mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Biden Administration (Executive Session)
Dan Sullivan (Republican, AK) \u2014 2022-9-21

there has been much made in the administration about the value of diversity, and I agree that having diversity in any organization is positive. You get different viewpoints. But diversity encompasses much more than race or gender or religious orientation. Those are all important. Diversity actually means having people around you with varied experiences. As I mentioned, in my mind, that is certainly important, but it is particularly important in the Oval Office, particularly important in the White House. It is particularly important in the leadership of our Federal Government. prgtoken Let's take the example of military experience in this administration. You would think the administration would think it is important to have members in his Cabinet or senior White House officials who have served in the military. After all, he is the Commander in Chief, a very important part of his responsibilities. But, in fact, virtually no one in this administration, with the exception of Secretary Austin, at the highest levels--Cabinet officials, senior White House officials--have any significant military experience at all. prgtoken Why does this matter? The President doesn't have it, of course. His Secretary of the VA, Chief of Staff, National Security Advisor--just go down the list. Nobody has any experience. prgtoken In the Federal Government of the United States, why does this matter? It matters because it is obvious by the people this President surrounds himself--the people who are giving him advice on big decisions for America--that this President doesn't prioritize military, our national defense, and our troops and their families. This manifests itself in many, many ways. prgtoken First, most importantly, it matters in how we fund our national defense. I was on the floor last week, speaking about this very topic. This is President 's first budget. You can see this here, what he proposed. It has the increases through every Federal Agency. This was a multitrillion-dollar budget. And it says this is what we are prioritizing as the administration. You can see, heck, double- digits. That is Education and Commerce. And EPA is over 20 percent, and Interior over 15 percent--on and on and on, all the green. It is just a massive expansion of Federal Agencies, except two Agencies: Department of Defense and Homeland Security, the two Agencies that actually protect Americans. prgtoken If you look to this line of inflation, which when the administration put out their budget last year was about 4.5 percent, these are actual inflation-adjusted real cuts by about 2 to 3 percent to our military. That was the budget not prioritizing our troops, our national security at all. My view is that that is the No. 1 job of this government. It is not the President's view, not his team's view. prgtoken In the interim--that was last year's budget--we had a war in Ukraine. We had the Chairman of the J
AMENDMENT TO MONTREAL PROTOCOL (``KIGALI AMENDMENT'')--Continued
John Cornyn (Republican, TX) \u2014 2022-9-21

the crisis at our southern border continues to break records. For the first time ever, the United States has encountered more than 2 million migrants at our southern border in a single fiscal year, and that doesn't even include data for the month of September. prgtoken Now, my State, the State of Texas, has a 1,200-mile common border with Mexico where most of these migrants show up, although some go to Arizona, some to New Mexico, and some to California. But the vast majority of these 2 million migrants have showed up on our backdoor step. This includes a hodgepodge of people, from asylum seekers to economic migrants, to criminals, to drug smugglers. prgtoken In each of the last 6 months, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection has logged more than 200,000 migrant encounters--for each of the past 6 months, 200,000 a month. The media used to lose its collective mind when 100,000 immigrants arrived in a single month, but I guess the public has become desensitize to these numbers because they are so huge, and we have now been operating at twice that level for 6 consecutive months. prgtoken Communities in my State of Texas have struggled to carry the weight of President 's border crisis, and nobody seemed to care. But the moment the burden reached the liberal enclaves of Manhattan and Martha's Vineyard, the outrage machine fired up. prgtoken Earlier this year, Texas Governor Greg Abbott began transporting migrants to other States and cities to ease the burden on communities in Texas. After all, what are we supposed to do? Two million migrants show up at the border. Are they supposed to stay there? Well, most of them have been in contact with relatives and other people in other cities around the country, and so they eventually make their way to their destination. And, if they are asylum seekers, they are given a notice to appear for a future court hearing, which probably will never occur because of the huge backlog in our immigration courts. prgtoken So Governor Abbott did what any reasonable person would do and began prgtoken sending these migrants to other places where they eventually will end up at their final destination, wherever that may be. You can imagine 2 million migrants showing up on your border and what the strain on local health systems is like, what the strain is on emergency response services. The more migrants that show up on our backdoor step, the lower the capacity to care for taxpayers who pay taxes to make sure those services are available. prgtoken At the same time, nongovernmental organizations--we call them NGOs-- along the border are expected to pick up the Federal Government's slack and care for the migrants, which harms those charities' ability to support more Texans and other Americans who rely on them. prgtoken To state the obvious, the burden of this crisis should not fall on our border communities. The Federal Government, after all, is charged with the responsibility of
RECOGNIZING IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURE EDUCATION
Glenn Thompson (Republican, PA) \u2014 2022-9-21

I rise today to recognize the importance of agriculture education. prgtoken Last week, we celebrated National Teach Ag Day. This recognition of agriculture education is more important than ever. prgtoken The average age of the American farmer is around 57 years old. It is critical for our food security to inspire the next generation of agricultural leaders, and this starts in the classroom. prgtoken I have had the privilege of spending time with agriculture educators in Pennsylvania and throughout our country. Programs like the Future Farmers of America and 4-H are strong advocates for advancing agriculture education and exposing our youth to the agriculture industry. prgtoken Over the past few months, I have had the opportunity to witness these agriculture programs firsthand. I visited fourth graders at Glendale Elementary School in Cambria County who were working closely with seniors from the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology to bring textbooks to life. The lesson I participated in focused on science, soil, and agricultural operations. I had the opportunity to work directly with the students, where we discussed a plant's journey from seed to full growth. We examined soil, and students made observations of plant growth. prgtoken We interact with agriculture at least three times a day, and it is critical that students have the opportunity to really learn about the industry and the career opportunities that it offers. prgtoken In July, I joined CenClear and the YMCA of Centre County at the ribbon cutting of the antihunger program at Morgan Run Farm. This initiative will serve as a hands-on, community-centered educational tool to further families' understanding of agriculture processes, farming, nutrition, and community development. prgtoken Right now, more than ever, we understand food security is national security, and a country that cannot feed itself often finds itself in turmoil. Programs like the antihunger program at Morgan Run and the science lesson at Glendale Elementary are the first steps in educating our youth about our food sources. prgtoken As I mentioned earlier, we are at a critical point in our agricultural future, with the average age of our farmers hovering around 57 years old. It is important that we develop the next generation of farmers. That is why, in August, I held a listening session focused on the next generation of farmers. prgtoken We discussed how we can engage and support our next generation of farmers and encourage youth to get involved in the agriculture industry. We had remarkable panelists who were incredibly accomplished in their fields. Together, we highlighted their work to promote innovative technologies that inspire and engage the next generation of agriculturists. prgtoken As a senior member of the Education and Labor Committee, co-chair of the bipartisan Career and Technical Education Caucus, co-chair of the 4-H Caucus, and proud member of the FFA
AMENDMENT TO MONTREAL PROTOCOL (``KIGALI AMENDMENT'')--Continued
John Hoeven (Republican, ND) \u2014 2022-9-21

I come to the floor today to discuss how consumers are paying more for less reliable energy as a result of the policies of the administration and congressional . North Dakotans are paying 60 percent more for gasoline since January of 2021, and diesel remains at nearly $5 a gallon. prgtoken Prices are high because we have a supply problem. Our friends and allies in Europe are facing an even worse supply crisis, and unless the administration changes its approach, American families and businesses will continue to face these inflationary pressures. prgtoken Fortunately, the solution is clear. More energy supply means consumers pay less. More supply is what helps us get prices under control, get inflation under control, and consumers relief. prgtoken In 2019, the United States was producing nearly 13 million barrels of oil a day. Today, that production is down at about 11.8 million barrels a day. That is because the policies of the in Congress and the administration include blocking energy production on Federal lands, and that is curtailing supply. Our vast supply of taxpayer-owned oil, gas, and coal resources on Federal lands are a national strategic asset. Yet President and his ``keep it in the ground'' allies treat our NG reserves as a liability. prgtoken Recent analysis by the Wall Street Journal shows that the administration leased only 130,000 acres for new oil and gas production in the first 19 months of this administration. Let me repeat that number. The administration has only leased 130,000 acres for new oil and gas production in its first 19 months. For comparison, President Reagan leased 47.6 million acres during the same time period. The administration, in just under 2 years, leased 130,000 acres. The Reagan administration leased 47.6 million acres during the same amount of time. prgtoken That is the point. We need to take the handcuffs off our producers if we are going to produce more energy here at home. And nobody produces energy better, more cost effectively, more dependably, and with better environmental stewardship than America. We do the best job of anybody in the world. New energy leases are needed to grow oil production and supplies for the long-term, otherwise production will continue to fall, and that means higher energy costs for our consumers. prgtoken Instead of defending previously held lease sales, the administration is relying on litigation from environmental allies to block permits needed for energy development. That only further increases our reliance on adversaries like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela, countries with little or no regard for environmental stewardship or human rights. They are our adversaries. How in the world can we put ourselves subject to their energy production? Energy production is part of national security. Energy security is national security. prgtoken Natural gas prices also remain hig
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION REFORM ACT
Bryan Steil (Republican, WI) \u2014 2022-9-21

. Madam , pursue legislation that respects the Constitution and Federalism, such as legislation like the American Confidence in Elections Act that Ranking Member Davis introduced back in July to enhance the integrity in our elections. prgtoken We heard earlier the majority leader mention that there is ambiguity in our election system and that is what this is about. If that is what this is about--if we are actually trying to remove the ambiguity in our election system, which is a very worthy cause, why not have a hearing on this bill? prgtoken I haven't yet heard one person from the majority's side explain why this bill is being rushed to the floor 51 hours after the text was introduced without using the consideration of the Senate bill as the basis of this legislative text. I think that question needs to be answered today. prgtoken We need to actually dive into what this bill does to actually allow the American people to have confidence in our election system. I remain disappointed the House did not take the thoughtful approach that the Senate takes, and I urge my colleagues to vote against the bill.
AMENDMENT TO MONTREAL PROTOCOL (``KIGALI AMENDMENT'')--Continued
Tom Cotton (Republican, AR) \u2014 2022-9-21

tens of thousands of Iranian citizens are taking to the streets in dozens of cities across Iran as we speak. The chant that is echoing across that ancient land is: ``Death to the dictator.'' Yet and the in Washington would rather make another disastrous deal with the ayatollahs and those who declare ``death to America'' and who are, at this very moment, working to assassinate American citizens on our sovereign soil. 's betrayal of the Iranian people during the Green Revolution is replaying before our very eyes. prgtoken The latest revolt against the ayatollahs was inspired by yet another reprehensible crime by this theocratic dictatorial regime against its own people. prgtoken Last week, the ayatollahs' thugs, known as the morality police, arrested a 22-year-old woman on the street for the heinous crime of allegedly not wearing a head scarf in public. They threw her into a police van; they brutally beat her on the way to the detention center; they inflicted terrible injuries on her, from which she soon died. prgtoken Countless Iranians were immediately horrified by this cold-blooded murder and are now taking to the streets to protest their illegitimate outlaw regime. They are burning hijabs and protesting the oppression under which they have suffered every day for 43 years. In the murder of this young woman, we see the true face of the ayatollahs, a regime which our President hopes to enrich with hundreds of billions of dollars and to appease with yet another terrible nuclear deal. In fact, just minutes ago, President stood before the world at the U.N. General Assembly, stating at great length that he would continue negotiations toward this dangerous deal while offering only the briefest and emptiest of words to reproach the ayatollahs for the murder of this young woman for the grave crime of refusing to wear a headscarf in public and only the briefest of words for the thousands of protesters--at latest reports, seven of which have been murdered and many more shot and beaten--I would say this does feel a lot like deja vu, a replay of 's betrayal of the 2009 Green revolutionaries. And why did he betray them in 2009? Was he caught flatfooted? Was he overwhelmed by events? Was he simply new to the job? naive? even incompetent? No. He betrayed those Green revolutionaries in cold blood because his one overriding objective was his terrible nuclear deal with Iran. prgtoken He wanted a deal because he believed America was to blame for the decades of tension and conflicts with Iran; that America had sinned and we needed to atone for our sins against Iran and to pull in our horns; and therefore he stood idly by so as not to offend the mullahs and their street militias as they beat the Iranian people. prgtoken And, today, for the very same reason, are once again selling out those brave Iranian protesters so they can once again try to buy the f
OPEN BORDER IS A NATIONAL SECURITY CRISIS
Joe Wilson (Republican, SC) \u2014 2022-9-21

. Madam , last week, Vice President bizarrely said the southern border is secure. The reality is more threatening and absurd. prgtoken Since took office, over 3 million illegal aliens have crossed. In August alone, there were over 200,000 illegal alien encounters. This is three times the illegal crossings compared to prgtoken the last August when was President. prgtoken Dangerously, there are 66 trained murderers from the terrorist watch list that have crossed. Separately, half a million illegal aliens have invaded in the last year, admitted the Department of Homeland Security. prgtoken and the are responsible for a national security crisis due to the open border, with American families at a greater risk of murderous attacks than ever before. prgtoken In conclusion, we will not forget 9/11. God bless our troops who successfully protected America for 20 years as the global war on terrorism continues, moving from a safe haven in Afghanistan to America. God bless Ukrainian victory.
HONORING JORDAN MIX AS IOWAN OF THE WEEK
Cynthia Axne (Democrat, IA) \u2014 2022-9-22

. Madam , as we begin celebrating Pride Month, I rise today to honor Jordan Mix as Iowan of the Week. Jordan Mix, an advocate for transgender and non-binary kids in Iowa, works with educators, families, businesses, and organizations to create LGBTQIA+ inclusive environments across the state. Jordan serves as the Director of Educational Programming at Iowa Safe Schools, where they work with educators to create inclusive curriculum and lead training sessions for community members to better support transgender and non-binary kids. prgtoken Jordan Mix was born in the Chicago area and now lives with their wife and cat in Des Moines. Growing up, Jordan's family was very supportive when they came out in 2010 as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. This love and support was especially poignant to Jordan in the face of the enactment of anti-LGBTQ+ policies and has remained a very important part of their story. It's why Jordan enjoys working with families of LGBTQIA+ youth and empowering parents and families to support their children. prgtoken To pursue their passion for advocating for transgender and non binary young people, Jordan attended Drake University and graduated in 2016 with degrees in Law, Politics and Society; Sociology; and Women and Gender Studies. While at Drake, they were chosen to be the President of Rainbow Union, which is Drake's LGBTQ+ organization. In this role, they helped establish the first all-gender bathroom on campus. Additionally, Jordan collaborated in writing Drake's Transgender Inclusion Statement. To further their education, Jordan attended the University of North Carolina Charlotte and earned their graduate degree in Gender and Sexuality Studies. prgtoken One project that Jordan is especially proud of is called Breathe, Learn, Act. This project is the first virtual care package for families of transgender and non-binary kids. The purpose of the care package is to learn about gender, your child who has come out, talking with your family and friends, and how to be a supportive parent. The project is part of My Kid Is Gay, an organization that helps parents of LGBTQ+ kids. prgtoken Jordan's favorite part of their job at Iowa Safe Schools is the kids. They enjoy helping empower youth to rise to the occasion and advocate for themselves. They also love teaching and helping and having conversations with people who want to be supportive, but just need extra time to process and learn. In taking the time to help Iowans learn about and support one another, Jordan is helping our families and communities grow stronger. prgtoken Besides being passionate about advocating for transgender and non- binary kids, Jordan loves spending time with their wife and cat, hiking, watching women's soccer, and practicing their professional barista skills. prgtoken Jordan Mix is a tremendous example of someone who goes above and beyond. They promote community and inclusion, empower parents and loved ones, create inno
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Mazie K. Hirono (Democrat, HI) \u2014 2022-9-22

I want to thank my colleague from Rhode Island, Senator Whitehouse, for his long and strong advocacy for cleaning up the scourge of dark money in our country. prgtoken Our country was built on the founding principles of democracy, where every person has a say--a democracy where the American people can make their voices heard in free and fair elections and we the people can decide the direction of our country. But in 2010, the Roberts Court, in an obvious act of judicial activism, struck down corporate campaign contribution restrictions found in the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. Suddenly, the Supreme Court said that corporations are people who have First Amendment constitutional rights to make campaign contributions. prgtoken This decision opened the floodgates to billions of dollars of dark money to influence our elections, our Courts, and our thinking on issues from gun safety to abortion. prgtoken When the Supreme Court held that political speech by a corporation is protected by the First Amendment, it left for Congress just the narrow authority to take action to require disclosure of donor names. prgtoken After knocked-down, dragged-out negotiations in the U.S. House in 2010--I was there--the House passed a disclosure bill, only to see it fail in the Senate very narrowly without the support of a single . prgtoken Back then, we had the chance to require political spending disclosures so that the American people could see who was contributing millions to influence election outcomes. prgtoken So here we are, more than a decade later, and now it is not millions but billions of dollars flowing undisclosed into races across the country. Our country is awash in undisclosed money that is subverting the will of the American people. prgtoken When 85 percent of the American people support reproductive freedom, 65 percent of the American people support gun safety, and 63 percent of the American people support protecting the right to vote and Senate s are preventing us from even having a legislative debate on the floor on these issues, what does that tell you? It tells you that too many elected officials are no longer answering to the people but, instead, to the secret donors and corporations who are funding their campaigns. prgtoken But it is not just elected officials that have been influenced. Mega- corporations and the ultrawealthy have spent millions to stack our courts. One dark money group already spent more than $30 million in total on the nominations of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, where they sit, in my view, busily overturning precedents such as Roe v. Wade. prgtoken For the sake of our democracy, we need to get rid of the anonymous spending influencing our elections and our courts. That is a goal that everyone should be able to get behind regardless of whether you are a or a . In fact, many of my