mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
TRIBUTE TO DICK HISER
Michael B. Enzi (Republican, WY) \u2014 2019-7-29

today I am pleased to recognize Dick Hiser, who is being inducted into the Wyoming Agriculture Hall of Fame. Every year since 1992, Wyoming has recognized individuals who have made substantial contributions to agriculture in our great state. With nearly 60 years of involvement in the agriculture community in Wyoming and beyond, Mr. Hiser is well deserving of this honor. prgtoken A native of Saratoga, WY, Mr. Hiser spent the early portion of his career working for the University of Wyoming as an extension agent in Carbon County. During his time in this position, Mr. Hiser led the Wyoming 4-H program in Carbon County to much success. He was critical in helping Carbon County students succeed, encouraging their efforts in everything from judging livestock to earning valuable academic scholarships. He is remembered by many in Wyoming that participated in the 4-H program for always being willing to share his knowledge and experience with the younger generation so they could be successful on their own journeys in the agriculture industry and beyond. prgtoken Fortunately for Wyoming, Mr. Hiser's contributions include not only his unwavering commitment to youth programs, but Wyoming's ranching community as well. Many know him for his stalwart commitment to sustainable and high-quality cattle and remaining true to his three qoals: ensuring cattle were functional in their environment, structurally sound to compete in the marketplace, and would grade well once prepared for final sale. prgtoken This commitment to Wyoming's agriculture community was reflected in Mr. Hiser's many successes in national cattle shows like the National Western Stock Show and the Arizona National Livestock Show. He has also been recognized as an outstanding alumni of the University of Wyoming College of Agriculture and is honored in the Carbon County 4-H Hall Of Fame. Mr. Hiser has dedicated much of his time to agriculture interest groups across the State, including the Wyoming Livestock Board, Wyoming Beef Council, Wyoming Stock Growers Association, and Wyoming State Board of Veterinary Medicine. prgtoken In addition to his tremendous contributions to the agriculture, education, and 4-H communities in Wyoming, Mr. Hiser showed what it means to be a truly upstanding member of the community while serving as a Carbon County commissioner. prgtoken Mr. Hiser's values, dedication, and work ethic exemplify the Wyoming way of life. I want to extend my congratulations to Mr. Hiser and thank him for his service and years of hard work. Mr. Hiser truly lives the Code of the West, and I am proud to have the opportunity to recognize his achievements as an inductee into the Wyoming Agriculture Hall of Fame. Wyoming is well served by his lasting and continuing contributions to our great State.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
James E. Risch (Republican, ID) \u2014 2019-7-29

tonight we will consider overriding Presidential vetoes to S.J. Res. 28 through 48, resolutions regarding arms sales that were the subject of a May 24 emergency declaration from the Secretary of State. I urge my colleagues to sustain these vetoes, and to consider these sales on their own merits. prgtoken I noted several key points when addressing these sales last month, and those points remain valid today. This emergency declaration was legal, and the sales are necessary for the legitimate security interests of our partners. Rejecting these sales at this time will reward recent Iranian aggression and risk Iranian miscalculation, which will lead to disaster if Iran continues down its current path. These sales are unrelated to Jamal Khashoggi, and these resolutions will do nothing to achieve much-needed accountability for his murder or to otherwise change Saudi behavior. prgtoken We have discussed at length in recent weeks the history of Presidential emergency authorities and the fact that Presidents of both parties have used such authorities on four previous occasions. I won't repeat that discussion other than to note that this use of the authority is consistent with historical precedent. I will also emphasize that the administration has since returned to standard practice for arms sales, has stated that this declaration was a one- time event, and has committed to respecting the law and the role of Congress in this process. I expect them to honor that commitment. prgtoken We have also talked about the reasons our partners need the capabilities in these sales. Our partners have an obligation to protect the lives of their citizens and their own national interests. These sales provide critical capabilities for such protection. Their need for these capabilities has only grown in the last month, as Iran and its proxies have grown even more aggressive. prgtoken As it has escalated its use of force, Iran has so far avoided the type of provocation that would demand a U.S. response. Neither the President, nor Congress, nor the American people want war, but Iran's actions and public statements remain separated from reality. Iran appears eager to continue to test American resolve. Iran should not mistake President 's reasonable restraint as an indicator of any hesitation on his part to protect U.S. lives and interests. We, as the Senate, should not add to any possible confusion. If we adopt these resolutions, we risk inadvertently encouraging Iranian miscalculation. prgtoken I remain highly concerned with the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, the devastating impact of the war on Yemeni civilians, and the terrible human rights record of the Saudi Government. I am encouraged by the recent Emirati decision to end their involvement in the war in Yemen, and I encourage others to see this as an opportunity to pursue a political solution for a peaceful settlement. prgtoken I know many of my colleagues see these re
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Robert Menendez (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2019-7-29

I rise today to address an important issue, that the Secretary of State did not comply with the law when he made an emergency declaration on May 24 to bypass the Congress and issue export permission for 22 separate arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Because of this, a case can be made that some or all of the export licenses and the letters of offer are not valid because they did not comply with the Arms Export Control Act. prgtoken We have made clear in this body that there is strong bipartisan opposition to the President and Secretary of State's reckless disregard for the law, for common sense, for human rights, for basic human decency, and even for our national security, when it comes to matters involving Saudi Arabia. We voted to disapprove each and every one of these 22 ``emergency'' sales, and I have no doubt, we will continue to attempt to correct the President's self-serving myopia on Saudi Arabia and its murderous leadership. prgtoken But the Secretary of State's failure to comply with statutory obligations is a serious matter that we cannot allow to get lost in the bipartisan outcry over the Secretary's incredible contentions that these sales respond to an Iranian emergency. At the risk of losing some in the minutia, let me briefly lay out how the Secretary's ``emergency'' declaration fails to comply with the basic requirements of the emergency provisions in Arms Export Control Act and degrades congressional prerogatives. prgtoken The Secretary's failure to comply with the statute materially and adversely impacts the Senate's institutional interests. It undermines the clear and intentional statutory balance between Congress and the executive branch designed to govern individual arms sales, and it impedes the Senate's ability to understand, conduct oversight, and respond to each sale. As laid out below, in this instance, the blanket approach taken with regard to these 22 sales demonstrates precisely why a generalized determination and certification is insufficient to protect the Senate's role in arms sales. prgtoken , allow me to explain further. The Secretary indicated that he determined that, pursuant to sections 36(b)(1), (c)(2), and (d)(2), an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale of defense articles and services to Saudi Arabia and UAE and thereby purported to waive the congressional review requirements for the 22 certifications. In support of this action, the Secretary submitted only one determination and one memorandum of justification. The emergency authorities cited above and upon which the Secretary relies, however, do not allow prgtoken for a blanket determination and justification covering multiple certifications. Rather, these provisions require submission of a separate determination and justification for each individual emergency certification. prgtoken This requirement is clear from both the structure and text of sections 36
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Charles E. Schumer (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2019-7-29

a few minutes ago, the majority leader came to the floor to express his frustration at being accused of blocking election security legislation. I would make three factual points. prgtoken First, Russia did interfere in our 2016 elections. Every intelligence agency, everyone who has looked at this is 100 percent clear Russia interfered. prgtoken Two, Russia will attempt to interfere in the 2020 elections and is already doing it. That is not only what Special Counsel Mueller said but FBI Director Wray and many other appointees in the intelligence and counterintelligence agencies appointed by President . prgtoken Three, the majority has done nothing--absolutely nothing-- to deal with this problem. prgtoken So here is an easy way for Leader McConnell to silence the critics who accuse him of blocking election security: Stop blocking. prgtoken Leader McConnell doesn't have to put the bills that we have proposed or the bill the House has passed--they were bipartisan bills-- and we can debate the issue. prgtoken America's democracy is at risk when a foreign power interferes. So if Leader McConnell doesn't like being criticized on election security, I challenge him: Let's debate it on the floor with amendments. I challenge him: Support additional appropriations for States to harden their election systems. In both cases, Leader McConnell has not done that. In fact, he has said he opposes more money to the States even though they say--I believe there are 21 attorneys general who have said they need more money. prgtoken Despite our requests, Leader McConnell has not only blocked unanimous consent requests but has not put any other legislation on the floor to deal with this. prgtoken Again, I repeat, this should not be a political issue. This should not be a political issue. Whether you are a , , Independent, whether you are a liberal, a conservative, in between, you should despise the fact--any American should despise the fact--that Russia has interfered in our elections and is attempting to do so again. Putin wants to disrupt our democracy. He resents that we are a free and open and wonderful democratic society. And for us to sit here with our arms folded and do nothing? Unheard of in previous years. prgtoken I still don't have a really clear idea why Leader McConnell is so adamantly opposed to doing anything on election security. Maybe it is because President , in his childlike way, resents the fact that people point out that Russia interfered. He thinks it delegitimizes his Presidential election. But that is not a good enough reason, if that is the case. We have an obligation. Do you know whom we have an obligation to, ? We have an obligation to the hundreds of thousands of Americans--the millions of Americans who laid down their lives to defend our right to vote in our free and open democracy throughout the centuries. prgtoken If we are going to let
RECOGNIZING THE URBAN AFFAIRS COALITION
Robert P. Casey, Jr. (Democrat, PA) \u2014 2019-7-29

I wish to celebrate the Urban Affairs Coalition in recognition of their 50th anniversary. Founded in 1969 as the Philadelphia Urban Coalition, the Urban Affairs Coalition works tirelessly to tackle a number of diverse issues that immediately affect communities throughout the Greater Philadelphia Region. prgtoken A robust group of organizations, the Philadelphia Urban Coalition was founded after the assassination of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr with the goal of solving their communities' social and economic problems. In 1991, the group merged with the Urban Affairs Partnership to create the Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition and in 2010 shortened the name to the Urban Affairs Coalition. They have managed over $1 billion of social investment since their founding. prgtoken Today, the Urban Affairs Coalition consists of over 75 organizations working to achieve unity among government, business, neighborhood, and individual initiatives to improve the quality of life in the region, build wealth in urban communities, and solve emerging issues. The coalition works towards this mission in three different ways: backing nonprofits through fiscal sponsorship, capacity building, and professional development; working to improve life chances for the youth and young adults; and providing economic opportunity to low-income households, working families, and disadvantaged businesses. prgtoken Through their extensive work, the Urban Affairs Coalition helps children and young adults climb the economic ladder, educates the community on job opportunities and financial advice, and provides access to capital for minority entrepreneurs. The coalition is committed to supporting nonprofits by helping them run backroom operations, allowing nonprofits to focus on public service. prgtoken In addition to helping their community, the Urban Affairs Coalition recognizes local leaders at their annual banquet. They present the Doer Award, the Living Legacy Award, and the Community Leadership Award to those who make efforts to improve and support their communities. The Urban Affairs Coalition consistently looks to form new partnerships and is working to raise $1 million in the 2020 fiscal year to create a UAC Legacy Fund, which will further support educational and charitable activities. prgtoken Additionally, I wish to commend Ms. Sharmain Matlock-Turner, the president and chief executive officer of the Urban Affairs Coalition. This year marks Ms. Matlock-Turner's 20th anniversary in her role. She also serves as the cofounder and chair of the West Oak Lane Charter School, a school in Northwest Philadelphia where 92 percent of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches. West Oak Lane prides itself on strong ties with higher education organizations. These relationships begin by focusing on educating the next generation of innovators. Ms. Matlock-Turner was one of three Philadelphia leaders to win a scho
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
Patrick J. Leahy (Democrat, VT) \u2014 2019-7-29

. Today I am introducing, along with 45 ic and cosponsors, the Freedom for Americans to Travel to Cuba Act of 2019. Identical legislation was introduced on July 25th by Representatives Jim McGovern and Tom Emmer in the House. prgtoken We are introducing this bill for one reason: so Americans can travel to Cuba in the same way that they can travel to every other country in the world except North Korea, to which President banned travel by executive order. Based on my conversations with other Senators, I am confident that if we were afforded the opportunity to vote on this bill, more than 60 Senators would support it. prgtoken It is indefensible that the Federal government restricts American citizens and legal residents from traveling to a tiny country 90 miles away that poses no threat to us. At a time when prgtoken U.S. airlines are flying to Cuba, does anyone here honestly think that preventing Americans from traveling there is an appropriate role of the Federal government? Why only Cuba? Why not Venezuela? Or Russia? Or Iran, or anywhere else? It is a vindictive, discriminatory, self- defeating vestige of a time long passed. prgtoken This bill would end these Cold War restrictions on the freedom of Americans to travel. It would not do away with the embargo. prgtoken Americans overwhelmingly favor travel to Cuba. The last poll I saw, a CBS poll, found that 81 percent of Americans support expanding travel to Cuba. Officials in the White House, however, have a different agenda, driven by purely domestic political calculations. They have not only rolled back steps taken by the previous administration to encourage engagement with Cuba, they have gone further by imposing even more onerous restrictions on the right of Americans to travel. As a result, the number of Americans traveling to Cuba this year is projected to plummet by half, due to the policies of their own government. And the thousands of private Cuban entrepreneurs, the taxi drivers, the Airbnb renters, restaurants, and shops that depend on American customers are struggling to survive. It is a shortsighted, anachronistic policy that is beneath our democracy. prgtoken I and others, including s, have traveled to Cuba many times over the past 20 years, met with Cuban officials, with Cubans who have been persecuted for opposing the government, and with many others. Every one of us wants to see an end to political repression in Cuba. The arrests and mistreatment of dissidents by the Cuban government should be condemned, just as we should condemn such abuses by other governments including some, like Egypt and Turkey, whose leaders have been welcomed at the White House and the State Department. Americans can travel freely to Egypt, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia, but not to Cuba. prgtoken The issue is how best to support the people of Cuba who struggle to make ends meet, and who want to live in a country where freedom of expression and a
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
Thomas R. Carper (Democrat, DE) \u2014 2019-7-29

I rise today to discuss America's Transportation Infrastructure Act, legislation that I introduced today with the chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, John Barrasso, along with our subcommittee chair on Transportation and Infrastructure, Shelley Moore Capito, and our ranking member from Maryland, Ben Cardin. prgtoken Our legislation reauthorizes our Nation's surface transportation laws and makes a historic $287 billion investment in our Nation's roads, highways, and bridges. Our Nation's first highway bill was enacted just a few years after the world's first concrete highway was paved outside of Detroit, MI. Henry Ford had just introduced the Model T, and the first stop-go traffic light would soon be installed at the intersection of East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue in Cleveland, OH. prgtoken A century ago, the idea of speedy and safe transcontinental travel was beyond our imagination and even further from being realized. We have come a long way since then. prgtoken Today, more than 4 million miles of roadway and 600,000 bridges help link our country together. Some 220,000 of those miles combine to make up our national highway system. Our transportation infrastructure is essential to America's economy, to our society, and to our way of life. It connects us to commerce; it connects us to service; and, more importantly, it connects us to one another. prgtoken The sad truth, however, is that, as we all know too well, many of these roads, highways, and bridges are in poor condition today. They have been in use far beyond, for many of them, the intended duration of their original design. A great many roadways and bridges simply need repaving, while some need repairs, and others need to be completely redesigned. prgtoken According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, approximately 20 percent of our Federal-aid roadways are in poor condition, as are 47,000 bridges. That is in large part because, for far too long, our Nation's highway trust fund has been operating on the brink of insolvency. The highway account is running at an $11 billion deficit, and that deficit is growing. prgtoken Meanwhile, despite spending more from the fund than we collect, we still aren't spending enough to make a dent in the $800 billion backlog of investments needed to significantly improve conditions on many of the roads, highways, and bridges that millions of Americans--all of us--use and depend on every day. prgtoken All of this has contributed to an unacceptable level of uncertainty for States, for cities, for businesses, and for families. It has prevented us, as a nation, from addressing serious challenges across our transportation infrastructure that go well beyond simply filling potholes. prgtoken For too long, we have failed to make meaningful progress in America toward improving safety, easing traffic congestion, reducing harmful emissions, and enhancing resilience. We can do better than this.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Sherrod Brown (Democrat, OH) \u2014 2019-7-29

I just listened with interest to the remarks of the majority leader and his accounting of history--his very defensive remarks, based on an attack from, I guess, some journalist. The majority leader, I would say, was liberally using words like ``McCarthy'' and ``McCarthyism'' and ``liar'' and how he proudly stood up to the Soviet Union in the wake of Brezhnev and Chernenko and Andropov. They are fascinating words, but you don't need x-ray vision to notice a few things about the discussion the majority leader launched. First of all, this weekend, the Director of National Security resigned in frustration that his boss, the President of the United States, has chosen to believe Russia instead of his own intelligence officials. prgtoken One of most embarrassing moments in my lifetime was when the President of the United States stood next to the dictator of Russia and said that he believed Putin and not his own intelligence officials and the consensus of his intelligence officials when it comes to influencing our 2016 elections. prgtoken So I hear that the majority leader always has an acute sense of history and his place in it. I am hopeful the majority leader, using his knowledge of history, understands the influence Russia continues to have in our country and on our elections and that this body will actually address that instead of denying the obvious. Opioids prgtoken , America is in the middle of a public health crisis. In my State, 14 people die, on average, every single day of a drug overdose. The numbers are not much better in most of the other 49 States. We have known for a long time that addiction so often starts in the family medicine cabinet and that drug companies were all too eager to push these addictive drugs on the American people, but the evidence we have seen in the past couple of weeks is staggering. prgtoken New data from the DEA released this month reveals that drug companies flooded the country with 76 billion oxycodone and hydrocodone pills from 2006 to 2012--76 billion pills in a nation of slightly more than 323 million people. Seventy-six billion pills is enough to supply every person in the United States with 36 pills every one of those years from 2006 to 2012. This evidence makes clear these companies, these corporations knew exactly what they were doing. prgtoken One wholesale drug distributor in Ohio wrote an email that the opioid pills were ``flyin' out of there. It is like people are addicted to these things or something. Oh wait, people are.'' prgtoken Can you believe that? He acknowledged they are addicted, and he joked about it. If that is not bad enough, then the drug company representative responded: ``Just like Doritos, [people] keep eating. We'll make more.'' prgtoken They certainly did make more. That is what Big Pharma does. They push their drugs on the American people to line their own pockets and the cost in empty