Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) (left) and Sen. Martin Heinrich (D.M.)
Chip Somodevilla | Kayla Bartkowski | Getty Images
Allegations about Jeffrey Epstein arose during an argument between Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Sen. Martin Heinrich (D.M.) over the fate of the Cesar Chavez National Monument.
Mr. Heinrich, ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, on Tuesday opposed a bill to defund and close the monument after multiple women accused Mr. Chavez, a symbol of the farm labor movement, of sexual assault. Heinrich opposed the bill, citing concerns that erasing the monument would diminish the work of other leaders in the farm labor movement.
“I unequivocally agree that there should no longer be a monument named after Cesar Chavez,” he said on the Senate floor after objecting. “But we must never erase the monuments that tell the story of the farm labor movement. It is a story that belongs to many people, including survivors of Chávez’s violence.”
Mr. Chavez, who died in 1993, was accused in a recent New York Times report of abusing them as minors by several women he worked with.
Heinrich proposed an amendment to the bill that would temporarily close the monument and require the government to consider a new monument to honor the agricultural labor movement.
Chairman Lee harshly criticized Mr. Heinrich for opposing the bill introduced by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas).
“Cesar Chavez National Monument is the very place where Chavez sexually abused women and children,” Lee said. “Senate Democrats just fought to keep this crime scene a national monument.
This monument is located on National Park Service grounds in Keene, California.
Mr. Cornyn’s bill would require the immediate closure and sale to the federal government of the property, which includes Mr. Chavez’s home, cemetery, memorial garden, and private office where the New York Times reported that Mr. Chavez abused minors.
The proposal comes amid a sexual misconduct reckoning in Congress and Washington, which has been disrupted by the resignation of two members of Congress over sexual misconduct allegations and the release of Epstein’s files earlier this year.
“Given the resignation of two members of Congress today over sexual abuse allegations, it is incomprehensible that (Mr. Heinrich) proposed an amendment to protect the legacy of Cesar Chavez, who sexually abused minors,” Cornyn said in an X post on Tuesday.
The graves of labor leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez and his wife Helen at the Cesar E. Chavez National Monument in Keene, California, March 18, 2026.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
Mr. Heinrich responded to Mr. Lee and Mr. Cornyn by posting a headline saying that Mr. Lee and Mr. Cornyn voted against releasing the Epstein files.
Mr. Lee then posted a copy of an email to Mr. Epstein in 2012 asking the disgraced financier if he would like to have lunch in New York City with Mr. Heinrich, a congressman who was running for the Senate at the time.
“Congressman Martin Heinrich will be in New York tomorrow and if he is free, he would like to have lunch with him around 12:30 p.m.,” said an email sent by a representative from fundraising firm Dynamic SRG. “If you would like to meet him and learn more about his campaign for New Mexico State Senate, please let us know.”
When asked for comment on the altercation, Heinrich’s office told CNBC, “The matter has already been reported.”
The Albuquerque Journal reported in February that the letter was part of the Epstein files released by the Justice Department.
“I have never met Jeffrey Epstein,” a spokesperson for Heinrich said in a statement to the magazine.
“Mr. Heinrich also did not receive any campaign contributions from Mr. Epstein,” the spokesperson said.
