mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
Dianne Feinstein (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2019-1-17

I rise today to reintroduce legislation that would shield farmworkers from deportation and put them on a path to earned legal status and eventual citizenship. prgtoken By protecting farmworkers from deportation, this bill would achieve two goals: ensuring that hardworking immigrants don't live in fear and that California's agriculture industry has the workforce it needs to survive. prgtoken Under the Agricultural Worker Program Act, farmworkers who have worked in agriculture for at least 100 days in each of the past 2 years may earn lawful ``blue card'' status. Farmworkers who maintain blue card status for the next 3 or 5 years, depending on the total hours worked in agriculture, would be eligible to adjust to a green card or legal permanent residency. This would provide them with a path to citizenship. prgtoken Everywhere I travel in California, I hear from farmers, growers and producers from all industries--wine, citrus, fruit and tree nuts, dairy--that there aren't enough workers. Farm labor is performed almost exclusively by immigrants--fact that should surprise no one. In fact, over 90 percent of California's crop workers are immigrants, and half are unauthorized. prgtoken Despite their significant contributions to California's economy and communities, farmworkers are now a priority for deportation under this administration's shameful policies. We simply must protect the families who help put food on our tables. By providing a path to citizenship for these workers and their families, the Agricultural Worker Program Act will preserve our agricultural system. This bill will also protect vulnerable workers who should not have to live in fear of becoming easy enforcement targets. prgtoken It is time to get started on solutions for agricultural communities across the country. Law-abiding workers should not have to fear deportation, but should have a path to citizenship that recognizes their enormous contribution to American prosperity and society. Employers should not have to fear that their labor force will be unable to return to work as a result of deportation. The Agricultural Worker Program Act provides the security and stability for our farmworkers that is necessary to keep the industry strong. prgtoken I would like to thank Representative Lofgren in the House for working with me to introduce this legislation today in both chambers. I invite my colleagues in the Senate to join me in cosponsoring the bill and preventing the deportation of those who work so hard to put food on our tables.
FURTHER ADDITIONAL CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2019
Sheila Jackson Lee (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2019-1-17

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. prgtoken , I just want to make sure that we know that people are hurting and that we should understand their pain. prgtoken So I want to acknowledge as a cosponsor and salute Mr. Cox, who has introduced the Financial Relief for Federal Employees Act. Members are working, ic Members are working to provide some pathway for achieving some resources, by way of borrowing, for the Federal Government. So we are working. prgtoken We must open the government now.
FURTHER ADDITIONAL CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2019
Barbara Lee (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2019-1-17

once again, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding and for her tremendous leadership on so many issues. prgtoken I rise today in strong support of H.J. Res. 28, this continuing resolution bill to reopen the government through February 28. This legislation would end the shutdown and ensure that our Federal employees get their paychecks, like, now. prgtoken This bill also sends a clear message that we will not let President hold this government hostage for his irresponsible, mean-spirited wall. prgtoken , this is the longest government shutdown in history. The government has been closed now for 27 days--27 days, mind you. All the President has to do is say: Yes, I will open up the government. prgtoken Meanwhile, we continue to do our job and demand that the President do his. We have passed seven pieces of legislation to end the shutdown--seven. But we can't reopen this government alone. Senator McConnell should do his job to end this crisis. prgtoken Now, let me be clear: By continuing this reckless shutdown, President is leaving 800,000 Federal workers and 200,000 low-wage Federal contractors in the lurch. Not only is this an insult to their hard work, but it is a slap in the face for the families who have no other way to pay their bills. prgtoken I have spoken to many people in my district who can't afford to buy gas to prgtoken get to their jobs, jobs that they are working at day in and day out without pay. prgtoken That is no way to run a country, and House won't stand for it. prgtoken Let's pass this bill to reopen the government now. Let's get the American people the paychecks that they deserve for the important work they do to protect the public, our food, our parks, and our families who are suffering so much as a result of them being used as hostages and political pawns by this President.
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.J. RES. 28, FURTHER ADDITIONAL CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2019, AND PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF MOTIONS TO SUSPEND THE RULES
Mary Gay Scanlon (Democrat, PA) \u2014 2019-1-17

. Madam , on Wednesday, the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 52, providing for consideration of H.J. Res. 28, the Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act of 2019 to fund the government until February 28. prgtoken The rule provides for consideration of the legislation under a closed rule. The rule provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking member of the Committee on Appropriations. Additionally, the rule provides suspension authority through the legislative day of January 25, 2019. prgtoken Madam , we are in day 27 of this government shutdown, the longest government shutdown in our Nation's history. prgtoken Nearly 800,000 Federal employees have now missed a paycheck since the shutdown began. Some estimates say those employees have lost an average of $5,000 each so far. prgtoken These hardworking Americans are law enforcement officers and National Park Service, EPA, FDA, and IRS employees, and so many others in dedicated Federal service whose families are needlessly suffering. These employees are either furloughed or being forced to work without pay. This is not an acceptable way to govern. prgtoken I may not have been a Member of this body as long as some people here, but I don't think there is a single Member, or , who doesn't care about securing our border, but it is foolish to think that keeping our government shut down will in any way help secure the border. prgtoken You know what Border Patrol and Coast Guard members want more than a wall? They want their paychecks to come on time. prgtoken have made it clear, we are more than willing to come to the table to talk about sensible border security, but the first step has to be to reopen the government and get our government back to functioning. prgtoken This majority has already voted to open the government seven times, with support from across the aisle. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has yet to act on any of these bipartisan pieces of legislation, the same legislation, I might add, that has already passed the Senate. prgtoken There are more than 100 freshmen Members of this body, comprising over 20 percent of the House, who have never worked in a functioning Federal Government due to the Senate's inaction. All of our constituents, both and , are suffering because of that failure to act. prgtoken Let me share with you the traumatic impact of the shutdown on my constituents and Americans across the country. prgtoken Jennifer, the wife of a Coast Guard gunner's mate, wrote to my office to detail the hardships her family is facing. Her husband has served in the Coast Guard for 19 years. They are used to stressful deployments, and her children are proud of their father's service. But now Jennifer has new hardships to face: how to feed her family on only her income, how she could make the holidays special while not knowing when her husband
S. 109
Patty Murray (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2019-1-17

the fact that the United States is debating and voting on this bill attacking women's healthcare right now is an absolute disgrace. prgtoken We are 27 days into President 's completely unnecessary government shutdown. Workers are not being paid. Families are huddled around their tables, wondering which bills to pay and which expenses to cut. Our national security is being impacted. Our parks are filling up with trash. Our economy is losing billions of dollars. The list goes on. It needs to end. prgtoken I urge my colleagues, vote no against this bill today that would erode women's healthcare and take away our constitutionally protected rights. Demand that leaders let us vote to open the government, and then let's get back to work getting our country back on track. prgtoken .
FURTHER ADDITIONAL CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2019
Nita M. Lowey (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2019-1-17

such time as I may consume. Today is the 27th day of the shutdown, the longest government shutdown in American history. prgtoken Hardworking public servants are seeing their financial security jeopardized. Small businesses are being frozen out of critical contracting and loan programs. Businesses of all sizes are being hurt by delayed regulatory approvals and a lack of government data. Farmers are unable to access vital Federal services. Our national parks are being vandalized and filling up with garbage. Critical environmental inspections to protect families and communities have stopped. Lines at airports are swelling, as many TSA workers can't afford to work without pay. prgtoken , this is unacceptable. But, unfortunately, we heard yesterday in this very House that s think reopening the government is a poison pill. Reopening the government is a poison pill? Frankly, that, my friends, is unbelievable. prgtoken We can and we must do better, which is why House are bringing up our ninth piece of legislation to reopen the government and end the shutdown. prgtoken The continuing resolution would provide an additional option for President and Senate s to take ``yes'' for an answer and end the shutdown. It would reopen the government through February 28, providing time for Congress to come to a full-year agreement without further jeopardizing vital services or the pay of Federal employees. prgtoken The order of business, , should be simple: Reopen the government, pay Federal employees, and then negotiate on border security and immigration policy. prgtoken It is long past time for my colleagues across the aisle and across the Capitol to come to their senses and end this shutdown. prgtoken , I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and reopen the government through February 28. prgtoken .
NO TAXPAYER FUNDING FOR ABORTION AND ABORTION INSURANCE FULL DISCLOSURE ACT OF 2019--Motion to Proceed
Charles E. Schumer (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2019-1-17

. We spent the past few days debating the resolution of disapproval of the Treasury Department's plan to relax sanctions on Russia. We have made clear that Treasury's plan is insufficient and lets Putin and his cronies off the hook. We have made clear that Putin's malign activities around the globe have not abated. We have made clear that there is no reason to relieve sanctions on one of our chief adversaries when there has been no reconciliation and in exchange for nothing. prgtoken Earlier this week, 10 brave s joined us on the motion to proceed and again on cloture, but it was not enough for passage. So many other s who have campaigned that are not tough enough on Putin, when they had a chance to be tough on Putin, ran for the exits. I just want to let my colleagues know that the House was different and in this case far more courageous. prgtoken The House passed the same resolution of disapproval 362 to 53. s by more than a 2-to-1 ratio--more than 2 to 1--voted to not allow the loosening of sanctions on Deripaska's Rusal, as 136 of them joined with the unanimous--unanimous--support of House to pass the resolution. prgtoken So two votes--two small votes--stand in the way of passage here in the Senate. Let the overwhelming bipartisan House vote be a message to my friends in the Senate. We should pass this resolution. We should not let Putin get his way simply because has always wanted him to--too often. prgtoken So I am going to shortly reconsider the resolution before it expires tonight at midnight. I strongly urge my friend the leader not to block the request and give Senators a chance to change their minds on this incredibly important motion. prgtoken So I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 14, H.J. Res. 30; that the joint resolution be considered read for a third time and the Senate vote on passage with a 60-vote affirmative threshold, with no intervening action or debate; and that if the joint resolution fails to achieve 60 votes for passage, it be returned to the calendar.
NO TAXPAYER FUNDING FOR ABORTION AND ABORTION INSURANCE FULL DISCLOSURE ACT OF 2019--Motion to Proceed
Tom Udall (Democrat, NM) \u2014 2019-1-17

. Senator Kaine is yielding to me to talk about the Interior Department in the bill. Let me just thank him for his vigilance. When we have 800,000 Federal employees across this country and their families hurting, he has been vigilant with this. I know that in the Commonwealth of Virginia he and Senator Warner are very concerned, as are Senator Heinrich and myself about what is happening in New Mexico. I want to speak a little bit about the Interior Department bill, where I am the ranking . prgtoken I rise today to call on this body to take action and immediately end the shutdown that is causing tragic consequences in the lives of Americans. We are on day 27 of the shutdown, the longest in our Nation's history. prgtoken Every day my constituents in New Mexico are asking me what are we doing to end this senseless shutdown. So I am here on the Senate floor demanding that we open the government, demanding that we do our jobs as a coequal branch of government, demanding that we pass bipartisan appropriations bills. prgtoken I have the privilege of serving as the ranking member of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, and I know how critical the Interior bill is, particularly to my home State of New Mexico and to States across the West and across the country. The Interior bill funds basic services like healthcare and public safety for 2 million American Indians and Alaska Natives through the Indian Health Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. prgtoken This bill keeps our air and water clean through the work of the Environmental Protection Agency. This bill protects and preserves national parks and other treasured public lands and helps to support small businesses that depend on them. The Agencies in this bill fund science, wildlife protection, energy development, and arts and cultural programs in every State, and they employ tens of thousands of Americans. There is no reason why they should be shuttered. They are simply too important. prgtoken This shutdown is particularly devastating for Indian Country. Every day the President continues to treat Tribal programs like hostages for political gain. By his action he endangers families across Indian Country. Multiple health clinics that serve urban Indians have closed their doors, forced to turn hundreds of patients away. Tribal court programs are in jeopardy. Food distribution and social service programs are on the chopping block. Law enforcement services are stretched to the breaking point. Thousands of Tribal members are furloughed--all to devastating effect. prgtoken Indian Country is paying the price for every day that the President's reckless shutdown continues. These are people's lives and livelihoods on the line. Our government is completely failing to uphold its trust and treaty obligations to Native Americans, and all for what? A wildly expensive and ineffective wall that this Nation doesn't want and a vanity project for a President who is not p
S. 181
Rob Portman (Republican, OH) \u2014 2019-1-18

I am here today to talk about the ongoing partial government shutdown, the crisis along the southern border, and how we can resolve this in a responsible way. prgtoken We are now on day 28 of the government shutdown, and I am more discouraged now than I have been during this entire impasse. We are better than this. We are stuck. Eight hundred thousand workers have missed a paycheck, and there is no end in sight. NASA workers in Cleveland, TSA employees at our airports across Ohio, Coast Guard officers on Lake Erie--they have all contacted me, as have others. But the harm being done to these families and these workers isn't the only thing that is happening with the shutdown. prgtoken I have been through five of these shutdowns since I worked in the White House for the first President . I remember in 1990 when we had a weekend shutdown, and everybody thought that was dramatic. Here we are with the longest shutdown in our history. I don't like government shutdowns. I don't think they are good for taxpayers. Every shutdown, we always end up paying more as taxpayers. I don't think anybody likes them--at least not anybody outside the beltway. Some in both parties seem to like to use shutdowns, but they are not good for families who are affected, and they are not good for the economy. They cost the taxpayers more. prgtoken On the economy, we now have a report from the Council of Economic Advisers, who tell us this week that the shutdown is going to reduce quarterly economic growth by 0.13 percent for every week it lasts. In other words, every week the shutdown continues, the economy is hurt more. We have a great economy right now. Thanks to the tax cuts and the regulatory relief and other things this Congress has done, we have record levels of employment. More people are employed than ever in our history. We have historically low unemployment. We are bringing people out of the shadows, back into work, off the sidelines. prgtoken There is a lot of positive out there, but this is taking us the wrong way. It is partly the impact on Federal employees, because their purchasing power is less. We are told that of the $312 billion for fiscal year 2019 that hasn't been appropriated by this Congress--and that is what the shutdown is; about 25 percent of government is not being funded. That is hundreds of millions of dollars each workday that are not going out to Federal employees. So part of the economic impact is that people have less spending power, and part of it is that contractors and a lot of small businesses are not getting paid, so it has an impact on the economy in that way. Again, what happens in the end is that everybody gets paid back, but in the meantime, services are disrupted. It is a very inefficient way to run government, and taxpayers end up spending more, not less. prgtoken I am not big on shutdowns, having lived through five of them, but I have to say I have never been more frustrated
HONORING MAYOR JIM WEST
Jimmy Panetta (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2019-1-18

. Madam , I rise today to honor the memory of the late Mayor of San Juan Bautista, Jim West, for his outstanding career in public service and his commitment to the people of the central coast of California. His professional accomplishments and leadership in the community have profoundly touched the lives of many. prgtoken Mayor West served his community in San Benito County for over 20 years in multiple capacities. He was appointed to San Benito County Parks and Recreation Commission, served as vice chairman of San Benito County's General Plan Update Committee, served on the United Way Board of Directors, and was the recipient of many honorable awards commemorating his outstanding character. In addition to his heavy involvement in the community, Mayor West also honorably served our country in the United States Marine Corps. prgtoken Throughout his ten years in public office, Mayor West served the City of San Juan Bautista as a dynamic and effective leader. Colleagues and friends alike praised his ability to compromise and put community needs at the forefront of his priorities. Mayor West was the recipient of two National Philanthropy Awards, the Gavilan College Community Spirit Award, and the San Benito Community Leadership Award. His presence in the community transformed many lives, and he will be remembered as a distinguished community member, mayor, and friend. prgtoken Mayor Jim West's legacy is defined by his invaluable work as a public servant. His dedication to the community and to the people in his life serves as an inspiration to the Central Coast of California. He is survived by his daughter, granddaughter, and great-granddaughter, and his legacy will live on with them and in the memories of those of us who had the honor to know him. Madam , I ask that my colleagues in the House join me in honoring Mayor Jim West.
STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S SECURITY IN THE MIDDLE EAST ACT OF 2019--Motion to Proceed
Tim Kaine (Democrat, VA) \u2014 2019-1-19

in the last 2 days, I have stood on this floor and asked that the American Government reopen. On Thursday, I asked unanimous consent to proceed to the bipartisan House bill funding most shuttered government Agencies through the end of this fiscal year. The majority leader objected to my request. prgtoken Yesterday, I asked unanimous consent to proceed to the bipartisan House bill funding Homeland Security Agencies through February 8. The junior Senator from Oklahoma, on behalf of the majority leader, objected to my request. prgtoken So today marks the 29th day of the government shutdown--29 days of fiscal pain and mental anxiety and national humiliation; 29 days of families worried about mortgage payments, canceling medical appointments, losing their place at a favored daycare that they can no longer afford to pay for; 29 days of being required to travel to work without being paid and without even receiving money to put gas in your car to get to work; 29 days of being unable to add your newborn child to your Federal health insurance policy; 29 days of being turned away from prgtoken services like food stamps or National Parks or affordable housing programs or domestic violence services; 29 days of chemical spills not being investigated or food products not being inspected; 29 days of our veterans who serve as Federal employees or Federal contractors suffering as political pawns in an unnecessary stunt; 29 days of seeing the country you love cease to be an example to others. prgtoken If a foreign adversary--if a foreign adversary--through an active attack or cyber attack disabled major portions of the American Government pushing 800,000 Federal employees to the brink of financial disaster and blocking millions of Americans from accessing government services critical to their lives--if a foreign adversary did that, make no mistake, we would consider it an act of war. prgtoken If a foreign adversary figured out a way to block border guards, U.S. marshals, Coast Guard members, DEA agents, ATF agents, FBI agents, TSA agents, and air traffic controllers from being paid to intentionally hurt those whom we charge with protecting our safety and security, we would consider it an attack on our country. prgtoken If a foreign adversary took these steps to embarrass and humiliate us, to bring much of the Nation to a halt, to divide us against one another, we would consider it an attack on our country. prgtoken But these acts are not being conducted by a foreign adversary. They are being intentionally waged against American workers and American citizens by the President of the United States. He advertised in December that he would shut down the government and gladly own the responsibility for it. He has claimed pride--pride--in what he has done and suggested that he might keep government shut down for weeks or months. It is this President who is waging this attack against broad swaths of the American public.