Response of Chellie Pingree (D-Maine)

“I believe President Trump’s hate-filled rhetoric has had an impact on the nation. Since he’s taken office, Congress has voted multiple times to condemn his racist comments. The most powerful person in our society should not embolden hate with words that tear at the unity of our communities and country." From Pingree's staff: "It’s been reported that there was a 226 percent increase in hate crimes within counties that hosted a Trump campaign rally in 2016. It’s also been widely reported that the Trump administration has disbanded the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) domestic terror intelligence unit. Consequently, the House Appropriations Committee, of which Congresswoman Pingree is a member, included language in the FY2020 spending bill to: -require the Office of Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention broaden its scope to counter domestic extremism and provide a report back to the Committee -invest $5 million to support Unsolved Civil Rights Crimes funding -direct the FBI to update a 2008 report on White Supremacy Recruitment since 9/11 and provide data about the use of electronic media in the commission of hate crimes. In 2018, Congresswoman Pingree voted for H Con Res 77 to condemn the role of white supremacist groups in inciting violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, and denounce the increase in fear-mongering, racism, anti-Semitism, bigotry, and violence by white supremacists, neo-Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan, and other hate groups. She also voted for H Res 496 to censure and condemn President Trump for his inadequate response to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 12, 2017, for his failure to condemn the White supremacist groups responsible for actions of domestic terrorism, for asserting that "both sides" were to blame and excusing the violent behavior of participants in the Unite the Right rally, and for employing people with ties to White supremacist movements in the White House. Last week, she voted for H Res 489 to condemn Presidents Trump’s most recent racist comments about four duly elected female Members of Congress. The measure passed the House 240-187."