mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, EDUCATION, AGRICULTURE, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT, FINANCIAL SERVICES AND GENERAL GOVERNMENT, INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, MILITARY CONSTRUCTION...
James R. Langevin (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2021-7-27

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. prgtoken , I rise in strong support of the en bloc package which includes my amendment, Langevin No. 129, to the Financial Services and General Government Division. prgtoken I would like to begin by thanking Chairman Quigley of that subcommittee for his support of the amendment and my good friend and fellow Cyberspace Solarium Commissioner, Congressman Mike Gallagher, for cosponsoring the amendment. prgtoken , this is a simple amendment. It increases funding for the Office of the National Cyber Director to $25 million, the full amount recommended by the Cyberspace Solarium Commission which was created in last year's NDAA. Its charge was to create an overarching strategy to better protect the United States against cyberattacks of significant consequence. prgtoken Creating the position of the National Cyber Director has been a passion of mine for more than a decade. It finally happened last year, and I have long argued that we need a head coach to coordinate all of the various cyber players in the Federal Government, and the NCD does just that. prgtoken Chris Inglis, who started earlier this month, is the Nation's first Senate-confirmed National Cyber Director, and he is exactly the right person to ensure that we effectively implement a national cyber strategy to protect us from the ever-growing threats that we face in cyberspace. prgtoken But, , he can't do his job without an office to support him. So this amendment will ensure that Director Inglis has the staff he needs to fulfill his statutory obligations to review agency cyber budgets, lead the development of cybersecurity policy, and coordinate incident response. prgtoken So I appreciate, again, the support of Chairman Quigley and the overall Appropriations Committee led by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. prgtoken , this is an important amendment, and I urge my colleagues to support the amendments en bloc and the underlying bill.
Capitol Security Supplemental Funding (Executive Calendar)
Jon Tester (Democrat, MT) \u2014 2021-7-27

it has been more than 200 days since the U.S. Capitol was attacked by mobs of anti-government insurrectionists. It was the darkest day for Congress in more than 200 years, since invading troops set this magnificent building on fire 200 years ago. prgtoken Americans in uniform that day stepped up to protect Congress. The officers of the Capitol Police and other law enforcement agencies literally put their lives on the line to protect Senators, Congressmen, and to protect our Constitution. prgtoken More than 25,000 members of the National Guard also came from across the country to secure Capitol Hill, including from my home State of Montana. prgtoken Words cannot express my thanks for what these men and women did on behalf of our Nation, and their service was not without sacrifice. prgtoken Police officers were assaulted by an angry mob, and we know that post-traumatic stress is a real problem for many who had been to hell and back. The citizen soldiers of the National Guard stood watch day and night. prgtoken Now, today, we find out that pay is running short for both Capitol Police and the members of the National Guard. The good news is that after weeks of Senate negotiations, we are on the verge of a bipartisan deal that ensures that the Capitol Police will have the money to pay its officers for the rest of the year. prgtoken And as chairman of the Defense Appropriations Committee, I have worked with Vice Chairman Shelby on two critical funding items to be included in this bill. prgtoken First, we have agreed that the National Guard urgently needs $521 million to pay them for securing this Capitol. This funding will allow the summer drill season to proceed without interruption. We need a prepared Guard. prgtoken Second, we have learned of the substantial costs of moving Afghans who helped our military get out of that country safely. We owe a debt to those brave Afghans, who risked their lives to support our American troops. That debt can never be fully repaid. prgtoken I would like to thank Chairman Leahy and Vice Chairman Shelby for working with me on this important bill. I hope we can seal the deal very soon and have this measure approved by the Senate today because it is our job to defend the brave officers who defended us on January 6 and who continue their tireless work to keep us safe today. prgtoken . prgtoken .
RECOGNIZING JULIE PARKER AS MY CONSTITUENTS OF THE MONTH
Mike Levin (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2021-7-27

. Madam , it is my great honor to recognize one of my district's finest educators, Principal Julie Parker, as my July Constituent of the Month. After spending 34 years molding young minds and building a foundation for her students' success, Principal Julie Parker's journey came to a close with her well-deserved retirement. For the last 26 years, Julie was a source of leadership and inspiration for students, parents, and staff alike at the Cardiff School. prgtoken As a father of two young children, I know from experience how valuable and cherished our educators are to our communities, and Principal Parker's passion for teaching and creating a thriving environment for youth is an inspiration. Seeking to ensure that her students have every opportunity to grow and flourish, Principal Parker played a significant role in the recent remodeling of the Cardiff School, which brought about critical improvements for students to embrace their gifts in the award-winning institution. She also guided the school through the creation of several successful programs that create well-rounded students, including Garden to Lunch, Cardio Club, and STEAM Lab. Under her devoted leadership, the school continues to strive for and achieve academic excellence. prgtoken Through a year of uncertainty and challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Principal Parker went above and beyond to keep the fabric of her school's community strong. When the school moved to a virtual learning format at the onset of the pandemic, she took it upon herself to hand-deliver personalized gifts to each of her teachers at their prgtoken homes. When her school resumed in-person learning months later, Principal Parker was the first to welcome her students and staff back to the campus. She has been an exemplary leader through these trying times. prgtoken For her mentorship, kindness, and commitment to excellence, Principal Parker will be thoroughly missed in the education community, and I'm incredibly thankful for her passion to uplift and encourage our youth. I'm proud to honor her as my July Constituent of the Month.
LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, EDUCATION, AGRICULTURE, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT, FINANCIAL SERVICES AND GENERAL GOVERNMENT, INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, MILITARY CONSTRUCTION...
Rosa L. DeLauro (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2021-7-27

. Madam , this amendment would cut Head Start, cut childcare, cut low-income home energy assistance, cut senior nutrition, cut biomedical research, cut mental health programs, cut title I for low-income public schools, cut special education, cut Federal financial aid programs like Pell grants and work-study programs, and cut funding for job training, and so much more. prgtoken Madam , I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment, and .
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2022
Tony Gonzales (Republican, TX) \u2014 2021-7-28

. Madam , as you know, our ally Israel was forced to defend itself in May from Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic jihad, who over the course of 11 days indiscriminately fired over 4,000 rockets from Gaza into Israel. prgtoken My motion to recommit would provide $1 billion to Israel to replenish and maintain its Iron Dome defense system. prgtoken We must continue to stand with our ally Israel. We must continue to show that the United States believes in the right to existence and defend themselves. We must do everything within our power to ensure they are equipped to defend against these heinous attacks and defeat these terrorists.
ECONOMIC POLICIES CRUSHING TO WORKING POOR
David Schweikert (Republican, AZ) \u2014 2021-7-28

to the gentlewoman from Oklahoma, I only got this in an alert just about 2 hours ago, and I will send her a copy of it. prgtoken Apparently, we now have a whistleblower, a formal whistleblower complaint. They were there to help take care of these children, and they were instructed not to disclose how many of these people in the housing unit had COVID. prgtoken If that is true, once again, we are back to the duplicity of what has been going on at the border. prgtoken As we talk about just what this is doing, the impact to the country-- and I am going to talk a little bit about what it does to the working poor--that might be a really interesting thing, because you touched on it, this whistleblower complaint that may expose that they are being told not to disclose the level of COVID that is in this population crossing the border illegally.
Debt Ceiling (Executive Calendar)
Roger Marshall (Republican, KS) \u2014 2021-7-28

America has seen a number of horrendous financial crises before, but none that have so quickly developed as the fiscal crisis this White House created with trillions of dollars' worth of drunken spending and tax proposals in just the first 7 months of control. prgtoken The most glaring, almost parody-level, example is the administration's $3.5 trillion and growing, newly labeled, human infrastructure package, which is nothing more than a rosy-sounding title for socialism. prgtoken The results of these radical tax-and-spending policies, what are they? A sluggish economy, inflation, and one of the most dramatic expansions of the welfare state in recent history. Recently, the Department of Labor reported that consumer prices climbed for the third straight month, jumping 5 percent in June, the largest increase in 13 years. prgtoken Every day, we see inflation impacting hard-working Americans. In fact, this past weekend, we held five townhall meetings in Kansas, and thanks to this administration's economic policies, runaway inflation has replaced COVID at the top of the mountain of concerns for people of my home State. prgtoken In Kansas, we are paying more than $1 more per gallon at the gas pump, 40 cents more per gallon of milk, and almost 20 percent more for a home than we were at this time last year. While wages have increased, inflation continues to outpace them by more than two-to-one. I have heard loudly and clearly the concerns from Kansans, and especially from small business owners, the backbone of our economy, about the impact of the ' reckless summer tax-and-spending spree. prgtoken One tax proposal, the elimination of stepped-up basis, would be devastating to small businesses and family farms, as that provision allows them to hand down their family business from one generation to the next without paying a costly tax burden. prgtoken Under the administration's plan, the average farmer would have a new tax obligation of nearly a quarter of a million dollars, as cropland values in Kansas have risen 220 percent since 1997, not to mention the economy-killing policy of eliminating 1031 exchanges and taxing capital gains at ordinary income levels. prgtoken On the spending front, this administration continues to pursue unsustainable and irresponsible spending policies that are actually ruining our economic recovery. Further, they want to increase the debt limit without implementing any spending reforms. This is going to crush our children and grandchildren, leaving their generation to pay for the social sins of this generation. prgtoken Instead of getting our fiscal house in order and curbing back on massive government spending, this administration and in Congress are working to pass trillions more in reckless spending under the guise of infrastructure. prgtoken Pre-COVID, we had the greatest economy in my lifetime. That came about because we lowered people's taxes, we lowered
PERSONAL EXPLANATION
Austin Scott (Republican, GA) \u2014 2021-7-28

. Madam , on Roll Call No. 219 on the motion to table, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted NAY. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 220 on the motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 1664, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 221 on the motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 2365, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 222 on ordering the previous question for H. Res. 555, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted NAY. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 223 on agreeing to H. Res. 555, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted NAY. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 224 on the motion to suspend the rules and pass S. 957, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 225 on the motion to suspend the rules and pass S. 1910, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 226 on agreeing to the amendment to H.R. 4502, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 227 on agreeing to the amendment to H.R. 4502, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted NAY. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 228 on agreeing to the amendment to H.R. 4502, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 229 on agreeing to the amendment to H.R. 4502, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA. prgtoken On Roll Call No. 230 on agreeing to the amendment to H.R. 4502, I am not recorded because I was fulfilling my Congressional duties at Fort Benning, Georgia. Had I been present, I would have voted NAY.
CONGRATULATING LYDIA JACOBY
Lisa Murkowski (Republican, AK) \u2014 2021-7-28

I don't come here this morning to speak to that at this moment but to just give a strong Alaska ``attagirl'' shout-out to Lydia Jacoby. prgtoken A few days ago, most people outside of the State of Alaska had probably never heard of Lydia, 17 years old, from Seward, AK. Seward is a pretty small community in the south central part of the State. It is a coastal community. It is a fishing community. It is a hard-working community. prgtoken Lydia is a typical high school student at Seward High School, except she is a swimmer, and is she an extraordinary swimmer. To see the news the other night of her gold, of her unexpected and spectacular win, was a moment of pride for all Alaskans, a moment of pride for Americans that just makes your heart swell. So I wanted to come to the floor and share that. prgtoken I actually was able to start my morning off early, but in a good way, by being able to call Lydia--she is over in Japan, obviously--and to speak with her directly and offer my congratulations you can tell when people are grinning ear to ear, even though you are separated by thousands of miles and you are talking over a telephone. This morning, Lydia Jacoby was grinning ear to ear as I was sharing my words of congratulations and she, just her exuberance and delight for being able to represent the United States at these Olympics in this way. prgtoken We are extraordinarily proud. Lydia has put Seward and certainly Seward High School on the map. Folks are coming up to me saying: Gosh, I didn't realize you didn't have Olympic-meter swimming pools in most of your communities. Well, that is true. Lydia did some training that I think most would say: It is going to be a long, hard slog to get to any Olympics. prgtoken I think the dedication of this young woman has certainly played out. The support that she has received from her parents over the years, the support she has received from her community, is an example of just good, strong Alaska roots: everybody working hard and just doing your best on a daily basis. prgtoken Lydia Jacoby has absolutely done her best. She set the gold standard, and we are just extraordinarily proud of this young Alaskan woman.
Infrastructure (Executive Calendar)
John Cornyn (Republican, TX) \u2014 2021-7-28

it was 1 week ago that the Senate held a procedural vote on a bill that hadn't even been written. And to no one's surprise, it failed. prgtoken s, for our part, said it made no sense to advance to a more than $1 trillion infrastructure plan before knowing what was in the plan and how it would be paid for. prgtoken Our ic colleagues argued that the big text was imminent, coming any moment, any second, and it was critical to get the process started. prgtoken Well, here we are, 1 week later. I guess the bill text wasn't imminent because we still haven't seen it yet. prgtoken Earlier today, we heard that there was an agreement, I assume in principle, on the major portions of the proposed plan, which I concede is a major sign of progress. I want to commend all of our colleagues, including Senators Portman, Collins, Romney, and Cassidy, who have been working hard on our side of the aisle to achieve consensus, and on the ic side, Senators like Senator Manchin and Sinema and others. prgtoken But this infrastructure plan that we haven't seen yet is no more ready for action today on the floor than it was last week. We made clear last week that we wanted to see the details before voting on a trillion-dollar bill that will impact every community across this country. prgtoken Until this bill is actually written and we have a chance to review it, including all the details, the costs, the pay-fors, and the impact it will have on our States, I will not support it. And I imagine the majority of my colleagues feel the same way. prgtoken Now, I say that also believing that it is important for us to get a bipartisan infrastructure bill. I actually want us to. But part of the challenge is these groups of gangs that operate outside of what we would call regular order here; that is, the committees of jurisdiction, where all Senators get to participate in the final product, including on the floor of the Senate, that is really not possible when you have a group--a small group, a subset of the Senate negotiating a deal among themselves, and then they present it to us as a fait accompli and say: You have to accept it. prgtoken Well, it doesn't work very well, ordinarily, but I am willing to give them a chance because I know they have committed a lot of time and effort into this. But it is going to depend on a couple of things. My vote, ultimately, is going to depend on a couple of things. prgtoken First of all, we fund our highways, our roads, and bridges mainly through the gas tax. That is the amount of money that goes into the gallon of gas that is dedicated for the highway trust fund. Well, because our cars are getting more mileage now and because we are seeing alternatives, like electric vehicles, the highway trust fund is simply inadequate to fund the demand of our infrastructure: roads and bridges and the like. prgtoken But that is no excuse for us to get away from what has heretofore
PAYING TRIBUTE TO MARGIE RICE
Michelle Steel (Republican, CA) \u2014 2021-7-28

I rise today to pay tribute to a well-known figure in our Orange County community, Margie Rice. prgtoken Rice served on the Westminster City Council for 22 years and as mayor of Westminster for 12 of those years. Before that, she served as a member of the Westminster School District Board of Trustees for 17\1/2\ years. prgtoken She dedicated her time to making life better for those she served and was an outspoken force in our community. A cornerstone of her legacy is the Rose Center Theater in Westminster, which she spearheaded and secured funding for. prgtoken Rice is survived by two of her four children, 19 grandchildren, 23 great-grandchildren, and 12 great-great-grandchildren. prgtoken Margie Rice was a leader in Westminster for more than six decades, and she will be so missed by family, friends, and our community.
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 4346, LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2022; PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 4373, DEPARTMENT OF STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS, AND RELATED PROGRAMS...
Chip Roy (Republican, TX) \u2014 2021-7-28

I appreciate what my colleague earlier offered as the previous question with respect to Title 42, because what we are seeing at the border is an absolute travesty, and my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are going to do nothing, literally nothing about that today, even as we see people spilling across the border who are clearly testing positive for COVID. prgtoken We have a hotel in La Joya, Texas, that is literally filled right now with individuals who are heavily testing positive for COVID. These are the facts on the ground. prgtoken I know my friend, the , knows how bad it is at the border, knows how bad it is in Laredo, knows how bad it is in Del Rio, knows how bad it is in McAllen. prgtoken I have got a text here from a sheriff in a small Texas town saying, ``We are passing an emergency declaration tonight at city council that no illegal immigrants can be released in the city of Uvalde per the CDC guidelines of countries on their list without a negative COVID test. We have had our health authority write orders that give us the authority to have them, government, Border Patrol, and immigrants, quarantine for 10 to 14 days. prgtoken We have a crisis at our border, and we are playing footsie with mask mandates in the people's House. I mean, it is absolutely absurd what this body is doing, the people's House. It is an embarrassment. It is a mockery. prgtoken The American people are fed up. They want to go back to life. They want to go back to business. They want to go back to school without their children being forced to wear masks, to be put in the corner, to have mental health issues. prgtoken We are running around here, and the comes down here at 10 a.m. saying we have got to wear masks in the people's House while we have got thousands of people pouring across our border, and don't do a darn thing about it. prgtoken Heavily infected with COVID. prgtoken We have The New York Times today. What a mess. CDC about to reverse on indoor masking for the vaccinated. prgtoken This is some serious nanny-state stuff that will only breed resentment. No kidding. prgtoken Consider resentment being magnified right here on the floor of the House of Representatives. We are absolutely sick and tired of it. So are the American people. This sham of an institution is doing nothing for the American people. Nothing for the betterment of the people that send their Representatives here. prgtoken I just met this morning with an organization that tries to take care of people from human trafficking; met with an elected official from Mexico while cartels are raping and pillaging and killing. And we have people infected with COVID coming across our southern border into Texas. And you all put masks, masks up front here? Here in the people's House? We have got to go around and see, okay, I can't come to the floor, I can't execute my constitutional duty unless I wear a mask. prgtoken Which is it, vaccines or