We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are
     created equal, [and] . . . endowed by their Creator with
     certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life,
     Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

  Just a few days ago, I had the chance, over at the Library of
Congress, along with a bunch of my colleagues, to see the original text
of the Declaration of Independence and the changes made by different
Framers.
  Our story is stronger when we tell it in its entirety--the good and
bad, the challenging chapters, the rough places, the foundational sins,
the wrongs and the arc--the arc--toward ``a more perfect Union.''
  My State has long played a central role in some of these fights over
the abolition of slavery, over racial segregation, over protecting our
environment, over the right of women to vote, over full inclusion. And
over 250 years, what I think defines us is that yearning for freedom,
that yearning for the opportunity to pursue life, liberty, and
happiness, as we understand it and define it.
  Franklin Delano Roosevelt, at the end of the Second World War--after
the paroxysm of a global catastrophe of violence--talked about four
freedoms, recognizing and celebrating those foundational First
Amendment freedoms: freedom of speech, freedom to worship, but also
freedom from want and freedom from fear.
  And so I think we need to recognize, at this July 4, that we have a
challenge, an opportunity, and an obligation.
  In the middle of the Civil War, President Lincoln and his Senate
insisted on building an expanded Capitol, at the exact moment our
Nation was tearing itself apart. President Lincoln said:

       If people see the Capitol going on, it is a sign we intend
     the Union shall go on.

  I have traveled around the world and heard from people all over that
they look to this Nation as a beacon of freedom. And every time I
recite the Pledge of Allegiance, I remind myself that, at its end, we
pledge ourselves to be a nation committed to liberty and justice for
all.
  In the months ahead, I look forward to giving many more speeches
about what I see as the core defining values of our Nation going
forward.

  But as you celebrate the Fourth of July, I hope you will take a
moment. Think back about your childhood experiences that helped you
understand what it means to be an American and that helped you confront
the challenges and the opportunities we have ahead of us.
  For me, living overseas and seeing our country from the perspectives
of others was that great chance. And I think, for all of us, in recent
days, seeing people from all over the world come to America during the
World Cup and experience our Nation, our hospitality, and our values
has been a refreshing reminder that, even in these divided and
difficult times, we can continue to inspire and challenge ourselves and
the world.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.

                   Unanimous Consent Request--S. 4876

  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, first of all, I want to thank my friend
from Delaware. I am going to take that admonition, as we approach the
Fourth of July, and reflect back on, obviously, what makes this country
great.
  Mr. President, I rise today to ask for unanimous consent on my bill
to reassert congressional will when it comes to the Office of the
Director of National Intelligence.
  My bill, the Do Not Interfere in Our Intelligence Act of 2026, or the
DNII Act of 2026, would strengthen the existing line of succession if
the position of the Director of National Intelligence is vacant and
ensure that the leadership of the intelligence community remains in the
hands of experienced Senate-confirmed national security officials.
  As my colleagues have heard me say repeatedly, the President's
appointment of Bill Pulte to be the Acting DNI is dangerous. It is
dangerous for the rule of law. It is dangerous for our national
security.
  The ODNI was created in the aftermath of the tragic terrorist attacks
of 9/11. Its purpose was to make sure that the now-18 intelligence
Agencies actually coordinated with each other, so we didn't have the
kind of intelligence missteps that led to the most devastating
terrorist attack on our country in the history. And, thus far, thank
God, we have not had another 9/11.
  And because of its important mission, when Congress created the ODNI,
an effort championed by my good friend Susan Collins, it codified into
law--we didn't leave any ambiguity--it codified into law that the
Director of National Intelligence must have extensive national security
experience. It doesn't matter whether that comes from military service,
being an intelligence officer, being a Member of Congress on a national
security committee, or heading an Agency that deals with national
security. You just have to have the experience and the judgment to lead
18 intelligence Agencies and understand their mission.
  Unfortunately, Trump's choice Bill Pulte has literately no national
security experience. In fact, it seems like the only experience he
has--and the only reason President Trump installed him as the DNI--is
leaking and weaponizing sensitive information for political purposes.
He is and currently remains the head of our mortgage regulatory
Agencies. So that kind of person can absolutely not have access to all
our Nation's most sensitive secrets.
  If you think we were, like, just making it up, look at the pressure
points so far. The guy has gone in for a few days. There are reports of
firings. I don't even know how he knows who the people who are being
fired or reassigned are.
  We have heard, as well, that he wants to take home the Presidential
daily brief. Anybody--the most junior aide in national security--knows
you don't take classified information to your private residence. But in
a very kind of way that reflects some of the folks around the
President, the one thing he was most interested in: When is he going to
get a government plane, paid for by taxpayer dollars, so he can zip
between DC and his house in Chicago and his place near President Trump
in Florida? Remember, those are your taxpayer dollars at work.
  And on these concerns about Mr. Pulte, don't take my word for it. So
many Republican colleagues of mine have also publicly expressed their
concerns, many of them explicitly expressing surprise at his nomination
and calling him unqualified.
  But that is not the only place where President Trump has decided to
ignore Congress and the law creating the Director of National
Intelligence. The law also explicitly states that, in the event there
is an absence of a Senate-confirmed Director, ``the Principal Deputy
Director of National Intelligence''--that is the No. 2--``shall act
for, and exercise the powers of, the Director of National
Intelligence''--not ``may'' or ``if the President wants.'' The word is
``shall.''
  And the interesting thing is, there is currently a Senate-confirmed
Principal Deputy whom President Trump himself nominated. This
gentleman, Mr. Lukas--I may not agree with all the things that Mr.
Lukas has suggested, but there is no question, given his decades of
patriotic service as a national intelligence officer and on President
Trump's own National Security Council staff, that he has the experience
and qualifications to serve as the Acting DNI.
  So then, once again, I must ask: Why, when there is a qualified
individual--one President Trump himself nominated--would President
Trump ignore the law and install Bill Pulte?
  The only answer is the one that President Trump has actually admitted
to. He said the quiet part out loud, which is that he trusts Bill Pulte
to recklessly divulge America's secrets--even if it harms our national
security--all in the service of the Big Lie and his obsession that he
can't get over the fact that he lost the election in 2020.
  So my bill is quite simple. So I ask unanimous consent--let's make it
explicitly clear that, if the Office of the Director of National
Intelligence becomes vacant, you put in place the Principal Deputy or
someone else who has got intelligence experience that has been
confirmed by the Senate.
  We have to do this before Mr. Pulte irreversibly harms our national
security.
  Mr. President, now, as if in legislative session, I ask unanimous
consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S.
4876, introduced yesterday; that the bill be considered read a third
time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be made and laid
upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  The Senator from Arkansas.
  Mr. COTTON. Mr. President, the Office of the Director of National
Intelligence was formed after the 9/11 attacks, understandably, to try
to address some of the failures that led to those attacks.
Unfortunately, I think we can now assess, a couple of decades on, that
it is something of a failed experiment itself.
  I remember my first days on the Intelligence Committee, when I sat
far down the dais from the distinguished vice chairman, and an ODNI
aide came in to brief us about a new fusion cell they had created to
fight against the Islamic State. And one of our senior members, Dan
Coats, who later himself became the DNI, observed that he was concerned
that, with the growing bureaucracy at the ODNI, pretty soon they would
need a fusion cell for their fusion cells.
  Now, the vice chairman and I largely agree that the ODNI needs to be
downsized and streamlined, that it does perform some important
functions. We may not agree on every single particular. I think many of
those functions could be performed elsewhere.
  But I have had an opportunity to speak, in the last few days, with
Acting Director Pulte. He agrees in those general terms with us that we
need to return the ODNI to its original size, scope, and mission by
spinning off some of these functional centers and sending intelligence
officers who have been detailed there back to their home Agencies so
they can do actual intelligence work. And if he continues the work that
the vice chairman and I have begun through the annual Intelligence
Authorization Act and that Director Gabbard started to carry out, I
think that is a win for our national security.
  The vice chairman cited various media reports about Director Pulte. I
can't comment on all of them. It won't shock anyone to know that I
don't take CNN or the Washington Post as ironclad as the Lord's
Scripture. But there is one media report that I will comment on, since
I discussed it with Director Pulte: the claim that mass firings had
begun. That is not accurate. He informed me that, yes, a small