WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King urged the Department of Defense (DoD) to commit significantly more attention to advancements in technology that reduce costs and win wars. In a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), King also pressed the DoD on what it is doing to combat brain trauma experienced by military service members and veterans. More specifically, King asked Mr. Michael Duffey, the nominee to be Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, if he... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) has joined his colleagues to press the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in reinstating previously approved shipments of food to Maine food banks. In a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, King and his colleagues asked for the concrete reasoning of the cancellation of congressionally approved funding through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). More than 250 organizations across Maine participate in this program to combat food... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) raised concerns over the United States’ hypersonic missile defense capabilities at a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces. King, the ranking member of the subcommittee, urged General Anthony J. Cotton, Commander of U.S. Strategic Command for the Air Force, and General Stephen N. Whiting, Commander of U.S. Space Command for the Air Force, to support investments in U.S. hypersonic missile technologies to keep... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a Senate Armed Services subcommittee (SASC) hearing on sea power, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) discussed the importance of supporting our nation’s shipbuilding capacity with senior U.S. Navy and government personnel. In a conversation with witnesses Dr. Brett A. Seidle, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition, and Shelby S. Oakley, Director of Contracting and National Security Acquisitions at the Government Accountability Office... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a Senate Select Intelligence Committee (SSCI) hearing, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) pressed Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on whether or not classified information was shared in a Signal chain made up of top national security and intelligence officials discussing plans of a military attack on Houthi militants — and, inadvertently, Jeffery Goldberg, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic. The hearing comes the day after The Atlantic published a story... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), is joining a number of his colleagues to push for the continuation of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Election Threats Task Force. In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, the senators stressed the importance of the Task Force, which is charged with identifying efforts to protect election officials amid the rising threats and acts of violence. “Given the recent disturbing... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME), is releasing the following statement in response to a decision made by the Trump Administration and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to close dozens of Social Security offices across the country — a move following the February dismissal of 7,000 Social Security Administration (SSA) employees and one that could result in delayed or missing checks for the over 70 million Americans that rely on Social Security. The statement... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement after President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the dismantling of the Department of Education: “The onslaught of actions from this administration in eight weeks have harmed veterans, farmers, consumers, disease experts, our national security, democracies worldwide — and now America’s public school students and teachers are at risk due to the announcement that the President intends to dismantle... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME), a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC), is cosponsoring bipartisan legislation to provide more combat-injured veterans with their full earned benefits. The Major Richard Star Act would adjust the qualifications for full benefits to include tens of thousands of combat-injured veterans who are left out under the existing law. Currently, only veterans with disability ratings above 50 percent, and with more than 20 years of... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Angus King (I-ME) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), members of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), are expressing their concerns about the potential loss of Department of Defense (DoD) firefighters on probationary status at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY). In a letter to Acting Secretary of the Navy Terrence Emmert, the Senators make clear the importance of having a highly trained firefighting force, and urged the Secretary to provide clear and consistent... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King is demanding the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reverse its cancelation of food purchase programs for food banks, schools and childcare centers in Maine and across the United States. In a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins from King and a number of his colleagues, the Senators said the reported $1 billion in cancelled purchases by the USDA adds further pain at a time of high food prices and instability within U.S. agricultural markets. “We... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Angus King, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) and the Select Senate Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), and Susan Collins, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and member of SSCI and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today lauded the passage of bipartisan legislation that would crack down on illegal fentanyl trafficking. The Halt All Lethal Trafficking (HALT) of Fentanyl Act will permanently classify... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. –U.S. Senator Angus King today released the below statement following his vote to advance a Continuing Resolution funding the government and averting a government shutdown “This afternoon the Senate has to take a very important and difficult vote. It’s a choice between two terrible options: the no good, very bad Continuing Resolution which you’ve heard so much about and a government shutdown which I believe could be even worse. “The problem is that with a shutdown the President,... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Angus King (I-ME) and Tim Sheehy (R-MT), members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee (SVAC), introduced bipartisan legislation to reduce the risk of veteran suicide. The Saving Our Veterans’ Lives Act would authorize a program through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide free firearm lockboxes to veterans to put time and space between at-risk individuals and lethal means, such as firearms. Firearms are the most common means used by... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) is introducing bipartisan legislation to help secure U.S. access to critical mineral supply chains and reduce China’s influence in America’s economy. The Critical Minerals Security Act would direct the U.S. Department of the Interior to evaluate the global supply and ownership of critical minerals, establish a process to assist U.S. companies seeking to divest critical minerals operations in foreign countries, and develop a method for sharing... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), alongside members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee (SVAC) and the House Veterans Affairs Committee (HVAC), sent a letter to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Doug Collins raising concerns about a leaked report that highlights plans called for by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to cut an additional 83,000 VA employees by the end of the fiscal year. If implemented, the layoffs would undo all the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Angus King (I-ME) and John Cornyn (R-TX) are introducing bipartisan legislation to support volunteer programs that deliver food to older, more vulnerable Americans. The Delivering Elderly Lunches and Increasing Volunteer Engagement and Reimbursements (DELIVER) Act would help provide meals to more seniors across Maine and America by increasing the charitable mileage tax deduction rate from its current 14 cents per mile to match the standard business rate of 70... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a hearing before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee (SVAC), U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) pressed Mark Engelbaum, the Assistant Secretary of the Office of Human Resources and Administration / Operations, Security and Preparedness at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), about the lack of communication from the VA about cancelled contracts that have Maine’s veteran community concerned. The hearing comes on the heels of mass firings and contract cancellations... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC) is demanding Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Doug Collins provide transparency into the cancellation of 585 VA contracts. In a letter to Secretary Collins, the Senator requested a full list of all the contracts cancelled and made clear that arbitrary, reckless cancellations will adversely impact veteran care in Maine and across the country. At the end of February, the VA... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Angus King (I-ME), are cosponsoring bipartisan legislation to make child care more affordable and accessible for Maine families. The Child Care Availability and Affordability Act would strengthen existing tax credits to lower child care costs and increase the supply of child care providers. Since 1990, the cost of child care and preschool has increased by 263%, forcing many families in Maine and nationwide to make difficult decisions... Continue Reading »
