML). This is the second time Senator Menendez will prevent the transfer to the Commerce Department's less-strict export system over concerns th… Continue Reading
December 13, 2019
U.S. Senators Introduce Bipartisan Resolution Calling for the Immediate Release of Leading Cuban Democracy Activist José Daniel Ferrer
WASHINGTON - Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, were joined by Senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) in introducing a bipartisan Senate resolution calling for the immediate release of Cuban democracy and human rights activist José Daniel Ferrer and oth… Continue Reading
December 12, 2019
SFRC Democrats Introduce Legislation Honoring U.S. Diplomats and Development Professionals
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today led his Democratic colleagues on the Committee in introducing legislation to honor the career employees of the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The Senators' resolution expresses the nation's gratitude for the service of American diplomats and development professionals, several of whom have recently put their careers on the line to testify before Cong… Continue Reading
