mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
RECOGNIZING VOLUNTEERS IN MARSHFIELD AND PLAINFIELD
Patrick J. Leahy (Democrat, VT) \u2014 2020-6-9

the public health and economic crisis that has gripped the country since March has been a challenge everywhere, and Vermont is no different; yet it should surprise no one that Vermonters rise to the moment. As businesses shuttered and Vermonters adhered to our State's stay-at-home orders, a group of 20 or so Vermonters stepped up to volunteer to bring groceries, medications, or other essential items for their neighbors and friends in Marshfield and Plainfield. prgtoken The effect was organized by the enrichment coordinator for Montpelier's public schools, Drew McNaughton, who stepped up, utilizing Front Porch Forum, coordinating a group of volunteers to help bring goods to those staying at home. It is ``a natural thing to do,'' Drew said, and he could not be more right: It is natural for Vermonters to step up to help other Vermonters. It has always been the Vermont way. And it is why together we are Vermont strong. prgtoken I ask unanimous consent that an article highlighting this volunteer effort, which appeared in the Times Argus in March, be printed in the Record.
JUSTICE IN POLICING ACT AND HEROES ACT
Charles E. Schumer (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2020-6-9

as protests over the death of George Floyd continue, House and Senate came together yesterday to unveil sweeping reforms to our Nation's police departments. prgtoken The Justice in Policing Act was not only a response to the recent protests but a reflection of years of failed efforts to root out injustice and racial bias in our law enforcement. The bill would ban the use of choke holds and other tactics that have left Black Americans dead. It would limit the transfer of military weaponry and equipment to police departments. It would change the legal standard to make it easier to hold police accountable for misconduct when they use prgtoken deadly force on American citizens, and through increased data and transparency, as well as important modifications to training and practices, it would help prevent police misconduct in the first place. prgtoken This is a very strong bill, and rightly so. I give tremendous credit to Senators Booker, , and so many others who contributed, as well as the Black Caucus, led by Karen Bass and Chairman Nadler of the Judiciary. They put together a very strong bill. The reason is simple. The moment does not call for half measures. prgtoken Hundreds of thousands of American protesters are not asking us to chip away around the edges. They want bold reform and meaningful changes to assist them in something that all too often delivers unequal justice for too many Black Americans, and that has existed that way for too, too long. Well, that kind of bold reform and meaningful change is what the Justice in Policing Act will deliver--meaningful change. are going to fight very, very hard to make this proposal a reality. prgtoken Now, of course, in the Senate, it is ultimately up to Leader McConnell to decide what proposals, if any, come to the Senate floor. That is his prerogative as majority leader. But for 2 weeks, Leader McConnell has refused to respond to my requests for the Senate to consider a police reform bill before July 4, the end of the current work period. I have heard the leader speak to the frustrations that have swept the Nation. I trust he is aware of the many abuses that have been allowed to persist unchecked in our police departments. Where is Leader McConnell on actually doing something about it? prgtoken Of course, there is another crisis at the moment, the COVID pandemic. According to reports in the press, Leader McConnell has told the caucus not to expect another relief bill until late July at the earliest. This is happening even as some States begin loosening restrictions on business and travel. But even as that happens, our economy is hampered by severe Depression-level unemployment. While the number of new cases is falling on the east coast, the number of cases remains steady in much of the country and is increasing in a good number of States. prgtoken We are coming to a whole lot of cliffs. States are prep
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Joe Manchin, III (Democrat, WV) \u2014 2020-6-9

Senator Daines from Montana and all my colleagues, and s. Everyone has been so excited about getting up and showing pictures of their beautiful State. All of us--it is the United States of America--every one of us has something to be proud of and show off, and the LWCF and restore our historic parks bills will protect each and every one of them. prgtoken I have been in the Senate for almost 10 years. I have not seen any piece of legislation that has brought us together with more enthusiasm than this piece of legislation, the Great American Outdoors Act, because the entire Nation benefits from it. Whether it be in West Virginia, Colorado, or Montana, wherever it may be, our outdoor resources is something that all of my colleagues can enjoy because we all can visit and enjoy the great American outdoors, if you will. prgtoken The strong support for the Great American Outdoors Act is a testament of the importance of this legislation and what it does. We have never had a financial recovery, an economic recovery without infrastructure investments in spending. We don't have a better piece of legislation that does this. It is a win-win all the way around. prgtoken More than 150,000 jobs will be created by this bill. I think every county in America--I have 55 counties in West Virginia. Every county in West Virginia, basically, is receiving some sort of help from the LWCF. We have all been greatly impacted by this. prgtoken Today, I want to talk about the impact that the Land and Water Conservation Fund has had on my home State of West Virginia. To date, 54 of the 55 counties have benefited, as I said, from the Land and Water Conservation Fund. It is responsible for some of our most cherished outdoor spaces in West Virginia. In fact, since 1965, $243 million has been spent to enhance recreation and conservation in the Mountain State alone. prgtoken The LWCF has supported projects at Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge, Gauley River National Recreation Area, New River Gorge--and this is the New River Gorge. This is the New River. If you are in the eastern part of the United States and you haven't floated on the New River or the Gauley, you are missing a great opportunity. The scenery is unbelievable, and floating through the rapids is something special. To float through there is an experience. I welcome and recommend everyone to come visit at least once in your life the wild and wonderful West Virginia on the New River and the Gauley River. The Land and Water Conservation Fund has also helped towns like Marlinton, WV. Mayor Sam Felton was able to turn a vacant lot into the Discovery Junction, a multipurpose community gathering space, with the help of $86,000 from LWCF. prgtoken The fund is also important for our hunting community. Hunting is a way of life. It is part of our culture. It is a tradition that we all cherish and value. The Great American Outdoors A
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Jon Tester (Democrat, MT) \u2014 2020-6-9

I rise today in support of the Great American Outdoors Act. After yesterday's vote, where we voted to move to debate this bill at an 80-17 margin, it felt good. prgtoken It felt good because some of us have been fighting this fight to fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund, in particular, for more than a decade. prgtoken It is a program that Senator Udall explained yesterday that has worked out so very, very well since his dad introduced it back in the sixties. prgtoken But the Great American Outdoors Act does more than just permanently fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which is a huge accomplishment in and of itself. It also puts money into our Park Service and areas around our parks that are so important for this country. Really, the park system is one of the jewels of this Nation. prgtoken President Teddy Roosevelt was truly a visionary. At a time when there were plenty of wild places in this great Nation, he had the good sense to preserve some of them for future generations because he knew they would not be around forever. prgtoken Quite frankly, the National Park System encompasses 419 parks, more than 84 million acres, including two crown jewels in Montana-- Yellowstone and Glacier National Park. These are places where Americans come together and experience the scale of America's natural beauty. prgtoken However, I will tell you, in recent years we--the Congress--have not lived up to President Roosevelt's legacy, and our parks have been left to fall in disrepair. Even as we have seen record numbers of visitors each year, the U.S. Congress has failed to make parks a priority and even make investments in them. prgtoken So the Great American Outdoors Act will go a long way to correcting Congress's neglect. In fact, it invests $9.5 billion in deferred maintenance on public lands across our country. Those are not only our national parks, but the areas around our national parks, preserving the legacy of America's great outdoors for generations to come. prgtoken While this is very, very important--this investment in our national park system, the first part of this legislation--we also need to know that we have places in this country, ecosystems in this country that will not be around for future generations if we don't preserve them today, and that is where the Land and Water Conservation Fund comes in. prgtoken The LWCF is the most important conservation tool we have at the Federal level. Nothing else comes close to it. It was founded five decades ago, and Montanans have used about $540 million of this fund to increase outdoor opportunities on our public lands around our State. prgtoken We have used it to preserve tens of thousands of acres of world class elk habitat in central Montana. It has been an essential driver of Montana's growing $7-billion-a-year outdoor recreation economy. And it has established city parks and open spaces in our more urban communities in Montana. prgtoken Th
TRIBUTE TO DWIGHT GARDNER
Michael F. Bennet (Democrat, CO) \u2014 2020-6-9

I rise to honor the career of Dwight Gardner, who recently announced his retirement after providing decades of service to the State of Colorado. He most recently served on my staff as the regional director for southeast Colorado. Dwight has been a tireless advocate for the farmers, ranchers, and communities across our State. For decades, he has worked on behalf of communities throughout the region, from Pueblo to Raton Pass on the New Mexico border, and from the headwaters of the Arkansas River in Leadville, high in the Rockies, to the town of Holly in Prowers County. prgtoken Early in his career, Dwight worked alongside his brother to support the farmers of the Arkansas Valley as a cropduster. Living through the era of ``buy and dry'' land purchasing to divert water to meet the needs of a growing Front Range, Dwight understood early the value of advocacy for rural Colorado. prgtoken In 2000, he was elected to the first of two terms as a Crowley County Commissioner, and in that role, he was selected as chairman of the Southern Colorado Economic Development District to represent the interests of the 14 counties in the region. In 2007, my predecessor, Senator Ken Salazar, asked Dwight to join his office. I was fortunate that Dwight agreed to continue his service in my office in 2009. prgtoken Dwight employs a formidable array of skills to serve the southeast region of Colorado effectively. He builds strong relationships with people; he possesses a deep knowledge and respect for the heritage of Colorado; and he provides a constant presence when the issues demand it. He has engaged in the battle for Federal funds to build the long- promised Arkansas Valley conduit. He was witness to the important preservation of our national heritage at Camp Amache and Sand Creek. He helped shepherd the critical economic opportunity represented by the continuation of the Southwest Chief railroad line. prgtoken From local food production to manufacturing, from the decommissioning of the Pueblo Chemical Depot to establishing good neighbor relations at Fort Carson's Pinon Canyon Maneuver site, Dwight has been a steady presence and road warrior as he has advanced the common good across hundreds of miles of beautiful southern Colorado. prgtoken Going forward, I will miss Dwight's humility, his candor, and his keen understanding of what it means to be a son of rural America, attributes so needed as we work our way toward a better future. I am comforted to know that the next generation, represented by his grandsons Noah, Devlan, and Gatlan, have the benefit of his guidance. Colorado is grateful for his service.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Thomas R. Carper (Democrat, DE) \u2014 2020-6-9

the bill before us today, the Great American Outdoors Act, is landmark legislation. It would fulfill a longstanding promise to the American people to fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund. prgtoken This measure will also make a downpayment on deferred maintenance plans of our Nation's beloved public lands, which includes over 400 national parks. It also includes more than 500 national wildlife refuges that are under the jurisdiction of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on which I serve as ranking member. prgtoken While I am proud to support the Great American Outdoors Act, we would be remiss if we did not put the Senate's consideration of this legislation in the context of everything else that is happening in our country today. As we have learned in the 15 days since the death of George Floyd, we also have other longstanding promises to fulfill. Let me mention four of them. The first is a promise of an end to racial violence in this country and a new beginning in the pursuit of racial justice. The second would be the promise of equality. The third would be the promise of a more perfect Union called for in our Constitution's preamble. The fourth, and last, would be the promise of a dream articulated nearly 57 years ago on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, not far from where we are gathered here today, by the late Martin Luther King. prgtoken Our national and State parks have always been places that bring people from all backgrounds together. Our national historic sites and monuments commemorate the events that have forged and tested us as a nation, as well as the sacrifices that we have made in our quest to become that more perfect Union. prgtoken They are also places from which people have called on their government, our government, for change and for equality. Yes, our national parks have served as places of protest, protected under the Constitution that Delaware was the first State to ratify on December 7, 1787. In fact, Delaware's national park, one of the newest in the Nation, was created, in large part, to celebrate that history. prgtoken The recent murders of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville have sparked, as we know, widespread civil unrest. From coast to coast, millions of Americans have come together to protest the deaths of unarmed Black Americans and to call for change, to call for justice, and to call for racial equality. In Washington, DC, some of those demonstrations have taken place in our National Park System. prgtoken Lafayette Square, the site of gassing and the troubling use of crowd dispersion devices last week in response to a peaceful demonstration, has seen its share of protests and turmoil. In its history, before the marble monuments prgtoken it now contains, the square served as a slave market, and it housed troops during the War of 1812 when the White House and the U.S. Capitol--this Capitol--were burned. prgtoken To
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Martin Heinrich (Democrat, NM) \u2014 2020-6-9

during these past months, in the midst of a pandemic that has kept most of us inside our homes, Americans have grown to appreciate, in new ways, how critical each moment of fresh air can prgtoken be to maintaining both our physical health and our mental well-being. prgtoken More people are getting outside than ever before, whether for a quick walk in their local neighborhood park or by seeking solitude on the many public lands held in trust for each and every American citizen. Coming from a State that is blessed with expansive skies and remote open spaces, I am convinced that investing in the future of our parks and our public lands will be a key path for our Nation to recover from the challenges we currently face. prgtoken That is why I am so proud that we are coming together this week to bring the Great American Outdoors Act to the Senate floor for a vote. Our bipartisan legislation will permanently and fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund and finally dedicate real resources to begin tackling the multibillion dollar infrastructure backlog in our national parks, our national forests, and our wildlife refuges. prgtoken If you have spent time enjoying your local parks, trail systems, ballfields or open space in the last 50 years, you have almost certainly experienced the impact of the Land and Water Conservation Fund. In New Mexico, LWCF has been instrumental in protecting some of our most treasured public lands--places like the Valles Caldera National Preserve with its trout streams, its high altitude meadows, and its massive elk herd. I know it is hard to tell, but this is actually me not catching a trout in the Valles Caldera National Preserve, but it is OK because any day in the preserve is a good day. prgtoken It also helped us establish the Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge in Albuquerque's South Valley, a place where young people will be introduced to nature, many for the first time in a really meaningful way, in a place that is at the heart of the local community now. prgtoken It purchased and protected the entirety--the entirety--of Ute Mountain, which is now a centerpiece of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. It almost boggles the mind to think about the scale of that, but this entire mountain used to be private, and there was no public access. Today, it is one of the most treasured places in Taos County, a rural county that relies on recreation and fishing and boating and camping to drive its economy. prgtoken The Land and Water Conservation Fund is also our most effective tool for opening up public access to our public lands. Just recently, the Land and Water Conservation Fund helped the Bureau of Land Management acquire land parcels that finally opened up public access to the rugged Sabinoso Wilderness in Northeastern New Mexico. This is Sabinoso, with its narrow mesas and spectacular canyon walls, which had previously been completely off limits to the public
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Kevin Cramer (Republican, ND) \u2014 2020-6-10

I want to recognize four talented North Dakota students whose artwork will be on display in my State offices this year. prgtoken They are the winners of the State of the Arts Awards in this year's North Dakota Juried Student Art Show. Hosted by the Taube Museum of Art in Minot, this year's contest had more than 300 entries from students across North Dakota. The four State of the Arts awards are among 116 awards presented to our State's young artists in this competition. prgtoken The students whose art was selected for my offices are: Matthew Upton, Artwork Title: ``Eagle,'' Grade 8, South Middle School, Grand Forks; Ashlynn prgtoken Hartsell, Artwork Title: ``Heart Sunset,'' Grade 5, Washington Elementary, Valley City; Sydney Nelson, Artwork Title: ``Welding in the Fall,'' Grade 12, Valley City High School, Valley City, and Olivia Dorsher, Artwork Title: ``Good Boring Days,'' Grade 11, Grand Forks Central High School, Grand Forks. prgtoken I congratulate these students and thank them for sharing their talents with my North Dakota constituents who will visit my State offices this year. They are an inspiration to all of us who appreciate the gift artists have for capturing the beauty all around us. I also commend those who judge this annual competition and the teachers and parents who have nurtured the emerging skills of these young North Dakota artists.
TAXPAYER FIRST ACT OF 2019--Continued
Tom Cotton (Republican, AR) \u2014 2020-6-10

reserving the right to object, I am a bit mystified about what has happened here. We had a resolution on the floor, a couple of pages, calling for justice for George Floyd and victims of excessive use of force, as well as condemning the radical idea of defunding the police. prgtoken Now, the minority leader wants to offer a resolution that would immediately make the pending business of the Senate--at some distant, speculative time in the future--a piece of legislation which, if I am not mistaken, hasn't even been written and filed yet in the House of Representatives. Now, maybe it has been written in the last day or two and I am not aware that they filed that bill, but it certainly hasn't been debated and voted on in the House of Representatives. prgtoken There is all the time in the world to decide what is going to be the pending business in the U.S. Senate when the Senate acts, but we have a resolution prgtoken right in front of us that condemns the unjustified killing of George Floyd, calls for justice for his death and all those victims of excessive use of force, and also--since the Senate opposes the radical idea--of defunding the police. prgtoken Yet, the ic leader, on behalf of his party, objected to that without citing a single word, a single clause, a single sentence that he finds objectionable. I assume it is because they do, in fact, want to defund the police. prgtoken I know he keeps talking about rhetoric versus action. I will just remind you that the Senate, on almost every day we are in business, passes multiple resolutions by unanimous consent. If I am not mistaken, I think the ic leader was on the floor last week trying to pass a resolution condemning the President once again. So the idea that we don't pass resolutions expressing the sense of the Senate or, for that matter, there is a choice between passing such a resolution and taking action is simply foreign to the way the Senate acts every single day. prgtoken I will just say again that what we are seeing here is the ic leader apparently objecting on behalf of the ic Party in defense of the radical idea that we should defund the police. I object to the ic leader.
THE PRESCRIPTION DRUG PRICING REDUCTION ACT
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2020-6-10

the virus pandemic underscores the very vital contribution pharmaceutical sciences make for our Nation's public health, our Nation's economic prosperity, and our way of life. It also confirms that we need a policy solution to treat soaring healthcare prices. prgtoken The American people want the best medical cures at prices they can afford. The Prescription Drug Pricing Act is a winning solution. Let's get it to the President's desk without delay. It will help secure our American way of life in a post-pandemic world for generations to come. prgtoken . prgtoken .