Gun violence is the number one cause of death for children in America.

Today, I announced new funding to protect and support our children as we work to implement the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the most significant gun safety legislation passed in nearly 30 years. This law is also the largest investment in history to support student mental health, including the trauma of gun violence.

Today, I announced an additional $285 million as we work to hire and train over 14,000 mental health professionals in schools across our nation.

President Biden and I ran for office to ensure that our nation is a place where every American has the freedom and opportunity to thrive. We made significant progress in 2023, and the fight continues in the new year. In 2023, our historic investments hit the streets as we rebuild roads and bridges, replace every lead pipe, invest in clean energy, boost U.S. manufacturing, and bring affordable high-speed internet to every home.

We have already announced 44,000 infrastructure projects.

Yesterday, Allen, Texas was torn apart by a senseless mass shooting at a shopping mall.

Doug and I mourn for the eight adults and children who lost their lives, pray for those wounded, and send our gratitude to the first responders who ran toward danger. While there's much we don't yet know about the attack, here's what we do know: all Americans deserve to be safe from gun violence. But they're not.

Not because we don't know the solutions. Not because Americans are divided on the issue – a majority of gun owners support reforms.

An Arizona court ruling recently resurrected an abortion ban from 1864. That court ruling has been paused pending appeal. Patrick Robles from @uarizona shared with me how this issue is impacting students on his campus. The University of Idaho advised employees that they could not offer birth control on campus, and then reversed its position. Ashley Paine shared how students were left in confusion on campus.

Indiana passed a near-total abortion ban yesterday. By the time a woman realizes she's pregnant, she will effectively be prohibited from having access to reproductive health care. This is an absolutely shameful decision made by the Indiana legislature and governor. The ban has narrow exceptions and will endanger women and girls in a state that is already third-worst in the nation for maternal mortality. This decision puts lives in danger.

What happened on Friday was a complete dismantling of reproductive freedom by the Supreme Court. Right now, we are fighting to restore what the Court took away. reproductiverights.gov The Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision means that millions of women will no longer have the reproductive health care that their mothers and grandmothers fought for and had for the last 50 years.

The world lost a brilliant and beloved leader today. Madeleine Albright gave so much of her life to public service—always with intelligence, strength, and conviction. Secretary Albright was a mentor and a friend. I will miss her. I first met Sec. Albright when I was a young lawyer in San Francisco. From the beginning, she was generous with her time, support, and advice. She was able to balance strength and compassion, and her deep empathy has been a constant source of inspiration throughout my own career.

Yesterday, we announced a framework that we feel confident will pass in Congress. We have made it clear from the very beginning that our administration’s priorities will help the American people.

Here’s what’s in our Build Back Better Framework: We know that child care is a necessity for so many working families. Under our Build Back Better Framework we’re making child care more affordable and providing universal preschool. It ensures that middle-class families pay no more than 7% of their income on child care.

Every American should be treated with dignity and respect by law enforcement. Yet, that has not always been true for communities of color, where cases of discriminatory policing and excessive force are too often not met with accountability or justice. As a United States Senator, I introduced the Justice in Policing Act along with Senator Cory Booker and Representative Karen Bass. This bill would hold law enforcement accountable and provide greater transparency when there is police misconduct and use of excessive force.

I visited the home of Jamie Davis Smith and met her wonderful family. Jamie told me about the challenges she faces caring for her children and her parents at the same time. She is not alone: there are close to 8 million Americans in the "sandwich generation.” Jamie’s daughter Claire was born with multiple disabilities. Jamie had to rely on vacation days donated by co-workers to care for her through numerous surgeries and hospital stays. It became clear that she could not work and care for Claire, so she left work.

Today, a new law takes effect in Texas that directly violates the precedent established in the landmark case of Roe v. Wade. This all-out assault on reproductive health effectively bans abortion for the nearly 7 million Texans of reproductive age.
whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/… Patients in Texas will now be forced to travel out-of-state or carry their pregnancy to term against their will. This law will dramatically reduce access to reproductive care for women in Texas, particularly for women with low incomes and women of color.

Fifty-six years ago today - surrounded by Democrats and Republicans, activists and leaders including Dr. Martin Luther King, John Lewis, and Rosa Parks - President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 into law. The Voting Rights Act remains one of the most important pieces of legislation in our nation's history. It is estimated that in the five years after passage, almost as many Black Americans registered to vote in some southern states as in the 100 years prior to 1965.

I keep this photograph in my office as a reminder of Congressman Lewis and the work we have left to do. Democracy is stronger when everyone participates—and is weaker when people are left out. Today marks the one-year anniversary of his passing. As we mourn his loss, we reflect on the legacy of an American hero. Congressman Lewis fought tirelessly for our country's highest ideals: freedom and justice for all, and for the right of every American to vote.

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a decision that will undoubtedly restrict the right to vote, and in particular, for voters of color. After Shelby County v. Holder, this is the second time in the last eight years that the Supreme Court has dismantled crucial protections of the Voting Rights Act.

Today the President and I met with the family of Mr. George Floyd. Mr. Floyd should be alive today and should be with his family who continue to show courage, grace, and resilience.

916,000 jobs were added in March. Women accounted for an overwhelming majority of newly employed workers. @POTUS and I called the mass exodus of women from the workforce a national emergency that demands a national solution. With these numbers, we know our response is working. The American Rescue Plan was designed with women in mind: $1,400 checks, assistance for childcare, expanded tax credits, and support for small businesses. This plan is already helping women across the country get back on their feet.

A small business. A vigil. A neighborhood. A club. A party. A grocery store. In seven days there were seven mass shootings, as everyday gun violence has taken countless lives. No one should feel the pain of losing a loved one to violence. Our nation mourns with the community in Boulder, the families of those who were killed, and all those who have lost someone to gun violence.

.@POTUS promised that help is on the way, and he has been determined to keep that promise. He has challenged every member of our Administration and every member of Congress to help those who are hurting most. In scaling up our vaccination program, providing relief directly to families, and providing support directly to communities, the American Rescue Plan will do just that.

On this #InternationalWomensDay, I want to honor the women who for over a year have gone to work, often risking their health, to nourish and protect us—the doctors, nurses, teachers, grocery store workers, first responders, members of the military, scientists, and many more. I also want to acknowledge the more than 2 million women who have had to leave the workforce. @POTUS and I are working with Congress to deliver direct relief through the American Rescue Plan and get women, like you, back to work.

Today—on International Holocaust Remembrance Day—we remember the six million Jews, and the Roma and Sinti, Slavs, disabled persons, LGBTQ+ individuals, and many others, murdered by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. In honoring those whose lives were taken as well as those who survived the Shoah, we reaffirm our commitment to combatting anti-Semitism, bigotry, and evil everywhere it exists.

On Transgender Day of Remembrance, we remember those we lost to hate, to suicide, and to anti-trans violence.

Transgender people—and in particular, Black trans women—are facing an epidemic of violence. In 2019, at least 22 people have been killed right here in the US. #TDoR2019 We must recommit ourselves not just to fighting anti-trans violence, but to creating a world that celebrates trans lives. Join me in remembering and honoring those we lost to violence. Say their names. #TDoR2019