Ranking Member's Press
In Advance of VP Pence’s trip to Ecuador, Menendez Leads Letter Encouraging Advancement of Bilateral Relations and Expressing Concern About Continued Support for WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was joined by a group of nine of his democratic Senators today in sending a letter to Vice President Michael Pence encouraging him to continue building upon the important progress made in the U.S.-Ecuador bilateral relationship but also urging him to raise concerns with President Moreno about Ecuador's support for Mr. Assange at a time when WikiLeaks continues its efforts to undermine democ… Continue Reading
June 27, 2018
Senators Menendez, Gardner Introduce Legislation for North Korea Oversight
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, introduced the North Korea Policy Oversight Act of 2018, legislation that provides stringent congressional oversight of U.S. diplomacy with North Korea and any agreement that emerges from the Trump Administration's engagement with Kim Jong Un. Joining Menendez in introducing this bipartisan legislation was Senator Cory Gardner (R-Colo.). The bill lays out Congressional support and oversight of … Continue Reading
June 26, 2018
Menendez, Rubio, Cruz, Colleagues Reaffirm Commitment to the People Nicaragua
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Bill Nelson (D-FL), David Perdue (R-GA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Mike Lee (R-UT) today introduced a bipartisan resolution reaffirming the commitment of the United States in holding Daniel Ortega's regime accountable for acts of violence against the Nicaraguan people. The senators called on the Government of Nicaragua to end the rep… Continue Reading
June 25, 2018
Menendez Demands Trump Admin Fully Implement Bipartisan Russia Sanctions
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, submitted the following statement for the Senate record urging the Trump Administration to hold Russia accountable by fully implementing the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). It has been eleven months since Congress overwhelmingly passed CAATSA's wide-ranging mandatory sanctions measures to hold Russia accountable for their destabilizing activities against our… Continue Reading
June 22, 2018
Menendez Raises Questions After Chinese State-Owned Company Receives Multimillion Contract for Trump Golf Club
WASHINGTON D.C. - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today raised questions after a partner of the Trump Organization in Dubai awarded a $19.6 million contract to a major Chinese government-owned company, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC). This is the second time since Trump's inauguration that DAMAC Properties, the Trump Organization's partner in the United Arab Emirates, has granted a multimillion dollar road-buildin… Continue Reading
June 20, 2018
Menendez Marks World Refugee Day; Blasts Trump Admin for Mistreatment of Refugees in the U.S.
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, submitted the following statement for the Senate record marking World Refugee Day and blasting the Trump Administration's inhumane treatment of children and refugees trying to come into the United States. "Mr. President, I rise today in honor of World Refugee Day and to express my deep concern over the Trump Administration's systematic assault on refugees, asylum seekers, and the United St… Continue Reading
June 19, 2018
Top Democrats Demand Answers on Trump Loyalty Tests for Public Servants
WASHINGTON-Today, Senator Bob Menendez, Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; Representative Eliot L. Engel, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs; and Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform demanded State Department documents related to reports that the Trump administration is vetting senior American employees at the State Department and international organizations to determine if they are sufficie… Continue Reading
June 14, 2018
Menendez Requests Trump Emoluments Information from Five Foreign Governments
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today sent letters to the embassies of Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Malaysia, and the Philippines requesting information about their transactions with the Trump Organization for events and visits to its hotel in Washington, D.C. Senator Menendez's letters follow one he sent to the Trump Organization on March 1, 2018, requesting information about payments from foreign governments. The Trump… Continue Reading
June 14, 2018
Menendez Opening Remarks at Nominations Hearing
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered the below statement at today's nomination hearing for Admiral Harry Harris to serve as US Ambassador to the Republic of Korea; David Schenker to be the Assistant Secretary of State (Near Eastern Affairs); and Ambassador Tibor Nagy Assistant Secretary of State (African Affairs). His remarks follow: "Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this hearing today. We have before us a pane… Continue Reading
June 13, 2018
Menendez Statement for the Record on Pres. Trump Suggesting Russia Should Rejoin the
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, submitted the following statement for the Senate record on President Trump's comments regarding the government of the Russian Federation rejoining the G-7. Earlier this week, Menendez also introduced an amendment to the annual defense policy legislation calling on the President to immediately retract his statement at the G7 and to clearly state that the Russian Federation will never join t… Continue Reading
June 12, 2018
Menendez on Trump-Kim Summit: When it comes to North Korea, don’t trust – verify
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a joint statement in Singapore without setting timelines or providing any details on a pathway forward on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. "I share the desire to achieve a true, sustainable path towards peaceful diplomacy and would welcome a serious commitment to denucleariza… Continue Reading
June 12, 2018
Statement by Senators Menendez and Inhofe to Commemorate the Dedication of the New AIT Complex
WASHINGTON - US Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), co-chairs of the U.S. Senate Taiwan Caucus, today issued the following statement to celebrate the dedication ceremony for the new American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) compound. The AIT is a non-profit, private corporation established based on the Taiwan Relations Act that was signed into law April 10, 1979. "We extend our congratulations to the people of Taiwan as they prepare to celebrate the opening of a new office compoun… Continue Reading
June 12, 2018
Menendez, Corker, Murphy, Young, Colleagues Raise Concerns About Imminent Military Operations at Hudaydah, Yemen
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.), were joined by 6 of their Senate colleagues in raising concerns over a reported imminent military operation by the Emirati-led coalition to seize the port of Hudaydah. In a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense James Mattis, … Continue Reading
June 11, 2018
Menendez NDAA Amendment Demands Trump Retract Statement on Russia’s Readmission into the G7
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in response to President Donald Trump's suggestion that Russia should be readmitted into the Group of Seven (G7), a coalition of leading industrialized nations. In 2014, Russia was expelled from the group - then known as the G8 - in response to Putin's intervention in eastern Ukraine and illegal annexation of Cri… Continue Reading
June 08, 2018
Menendez Cautions Sec. Pompeo on Quality of State Department Nominees
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to say he expects the Trump administration to pay more attention in selecting nominees for ambassadorial and leadership posts within the State Department. The Senator's letter follows comments from the Secretary of State about his plans to move a robust package of nominations through the Senate and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell… Continue Reading
June 07, 2018
Following Breitbart Interview, Menendez Calls for IG Investigation of US Ambassador to Germany
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today called on the State Department's Inspector General to open up an investigation into U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell following recent public comments he made injecting conservative politics into American foreign policy. On June 3, 2018, right-wing website Breitbart posted an article quoting Ambassador Grennel expressing support for promoting "conservative issues" and his … Continue Reading
June 05, 2018
Menendez, Rubio Lead Bipartisan Call for Pres. Trump to Nominate Someone for Top Diplomatic Post on Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
WASHINGTON - On Tuesday, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) led a bipartisan group of 15 Senators in sending a letter to President Trump urging him to nominate a properly qualified candidate for Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL). In their letter, the Senators laid out the qualifications necessary for such a nominee, specifically noting the need for "a skillset and background that w… Continue Reading
June 05, 2018
Menendez Blasts DHS for Denying Congressional Oversight at Processing Center for Immigrant Families
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today sent a letter demanding the Trump Administration clarify why staff members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee were prevented from touring a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) immigrant processing facility during a Congressional staff delegation visit to the San Diego-Tijuana border this past weekend. "The public has a right to know what's happening at the border and how … Continue Reading
June 04, 2018
In New Letter To President Trump, Top Senate Democrats Outline Conditions For Any Deal With North Korea -- Dems Say Sanctions Relief Should Be Contingent On Complete Denuclearization, Destruction Of Test Sites, End Of Ballistic Missile Tests & More
Washington, D.C. - Ahead of the expected summit between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to discuss North Korea's nuclear weapons program, top Senate Democrats today sent a new letter to President Trump outlining Congressional Democrats' conditions for lifting sanctions as part of any deal with North Korea. The new letter -- signed by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Bob Menendez, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, Assistant Senate Democratic Leader and S… Continue Reading
May 26, 2018
Menendez Blasts White House for Polarizing Political Pick as Head of U.S. Foreign Aid Agency
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after the Trump Administration announced it would replace the Millennium Challenge Corporation's (MCC) Acting Chief Executive Officer, John Nash, a career civil servant, with Robert Blau, President Trump's appointed Vice President for the Department of Compact Operations at the Millennium Challenge Corporation. Menendez has led the charge in Congress in raisi… Continue Reading
