Patty Murray

We are not going to let one man tell millions of women in this country that they can`t have paid leave.

I have introduced legislation called the America's College Promise Act that creates a new Federal-state partnership to provide 2 years tuition-free at a community or technical college.

I have proposed legislation in the form of the EMPOWERS Act to allow workers to nominate and elect trustees to represent them and set proxy voting guidelines that align with their values and their inherently long-term investment strategies.

I want to thank both Secretary Cardona and Secretary Becerra for being here today to discuss this important issue, keeping our students safe and in school.

If we are serious about reopening schools and making sure our children have the best opportunity to engage not only in the classroom but extracurricular activities or getting to school on time, we have to make sure that we are addressing…

Safely reopening schools means we have enough staff to keep everyone safe and supported.

I am troubled, however, by the continuing testing challenges, which includes some schools not having access to enough tests.

The science is clear. Vaccines are the safest, most effective route to keeping our kids safe.

I have been very focused on making sure testing is widely available as a tool to prevent and respond to outbreaks.

You have squandered the gains we have made in scaling up the capacity last year.

The President has said that opening school is a national priority. I agree.

My goal since the start of this pandemic has been to get students back in the classroom safely for in-person learning.

You can't have it both ways.

The work the Biden administration has done to promote common sense public health measures is so important.

I continue to encourage every American who is eligible for a vaccine, or a booster shot to get it without delay.

Congressional oversight is not an option.

It has been a relief to have leaders in charge who set an example that public health and safety should not be partisan.

It is a catch 22 for parents.

We are about to take two votes, and I will speak on both of them for just a few minutes.

You know, this amendment is simply an attempt to force the Federal Government to interfere with local school district decisions about curriculum and academic instruction. There are several longstanding provisions in Federal education law…

This is a deeply concerning issue and something that we can't look away from.

[w]e have to make sure we learn from this history and take action so we never repeat it. This crisis has cost too much, has taken too many lives, for us to do anything less.

We need to skate to where the puck is going.

Business as usual has to be over.

The opportunity to actually have an impact on population health here is really, really huge.