mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Gun Violence (Executive Calendar)
Margaret Wood Hassan (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2018-2-28

I wish to thank my colleagues for their words on this difficult, challenging topic. prgtoken On this day 2 weeks ago, the Parkland, FL, community ``took 17 bullets to the heart'' as Cameron, a junior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, so devastatingly put it. prgtoken Over the past years, the epidemic of gun violence has touched every aspect of American life, from schools and churches to concerts and night clubs and movie theaters, in homes and in the workplace. After each of these tragedies, we say enough is enough, yet time and again Congress fails to take action, and the discussion fades until this deadly cycle once again repeats itself. But we cannot allow this vicious cycle to continue. prgtoken Like many Americans, I have been inspired and touched by the bravery of the students of Stoneman Douglas and by their determination to create from this tragedy a legacy of positive change. They are looking to us to help ensure that they are the last students who suffer through a mass shooting. They will hold us accountable, as they should. prgtoken I have been inspired by students like Sam, who said that he doesn't feel safe in his own country and powerfully asked at the White House: ``How did we not stop this after Columbine? After Sandy Hook?'' prgtoken And Emma, who has been calling out elected officials for the excuses they make for putting the priorities of the gun lobby ahead of the safety and well-being of their constituents. Emma and her classmates rightly have called these excuses BS. prgtoken We must actually listen to these students, and we must act to protect them and all of our children. prgtoken People across New Hampshire own guns for hunting, sport, and protection. New Hampshire has a long tradition of responsible gun ownership that I respect and that I am committed to upholding. But I also know that the people in New Hampshire do not want dangerous weapons in the wrong hands. It is our job to keep our citizens safe, and we owe it to the students and survivors who are speaking out, to those whom we have lost to tragic violence, and to their families and loved ones to come together and make our communities safer. prgtoken The level of gun violence in America is a public health crisis that is unique to our Nation, and like all public health challenges, there are actions we can take to mitigate harm and save lives. We can put in place responsible, commonsense policies that will do just that. prgtoken To start, we know that the shooter in Parkland displayed warning signs that, if properly heeded and addressed, may have prevented the incident, the massacre. But when law enforcement was called because of these warning signs, prgtoken it is not clear that they had tools that would have allowed them to confiscate the shooter's weapons. So one of the things we must do is ensure that every State has what are known as red flag laws--laws which allow courts to issue time-limited restraining order
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
Dianne Feinstein (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-2-28

I rise today to speak about the introduction of the ``Age 21 Act'' by Senator Flake and myself. prgtoken Two weeks ago, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, our Nation experienced yet another horrific mass shooting that has shocked the conscience of us all. prgtoken The shooter--a 19-year old former student of the high school--used an AR-15 military-style assault rifle that he legally purchased at a gun store, to kill former classmates and educators. Along with 14 wounded, 17 beautiful lives were lost in this horrific attack. Many of them were children and young adults. Their whole lives were ahead of them. prgtoken The overwhelming agony so many victims and their loved ones are experiencing is all too familiar to gun violence victims and survivors all across America. This palpable agony and grief has emboldened students from Parkland and all across this Nation to speak out about gun violence and demand that we as lawmakers act. I am deeply inspired by the courage of these young people, and I hope my colleagues will join me in working with them. prgtoken The bill that Senator Flake and I are introducing is straightforward and simple--it raises the minimum age to purchase a military-style assault rifle and high capacity ammunition magazines to age 21. In so doing, this legislation closes the loophole in current law that allows teenagers to legally walk into a gun store and buy an AR-15. It further prohibits private individuals from selling or transferring AR-15s to teenagers under the age of 21. In this way, it brings the minimum age requirements for buying handguns and military-style assault weapons into parity. prgtoken It makes perfectly clear that in America, if a person is not old enough to buy a handgun--or, for that matter, old enough to buy a beer--they should not be able to purchase a military-style assault weapon. In my view, this bill is one small step in the right direction. It was developed following the attack in Parkland that had students asking ``why was this teenager able to legally walk into a gun store and buy an AR-15?'' In fact, one student named Samuel Zeif, who lost his best friend in the shooting, asked President why a young person in America ``can still go in a store and buy a weapon of war?'' prgtoken So we worked in the spirit of bipartisanship to let Samuel, and these students, know that as lawmakers we hear them. And we will work together to make sure that they feel safe in their schools and in their neighborhoods. prgtoken So I'm proud of this bipartisan piece of legislation and would urge that this body take it up and pass it immediately. However, I would be remiss not to mention that so much more remains to be done. Already this Congress, I have introduced legislation to ban bump stocks and assault weapons from our streets. I've also introduced legislation that would provide states with a legal framework for courts to issue gun violenc
REPUBLICAN TAX BILL
Ron Wyden (Democrat, OR) \u2014 2018-2-28

for the elite, the powerful and the well connected, the tax law has turned out to be manna from Washington. The benefits of the tax law are about as one-sided as it gets, and middle-class Americans come up on the losing end. prgtoken It sure is one-sided when the price of admission for any middle-class tax relief is an investor handout big enough to pave Wall Street in gold. pushed for a tax cut that was centered on the middle class, but s turned their one-sided wish list into law. prgtoken It sure is one-sided to have a massive tax handout to multinational corporations, a lower top rate for the fortunate few, and a massive tax cut in the estate tax that touches only the wealthiest, while working families get handed only temporary relief. prgtoken Those are the policies that are the essence of the tax law. Yet the American people hear over and over again that the benefit of the proposals are going to work their way to the middle class and that those folks will get bulging wage increases. prgtoken So I would like to start by getting a few facts straight. First, just a few hours ago, corporations crossed the $200 billion mark in stock buybacks this year. These stock-buyback bonanzas drive up the value of investment portfolios for CEOs and high fliers, and they are now coming in at a rate 30 times greater--30 times greater--than worker bonuses. They are on pace to double the amount from the first quarter of last year. prgtoken Now, there was a whole lot of happy talk about this tax bill last winter, but I don't remember--and I sat through a lot of markups in the Finance Committee and debates on this floor--I didn't hear anybody say there ought to be a stock buyback stimulus act. prgtoken The wealthiest 10 percent of earners own 84 percent of all of the stock held by Americans. So when it comes to these buybacks, a huge majority of families are on the outside looking in. All the moms and dads who balance the rent, the groceries, and the cost of gas and electricity don't get much of anything out of a corporate handout that gets swallowed up by these buyback bonanzas for big-time investors. prgtoken Second, when you talk about tax cuts producing massive stock buybacks, you are talking about sending huge amounts of cash overseas directly into the pockets of wealthy investors. That is because more than one-third of all U.S. corporate stock is owned by investors outside of the country. So under the tax law, American taxpayers are on the hook, borrowing billions and billions of dollars to make wealthy foreigners even wealthier. prgtoken We heard a whole lot about how working families were going to get lifted up in Portland and in Topeka and in San Antonio, but the reality is, the folks who are getting enriched are in Beijing and Moscow and Panama City. prgtoken Finally, you don't have to take my word for it that these corporate windfalls overwhelm
HONORING THE LIFE OF WILLIAM ``BILLY'' F. GRAHAM, JR.
Thom Tillis (Republican, NC) \u2014 2018-2-28

I thank my friend and colleague, the senior Senator from North Carolina, for his words about Reverend Billy Graham. I will only add a few comments. prgtoken At one level, mine are very personal. I was telling someone just yesterday that I have two very distinct memories of times with my father. One of them was of watching Walter Cronkite, and the other one was of watching Billy Graham. I was talking to my mother earlier this week, and she talked about how much my father loved Billy Graham. I remember, vividly, sitting in front of that console TV with my father, watching him as he preached the Word of God. prgtoken This week is amazing because I find, when one loses somebody so precious like Reverend Graham, it is a very sad time, but in his case, America's pastor had brought so much joy to everyone's lives that it really is a celebration. prgtoken Earlier, Senator Burr and I had had an opportunity to offer our condolences to the Graham family. What was remarkable was that in the face of every one of them was, maybe, a hint of sorrow but, really, just a fullness of joy in knowing what their father did when he was on this Earth and now what he will do in the Kingdom of Heaven. prgtoken I think that today is a day we should all look back and ask ourselves: Could we actually come anywhere close to living the kind of life that this man lived? With his ministering in some 180 countries, with over 200 million people actually attending some of his unbelievable celebrations of the Gospel, and then his touching the lives of hundreds of millions of people--and billions of people like me who were watching on TV--the Graham legacy is something that is going to live on for generations. prgtoken I am happy to be a proud Senator from the State in which he was born. In fact, I live only about 20, 30 minutes from where he lived his early years. I look forward to going to the funeral on Friday to celebrate his life, to celebrate his legacy, and to celebrate the many lives that were changed because he had brought the Word of God to them wherever they may have been on this planet. prgtoken I thank the Presiding Officer for the opportunity to speak about America's pastor. prgtoken To the Graham family, all of them--the sons, the daughters, the children, the grandchildren--God bless you all. Thank you for sharing the gift of your family member with so many people across this great Nation and across this world. prgtoken I thank Senator Burr for his kind words. I thank him for his leadership and for moving forward with the resolution that honors Reverend Billy Graham's life and legacy. prgtoken .
REMEMBERING BILLY GRAHAM
James Lankford (Republican, OK) \u2014 2018-2-28

it was an exceptionally moving service in the Rotunda today. For a man to be able to lie in honor in the Rotunda, for the Nation to pause for a moment, and for the leadership of the House and Senate, on both sides of the aisle, and the President of the United States to all stop and for a moment look at a wooden casket, simple as it was, and remember the legacy of a man who gave his life telling people that Jesus loves you, it is a remarkable day. It is not a common day in the U.S. Senate, in the House, to break in the middle of the day to be able to go to the Rotunda and just contemplate this simple fact: There is a God whom you can know who loves you. prgtoken It is interesting to think back on some of the legacy of Dr. Graham. He had been to Oklahoma many times. In 2003, I had the opportunity to be the chair for the Youth Night of that mission. It was a moving night, and there were a lot of people there, as there were at all of his events. That night, there were thousands and thousands of teenagers there, and Dr. Graham unpacked a message about Solomon, a person who had everything. He challenged them--for this person who had everything--but he always came back to say all of these things were vanity, and, really, at the end, it is knowing God that is going to matter. prgtoken He even challenged people of power. In that message that night in Oklahoma City, he said: People like power and prestige. Solomon had more power than any man in his generation. No nation dared to defy him. But he looked upon all his mighty military power and said that even power brings no sense of fulfillment, or joy, or peace. The Bible talks about another power--the kind of power that helps when the crisis comes. 2Timothy 1:7: ``God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.'' prgtoken And then he said this: Jesus Christ said, ``All authority in Heaven and on Earth has been given to me.'' prgtoken Then he quoted Paul's words: ``For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God to salvation.'' prgtoken That night, many students responded to that simple invitation to be able to know a God who doesn't give you power, but He is power. prgtoken If you asked most Oklahomans, though, what was the moment they remember most about Dr. Graham coming to Oklahoma, they would say it was in 1995 after the Federal Building was destroyed by a domestic terrorism event. Dr. Graham was there the Sunday after that tragic attack on Oklahoma and on the Nation. He gave a message to Oklahoma City, to Oklahomans, and to the Nation, and he laid out a sense of hope. Toward the end of his sermon he said this: This event also reminds us of the brevity and uncertainty of life. It reminds us that we never know when we're going to be taken. I doubt that even one of those who went to that building to work, or to
TRIBUTE TO HENRY HOLLEY
Johnny Isakson (Republican, GA) \u2014 2018-2-28

back in my home State of Georgia, in my neighborhood in east Cobb County, there is a man by the name of Henry Holley. In my few minutes left, I want to honor Henry Holley because he is an interesting individual. prgtoken Although there is no such thing as a former marine, he was a U.S. marine for 22 years. He met Dr. Graham at a crusade. He volunteered to help him in his off-duty time and so impressed Dr. Graham that Billy Graham asked him to join his crusades. prgtoken He said: I can't do it right now. I have 2 more years in my commitment. prgtoken Billy Graham said: If you come to me at the end of those 2 years, I will put you on my team. prgtoken Forty-eight years ago, Henry Holley joined the team of Billy Graham. He became his Asian representative. In fact, today Henry Holley is the last of the original Billy Graham team who is left alive on this Earth. Henry is 90 years old, living in east Cobb County, and witnessing every single day all that he learned from Billy Graham and what Billy Graham's crusades meant to him. prgtoken They set up crusades in Rio de Janeiro, Seoul, South Korea, and all over the world. Henry Holley has been in and out of North Korea more than anybody in this country. He goes there with Samaritan's Purse to help people who are oppressed, taking to them the message of Jesus Christ, working and doing everything he can to improve the plight of those people who are oppressed and depressed by a rogue regime. prgtoken Henry Holley is one of the finest people I have ever known. I know when Dr. Graham passed away, Henry was not sad but happy because he has always talked about knowing that ultimately Billy Graham's place in Heaven would be his just reward. Henry could not wait until he could join Billy Graham there so they could be together at the end. prgtoken So I know Henry is probably watching, or if he isn't watching, somebody will tell him about my mentioning his name. I am doing it to honor Henry but also to honor Billy Graham, because the one-on-one passing of the Word from me to someone else, from Henry Holley to someone else, from Dr. Graham to someone else, is the way Christianity was built over the decades and over the years and will continue to be preserved in the years to come. prgtoken So as we honor in the U.S. Senate and in the United States of America a great man, a great leader, a man of God, and a servant of God, I am just so thankful I had the opportunity to be in this Chamber on the day we honored Billy Graham and his life. I am so happy I had the ability and the opportunity to know his servant, Henry Holley, and be one of those along the way whom Henry helped to live a more responsible and loving life. prgtoken .
Energy Infrastructure (Executive Session)
Cory Gardner (Republican, CO) \u2014 2018-2-28

from Wyoming for his remarks on American energy and American energy independence, particularly the work we have done in Wyoming and Colorado. When you think about the opportunities we have to free up markets for Colorado and Wyoming produced oil or gas, it is truly remarkable. prgtoken The Senator and I also share the great work that takes place at F.E. Warren Air Force Base. F.E. Warren Air Force Base has a significant role to play in the nuclear triad, with facilities in both Colorado and Wyoming. That is obviously something very important to our national security. prgtoken One of the other things I think is important to bring to this conversation that the Senator from Wyoming talked about is the national security component that energy can play and the important role that it has. We can export our energy not just to the Midwest or to the eastern parts of this country, but we can take that gas produced in Wyoming and Colorado and export it to Asia and Europe, to countries that want American energy, that desire American energy resources, not energy resources from tyrants and dictators like Russia and other places we see around the globe. prgtoken This is an opportunity for us to really show, and I commend my colleague for his leadership on energy.
HONORING THE LIFE OF WILLIAM ``BILLY'' F. GRAHAM, JR.
Richard Burr (Republican, NC) \u2014 2018-2-28

I rise with my colleague from North Carolina, my colleagues in the U.S. Senate, and the American people to honor the life of a North Carolinian, Billy Graham--a man whose life has literally reached millions around the globe. prgtoken Reverend Graham's grace marker will be inscribed this way: ``Preacher of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.'' prgtoken As the son of a minister myself, I am uniquely aware of the sacrifices and the responsibility that come with this calling. Indeed, this is a calling that Reverend Graham fulfilled honorably and nobly, bringing hope and comfort to millions around the globe. Reverend Graham was someone who was shaped by his roots on a North Carolina dairy farm, who committed his life to Jesus Christ at the age of 15, and who lived the commitment with faithfulness for the next 84 years. prgtoken He was married for 64 years to Ruth Bell Graham and was the father of 3 daughters, 2 sons, and now 19 grandchildren. As his casket was laid in honor in the Rotunda, all of a sudden, I realized that one of those grandchildren was a graduate of West Point, one of my nominees, and a soon-to-be lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. It was certainly good to see him. prgtoken Reverend Graham preached to almost 215 million people in more than 185 countries and territories on 6 continents. He prayed with soldiers on the battlefields of South Korea and Vietnam. He preached in poor villages and at Britain's Windsor Castle, and he provided counsel to every President from Harry Truman to . He also stood up for what was right--denouncing segregation and oppression and preaching jointly with the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr in the 1950s. He lived a life of integrity and of honor. prgtoken He spoke words of comfort and hope at the National Cathedral following the September 11 terrorist attacks, reminding America: ``God is our refuge prgtoken and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.'' prgtoken Reverend Graham will be deeply missed. I send my condolences to his children, his grandchildren, and his numerous great-grandchildren. Yet Graham himself said: ``My Home is in heaven, I am just passing through this World.'' Today, we honor the life that he lived, his faithfulness to the calling, and his impact on millions of individuals around the globe. prgtoken If I may take just another moment before my colleague from North Carolina speaks, I will read some remarks that were made by individuals who played important roles in American history. prgtoken President Bill Clinton said: ``Some were pressuring Graham to segregate his audiences by race but he refused.'' Clinton remarked: ``Graham would cancel the crusade rather than preach to a segregated audience'' because everyone deserved the chance to hear God's Word. prgtoken President said this in his condolences: ``Billy Graham was a humble servant who prayed for so many--and who, with wisdom and grace, gave hope and guidance to