“As a lawyer, as a former prosecutor, and as a son and grandson of foreign-service officers who tried to represent American democracy in foreign and dangerous places, the idea that this crowd of crooked fossil-fuel types is able to take over and run our democracy like we are a banana republic - I find that repellent.”

American politician and attorney, since 2007

Sheldon Whitehouse is an American politician and attorney, serving as the junior United States senator from Rhode Island since 2007. A Democrat, he has also served as the United States Attorney for the District of Rhode Island and as the 71st attorney general of Rhode Island. Elected to the Senate in 2006, he defeated Republican incumbent Lincoln Chafee and was reelected in 2012, 2018, and 2024. His public career has centered on law and government service, first as a federal prosecutor and later in statewide office before moving to the Senate.