press releases

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich announced that they have renewed efforts to expand restitution for New Mexicans and others who have been affected by exposure to radiation during the development and testing of nuclear weapons in the Cold War by reintroducing the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA)....

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement regarding media reports that the Trump Administration is considering an executive order to reinstate the CIA detention and interrogation program: "Any attempt to roll back prohibitions against...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) led a group of Senate Democrats in introducing S. 229, the Protect DREAMer Confidentiality Act of 2017, a bill to safeguard the private information—such as addresses and telephone numbers—of the young immigrants known as DREAMers to ensure that they are not...

Senate Democrats want to block President Trump from using personal information collected under an Obama-era program to round up and deport some immigrants.   Eight Democrats — led by Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico — are introducing legislation to prohibit the Trump administration from using information collected under...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) issued the following statement after President Trump signed executive actions to revive the Dakota Access and Keystone XL Pipelines: "President Trump has shown a blatant disregard for tribal sovereignty and responsible energy development. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and tribes...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, just days after the seventh anniversary of the Supreme Court's Citizens United v. FEC decision allowing unlimited corporate spending in elections, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) joined U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.) to reintroduce the Democracy for All amendment to restore democratic power to the American...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Select Committee On Intelligence, voted against the confirmation of U.S. Congressman Mike Pompeo as the new Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). During a speech on the Senate Floor before the vote, Heinrich said, "Congressman Pompeo has a long...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) released the following statement in recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day: "Martin Luther King Jr. gave a voice to the marginalized and oppressed and inspired a nation to stand up against racism and hate. His lessons of compassion and intolerance for injustice ring especially true today....

WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, and U.S. Representative Ben Ray Luján denounced the decision by the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Justice that the EPA is not liable under the Federal Tort Claims Act for damages caused by the Gold King Mine Spill. The lawmakers vowed to continue...

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) questioned senior intelligence officials about cybersecurity threats, including Russia's hacking of the U.S. presidential election. The committee received testimony from Director Of National Intelligence James R. Clapper, Jr.;...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that a bipartisan measure to expedite reimbursements to Tribal, local and state governments for costs incurred in responding to the Gold King Mine spill has passed both Houses of Congress as an...

Washington, D.C. – In a letter, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) urged President Obama to take action and protect the young immigrants known as DREAMers from deportation and ensure that they are not targeted by the incoming Trump Administration. In particular, he called on the President to use his presidential pardon power. “I...

WASHINGTON, D.C.  — U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) issued the following statement after the Obama Administration announced that it will not grant the final easement for the Dakota Access Pipeline: "President Obama has just risen to the challenge and listened to all of our voices to reject the current route of the Dakota Access...

Regarding Sen. Martin Heinrich’s letter to President Obama requesting that he rescind Monday’s eviction at Standing Rock: This is a very welcome breakthrough. With Heinrich’s leadership, other senators and Congress members will step forward. I also predict that the “arbitrary” date of Dec. 5 will be overturned by the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) called on President Obama to work with the Corps of Engineers and the Department of Justice to de-escalate the violence at Camp Oceti Sakowin in North Dakota. In particular, he questioned the decision to close the area to demonstrators of the Dakota Access pipeline on December 5,...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) issued the following statement on the Dakota Access pipeline: "Today is Thanksgiving and I cannot help but reflect on our history in these United States and how often it has not lived up to the rosy picture of Pilgrims and Indians sharing a meal in friendly company that I saw in...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) issued the following statement on Donald Trump's appointment of Steve Bannon, the former leader of the far-right website Breitbart News, as White House chief strategist and senior adviser: "This first major decision made by our president-elect as he shapes his administration sends an alarming...

A U.S. lawmaker says loopholes in federal laws have left authorities with little leverage in seeking the return of tribal religious items that are illegal to trade in the United States but sell for thousands of dollars in foreign markets. The comments Tuesday by U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, a New Mexico Democrat, came during a field...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham called on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to do everything possible to provide options for families struggling to afford the EpiPen Auto-Injector for the emergency treatment of a life-threatening...

In a letter to Department of Education, Udall and Heinrich say ITT Tech’s “deceptive practices” and “dubious educational quality” rightly required action to halt new enrollment and continued use of taxpayer dollars Senators call on Department to “use its existing legal authority” to increase total debt...