mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
CHILD CARE FOR ECONOMIC RECOVERY ACT
Linda T. Sánchez (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2020-7-29

. Madam , I rise today in strong support of the Child Care for Economic Recovery Act. I want to thank Chairman Neal, Chairwoman Lowey, Chairman Davis, Chairwoman DeLauro, and Vice Chair Clark for working with me on this critical bill. prgtoken Access to quality, affordable childcare was out of reach for many parents before the COVID pandemic, and now our childcare crisis is far worse. prgtoken Families juggling full-time jobs and caring for their kids at home desperately need our help. And millions of healthcare, grocery store, and other essential workers who cannot work from home are out of options. prgtoken Thankfully, this package includes a bill I coauthored with Chairman Davis to help States provide childcare for essential workers. It also provides long-term support to help working families afford childcare. Finally, it invests in facilities to help them adapt to serve families safely. prgtoken This pandemic is nowhere near under control, and it isn't safe for many to return to work. But parents must have access to safe and affordable childcare before our economy can reopen. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and, again, I thank those involved with the writing of it.
SUPPORTING H.R. 7027, THE CHILD CARE IS ESSENTIAL ACT AND H.R. 7327, THE CHILD CARE FOR ECONOMIC RECOVERY ACT
Anna G. Eshoo (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2020-7-29

. Madam , I rise in support of H.R. 7027, the Child Care Is Essential Act and H.R. 7327, the Child Care for Economic Recovery Act. Taken together, these bills make critical investments in our nation's child care programs to meet the short and long term needs of America's families which are so long overdue. prgtoken The next frontier is high quality, affordable, universal child care. Without it, American workers and in particular women to whom child care often falls, will not be able to reach their full economic potential. In the short term, Americans will not be able to return to work and the economy will not be able to reopen unless there are adequate, safe child care options for parents. 13 percent of Americans report having to reduce their work hours or leave their jobs because they don't have access to child care during the pandemic. prgtoken Options for affordable child care are already scarce in many parts of the country, if available at all, and child care providers operate on very thin margins. This has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which threatens to permanently close thousands of child care providers, resulting in a permanent loss of 4.5 million child care slots according to the Center for American Progress. prgtoken Congress has sought to address the most immediate child care crises created by the pandemic by providing over $4 billion for existing federal programs that support the care and education of young children and their families and expanded funding for child care providers to meet payroll, benefits, rent and other expenses. The House-passed HEROES Act provided an additional $7 billion for child care providers, but this is a relatively small amount compared to the growing need for stabilization of the child care sector as the pandemic rages on. prgtoken H.R. 7027 doubles down on the House's commitment to child care providers by creating a $50 billion stabilization fund to be used for grants to child care providers to pay for increased costs during periods of low enrollment during the COVID-19 crisis and requires employers to keep child care workers on payroll to ensure that these providers will be able to reopen their doors once the pandemic ends. Most importantly, this stabilization funding requires child care providers operating during prgtoken COVID-19 to meet strict health and safety guidance that ensures American children are kept safe from the virus. prgtoken H.R. 7327 makes critical investments in the long term needs of child care providers and expands the availability of high quality child care in our country. It provides funding to states for existing child care programs, invests in child care infrastructure, and fills in gaps in child care for essential workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill also makes the Child and Dependent Care tax credit fully refundable and creates new tax credits for employees and employers to access child care. prgtoken Toget
WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 2020
Nanette Diaz Barragán (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2020-7-29

I thank Chairman DeFazio for working in a bipartisan manner, and subcommittee Chairwoman Napolitano, to make sure this bill got through on a bipartisan basis. prgtoken , I am proud that two policy changes that I led the fight for have been included in this legislation. Flooding disproportionately impacts low-economic communities and people of color. prgtoken , 18 months ago, a severe storm in my district flooded the streets of Compton and shut down parts of the 710 freeway. Many communities lack the money to pay for studies to plan and develop projects that can reduce damage from flooding and storms. As part of a new program funded by this bill, the Federal Government will now cover 100 percent of the cost of these studies for a select number of disadvantaged communities. prgtoken This bill also makes it less costly for communities to restore nature in ways that will reduce the risk of flooding and help provide cleaner air and water. prgtoken For example, it will be easier to restore areas where water covers the soil, known as wetlands, such as the Dominguez Gap Wetlands along the Los Angeles River. Or we can more easily afford planting street trees and trees in local parks to absorb flood water, cool the community, and clean the air. prgtoken In short, this bill will make our communities stronger, built to last, and better prepared for the future. prgtoken , I urge a ``yes'' vote on the Water Resources Development Act of 2020.
CHILD CARE FOR ECONOMIC RECOVERY ACT
Steny H. Hoyer (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2020-7-29

. Madam , the Bible tells us: ``Raise up a child in the way they should go, and they will not depart from it.'' prgtoken As a parent, I have sometimes, if not always, reflected that that seems to be the case. But it surely is the case that we need to provide our families and our children with safe and positive places so that we can raise them up in the way they should go. prgtoken Madam , I rise in strong support of the bills on the floor today to protect childcare workers from losing their jobs and to help more families afford the cost of childcare. They build on provisions that we had in the HEROES Act. prgtoken First, the Child Care Is Essential Act would create a $50 billion childcare stabilization fund to keep childcare providers from going out of business. prgtoken I want to thank Chairwoman DeLauro of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, as well as Chairman Bobby Scott of the Education and Labor Committee. prgtoken Secondly, the Child Care for Economic Recovery Act takes a long-term approach by improving infrastructure and designating childcare providers as essential and providing tax credits to help more families qualify for and afford safe and accessible childcare. prgtoken I want to thank Chairwoman Lowey of the Appropriations Committee and my dear friend Chairman Neal, chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, for sponsoring this legislation. prgtoken As noted yesterday, in an editorial by The Washington Post: ``The childcare industry is collapsing under pandemic-inflicted financial pressure.'' They went on to say: ``Without swift action from Congress, childcare centers are at risk of permanent closures that could severely undermine the country's economic recovery.'' prgtoken Madam , I am the father of three daughters and a granddaughter who has four children, my four great-grandchildren. She is fortunate that she is able to stay home with those children. Three of them are in school. prgtoken I have two other daughters who are now older, and their children are older. But when they had children at a young age, childcare was critical and very difficult to obtain and very expensive. Dad and mom helped out. But there are so many millions who don't have a dad or mom or a grandfather or grandmother to help out. And when we don't help them, the cost is to everybody. prgtoken Governor Agnew was elected Governor the same year I was elected in the State of Maryland. I remember a line from his inaugural address: ``The cost of failure far exceeds the price of progress.'' Failure to bring up these children in the way they should go and have them in safe childcare settings will result in a cost far higher than providing that service. prgtoken If the Congress fails to take actions like those, like the House is taking today, we risk our economic recovery by forcing parents to drop out of the workforce or lose work hours due to the demands of dependent care. It would plac
CHILDCARE
Sheila Jackson Lee (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2020-7-29

I rise for the thousands and millions of childcare workers--essential workers--and their families and the children in support of legislation that provides $50 billion to reaffirm childcare essential workers and, as well, to provide relief to desperate parents. prgtoken COVID-19 has taken an enormous toll on our community. It has taken a toll because people have not worn masks, there have not been stay-at- home orders, and Houston and County are suffering. This legislation will be a lifeline. prgtoken In addition, I fight for and advocate for the moneys for our States and local communities. We cannot suffer a bill. We must have $600 for our unemployment extension or addition, and, as well, it is imperative that we have testing money. The way you stop COVID-19 is testing, testing, testing, social distancing, wearing a mask, and giving authority to local jurisdictions to be able to issue stay-at- home orders. prgtoken This is a pandemic and a crisis. When is the Nation going to stand up to an administration that refuses to understand that? prgtoken We in the Congress, this majority in the United States House of Representatives, will fight against eliminating $600, not getting the money for our States and local governments, and not getting testing money.
WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 2020
Conor Lamb (Democrat, PA) \u2014 2020-7-29

others before me have said why it matters that we have working locks and dams. It has always mattered. prgtoken The United States has more miles of navigable rivers, lakes, and canals than anywhere else in the world. It made us who we are as a nation. We could move iron ore to make steel faster, cheaper, and easier than all of our competitors because of our water, but especially because of our locks and dams that control the water. So we need to fix them, and this bill will help. prgtoken I hope that America will take note of something else here today, which is that this Congress still works. It might not be as well as people would want every single day, but this is a major bill. This is a major infrastructure bill, and this is a major infrastructure bill that has been bipartisan from the very beginning and, hopefully, will end bipartisan when our friends in the Senate work with us to get this done. prgtoken I want to give a special thanks to my friend and colleague from Texas (Mr. Babin). Together, we led a big group of Members from both parties in support of a better way to fund these locks and dams. prgtoken I especially want to thank Chairman DeFazio and Ranking Member Graves, who agreed. Now we have a better chance to rebuild the locks and dams and to deliver on the promise we made to the American people.
Coronavirus (Executive Session)
Richard J. Durbin (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2020-7-29

to date, America has lost nearly 150,000 people who have died with diseases related to coronavirus. We are quickly approaching 5 million cases of infections in the United States of America. prgtoken Consider this for a moment. The United States has 5 percent of the world's population. Yet we have almost 25 percent of all the COVID infections in the world. How did we reach this point that we have such a rampant rate of infection in what is considered one of the most developed nations on Earth? prgtoken Part of the problem is the President, who peddles worthless medical advice, and part of the problem is that the Senate has been unwilling to face the economic hardships which have been created by this pandemic on our economy. prgtoken It was 10\1/2\ weeks ago that the House of Representatives, under ic control of Pelosi, passed the Heroes Act. That was 10\1/2\ weeks ago. They knew this day was coming--when the unemployment benefits that we put in the original legislation would expire, as they will this week, and the help for those who are renting to meet their obligations would expire, as it did last week. So 10\1/2\ weeks ago, Pelosi put on the table her proposal to deal with America after these things occurred. prgtoken Today, on the floor of the Senate, Senator McConnell, the leader, called her efforts ``a looney ideological fantasy''--``a looney ideological fantasy.'' The obvious question to Senator McConnell, who is the leader of the majority here in the U.S. Senate, is, Where have you been for the last 10\1/2\ weeks? Where is the alternative, the substitute? Why have we not seen that come forward and a real negotiation take place between the House and the Senate? prgtoken For the longest time, Senator McConnell told us that he just did not feel ``a sense of urgency'' to take up this matter. He did not feel a sense of urgency. Well, history was made in the Senate Chamber this last Monday, because Senator McConnell came to the floor and used the word ``urgent.'' Finally, urgency is stirring in his loins, and he announced this week a alternative--but not quite. What he announced was a series of bills to be introduced by the side--a series of bills. We are just days away from the situation where these issues are expiring, such as unemployment assistance, and yet, in this circumstance, we are dealing with the problem where we do not have alternatives from the side. Well, we have some. One was addressed this morning, when it came to unemployment assistance. prgtoken Understand what happened last March 26 when we passed the CARES Act. This bill passed 96 to nothing in the Senate Chamber--unanimous, bipartisan. But when we sat down to establish the amount of money to be prgtoken given to unemployed workers in America, we ran into a problem--one we didn't anticipate. The Secretary of Labor in the administra
REFLECTIONS OF MEMBERS OF THE WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE WITH RESPECT TO CONGRESSMAN JOHN LEWIS
Dwight Evans (Democrat, PA) \u2014 2020-7-29

. Madam , I thank the gentleman for yielding. prgtoken I rise to honor truly a great American, a real-life hero, who I was fortunate enough to have as a colleague for 4 years, including the 2 years serving together on the Ways and Means Committee. Congressman John Lewis has been an inspiration to me from a very young age. prgtoken I remember the first time I saw him on the Walter Cronkite evening news. He was walking across the Pettus Bridge in Selma. I felt very strongly about him and what he was doing. Madam , I was 10 years old, and I found him to be inspiring. He was purposeful. He was driven to make a difference. He was driven for ``good trouble.'' prgtoken As a result of his action and because of the action of another gentleman who was a part of the Big Six, Whitney Young, I worked at the Urban League. I recall being elected to the Pennsylvania State House at 26 years of age, and it was John Lewis that inspired me, though I had never been to Alabama, but I had seen him on television. I remember that impression that he left upon me, because--although I had heard all the words I have heard today--I had never seen such determination. prgtoken So you can imagine growing up in the city of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, him from Selma, Alabama, and the influence he was having. prgtoken I also honored him by welcoming Congressman Lewis to the southeast part of Pennsylvania for a gun reform ceasefire. I recall introducing him. I recall all of that. prgtoken But now, Madam , we must carry on his work of civil rights, equal opportunity. Most of all, we must rededicate ourselves to protecting the right to vote and making use of hard-won rights, a right for which John Lewis and many others sacrificed for all of us. prgtoken So I say to you, Madam and , he should rest in peace and power.
CHILD CARE IS ESSENTIAL ACT
Lucy McBath (Democrat, GA) \u2014 2020-7-29

the childcare industry has suffered tremendous losses since the start of this pandemic. Centers are facing increased operating costs and are working overtime to provide adequate PPE and sanitation materials to keep our children safe. prgtoken Countless American families rely on the childcare industry, and we must provide them with the materials and equipment that they need to give our children the best possible care. To help small businesses grow, support hardworking Georgians, and uplift our economy, parents must have a safe place to send their children. prgtoken Truly, the childcare industry helps give our kids the foundation for their future, and it needs our help. prgtoken Hardworking families deserve our support, and the Child Care Is Essential Act would give providers the funding and resources they need to nurture the next generation. prgtoken I thank Representative DeLauro for her leadership and Chairman Scott for his leadership.
TRIBUTE TO LIEUTENANT COLONEL JOSEPH D. WALL
Jeanne Shaheen (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2020-7-29

I rise today to honor a great American and an exceptional member of the U.S. Air Force. prgtoken Lt. Col. Joseph ``Joe'' Wall has distinguished himself through his professional character and dedication by serving this Nation in uniform. A leader and expert communicator, he has provided distinguished service to our country while assigned to the Air Force Senate Liaison Office. He is an outstanding leader and has been the perfect airman to represent the Air Force on Capitol Hill. Joe is a command pilot with more than 3,000 hours in the T-37B, T-1A, and KC-10A aircraft with over 100 combat and combat support missions, supporting operations over Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, and the Horn of Africa. prgtoken Throughout his career, Joe has demonstrated his exceptional abilities; he was a ROTC distinguished graduate at the University of Miami, graduate of the Air Mobility Command Phoenix Mobility program, and he is an Olmsted Scholar fluent in German. Prior to his current assignment, Joe had the privilege of leading airmen as a squadron commander for the 79th Air Refueling Squadron at Travis Air Force Base. As a legislative liaison in the Air Force Senate Liaison Office from June 2018 to July 2020, Lieutenant Colonel Wall performed his duties well and without reservation. His strategic thinking and foresight helped to strengthen and improve our national security. Joe accomplished this utilizing his in-depth Air Force knowledge with numerous engagements between Congress and the Department of the Air Force. prgtoken During this assignment, Joe conducted congressional engagements to provide Members of Congress and staff insights into the development of the ``Air Force We Need'' plan required to support the National Defense Strategy. He also actively engaged Members of Congress regarding the fielding and production of the KC-46A Pegasus Tanker. Last year, Joe led the effort to make sure that the New Hampshire Congressional Delegation was front and center to receive the first KC-46A at Pease Air National Guard Base. prgtoken Joe organized dozens of direct engagements between senior leaders at the Department of the Air Force and Members of Congress in order to convey important information on behalf of the Air Force. All of these conversations and engagements helped stakeholders understand the defense equities and the impact on national security. Due to his direct involvement, Members of Congress were able to make informed decisions and ensure the Department of the Air Force was properly resourced. prgtoken After serving in this important role for the past 2 years, Lieutenant Colonel Wall will move to his next assignment, the Dwight D. Eisenhower School at the National Defense University. Joe, his wife Trysta, and their son Tavin have sacrificed much as a family in service to our Nation. I am thankful for Joe's service and his work with my office and the Senate over the past 2 years on issues important to the S
SUPPORT FOR S. 2163, THE COMMISSION ON THE SOCIAL STATUS OF BLACK MEN AND BOYS ACT
Haley M. Stevens (Democrat, MI) \u2014 2020-7-29

I rise in strong support of this important legislation. As our country faces a public health and economic crisis, we are in desperate need of the talents of black men and boys to address these unprecedented challenges. prgtoken Our country's history of institutional racism has caused tremendous inequality. This legislation confronts the educational and economic disparities experienced by black men and boys for far too long. prgtoken This nation will rise when all of us are able to rise together. prgtoken I thank my friends, Congresswomen Frederica Wilson and Lucy McBath, for their inspiring leadership.
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTION
Tim Kaine (Democrat, VA) \u2014 2020-7-29

Lorna Breen was a talented and dynamic physician who served as the medical director of the emergency department at New York-Presbyterian Allen Hospital. Lorna was from Charlottesville, VA, and very devoted to her family there. She attended Cornell University and then the Medical College of Virginia. She was deeply religious, an avid skier, a volunteer with senior citizens, a salsa dancer, and a musician. prgtoken Mostly, Lorna Breen was a beloved, compassionate, and demanding doctor. A colleague said of her: ``She had something that was a little bit different and that was this optimism that her persistent effort will save lives.'' prgtoken Dr. Breen suffered from something very common among health professionals--the deep stress of dealing with patients day in and day out--helping them, worrying about them, celebrating with them, praying for them, and mourning for them. prgtoken Healthcare professionals routinely experience high levels of stress. As many as 45 to 55 percent of this critical workforce suffers from burnout. Physicians have the highest rate of death by suicide of any profession in this country, with a suicide rate more than twice that of the general population. That was the case before COVID-19. prgtoken In November 2019, Dr. Breen and three colleagues published a short article in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine titled: ``Clinician burnout and its association with team-based care in the Emergency Department.'' The article that she coauthored begins this way: Recent work has noted the alarming prevalence of clinician burnout among providers, particularly among acute care physicians. Burnout is characterized by emotional exhaustion, physical fatigue, and cognitive weariness, which may lead to feelings of depersonalization and reduced accomplishment. prgtoken The article went on to describe how staffing models--in this case, the use of fixed working teams--could mitigate the effects of stress on staff and also improve patient outcomes. Within just a few months of the publication of this article, healthcare professionals like Dr. Breen, already dealing with high stress levels, faced a new foe: coronavirus. prgtoken Dr. Breen's hospital was overrun by the virus in March and April, as were others in New York, as are others in this country. By late March, the Allen, a small community hospital serving a low-income population in Northern Manhattan, was blitzed with an emergency department clogged with nearly three times its normal number of patients. Dr. Breen shared the sense of anxiety now understood by the whole country: ``People I work with are so confused by all the mixed messages and constantly changing instructions.'' And then Dr. Breen got the virus herself, coming down with fever and exhaustion on March 18 and quarantining in her New York City apartment as she tried to recover. While she was trying to recover, she was texting her colleagues