Latest Releases
U.S. SENATOR TINA SMITH ANNOUNCES ABORTION CLINIC DIRECTOR TAMMI KROMENAKER AS STATE OF THE UNION GUEST
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) announced that Tammi Kromenaker, the Clinic Director of the Red River Women’s Clinic in Moorhead, MN, will be her guest at the President’s State of the Union Address on Thursday, March 7th in Washington, D.C. The Red River Women’s Clinic spent nearly 25 years in Fargo, where it was North Dakota’s sole abortion provider for most of that time. When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade with the Dobbs decision in 2022, the Republican Governor of North Dakota enacted one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the country. To continue serving patients in desperate need of care, Kromenaker moved the clinic to the neighboring city of Moorhead in Minnesota, where abortion rights are protected under state law. “When North Dakota banned abortion statewide after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Tammi Kromenaker sprang into action, moving Red River Women’s Clinic across the bridge from Fargo to Moorhead,” said Senator Smith. “Now, Minnesota is an island for abortion care in the Upper Midwest, and thousands of people in the region and across the country count on Red River Women’s Clinic for their health care. Every day, women walk through the doors of RRWC ready to make the best decisions for themselves and their families. And every day that freedom is under assault by the forces dedicated to a national abortion ban. The story of Tammi and her clinic represents the absolute chaos for Americans after the Supreme Court ruling, and her commitment to continuing to provide health care for women in a
U.S. Senator Tina Smith and Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez Introduce Legislation to Protect Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence from Economic Abuse
[WASHINGTON, DC] – Today, Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) introduced the Survivor Financial Safety and Inclusion Working Group Act, a bill aimed at increasing support for survivors of intimate partner violence within the financial system. The bill would create an interagency working group comprised of the federal financial regulators and relevant stakeholders, including a representative of historically underserved communities. The working group would be tasked with collecting data on the impacts of economic abuse of survivors carried out through regulated financial institutions. The working group would also provide recommendations on how Congress and federal regulators can help financial institutions improve existing products and services and launch new ones to meet survivors’ financial and safety needs. “It can be impossible for someone trapped in an abusive relationship to escape if they’re unable to land on their feet,” said Senator Smith. “Abusers in intimate partner relationships use financial insecurity as a tool to trap their victims. This legislation will help protect survivors of economic abuse within the financial system and ensure they have a chance at safety, healing, and long-term financial stability.” “Intimate partner violence is a scourge in our society, with over 10 million men and women being physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States every year. Most survivors also report experiencing economic abuse from harm-doers, making it extremely difficult to build the financial security necessary to escape a dangerous situation,” said Congresswoman Velázquez. “It’s clear that financial institutions must do more to reduce economic abuse of survivors. This
Klobuchar, Smith, Schneider, Colleagues Urge Administration to Increase Number of Doctors in Rural and Other Medically Underserved Areas
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Representative Brad Schneider (D-IL-10) along with colleagues in both the House and the Senate, wrote to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) urging the Administration to resume premium processing for physicians seeking employment-based visas. Doctors on these visas increase access to health care, especially rural areas, through the Conrad 30 program, which allows foreign medical school graduates who have been trained in the United States to stay in the country as long as they serve underserved areas. On March 20, USCIS announced its suspension of premium processing due to the coronavirus (COVID-19)
At the Urging of U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Congress Approves $20 Million to Provide Nutrition Services to Native Elders During COVID-19 Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. [04/08/20]— U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.)—a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee—says that Congress heeded her call to ensure Native elders continue to have nutrition assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) includes $20 million in emergency funding for Native elder nutrition programs. Sen. Smith fought for emergency funding so that Tribal organizations can continue to provide these essential services, which may include meal assembly and delivery, nutrition counseling, nutrition education, farmers market operations, supporting food banks, charitable organizations/food distribution centers, and more. Sen. Smith said that Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior
At the Urging of U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Congress Approves $20 Million to Provide Nutrition Services to Native Elders During COVID-19 Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. [04/08/20]— U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.)—a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee—says that Congress heeded her call to ensure Native elders continue to have nutrition assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) includes $20 million in emergency funding for Native elder nutrition programs. Sen. Smith fought for emergency funding so that Tribal organizations can continue to provide these essential services, which may include meal assembly and delivery, nutrition counseling, nutrition education, farmers market operations, supporting food banks, charitable organizations/food distribution centers, and more. Sen. Smith said that Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior
U.S. Senator Tina Smith to Treasury Secretary Mnuchin: Make Sure Americans Experiencing Homelessness Get Coronavirus Relief Payments
WASHINGTON, D.C. [04/07/20]—U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) is leading a Senate push to ensure the Trump Administration is taking the steps necessary to make certain that people experiencing homelessness in Minnesota and across the country receive coronavirus relief payments. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin Tuesday, Sen. Smith and 27 of her Senate colleagues—including Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.)—urged him to consider the steep barriers people experiencing homelessness will confront when trying to access the direct stimulus payments provided in the recent bipartisan COVID-19 relief package. The senators also pressed Sec. Mnuchin to launch a public awareness campaign to make sure that people
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