WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3884, the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act of 2020. The bipartisan legislation would end the federal prohibition and criminalization of marijuana by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act and facilitate the expungement of low-level federal marijuana convictions, as well as incentivizing state […]

NEW YORK – Following the Senate confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries released the following statement: “The Republican-controlled Senate rushed to rubber stamp President Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court while they have refused to lift a finger to address the worsening public health crisis […]

NEW YORK – On the premature last day of Census enumeration owing to the Supreme Court ruling allowing the Trump administration to halt counting early, House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries released the following statement: “The Supreme Court’s decision to cut short the Census count at President Trump’s request all but guarantees that there will […]

BROOKLYN, NY – Today, Representatives Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08) and Nydia M. Velázquez (NY-07) each introduced legislation to honor Kenneth P. Thompson, who served as the District Attorney of Kings County, New York, from 2014 until his passing four years ago on October 9, 2016. The legislation would allow judges to expunge the records of more low-level […]

WASHINGTON, DC – Upon the passage of House Democrats’ updated Heroes Act, House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries released the following statement: “House Democrats acted for the people on May 15, when we passed the bipartisan Heroes Act to address the coronavirus pandemic in a comprehensive fashion. For months, President Trump and Senate Republicans did nothing. Over […]

NEW YORK – Upon the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) released the following statement: “Tonight, our nation mourns the loss of a brilliant jurist, trailblazer for equality and fearless advocate for gender, racial and social justice. Justice Ginsburg’s native Brooklyn mourns the loss of its favorite daughter, whose grit […]

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Representatives Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08) and Ted Lieu (CA-33), members of the House Judiciary Committee with oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray to determine the existence of an investigation disclosed by President Trump into a plane “loaded with thugs.” During an August 31 interview […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representative Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08) spoke on the floor of the House of Representatives in support of the “Delivering for America Act.” The legislation would prohibit the United States Postal Service (USPS) from implementing any changes to operations or the level of service it had in place in January. It would also provide $25 billion in critical […]

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Representative Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08) applauded the passage of the Water Resources Development Act of 2020 by the House of Representatives. The legislation included a directive requested by Rep. Jeffries for the Secretary of the Army to expedite a feasibility study for ecosystem restoration and hurricane and storm damage risk reduction for Spring Creek South […]

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Representative Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08) responded to Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton on the floor of the House of Representatives after Cotton described slavery as a “necessary evil. Watch Remarks as delivered:  Slavery was not a necessary evil.  It was a crime against humanity, anchored in kidnap, rape, torture, lynching and the systematic oppression and enslavement of people of African […]