Judiciary

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today reacted to the 31 deaths and multiple injuries this weekend by shooters in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, with the following statement:

"The horrific killings in Texas and Ohio are yet another grim reminder that people with nefarious motives are getting access to weapons of war and using them on defenseless civilians as they go about their daily lives. Weapons of war have no place in the hands of civilians and background checks for purchasing guns must be thorough.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee and Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, questioned Special Counsel Robert Mueller about President Trump's efforts to get then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to "un-recuse" himself and take over the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential election. Sessions had been a senior advisor to the Trump campaign and relied on Department of Justice guidance before deciding to recuse himself.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today joined House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler and Senator Kamala Harris of California in introducing the Marijuana Opportunity and Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act. The bill aims to correct the injustices of our failed drug policies by removing Marijuana from Schedule I in the Control Substances Act, investing in communities that have been disproportionately affected, and requiring re-sentencing and expungement for prior convictions.

Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, today voted to hold Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in criminal contempt of Congress for their willful failure to comply with lawful subpoenas and document requests. The vote was 230 to 198.

Afterward, Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), a member of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, provided opening remarks at a hearing on "Responding to Hate Crimes: The Role of Religious Actors."

In the hearing, Congressman Cohen said:

"We all need to take religion and use it for good and find common purposes, common values, and not use it to divide us."

Find the Congressman's full remarks here.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), a member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, today questioned witnesses at a hearing on "Women and Girls in the Criminal Justice System."

During the question-and-answer session, Congressman Cohen asked Jesselyn McCurdy, Deputy Director of the American Civil Liberties Union Washington Legislative Office, about private prisons and their impact.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today introduced H. Res. 490, a resolution of censure against President Trump for his racist and xenophobic comments about freshman Democratic Members Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ayanna S. Pressley of Massachusetts.

The resolution is co-sponsored by Representatives Omar, Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib and Pressley and by Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri, Yvette Clarke of New York, Joaquin Castro of Texas, Mark DeSaulnier of California and Pramila Jayapal of Washington.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) and Congresswoman Val Demings (FL-10) today introduced the Safer Streets Act, which would create a new grant program to support local communities with high rates of violent crime. Afterward, Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

"The Safer Streets Act is intended to provide additional funding to address violent crime in places where the rate is significantly above the national average – places like Memphis. I'm pleased my colleague Val Demings, the former Chief of Police of Orlando, joins me in introducing the measure.