Latest Releases
Klobuchar, Baldwin, Smith, Stauber Urge Transportation Secretary Buttigieg to Support Federal Funding to Rebuild the Blatnik Bridge
WASHINGTON – Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Tina Smith (D-MN) and Representative Pete Stauber (R-MN) sent a bipartisan letter urging Transportation Secretary Buttigieg to support Minnesota and Wisconsin’s application for federal funding to rebuild the Blatnik Bridge. “We write to reiterate our strong support of the Minnesota and Wisconsin Department of Transportations’ application for federal funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,” wrote the lawmakers. “By replacing the Blatnik Bridge, the project would exemplify the type of critical infrastructure project that was envisioned by Congress.”“As noted in our previous letter to President Biden in September 2023, the Blatnik Bridge, located over St. Louis Bay on Lake Superior, is one of two bridges that connects the cities of Duluth, Minnesota with Superior, Wisconsin,” the lawmakers continued. “It is an essential economic engine in the region and a key link in the global supply chain.”In September, Klobuchar, Smith, Baldwin, and Representative Stauber sent a letter to President Biden urging him to fund this project. In August, Klobuchar and Smith sent letters to Secretary Buttigieg in support of the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT)’s applications for funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, including the U.S. Department of Transportation National Infrastructure Project Assistance Program and its Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) Program. In 2022, Klobuchar, Smith, and Baldwin sent a letter to President Biden urging him to fund this project. President Biden visited the Blatnik Bridge in 2022 with Klobuchar, Baldwin, and Smith, to discuss how the bridge could benefit from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In 2021, Klobuchar, a member of the Senate Commerce
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Amy Klobuchar and Representative Angie Craig Press Postal Service Again for Answers on Mail Carriers’ Missing Paychecks
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar (both D – MN), and U.S. Representative Angie Craig (D-MN02) sent a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy seeking answers about an apparent payroll system error that led to an estimated 2,200 rural letter carriers missing paychecks. The incident is the second major payroll problem for the Postal Service since September. The lawmakers sent a similar letter to Postmaster General DeJoy in September seeking answers when approximately 53,000 postal workers missed or received only partial paychecks, and the Postal Service responded that they had solved the issue that caused the error. “In your response, you assured us that the payroll programming error was ‘corrected’ and ‘rigorously tested,’ but just three months later we must address this again with you. Rural letter carriers provide an essential service to small towns and rural places in Minnesota and around the country. They deliver medicine, bills, Social Security checks and other crucial documents and items. They provide for their own families and deserve timely compensation,” the lawmakers said. In their letter, Senators Smith, Klobuchar, and Representative Craig called for DeJoy to take immediate steps to pay affected workers and ensure this problem is not repeated. Smith, Klobuchar and Craig have long worked to improve the reliability of postal service in Minnesota. All 3 lawmakers have introduced bicameral, bipartisan legislation addressing transparency at the Postal Service. Smith and Klobuchar both sent letters to Postmaster DeJoy regarding the disruptions caused by increased Amazon package delivery and decried Postmaster General DeJoy’s response. In September, they pressed USPS for answers about a payroll error that led to 53,000 rural letter carriers missing or receiving only a partial
Sen. Tina Smith Fights to Ensure 22,000 Retired Minnesota Workers Can Keep Hard-Earned Pensions
After recently meeting with retirees in Duluth whose hard-earned pensions are at risk of being drastically reduced due to chronic underfunding of the Central States Pension Fund, U.S. Senator Tina Smith is backing up her promise to support legislation that would help protect the pensions of retirees across the country, including 22,000 in Minnesota. The Butch Lewis Act—named for a veteran who was the head of his local union in Ohio and who fought to preserve fellow Teamsters’ pensions—would help shore up the Central States Pension Fund and strengthen the multi-employer pension system for all workers by creating a Pension Rehabilitation
Sen. Tina Smith Condemns Unchecked Dark Money in Politics, Calls for Legislation to Reform & Strengthen Campaign Finance Laws
U.S. Senator Tina Smith called on Congress to strengthen our nation’s campaign finance laws by ending the flood of unchecked, unlimited, and secret corporate money into our elections. Since the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United v. FEC decision—which opened the door to unlimited corporate spending in politics—more than $600 million has been spent in federal elections without free and open information about where these millions are coming from. In response to the urgent need for campaign finance changes, Sen. Smith is cosponsoring two legislative reforms. The first would overturn Citizens United once and for all, and the second—the DISCLOSE Act—would require super PACs and other
Sen. Tina Smith Spends Weekend Working Hard for Minnesotans
U.S. Senator Tina Smith made stops across the state—which you can read more about here—including the Red River Valley, southern Minnesota, and the metro area to hear from Minnesotans and inform her work in Washington. “I’m so thankful to the Minnesotans I met with this weekend. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me about what matters most to you,” said Sen. Smith. “It is an honor to be able to take your stories back with me to Washington and continue to be a fierce advocate for all of you.” You can view pictures from Sen. Smith’s weekend and read
Sen. Tina Smith Fights against Financial Threats to MinnesotaCare
U.S. Senator Tina Smith is working hard in the Senate Health Committee to protect a vital program that provides high-quality, affordable care for more than 100,000 Minnesotans. Late last year, President Trump abruptly ended federal payments that help consumers afford their health insurance coverage. That decision drove up premiums across the country and produced significant confusion and financial losses in several states. Because of these cuts, and other actions taken by the Trump Administration, Minnesota is now on track to lose more than $806 million in total funding from its “Basic Health Program” (BHP)—also known as MinnesotaCare. Now the long-term
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