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U.S. Senator Tina Smith Votes to Impose Harsh Sanctions on Russia for Invasion of Ukraine

WASHIGTON – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after voting to impose harsh sanctions on Russia for its illegal invasion of Ukraine, which passed the Senate with overwhelming bipartisan support (86-11): “The United States must stand up for democracy and against Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The sanctions we passed today are a powerful tool to cut off the funding for Russia’s war machine, even though the President should have imposed them himself much earlier. Combined with Ukraine’s recent successes on the battlefield, these new sanctions will help us force Putin to bring an end to this terrible war,” said Senator Smith. The bill now heads to the House of Representatives. ###

U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on Agriculture Committee’s Markup of Long-Delayed Farm Bill 

Sen. Smith and colleagues offered dozens of amendments to strengthen the Farm Bill, which ultimately failed to gain bipartisan support  WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after the Senate Agriculture Committee failed to pass a bipartisan Farm Bill:  “Patience is a virtue, it’s just not my virtue. I’m disappointed that we could not come to agreement on the Senate Farm Bill today, but we will keep working to find a path forward. It’s crucial that we pass a bipartisan Farm Bill that meets the needs of farmers, ranchers and rural America, including year-round E15,” said Sen. Smith.   “I’m glad that several of my provisions are included in this bill. However, it is not possible to pass a Farm Bill that fails to fix the deep cuts to SNAP that are taking food off the table for millions of Americans, including at least 1.5 million children. Democrats have offered a commonsense solution that would delay the giant cost shift to county taxpayers, which would end up costing Minnesota taxpayers $140 million, for two years,” she continued.  “While the Republican have not accepted this so far, we will keep working. I’m grateful for the relentless efforts of Ranking Member Klobuchar to improve this Farm Bill and find a bipartisan solution. Amid shrinking markets, tariffs and skyrocketing costs for fuel and fertilizer caused by Trump’s war in Iran, farmers need Congress to get the job done,” she concluded.  Sen. Smith, along with her Democratic colleagues, were clear that they could not support a Farm Bill that did not delay the cost-shift of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by at least two years. Without this delay, counties would

Smith, Rounds Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Empower States and Communities to Reduce Homelessness

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) today introduced the Reducing Homelessness Through Program Reform Act, legislation to cut red tape and create local solutions for addressing homelessness. “Without a safe, affordable place to live nothing else in your life works – not your job, health, family, or education,” said Smith.“This bipartisan bill makes common sense reforms to federal homelessness programs: cutting red tape for homeless service providers, streamlining and improving federal housing vouchers, reducing administrative burden and modernizing out-of-date software systems. It will reduce homelessness while using taxpayer dollars more efficiently. We know that the best ideas come

U.S. Senator Tina Smith on Senate Passage of Republicans’ Disastrous Big Bill

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after voting against the Republicans’ disastrous and cruel budget bill: “What Republicans did here is simple: they voted to kick 16 million people off health insurance while giving massive tax breaks to billionaires and corporations, and managed to still raise the debt by a staggering $5 trillion. In Minnesota alone, nearly 200,000 people will lose their health insurance. Rural hospitals will be forced to close. Planned Parenthood will lose its funding and have to shutter clinics.  “I’ve heard from tens of thousands of Minnesotans, and they all tell

Minnesota Congressional Delegation Introduces Bicameral, Bipartisan Resolution Honoring Melissa Hortman, Mark Hortman, and Condemning Political Violence

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN), along with Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Representatives Kelly Morrison (D-MN), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Tom Emmer (R-MN), Pete Stauber (R-MN),  Angie Craig (D-MN), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Michelle Fischbach (R-MN), and Brad Finstad (R-MN) introduced a resolution to honor the life of Minnesota State House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, and condemn political violence.  Full text of the resolution is available HERE and below: Whereas, on June 14, 2025, a gunman entered the home of

U.S. Senator Tina Smith Presses Attorney General Bondi to Investigate Scam DMV Text Messages

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith is pressing the Trump Administration to take action to combat a widespread text message scam affecting Minnesotans. Thousands of Minnesotans are reporting fake text messages from senders impersonating the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). These impersonators urge Minnesotans to make an online payment for an unidentified traffic violation or risk prosecution, a loss of driving privileges, and a damaged credit score, in addition to costing Minnesotans money. You can find an example of these messages here. “Beyond being a simple nuisance, these scams jeopardize the financial security of those it victimizes. And these messages

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