mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
HONORING DANA MARSHALL-BERNSTEIN
Jacky Rosen (Democrat, NV) \u2014 2018-1-17

I am here today not only to mourn the loss of a family friend and lifelong Las Vegas resident but to let Congress know what an amazing woman she was. prgtoken Dana Marshall-Bernstein died in December at the age of 28, following a lifelong battle with Crohn's Disease. She spent most of her life in and out of the hospital but, even while undergoing countless surgeries, she never let her disease define who she was. prgtoken Dana never stopped feeling optimistic about her future. She believed in looking forward. She believed in kindness. And she used her experience to comfort others who were also affected by Crohn's Disease. prgtoken Even though she was suffering, Dana never stopped showing empathy. She insisted that medical patients were treated as humans first and medical cases last. She was radiant in her love for others. prgtoken Dana believed in these words: ``The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.'' prgtoken Dana was outspoken and strong-willed. She was firm in her beliefs and did everything she could to stand up for the voiceless. She was fiercely committed to patient advocacy and ensuring that anyone in her situation was heard and cared for. prgtoken She served as a beacon of hope to her parents, Ed and Cari, and to her entire extended family. My heart aches for them, but I know that in their fondest memories of Dana lies a strong sense of pride. She shined in more ways than one. She was a light even in the darkest of times, and I know she will continue to shine in the memory of each and every life she touched. May her memory be a blessing for those who loved her. prgtoken In her time on this Earth, Dana accomplished what we all should strive for; she touched others and made differences. And though she is gone now, her influence will remain forever in our hearts and minds. prgtoken In between the politics and the debates, Congress possesses a very real capability to do good. We can fund grants for research towards cures for the most deadly diseases out there. prgtoken We can help people if only we decide to. prgtoken I encourage all members here today to carry with them the courage and determination that Dana brought into this world; to always think and live life with positivity; and to never, ever stop believing in doing good by others.
RAPID DNA ACT OF 2017--Continued
Sheldon Whitehouse (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2018-1-17

now, for the 193rd time, I will give my ``Time to Wake Up'' speech, and as I do so, we are coming up on President 's anniversary in office. Unfortunately, this occasion does not offer the American people much to celebrate. Behind the persistent tweets and the dog whistles, the Presidency has been a spectacle of special interests and self-dealing. Billionaire donors have endless access installing their operatives and pursuing their special interest goals throughout the executive branch. They are literally writing the rules in an unambiguous effort to enrich themselves evermore at the expense of everyone else. prgtoken Fossil fuel barons are the new American dark money emperors. Carl Icahn, early on, got himself installed as a special adviser to the President on regulatory reform and began pushing for a change to the renewable fuel standard that would net one of his companies, CVR Energy, hundreds of millions of dollars. Icahn's insider campaign came to an end in August of last year right around the time a New Yorker article outlined the potential legal claims that could arise from his murky status and self-dealing. Federal investigators have since opened a probe into Icahn's time at the White House. prgtoken Then came Murray Energy Corporation CEO and big donor Bob Murray with his policy wish list for officials. He called it his action plan. Murray had donated $300,000 to the President's inauguration, and he donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to political action committees affiliated with the EPA Administrator and fossil fuel operative, Scott Pruitt. In a ``Frontline'' documentary, Bob Murray bragged about giving the administration this action plan and that the first page was already done. prgtoken Well, I was curious to see the Bob Murray action plan for the administration, so I joined Senator Carper, our ranking member on the Environment and Public Works Committee, and asked the White House for a copy of the Bob Murray action plan. The White House ignored our request and to this date has never responded. prgtoken I guess the White House was busy organizing 's nominee for second in command at the EPA: a lobbyist for, guess who--Bob Murray and Murray Energy. During the Murray Energy lobbyist's EPA confirmation hearing, he claimed he did not have the Bob Murray action plan. He admitted he had seen the Bob Murray action plan at a meeting between Bob Murray and Energy Secretary Rick Perry last March, but he could not recall details of what was in the action plan or what was discussed in the meeting. Lobbyists for energy companies who get one-on-one meetings with the Secretary of Energy often little note nor long remember what went on at the meeting. prgtoken Anyway, I asked the Department of Energy whether they had a copy of the elusive Bob Murray action plan. Shortly after my request, and before we heard anything from the Department of Energy, the magazine
RAPID DNA ACT OF 2017
Amy Klobuchar (Democrat, MN) \u2014 2018-1-17

I rise today to thank my colleague Senator Flake for his words and to join with him in standing up for the First Amendment. prgtoken When I was at home over the last recess, I read Senator Flake's book, and one of the many things I took away from that book, which I thought was quite an amazing book, was the fact that when he was growing up, his family had a 3-by-5 card on their refrigerator. They looked at it every day, and it said: ``Assume the best and look for the good.'' prgtoken The way he has articulately talked about our Constitution today, he is assuming the best, as we all should do, about the citizens of this country and that they will look at this document and care about this document and understand why the First Amendment is so important to our freedom. prgtoken For me, this started at home. My dad was a reporter his entire life. He went from a hardscrabble mining town in Ely, MN, to go to a 2-year community college, and then got a journalism degree at the University of Minnesota. He got his first job at the Bismarck paper in North Dakota. He served during the Korean war and finally ended up at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis. prgtoken He went from that mining town and saw the world. He got to interview everyone from Ronald Reagan to the Chicago Bears coach, Mike Ditka, to Ginger Rogers. But through it all, he saw his mission as a mission of searching for the truth, whether it was standing outside of political conventions through tear gas or whether it was calling the election in 1960, when he was with the AP, for John F. Kennedy. prgtoken The world has changed since my dad was a journalist, but the role of journalism hasn't changed in any way. We need the protection of the First Amendment now more than ever. As Senator Flake has pointed out, it was Thomas Jefferson and our Founding Fathers who saw the importance of journalism and the importance of the First Amendment. Thomas Jefferson once wrote that our first objective should be to leave open ``all avenues to truth,'' and the most effective way of doing that is through the freedom of the press. prgtoken While the most extreme forms of anti-press behavior have happened abroad, as pointed out by Senator Flake--with journalists being murdered, being put in fear of their very lives and their families' lives--there has been a growing aggression toward journalists in our own country. prgtoken During the campaign, then-Candidate mocked a disabled reporter. During his Presidency, he has referred to journalists as dishonest, as disgusting, as scum. During President 's first month in office, his administration coined the phrase ``alternative facts,'' attempting to undermine the fact-checking efforts of reporters. That same week, another senior White House official said that the press should ``keep its mouth shut.'' prgtoken The President has taken to Twitter countless times to attack news organizations and to discredit specific jour
DACA
Jim Costa (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-1-17

I thank the gentleman from Texas for yielding. prgtoken , I rise today to stand with the DREAMers, both those living throughout the great San Joaquin Valley whom I have the honor and the privilege to represent, as well as those across the entire United States. We in the valley--as we like to say--and throughout our Nation are, let us remember, a nation of immigrants, past and present. prgtoken So we know the integral role, both historically and today, that immigrants have played throughout the great history of our Nation in terms of the development of our economy and our communities. The contributions that have been made are the story of America. And our DREAMers, these young immigrants, also make immense contributions, and their story is a part of America's story. prgtoken It is estimated that roughly 685,000 of our Nation's workers, our DREAMers, with protections through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program, that if we, in fact, remove them as some are maybe suggesting, it would impact over $460 billion to our Nation's economy, to our GDP. Think about that. prgtoken In my home State of California, it is estimated that there are over 193,000 DREAMers who are currently legal, who are working and contributing with these DACA protections, and that removing them from the workforce in California would cost an estimated $11.6 billion to the GDP of California. prgtoken Does this make any sense? No. prgtoken But the DREAMers also serve in our military, protecting our Nation both at home and abroad, in harm's way. They are our friends. They are our neighbors. They are deacons in our local churches, and many of them are students, hoping to contribute to the betterment of America. They, too, want to be a part--and they are, in fact--of the American Dream. prgtoken In my district alone, we have over 600 DREAMers at the University of California, Merced, and more than that at my alma mater, Fresno State University. prgtoken But these DREAMers are young men and women. They are not just numbers. prgtoken These are people. They are people, many of whom we have trusted to be a part of our country, to uphold its word, when they basically enrolled to be a part of the DACA program. prgtoken Just today, I spoke to two DREAMers in my office. One of them is a remarkable young person, currently getting her Ph.D. in physics--she is 27 years old--at the University of California, Merced, focusing her research on solar energy. prgtoken Just think about this: helping America with the next generation of our energy development. prgtoken Her name is Bo. She hopes to work in renewable energy when she gets her Ph.D but now with the possible removal of DACA, her future is uncertain. She came here when she was 3 years old. Her DACA protections expire in less than 1 year. prgtoken Another DREAMer I spoke to today was a student body president while working on his bachelor's degree at Fresno State, my alma mater. His name is
WORLD BANK ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2017
Gerald E. Connolly (Democrat, VA) \u2014 2018-1-17

such time as I may consume. prgtoken , I rise today to offer an anti-human trafficking amendment to the World Bank Accountability Act. prgtoken The chairman of the National Advisory Council on International Monetary and Financial Policies is already required by law to submit to the of the House, the President of the Senate, and the President of the United States an annual report on the effectiveness and operations of international financial institutions as well as other goals for development assistance and financing already specified by Congress. prgtoken The base text of the World Bank Accountability Act already includes several additions to the chairman's annual report. This amendment would make one addition to that report. The amendment would require the chairman to report on the detailed actions undertaken by the World Bank to institute certain protections for G-5 nonimmigrant visa holders and inform these individuals of the rights afforded to them by the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008. That legislation was sponsored by my good friend and former chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Howard Berman. prgtoken G-5 nonimmigrant visas are reserved for foreign domestic employees of diplomats and international organizations, such as the World Bank. prgtoken Prior to the enactment of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, these foreign domestic employees had very few protections. prgtoken However, the bill enacted several important reforms on how we prevent abuse and trafficking of foreign domestic employees in the United States on G-5 nonimmigrant visas. prgtoken The law mandated that all such visa holders have an employer-employee contract that includes, inter alia: prgtoken One, an agreement by the employer to abide by all Federal, State, and local laws; prgtoken Two, information on the frequency and form of payment, work duties, weekly work hours, holidays, sick days, and vacation days; and prgtoken Three, have an agreement by the employer not to withhold the passport, employment contract, or other personal property and documents of the employee. prgtoken Among other things, the law also permits these foreign domestic employees to remain legally and work in the United States while seeking legal redress against their employers, as required. prgtoken As a Representative for Northern Virginia, I count among the residents of my district many of the hardworking and dedicated employees of the World Bank who work in offices throughout the D.C. metropolitan area. As a result, I also represent the foreign domestic employees of those who work in the World Bank and such institutions. Unfortunately, sometimes, some of these individuals have been subject to abuse by their employers. prgtoken Since 2010, there have been at least five Federal civil trafficking cases in the United States involving th
WORLD BANK ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2017
Maxine Waters (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-1-17

this amendment, offered by the gentleman from Kentucky, Representative Barr, would make changes to section 4 of the underlying bill dealing with opposing World Bank assistance for governments that fail to enforce U.N. Security Council sanctions against North Korea. prgtoken These changes are welcome and would bring this section of the bill in line with a provision that was adopted on a bipartisan basis in the Financial Services Committee as part of our commitment in the Otto Warmbier North Korea Nuclear Sanctions Act. prgtoken Just as the bipartisan measure that was passed through our committee included a clearly defined waiver authority, the amendment offered by Representative Barr would add, in this same waiver, provisions to the underlying bill. In doing so, the amendment not only makes section 4 of the bill consistent with the approach used in prgtoken other contexts, but, more importantly, it ensures that we allow the President to waive the withholding of assistance for countries that fall short in applying sanctions on North Korea when such failure is due exclusively to a lack of capacity of the foreign government and the foreign government is taking effective steps to prevent the failure from recurring. prgtoken While I do not believe the underlying bill should become law in its current form, I do believe we should take a consistent and thoughtful approach to cutting off World Bank assistance to the poorest countries that are unable to fulfill their U.N. Security Council obligations. This amendment would address this concern. prgtoken , I thank the gentleman for giving credit to Ms. Moore for her work and her assistance with the work that was being done to deny North Korea any kind of assistance from any of our allies, as I understand it. This is not something that is done by the s or the . This is truly bipartisan. We all feel the same way about North Korea, and we all feel that the sanctions should be honored. We all feel that no country, in particular those countries that we are supporting, in any way should do anything to give support to North Korea. prgtoken In saying that, let me also point out that we don't come to this floor with any kind of empty rhetoric, talking about all of those countries are corrupt and somehow all of these countries in Africa and other places that are very poor are somehow disregarding the fact that the United States is being of assistance to them. Most of them know that their lives oftentimes depend on our generosity. They love us and support us. They want to emulate us. prgtoken They get a little bit confused when we have people who charge them with being corrupt and irresponsible and noncaring and not having an appreciation for what the citizens of the United States are doing for them. That is not the kind of rhetoric that we need in order to enhance our posture or our image with our constituents and have them believe that w
RAPID DNA ACT OF 2017--Continued
Dianne Feinstein (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-1-17

I and the Acting President pro tempore have been on the Select Intelligence Committee for a considerable period of time--I much longer than he. However, I think we are both well experienced with the subject, and I would like to make a few comments on section 702. For 6 years, I was chairman of the committee, and the ranking member for 2 years. What I came to see is that, in my view, there was no more significant content collection program than section 702, and I want to give a couple of examples and explain why I think it is so important that 702 be reauthorized. prgtoken A little more than a year ago, on December 31 of last year, approximately 500 people gathered in a popular Turkish nightclub on the banks of the Bosphorus to celebrate New Year's Eve. Tragically, shortly after midnight, a gunman entered that club and opened fire, killing 39 innocent civilians and wounding 69 others. At least 16 of those killed were foreign nationals, including an American who was shot in the hip. Many people inside reportedly jumped into the water in an attempt to protect themselves from the gunfire. After committing this act, the gunman changed his clothes and fled the scene. prgtoken Almost immediately, Turkish law enforcement and American intelligence officials began cooperation to identify and locate the shooter. Part of that effort included intelligence collection under section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The information derived from the 702 collection ultimately led the police to an apartment in the Esenyurt district neighborhood of Istanbul. There, law enforcement arrested an Uzbek national, named Abdulkadir Masharipov, at a friend's apartment, along with firearms, ammunition, drones, and over $200,000 in cash. prgtoken Thanks to the work of Turkish and American law enforcement and intelligence agencies, just 16 days after this horrific attack, police had the prime suspect in custody. Mr. Masharipov is currently awaiting trial in Turkey. prgtoken Section 702 of FISA is the most important foreign content collection program that we have. It allows the government to quickly and efficiently collect phone call and email content from non-U.S. persons who are located outside of the United States. Information collected under section 702 informs nearly every component of our Nation's national security and foreign policy. prgtoken Section 702 was used by the CIA to alert a partner nation to the presence of an al-Qaida operative who was turning into a cooperating source. Section 702 was used to intercept al-Qaida communications about a U.S. person seeking instructions on how to make explosives in the United States. It was also used to understand proliferation networks used by adversary nations to evade sanctions, including military communications equipment. prgtoken In 2014 the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, or what we call PCLOB, reported: ``Over a quarter of the NSA's reports
RAPID DNA ACT OF 2017--Continued
Benjamin L. Cardin (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2018-1-17

I will take this time to go over with my colleagues the reasons why I unequivocally oppose the administration's decision to allow oil and gas drilling along our Atlantic coast. prgtoken There are many reasons why I oppose this policy. One is that the risk to the environment is too great. The Atlantic coast contains some of the most pristine coastlines in America. This region is very much aware of the importance of the Chesapeake Bay and how fragile the Chesapeake Bay is and what an oilspill off the coast of the Atlantic could do to the Chesapeake Bay. prgtoken There are also reasons to oppose this because, quite frankly, the amount of suspected reserves are just not great enough to warrant this risk. We also know that already there are significant lands that have been devoted and are available for oil exploration that will meet our needs, but a lot of it has not even been explored yet because of the current economic realities. prgtoken Lastly, when we are talking about an energy policy that makes sense for our country, exploring for new oil off the coast of the Atlantic makes no sense whatsoever. In November 2016, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management wisely did not include any parcels in the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf in the 2017-2022 plan to lease offshore land the Federal Government controls. prgtoken The following month, former President used his authority under section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of 1953 to withdraw unleased Outer Continental Shelf lands from future lease sales. This makes sense. prgtoken In June of 2017, the U.S. Energy Information Administration projected that U.S. oil output will hit 10 million barrels per day in 2018, breaking the alltime 1970 record--all without drilling off the Chesapeake Bay. The previous record was 9.6 million barrels a day in 1970. prgtoken So we are at a record pace on bringing oil out of the ground. Yet we take a look at the amount of oil that is projected to be available for exploration off the Atlantic Coast, and it is a relatively small amount. When we recognize the risk, it is just not worth the risk to explore for that amount of oil with the potential of causing devastation to our environment. prgtoken Last March, officials from the Spanish oil company Repsol and its privately held U.S. partner Armstrong Energy announced the discovery of 1.2 billion barrels of oil in Alaska's North Slope, which was previously viewed as an aging oil basin. That amount exceeds the projected entire reserves along the Atlantic coast. Production could begin as soon as 2021 and lead to as much as 120,000 barrels of output per day. This is the biggest onshore discovery of conventional oil in the United States in three decades. prgtoken In addition to these massive onshore discoveries, as of fiscal year 2016--the last year for which data is available--only 47 percent of the public lands already held by oil and gas industries are u