mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
HONORING THE SERVICE OF CHRISTOPHER HAGAN MATHIS
Mark E. Green (Republican, TN) \u2014 2023-2-14

I rise today to recognize Christopher Hagan Mathis for his admirable service to the people of Tennessee's Seventh Congressional District. prgtoken Hagan first joined my team in May 2019 as a district intern while studying for his degree in Finance and Political Science at the University of Alabama. His diligence and his commitment to service made him standout among his peers, making him a natural fit for the position of personal aide. prgtoken The transition from Tennessee's State Senate to the United States House of Representatives is no easy task, but Hagan was instrumental in ensuring that it was as smooth as possible. As a body man, a driver, and a personal aide, Hagan ensured I was always where I needed to be while also providing critical research support for my team. Upon his graduation in May 2020, Hagan joined my district team full-time as a Staff Assistant. prgtoken While I have many duties as a Representative of Tennessee, my most basic responsibility and privilege is meeting face-to-face with my constituents. Learning their names and stories, fielding their questions and concerns, and representing their interests in Washington is my singular mission. The pandemic made 2020 and the years following it a turbulent and challenging period, but Hagan's commitment to serving the constituents of Tennessee's Seventh Congressional District never wavered. A Tennessean himself, he fully embraced my mission and proved himself to be a reliable and steady hand that I could count on. Through COVID-19, floods, tornadoes, and other natural disasters, and through town halls and district meetings, Hagan escorted me on numerous trips over countless miles. Many congressional staffers are acquainted with long days and late nights, but few know them better than Hagan. prgtoken Hagan's service to the constituents of Tennessee's Seventh Congressional District cannot be overstated; the impact of the countless face-to-face meetings and events that Hagan helped facilitate is incalculable. He was the man I relied on to connect me to my constituents, to ensure that our mission was carried out. While I am sad to see him go, I know he has a bright future in store. On behalf of the United States Congress and a grateful constituency, I thank Hagan Mathis for his honorable service to Tennesseans and I wish him the best in his future endeavors.
CONGRATULATING RAY DAVILA ON HIS RETIREMENT
Michael Cloud (Republican, TX) \u2014 2023-2-14

I would like to wish Reginaldo ``Ray'' Davila a very happy retirement after 73 years in the shoe repair business in Port Lavaca, Texas. Ray and his beloved wife, Tina, came to this Nation as a young couple in 1954 with $20 to their name and three children to support. After eventually settling in Port Lavaca, Ray opened a cobbler shop--a trade he learned from his father in Mexico as a teenager. prgtoken Though initially a small operation, the Davilas eventually saved up enough to purchase neighboring real estate on the block as an investment. This extra revenue allowed the shop to continue to operate as other cobblers went out of business. As time went on, Ray's cobbler shop evolved into a place for locals to stop by and get to know one another, becoming a hallmark of Port Lavaca. prgtoken After passing day-to-day operations along to his son, Ray is now fully retiring at the age of 96. I join the community of Port Lavaca in thanking him for his many years of dedicated service and wishing him a happy retirement.
RECOGNIZING HOMETOWN HERO MOHAMED EBEIDA
Beth Van Duyne (Republican, TX) \u2014 2023-2-14

I rise to recognize Dr. Mohamed Ebeida, founder of the Marvels Program. Dr. Ebeida is a pioneer in introducing STEM and group collaboration opportunities in North Texas for the Muslim community and beyond. prgtoken Dr. Ebeida is the founder of the youth Muslim robotics team known as the Marvels of Irving. He is a research scientist at Sandia National Laboratories and has used his knowledge to enrich the STEM community in Texas-24. Dr. Ebeida helped introduce FIRST, an international STEM learning robotics program, for North Texas schools to participate, collaborate, and compete in. He also hosts the First Technical Challenge, which is a head-to-head competition in the area of robotics, for 35 teams in our community to partake in. Dr. Ebeida has brought together and emboldened the Muslim community and countless youth in North Texas to express themselves through STEM. prgtoken I thank Dr. Ebeida, for going above and beyond for our community. His selflessness and dedication do not go unnoticed.
UKRAINE
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2023-2-15

the media likes narratives that split issues neatly into two opposing positions and often against . prgtoken There is one narrative that has been repeated so often it has become conventional wisdom. It holds that President and in Congress have been 100 percent committed to opposing Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but support is softening. prgtoken That misleading narrative was briefly scrambled when the Congressional Progressive Caucus sent a horribly naive letter calling for President to engage in direct diplomacy with Russia. prgtoken Clearly, there are factions on both sides of the aisle hesitant about backing a Ukrainian victory. There is also confusion about who in U.S. politics is most behind Ukraine winning the war. prgtoken Let's be clear, the most fervent supporters of victory for Ukraine are s. prgtoken Meanwhile, the administration gets credit for being all in for Ukraine, when in fact it is more accurate to say that it is, at best, three-quarters of the way in. And it has been dragged this far by events, public opinion, and some of our bolder European allies. prgtoken Speculation about future support for Ukraine is often framed in terms of 's chances to get the aid he might want, but no one asks why President let $2.2 billion worth of authority passed by Congress to draw down existing weapons for Ukraine expire on September 30 unused. prgtoken I have been pleased for the most part with President 's rhetorical defense of Ukraine's right to self-defense. But I have been puzzled by some of the delays in sending crucial military aid. prgtoken I see signs that the administration is afraid of what will happen if Ukraine is helped to push Russia back into its own borders. It is understandable to be concerned about the risks when dealing with a nuclear armed aggressor. But Putin has backed away from his nuclear saber-rattling in the face of Western resolve. And there are even greater risks in not stopping Russia's aggression now. In fact, in my view, we got where we are now because we acted too timidly in the past. Repeating that mistake now will only invite more aggression in the future. prgtoken In early February of 2021, shortly after President took office, I gave a speech wondering whether President 's tough-on-Russia rhetoric would be matched by his administration's actions. I reminded the Senate that 12 years earlier, in the early days of the - administration, then-Vice President went to Munich to deliver a speech calling for the United States to hit the ``reset button'' with Russia. Two years prior to 's speech, at the same annual conference, Vladimir Putin had sharply criticized the United States and suggested we were a threat to world peace. Moreover, just 6 months prior to calling for a ``reset,'' Russia had invaded and occupied a significant portion of the
JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2023-2-15

now, on one final matter, yesterday, President and the Senate ic leader took time to boast about their judicial confirmations. There was something interesting, strange, and telling about their statements. Both the President and the ic leader focused their comments overwhelmingly on identity politics and demographic box-checking. prgtoken The President's statement spent literally one part of one sentence paying lip service to the question of legal qualifications. The remaining five paragraphs were devoted solely to these new judges' demographic characteristics. It was really quite bizarre. prgtoken President informed the American people that a particular District Court in Puerto Rico will now have its first judge who is not heterosexual. He pointed out that men have been a small minority of his judicial nominees; that certain percentages of his nominees fit into certain demographic categories. He went on and on and on like this. prgtoken Most Americans want our country to keep moving forward in a direction where people's physical characteristics prgtoken do not define us. Do you know what share of Americans believe race or ethnicity should be a major factor in university admissions? Seven percent. Do you know what percentage believe that gender should be a major factor in university admissions? Four percent. prgtoken But when these talk about our sacred legal system, they sound like the HR department at some liberal university. prgtoken The White House statements singled out three judges by name. In all three cases, the President belabored some aspect of the judge's identity. In zero--zero--of the three cases did the President have anything to say about their knowledge, intellect, or professional distinction. prgtoken It is offensive to all Americans who have a President seeming to view our judiciary as some kind of crude sociological math problem. This is just the kind of thing our Constitution cuts against. prgtoken Ironically, when it came to how these new judges actually think, both the President and the ic leader went out of their way to celebrate the lack of diversity in their thinking. They bragged about their coordinated and deliberate effort to stuff the judiciary with an unprecedented volume of former criminal defense attorneys. prgtoken have long said they want judges to have empathy. Well, that is good news if you happen to be the party for whom the judge has a special bias; not so good, however, if you are the other party and you are looking for a fair trial. prgtoken Now, are helpfully telling us whom they want judges to empathize with: accused criminals, not innocent victims. prgtoken Now, nobody is saying we shouldn't have any public defenders on the bench. But even the New York Times admits the ' sweeping effort to tilt the playing field in one direction is ``a sea change in the world of judicial nominations.'' <|
Medicare (Executive Calendar)
John Kennedy (Republican, LA) \u2014 2023-2-15

a leading philosopher of the last century--his name was Jean-Paul Sartre--famously once said that ``existence precedes essence.'' In other words, Sartre's words, not mine: To be is to act. prgtoken In other words, my words, not Mr. Sartre's. In other words: What you do is what you believe. What you do is what you believe, not what you say. What you do is what you believe, and everything else is just cottage cheese. prgtoken I think that is particularly relevant to our government in Washington, DC, and indeed to probably all forms of government in America. We are what we do, not what we say. prgtoken As the Presiding Officer knows, we are in negotiations with respect to the debt limit. I, for one--and I think almost all, if not all, of my colleagues in the Senate will agree with me on this. We will not default on America's debt. We will not. But in conjunction with addressing that issue of the debt limit, many of our colleagues in the House and many of our colleagues here in the Senate would like to talk to President about what we can do as a Congress and as a President to keep us from getting in this situation again, where we have to so radically raise the debt limit. prgtoken In other words, the request to the President is: , let's sit down and talk about how we can slow the rate of growth in our spending and slow the rate of growth in our debt accumulation, for a variety of reasons, not only pertaining to the debt limit but also pertaining to trying to get control of the budget. And I hope the President will accept that invitation. prgtoken In those negotiations, the President has said--incorrectly, in my judgment--but he has said repeatedly, as have some of my ic friends, that, well, all the s want to do--all the s want to do in these negotiations is hurt Medicare and hurt Social Security. prgtoken Now, I understand politics. We both do. We have been doing this for a long time, and politically I understand why the President and some of my colleagues are saying that. It is not true, prgtoken of course. And I don't think it is beneficial to these negotiations. But the fact that the President is saying this and saying, well, you s want to hurt Medicare, for example, I find to be quite ironic--extraordinarily ironic--maybe even a tad hypocritical. prgtoken In Washington, DC, you have to watch what people do, not what they say. prgtoken In the waning days of the last Congress--once again, watching what people do, not what they say--President , who has accused Members of my party of wanting to hurt Medicare, tried to cut Medicare himself. prgtoken The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services--CMS, as we call it, as you know--every year proposes what is called a physician's fee schedule for doctors who treat Medicare patients. If you are a doctor and you have a Medicare patient, you don't get to send the Federal Government a bill for whateve
Crime (Executive Calendar)
Shelley Moore Capito (Republican, WV) \u2014 2023-2-15

I rise today to discuss yet another one of the consequences of this President's failed policies, and that is out-of-control crime. prgtoken Many have championed a soft-on-crime agenda that has contributed to soaring crime rates. prgtoken According to the Major Cities Chiefs Association, since 2019, violent crime is up 26 percent, aggravated assault is up 34 percent, and homicides are up a staggering 43 percent. This is not only unacceptable, it is terrifying. Repeated calls to defund the police, for open borders, and reduced sentencing or bail requirements have led to a crime increase so overwhelming that America's fear regarding crime in their communities is at a 50-year high. prgtoken Though President bears ultimate responsibility here, in many ways he is following the direction of his party when it comes to crime. We have seen a lack of leadership from the White House, an overly politicized Department of Justice, and district attorneys who refuse to prosecute crimes. prgtoken The administration has insisted on nominating radical, soft-on- crime advocates to Federal judgeships. While this is an utter disregard for law and order, it is deeply concerning, and it is a trend that we have seen over the last 2 years. prgtoken Despite previous efforts to defund the police, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are now walking back their claims that less law enforcement makes us safer. As many -led cities across the country heeded these calls, the United States experienced the biggest rise in murder since the start of national recordkeeping in 1960. prgtoken On top of this, we are experiencing record numbers of police officers who are quitting their profession or they are heading for retirement. Seattle has lost more than one-quarter of its police force in the last 2\1/2\ years. Just a short drive from here in DC, in Fairfax County, VA, their police chief declared a personnel emergency and staff shortage last June and installed mandatory overtime to keep their communities protected. Small communities across this country have seen their entire police force quit all at once. And perhaps very alarming, the New York City Police Department saw 3,701 police officers retire or resign in 2022. That is the most since 9/11. prgtoken My small State of West Virginia, my home State, is not exempt from these challenges as well. In 2021, the Morgantown Police Department began dealing with a 20-percent reduction in staffing. Our police chief said this was due to the danger associated with being an officer and an overall growing stigma of officers being aggressive or biased. The West Virginia University Police Department is experiencing a similar shortage, with a turnover rate that is still much higher than it was previous to the pandemic. prgtoken I live in Charleston, WV. The Charleston Police Department has been offering large financial incentives to attract officers they despera
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Marco Rubio (Republican, FL) \u2014 2023-2-15

I recognize Brian D'Isernia as he retires from a distinguished 53-year career as a lawyer, fisherman, sailor, and shipbuilder at Eastern Shipbuilding Group of Panama City, FL. prgtoken Brian graduated from Georgetown University with a bachelor's degree in economics and a law degree from Fordham University School of Law. He passed the New York State Bar, practicing for a few years before changing careers and opening his commercial fishing enterprise out of New Bedford, MA. prgtoken Operating his commercial fishing business for 8 years, it eventually grew to become a vessel construction shipyard. Constructing fishing boats allowed Brian to design fishing vessels his way. These designs quickly drew the attention of other professionals in the boating industry, and customers soon contacted Eastern Shipbuilding Group from across the Nation. prgtoken By the 1980s, Brian's reputation was that his shipyard could fulfill any custom vessel request. Today, Eastern Shipbuilding Group's vessel portfolio consists of more than 350 vessels, with many used by commercial fishermen and the U.S. Coast Guard. His work was recognized in 2017 by receiving the National Maritime Historical Society's Distinguished Service Award. prgtoken Brian's work over the decades has made a lasting impact on the boating industry. As he embarks on his new retirement journey, Eastern Shipbuilding remains a family-owned and operated business led by the next generation of his family. prgtoken I extend my best wishes to Brian, his wife Miriam, their children, and grandchildren.
China (Executive Calendar)
John Barrasso (Republican, WY) \u2014 2023-2-15

I come to the floor today to talk about the threat posed by China. prgtoken On February 4, our Air Force shot down a Chinese spy balloon. They did it over the coast of South Carolina. The balloon had spied upon the United States for up to a week. One of the places that it monitored and hovered over was my home State of Wyoming. prgtoken Now, did absolutely nothing until the balloon had already crossed thousands of miles of the United States. To me, this is another national failure from a President who already brought us surrender in Afghanistan. prgtoken People in Montana could see the balloon from the ground. That is the way America found out about it. It wasn't from the administration. It wasn't from the military. It was from a reporter on the ground with a telephoto lens. The man took a picture from his driveway. prgtoken I am not convinced that would have done anything if that photographer in Montana hadn't published those pictures online. prgtoken It is hard to imagine any other President letting a spy balloon fly over our country for nearly a week. Imagine John F. Kennedy allowing a Soviet spy plane over the United States. To me, it is unimaginable. No President, or , would tolerate this, until . prgtoken On Thursday, the Senate received a classified briefing on the spy balloon. I am not alone when I say I was disturbed and disquieted about what we learned. To me, did too little, too late, and then he did what he always does. He bragged about it. He said he had done everything right. To quote him, he said: We did the right thing. prgtoken No, did the weak thing, as usual. He had to be shamed into shooting down the balloon--way too late. prgtoken On Thursday, defended himself again. He said the balloon was ``not a major breach''--``not a major breach.'' It reminds me when signaled he would let Vladimir Putin make a minor incursion into Ukraine. President is defending the indefensible. prgtoken Just days after the balloon incident, he gave his annual State of the Union address. We were there. There were a number of bizarre moments in the President's speech, and one of the most bizarre to me was when he talked about China. prgtoken He said no world leader would want to be Xi Jinping--no world leader would want to be Xi Jinping. He actually yelled it several times. prgtoken What was he trying to say? Does he still think that China is not a threat? prgtoken Communist China is our No. 1 geopolitical threat. They are our rival. They have the second largest economy in the world. They have over 2 million active military personnel. They have the largest navy in the world, and China plans to build more than 100 new ships, 300 new missile silos, and hundreds of nuclear missiles by the end of this decade. prgtoken China is working day and night to get stronger. China is working to challenge the United States
Crime (Executive Calendar)
Mike Braun (Republican, IN) \u2014 2023-2-15

we lost a Hoosier recently who spent 7 years fighting ALS. I was proud here, along with Senator Coons, to start the ALS Caucus. ALS is one of those diseases, when you are diagnosed with it, for which there is not a very good prognosis--3 to 4 years, maybe, sometimes. prgtoken Corey Polen from Indiana was able to stretch it out to 7 years and fought valiantly along the way. He was involved in trying to take his cause and help others. Currently, there is no cure, and there is severely limited access to treatment options. prgtoken Since I have been here, I have been trying to reform healthcare in general. That is a task when you have one side of the aisle that doesn't think there is anything to do there or isn't interested in it and the other side maybe wanting to have more government when I think we need to reform it in an underlying way and make it more transparent, more competitive, and remove barriers to entry so that you have doctors and nurses wanting to come into the profession. prgtoken Let's take this commonsense part of it. This is a disease, along with several other diseases, for which, once you are diagnosed, you do not have time, and you are beset by a cumbersome process that keeps people from getting into and even staying in treatment. We need to fix that to where, through the Promising Pathway Act, which I have had out there and which is gaining stride, we need to make an exception for those ailments that have treatments in progress and where the individuals suffering from them are willing to take the risk. They want to do that because there is no other option, especially when there are promising treatments that you are working with. prgtoken In Corey's case, his journey began in October 2015. He was hiking with his wife Jennifer in Arizona. On that hike, he kind of hurt his ankle and noticed more. He then returned to his hometown and wanted to look into it further. That is when he got that bleak diagnosis. prgtoken All along the journey, as his condition was getting worse, he was out there to help others with it. His main goal for us here in Congress was for us to get something like the Promising Pathway Act across the finish line, which would give hope to him and to all of the others with similar diseases who are frustrated by the fact that we can't move quickly enough, especially when there is stuff in the works that looks like it is going to be someday, if not a cure, at least a mitigation to the disease. We weren't able to get that done. prgtoken I would ask my fellow Senators and someone else in the House to carry it. We need to get this across the finish line. A panel of FDA advisers voted 7 to 2 that there was enough evidence to do something different. That gave hope to people like Corey and others that something would get done, but it hasn't happened. We have this under our own control to get it done, and it is well past time to get it done. prgtoken I have been here going o