Press Releases
Hawley Demands Answers from Biden Energy Secretary for Misleading Congress About Holding Stocks
Today U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent a letter to Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm demanding an explanation for misleading Senator Hawley during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing. During the April hearing, Secretary Granholm claimed she did not own any personal financial stocks, when in fact, she held individual stocks as recently as May of this year. "I write in response to your letter dated June 9, 2023 to the Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources admitting that you misled the committee and, in particular, misled me about your compliance with federal ethics laws and your conflicts of interest regarding stock holdings," wrote Senator Hawley. "These alarming new revelations demand an...
Hawley Statement on Biden’s Energy Secretary Lying About Holding Stocks
Today U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) released the following statement after Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm revealed that she held financial stocks as recently as May of this year, contradicting previous statements she made to Senator Hawley during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing earlier this year. So Granholm lied to me on April 20 - and it took the Administration 6 full weeks to admit it. Brazen https://t.co/48EOYUdL7V — Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) June 9, 2023 It is time to BAN all senior executive branch officials and all members of Congress from owning & trading stock — Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) June 9, 2023 The Energy Department has rampant conflict of interest problems top to bottom - need to root it out https://t.co/YmkyYPJ6TI — Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO)...
Hawley Announces Guiding Principles for Future AI Legislation
Today U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) announced his guiding principles for the future of American artificial intelligence (AI) legislation. Senator Hawley's principles seek to protect Americans' privacy as AI continues to develop at a pace that threatens to upend many aspects of American life. "Congress can and should act to protect Americans’ privacy, stave off the harms of unchecked AI development, insulate kids from harmful impacts, and keep this valuable technology out of the hands of our adversaries," said Senator Hawley. "Taken together, these five principles will help set the course for the responsible development of American AI." To guide future federal action, Senator Hawley proposed five guiding principles: First, create private rights of action. Individual...
Hawley and Blumenthal Demand Answers from Meta, Warn of Misuse After ‘Leak’ of Meta’s AI Model
U.S. Senators Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ranking Member and Chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, wrote a new letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, seeking information about the “leak” of its Large Language Model Meta AI (LLaMA) program. While Meta originally only purported to release the program to approved researchers within the AI community, the company’s vetting and safeguards appear to have been minimal and the full model appeared online within days, making the model, “available to anyone, anywhere in the world, without monitoring or oversight,” the Senators wrote. In the letter, Hawley and Blumenthal warned that there were “seemingly minimal” protections in Meta’s “unrestrained and permissive” release, and the...
Hawley Delivers Floor Speech Urging Support for His Amendment to Increase Tariffs on China
This evening U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) delivered remarks ahead of the Senate's vote on his amendment, as part of the debt ceiling deal, to raise tariffs on imports from China until the United States’ unsustainable trade deficit with China comes into balance. "In the last 20 years in the state of Missouri, we have lost 60,000 jobs to the People’s Republic of China—that number nationwide is almost 4 million," said Senator Hawley. "We can talk about budget reforms, and we can talk about savings here and there, but until we do the work of bringing back productive capacity to this nation and good-paying, blue-collar jobs you can raise a family on, we will not put our economy on the basis that we need to address the economic challenges that we face.” In May, Senator...
Hawley to Vote No on Debt Ceiling Deal
Today U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) released the following statement on his intent to vote 'no' on the debt ceiling deal. "On the debt ceiling, my view is the most important deficit we face is the trade deficit with China. Every dollar represents jobs lost (60k & counting in Missouri), industry lost, communities decimated. We’ve got to quit making China rich & get good blue-collar jobs back in USA. This deal doesn’t do that. So I’m a no," said Senator Hawley. On the debt ceiling, my view is the most important deficit we face is the trade deficit with China. Every dollar represents jobs lost (60k & counting in Missouri), industry lost, communities decimated. We’ve got to quit making China rich & get good blue-collar jobs back in USA — Josh Hawley...
Hawley Statement on Supreme Court Striking Down Biden’s Illegal WOTUS Rule
Today U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) released the following statement on the Supreme Court's unanimous 9-0 decision in the case of Sackett v. EPA, which effectively struck down President Biden's illegal Waters of the United States (WOTUS) Rule. Major victory for Missouri farmers today as Supreme Court effectively strikes down Biden’s illegal WOTUS rule https://t.co/o1WdjcmzPe — Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) May 25, 2023 Background In January, Senator Hawley led the Missouri Republican delegation in sending a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan and Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Michael Connor, calling on the administration to immediately rescind its controversial WOTUS Rule. In April 2022, Senator...
Hawley Co-Chairs A.I. Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing, Raises Concerns about Election Integrity and Company Liability
Today in the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law hearing on oversight of artificial intelligence (A.I.), U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Ranking Member of the subcommittee, questioned leaders in the A.I. space, including Sam Altman, Chief Executive Officer of OpenAI. "Will we strike that balance between technological innovation and our ethical and moral responsibility to humanity, to liberty, to the freedom of this country? I hope that today's hearing will take us a step closer to that answer," said Senator Hawley during his opening statement. Senator Hawley questioned witnesses about A.I.'s infringement on consumer privacy, potential manipulation of personal behavior and opinions, and threats to election integrity. "I want to think about this in...
NEW: Hawley Outlines Missouri Priorities for Upcoming Farm Bill
Today U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent a letter to U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Ranking Member John Boozman (R-Ark.), outlining Missouri's priorities for Title I and Title XI in the upcoming 2023 Farm Bill. These include the preservation of a strong farm safety net in light of high input prices and changing market conditions. Senator Hawley will continue to work in the Senate to advocate for the interests of Missouri’s farmers and ranchers during the Farm Bill process. "The upcoming farm bill reauthorization provides a unique opportunity to strengthen our rural economy. As you begin drafting legislative text, I urge you to preserve a strong farm safety net in the 2023 Farm Bill," wrote Senator Hawley. "I proudly...
Hawley Strikes Deal with Durbin to Advance CSAM Bill, Joins as Cosponsor
Today during a Senate Judiciary Committee Markup, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) reached an agreement with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) to advance the STOP CSAM Act, legislation sponsored by Senator Durbin that cracks down on the proliferation of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online. With Senator Durbin’s support, the Committee adopted Senator Hawley’s amendment empowering victims to bring civil suits against platforms for knowingly hosting CSAM to better hold tech companies accountable. Senator Hawley also joined the STOP CSAM Act as the first Republican co-sponsor of the legislation, which passed the Committee unanimously and now heads to the Senate floor. “I’ve just become convinced that maybe the only way to get the attention of these...