mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2019
Jack Reed (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2018-8-22

I rise today to support the Senator from Florida, my dear friend Senator Bill Nelson, and to thank him for his leadership in working on a bipartisan basis to enact the Military Lending Act in 2006, which caps the annual interest rate for an extension of consumer credit to a servicemember or his or her dependents at 36 percent. prgtoken Because of his efforts, servicemembers and their families have strong consumer protections that defend them against unscrupulous lenders who unpatriotically, in my view, prey upon these young men and women while they are selflessly and valiantly serving this Nation. prgtoken It has been my honor to work with the Senator from Florida in enacting, protecting, and strengthening the Military Lending Act since 2006. prgtoken I must say that my experience is not just as a legislator. I had the privilege of commanding a paratrooper company in the 82nd Airborne Division, and before that I was the executive officer. I spent many, many hours with young soldiers who had been taken advantage of by--not all businessmen, but, in fact, very few--unscrupulous operators who would prey on them, who would leave them in a financial condition that ruined their careers and their lives. Because of Senator Nelson's efforts in passing the Military Lending Act, we took some steps to protect these young men and women who are protecting us, and we owe the Senator a great deal of regard and respect for what he has done because he, too, has recognized the demands of service to our Nation by men and women in uniform. prgtoken For generations, Americans have set aside partisanship and have made every effort to provide servicemembers and their families with all the resources and protections they deserve. Indeed, it should not matter to servicemembers whether the Commander in Chief is a , , or Independent, and there should never be a question whether an administration will make every effort to support men and women in uniform. prgtoken Unfortunately, this administration is forcing servicemembers to question whether the administration has their backs in light of recent reports that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, under OMB Director Mulvaney's leadership, will no longer make every effort to protect servicemembers and their families under the Military Lending Act due to their claim of a purported lack of authority. prgtoken Let me be clear. The CFPB has all the authority it needs, and it should not be abandoning its duty to protect our servicemembers and their families and ensure that they continue to receive all their MLA protections. prgtoken We should not forget that the CFPB's routine examination of at least one payday lender already uncovered Military Lending Act violations, where a payday lender extended loans at rates higher than 36 percent to more than 300 Active-Duty servicemembers or their dependents. Let me also put this in perspective. The requirements of th
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2019
Bill Nelson (Democrat, FL) \u2014 2018-8-22

you can't say it any better than how the Senator from Rhode Island has said it. He is a West Point graduate, was a company commander, was the executive officer of a brigade--he just told us, the 82nd Airborne. prgtoken He has seen what has happened to these young troops. They get their pay, they go outside the gates, there are folks who want to give loans to them, and then they run up rates as much as 100 percent and 150 percent. That is why we passed the Military Lending Act back in 2006, to cap those rates at 36 percent. That is high enough, but it is a lot less than the 150-percent rates given to these poor, unsuspecting troops who are being taken advantage of. prgtoken As a former 82nd Airborne member, the Senator from Rhode Island has just shared his personal experience of what would happen. Troops would not show up for muster because suddenly their car had been repossessed or they had people hounding them. What has happened over the years since 2006, when we passed the bill, is, in fact, they found ways to get around it. Now commanders are receiving harassment calls. They found a way to get around the 36 percent. prgtoken What we want to do is lower it down to 24 percent. If someone cannot do well in business when getting a return of 24 percent on what they are loaning out, then they shouldn't be in business, and especially they shouldn't be in business to take advantage of our U.S. military troops. prgtoken That is why I have introduced the Military Lending Improvement Act of 2018. That is why it goes into more specifics. It not only lowers the interest rate but ensures that auto loans are covered by the Military Lending Act. Let's remove any ambiguity there--to prohibit creditors from calling servicemembers' commanding officers or improperly threatening action under the Uniform Code of Military Justice to collect a debt from a U.S. military servicemember. It is commonsense. It will show members of our military that the law will protect them and will go after these shady lenders. prgtoken I urge all of our colleagues to support it. Obviously, this doesn't have anything to do with partisanship. This is supporting the troops. I urge our fellow Members of the Senate to work with Senator Reed and me to get the CFPB leadership off the dime to protect our bravest from financial scams. It is just mind-boggling that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that is set up for the purpose of protecting consumers would now turn a blind eye to protecting some of the most vulnerable who almost everybody in America would say we want to protect. That is because there are the unscrupulous lenders. prgtoken We saw a lot of this in the early years of the wars of Afghanistan and Iraq. When a servicemember was overseas in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, they were being scammed by the payday, title loan, and other kinds of lenders, and they were being charged those exorbitant rates.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2018-8-23

I am glad to join my friend in this effort prgtoken because this fits into a lot of things we are trying to accomplish that Congress has done for decades--trying to give consumers information. prgtoken Remember maybe 40 years ago--I don't think it is 50 years ago--that Congress passed legislation that you had to have a window sticker on cars of the cost of the cars so that consumers wouldn't be bantering back and forth between dealers, not knowing what they were dealing with. You can't buy gas today without going to the filling station with a big sign knowing what it costs. prgtoken Even the pharmaceutical companies themselves want to educate consumers with these ads. I have always supported the advertising of these pharmaceutical drugs. They want to educate you not only about the value of their drugs but down to the bottom, and then half the ad usually tells you, if you take this drug, what the side effects are going to be, maybe implying that they are even life-threatening or dangerous. That is a very important thing to educate the public about. prgtoken So all we are trying to do here is to have the consumer get the additional information they need if they want to consider that drug, because everybody ought to want to consider the price, just like you consider the price of a car. prgtoken I try to buy gas at the cheapest filling station I can because it is just common sense, right? So that is what Senator Durbin is pointing out. This is a Midwestern commonsense approach to educating the consumers. They want you to buy their product, and then they kind of have some question about it: Could you really afford this? A lot of these ads even indicate to the consumer: Well, maybe if you check with the company or check with somebody, you will even get some help buying the drug. prgtoken So the pharmaceutical companies are already interested in consumer education. We just want them to take it one step further. Part of it is because of the high cost of prescription drugs. We have an opportunity now to do what we all talk about doing--doing something about the cost of pharmaceutical drugs. This is just a very small step in that direction. It directs Health and Human Services to require drug companies to include the list price of these drugs in their TV ads. prgtoken The drug companies want you to know that there is a drug out there to help you. They want you to know the benefits of the drugs. So why don't they also want you to know about the price of the drug? prgtoken By not having that information out there, it is simply not a transparent way of doing business. In every other way you want to be transparent. We are just asking you to take one little small step and tell people what it is going to cost--like the price of gasoline, like the price of cars, or if you seem to be worried a little bit about the high cost of the drug, maybe some people can't afford it and you might be criticized for that. You ca
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Rand Paul (Republican, KY) \u2014 2018-8-23

Planned Parenthood ends the lives of 320,000 babies each year. That is about 900 babies every day. Planned Parenthood receives over $400 million of taxpayer money. The government, with a wink and a nod, tells us that Planned Parenthood doesn't spend the money on abortions, but everybody knows that the taxpayer is really cross-subsidizing Planned Parenthood's abortion mills. prgtoken My amendment would end the funding to Planned Parenthood. My amendment is already included in the House's version. Yet my amendment is now being blocked by s. Why would s block a vote on defunding Planned Parenthood? It may surprise some because so many s go home and say they are against Planned Parenthood, but this vote could happen right now--right now, today--if s don't object. prgtoken Everybody knows that the love abortion and Planned Parenthood more than life itself. But s? Many voters think s actually care about the unborn. Many voters think s are really opposed to government-funded abortions. But the dirty little secret is that leadership is blocking my amendment to defund Planned Parenthood. That is right. The leadership has filled the amendment tree to block my ``defund Planned Parenthood'' amendment. But how can that be? Surely, the leadership doesn't favor abortion funding, so the answer is a curious one. prgtoken The truth is that the leadership favors bloated government spending more than it cares about Planned Parenthood. This appropriations bill before us exceeds the spending caps by nearly $100 billion. Big-spending s fear that blocking funding for Planned Parenthood would derail their plans to greatly expand the welfare-warfare state. So be it. The public has long known that the are the abortion party. Now the public will know that many s just give lipservice to pro-life issues and are really more concerned with bloated government spending than with saving lives. prgtoken Of the 320,000 babies that Planned Parenthood will abort this year, about 6,400 of these babies would be geniuses. They would develop into geniuses if prgtoken they would be allowed to live. Perhaps one of these potential geniuses would discover a cure for cancer or Lou Gehrig's disease. Of the 320,000 babies aborted by Planned Parenthood every year, about 1,000 would become doctors, 1,500 would become engineers, 1,200 would become lawyers, 3,400 would become teachers, and 400 would become pastors. Yet all of that potential is lost each year as a consequence of Planned Parenthood. prgtoken What I would say to my colleagues is to please explain to voters at home why they allow Planned Parenthood to continue receiving taxpayer funds; to explain to those at home why they purposely filled the amendment tree in order to block an amendment to defund Planned Parenthood; to
THE HIGH SCHOOL CODES ACT
Bill Cassidy (Republican, LA) \u2014 2018-8-23

I, too, want to emphasize the importance of introducing young students to computer science and coding courses as part of their education. and friend, Senator Cantwell, for working with me on this issue. The answer is yes. Our legislation, the High School CODES Act, will incentivize states to allow coding and computer science classes to satisfy an advanced math, science, or foreign language graduation credit. prgtoken Now, this is not to replace the basic math, science, and foreign language classes all students need, but to allow students who do not need to take Calculus II or III to instead take a computer science or coding course. The CODES Act does not mandate curriculum on States; it gives them the flexibility to provide students with the type of education that best fits their needs. It gives students more opportunity to succeed in our rapidly changing economy. prgtoken According to code.org, computing occupations are the No. 1 source of all new wages in America and make up over half of all projected new jobs in STEM fields; yet, computer science is marginalized throughout our education system, with fewer than half of U.S. schools offering any computer science course, and only 8 percent of STEM graduates studying it. prgtoken In my home State of Louisiana, there are currently more than 2,300 open computing jobs. The average salary for a computing occupation in Louisiana is approximately $67,600, about $26,000 higher than the average salary in my State. prgtoken I applaud the State legislature for creating the LaSTEM Advisory Council to oversee the creation and delivery of STEM programs in Louisiana and for the LA Board of Elementary and Secondary Education for approving new STEM pathways for students allowing new, industry- based courses to count towards math and sciences for graduation. prgtoken In addition to thanking Senator Cantwell, I want to thank education committee Chairman Alexander for his support for including provisions in the reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act that effectively captures the original intent of our bipartisan bill. We are also pleased the chairman agreed to report language and a letter to Education Secretary DeVos expressing the intent of the provisions. Lastly, I am pleased that Senator Cantwell and my amendment is included in the minibus appropriations bill highlighting the importance of funding for coding courses in K-12 education. prgtoken These are positive steps that will give more students the opportunity to take computer science and coding classes.
NOMINATION OF BRETT KAVANAUGH
Orrin G. Hatch (Republican, UT) \u2014 2018-8-23

. Now I would like to pivot to what would ordinarily be a subject unrelated to sports--the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to be an Associate Justice on the U.S. Supreme Court--but this is no ordinary nomination. Not only is Judge Kavanaugh an avid sports fan, he also moonlighted as a sports reporter for the Yale Daily News. prgtoken For looking to evaluate Judge Kavanaugh on the basis of documents other than his judicial record, his writings about college sports are apparently a gold mine. Take, for example, Kavanaugh's account of a midseason game between Yale and Cornell: ``In basketball, as in few other team sports, it is possible for one person to completely dominate a game.'' prgtoken Prominent legal scholar Laurence Tribe, a Harvard law professor and adviser to --a friend of mine, actually--strained to make a connection between this casual observation and Judge Kavanaugh's judicial philosophy. He noted: ``Kavanaugh's seeming fascination with single-player domination might be a muscular view of executive power.'' I had a good laugh at this. The idea that Judge Kavanaugh's observations about basketball somehow reveal his views about Executive power is beyond absurd. prgtoken What is next? What other hidden insights into the nominee's character can we glean from the most obscure sources? Should we do a deep dive on Judge Kavanaugh's zodiac sign to see what it might say about his judicial temperament? He is an Aquarius, by the way, and Mars is in retrograde. So we all know what that means: Judge Kavanaugh is going to destroy America. He is going to burn down the Capitol, coronate himself King, and make confetti of the Constitution. The stars are literally aligned for this man to usher in Armageddon. The real question is, How am I the only one seeing this? Why hasn't The New Yorker written a think piece about it already? prgtoken It should go without saying that if you really want to understand Judge Kavanaugh's view on the constitutional separation of powers, you won't find it by reading sports articles from a college newspaper, and you won't find it by reading his wife's work emails; you will find it by reading Judge Kavanaugh's actual opinions as a Federal judge. Of course, know this, but like a kid procrastinating his homework--playing video games and microwaving Bagel Bites--they are looking for any distraction at all to avoid actually analyzing Judge Kavanaugh's judicial record. That is because know what they will find when they do: a nominee who is indisputably qualified for the Supreme Court. prgtoken When my friends on the other side of the aisle decide they are done procrastinating and actually want to examine his judicial record on separation of powers issues, I would point them to Judge Kavanaugh's opinions in three cases I highlighted here on the Senate floor earlier this month: Free Enterprise Fund v. Public Company Oversight Board, Loving v. Intern
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Richard Burr (Republican, NC) \u2014 2018-8-23

I rise today to talk about the Land and Water Conservation Fund. I talked a lot yesterday about the benefits of the Land and Water Conservation Fund and how it is one of the most popular and successful bipartisan programs that exist for conservation. prgtoken I shared with my colleagues and with those who listened a newsletter from the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation that stated some of the great things they are doing with private sector dollars. They are taking what the Land and Water Conservation Fund provides--which is zero in taxpayer dollars but royalties off of exploration--and they are giving that to the States to protect treasures we have. prgtoken In those States and localities, they use that Federal seed money to leverage private sector dollars to produce inholdings, edge-holdings, and outparcels, sometimes traded so that we protect the land that is most valuable to us and that leverages volunteers and private dollars. It is on the order of 10 to 1 private dollars to Federal dollars. prgtoken Today, I want to give you a great example how LWCF money was used for acquisition of land that has made it safer for outdoor enthusiasts and also easier for local governments in my State of North Carolina. prgtoken We have a falls called the Catawba Falls. It is a popular attraction in western North Carolina, but the trail to get to the falls is over private land; therefore, those who venture there for recreational benefits and the beauty of Catawba Falls find a circuitous route to get there, and in many cases, we have individuals who have gotten injured. This becomes very costly to local emergency services because when you extract somebody from an inholding that you have no public access to, you have to airlift those individuals. prgtoken The Foothills Conservancy recognized the need, and this wonderful local land trust was able to move quickly when the landowner became willing to sell for public access. prgtoken I think it is an interesting fact that this family who sold to Foothills was the first family in the United States to sell land to the U.S. Forest Service in 1911 under the Weeks Act. prgtoken The Forest Service was eventually able to acquire the land through the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Now there is a road and a parking lot for visitors. The cost of emergency services to get to the falls to respond to accidents has been dramatically reduced. Visiting the attraction is now safer for hikers. Visitor experiences were improved with parking and restrooms. A beautiful trail that belongs to the public was made, and local government's burden was eased. prgtoken They average one medical situation a month. Since the Presiding Officer is a physician by practice, I know he understands the cost that is incurred with an emergency of that magnitude. Because of this access, they have saved one hour per extraction, and McDowell County Emergency Management is saving $1 million annually because they don
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Susan M. Collins (Republican, ME) \u2014 2018-8-23

what a pleasure it is to be here on the Senate floor with such determined advocates on behalf of the families all across our Nation who are dealing with this devastating disease of Alzheimer's. prgtoken I spoke earlier in the week about the many terrific provisions in this bill on the Defense appropriations side and on the Labor, Health, and Human Services part of the appropriations package, but I am delighted to be here today to shine a spotlight on the additional funding for Alzheimer's disease. prgtoken As a member of the Appropriations Committee, it has been such a pleasure to work with my colleagues, including Senator Moran, Senator Capito, and our leader, Chairman Blunt, on this shared priority year after year. I particularly want to recognize the extraordinary leadership of Chairman Blunt in making sure that adequate funding is provided for this devastating disease. prgtoken Alzheimer's is the sixth leading cause of death in the Nation, and it is increasing at unprecedented rates. Like many families, mine too has known the pain of its devastating consequences. Today, an estimated 5.7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's. prgtoken In addition to the human suffering it causes, Alzheimer's is our most costly disease at $277 billion a year, with Medicare and Medicaid covering $186 billion. Without a change in the current trajectory, the number of Americans with Alzheimer's is expected to triple to as many as 14 million by 2050, costing more than $1.1 trillion per year and bankrupting the Medicaid system. prgtoken Fortunately, Congress has taken significant actions and in this bill recognizes the urgent need to continue our investment full speed ahead. prgtoken Since the 2011 signing of the National Alzheimer's Project Act, known as NAPA, which I coauthored with former Senator Evan Bayh, we have increased funding for Alzheimer's by $1.36 billion. Seven years ago, NIH received only $440 million for this research, compared to more than $5 billion for another very serious disease--cancer. Since that time, we have steadily boosted Federal research dollars for Alzheimer's--to $936 million in 2016, $1.4 billion in 2017, and $1.8 billion last year--but this bill before us achieves a milestone because by adding another $425 million for this research, the total funding for the first time will exceed the $2 billion mark. This is the largest increase in history, and it allows us to reach the level that experts have advised us is necessary to find a means of prevention, effective treatments, or ultimately a cure by the year 2025. prgtoken This has been a bipartisan commitment. Alzheimer's doesn't care whether you are a , a , an Independent, or a Green. It does not discriminate. This robust commitment promises returns such as we have seen for cancer, diabetes, and other chronic illnesses. Fueled by Federal support, researchers are beginning to understand more clearly the complex b