Happy Friday from the Warner press office! This week, Sen. Warner was working hard to crack down on Trump’s latest ploy to line his own pockets, defend federal workers from looming cyber threats, highlight the urgent need to strengthen protections for our hardworking coal miners, and ensure the safety and security of our upcoming elections.

There’s a lot to get into, so without further ado…

NO PAY-TO-PLAY FOR GOVERNMENT INFORMATION

While Virginians are struggling to afford everyday necessities – you know, health care, groceries, gas, and energy – President Trump appears more focused on lining his own pockets than lowering costs for working families.

Last weekend, his latest scam went live. Trump’s Truth Social launched a new subscription service, charging companies and other subscribers $100,000 for early access to the president’s posts. We all know that Trump rules by Truth Social posts… announcing new tariffs, military actions, and other market-moving government decisions by simply firing off a quick couple of sentences online. With advance access to Trump’s market-moving posts, large firms with the rare ability to pay $100,000 for a single service will make millions. After all, the president has made it clear that he operates a pay-to-play system, especially if that payment is going to his own, personal bank account.

BUT just because that’s the way things are, does not mean it’s the way they should be.

So this week, Sen. Warner introduced the Senate’s first bill to roll back this latest Trump scheme and crack down on his corruption.

The NO PROFITS Act would make it illegal for social media companies to sell prioritized access to government employees’ accounts that communicate material information. This legislation would also make it illegal for a person to knowingly trade in securities, commodities, swaps, or prediction market contracts if the person is doing so based on material information obtained through access to a prioritized account.

Sen. Warner breaks it down a bit more in this video:

He also had this to say about his new bill:

“The president’s company selling prioritized access to the president’s market-moving posts is corrupt and erodes public confidence. Americans should have free and equal access to public statements made by U.S. government officials. My bill would make sure social media companies can’t sell prioritized access to government employees’ accounts and that someone can’t knowingly trade with information obtained through access to those accounts. Early access to government information should not be sold to whoever will pay the price.”

ICYMI… when reporting of this money-making scheme broke late last month, Sen. Warner pressed leaders from across the financial services industry urging them not to participate.

Sen. Warner will continue to work tirelessly to combat Trump’s corruption.

KEEPING FEDERAL WORKERS PROTECTED

More than a decade ago, two cyberattacks on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) compromised the personal data of about 22 million federal government employees and contractors. Over 4 million federal government employees were exposed, including their Social Security numbers, addresses, financial details, and security clearance files. And the background investigation records of about 21.5 million individuals were also exposed.

To this day, much of that stolen data has not publicly resurfaced. That raises serious concerns that the malicious actors responsible for the attacks are saving the information for future cyber operations. It means that the millions of federal workers who were exposed – many of them Virginians – are still at risk.

Back in 2017, Congress provided identity protect to the victims of these attacks for ten years… but that protection is set to expire at the end of September. The privacy of millions of individuals is still in jeopardy, and they urgently need new protections.

Well, Sen. Warner is on the case. He and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton introduced the Reducing the Effects of the Cyberattack on OPM Victims Enduring Response and Protecting Identifiable Information Act (RECOVER PII Act). It’s bicameral legislation to provide lifetime identity protection coverage to federal employees whose personal information was compromised in the 2015 OPM cyberattacks. Their bill would also reimburse affected federal employees and contractors for privacy software and other eligible tools used to reduce the exposure of their personal information online.

Here’s what Sen. Warner had to say about his new legislation:

“More than ten years after the OPM data breach exposed the personal information of millions of federal employees, the threat remains. The data stolen included workers’ most sensitive and personal information – from Social Security numbers to security clearance records – and once that information is in the hands of a bad actor, you don’t get it back. We have a responsibility to stand by the federal workers who were put at risk through no fault of their own. This legislation will ensure those affected continue to receive the identity protection they need, while helping better safeguard personal information from future exploitation.”

MINERS DESERVE BETTER

Throughout his time in office, Sen. Warner has been tirelessly fighting for the protection and benefits of miners and their families. Coal miners quite literally risk their lives to power our nation, and Sen. Warner has never swayed from the conviction that we owe them the health care and benefits they deserve.

In case you forgot about his legislation, Sen. Warner has introduced the Relief for Survivors of Miners Act and the Black Lung Benefits Improvement Act to remove barriers to benefits and ensure that miners and their families receive the compensation they are entitled to. He also previously spoke out against the Trump administration’s decision to pause enforcement of a Department of Labor rule to protect miners from silica dust, which is contributing to a significant uptick in severe black lung disease, particularly among younger miners in their thirties and forties.

This week, a new report found that coal miners in Appalachia are suffering from black lung at the highest rates in nearly 50 years. Specifically, it found that among miners in Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky with at least 25 years in the mines, almost 33% tested positive for black lung. This is the highest recorded rate since 1978. The report also found that miners with at least 15 years underground are developing black lung at rates not seen in nearly 4 decades.

Sen. Warner highlighted the need to strengthen protections for miners, saying…

“Coal miners in Appalachia are getting sicker and at younger ages, and this new data that black lung rates are at their highest in nearly 50 years is devastating. The administration’s decision to cut funding for programs that protect miners’ health and pause enforcement of the silica dust rule is leaving miners at greater risk. Miners have risked their lives to fuel and power our nation. I am proud to fight for coal miners in Appalachia and across the country, and we must do right by them. Congress must enact legislation to ensure miners can access the medical care, compensation, and benefits they have earned.”

ELECTION MONITORS… NOT MEDDLERS

Folks, the midterms are just 89 days away, and President Trump has only been turning up the heat on his threats to “nationalize,” “militarize,” and otherwise interfere with our elections. For months, Sen. Warner has been sounding the alarm on Trump’s threats from writing about growing threats to our elections coming from inside our own government… to calling out the president on his false claims about the integrity of the 2020 election… to pressing the administration time and time again on whatever their ploy of the day is.

Sen. Warner recently took to social media to call out Trump’s bogus claims of election fraud:

This week, Sen. Warner continued the pressure. He led a group of his colleagues in pressing the Department of Justice (DOJ) on their compliance with federal voting laws and cautioning against the misuse of any federal election monitors and actions that could interfere with voting or with state and local officials’ administration of elections.

Sen. Warner and his colleagues wrote,

“Federal election monitors have been present at election sites on Election Day for decades and play a critical role in assessing if state and local elections are administered in compliance with federal civil and voting rights laws, including the laws that guarantee equal access to the polls, language assistance, and disability accommodations. The election monitors program has been implemented under Democratic and Republican administrations alike and has largely operated without incident or controversy. It is important that American voters trust that the U.S. Department of Justice’s election monitors will focus only on their statutory ambit and will not target jurisdictions in a partisan manner; discourage voter participation or interfere with the voting process; or pressure, harass, or interfere with state and local election officials as they do their jobs.”

Free, fair, and secure elections depend on public trust, and that trust requires that federal election monitors remain nonpartisan and operate strictly within the law. Sen. Warner’s letter to the DOJ follows the agency’s July 7 announcement that it would deploy election monitors to 15 jurisdictions, including several in Virginia, during the 2026 primary season… with plans to expand for the general election. DOJ may claim that their actions are routine and nonpartisan, but the monitors are being disproportionately assigned to jurisdictions in states led by Democrats. That’s not suspicious at all as Trump continues to perpetuate unsupported claims about fraud in the 2020 election.

Sen. Warner’s letter demanded answers from the DOJ on how deployment decisions are being made and what safeguards are in place to ensure the program remains impartial. He reminded the agency that federal election monitors have played an important role under both Democratic and Republican administrations, helping ensure compliance with federal voting rights laws. He also emphasized that federal elections monitors must NEVER be used to advance partisan interests, intimidate voters, or interfere with state and local election officials carrying out their responsibilities. The Constitution clearly gives states the primary responsibility for administering elections. Any federal role must be limited, lawful, and respectful of that framework.

Sen. Warner will continue fighting against the Trump administration’s attempts to interfere in our upcoming elections and to ensure every eligible voter is able to cast a ballot free from intimidation and harassment.

GRAB BAG

USPS WINS: Sen. Warner celebrated legislation to establish a unique ZIP code for Fairlawn, VA, as well as three of his bills to rename USPS offices in Loudoun County, Fairfax, and New Kent, passing out of committee.

COMBATTING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN: Sen. Warner announced more than $5 million in federal grant funding to help law enforcement, court personnel, and victim services organizations support victims of sexual assault and their families, enhance victim protection and safety, and curb violent crimes against women.

MATCH IT: Sen. Warner introduced the Patient Matching and Transparency in Certified Health IT (Match It) Act, bipartisan legislation to help decrease patient misidentification and promote interoperability in the health care system.

BOOSTING PUBLIC SAFETY, PROTECTING LAW ENFORCEMENT: Sen. Warner announced federal funding to help local law enforcement agencies across Virginia strengthen public safety through upgraded equipment, specialized training, and enhanced emergency response capabilities.

HAZARDING ON AI: Sen. Warner pressed the Trump administration for answers on its unpredictable oversight of frontier AI models and unclear standards for evaluating a model’s risk to national security.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Senate will be in recess the rest of August. Later this month, Sen. Warner will be traveling around the Commonwealth meeting with Virginians.

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Happy Friday from the Warner press office! Sen. Warner was working hard all week speaking out against Trump’s war of choice, fighting for justice and tax fairness in the Finance Committee, and more. Today, he’s meeting with constituents across Hampton Roads and visiting the USS Ford to offer a message of support for our servicemembers and hear more from the ship’s leadership.

There’s a lot to get into, so without further ado…

UPDATING YOU ON IRAN

Well, the war in Iran passed its 150^th day – a harrowing milestone for a conflict that’s taken a devastating toll on our servicemembers and our economy. Sen. Warner spent all week advocating to bring this conflict to an end, and reminding Virginians of the horrible costs of this war of choice. He shared an update as we passed this somber milestone:

On Monday, he announced that farmers in Virginia and across the country spent over $1,500 more to fill up their farm’s onsite fuel tank – the common way farmers buy and store diesel fuel – during this year’s spring planting season than they did last year.

In addition to the enormous toll that expense takes on farmers, many of whom are already struggling because of Trump’s chaotic tariffs, those costs often get passed along to consumers in the form of higher grocery prices.

After making this announcement, Sen. Warner said,

“Virginia farmers depend on diesel fuel to plant, harvest, and transport the crops that feed their families and communities and sustain their livelihoods. Our Commonwealth’s farmers are being squeezed from every direction as Trump’s war of choice drives up the cost of diesel at the same time they’re struggle with the strain of the president’s senseless tariffs. Virginia’s farmers work tirelessly to keep our families fed, and they deserve leaders who will fight for commonsense policies to lower their expenses.”

Sen. Warner also spoke out clearly this week against reports that the Pentagon had been obscuring the numbers of casualties and injuries in the Iran War. You can watch his video on that here:

Beyond just clearly laying out the stakes, however, Sen. Warner is actively fighting and voting to bring this war to an end. After voting once again to end this war of choice, he said:

While the costs continue to mount, Sen. Warner will keep fighting to end this illegal and unpopular war.

FIGHTING FOR FAIR FINANCE

Beyond concerns abroad, Sen. Warner is also fighting for fairer policy at home. In case you missed it, Trump’s Department of Justice reached a controversial settlement earlier this year stating that President Trump, his family, and many of their businesses would be forever exempt from investigations into their prior taxes… and reserving a $1.8 billion fund for victims of “government weaponization.”

It’s a total scam… essentially a get-out-of-jail-free card for Trump and his family. It’s totally contrary to the way our system is supposed to work. For months, Sen. Warner has been pushing to make sure these damaging policies cannot go into place.

This week, Sen. Warner continued that fight when the Finance Committee took up a measure to try and block this blanket immunity. Sen. Warner filmed an update here explaining exactly how this makes our system less fair for everyone:

But that’s not all Sen. Warner was working on… he also spent this week fighting to make IRS customer service work better. After all, who among us doesn’t absolutely hate the headaches and confusion that come with Tax Day every year?!?!

Well, have no fear, because Sen. Warner is springing into action, continuing his work to address persistent backlogs at the IRS, expand digital and callback capabilities, and much more.

This week, the Finance Committee passed bipartisan legislation that includes provisions from Sen. Warner’s Improving IRS Customer Service Act. The Taxpayer Assistance and Service (TAS) Act would take important steps to improve communication between the IRS and taxpayers, streamline tax compliance processes, and ensure taxpayers have timely access to expert assistance, among other much-needed tax administration reforms.

After advancing this critical legislation, Sen. Warner said,

“Taxpayers shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to get answers to basic questions about their taxes. I’m thrilled that several of my proposals have passed out of the Finance Committee and can now be considered by the whole Senate. I urge my colleagues to join me in getting this bill across the finish line and bring clarity and relief to taxpayers in Virginia and across the country.”

So whether it’s combatting unfair practices around Trump’s taxes…. Or getting you your refund faster… Sen. Warner is grinding to make the system work better for everyone.

GRAB BAG

FACE-TO-FACE WITH AI LEADERS: Sen. Warner met with AI CEOs – including Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and OpenAI’s Sam Altman – to talk about his new comprehensive AI legislative agenda.

DOLLING UP DULLES: Sen. Warner applauded an announcement from the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) and United Airlines to invest at least $20 billion to upgrade Washington Dulles International Airport.

WINTERGREEN: Sen. Warner applauded the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s passage of the bipartisan, bicameral Wintergreen Emergency Egress Act, which would issue a right-of-way to add an emergency route and road to enhance public safety in Wintergreen, Virginia.

SUPERSIZING SHENANDOAH: Sen. Warner introduced the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Boundary Expansion and Partnership Act of 2026, landmark bipartisan legislation that would add Rockbridge County, Virginia, and three counties in West Virginia to the district.

COMMENTING ON CLAYTON: Sen. Warner released a statement on Jay Clayton’s confirmation as Director of National Intelligence.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Sen. Warner will be in Hampton Roads and across the Northern Neck through this weekend.

The Senate will be in session next week, and Sen. Warner will vote on legislation and nominations.

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There’s a lot to get into, so without further ado…

R-AI-SING THE BAR

Well, it seems like you can’t make it through a single day without hearing about artificial intelligence. From its potentially devastating impacts on our job market… to the rapid proliferation of data centers and their associated utility bill increases… to alarming stories of chatbots coaxing minors into self-harm… Virginians have good reason to be skeptical of this nascent technology.

At the same time, AI holds tremendous promise for advancing scientific discovery, eliminating boring friction in all of our lives, and creating new high-tech jobs… and it’s important that we protect room for responsible innovation and ensure America can remain a leader in this space.

For years, Sen. Warner has been weighing both of these priorities and learning as much as he possibly can about artificial intelligence to shape thoughtful policy that meets this critical moment.

While he’s already introduced scores of legislation to protect jobs and get ahead of some of the biggest risks… this week he upped the ante and unveiled a bold new framework with 6 new pieces of legislation that would establish some commonsense regulation while ensuring the United States is ready to lead the world in responsible AI development.

That framework includes:

• The Data Center Tax Accountability and Disclosure Act, which would require large AI data centers to publicly disclose key information about their energy and water consumption, emissions, backup generation, and other operational impacts – providing communities, local policymakers, and consumers with the information they need to understand and plan for these facilities.

• The Artificial Intelligence Access, Gatekeeper Exchange, and Nondiscriminatory Transfer Act, or AI AGENT Act, legislation which would establish rights and responsibilities for consumer-facing AI agents.

• The Safeguarding Against Fabricated Exploitation Through Artificial Intelligence (SAFE AI) Act which would establish a National Institute of Standards and Technology-led testing and verification process for AI models, prohibit federal agencies from procuring AI systems capable of generating child sexual abuse material (CSAM) or non-consensual intimate images (NCII), prohibit software designed to circumvent AI safety controls, and create a private right of action for survivors whose likeness is used to generate AI-produced CSAM.

• The National Workforce Transition Fund, a proposal to ensure workers – not just big corporations – benefit from the AI revolution. The legislation would dedicate revenue generated by limiting bonus depreciation for AI data center infrastructure to a National Workforce Transition Fund supporting worker retraining, individual workforce training accounts, employer retention and redeployment grants, tuition assistance for high-demand fields, workforce data modernization, and innovative pilot programs to help workers navigate technological disruption.

• The Promoting High-skilled Doctoral (PHD) Talent Act, legislation to expand America’s pipeline of homegrown STEM talent by helping universities create accelerated pathways from undergraduate education to Ph.D. programs in critical technology fields, expanding the domestic pipeline of researchers and innovators in AI, cybersecurity, semiconductors, quantum computing, and other technologies essential to America’s future.

• The Secure AI Development Act, which would establish a mandatory secure testing environment for the nation’s most advanced AI models before deployment, modernize the federal government’s processes for identifying and disclosing AI-related cybersecurity vulnerabilities, improve information sharing between government and AI developers, and create a voluntary AI safety incident reporting system modeled after the aviation industry’s safety reporting framework.

Curious to dive deeper on all of these laws? Sen. Warner released a booklet with tons more information on all of these bills. You can read that here.

But wait… there’s more! You can also watch his full YouTube explainer here… OR his floor speech unveiling this new push.

This doesn’t represent the end of Sen. Warner’s work on AI… over the next several weeks and months, he’s going to keep soliciting feedback, introducing new proposals, and fighting to pass real progress in this arena.

Instead of meeting this moment of rapid change with doom or refusing to legislate at all… Sen. Warner is meeting the moment with thoughtful, bold action.

TRUTH OR DARE

And now… from the President that brought you $2.2 billion in grifts during his time in office…. ANOTHER ENORMOUS SCAM! Since it might be hard to keep track of the endless parade of self-enrichment emanating from this administration… we wanted to make sure you heard about one of President Trump’s newest scams.

First of all, let’s zoom out for a second. More than any president before him, Trump has ruled by social media post… using his preferred Truth Social platform to announce seismic policy changes… many of which move the markets. One of his posts announcing a tariff pause sent the S&P shooting up by 9.5 percent. A post delaying planned attacks on Iran drove oil prices down by about 15 percent.

In our markets, seconds can mean millions. Having even a little bit of a heads up can dramatically change how much you yield.

Ever the scammer, Trump is preparing to capitalize on that phenomenon. Reporting broke last week that Truth Social has been shopping around a brand new plan that provides a high-speed feed of President Trump’s posts… in exchange for the low, low price of $100,000 per month.

That means those willing to pay the ransom could make big windfalls trading on new information… and everyone else gets left out in the cold. It’s a total scam… and in any normal world, federal regulators would probably step in to prevent this enormous graft.

But this isn’t a normal world.

So this week, Sen. Warner pressed directly on leaders from across the financial services industry urging them not to participate in this enormous scam. He wrote,

“These incidents demonstrate the risk of allowing firms that pay for Truth API to receive the president’s market-moving statements faster than ordinary users. It would create a two-tiered system for access to government information and threaten the credibility of U.S. capital markets. This latest venture also adds to a broader pattern of self-dealing by President Trump. By using Truth Social as a primary channel for announcing market-moving government decisions, the president has made rapid access to his account uniquely valuable to financial firms. TMTG is now seeking to profit from that value by charging firms for faster delivery of those announcements, even as President Trump retains a substantial financial interest in the company.”

Sen. Warner has been relentless in trying to curb Trump’s rampant corruption… so don’t expect this to be the last action you see on this topic. Stay tuned for more updates next week…

TRUMPED UP COSTS

As Trump continues waging his war of choice and announces new tariffs on OVER 60 U.S. trading partners from Canada to the U.K., Sen. Warner is sounding the alarm on the impacts this administration’s disastrous policies are having on Virginians.

New data has found that Virginia families have had to spend more than $2,900 extra on everyday expenses since President Trump took office last year. These additional costs include everything from housing to energy and groceries to health care.

Specifically, Virginia families have spent more than $2 billion extra on gas since the start of President Trump’s war in Iran! That averages to an extra $605 per household! But those aren’t the only energy expenses that have shot up… Virginians have paid $170 more for electricity in 2025 under President Trump than they did in 2024. In just the first 6 months of 2026, they’re expected to spend an additional $181 for electricity than they did in the first half of 2024. These increased energy costs are all thanks to the President’s senseless and drawn-out conflict.

These extra dollars that Virginians have had to cough up to cover their energy bills are not the only expenses stretching them thin. They have had to spend $637 more on housing, including rent and mortgage payments. (Let’s not forget that earlier this month President Trump refused to sign the ROAD to Housing Act – landmark legislation that included over 40 bipartisan provisions to address the country’s housing crisis – into law. This is a bill that passed the House and Senate with veto-proof margins and only became law because the ten-day clock that started once it reached the president’s desk expired. And WHY did President Trump never sign this bill into law?? Because he wanted Congress to pass theSAVE America Act first… you know, the aggressive voter suppression bill that even many Republicans don’t support.)

And across Virginia and the country, families are having to empty their wallets for groceries. In 2025 under President Trump, Americans paid an average of $310 more for groceries than they did in 2024. Grocery prices are more than 4% higherthan when President Trump took office. The average price of staples like ground beef and coffee are hitting Americans particularly hard, as beef has risen to a record high of more than $7 per pound and coffee process have spiked to nearly $10 per pound.

But that’s still not all! Following President Trump and congressional Republicans’ refusal to extend enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, average ACA premiums across the country have increased by more than 50% in 2026 compared to last year. Average deductibles also surged to record highs, rising bymore than $1,000.

All of these costs add up and quick! Virginians work hard for their money, and because of this administration’s reckless policies, they’re watching it leave their bank accounts quicker than ever before.

Earlier today, Sens. Warner and Kaine said this about the increased costs:

“This new data confirms what we’ve been hearing from families across Virginia for months. President Trump promised the American people lower costs, but instead, his reckless war of choice in Iran and his chaotic economic policies have driven up the price of filling up your car, buying groceries, keeping the lights on, and putting a roof over your head. Virginians deserve leaders focused on lowering costs – not policies that make life more expensive. We’ll keep fighting to reverse these harmful policies, end this unnecessary war, and put more money back in Virginians’ pockets.”

GRAB BAG

PUMPING UP PETERSBURG: Sen. Warner celebrated $16 million in federal funding for the Virginia Advanced Pharma Manufacturing (APM) and R&D Cluster in the Richmond-Petersburg region.

CYBERCHASE: Sen. Warner reintroduced the Enhancing K-12 Cybersecurity Act,bipartisan legislation to help schools defend against ransomware, data breaches, and other cyberattacks that can expose students’ information, disrupt classroom learning, and strain already limited school resources.

CLARITY (REMIX): Sen. Warner joined several colleagues in releasing a statement on the latest version of the CLARITY Act.

COMMITTEES CUTTING COSTS: Sen. Warner celebrated that several of his cost-cutting and health-promoting bills cleared key committees.

PROTECTING KIDS: Sen. Warner joined bipartisan colleagues to discussSammy’s Law, legislation that would empower parents to protect their children on social media platforms by providing them the right to know if their children are engaging in dangerous or risky interactions.

WORKING TO OUR ADVANTAGE: Sen. Warner reintroduced the Medicare Advantage Supplemental Benefits Transparency Act, legislation to require Medicare Advantage (MA) plans to publicly report the supplemental benefits they offer and the extent to which beneficiaries use them.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Senate will be in session next week and Sen. Warner will vote on legislation and nominations.

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Happy Friday from the Warner press office. Well, it was another busy week for Sen. Warner as he fought ferociously on behalf of our democracy. While President Trump platformed lies and long-debunked conspiracies with a sad and desperate primetime address, Sen. Warner worked to get the facts out and restore trust in our democratic process.

While balancing that critical priority, Sen. Warner also stayed engaged in a range of other key Virginia issues – highlighting the domestic economic impacts of the Iran War and also fighting for federal employees.

There’s a TON to get into, so without further ado….

ELECTION PROTECTION

In case you missed it – and we really hope you did – President Trump gave a sad, desperate primetime address last night. The speech contained essentially nothing new. It was just a lukewarm reheating of old conspiracies and lies, paired with a document drop… that largely made it clear that one of the biggest threats to our elections is Russia working on behalf of President Trump.

While the speech itself was a total flop, the underlying threats are very real and need to be taken seriously. As Sen. Warner covered in his appearance on Jen Psaki’s show last night, this is a President who will go to any length to preserve his power, and we all need to be involved in the fight against that. You can watch his full appearance here.

Sen. Warner also got pretty direct on a broadcast with CBS… where he laid out the stakes clearly and made the case that every journalist and every American needs to stand up and not treat this moment like news as usual. You can watch some of that coverage here.

Last night wasn’t the end of Trump’s attempts to interfere – we are very much in the middle of a historic fight. His address was meant to disillusion the American people, shake our trust in the democratic process, and serve as a pretext for further interference in our elections.

What might that look like? Well, President Trump spelled out one option in his speech… he really wants to pass his voter suppression bill, the SAVE America Act.

Sen. Warner has voted against it many times previously, and he will continue to block it in the Senate.

That doesn’t mean these threats are over though – Trump administration officials have publicly considered sending ICE agents to the polls to intimidate voters and much more… and rest assured, Sen. Warner is working through the possibilities daily and continuing to press back against whatever form Trump’s interference continues to take.

After the address, Sen. Warner also issued the following statement:

“Tonight, Americans heard the president once again repeat claims about our elections that have been investigated for years and repeatedly rejected by the Intelligence Community, the FBI, DHS, DOJ, bipartisan state election officials, audits, recounts, and the courts. The facts have not changed.

“As Vice Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I have spent years overseeing our nation’s efforts to defend against foreign meddling in our elections. China is a serious strategic competitor, and it absolutely seeks to advance its interests at America’s expense. So do Russia and Iran. We should confront those threats with facts, not distort them for political purposes.

“The Intelligence Community’s conclusions have been remarkably consistent across Republican and Democratic administrations. Foreign adversaries conduct espionage, cyber operations, propaganda, and influence campaigns designed to divide Americans and undermine confidence in our democracy. The Intelligence Community also concluded that China considered – but ultimately did not deploy – an influence campaign intended to affect the outcome of the 2020 election, and that no foreign government altered vote totals, hacked voting machines, or compromised the integrity of our election infrastructure. Even the minority view that President Trump cites agreed there was ‘no information suggesting China tried to interfere with election processes.’

“That distinction matters. The greatest danger to our elections right now is false narratives seized upon here at home as a pretext to convince Americans their elections cannot be trusted – or worse, to justify unprecedented federal intervention in elections that the Constitution entrusts to the states. Americans should recognize that danger for what it is. Our democracy depends on confidence in elections that are administered according to law by the states, not on falsehoods invoked to justify unprecedented government intervention.”

Rest assured, you will continue to hear from Sen. Warner about this.

IRAN WAR RAGES ON

In addition to these shocking attacks on our elections, Sen. Warner also reminded Virginians of another Trump failure… the war in Iran.

The economic news has been beyond bleak this week. As the ceasefire falls apart and the war in Iran continues to rage, diesel prices have surged back above $5/gallon. Gas prices are surging back up once again, over 22% higher for Virginians than they were at the start of the war… and even higher than that nationally! Those two factors will continue to send shocks throughout our economy, raising costs on absolutely everything you buy.

Curious for a little more explanation on the exact mechanism behind these price increases? Sen. Warner filmed a video a few weeks ago explaining it all…

Sen. Warner has continued to use his social media accounts to draw attention to the ways this war is spiking costs for all Virginians.

Additionally, Sen. Warner released new data this week that contextualizes this crisis… since the war began on February 28, Virginians have spent a total of $1.8 billion extra on gasoline! That means an extra $573 per household!

Americans are crying out for an end to the affordability crisis. Instead, Trump has delivered one of history’s worst-conceived wars of choice… and Americans’ prices are headed fast in the wrong direction.

After announcing this huge drain of Virginians’ budgets, Sen. Warner said,

“Because of the president’s war of choice, Virginians are facing higher gas, utility, and grocery costs. Instead of ending this war and finally easing the burden that he has placed on American families, Trump is calling off the ceasefire, trading airstrikes with Iran, and blockading the Strait of Hormuz.”

VOUGHTING NO

While many have moved on from the wreckage of DOGE.… Sen. Warner hasn’t! Thousands of federal workers and their families are still reeling from the economic or personal shock of this “agency.”

The truth is, the terror of DOGE went beyond dollars and cents – though it damaged thousands of families’ budgets and also probably cost the American taxpayer, too. For thousands of families, an entire career of dedicated public service was denigrated and dismissed overnight. Years of building a brighter government and a brighter world was suddenly extinguished by a group of men with fragile egos and horrible ideas.

For Sen. Warner, who has spent years hearing from federal employees and fighting for them, those attacks were personal. So when he had the opportunity to question OMB Director Russ Vought… he took it.

Sen. Warner GRILLED Vought on how badly he had terrorized federal workers. He also stood up for Community Development Financial Institutions, or CDFIs, which have had an exceedingly difficult time accessing their congressionally appropriated funds under Vought’s leadership.

It’s a devastating watch that will only take 5 minutes… highly suggest you watch the full thing here:

GRAB BAG

LAYING DOWN THE LAW: Sen. Warner announced $6,733,892 in federal grant funding for the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) to help state and local law enforcement agencies strengthen crisis intervention systems, expand evidence-based diversion strategies, and improve public safety across the Commonwealth.

HOPING FOR HEALTH: Sen. Warner welcomed the House Ways and Means Committee’s unanimous passage of his Rural Patient Monitoring (RPM) Access Act and his Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act.

HONORING LINDSEY: Sen. Warner issued a statement on the passing of his colleague, Senator Lindsey Graham.

OFFSHORE MINING: Sen. Warner sent a letter to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) requesting a 30-day extension to the public comment period for BOEM’s Request for Information and Interest (RFI) on potential leasing offshore Virginia for mineral extraction.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Sen. Warner is traveling across the Commonwealth this weekend and will appear on CBS’s “Face the Nation” and ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday morning. Next week, he plans to introduce some exciting new artificial intelligence legislation… stay tuned!

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Happy Friday from the Warner press office. Sen. Warner is crisscrossing the Commonwealth today and through next week, using the Fourth of July break in the Senate schedule to meet as many Virginians as he can. It’s a welcome relief from the chaos of Washington, where he spent the week fighting to pass a housing bill, continuing to ensure Bill Pulte can’t wreak havoc on our national security, and demanding the security of our elections.

Let’s get into it.

HOUSING HAVOC

If you’ve been following Sen. Warner for awhile, you know that fighting to end the affordable housing crisis is one of his top priorities.

For years, he’s been introducing countless pieces of bipartisan legislation that would make it easier to build more homes and lower costs for all – from bills that would help close the racial wealth gap to proposals that would make it easier to build affordable housing on the unused land surrounding faith communities.

You can watch a video on some of his ideas here:

And after years of fighting and advocacy, that work is paying off. Following months of back and forth, the Senate and House both passed the ROAD to Housing Act, a bill that contained over 40 bipartisan proposals – including several authored by Sen. Warner – that would meaningfully address this crisis. It was the most significant piece of housing legislation in the past 30 years, a true win for families across the country.

Sen. Warner laid out some of the most impactful proposals in this video and in this press release.

And while victory was mere minutes away… a signing ceremony already staged and a press conference fully underway… President Trump snatched defeat from the jaws of victory and announced that he wouldn’t sign the law until Congress passes the SAVE America Act.

(If you haven’t been following along, the SAVE America Act is such an aggressive voter suppression bill that even many Republicans don’t support it. It’s already been voted on several times in the Senate – it will never, ever pass in this Congress unless Republicans decide to blow up the filibuster. Sen. Warner put out a release spelling out exactly how disastrous this law would be for Virginians here.)

It was a truly shocking and mystifying decision. While inflation continues to spike and families suffer because of the cost of Trump’s illegal and unpopular war… you would think that any logical person would do the bare minimum and sign a broadly bipartisan measure that could lower housing costs. Unfortunately, our president is not a logical person.

Sen. Warner reacted to the news in this video:

While this is an enormous setback, it’s not the end of the fight, and Sen. Warner will keep pushing to get this bill across the finish line come hell or high water.

PUSHING BACK ON PULTE

A top Trump attack dog now has the keys to all 18 of our intelligence agencies. Sen. Warner is fighting hard to keep our intelligence community – and our most classified information and national security by extension – safe.

Here’s what’s going on… after the resignation of Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Trump appointed top attack dog Bill Pulte to the post. Pulte has absolutely NO relevant national security experience. His only relevant qualification is that he used his existing role in the Trump administration – as head of the FHFA – to comb through private mortgage information and manufacture totally bogus cases against Trump’s political enemies.

The move was both dangerous and illegal – the statute clearly expresses that whoever assumes the role must have extensive national security expertise.

So this week, Sen. Warner continued to fight back and press for accountability. Alongside Ranking Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Rep. Jim Himes, he pressed Pulte on several of his biggest concerns with his appointment. In a letter, they wrote:

“We are concerned that your record as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency demonstrates a willingness to misuse your position, including your access to sensitive information, to pursue President Trump’s perceived political enemies and further his retributive political agenda. Given the extremely sensitive nature of intelligence, we expect that you will not declassify properly classified information that would compromise intelligence sources and methods, or weaponize the declassification process for partisan political purposes, and that any declassification effort you undertake will follow all established policies and practices, including by obtaining substantive input from career intelligence officials regarding the national security risks posed by declassification.”

But Sen. Warner also went far beyond that. This week, he introduced a bill that would prevent Pulte from taking the DNI position by strengthening the existing line of succession, and ensuring that the role is filled by an experienced, Senate-confirmed national security official. After introduction, Sen. Warner said:

“Bill Pulte may be exactly who President Trump wants running the intelligence community, but that does not make him qualified for the job. After pulling his own selected nominee from the confirmation process, the president chose to install a political ally with no intelligence background, no national security credentials, and a record of using government power to pursue political grievances as the country’s Director of National Intelligence. The intelligence community should be led by experienced, Senate-confirmed professionals – not by whoever happens to be most willing to carry out the president’s whims and vendettas. And if there is an intelligence failure, a missed threat, or a national security crisis on Bill Pulte’s watch, Americans will pay the price, and President Trump will be to blame. He made the deliberate choice to pass over qualified national security professionals and put an unqualified loyalist in charge.”

On Wednesday, he fought to pass this bill on the Senate floor and gave a speech highlighting just how important it is to stop Pulte. You can watch his full speech here:

While Republicans blocked its passage, the fight isn’t done. Sen. Warner will keep working against this dangerous appointment.

RETURN TO SENDER

With less than five months to go until the midterms, Sen. Warner has been working tirelessly to ensure the security of our elections. Worried about Trump’s obsession with losing in 2020 and his expressed intentions to “nationalize” and “take over” the upcoming midterms, Sen. Warner is pressing everyone from top administration officials to the CEOs of tech companies to take steps toward ensuring the integrity of our voting systems.

This week, Sen. Warner took his efforts to the United States Postal Service.

ICYMI… President Trump issued an illegal executive order to create a national list of citizens that would determine voting eligibility and restrict mail ballots. The order seeks to force states to submit absentee voters’ information to the Postal Service to create a federal mail-in voter list. Well, that’s unconstitutional, which is why Sen. Warner previously urged USPS to NOT carry out this order. And yesterday, a federal judge agreed and struck down part of it, ruling that only states can determine voter eligibility requirements.

But the fight isn’t over because USPS has issued a proposed rule to implement Trump’s order, handing itself the right to refuse to deliver ballots to voters who are not included on that mail-in voter list. This would give USPS an unprecedented role in the administration of our elections, allowing it to determine whether millions of Americans can receive and cast ballots through the mail.

Sen. Warner – along with every other Senate Democrat – demanded USPS abandon the rule. They wrote:

“…on June 2, 2026, USPS published a proposed rule that, if finalized, would establish President Trump’s control over federal elections and allow USPS to adjudicate who can and cannot vote by mail. This proposed rule risks disenfranchising millions of voters. We again insist that you follow the law, refuse to implement President Trump’s Executive Order, and withdraw this presidentially-directed proposed rule.”

They’re worried that a national list of absentee voters would be ripe for potential misuse and abuse. That’s not a crazy concern considering Trump’s DHS is already in discussion with USPS about potentially comparing the list to DHS datasets. Combining USPS data with unreliable DHS records could lead to tons of eligible voters not being able to exercise their right, or even voters and election officials being unfairly targeted for investigation.

As the midterms quickly approach and polls continue to look damning for Republicans who did nothing but deliver higher costs and new foreign wars… this won’t be the last attempt we see from the Trump administration to interfere in elections. But Sen. Warner will stand up and continue fighting each new bogus effort.

GRAB BAG

R-AI-SING AWARENESS: Sen. Warner introduced bipartisan legislation to provide more transparency on digital content generated by artificial intelligence.

SUPPORTING STUDENTS: Sen. Warner introduced bipartisan legislation to expand access to innovative financing options for students pursuing postsecondary education and workforce training while also establishing strong consumer protections to safeguard participants.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Sen. Warner will be traveling throughout the Commonwealth over the next week. Stay tuned for more information and follow along on his social media!

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Happy Friday from the Warner press office. Sen. Warner is meeting with constituents from Hampton Roads to Richmond today, discussing AI, NASA priorities, and breaking ground on the Department of Energy’s new High Performance Data Facility (HPDF). It caps off his busy week in Washington, where he raised the alarm about rising costs for Virginia families, pushed to support military spouses serving in the federal workforce, and fought for the independence of our intelligence community.

Let’s get into it.

INFLATION NATION

Remember when Donald Trump promised to bring prices down on day one? Yeah, about that.

This week, new data showed that Virginia families have had to spend $2,600 more on everyday essentials under the Trump administration. While Americans continue to struggle with the cost of groceries, housing, utilities, and health care, the administration seems more interested in picking tariff fights and starting new forever wars than actually lowering prices.

More specifically, Virginians are paying:

• $572 more on housing costs such as rent and mortgage payments.

• $310 more for groceries.

• $444 more on gas.

• $170 more for electricity in 2025.

The troubling part is that none of this was inevitable… Trump actively caused these higher costs by initiating a painful tariff regime and a new war with Iran. On both fronts, Sen. Warner has been active in pushing back against the root causes of higher prices. He supported the Supreme Court case that found the majority of the tariffs illegal, and introduced legislation to require full refunds (with interest).

Additionally, he has been repeatedly voting to rein in the war in Iran and speaking out tirelessly about how costly it is. He will keep pressing to address the underlying issues while also pursuing solutions that provide immediate relief.

After releasing the new findings, Sen. Warner said:

“While Virginians across the Commonwealth are facing high energy, grocery, housing, and health care costs, the president has done nothing to ease the pain. Once again, Trump shows how out of touch he is with the American people, or that he simply does not care about what Americans are going through under his administration.”

Whether it’s food, rent, child care, or energy bills, Virginians are looking for solutions. Sen. Warner will continue pushing for policies that lower costs for families across the Commonwealth.

FIGHTING FOR MILITARY FAMILIES

Imagine serving your country, moving every few years, and repeatedly rebuilding your career from scratch. That’s the reality for many military spouses.

Military spouses have long faced significant barriers to maintaining stable careers due to frequent relocations and other challenges associated with military life. Federal employment has historically offered an important pathway to stable work, but recent data suggests the government is still falling short when it comes to retaining military spouses in the workforce.

Sen. Warner heard about the issue firsthand when he convened a military families roundtable in Norfolk last week, and he promised he would press for action.

Well, he wasted no time, and this week, he was joined by Sen. Kaine in pressing on the Office of Personnel Management about their lack of progress retaining military spouses.

The senators pressed for answers about why retention remains stubbornly low and what more can be done to ensure military families receive the support they’ve earned through their service and sacrifice. He made a list of four simple requests, asking OPM to:

• Immediately determine what is leading to lower retention of military spouses relative to other federal employees;

• Identify the flexibilities and best practices that currently exist and can improve those retention rates;

• Direct federal agencies to implement these best practices and, to the maximum extent practicable, utilize these flexibilities;

• Communicate with Congress if any additional resources or changes in law are needed to succeed, all of which would fulfill the commitments OPM and agencies have already made to best serve this population.

In the letter, Sen. Warner also continuously reinforced the importance of support military spouses and families. He said:

“Military service is shouldered by the entire family, with partners and spouses, kids, parents, and other family members working to balance the challenges that exist back home while a loved one is deployed. Over the years, Congress has worked hard with successive administrations to improve upon the network of support available to these families, and local communities and support organizations across the country have stepped in to try to fill gaps that still exist.”

Supporting military families shouldn’t end with a thank you for their service. Sen. Warner will keep pushing to ensure military spouses have access to stable careers and the opportunities they deserve.

I DNI-T DO IT

Well, if you’ve been following along with Sen. Warner recently, you’ve undoubtedly heard him raise concerns about President Trump’s pick for Acting Director of National Intelligence, Bill Pulte.

Sen. Warner released a video this week chronicling his concerns in detail, which you can watch here. But if you don’t have 8 minutes, here’s the tl;dr: Pulte has absolutely NO relevant national security experience. His only relevant qualification is that he used his existing role in the Trump administration to stoke totally bogus prosecutions of Trump’s perceived enemies.

That kind of experience… combined with all the classified information that the DNI is privy to… would spell disaster.

So Sen. Warner led broad opposition to him, and it appears that the stench was too great even for President Trump, who suddenly announced a new nominee for full-time confirmation, Jay Clayton.

We’re far from out of the woods yet – it’s still of critical importance that we prevent Pulte from having this role for even an hour. Sen. Warner also plans to carefully question and consider Clayton’s nomination as well.

He released a statement carefully spelling out his thoughts here:

“I have known and respected Jay Clayton for many years and believe he is a capable public servant. The position of Director of National Intelligence is one of the most important national security jobs in government, overseeing the Intelligence Community and serving as the president’s principal intelligence advisor. Any nominee for this role deserves a thorough confirmation process and rigorous questioning before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

“At the same time, the timing of this announcement raises an obvious question: if the president intended to nominate Mr. Clayton, why spend the last ten days insisting that the Intelligence Community be led by an acting director who lacks the extensive national security experience required by statute and whose appointment raises serious concerns about the politicization of intelligence? The president could have put forward a qualified nominee from the beginning. Instead, he waited until the House of Representatives went out of town, choosing a path that raises the risk of an entirely avoidable lapse in a critical national security tool.

“That said, let me be clear – while I am glad to see the president finally come to his senses, before the Senate can take up a FISA extension there needs to be a clear guarantee that Mr. Pulte will not serve as acting DNI. Either Director Gabbard must remain in place or the administration must designate the Senate-confirmed Principal Deputy DNI as the acting head through any transition.”

Sen. Warner will have an opportunity to pepper Clayton with questions at a hearing in the Intelligence Committee next week. You can get more details on that here.

GRAB BAG

DON’T SCREW WITH ME: Sen. Warner joined colleagues in urging USDA officials to take immediate action to address the growing threat posed by the New World screwworm outbreak.

COUNTING EVERY VOTE: Sen. Warner joined Sens. Padilla and Peters in demanding answers about election security preparations ahead of the 2026 midterms.

BUILDING UP NORFOLK: Sens. Warner and Kaine applauded a $1 million federal grant supporting new housing development as part of Norfolk’s St. Paul’s Redevelopment Project.

CYBERCHASE: Sen. Warner introduced legislation to modernize America’s cybersecurity planning and better defend against emerging artificial intelligence threats.

SNAP DECISION: Sen. Warner joined fellow former governors in raising concerns about proposed SNAP cuts and their impact on state budgets.

MINDING THE MIDTERMS: Sen. Warner, Sen. Kaine, and colleagues warned about the risk of the Trump-Vance administration using election-crime prosecutions to interfere in the 2026 midterm elections.

SMALL BUSINESS, BIG FIGHT: Sen. Warner pressed the Trump administration to reconsider their destabilizing efforts to dismantle the successful Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE) programs that help drive job growth and the nation’s transportation economy.

SHOW YOUR WORK: Sen. Warner pressed President Trump to explain the legal basis for his claim that the Iran War is over.

THE WEEK AHEAD

On Sunday morning, catch Sen. Warner on CBS’s Face the Nation. The Senate will be in session next week. Sen. Warner will vote on nominations and legislation, and is expected to question Jay Clayton during his nomination hearing on Wednesday.

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Sadly, it could go even further than that. If Pulte is given the keys to all our intelligence agencies, there’s no telling how much sensitive information he could weaponize.

This week, I take you through Bill Pulte’s troubled past, from his shady business dealings to his role as top attack dog for Trump. Then, I explain everything I am doing to try and block him from becoming Acting DNI – from forcing votes on the Senate floor to shaking down Trump officials in hearings.

You can watch my full explanation above or on my YouTube channel.

Happy Friday from the Warner press office. With Republicans forcing passage on ICE and CBP funding in an 18-hour vote-a-rama, Trump appointing Bill Pulte – the unqualified and unserious director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency – to be Director of National Intelligence, legislation to ensure Virginians aren’t stuck footing the bill for data centers, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services pausing immigration decisions… Sen. Warner had a VERY BUSY week. Let’s get into it.

IRRECONCILABLE DIFFERENCES

In the Senate, most bills need 60 votes to pass. But using budget reconciliation – a parliamentary maneuver that allows certain legislation to pass with a simple majority – Republicans were able to ram through their partisan immigration megabill, over the objections of Sen. Warner and his fellow Democrats. After a marathon 18-hour vote-a-rama that stretched into the early morning hours, Senate Republicans approved an additional $70 billion in taxpayer funding for Trump’s ICE and CBP.

While Americans are struggling under the rising cost of gas, utilities, groceries, and housing… Trump and Republicans prioritized sending funds to immigration agencies that took over American cities, refused any accountability following the tragic deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, and are now wreaking havoc at Delaney Hall in New Jersey.

And this comes less than a year after Republicans already provided these agencies with funding levels that exceeded those of any other domestic law enforcement agency and rivaled the budgets of most militaries around the world. They did so despite the fact that ICE and CBP are already sitting on roughly $100 billion in previously appropriated, unspent funds from the last time Republicans passed a partisan megabill using the reconciliation gambit.

Watch Sens. Warner and Warnock break down the ridiculousness of handing ICE and CBP essentially limitless funds here.

With all the chaos that Trump’s immigration agencies have caused, Democrats were fighting for 10 commonsense guardrails that would protect Americans and hold ICE and CBP to the same standard as other law enforcement agencies. Their proposals were simple, including: prohibiting officers from wearing face coverings, requiring them to display identification, and requiring the use of body-warn cameras when interacting with the public. Measures that would be standard for virtually any other law enforcement agency were apparently a bridge too far for Senate Republicans.

While this megabill that does nothing to lower prices may have been forced through without any Democratic support, Sen. Warner will continue fighting Trump’s senseless policies and working to bring down costs for American families.

Here’s what Sens. Warner and Kaine had to say after the vote:

“At a time when millions of Americans are struggling to deal with rising costs generated by Donald Trump’s disastrous Iran war and his chaotic tariff taxes, what do Republican Senators do? They pass a bill giving $70 billion to immigration agencies sitting on $100 billion in unspent funds from last year. The bill passed today does nothing to bring down costs for everyday American families, nothing to reform the Administration’s out-of-control immigration agenda that has led to the harassment and murder of American citizens, nothing to keep the President from funneling money to political cronies or vanity projects like his ballroom, and nothing to end an unpopular and illegal war that is costing Americans tens of billions at the gas pump. Democratic efforts to redirect the $70 billion to reduce housing and health care costs were blocked by the GOP majority, and efforts to include basic immigration reforms were blocked as well. It’s shocking that the Trump-Vance agenda is so out of touch with the needs of American citizens.”

SPYING A PROBLEM

Imagine you’re hiring someone to run the nation’s intelligence agencies. You might look for someone with military experience. Or intelligence experience. Or diplomatic experience. Maybe even law enforcement experience.

President Trump apparently had a different idea.

This week, Trump announced that Bill Pulte – the 38-year-oild, third-generation rich kid who heads the Federal Housing Finance Agency – will also serve as Acting Director of National Intelligence. That’s the official responsible for overseeing America’s intelligence agencies and some of the government’s most sensitive classified information.

There’s at least one big problem, though: Bill Pulte has absolutely no national security experience. As Sen. Warner pointed out during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing this week, the position was created after the September 11 attacks and Congress specifically required that the job be filled by someone with “extensive national security experience.” By that standard, Pulte comes up short. Very short.

“No time in the military. No time in Congress. No time in the diplomatic corps. No time in law enforcement,” Sen. Warner said. “Mr. Pulte has none of that. Zero.”

So why was he chosen? It apparently has less to do with qualifications… and more to do with loyalty to Donald Trump. As head of FHFA, Pulte didn’t exactly spend all his time worrying about mortgages or housing affordability. Instead, he became one of the administration’s most enthusiastic participants in Trump’s campaign of political retribution, using his access to confidential mortgage information to instigate a series of fraud referrals against a string of the president’s perceived political opponents, including Sen. Adam Schiff, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, and New York Attorney General Tisch James.

And if you’re wondering what Trump now expects from his new DNI, he didn’t exactly hide the ball. When asked why he picked a housing official with no intelligence experience to serve as the nation’s top intelligence officer – with limitless access to some of our nation’s most important classified secrets – Trump said Pulte might help uncover evidence of the “rigged elections” the president continues to falsely claim were stolen from him. That’s a troubling answer less than six months before the next election, considering that the DNI plays a central role in coordinating intelligence efforts related to election security and foreign interference.

“What qualifications does Mr. Pulte bring to the office?” Warner asked this week. “He has shown that he is willing to do anything that President Trump wants, legal or otherwise.”

That’s a pretty alarming quality to prioritize in the person responsible for delivering independent intelligence assessments to the president, Congress, and the American people. After watching Pulte use one government agency to pursue Trump’s perceived political opponents, Sen. Warner is understandably concerned about what happens when he gains authority over the nation’s intelligence apparatus. At a time when the United States is facing threats from China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and terrorist organizations around the world, intelligence agencies need leaders who will follow the facts wherever they lead – not carry out political grievances for our president.

Sen. Warner is using every tool at his disposal as the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee to oppose this appointment and continue fighting to protect the independence of the Intelligence Community.

SEN. WARNER MAKES A POWER PLAY

As AI continues to expand, Big Tech companies are racing to build massive new data centers – and nowhere has that boom been bigger than Virginia. The Commonwealth is now home to more than 600 data centers, making it the undisputed data center capital of the world.

Those facilities may power the internet, but they also consume enormous amounts of electricity. And as more and more of them connect to the power grid, working families are increasingly being asked to help cover the costs. That’s because utility companies often pass along the expense of new infrastructure to ratepayers. Meanwhile, the surge in electricity demand from data centers is putting additional strain on the grid, driving up energy costs and increasing concerns about reliability.

In other words, some of the world’s wealthiest corporations are making billions from AI while families get stuck with higher electric bills. Sen. Warner doesn’t think that’s a very good deal.

That’s why he’s backing the Power for the People Act, legislation designed to ensure data center developers – not everyday consumers – pay the costs associated with bringing their projects online. The bill would help prevent families from subsidizing data center development through their utility bills and establish safeguards to ensure new facilities aren’t overwhelming the power grid.

Here’s what Sen. Warner had to say about the bill:

“From the expansion of data centers to the administration’s senseless tariffs to Trump’s war of choice in Iran, Virginia families are being crushed by rising energy costs. Virginia is the data center capital of the world, and new data center proposals are popping up all the time across the Commonwealth. If corporations are going to run data centers in Virginia, they should cover the cost of them. I’m proud to support the Power for the People Act to ensure that huge corporations are not pawning off costs to working Americans.”

This bill won’t solve all of the problems tied to the explosive growth in the number of data centers, but Sen. Warner believes it’s an important first step toward making sure the companies profiting from this technology help pay their fair share – and that Virginia families aren’t left holding the bag.

CASE CLOSED (NOT REALLY)

Imagine following every step of the legal immigration process – paperwork, interviews, background checks – only to find out, without warning, that your case has simply stopped moving. That’s what’s happening right now for thousands of people across the country.

The Trump administration recently paused or slowed a wide range of immigration and citizenship decisions for individuals from 39 countries, based on national origin. The agency has also ordered a sweeping re-review of some previously approved cases dating back several years – all without meaningful consultation with Congress or even communicating clearly to the thousands of legal immigrants whose whole lives have now been upended.

This week, Sen. Warner demanded answers. In a letter to administration officials, Sen. Warner warned that families are seeing naturalization interviews canceled and green card applications stalled. Workers who are waiting for routine renewals are losing work authorization through no fault of their own, forcing some out of their jobs and creating headaches for employers who depend on them. Others are seeing travel plans disrupted as immigration paperwork sits in limbo.

And every day the pause continues, the already massive immigration backlog gets even bigger.

In a letter with his colleagues, Sen. Warner wrote,

“Our offices are hearing from constituents whose naturalization interviews have been canceled, whose green card applications have stalled, and whose employment authorization documents have lapsed while awaiting renewal. These lapses in work authorization are forcing individuals out of jobs, threatening their families’ financial stability, and creating losses for employers who depend on their contributions.”

The letter also raises concerns about a broader shift in policy, including new guidance suggesting national origin may be treated as a negative factor in immigration adjudications, as well as reported changes that would force certain applicants to leave the United States to complete their green card process abroad – breaking with decades of established practice. Taken together, Sen. Warner argues these changes create confusion, undermine due process, and risk grinding an already backlogged immigration system to a halt – all without clear rules or transparency from the agency.

He is pressing the Trump administration for immediate answers on how many people are affected, how long the pause will last, and what steps are being taken to prevent further harm to families and employers.

GRAB BAG

LATE TO THE PARTY: Sen. Warner blasted Trump’s AI Executive Order for rehashing AI proposals Sen. Warner has long been working on getting done in the Senate.

MEET YOUR NEW BANKER, AI: Sen. Warner sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, right before he appeared in front of the Committee on Finance, encouraging the Treasury Department to better understand develop rules surround agentic AI usage across the financial services sector.

WE NEED YOU: Sen. Warner, alongside the entire Virginia congressional delegation, is collecting photographs that represent the many treasures Virginia has to offer in 2026 to be considered for the Semiquincentennial Congressional Time Capsule.

🐔: Sen. Warner joined legislation allowing SNAP participants to purchase hot rotisserie chicken with their benefits.

CISA & CYBERATTACKS, OH MY: Sen. Warner is introducing the Guaranteeing Universal Access to Cybersecurity Act to fund a critical cyber sharing information program so that thousands of state, local, territorial, Tribal organizations, and communities have access to the cybersecurity resources they need to keep critical infrastructure safe. He also sent a letter to DHS Secretary Mullin urging him to help governors defend our country from cyberattacks.

AI ON ALL FRONTS: Sen. Warner walked through what he’s doing to prevent AI job displacement and prevent skyrocketing power bills. Watch his full video here.

THE WEEK AHEAD

This weekend, catch Sen. Warner on Fox News Sunday, ABC’s This Week, and CNN’s State of the Union. The Senate will be in session again next week and is expected to debate a wiretapping law known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which allows U.S. intelligence agencies to conduct surveillance on targets like terrorists and foreign intelligence services located outside the United States.

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You deserve more than lip service about rising costs… you deserve real action to bring them down.

So this week, I walk you through my latest legislation to bring down prices. The Power for the People Act would hold data centers accountable for the strain they put on energy prices and our entire electric grid. It would ensure big tech companies pay their fair share… and prevent you from getting stuck footing the bill.

Watch my full explanation… and hear a sneak peak of what else I’m working on across the entire artificial intelligence space… above or on my YouTube channel.

What you need me to do is fight back.

This week, I walk you through Trump’s top 4 scams… from the ballroom to Trump Mobile… and explain exactly what I am doing to hold this administration to account and safeguard YOUR tax dollars. I cover some big wins we’ve had recently and share where I’m taking this fight next.

You can watch my full explainer here or on my YouTube channel.

Happy Friday from the Warner press office. Sen. Warner is in Northern Virginia today celebrating some of the investments made possible by his bipartisan CHIPS & Science Act, capping off another busy & successful week. He secured Senate passage of legislation honoring his friend Rep. Gerry Connolly, fought back against the Trump administration’s ballroom and slush fund grifts, and raised the alarm about Trump’s telephone company scam.

There’s a LOT to talk about, so let’s get into it:

REPUBLICANS IN DISARRAY

For months, Republicans in the Senate have been preparing to force through a broadly unpopular & enormous spending bill to fund ICE & CBP without any guardrails at all… on top of the billions and billions in funding that Trump’s tax scam had already dedicated to ICE last year.

But this week, Republicans once again failed to get their broadly unpopular agenda through, abruptly canceling a vote on the legislation after attempting to include funding for Trump’s unpopular ballroom (which Democrats successfully got out of the bill)… and then publicly crashing out over Trump’s disastrous and corrupt $1.8 billion slush fund.

In case you missed it, Trump sued his own IRS for $10 billion… which was all just leverage to force them to come to a settlement for $1.8 billion for a “victims compensation fund” for “government weaponization.” Read: financial compensation for self-confessed cop-assaulters on Jan. 6.

Sen. Warner had been fighting all week to crush both the ballroom and the slush fund – making it clear how much further $1 billion could go for Virginia priorities than for Trump’s personal pet projects. As a reminder, he laid out the case clearly in a press release here.

Sen. Warner was also active this week in shining a light on just how corrupt the $1.8 billion slush fund is. He pressed directly on several members of the Trump administration, and said:

“I write today with grave concern regarding the establishment of the ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’ and the potential for $1.776 billion of taxpayer funds to be laundered as part of a scheme to fund the President’s favored political campaigns and projects… Public parameters of the Fund suggest that President Trump may use it as a mechanism for siphoning taxpayer dollars to his favored political campaigns. This Fund is without precedent in American history and, once laundered through the President’s chosen political candidates and issues, it will provide a massive advantage in upcoming elections, paid for by American taxpayers.”

Sen. Warner also used his social media to express his alarm, updating followers throughout the week as the saga progressed:

After Republicans couldn’t end their infighting, they pulled their votes and sent the Senate home early. Sens. Warner and Kaine issued the following statement:

“Senate Republicans couldn’t even hold their own conference together long enough to bring this partisan bill to the floor before recess. After weeks of rushing ahead with backroom negotiations, Republicans are now openly fighting amongst themselves over a bill that would pour billions more into President Trump’s extreme immigration agenda and green-light nearly $1.8 billion in taxpayer money for a slush fund to reward Trump’s political allies – including those who violently attacked law enforcement on January 6 – as law-abiding, hardworking families across the country struggle to afford groceries, housing, health care, and energy bills.

“Republicans may have dropped their plan to force taxpayers to fund President Trump’s ballroom, but the core of this legislation remains the same: more blank checks, more partisan chaos, and more giveaways designed to benefit Donald Trump and his political allies instead of helping working Americans.

“This delay does not change what’s at stake. We will continue to oppose this reckless legislation and keep fighting for policies that lower costs, strengthen communities, and put Virginia families ahead of political favors and self-dealing.”

While Republicans are going to try and ram through their unpopular spending bill after the Memorial Day recess, Sen. Warner is as ready as ever to fight back against it. This week’s progress is a good sign that at least some Republicans are starting to grow a spine, too.

1-800-MADE-IN-CHINA

Well… I wish we were done talking about Trump grifts… but we’re just getting started. This week, Sen. Warner also raised the alarm about another Trump scam… his new company, Trump Mobile.

If you haven’t been following this story closely, here’s what’s going on. In addition to Trump fragrances, bibles, digital trading cards, and more, Trump is also now trying to get into the telecom business… something Sen. Warner – the founder of Nextel – knows a thing or two about.

His disastrous Trump Mobile venture has made countless misleading claims to consumers… suggesting that their phones were made in America… and that the “47 plan” offered “unlimited talk, data, and text.”

In reality, the phones are made in China, retail for hundreds of dollars cheaper elsewhere, are subject to a wide range of plan limitations… and the company still might not be able to fulfill all orders anyways.

Imagine you’re already paying $5/gallon for gas… Trump has done nothing to lower your rent or child care costs… and now you’re out hundreds of dollars for a scammy phone with a shoddy data plan? This scam is costing hardworking Americans, so Sen. Warner is going to bat for them.

This week, Sen. Warner pressed directly on Trump Mobile leadership to answer for some of these lies and failures.

In a letter, he wrote,

“I understand the complexities of the mobile telecommunications market, and that it can be daunting to enter a market with limited prior experience in that business. With that perspective, the delayed launch of Trump Mobile is not surprising. However, the cavalier manner in which Trump Mobile has treated its customers is shocking. Buyers of your phones and mobile service should expect that their contracts will be honored in full and not under the cloud of deceptive practices. As public reporting suggests, there seems to be significant misrepresentation in Trump Mobile’s advertising to the public.”

Rest assured, this is not the last you’ll hear from Sen. Warner on this topic – he will keep pressing to protect consumers and save Americans money.

REMEMBERING GERRY CONNOLLY

A year ago, Virginians lost the incredible Rep. Gerry Connolly, an incomparable fighter for Northern Virginians, after a battle with esophageal cancer. This week, Sen. Warner remembered his life and honored his legacy with action… by securing unanimous Senate passage of Connolly’s final piece of legislation, the Esophageal Cancer Awareness Act, which Connolly introduced just two days before his passing.

The legislation would do two major things:

• Direct GAO to help understand the landscape of esophageal cancer care among federal employees and retirees, and particularly access to early screening and early treatment.

• Ask GAO to study if federal employees who are high risk are being screened as early as possible, to help them get the care they need as early as possible.

While we can never bring back those we lost, Sen. Warner is using his seat in the Senate to honor his memory and save more lives going forward.

Sen. Warner spoke on the Senate floor to push for passage of this legislation. You can watch or download his remarks here.

He said,

“He was a fighter. He was kind and funny, but, boy, you did not want to get on the wrong side of Gerry Connolly because sometimes that fighting spirit would show itself in his relentless — in other words, getting into an argument with Gerry was not something anybody looked forward to.

“And in his final days, Gerry continued to center federal employees in his work. Two days before he died, he introduced H.R. 3490, which will direct the Government Accountability Office to report on esophageal cancer in federal employees.”

Following his speech, the Senate unanimously passed the bill. It now heads to the President’s desk for signature.

GRAB BAG

NO-FO-ING WAY: Sen. Warner joined 20 of his Senate colleagues in calling on the Department of Housing and Urban Development to undo dangerous policy changes made in the recently announced notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for housing counseling, which would drastically narrow the activities eligible for funding under HUD’s housing counseling program.

INTELLIGENT LIFE: Sen. Warner announced that the Intelligence Committee passed the annual Intelligence Authorization Act.

MARSHALLING SUPPORT: Sen. Warner applauded the Senate’s passage of his legislation to designate the General George C. Marshall House in Leesburg, known as Dodona Manor, as an affiliated area under the National Park Service (NPS).

PUSHING FOR PATRICIA: Sen. Warner introduced legislation to designate a United States Postal Service facility in honor of Patricia Paige, longtime member of the New Kent County Board of Supervisors.

WHEN GOD SHUTS A DOOR, HE OPENS A (DISCOUNT) WINDOW: Sen. Warner introduced the Discount Window Preparedness Act of 2026, legislation to improve the effectiveness of the Federal Reserve discount window, a liquidity tool that provides short-term loans to depository institutions, such as commercial and community banks in order to support the liquidity and stability of the banking system, and help implement monetary policy effectively.

WELCOME TO MY (ARLINGTON) HOUSE: Sen. Warner requested that the National Park Service (NPS) immediately return a Junior Ranger Program activity booklet to circulation in its original form ahead of America 250 events, which are expected to bring millions of visitors to Virginia and the National Capital Region.

CASH IS FLYING IN: Sen. Warner announced $73,600,752 in federal funding to improve three Virginia airports.

OBSTRUCTING OLSEN: Sen. Warner joined ten Democratic colleagues in calling for election-denier Kurt Olsen’s removal as Director of Election Security and Integrity at the White House.

MEANINGFUL HEALTH CARE WINS: Sen. Warner celebrated the House Ways and Means Committee passage of his bipartisan Equitable Community Access to Pharmacist Services (ECAPS) Act, legislation to ensure seniors can continue to access important clinical services from their pharmacist, and provisions from his Hospice Care Accountability, Reform, and Enforcement (Hospice CARE) Act to protect patients and taxpayers from fraud and expand access to essential hospice services.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Senate will be in recess next week for the Memorial Day holiday. When the Senate returns, Sen. Warner will resume fighting against the disastrous Republican reconciliation proposal.

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I walk you through exactly why he’s gotta go – from his efforts to make us less safe by firing countless FBI agents… to some of his more salacious partying.

He’s using your tax dollars to jet set to “VIP snorkels at Pearl Harbor” and hockey parties in Milan… while Americans struggle to make ends meet and serious criminals roam free.

You can watch my full case against him here or on my YouTube channel.

Happy Friday from the Warner press office. It was a busy, busy week for Sen. Warner, who was hard at work securing better benefits for miners, pressing the Trump administration on their cuts to veteran health care, and fighting back against Trump’s demand for $1 billion in funding for his ballroom.

Let’s get into it:

HOW BIG IS A BILLION?

How big is one billion? Its sheer size is sometimes obscured by how often we say it, but it’s a truly massive, almost incomprehensibly large number. One billion seconds is 32 years. One billion pennies stacked on top of each other would make a tower 870 miles high… which is the full width of Virginia… twice.

One billion dollar bills, laid end to end, would wrap around the Earth nearly four times.

And Trump is asking for that much money to… build a ballroom.

It’s unfathomably large, and a total insult to taxpayers.

So this week, Sen. Warner crunched the numbers, and identified exactly how far $1 billion could go for Virginians instead. Here are the facts:

Health Care:

• $1 billion could pay for Medicaid coverage for a full year for over 25% of the Virginians who lost it due to Trump and Washington Republicans’ cuts in their 2025 budget megabill.

• $1 billion could have extended the Affordable Care Act’s enhanced premium tax credit for most of the year for nearly two-thirds of the Virginians who relied on it last year.

Food:

• $1 billion could restore SNAP benefits for nearly five years for every Virginian who was kicked off this food assistance program due to Trump and Washington Republicans’ cuts in their 2025 budget megabill.

• $1 billion could fund Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) benefits for all Virginians in the program for over 15 years.

• $1 billion could cover groceries for 118,119 Virginia families for a full year.

Housing:

• $1 billion could cover the average yearly rent for 46,399 Virginia households.

• $1 billion could pay for a year of average electricity costs for half a million Virginia households.

• $1 billion could pay for the construction or preservation of between 2,000-4,000 affordable homes across Virginia.

Child Care & more:

• $1 billion could pay for child care for 59,537 infants.

• $1 billion could cover 12,500,000 America the Beautiful passes for Americans to visit National Parks across the country, including Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park.

• $1 billion could fund a year of transportation costs for 74,732 households in Virginia.

Since this is Police Week, Sen. Warner also appropriately highlighted the many ways this funding could go towards supporting law enforcement and public safety:

• $1 billion could fund nearly four years of the COPS Hiring Program.

• $1 billion could fully fund four years of the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program.

• $1 billion could fund a full year of the Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants.

He also teamed up with Sen. Kaine to make a video highlighting the math. You can watch it here.

The senators said, “It’s absurd that Senate Republicans are asking for $1 billion dollars to fund Trump’s ballroom after making historic cuts to SNAP and Medicaid, and refusing to extend healthcare tax credits. To make matters worse, Trump’s war of choice is causing costs on groceries, gas, and consumer goods to soar. While Americans are struggling to make ends meet, Trump and Senate Republicans are focused on using tax dollars to build a ballroom.”

Next week in the Senate, Republicans are going to try and ram through an unpopular spending bill that will give even more funding to Trump’s out-of-control ICE agents and fund this ballroom, too.

Rest assured, Sen. Warner will be fighting, voting, and advocating against this bill. Stay tuned.

AD-VA-CATING

Veterans make enormous sacrifices to defend our values and protect our nation. They deserve quality, accessible health care in return.

Unfortunately, this administration is making that harder.

Virginia’s vibrant and sizable veteran population – one of the largest and most rapidly growing in the country – has been deeply impacted by staffing shortages at VA medical centers. In the final few months of 2025, more than 1,700 vacant positions were eliminated across Virginia, including of more than 700 at the Hampton VAMC, 300 at the Richmond VAMC, 200 at the Salem VAMC, and several hundred more at community clinics and other facilities.

Sen. Warner, who has spent his career fighting to make sure veterans receive the top-quality health care they have earned – from passing the historic PACT Act to helping several new VA facilities open across Virginia – is fighting back.

This week, he and Sen. Kaine pressed VA Secretary Doug Collins directly on what he’s doing to ensure that veterans continue to have access to quality care.

They wrote, “These roles span the workforce – positions including social workers, technicians, chaplains, and security officers. Adding to the concern, is that based on a review of the data, more than half of the eliminated vacancies in Virginia appear to have been for roles with a direct clinical nexus to patients – physicians, nurses, specialists, therapists, pharmacists, among others. No matter the role – and as we have argued in response to your Department’s assertion that earlier hiring freezes were not impacting patient care – the workforce at VA facilities is meant to function as a team; dramatic cuts to any position therefore necessitates that the remaining personnel shoulder increasingly more responsibility.”

They also requested robust data on these eliminated vacancies and pressed the VA for follow-up, accountability, and improvement.

Sen. Warner isn’t going to lose sight of this important issue – he’s proven time and time again that he’s in it for the long haul to improve veteran care, from getting clinics built to making sure they are appropriately staffed. We will keep you posted as this important work continues.

BE MINE-R

For as long as he’s been in elected office in Virginia, Sen. Warner has made fighting for miners a top priority. Miners powered our nation for generations, often at great and direct risk to their health and wellbeing. We owe them an enormous debt of gratitude.

Sen. Warner hears from a black lung doctor while in Saint Paul, Virginia.

Year in and year out, Sen. Warner travels to Southwest Virginia to meet with mining families, hear directly about the challenges they face, and learn how the government can do more to protect the benefits they have earned. He then comes back to DC ready to put that feedback into action.

A little while back, Sen. Warner pressed directly on the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to evaluate whether black lung benefits are adequately meeting the income and health care needs of disabled miners and their families.

This week, Sen. Warner and his colleagues released the results of that report, which was put together following extensive focus groups with miners from Virginia and across coal country.

The GAO found that miners often face major barriers when trying to access benefits, particularly when those benefits are administered by mine operators. The GAO recommended that the Department of Labor (DOL) collect information on and monitor the extent to which mine operators are providing medical benefits they are required to cover. The DOL agreed and said it will add questions about medical benefits to its miner surveys – meaning stronger oversight, greater accountability, and better support for miners and their families!

Sen. Warner welcomed the progress, but made clear that the fight is far from over. Alongside his colleagues, he said,

“For years we have heard from coal miners and their families about how hard it is to secure federal black lung benefits and how it’s often not enough to support their families. As miners in central Appalachia get sicker and at younger ages, we are grateful GAO accepted our request to examine the benefits they receive once they do get sick. GAO also confirmed what we have heard for years: miners face drawn-out, years-long fights to secure black lung benefits, the spouses and families left behind often struggle to access the survivor benefits they’re owed, and benefit amounts are too low for many families to make ends meet. Although we’re glad the Department of Labor agreed to provide more oversight of the medical benefits that mine operators provide, Congress must still enact legislation to ensure miners receive the benefits they need to support themselves and their families once they’re too sick to continue working in the mines.”

GRAB BAG

USS FORD: Ahead of the USS Ford’s return home to Hampton Roads, Sen. Warner released a statement recognizing the crew’s record-breaking deployment and thanking them for their service.

STANDING UP FOR SCIENCE: Sen. Warner joined colleagues in introducing legislation to protect public scientific research and reports from the influence of political and special interests.

FIGHTING FOR HEALTH CARE: Sen. Warner reintroduced a resolution affirming that the abortion medication mifepristone is safe and effective, and underscoring that law and policy related to the medication must be equitable, transparent, and based on the best available peer-reviewed evidence-based science.

HAPPY TRAILS: Sen. Warner reintroduced the bipartisan, bicameral Washington’s Trail — 1753 National Historic Trail Feasibility Study Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a feasibility test to designate Washington’s Trail as a national historic trail.

DIGITAL ASSETS: Sen. Warner released a statement on his committee vote against market structure legislation.

STOP WARS-H: Sen. Warner released a statement after he voted against Kevin Warsh’s nomination to the Federal Reserve.

CHINA: Sen. Warner released a statement ahead of President Trump’s visit to Beijing.

CATCH FLIGHTS NOT FEELINGS: Sen. Warner announced over $21 million in funding for Virginia airports.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Senate will be in session next week. Sen. Warner will be voting on nominations and legislation.

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Greetings from the Warner press office. Sen. Warner returned to the Senate this week following the heartbreaking passing of his daughter, Madison, and was deeply touched by all who reached out to express their condolences. You can read more about his reflections on her life and his return to work here.

While navigating this loss, Sen. Warner continued pressing for a better Virginia in Madison’s name. He voted to rein in the war in Iran, celebrated the end of the DHS shutdown and the advancement of his legislation to protect kids from predatory AI, and reintroduced legislation to support animal welfare.

Without further ado, let’s get into it.

IRAN UPDATES

This week, the war in Iran passed a troubling milestone – it’s officially been raging for two months. Let’s take stock of where we are – 13 servicemembers have died, hundreds more are injured, the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, and gas prices have surged to $4.39 per gallon nationally.

Sen. Warner has been speaking out consistently against this war, and calling attention to the ways – from tax dollars spent to higher gas prices – that Americans are footing the bill.

Here he is covering where we are:

And here he is explaining the economic costs of this conflict:

This week, he continued to vote to rein in Trump’s powers and end the war, though Republicans again mustered enough votes to block it.

Afterwards, he said,

Until this conflict comes to an end, Sen. Warner will keep pressing to hold votes that would stop President Trump’s costly military strikes in the Middle East. We will keep you updated.

R-AI-SING KIDS RIGHT

Imagine you give your kids a teddy bear and it starts talking to them about BDSM sex and where to find knives. Sound far-fetched? Tragically it’s not – it’s a real problem.

While the rapid rollout of AI impacts many aspects of our lives, kids are uniquely vulnerable to certain predatory applications.

AI-enabled companion toys and poorly regulated chatbots are targeting kids and sharing inappropriate information, including promoting suicide and sexual abuse.

Parents shouldn’t have to worry about this deeply alarming threat, so Sen. Warner took action and introduced bipartisan legislation to stop it.

The GUARD Act would ban AI companies from providing AI companions to minors, mandate that AI companions disclose their non-human status and lack of professional credentials for all users, and create new crimes for companies which knowingly make available to minors AI companions that solicit or produce sexual content.

And this week we have some great news… this bill advanced out of committee on a bipartisan basis!

After committee passage, Sen. Warner said:

“AI chatbots put the mental and physical health of young people at risk. I’m encouraged to see this bipartisan legislation advance through committee. It is time to put clear guardrails in place to protect children from manipulative or dangerous chatbot interactions and hold tech companies accountable.”

We’re one step closer to protecting kids from these awful chatbots predatory “companions,” and Sen. Warner will keep pushing until we get it signed into law!

PROTECTING PUPPIES

Let’s end on another uplifting note… Sen. Warner is continuing to fight for puppies across the Commonwealth and country! As an animal lover, Sen. Warner has worked for years on priorities like ending horse soring. He also successfully freed thousands of beagles from an abusive facility in Cumberland, Virginia.

But since he’s not one to rest on his laurels, Sen. Warner once again reintroduced the Puppy Protection Act, legislation that would create stronger standards for veterinary care, housing, and breeding for dogs.

More specifically, this bill would:

• Expand enclosure requirements to allow dogs to stand on their hind legs without touching the top of their enclosure and increase the number of square feet of their enclosure based on the dog’s size. Enclosures may not be stacked on top of one another.

• Offer dogs over the age of 12 weeks unrestricted access from their primary enclosures to a ground-level, enclosed outdoor exercise area.

• Set a 30-minute requirement per day for dogs to socialize with humans and compatible dogs outside of the time spent in veterinary care.

• Require a screening by a veterinarian prior to each attempt to breed and prohibit breeding of two litters in any 18-month period or more than six litters in a dog’s lifetime.

After introduction, Sen. Warner said,

“For many of us, dogs are a part of our families. They should be raised in safe and humane conditions throughout their lives. As an animal lover, I’m proud to support this legislation that helps ensure breeding facilities are treating their puppies with respect and care.”

From our kids to our pups, Sen. Warner is fighting for every Virginian.

GRAB BAG

HEALTHY COMMUNITIES: Sen. Warner introduced the Clinical Trial Modernization Act, legislation designed to remove barriers to clinical trial participation and expand access for historically underrepresented communities.

PROMOTING TRANSPARENCY: Sen. Warner introduced the Workforce Transparency Act, legislation that establishes a federal framework to collect timely data to guide policymakers in developing evidence-based solutions to AI’s impact on the U.S. workforce.

PORTS-MONEYYYY: Sen. Warner celebrated more than $16 million in Department of Transportation funding for the Portsmouth Port and Industrial Commission’s agricultural export facility to add storage silos, advanced conveyance systems, and improved rail access.

STANDING WITH SENIORS: Sen. Warner reintroduced bipartisan legislation to protect seniors by empowering nursing homes to better screen and vet potential employees.

PERFORMING TRIA-GE: Sen. Warner introduced the bipartisan Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, a seven year extension of a program essential to the country’s economic security by safeguarding the availability of terrorism risk coverage.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Senate will be in recess next week, resuming on Monday, May 11.

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Without further ado, let’s get into it.

HEAR YE, HEAR YE

Hope everyone got their taxes filed on time! Sen. Warner spent his Tax Day advocating for Americans, both by pressing the CEO of the IRS, Frank Bisignano, about this administration’s failures on the economy, and by introducing new legislation to improve IRS customer service.

In the Finance Committee, the Trump administration was trying to tout their tax record… but Sen. Warner brought receipts to break down exactly how this administration has failed to lower costs for Americans.

Whether it’s the tariff sales tax… the Iran energy hike… or the total failure to do anything on housing… Americans are losing big because of Trump’s new taxes… and Sen. Warner convincingly made the case in his questioning.

Yet grilling alone wasn’t sufficient for the Senator, as he also used Tax Day to introduce the Improving IRS Customer Service Act. We all know doing your taxes kind of sucks…. this legislation would help by making more information available online and making it easier to access installment plans.

After introduction, Sen. Warner said,

“Taxpayers shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to get basic answers from the IRS – and in the last year, those challenges have only gotten worse. I am glad to reintroduce this bipartisan legislation on Tax Day to ease some of this frustration by increasing clear communication and making IRS resources more readily available.”

ADDRESSING GUN VIOLENCE

This week tragically marks 19 years since the mass shooting on Virginia Tech’s campus, and Sen. Warner marked the day with a message to the families still grieving the sons, daughters, and siblings lost that day.

The anniversary – and the scores of devastating mass shootings that have followed, from Parkland to Uvalde – also call those in office to meet the moment not just with thoughts and prayers, but with action and legislation.

So Sen. Warner and Sen. Kaine joined forces to reintroduce the Virginia Plan to Reduce Gun Violence Act, legislation that would strengthen gun safety laws on the federal level.

The legislation would include a number of commonsense reforms, like one-handgun-a-month rules and assault weapons sale prohibitions. You can read the full list of proposed policies here.

After introduction, Sen. Warner said,

“On the 19th anniversary of Virginia’s deadliest mass shooting, I’m joining my friend Sen. Kaine in introducing the Virginia Plan. Too many families across the country have experienced gun violence. I am proud of the Commonwealth for leading the way in implementing commonsense gun reforms, and it’s time for the country to follow.”

ELECTING TO PAY ATTENTION

And while the conflict in Iran rages and Trump continues skyrocketing our prices… Sen. Warner is still keenly tracking one of the stories this administration is trying to sneak past the American people. They are blatantly trying to politicize intelligence and interfere in our elections.

This week, Tulsi Gabbard conducted criminal referrals for lawful whistleblowers… and while alarming on its face, as these kinds of actions tend to silence dissent… it’s even more disturbing when considered as part of her pattern of endless manipulation and deceit to please Trump.

It’s becoming increasingly apparent there’s little Gabbard WON’T consider – from raids in Fulton County to criminal referrals – to appease Donald Trump and stoke his fantasy that the 2020 election was stolen.

Fabricating election fraud allegations is likely a pretext to “justify” cracking down on the 2026 midterms… something Donald Trump has already openly fantasized about doing.

So Sen. Warner, following his New York Times op-ed warning on the topic… his full-length explainer on the topic… and his many videos calling attention… this week issued a statement once again laying out the stakes, saying:

“Director Gabbard’s decision to refer a lawful intelligence community whistleblower for criminal prosecution appears to be a retaliatory act for whistleblowing itself – the very kind of politically motivated reprisal our laws are written to prevent, and one she previously pledged under oath before Congress to guard against.

“Sadly, it’s not surprising. Director Gabbard has shown time and again that there are no lines she won’t cross to appease President Trump, from indulging his false claims about the 2020 election, to inappropriately inserting herself into domestic law enforcement matters with no foreign nexus, to authorizing unprecedented disclosures burning sensitive sources without uncovering any evidence of wrongdoing. Now, as ODNI pursues debunked claims and even seizes U.S. voting machines and election data, this latest action fits squarely into a troubling and consistent pattern.

“DNI Gabbard clearly is more interested in securing the president’s approval than she is in securing our nation. With the midterm elections soon approaching, Americans need to be concerned about what else she is willing to do for Donald Trump.”

He also called attention to the situation on social media. You can watch a video of him addressing the issue here.

Rest assured, this is a key priority for Sen. Warner, so we will keep you updated on his work to keep our elections free and fair.

GRAB BAG

STANDING WITH SUDAN: As the conflict in Sudan begins its fourth year, Sen. Warner spoke on the Senate floor to bring more attention to the urgent need for a peaceful end to the tragic war.

STANDING UP FOR CFPB: Sen. Warner demanded answers from Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Russell Vought on his plan to eliminate half of the remaining workforce at CFPB.

IN MOURNING: Sen. Warner, alongside Sen. Kaine, released a statement on the deaths of Cerina and Justin Fairfax.

JOINT RESOLUTIONS: Sen. Warner released a statement on his vote on two joint resolutions of disapproval.

CARING FOR THE ELDERLY: Sen. Warner introduced two bipartisan bills that would help family caregivers better save for retirement.

TRACKING TRACON: Sen. Warner led a group of his DMV colleagues in pressing FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford for answers on two recent reports of equipment failure at the FAA Potomac Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) facility.

MAKING HIS MARK: Sen. Warner pressed newly-confirmed DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to carry out sincere efforts to repair the immense damage done to DHS by his predecessor by prioritizing real threats to the country, halting interference with or obstruction of Congressional oversight efforts, and earning back the trust and confidence of the American people.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Senate will be in session next week. Sen. Warner will question RFK Jr. in the Finance Committee and vote on nominations and legislation.

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I’m closely monitoring the situation from my role on the Intelligence Committee, and I’m voting to rein in this illegal, deadly war.

This week, I want to walk you through the four big things I am thinking about as this war continues – from the critical munitions shortage we’re starting to see, to the ways this war has permanently shifted power in the Strait of Hormuz. Watch above or here on YouTube.

It’s corrupt, it’s illegal, and it’s just plain gross. This week, I break down my efforts to try and crack down on this rampant insider trading. Watch the video here on Substack or here on YouTube.

Happy Friday from the Warner press office. Well, some good news and some bad news this week. We have mixed progress towards ending the DHS shutdown… while Trump continues the illegal, deadly, and expensive war in Iran. On a positive note, the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project is beginning to produce power, a huge step forward for clean energy.

Let’s get right to it:

IS THE DHS SHUTDOWN DONE?

Well after over 40 days of painful inaction, Senate Republicans FINALLY agreed to the Democrats’ plan to fund the remainder of DHS ­– including essential TSA services and the Coast Guard – while not giving Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) another cent.

It was a positive step forward to end the shutdown, pay federal workers, and end the long lines at several airports. It also makes good on Sen. Warner’s promise that he wouldn’t support any additional funding for ICE or CBP until they got some real reforms – including basic requirements that would ensure they’re unmasked and held to the same standards as local law enforcement.

Sen. Warner celebrated the news with a video and remarked:

Unfortunately, the House doesn’t seem poised to get the deal down quickly, as Speaker Johnson now indicates he’s going to entertain the whims of his far-right members and delay by putting other proposals on the floor, instead of this bipartisan solution.

It’s incredibly frustrating for the thousands of Americans going without pay because of this shutdown… and for the thousands more that have essential travel plans through an airport.

Sen. Warner will keep pushing to get the majority of DHS funded in a timely fashion and continue to press for real reform at ICE and CBP.

IRAN-FLATION

Tomorrow, the war in Iran will officially have been raging for a full month, and there’s absolutely no end in sight.

Any way you slice it, the costs have been enormous.

We’ve lost 13 servicemembers, and hundreds more are injured. Thousands more troops are headed to the region right now, though the reasoning is slightly unclear. Is President Trump preparing for a full ground invasion? How many lives will be at risk? Sen. Warner laid out what we know on this front on his appearance on the podcast Raging Moderates this week, which you can catch here.

We’re also spending billions of taxpayer dollars on this war… by some estimates, about $1 billion every single day.

And in addition to all those costs, we’re all feeling the pain at the pump… and more impacts are sure to follow. Sen. Warner spent the week trying to raise the alarm about all the ways that consumers are going to foot the bill for this war.

In a video he released here and a floor speech you can watch or download here, he made the case convincingly:

About 20% of the world’s oil and natural gas pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that Iran has effectively blockaded since the start of the war. Oil and gas are global commodities, so if one fifth of the world’s supply remains stuck… the costs we’re all already starting to pay at the gas station will only go up.

Because most of our food and goods are carried to market on trucks and planes, these rising fuel costs will make just about everything more expensive.

And if that weren’t bad enough, over a third of the world’s fertilizer supply flows through the Strait, meaning there could be big impacts on global agriculture and food prices.

But wait… there’s more bad news. Of the energy supply flowing through the Strait, 80% heads to Asian markets. Citizens across the continent are getting hit brutally hard, and governments are having to institute all sorts of economy-slowing measures to ensure they can conserve power.

Because Asian countries produce many of our manufactured goods, including electronics, clothes, and more, we can expect MORE cost increases on plenty of other essential products.

In his floor speech, Sen. Warner said,

“The International Energy Agency (IEA) has already called the effective closure of the Strait the worst global energy disruption in history, eclipsing even the Arab oil embargo of 1973 that caused widespread fuel shortages and massive economic damage across the world… The damage from these attacks will likely reverberate for weeks and months even once the Strait is reopened, prolonging supply shortages and economic pain across the globe.”

In the coming weeks, Sen. Warner will keep pushing to ensure that we end this conflict and bring costs down for Americans.

I AVOW TO PROTECT CVOW

And after all that, let’s end on a positive note. After years of work by Sen. Warner, the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project is now generating electricity!

When the project is complete, it will be America’s largest offshore wind project and could power over 660,000 homes… that’s all with clean, affordable energy.

Sen. Warner joined with Sen. Kaine and Rep. Scott to celebrate the announcement, saying:

“After years of work, we’re absolutely thrilled that the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, the largest commercial-scale offshore wind project in the United States, is now providing clean, reliable energy to Virginians. We’ve been proud of what we’ve done with Dominion Energy and other partners in the region to secure federal funding for the project, improve local maritime infrastructure, and create good-paying jobs. We look forward to continuing to work together to grow Virginia’s clean energy economy.”

It’s a great step forward for the all-of-the-above energy approach that Sen. Warner has long promoted. It’s also a big victory after President Trump tried to cease all work on many of the nation’s offshore wind projects last December… a short-sighted and painful decision that a court eventually stopped.

You can hear more of Sen. Warner’s comments on the situation here from his weekly media availability.

GRAB BAG

ANTHROPIC: Sen. Warner issued a statement after a court paused Pete Hegseth’s designation of AI company Anthropic as a supply chain risk.

SAVING RURAL HOSPITALS: Sen. Warner reintroduced bipartisan legislation to help make sure rural hospitals are fairly reimbursed for their services by the federal government.

NO MONEY FOR MIKE FLYNN: Sen. Warner issued a statement blasting the Trump administration over their million dollar payment to Mike Flynn.

R-AI-SING HELL: Sen. Warner led five of his colleagues in pressing six generative artificial intelligence companies for answers regarding their engagements with the Department of Defense, the rules under which DoD can access and use their technology, and the internal controls that exist in the event their technology is misused by DoD.

TYLER’S LAW: Sen. Warner applauded Senate passage of Tyler’s Law, a bill directing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to provide hospitals with guidance on how emergency rooms can implement fentanyl testing in their routine drug screens.

PROTECTING KIDS: Sen. Warner introduced a bipartisan bill to empower parents to protect their children on social media platforms by providing them with more tools to know if their children are engaging in dangerous or risky interactions.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Senate will be in recess next week for the Easter and Passover holidays.

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I brought two boards upon which I’d emblazoned 101 ways that the Trump administration has made Americans less safe.

And let’s just say I had to cut it down to get to 101.

Today, I want to share that list with you all. The only way we fight back against this administration’s reckless endangerment of Americans is if we all continuously raise our voices against these abuses and fight to protect the national security apparatus that Trump is so intent on destroying. I promise you, I am in that fight daily in the Senate.

1. Fired the NSA Director and Deputy Director, leaving the NSA and U.S. Cyber Command without confirmed leadership for months before nominating a replacement, undermining stability at the nation’s primary cyber defense agencies during a period of escalating cyber threats

2. Fired the three-star general in charge of DIA for producing politically inconvenient intelligence

3. Fired the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for having been associated with “DEI” and after questioning whether he had been given the job solely because of his race

4. Fired the Chief of Naval Operations for having been associated with “DEI”

5. Fired the Commandant of the Coast Guard for “excessive focus on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion”

6. Forced out the Chief of Staff of the Air Force for no reason

7. Fired the Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force for no reason

8. Over-extended the deployment of the USS Harry S. Truman, resulting in the loss of three F/A-18 Super Hornets and a collision with a merchant vessel

9. Over-extended the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford, resulting in injuries to sailors and many sailors considering leaving the Navy

10. Recklessly directed a live-fire celebration for the Marine Corp’s 250^th anniversary that resulted in shrapnel that closed Interstate 5 and struck several California highway patrol cars

11. Diverted military readiness for a military parade to celebrate President Trump’s own 79^th birthday, which cost at least $45 million and included over 6,000 Soldiers, 150 vehicles, and 50 aircraft

12. Replaced senior career leadership with political allies under the guise of depoliticization, hollowing out institutional expertise needed to assess threats to the U.S.

13. Fired IC officers who worked on multiple specialized programs who had simply been on temporary rotations to DEI offices, removing experienced personnel from specialized intelligence programs and reducing operational capacity

14. Allowed uncleared, unvetted DOGE employees to access critical payment systems, creating enormous financial and counterintelligence vulnerabilities

15. Granted uncleared, unvetted DOGE personnel access to sensitive IT networks, exposing classified and operational data to unvetted actors

16. Permitted uncleared, unvetted DOGE employees to enter SCIFs, creating a severe counterintelligence risk to national security operations

17. Imposed arbitrary “loyalty tests” on nonpartisan personnel candidates, politicizing recruitment and undermining the integrity of national-security staffing

18. Posted classified intelligence information to the DOGE website, jeopardizing sensitive programs

19. Forced CIA to comply with executive orders that included sending lists of officer names over unclassified email, creating a massive counterintelligence risk

20. Revoked clearances of former intelligence personnel, congressional staffers, and covert CIA officers, weakening continuity, jeopardizing operational security, and turning sensitive national-security tools into instruments of political retaliation

21. Fired CIA’s top Russia expert (days after President Trump met with Putin in Alaska)

22. Disbanded the FBI Foreign Influence Task Force, making the U.S. more vulnerable to adversary foreign influence operations

23. Fired Department of Energy employees responsible for America’s nuclear weapons

24. Froze nearly all foreign aid and dismantled USAID, stripping the U.S. of one of its most cost-effective national security tools and creating openings for adversaries to expand their influence

25. Slashed funding for Voice of America, undercutting a key tool for countering adversary propaganda and leaving the U.S. less able to push back against disinformation from adversaries

26. Fired CISA staff and cut programs that tracked and countered foreign influence, misinformation, and disinformation threats, weakening federal capacity to identify and respond to foreign and domestic efforts to undermine democratic processes

27. Ended funding for the Election Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center, or EI-ISAC, which alerts state officials of active election threats in other states

28. Reassigned hundreds of DHS staff from foreign threats to the homeland, election security, and more to border security and immigration

29. Fired numerous JAG officers, undermining legal oversight at the Department of Defense and diminishing the ability to prevent or challenge potentially unlawful military actions

30. Deployed JAG officers as temporary immigration judges, diverting military legal resources to politically driven enforcement and further weakening safeguards against unlawful actions

31. Discussed classified military operations over unclassified group chat

32. Added a reporter to the group chat

33. Accepted a multi-million dollar luxury jet as a gift from Qatar to use as Air Force One

34. Scrapped prior export controls and green‑lit massive AI chip shipments to the UAE without binding security guarantees, diminishing U.S. leverage over critical technology and increasing the risk that advanced semiconductors could be diverted to adversaries

35. Tapped a 22-year-old with no relevant experience to lead DHS’s Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, the hub for combating violent extremism at DHS

36. Disbanded the FBI unit that audited Section 702 operations, reducing accountability over sensitive intelligence collection and increasing the risk of misuse of classified surveillance programs

37. Allowed China to acquire advanced semiconductor chips, undermining U.S. export controls designed to protect sensitive technology and strengthening a strategic competitor’s capabilities in AI, defense, and critical infrastructure

38. Framed routine intelligence reporting as “politicized” when it conflicted with the president’s agenda

39. Pushed the NIC to rewrite intelligence products to shield the president, compromising the integrity of national-security analysis and weakening the ability of policymakers to respond to threats objectively

40. Fired the top two career officials leading the NIC, removing senior analysts responsible for assessing threats to the U.S. and hollowing out critical intelligence expertise

41. Interfered unlawfully in the IC Inspector General’s office, eroding internal accountability and compromising the integrity of intelligence oversight

42. Illegally withheld a whistleblower complaint from Congress for more than 9 months

43. Deployed active-duty Marines and National Guard personnel to patrol U.S. cities and police protests, militarizing domestic law enforcement and diverting critical forces from national defense priorities at a cost of nearly half a billion dollars in 2025

44. Cut all funding for Department of Homeland Security’s terrorism prevention grant program, stripping communities of resources to detect, prevent, and respond to domestic and international terrorist threats

45. Declassified sensitive intelligence without following standard protocols, endangering sources, collection methods, and the integrity of U.S. national-security operations

46. Diverted DHS funds to luxury aircraft, undermining investments in counterterrorism, border security, and disaster preparedness

47. Undermined NATO by publicly questioning U.S. commitments to collective defense, sowing uncertainty among allies and weakening the alliance’s ability to deter adversaries

48. Threatened to expel Canada from the Five Eyes intelligence partnership, jeopardizing one of the world’s most effective intelligence-sharing alliances

49. Floated military action to seize Greenland and the Panama Canal, alarming allies and partners while eroding U.S. credibility

50. Imposed sweeping tariffs on allies and security partners, straining critical economic relationships that underpin U.S. geopolitical influence and alliance cooperation

51. Drove Canada and other close allies to deepen economic and strategic ties with U.S. adversaries

52. Withdrew from 66 international organizations – including the Global Counterterrorism Forum, the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the U.N. Office for Children in Armed Conflict – surrendering U.S. influence over global security, climate, trade, and human-rights standards and allowing adversaries to set international rules without American input

53. Rescinded funding for U.S. to meet treaty obligations and contributions to international organizations, weakening the perceived durability of our commitments around the world

54. Aligned the U.S. with Russia, Belarus, and North Korea in a United Nations vote, isolating the U.S. from democratic allies and weakening the global coalition against authoritarian aggression

55. Ordered a full U.S. boycott of the G20 in South Africa, forfeiting American influence over global economic and financial policy and allowing adversaries to shape international rules to their advantage, weakening U.S. strategic and economic security

56. Skipped the APEC summit where China proposed a World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization, ceding U.S. influence in global AI governance and leaving China free to set the rules for emerging technologies with major national-security and economic implications

57. Publicly contradicted long-standing intelligence community assessments about Russia’s responsibility for the war in Ukraine, undermining confidence in U.S. intelligence and emboldening Kremlin disinformation

58. Weakened diplomatic credibility by tying security commitments to transactional deals, reducing trust in U.S. promises and diminishing leverage in strategic negotiations

59. Blocked an intelligence agency oversight visit due to political influence from a conspiracy theorist, weakening institutional checks on the nation’s intelligence capabilities

60. Released a National Defense Strategy that prioritizes domestic concerns over great-power threats, weakening U.S. focus on strategic competitors like China and reducing readiness to deter foreign adversaries

61. Ordered the recall of a valid intelligence report on Venezuela because its contents were inconvenient for an administration envoy

62. Conducted an ongoing, unlawful maritime campaign against vessels in the Caribbean, pulling naval and military forces away from deterrence and strategic priorities, undermining national defense and global security posture

63. Lost track of a convicted ISIS supporter who then bought a gun and killed a ROTC instructor

64. Fired several senior leaders at FBI headquarters, who represented hundreds of years of experience in shielding America from terror attacks, criminal gangs and financial frauds

65. Fired FBI employees who worked on former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s mishandling of classified records, creating a chilling effect on agents tasked with politically sensitive national-security cases

66. Fired at least a dozen counterintelligence agents and staff from the FBI’s elite CI-12 unit, including agents with deep expertise on Iran, just days before major U.S. military operations against Tehran

67. Fired FBI employees who investigated the violent criminals who attacked police on January 6, 2020

68. Targeted FBI personnel based on perceived ideological or political views rather than performance, eroding the bureau’s tradition of nonpartisan law enforcement

69. Reassigned roughly a quarter of FBI agents away from public safety and national-security missions to carry out immigration roundups, diverting critical law-enforcement resources from counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and violent crime investigations

70. Forced out the head of the FBI’s New York field office, the head of the FBI’s Washington field office, the head of the FBI’s Las Vegas field office, the head of the FBI’s Richmond field office, the head of the FBI’s Miami field office, and a top deputy in the FBI’s Norfolk field office

71. Decimated the FBI’s counterterrorism leadership in New York and other major offices, leaving the bureau less able to detect and disrupt domestic terrorist plots and ISIS-inspired attacks

72. Fired multiple career prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, destabilizing one of DOJ’s most important offices for prosecuting terrorism, espionage, and national-security cases

73. Dismissed senior DOJ prosecutors who objected to politically motivated prosecutions, sending a chilling signal to attorneys responsible for sensitive national-security and counterintelligence cases

74. Fired or forced out DOJ prosecutors overseeing major January 6 and domestic extremism cases, weakening institutional expertise on domestic terrorism investigation

75. Removed senior prosecutors overseeing counterintelligence cases involving foreign adversaries, disrupting ongoing investigations into espionage and foreign influence

76. Purged prosecutors with experience handling classified-information and espionage cases, reducing DOJ’s capacity to bring complex national-security prosecutions

77. Forced departures of prosecutors responsible for major cybercrime and foreign hacking cases, undermining DOJ’s response to cyber threats from China, Russia, and Iran

78. Weaponized the DOJ against perceived political adversaries, including senior former intelligence and law enforcement officials, undermining the independence of federal institutions responsible for protecting U.S. national security

79. Created a precedent for partisan briefings to Congress on things that are required, by law, to be briefed to all members

80. Designated a private U.S. AI company as a “national security risk”

81. Fired or forced out senior career diplomats with decades of experience managing alliances and crisis diplomacy, weakening U.S. capacity to respond to global threats

82. Purged career officials working on sanctions enforcement and economic statecraft, reducing the State Department’s ability to pressure adversaries through coordinated international sanctions

83. Dismissed diplomats responsible for countering foreign disinformation campaigns, weakening efforts to push back against propaganda from Russia, China, and other adversaries

84. Disbanded the State Department’s Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, weakening U.S. capacity to prevent and respond to emerging conflicts abroad

85. Attempted to pressure a private U.S. satellite imagery company to stop sharing data with allies and partners, undermining intelligence cooperation and restricting tools used to monitor adversary activity

86. Stripped security protections from former senior officials who carried out U.S. national-security decisions such as the Soleimani strike, exposing them to retaliation from foreign adversaries

87. Drew the U.S. into a major conflict with Iran without an imminent threat, based on the president’s “feeling”

88. Failed to evacuate or reposition personnel at U.S. embassies and military installations in the Middle East before initiating hostilities, putting thousands of American diplomats, civilians, and servicemembers at unnecessary risk

89. Instituted a restrictive press policy at the Pentagon, driving journalists out and reducing public oversight of critical national-security operations

90. Halted planned sanctions on a Chinese intelligence agency to preserve a trade truce, prioritizing short-term economic interests over national security and emboldening Beijing’s espionage operations against the U.S.

91. Pardoned former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, who was serving a 45-year sentence for drug trafficking, including using government resources to traffic hundreds of tons of cocaine to the U.S., undermining U.S. law enforcement

92. Pardoned Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who had pleaded guilty to facilitating money laundering through transactions with sanctioned countries including Iran, Cuba, Syria, and Russian-occupied Ukraine, creating risks to U.S. financial systems and national security

93. Prevented DOJ from prosecuting cryptocurrency platforms that violate U.S sanctions laws and facilitate illicit finance by U.S. adversaries

94. Halted immigration and asylum applications for Afghan nationals, leaving tens of thousands of Afghan allies who supported U.S. forces vulnerable to Taliban retaliation and undermining America’s ability to recruit local partners in future conflicts

95. Granted clemency to everyone involved in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, including more than 600 rioters convicted of assaulting or obstructing law enforcement officers and 170 of using a deadly weapon, several of whom have since been re-arrested for committing new crimes

96. Attempted prosecution of six members of Congress for reminding service members and intelligence personnel of their obligation to refuse illegal orders, sending a chilling message that could undermine lawful military and intelligence decision-making and compromise national-security accountability

97. Directed the Pentagon to resume U.S. nuclear weapons testing for the first time in decades, undermining longstanding arms-control agreements, alarming allies, and increasing the risk of a destabilizing global nuclear arms race

98. Blindly cut funding for key research programs, undercutting U.S. technological leadership and enabling China to openly recruit American talent and expertise to come work in Chinese labs

99. Undermined disease research capacity, leaving the U.S. less prepared to detect, prevent, and respond to diseases like COVID-19 and Ebola that come to our shores from abroad

100. Diverted key defense assets away from the Indo-Pacific to sustain operations in the Middle East, undercutting U.S. strategy and weakening deterrence against China and North Korea

101. Scrapped Pentagon studies on climate resilience, undermining efforts to protect troops, secure bases, and maintain operational readiness amid increasingly severe weather and rising sea levels

But are you ready for the ways it’s going to spike your costs for groceries, flights, utilities, appliances, and countless manufactured goods?

This week, I break down how Trump’s War of Choice will soon raise costs on everything you buy. Watch above or on YouTube here.