Press Releases
Congresswoman Lee Issues Statement in Response to Supreme Court Ruling on GOP Lawsuit to Strike Down Affordable Care Act
June 17, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) released this statement on the Supreme Court's ruling in California v. Texas, Republicans' lawsuit to strike down protections for people with pre-existing conditions and the entirety of the Affordable Care Act: "For the third time, the Supreme Court has held up the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and guaranteed the groundbreaking protections that it provides for all Americans. For a decade, Democrats have stood strong again… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee’s Legislation to Repeal the 2002 AUMF Passes the House of Representatives
June 17, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) today applauded the passage of her legislation, HR 256, to repeal the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002. The 2002 Authorization for the Use of Military Force was passed 20 years ago to utilize military forces to combat the Saddam Hussein Regime in Iraq. Today, almost fifteen years after the death of Saddam Hussein, this outdated authorization has no relevancy to the threats our nation faces. If the 2002 … Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Votes to Establish Juneteenth as a National Holiday
June 16, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) released the following statement after voting to pass the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act in the House: "On June 19th, 1865, news of the end of slavery finally reached Galveston, Texas more than two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. My great grandmother and many of my ancestors were born during slavery in Galveston, Texas. This day has always symbolized a time for reflection, as well as a recommitment to justi… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Introduces Legislation to Cut $350 Billion from Pentagon Budget
June 16, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) recently introduced legislation detailing up to $350 billion in cuts to the Defense budget. Congresswoman Lee released the following statement: "As we continue to fight a pandemic and economic crisis that has pushed millions into poverty, it's clearer than ever that a bloated defense budget does not meet our national security needs. Instead of wasting billions of dollars on forever wars around the globe, we should be investing in housing, edu… Continue Reading
Reps. Lee and Gonzalez-Colon Urge Biden to Appoint Global AIDS Coordinator and Members to the President’s Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS
June 15, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) and Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon (PR-At Large), Co-Chairs of the Congressional HIV/AIDS Caucus, sent a letter urging President Biden to nominate a Global AIDS Coordinator as well as appoint a full roster of members to the President's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, including people living with HIV, people of color, transgender/gender non-conforming individuals, and young people. The Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC) serves a critical rol… Continue Reading
ICYMI: Congresswoman Barbara Lee’s 2002 AUMF Repeal Legislation to be Considered by the House This Week
June 15, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee's legislation to repeal the 2002 AUMF will be considered on the House floor later this week. Congresswoman Lee was the lone vote against the 2001 AUMF following the attacks on 9/11. Congresswoman Barbara Lee presided over the vote on the rule This is the first time Congresswoman Lee's legislation will be considered by the House as a standalone bill. In previous sessions of Congress, she offered a repeal of the 2002 AUMF as an amendment to the Na… Continue Reading
Members of Congress Push Effort to End LGBTQ+ Discrimination in Blood Donations
June 15, 2021Today Reps. Barbara Lee (CA-13), Val B. Demings (FL-10), Mike Quigley (IL-05), Carolyn B. Maloney (NY-12), Adam B. Schiff (CA-28), and Ritchie Torres (NY-15) sent a letter to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Acting Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock. Writing in advance of the 5th anniversary of the Pulse Shooting, the members stated strong support of the Assessing Donor Variability and New Concepts in Eligibility (ADVANCE) Study. On June 12, 2016, 49 people were killed and 53 others shot an… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Applauds Announcement of Three Additional Honorees In the American Women Quarters Program
June 10, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) today applauded the United States Mint for announcing the names of the three additional women to be honored on coins issued under the American Women Quarters Program: Wilma Mankiller - the first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation and an activist for Native American and women's rights; Adelina Otero-Warren - a leader in New Mexico's suffrage movement and the first female superintendent of Santa Fe public schools; and Anna Ma… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Marks the 40th Anniversary of the AIDS Epidemic
June 04, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA), Co-Chair of the Congressional HIV/AIDS Caucus, today introduced legislation marking the 40th anniversary of the first reported cases of AIDS in the United States on June 5, 1981 in Los Angeles, California. June 5th, 2021 marks the 40th Anniversary since the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) described the first five cases of what later became known as AIDS. This day is obser… Continue Reading
Lee, DeLauro Applaud Biden Administration’s Global Vaccine Distribution Plan
June 03, 2021Washington, D.C. - Barbara Lee (D-CA-13), Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, and House Appropriations Committee Chair Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) released the following statement on President Joe Biden's announcement that the United States plans to distribute 80 million U.S. COVID-19 vaccine doses globally by the end of June: "As long as COVID-19 exists anywhere, it is a threat everywhere. The COVID-19 global distribution framework un… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Joins President Biden at Event Commemorating Tulsa Massacre
June 01, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) today joined President Joe Biden at an event in Tulsa, Oklahoma to commemorate the 100th year since the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. President Biden invited Congresswoman Lee to the Greenwood Cultural Center, along with Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge and Senior White House Advisors Susan Rice and Cedric Richmond, and other members of Congress. The President hosted a "meet and greet" with descendants of the mas… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Celebrates LGBTQ+ Pride Month
June 01, 2021Washington, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, a founding member and Vice Chair of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus, released the following statement in honor of LGBTQ+ Pride Month: "Every June, we celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month in honor of the invaluable contributions and accomplishments of our LGBTQ+ neighbors, family members, and friends. "Historically, Pride has always been a celebration and demonstration of activism to uplift and liberate the LGBTQ+ community. Over 50 years… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Introduces Legislation Recognizing the Significance of National Caribbean American Heritage Month
June 01, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) today reintroduced a Congressional Resolution recognizing the significance of National Caribbean American Heritage Month, which is celebrated every year beginning June 1st. Some prominent figures celebrated in the text of the resolution include Vice President Kamala Harris, Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, and famous entertainer Harry Belafonte. "Throughout our history, Caribbean Americans have served the country and contributed to th… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Recognizes the Centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre
May 31, 2021Oakland, CA - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) today released the following statement in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the Greenwood Massacre in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1921: "It has been 100 years since the horrific tragedy of the Tulsa Greenwood Massacre. In one of the worst acts of racist violence in United States history, a white mob ransacked a prosperous African American neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, known as Black Wall Street. "A thriving Black community became the target of a… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Statement on President Biden’s Budget Proposal
May 28, 2021Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee released the following statement on President Biden's $6 trillion budget, which will make historic investments in addressing the needs of the American people. "President Biden's first budget proposal since taking office comes as 140 million Americans confront poverty or low-wealth and are one crisis away from financial devastation. The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a light on the systemic inequality and racism that has existed for generations in our c… Continue Reading
Pro-Choice Caucus leaders applaud exclusion of Hyde amendment in president’s budget
May 28, 2021WASHINGTON, D.C. - Leaders of the Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus hailed the exclusion of the Hyde amendment from President Biden's first annual budget proposal submitted to Congress today as a significant moment in their fight to expand access to reproductive care. It's the first time in decades that the White House has submitted a budget to Congress that does not include the controversial and damaging amendment that bans the use of federal funds to pay for abortion services - and could pave … Continue Reading
Lee, Fleischmann Introduce Legislation to Improve Equity in Computer Science Education
May 28, 2021Washington, D.C. - Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA) today reintroduced the Computer Science for All Act with Representative Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN). This bipartisan legislation provides $250 million in new grants to support a diverse tech pipeline in pre-K through grade 12 education. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the field of computer science is projected to grow by 22 percent through 2029, making it one of the fastest-growing professions in the global economy. In 2020, only … Continue Reading
Reps. Lee & Pocan React to President Biden’s Pentagon Budget: “Pentagon Budget Fails to Reflect our Nation’s True Needs”
May 28, 2021President Biden's FY2022 budget proposes a 1.7% increase in total defense spending from $740 billion to $753 billion. WASHINGTON, D.C.-Representatives Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Mark Pocan (D-WI), co-chairs of the Defense Spending Reduction Caucus, released the following statement in response to President Biden's proposed FY2022 budget for the Department of Defense: "If budgets are moral documents, a $13 billion increase in defense spending is a failure that doesn't reflect this country's actual n… Continue Reading
Reps. Lee and Jayapal Call for An End to Poverty in Newsweek Op-Ed
May 28, 2021Washington, DC - Today, Representatives Barbara Lee (CA-13) and Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) published an op-ed in Newsweek that underscores the need to pass their resolution creating a framework for an end to poverty. Rep. Lee, who has chaired the Congressional Task Force on Poverty and Opportunity since 2013, and Rep. Jayapal, who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, unveiled a "People's Agenda" for pandemic recovery alongside the Poor People's Campaign earlier this week. This op-ed under… Continue Reading
Lee, Nadler, Blumenauer, Jackson Lee, Jeffries, & Velázquez Reintroduce Comprehensive Marijuana Reform Legislation
May 28, 2021Washington, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA), House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Representatives Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) reintroduced the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, one of the most comprehensive marijuana reform bills ever introduced in the U.S. Congress. The MORE Act includes Congresswoman Lee's legislation, the Marijuana Justice Act,… Continue Reading