mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
NDAA CONFERENCE REPORT PASSAGE
Rick W. Allen (Republican, GA) \u2014 2017-11-14

I rise today to express my support for the conference report on the National Defense Authorization Act, which passed the House of Representatives today. prgtoken In a great bipartisan moment, the NDAA received overwhelming support to authorize almost $700 billion in defense spending and set priorities for our military, including the largest pay raise for our troops in 8 years. The conference report kept funding important to Georgia's 12th District, included in the earlier versions of the FY18 NDAA, such as $8 billion in funding for cyber operations and over $85 million in new military construction to prepare for our cyber warriors at Fort Gordon, like new family housing and a new gate. prgtoken Ensuring that our soldiers, sailors, and airmen are equipped with the facilities and resources they need to fight the battles of today and tomorrow is crucial to our Nation's safety and security. prgtoken Days after celebrating one of the most important days of the year honoring our veterans, I am happy to say that, with the passage of H.R. 2810, we have provided for the common defense, supported our servicemembers, and worked to close the critical readiness gap.
CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2810, NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018
Trent Kelly (Republican, MS) \u2014 2017-11-14

I thank Chairman Thornberry for his continued leadership in rebuilding and reforming the Department of Defense. prgtoken Today I rise in strong support of H.R. 2810, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018. prgtoken As a 32-year veteran of the Mississippi Army National Guard and two Iraq deployments, I know the national security challenges facing our country firsthand. prgtoken This year's NDAA makes important strides toward achieving equipment and benefits parity for our armed services' Reserve component. The enemies of this country do not distinguish between the Active component and Reserve component of our military, and neither should we. prgtoken I am happy to report that this year's NDAA increases the size of both our Active component and our Reserve component. It also increases benefits parity to our Reserve component soldiers by authorizing those deployed on title X orders to receive preactivation and postactivation TRICARE coverage when on 12304a and 12304b orders. Additionally, the FY18 NDAA will allow for procurement of much-needed equipment for our Reserve component. prgtoken Finally, I would like to thank my subcommittee chairmen--Mr. Coffman, Mr. Wilson, and Mr. Turner--for their leadership and hard work through this process. prgtoken , I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation.
CONGRATULATIONS TO RICHARD PETERS
Billy Long (Republican, MO) \u2014 2017-11-14

I rise today to congratulate Mr. Richard Peters on his successful career in the U.S. Navy. prgtoken Richard Peters selfless service to the U.S. Navy has led to him being awarded a number of awards, such as the China Service Medal, the Korean Service Medal and the National Defense Medal, among other awards. Due to his distinguished career, Richard Peters has also been authorized the Republic of Korea War Service Medal and the United Nations Service Medal. prgtoken I am honored to have a man like Richard Peters in my district. I can't thank him enough for his service and sacrifice for our country. prgtoken , on behalf of Missouri's 7th Congressional District, I ask my colleagues to congratulate Richard Peters on his distinguished Naval career. I wish him all of the best in his future endeavors.
CELEBRATING NATIONAL BIBLE WEEK
Mike Johnson (Republican, LA) \u2014 2017-11-14

I am grateful to my friend and colleague, Congressman Doug Lamborn, for organizing this Special Order series in recognition of the 76th anniversary of National Bible Week. prgtoken I am delighted to stand with these other Members today to share our perspectives on why the Bible is so important to us and to our country. As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, there is really no better time to present these reflections. prgtoken I wanted to share the preface to a historic text that I have in my collection. What I am holding here is a copy of the New Testament Bible study course that was approved by and published for the public schools of Dallas, Texas, by its board of education in September of 1946. The preface was written by Henry Van Dyke, and it is a wonderful summary of what the Bible means to us and to the world. prgtoken , let me read to you what it says here in the text: Born in the East and clothed in that form and imagery, the Bible walks the ways of the world with familiar feet and enters land after land to find its own everywhere. It has learned to speak in hundreds of languages to the hearts of men. It comes into the palace to tell the monarch that he is a servant of the Most High and into the cottage to assure the peasant that He is a son of God. Children listen to its stories with wonder and delight, and wise men ponder them as parables of life. It has a word of peace for the time of peril, a word of comfort for the time of calamity, a word of light for the hour of darkness. Its oracles are repeated in the assembly of the people, and its counsels whispered in the ear of the lonely. The wicked and the proud tremble at its warnings, but to the wounded and the penitent, it has a mother's voice. The wilderness and the solitary place have been made glad by it, and the fire on the hearth has lit the reading of its well-worn pages. It has woven itself into our dearest dreams so that love, friendship, sympathy, devotion, memory, and hope put on the beautiful garments of its treasured speech, breathing of frankincense and myrrh. No man is poor or desolate who has this treasure for his own. When the landscape darkens and the trembling pilgrim comes to the valley named of the shadow, he is not afraid to enter. He takes the rod and the staff of Scripture in his hand. He says to friend and comrade: Good-Bye; we shall meet again. And comforted by that support, he goes toward the lonely pass as one who walks through the darkness into light. prgtoken , I love those words. I also love the words that are inscribed above the , where it says in the marble: In God We Trust. prgtoken There is a reason for that. Our Founders understood that this is our foundation. George Washington, the father of our country, famously said in his Farewell Address: ``Of all the dispositions a
HONORING WORLD WAR II HEROES
Robert Pittenger (Republican, NC) \u2014 2017-11-14

on Saturday, I had the privilege of honoring six World War II heroes at VFW Post 2423 in Indian Trail, North Carolina. Each hero was awarded the French Legion of Honor Medal by the French consul. They were: prgtoken Charles Richardson, who flew 35 combat missions aboard a B-17 over France, the Netherlands, and Germany. prgtoken Andrew McMahon received the Purple Heart while fighting to liberate France. prgtoken William Rachui helped liberate Rome and southern France while earning five Bronze Service Stars. prgtoken James Crump landed at Omaha Beach on D-day and received two Bronze Stars and three Purple Hearts. prgtoken Aster Rider landed at Omaha Beach on D-day. As a rifleman on the front lines, he was one of only a handful of soldiers to survive. prgtoken Harold Granger landed at Utah Beach on D-day. He helped save lives by finding and disarming landmines. prgtoken , I ask all of my colleagues to join me in thanking these brave patriots for their service to the United States and the cause of liberty.
AUTHORITY FOR COMMITTEES TO MEET
John Cornyn (Republican, TX) \u2014 2017-11-14

I have one request for a committee to meet during today's session of the Senate. It has the approval of the Majority and Minority leaders. prgtoken Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committee is authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs prgtoken The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, November 14, 2017, to conduct hearing on the nomination of Kirsten M. Nielsen, to be Secretary of U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
CONGRATULATING DIRECTOR GLENN COSTIE
Michael R. Turner (Republican, OH) \u2014 2017-11-14

. Madam , today I rise to thank and honor an integral member of my community, Director Glenn Costie of the Dayton VA Medical Center, and congratulate him on his retirement. prgtoken Director Costie turned the Dayton VA into one of the top medical facilities for our veterans in the country. Director Costie's success as a director of the VA Medical Center in Dayton has gained him national recognition. He has been sent throughout the country to save multiple VA medical facilities plagued with issues, particularly including veteran patient backlogs. prgtoken Furthermore, Director Costie has worked tirelessly to integrate the Dayton VA into our community to serve our veterans in a way that it hadn't in several decades. Director Costie's time at the VA has been dedicated to bettering the lives of our veterans. prgtoken I was very honored to work with Director Costie on the issue of bringing creative housing options for Dayton's veterans, a place known as Lyons Place II. We also worked together on the successful campaign to bring the VA National Archives to Dayton. prgtoken Director Costie's leadership and expertise will be deeply missed at the Dayton VA. I wish to thank him, give him all the best, and look forward to what he will be doing in his leadership in the future in our community, and I thank him again for everything he has done for Dayton veterans.
CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2810, NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018
Mike Coffman (Republican, CO) \u2014 2017-11-14

I rise in strong support of H.R. 2810, the conference report for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018. prgtoken The conference report contains significant policy and funding initiatives that continue our commitment to our troops and their families, all while maintaining military readiness and addressing important military personnel issues. prgtoken The provisions contained in this bill provide our warfighters, retirees, and their families the necessary pay and benefits to sustain them in today's highly stressed force. prgtoken To that end, this bill establishes a fully funded by-law pay raise for all our servicemembers. After years of lower than by-law pay raise requests, it is critical that we continue to give our troops and their families the pay increases they have earned. prgtoken It increases the end-strengths of the Active National Guard and Reserve Forces, thereby increasing mission readiness while reducing the stress and strain on the force and their families. It permanently preserves special survivor indemnity allowance payments and closes the gap in the ``widows tax'' to surviving military spouses. prgtoken It also continues to improve sexual assault prevention and response by adding a new provision to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, specifically prohibiting nonconsensual sharing of intimate images; expanding Special Victims' Counsel training; and expanding the annual Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Report. prgtoken Finally, spouses of servicemembers are challenged by varying State licensure and certification requirements when forced to move to a new State by military orders. Rather than imposing a single Federal standard on the States, we provide a $500 reimbursement to defray these costs. We ask States to work with the Secretary of Defense to develop common standards where possible. prgtoken In conclusion, I want to thank the ranking member, Ms. Speier, and her staff for their contributions to this report. prgtoken Of course, we were joined by an active, informed, and dedicated group of subcommittee members. Their recommendations and priorities are clearly reflected in the conference report for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018. prgtoken , I strongly urge my colleagues to support the passage of this conference report.
PAYING TRIBUTE TO AMINA OKUYEVA
Marcy Kaptur (Democrat, OH) \u2014 2017-11-14

. Madam , it is hard for people of goodwill to imagine the depth of depravity that Russia's malevolent dictators will stoop to to serve the narrow, pecuniary, and political interests of the few at the price of the many. prgtoken Dr. Timothy Snyder, in his extraordinary book, ``Bloodlands,'' recounts the intergenerational human tragedy wrought by Russian dictators, citing the 14 million civilians, women, children, and families, who were murdered at Russia's hand in eastern and central Europe. prgtoken Vladimir Putin is the latest dictator in a long line of them, and, sadly, this dark history from Stalin to Putin continues today. It is instructive that Putin, himself, has written that his grandfather was a trusted cook for Joseph Stalin, working inside the belly of the beast of tyranny. prgtoken That is the cocoon from which Russia's Putin has emerged. And now add to those millions of deaths over 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed by Russia, with thousands upon tens of thousands more wounded and over 2 million people displaced inside Ukraine, a country that simply wants to be free. prgtoken As co-chair of the bipartisan House Congressional Ukrainian Caucus, I can attest our Members are committed to holding Russia accountable for tyrannical and malevolent activity in Ukraine, and even here in the United States. prgtoken Madam , I rise in pursuit of justice for Amina Okuyeva and in solidarity with other freedom fighters in Ukraine. Let her bravery in life serve as an inspiration to us all, and let the international community stand with Ukraine, shoulder to shoulder, as we continue to fight back against Russia's invasion of a sovereign nation fighting for a future free of state-sponsored murder and occupation.
REJECT THE TAX BILL
Lloyd Doggett (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2017-11-14

after a treacherous extended game of hide- and-seek, s this week are rushing through this House a wretched tax bill. The future of this sneak attack on America depends upon how quickly the truth can catch up with so many lies. prgtoken This bill is just a way to curry favor with Washington's special interests, awarding tax windfalls to large multinational corporations and the fortunate few who sit way up atop the economic ladder. ``Don't worry,'' s say. ``What middle class people lose to pay for this unbalanced tax cut, will eventually trickle down. With a little fairy dust magically, it will appear in your pocket, and you will get more than ever.'' prgtoken This is a massive corporate tax break where the tail is wagging the dog of a corporate tax break. The gimmick that Americans are being asked to swallow is the same experience we have had previously. The middle class will not enjoy the benefits of this bill. Both history and arithmetic tell us that. prgtoken First, they are borrowing this money--much of it--to finance this tax break from the Chinese and the Saudis, and others whom we have looked to to pay for our immense national debt in the past. prgtoken Second, we know from experience that tax breaks like this do not create lasting jobs. But it is even worse than all of that because s are creating a special new loophole for outsourcing so many more American jobs. prgtoken Candidate , last year, made a central theme about protecting American jobs and stopping outsourcing, but he has endorsed a tax bill that does just the opposite. It creates a gaping new loophole to encourage greater outsourcing of our jobs and our profits abroad. Here is how it all works: prgtoken A multinational investor has a choice to make. Do I invest with new manufacturing in San Antonio, or do I choose Stuttgart or Shanghai? If I invest in America under their proposal, it will be a 20 percent tax on my profits; but if I invest abroad in Shanghai or in Stuttgart, the most I pay is 10 cents on the dollar, and more likely, I don't pay anything because of the way this bill is constructed. The bill will create some new jobs, no doubt, but it is a mighty long commute to Europe or Asia to get one of those jobs. prgtoken With the help of Washington's special interests, they have rigged up an even more complex international tax-dodging system that pretends to tax foreign investment at half the U.S. rate. In prgtoken fact, it permits many of these companies to funnel even more of their profits into tax havens where their liability in America will end up being zero, and much of their profit will not be taxed anywhere, by anybody. prgtoken Whatever happened to making America great? prgtoken For s, it is not enough to reward future tax dodging. No. They want to go back and reward tax dodging from the past. And we sure have had plenty of that because, for years, large multinational firms have
Louise McIntosh Slaughter (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2017-11-14

I want to thank the gentleman from Alabama for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and such time as I may consume. prgtoken , H.R. 2810, the Fiscal Year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, takes important steps towards strengthening our national security and supporting our troops. prgtoken The conference report authorizes a total of $692 billion in discretionary budget authority, $26 billion more than the administration requested. prgtoken I am pleased that it raises military pay by 2.4 percent, an increase from the President's request of 2.1 percent. prgtoken It also strengthens our efforts to counter Russia's campaign to undermine our democracy by fully funding cybersecurity and cyberspace operations at $8 billion and it drops harmful restrictions on funding the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty extension between the United States and Russia. This treaty continues a bipartisan tradition that began under President Reagan, verifiably reducing both countries' nuclear arsenals. prgtoken , there is one glaring problem with this measure, and that is that the Budget Control Act imposes a $549 billion cap on defense spending for fiscal year 2018. This bill blows past that by more than $143 billion. Unless the Senate, the House, and the President come to an agreement on lifting or modifying the budget caps, there is no way that these spending levels can become law. So far, that agreement is not in the offing and it is past time for a bipartisan compromise on realistic spending levels for defense and nondefense spending alike. prgtoken While I am glad to see this pay increase for our troops, this legislation does not exist in a vacuum. Later this week, the s plan to bring to the floor a disastrous tax bill that would force military families and veterans to finance tax cuts for corporations and the superwealthy. The bill repeals tax credits that help veterans find employment. It makes education more expensive for veterans and undermines the GI Bill. It makes it more expensive for military families to sell their homes. It eliminates tax relief for veterans suffering from chronic illnesses. prgtoken Veterans Day was just a few days ago, , and it is no way for the majority to thank them for their service. prgtoken Also before us today is H.R. 2874, which is known as the 21st Century Flood Reform Act. Now, everybody in this Chamber recognizes the National Flood Insurance Program is badly in debt, to the tune of $25 billion. The hurricanes this year, together with the flooding across Louisiana last year, have stretched the program beyond its breaking point. prgtoken Unfortunately, this package will cause more harm than good for the communities already struggling to rebuild. It will make flood insurance more expensive for families by increasing premiums. prgtoken It also exempts businesses from the requirement to purchase flood insurance even though the vast majority of policyholders with
HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF REVEREND MARY EDITH MOODY
Cedric L. Richmond (Democrat, LA) \u2014 2017-11-14

I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Reverend Mary Edith Moody, a native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who passed away on October 28, 2017 at the age of 91. prgtoken Rev. Moody was born on July 29, 1926, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She was one of nine siblings in a family of modest means. Her father, Mr. James Nathaniel Moody Sr was a supervisor of Negro Schools in West Baton Rouge and her mother was a teacher. After graduating from high school at Southern University Lab School in 1943, she earned two degrees from Southern University: one in business education and the other in secondary education. She later earned a master's degree in education from Louisiana State University and a certificate of theology from the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia. prgtoken Rev. Moody taught English and business education to visually impaired children for more than 30 years at the Louisiana State School for the Blind at Southern University--and was one of five teachers named Outstanding Secondary Educator of America from a field of 5,000 candidates--before retiring from her teaching career to become one of the first female ministers for the African Methodist Episcopal Church. prgtoken Rev. Moody was ordained in 1976 and assigned to Black Creek AME Church in Darlington that same day. During her pastoral career, she served as pastor at Mount Everett AME Church in St. Helena Parish and Heard AME Church in Baton Rouge and eventually became an associate pastor at Bethel AME Church on South Street. prgtoken Rev. Moody received numerous awards for service, commitment and leadership, including the Powell-Reznikoff Award from the Baton Rouge Council on Human Relations in 2001 along with the first Mid City Community Lifetime Achievement Medal in 2004 at the age of 77. Also, she was a proud member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc for more than 70 years. prgtoken Rev. Moody devoted herself to numerous Baton Rouge community organizations, advocating for children, African Americans, women, the poor, and anyone facing hardship. We cannot match the sacrifices made by Rev. Moody, but surely we can try to match her sense of service. We cannot match her courage, but we can strive to match her devotion. prgtoken Rev. Mary Edith Moody survivors include her sister, Ms. Martha E. Moody Boone; Brother, Mr. Charles David Moody, Sr.; and Sister-in-Law, Ms. Dorothy Johnson Moody; twenty-four Nieces and Nephew; a host of Grand-, Great-Grand-, and Great-Great-Great-Nieces and Nephew; and a host of surrogate sons and daughters. prgtoken , I celebrate the life and legacy of Reverend Mary Edith Moody a beloved daughter, sister, and grandmother as well as a true example of Baton Rouge culture personified
VOTE EXPLANATION
Robert Menendez (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2017-11-14

I was unavailable for rollcall vote No. 272, on the nomination of Steven Gill Bradbury, of Virginia, to be general counsel of the Department of Transportation. Had I been present, I would have voted nay. prgtoken , I was unavailable for rollcall vote No. 273, on the motion to invoke cloture on David G. Zatezalo to be Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health. Had I been present, I would have voted nay. (At the request of Mr. Schumer, the following statement was ordered to be printed in the Record.)