mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Healthcare (Executive Calendar)
Christopher Murphy (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2017-7-20

from Georgia for the recognition. prgtoken Colleagues, the new CBO score is out on, I guess, version 4.5 or 5.5--it is hard to keep track of the bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act--and nothing has changed. This proposal, which is a moral and intellectual dumpster fire, is still a disaster. prgtoken Here is what the CBO says about the bill that is currently being reworked behind closed doors by my colleagues. The CBO says that, immediately, 15 million people would lose coverage by next year. That is a humanitarian catastrophe. It is something this country has never witnessed before--that number of people losing coverage in that short a period of time. Our emergency rooms would be overwhelmed as they would be unable to deal with the scope of that kind of humanitarian need. Ultimately, the number would rise to 22 million at the end of the 10-year window. We know it will be far bigger than that in the second 10 years because that is when the worst of the Medicaid cuts will happen, but 22 million is a lot of folks. It is no different than in the previous version, which was 23 million, or in the House's bill, which somehow got a majority vote in that place despite 24 million people losing health insurance, according to the CBO. prgtoken Today, 90 percent of Americans are covered by health insurance. The CBO says that number will go all the way down to 82 percent. I have heard my friend Senator Cornyn complain on this floor year after year that the ACA still leaves millions of Americans uncovered. This would make it even worse. prgtoken When you get down to look at what happens to individual Americans, it gets even more frightening. Let me give an example of how this bill would dramatically increase premiums on individuals who are currently insured through the private market. prgtoken A lot of the coverage losses happen because of this assault on Medicaid, but lots of folks who have private coverage would not be able to afford it any longer. If you are a 64-year-old who is making, let's say, $55,000, that is over three times the Federal poverty level. In a lot of places, you can live on $56,000. Today, that individual is paying about a $6,700 premium. Under the healthcare bill, that individual would be paying $18,000 in premiums. That is an increase of 170 percent. That is just one individual. prgtoken The bottom line is that, if you are older and you are less wealthy, you are going to be paying a whole lot more under this proposal. prgtoken Despite all of the guarantees made by s and this President that under their plan, costs would go down, that deductibles would go down and premiums would go down, the CBO says the exact opposite. It says that, especially if you are sort of middle-income and are 50 or older, your premiums will go up dramatically. prgtoken This is a terrible bill. It does not solve a single problem that the s said they wer
IN RECOGNITION OF ANTHONY COLACCHIO
William R. Keating (Democrat, MA) \u2014 2017-7-20

I rise today in sincere recognition of Anthony Colacchio and his commendable dedication in starting a wheelchair curling program at the Cape Cod Curling Club, as well as his dedication to serving wheelchair athletes. prgtoken Anthony has always been passionate about volunteering his time, money, and efforts to helping those who are differently-abled. He is a nationally-certified wheelchair trainer, has convinced the Grand National Curling Committee to set aside money to assist wheelchair curlers, accompanied the United States Paralympic Team to the Paralympic Games in Sochi, Russia in 2014, and will be accompanying the team again during the 2018 Games in Pyeong Chang, South Korea. Anthony and his wife, Mary, have also been invaluable in the ongoing expansion to make the Cape Cod Curling Club in Falmouth, Massachusetts handicap accessible. prgtoken Anthony's renowned work with the wheelchair curling community has roots much closer to home. After seeing his brother, who was in a wheelchair, sidelined from sport, Anthony saw curling as a golden opportunity to bring together all athletes in a common arena as equals. Anthony's work has come with sacrifice--dedicating so much of his time to the sport, he has missed special occasions with family but they have remained supportive throughout his tireless work. prgtoken Anthony's volunteerism does not end at the edge of the ice. He is involved in Neighborhood Falmouth, a local chapter of a national movement that promotes community residence for older Americans. Anthony regularly takes seniors to their doctors' appointments, providing vital transportation so they can access the health services they need. Additionally, he is on the board of directors for USS Donner Reunion, an organization that provides information and holds reunions for former shipmates of the USS Donner, a dock landing ship that served in the U.S. Navy from 1945 to 1970. prgtoken Anthony and Mary host an annual banquet in July known as the International Bonspiel. This year marks the 48th year of the banquet, and attendees will include veterans of the wheelchair curling community from South Korea, Slovakia, Canada, and the United States. Anthony's selfless commitment to both wheelchair athletes and the sport of curling has touched innumerable lives in the United States and around the world. For these efforts he is being recognized this year at the Bonspiel dinner. prgtoken , I am proud to honor Anthony Colacchio for his dedication to the sport of curling and creating an equal playing field for people of all abilities. I ask that my colleagues join me in thanking him for his work and wishing him all the best as he continues his important efforts.
Thoughts and Prayers for Senator McCain (Executive Calendar)
Elizabeth Warren (Democrat, MA) \u2014 2017-7-20

I rise today to oppose the nomination of David Bernhardt as the next Deputy Secretary of the Interior. prgtoken Mr. Bernhardt has shown that he is unwilling to fight for the long- term conservation of our public lands and the responsible use of our public resources. By his own admission, he intends to be a big business yes-man for the administration's extreme disregard for our environment and the human lives that are affected. prgtoken President promised to drain the swamp of DC, but with each day of this administration, this -controlled Senate approves yet another corporate insider to help out big business. The decision to nominate Mr. Bernhardt is no exception. He is another conflict-ridden, climate-dismissing appointee who favors profits over people. prgtoken Let's look at his record. Mr. Bernhardt has extensive political experience in the Department of the Interior under the administration, but in his tenure at the Department, including the 2 years he oversaw the ethics division, the Department was awash in ethical scandals and scientific misconduct. prgtoken And what did he do after he left government service? He scooted off to a lucrative lobbying firm to help Big Oil and other extraction companies maximize their profits by expanding offshore drilling and delaying air pollution limits on coal plants, regardless of the impact that would have on our children's future. prgtoken Even Mr. Bernhardt isn't proud of his own record. Prior to his nomination, his lobbying firm bio bragged about recently helping corporations fight against the Endangered Species Act, supporting corporate interests in offshore drilling and exploration for fossil fuels, and helping mining companies pursue public lands for development. He openly bragged about recently representing ``an entity under investigation by a Federal Agency'' and ``entities accused of violating the Department of the Interior's regulations.'' He swaggered through Washington. That is, he swaggered right up until he was under consideration for the No. 2 spot at Interior. Now that he is in the public spotlight, he has scrubbed all those pro-industry, pro-pollution references from his bio. Now that the public is paying attention, he is putting out a clean image of a public servant who just happens to advise big corporations from time to time. prgtoken Beyond the ties Mr. Bernhardt still has to industry, I am alarmed by his willingness to serve as the corporate rubberstamp that President wants. Mr. Bernhardt is a walking conflict of interest who has taken one spin through the revolving door, and now he is coming back around again for a second pass. prgtoken The Deputy Secretary serves at the pleasure of the President. But a Deputy Secretary--the No. 2 at the Department--is, first and foremost, bound to serve the American people and the mission of the Department. No President is properly served by a corporate yes-man,
INDEPENDENT COMMISSION FOR RUSSIA INVESTIGATION
Nydia M. Velázquez (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2017-7-20

since last year, when our intelligence community concluded that Russia sought to influence our elections, we have seen a series of terrifying headlines. This has not stopped. prgtoken Last week, we found out the President's son took a meeting in which he anticipated receiving from the Russian Government damaging information on the ic nominee. This was after it was spelled out in black and white in an email that the information came from the Kremlin. Donald, Jr.'s, response: I love it. But now we must go further. We need an independent commission, which Congress can authorize. prgtoken Ryan, these issues go beyond party. They go to the heart of our democracy. The American people deserve the truth. Allow a vote on an independent commission before the August recess.
FAILURE TO GOVERN: THE FIRST 6 MONTHS UNDER REPUBLICAN CONTROL
Stacey E. Plaskett (Democrat, VI) \u2014 2017-7-24

it is with great honor that I rise today to anchor the CBC Special Order hour. prgtoken For the next 60 minutes, we have a chance to speak directly to the American people on issues of great importance to the Congressional Black Caucus, Congress, the constituents we represent, and all Americans. prgtoken Led by our chair, Cedric Richmond from Louisiana, it is our duty, we feel, as the conscience of the Congress, to speak to all people in this hour on the issues that we deem are important and that our constituents have told us are important. prgtoken For this Special Order hour, we will spend this time to talk about Failure to Govern: The First 6 Months Under Control. prgtoken President 's first 6 months have been defined by his often angry and personal tweets, his efforts to denigrate and undercut the multiple investigations into Russian influence in the 2016 election, and most importantly, the stalemated legislative battle to repeal and replace Care. prgtoken President has signed dozens of executive actions and Presidential proclamations. Some have fared better than others. His travel ban plan, for instance, first caused chaos and was effectively shut down by a series of legal challenges. But the second effort, which also faced a flurry of lawsuits, was ultimately allowed to take effect on a limited basis by the Supreme Court. prgtoken In all, our President has signed 42 bills into law. But when it comes to big ticket items, like infrastructure, tax reform, and a repeal and/ or replacement of Care, President is sitting on zero. With healthcare seemingly on ice, tax reform is expected to be the big challenge next on our agenda. prgtoken Budgets are about priorities, and this President's priorities are clear. His budget hollows out our economy, endangers working families all across this country, in my district of the Virgin Islands, and the other districts that we all represent. prgtoken The $2.5 trillion in cuts to entitlement programs, which include $192 billion to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, otherwise known as SNAP, and the $800 billion to Medicaid, will devastate localities like the Virgin Islands and elsewhere, where one in five children are covered under Medicaid and one-fifth of our population receives SNAP benefits. prgtoken The President has a budget with massive cuts that would shred social safety nets and cripple longstanding governmental functions. This administration has created uncertainty in the Nation's healthcare system by sending inconsistent administrative signals and supporting legislation that could deprive millions of people of health insurance coverage, undermine Medicaid health support for low-income Americans, and give wealthy taxpayers a massive tax cut. prgtoken He has mismanaged the Federal Government by failing to fill top spots. He has expanded the policy of deporting dangerous and illegal aliens by including many people with min
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Robert P. Casey, Jr. (Democrat, PA) \u2014 2017-7-24

I rise tonight to speak about the healthcare legislation. I am grateful for the remarks of our colleague from Illinois, the great leader that he is, talking not only about the impact on his home State but on our country. prgtoken I think a lot of us, especially in the last couple of weeks, have had an opportunity both to debate healthcare and, probably more importantly, when we go home to be on the road, to go to places where folks are thinking about it very intensively. prgtoken Many people I had a chance to interact with and, really, to listen to on the road were folks in small towns and rural areas, especially, who probably didn't ever imagine they would have to engage in this kind of a discussion or debate. Coming into a conference room to have a discussion or a roundtable about healthcare is not what they do every day. They don't necessarily sit around to talk about a public policy issue. They usually have so much in their lives that keeps them busy and so many concerns and so many challenges that are weighing them down that they don't have any opportunity to have these kinds of conversations. prgtoken Many of them felt obligated to have these conversations. Many of them were motivated to speak out because of what would happen in their lives and usually in the life of someone in their family. prgtoken When I was in a number of counties the last couple of weeks, especially in rural areas, you would hear from a lot of moms and dads about their children, usually in this context: What will the Medicaid cuts mean for my child? In many cases, the child has a disability or more than one. Sometimes there is a series of complex disabilities-- plural--and the mom or the dad is there to talk about it. prgtoken In these discussions, you hear a combination of sentiments and a combination of information. You hear sometimes a cataloging of what their daily life is like, what they do when they wake up in the morning and have to get that child or that young person ready for school if they have a disability or more than one disability. These parents become experts in all kinds of medical terminology and prescription drugs, and they become experts in assistive technology or equipment that allows their son or daughter to lead as full a life as possible. prgtoken For these families, this is real life. This isn't some debate in Washington that we engage in here. This is about real life. That is why the issue of Medicaid, I think, has been so prominent. prgtoken If we learned one thing over the last couple of months, it is that some people in Washington might have thought that Medicaid could be described as a ``them'' program. That is for someone else who is far away, and I don't have to worry about that. We found out that Medicaid is an ``us'' program. Medicaid is an American program. prgtoken It is one of the ways we come together as a nation and say: You are up against something that I might not be up against. You
INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018
Terri A. Sewell (Democrat, AL) \u2014 2017-7-24

today I rise to speak on the passage of the fiscal year 2018 Intelligence Authorization Act under suspension of the rules. prgtoken Unfortunately, I strongly oppose its passage today, not because it is a bad bill. On the contrary, I voted for it out of committee. But today I disagree on how this bill is presented on the floor. The Intelligence Authorization Act should be on regular order and rule and not on suspension. prgtoken This critically important piece of legislation is the most substantial oversight mechanism that Congress has over the intelligence community, and it deserves full consideration and robust debate. The American public and our intelligence community deserve nothing less. prgtoken Before authorizing tens of billions of dollars for the United States intelligence community, our lawmakers should carefully consider and debate the issues our intelligence community faces, many of which directly impact our national security. Instead, today's consideration of the IAA has been fast-tracked, and debate has been cut short. prgtoken Most of the work of the intelligence community and our committee happens behind closed doors, which means that debate on the House floor over the Intelligence Authorization Act is one of the few times the public can engage with the issues facing our intelligence community. By limiting debate on this bill, we cut public engagement off as well. prgtoken , I am proud of the bipartisan way in which our committee worked to craft this year's Intelligence Authorization Act. I am excited that this year's IAA includes a provision that I drafted that provides our lawmakers, election officials, campaigns, and the public with additional information and resources to defend our democracy against emerging cyber threats. Additionally, we will continue to be able to provide a summer internship program to students from the existing Centers of Academic Excellence in intelligence. This year's IAA will also hold the IC accountable for creating a more diverse and inclusive working environment. prgtoken Nevertheless, I will oppose today's bill not because I don't support the underlying bill, but because I believe that national security issues raised by this legislation are too important to be fast-tracked. prgtoken , I urge my colleagues to oppose today's vote under suspension of the rules and to stand with us in demanding full debate and consideration under regular order.
INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018
André Carson (Democrat, IN) \u2014 2017-7-24

as a member of the House Intelligence Committee, I am proud of the bipartisanship that allowed us to put this bill together. prgtoken Our committee, which normally operates quietly, has gotten more attention than normal this year as we conduct the critical business of investigating Russian intervention in our elections. prgtoken But we still do our day job--overseeing intelligence programs and providing support to the men and women of our intelligence community who fight to keep our country safe. prgtoken This bill is the culmination of this cooperation. prgtoken Our country is facing a wide array of pervasive and complex threats. prgtoken Our near-peer adversaries, Russia and China, are rapidly growing their military capabilities and regularly, unashamedly violating international law. prgtoken A nuclear weapons stockpile and functioning ICBM program now sit in the hands of an unpredictable North Korean dictator. prgtoken And the so-called caliphate started by ISIS is losing ground, only to increase homegrown attacks against the United States and its allies. prgtoken My constituents, like all Americans, are rightly concerned. prgtoken But they can feel confident that we are working with the intelligence community on ways to address them. prgtoken As the Ranking Member of the Emerging Threats Subcommittee, I am particularly interested in supporting our intelligence professionals who assess and prevent terrorist threats to our homeland--while protecting the civil rights and liberties of innocent Americans. prgtoken I'm working to ensure they use their expertise, as well as that in the private sector, to find and remove online propaganda used to recruit would-be attackers. prgtoken I'm also proud to include language that will enable the IC and private sector to temporarily exchange IT talent in order to better tackle some of the toughest cybersecurity challenges. prgtoken , Chairman Nunes and Ranking Member Schiff have led this process with bipartisan professionalism. prgtoken This bill is stronger because it reflects the input of all of our members. prgtoken The full House should have this same opportunity--not be forced to vote up or down under suspension. prgtoken leadership owes it to our members to return to regular order so our bill can benefit from the input of the full House.
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED
Jack Reed (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2017-7-24

I am truly dismayed by what we have seen in this Chamber over the last couple of months with respect to the Senate Care bill. prgtoken We are expecting to take a vote tomorrow on the motion to proceed, but at this point, our colleagues have not shared with us exactly what we are proceeding to. We do not know if our colleagues will attempt to replace the ACA with their flawed Care bill or if they will just vote to repeal the ACA and immediately upend health insurance markets across the country. Not one of these options is acceptable, and I am skeptical that my colleagues will be able to come up with a better solution in the next 24 hours. prgtoken For an issue of this magnitude, we should be holding hearings, meetings, and discussions in the committees of jurisdiction, with experts from around the country, much like we did when we worked to pass the Affordable Care Act. In that way, we could have worked together across the aisle to develop ideas that would improve the system in place, not gut it. prgtoken There have long been misconceptions about how the Affordable Care Act came to be. For over a year, we held hearings, meetings, and roundtable discussions with Members from both parties and had a robust amendment process in our committees, both in the Senate Finance Committee and in the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. I served on the HELP Committee at that time and went through numerous hearings, open discussions, and numerous amendments, and I listened to my colleagues. In fact, the HELP Committee's draft of the ACA included over 160 amendments that were offered by my colleagues. It was truly a bipartisan effort at the committee level to try to at least discuss the critical issues that both sides had identified. prgtoken This stands in stark contrast to the bill our colleagues have written in secret this year. Even some Senators were kept in the dark, excluded from the process. There were no opportunities for experts, doctors, patients, and others to weigh in and offer comments. As a result, they have written a bill that is bad for patients, bad prgtoken for healthcare providers, bad for States, and bad for the system as a whole. prgtoken My colleagues even rejected the chance to hear from States in public hearings about their healthcare systems in terms of what has worked well and what has not. There are examples of States that have done some very innovative things and some examples of States that have had difficulties. We always say that the States are the great incubators for new ideas. Yet the process that was adopted did not incorporate the views in both of the cases--those in which States have done remarkably well and, frankly, when they could have done much better. prgtoken We should look to the States to see how we can improve our healthcare system and let them be partners with us in this process. That is what we did