STATEMENT BY U.S. SENATOR BENJAMIN L. CARDIN COMMEMORATING THE 60th ANNIVERSARY OF ISRAEL'S INDEPENDENCE

It is with great pleasure and pride that I join in the celebration this month of a landmark moment for democracies and free societies worldwide: the 60 th anniversary of the founding of the modern State of Israel and the end of the British Mandate of Palestine. May 14, 1948 (5 th day of the Jewish lunar month Iyar/May 8, 2008) marks Israel's Independence Day or Yom Ha'atzmaut. It was on this day 60 years ago that pioneering statesman David Ben-Gurion proclaimed Israel's independence , establish… Continue Reading

CARDIN, MIKULSKI ANNOUNCE COMMITTEE PASSAGE OF BALTIMORE HERITAGE AREA ACT

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (both D-Md.) today announced the Energy and Natural Resources Committee has approved the Baltimore National Heritage Area Act (S. 2604).   This bill designates the Baltimore Heritage Area (BHA) as a National Park Service (NPS) National Heritage Area (NHA), with $10 million in federal funding over 15 years.   Introduced in February, the bill now heads to the Senate floor for a vote.   "The… Continue Reading

SENATE COMMENDS MARYLAND'S CHARLES COUNTY ON ITS 350th ANNIVERSARY

Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (Both D-MD) praised the Senate for unanimously passing   a resolution that recognizes Charles County, Maryland, on the occasion of its 350 th anniversary.   "Nestled on the banks of the Potomac River, Charles County has been an active participant in American history since the earliest colonial days and the Articles of Confederation, through the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln's ass… Continue Reading

CARDIN CRITICIZES GOP FOR BLOCKING FAA BILL; SAYS REPUBLICANS PUT SPECIAL INTERESTS AHEAD OF PASSENGER SAFETY

Washington , DC - U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) today expressed his strong disappointment after Senate Republicans blocked consideration of the FAA Modernization and Improvements Act , which provides a five-year reauthorization for the Federal Aviation Administration.   "As demand for commercial flights grows each year, it will be next to impossible to maintain the highest safety standards in the world with outdated technolog… Continue Reading

TEAM MARYLAND URGES COMMERCE SECRETARY TO PROVIDE EMERGENCY AID TO MARYLAND WATERMEN

WASHINGTON -- Maryland delegation members U.S. Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (both D-MD), and U.S. Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer (D), Wayne T. Gilchrest (R), Albert Wynn (D), Elijah E. Cummings (D), C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D), Chris Van Hollen (D) and John Sarbanes (D) today sent a joint letter to Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez in support of Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley's request for a disaster declaration for the Ches… Continue Reading

HIGH ENERGY PRICES ARE HURTING OUR MARYLAND AND OUR NATION

First, I welcome the bipartisan support for programs that will move us toward energy independence. I agree with my colleagues that we need to do a Manhattan-type project, with the same type of commitment we made when putting a person on the Moon, to become energy independent. We have the technology. We know how to get it done. If we have the will, this Nation can do anything it wants to do.   I think there is a growing awareness among Members of this body, as well as on t… Continue Reading

CARDIN AND JUDICIARY COMMITTEE REMIND MUKASEY TO FOLLOW THE LAW AND PROTECT ELDERLY, MINORITY AND DISABLED VOTERS

Washington , DC - Today, U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) joined eight other members of the Senate Judiciary Committee in urging the Attorney General to uphold the requirements of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 despite the Supreme Court's recent Crawford v. Marion County ruling that rejected a challenge to Indiana's photo-ID law.     "As we approach another national election, I urge Attorney Gen… Continue Reading

CARDIN, MIKULSKI, O'MALLEY ANNOUNCE FIGHT TO PROVIDE RELIEF FOR MARYLAND WATERMEN

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators   Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (both D-Md.) today joined Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley to announce that the State will seek a disaster declaration from the U.S. Department of Commerce for the Chesapeake Bay blue crab.   A declaration will make Maryland's watermen eligible for emergency disaster funding to ease the economic burden placed on the crabbing industry as it faces a 34 percent reduction in the female crab harvest.   The S… Continue Reading

CARDIN, MIKULSKI URGE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO PROTECT FEMALE GENITAL MUTATION VICTIM

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (both D-Md.) today lent their voices to a bipartisan coalition led by Senators Carl Levin (D-Mich.) and Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) who have called on Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey to review the recent decision by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the nation's highest immigration court, that unjustly denied protection to a young woman who was subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) as a child.   The wom… Continue Reading

TEAM MARYLAND CONDEMNS RULING ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY OF LIQUIFIED NATURAL GAS SITE

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski, and Congressmen Elijah E. Cummings, C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger and John Sarbanes (all D-Md.) today condemned the draft environmental impact statement (EIS) issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).   In its report, FERC suggests that - with 151 mitigation measures - the proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility at Sparrows Point in Baltimore would   "have limited adverse environmental impact and woul… Continue Reading

OVERSIGHT ON EPA TOXIC CHEMICAL POLICIES

Madame Chairman, thank you. The mission of the Environmental Protection Agency is to protect human health and the environment. The Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) Program is a manifestation of that part of the EPA's mission which includes the evaluation and regulation of toxic chemicals. With over 500 chemicals listed, and over 9,000,000 queries to the IRIS database, IRIS is a valuable resource both within the U.S. and around the world in understanding the potential human ef… Continue Reading

CARDIN, MIKULSKI, CUMMINGS CALL FOR RECOGNITION OF USS CONSTELLATION'S ROLE IN ENDING SLAVE TRADE

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski, with Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (all D-Md.) have announced they will introduce a resolution today to recognize the historical significance of the USS Constellation, which is docked in Baltimore's Inner Harbor, and to acknowledge it as an appropriate site to commemorate the bicentennial of the abolition of the Transatlantic Slave Trade this year.   "Slavery left an indelible mark on American histor… Continue Reading

CARDIN, HOYER ANNOUNCE ADDITION OF 73 ACRES TO PISCATAWAY NATIONAL PARK

BRYANS ROAD , MD - U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) and U.S. Congressman Steny Hoyer (MD-5 th) joined the Trust for Public Land, the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association and the National Park Service today in announcing the protection of an additional 73 acres of land at Piscataway Park. The new park land builds on the effort to preserve the historic viewshed along the Potomac River across from Mount Vernon.   "Today's ceremony marks an impor… Continue Reading

CARDIN CALLS SUPREME COURT DECISION ON VOTER ID REQUIREMENTS MISDIRECTED

Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), a member of the Judiciary Committee, today made the following statement in response to the Supreme Court's ruling that states can require voters to show photo identification:   "I am disappointed by the Supreme Court's decision today in Crawford v. Marion County Election Board rejecting a challenge to Indiana's photo-ID law. Most studies have shown that in-person voter fraud… Continue Reading

CONGRESSIONAL DEMOCRATS CELEBRATE SMALL BUSINESS WEEK WITH SMALL BUSINESS LEADERS

Washington, DC - Today Congressional Democrats celebrated National Small Business Week with Asian and Pacific Islander American small business leaders from across the country.  "Skyrocketing energy and fuel costs have hit small businesses disproportionally hard. For this country to grow its way out of our current economic crisis, we need a targeted plan to help small businesses - especially those who are dependent on fuel - survive these tough times. Small businesses have historically lifted ou… Continue Reading

CARDIN, MIKULSKI ANNOUNCE MORE THAN $9 MILLION IN NEW FUNDS FOR UPGRADES TO BOONSBORO'S WASTEWATER SYSTEMS

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (both D-MD) today announced $9.3 million in new funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development program for improvements to the Town of Boonsboro's two wastewater treatment plants.   The funding will help bring Boonsboro's two wastewater systems into compliance with regulations established by the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE). One wastewater system is owned… Continue Reading

CARDIN LAUDS SENATE PASSAGE OF EXPANDED BENEFITS FOR VETERANS

Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin praised the Senate's 96-1 passage today of the Veterans Benefit Enhancement Act , which enhances insurance, mental health, education, pay and other benefits for those who have fought on behalf of the United States. Senator Cardin released the following statement:   "Our servicemen and women as well as their families make enormous sacrifices for our fre… Continue Reading

CARDIN, MIKULSKI ANNOUNCE $380,000 TO COMPLETE ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY OF FREDERICK AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT PLANS

WASHINGTON - U .S. Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski  (both D-MD) today announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded the Frederick Municipal Airport $380,000 to conduct an environmental assessment of its   five-year infrastructure development plan.     The Frederick Airport is moving forward with major capital improvements, including lengthening its primary runway, aircraft storage hangars, corporate hangars… Continue Reading

CARDIN RESPONSE TO SBA PRESTON NOMINATION FOR HUD SECRETARY

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), a member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, issued the following statement in response to reports that President Bush will nominate Small Business Administrator Steve Preston to become the head of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).   "As our nation continues to cope with a massive housing crisis and credit crunch, I am encouraged that the President named a replace… Continue Reading

SENATOR CARDIN PRESENTS $510,000 CHECK TO CHESAPEAKE CITY FOR COST OF REPLACING WATER AND SEWER PIPES

CHESAPEAKE CITY, MD -- U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) today presented Mayor of Chesapeake City Bill Kiessling and other city officials with a ceremonial check for $510,000 to compensate Chesapeake City for damages caused decades ago when the Corps of Engineers deepened the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal .  Senators Barbara A. Mikulski and Cardin have worked together to ensure Chesapeake City received reimbursement for the cost of replacing the pipes.   M… Continue Reading