mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Unanimous Consent Request--H.R. 8369 (Executive Session)
Peter Welch (Democrat, VT) \u2014 2024-5-22

I was in the Chair and objected in my capacity as the Senator from Vermont to the unanimous consent request of the Senator from Arkansas. I would like now to have an opportunity to explain the basis of that. prgtoken First, the Senator from Arkansas essentially said that President is appeasing pro-Hamas voters in imposing an arms embargo on Israel and, also in that assertion, suggesting that President is not fully supportive, as he has been throughout his political life, to Israel. prgtoken Let me start by saying what I believe represents the unanimous points of view of this U.S. Senate, and that is that the attack by Hamas on Israel, the taking of hostages, the sexual assaults, the murder of so many innocent Israelis are condemned by each and every one of us. No one condemns it more than President , who went to Israel on his own to show his solidarity and empathy for what happened to the Israeli people. prgtoken Second, I believe that every Member of the U.S. Senate supports the Jewish, democratic State of Israel. prgtoken Third, while the Senator from Arkansas suggested an ``arms embargo,'' the U.S. Congress--without my support, by the way, for reasons I will explain--has sent billions of dollars in aid with the supplemental appropriations bill. prgtoken The fact that the President is raising questions about how best to secure the long-term status of Israel as a Jewish and democratic State in the context of this conflict in Gaza is in no way a suggestion of lack of support. prgtoken There is serious debate within Israel about the war plan that is being prosecuted by the Netanyahu government. In fact, a member of the war cabinet has indicated that he will leave the war cabinet if, in fact, the Prime Minister does not come up with a plan for what happens after the cessation of hostilities in Gaza. prgtoken Is there going to be an occupation by Israel? Is there going to be a joint Arab force that will be peacekeeping? Will there be an effort to constitute a Palestinian Government that has the support of its people? prgtoken None of these plans envision Hamas having a role, and they can't have a role. But the President is asking responsible questions that are being asked by seriously engaged military, political, and security folks in Israel. prgtoken So to suggest that the President is raising questions because he is looking over the horizon and saying that adding to the 35,000 casualties in Gaza--half or more women and children--to suggest that the President, when he says Israel should not invade Rafah because of the catastrophic consequences of more humanitarian losses, to suggest that when the President says 2,000-pound bombs that would be dropped on the most densely populated couple of square miles in the world, without massive civilian casualties, is not showing support for Israel, I dispute that. I disagree with that. prgtoken This effort requires judgment, and the President has
HONORING THE CAREER OF JIM ZEHMER
J. Luis Correa (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2024-5-22

today I rise to honor the career of my good friend Jim Zehmer, who has dedicated 32 years of his life to keeping manufacturing jobs in Southern California. prgtoken Jim is retiring from his position as president of Toyota's first North American manufacturing facility in our community. Under his guidance, that manufacturing auto plant in Southern California is still there. prgtoken As a fellow Bruin, Jim started his career with the finance team in 1992. By working hard, he made his way up to management. His dedication and his efforts led to the manufacturing plant's success, and they recently celebrated 50 years of existence in Southern California. prgtoken Jim has also been a committed member of our community, serving on the boards of the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce, the California Conference for Equality and Justice, and the Long Beach Ronald McDonald House. prgtoken I want to take this moment to thank Jim for his leadership, his dedication, and for always recognizing the backbone of America's manufacturing workers. Jim exemplifies the key values in our Southern California community. prgtoken I thank Jim very much and let me say to you: Week 5 will live forever.
PAYING TRIBUTE TO MICHAEL R. McCORMICK
Mark Takano (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2024-5-22

I rise today to pay tribute to Michael R. McCormick, the remarkable superintendent of the Val Verde Unified School District, as he embarks on a well-deserved journey into retirement. prgtoken With over 27 years of dedicated service to the field of education, Michael McCormick's career has been defined by an unwavering commitment to fostering educational excellence and nurturing innovation. prgtoken Before assuming the role of superintendent, Mr. McCormick served as the assistant superintendent for education services at Val Verde. Under his stewardship, the district earned numerous awards and accolades owing to his thoughtful and diligent focus that put students first. prgtoken From championing STEM education to striving to close the racial education gap for his students, Val Verde has thrived under his guidance. Superintendent Michael McCormick's dedication to education has left an enduring legacy of inspiration and empowerment. prgtoken I congratulate Mr. McCormick on his retirement. We thank him for his tireless commitment to excellence in education.
Unanimous Consent Request--S. 4387 (Executive Calendar)
Christopher Murphy (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2024-5-22

reserving the right to object, I have a great deal of respect for my colleague from Utah. He and I have collaborated on a number of really important pieces of legislation, especially in the national security space. So I say all of this with tremendous respect for the Senator from Utah. prgtoken First, let's go to the heart of the argument that he is making because he makes an argument that you hear very often on this floor, that tens of thousands of people are entering the country illegally. They are entering the country illegally. prgtoken The Senator knows the law, I would probably guess, better than most here, and so he knows that those people who are entering the United States without permission also have a corresponding right to apply for asylum. So, technically, they enter the United States without permission, but then they are allowed to apply for asylum. And that right to asylum is a superseding right. prgtoken And so there has been no dispute--whether the President is or the President is --that if you enter the United States and claim asylum and have a valid claim of asylum that you are able to make, thus passing the credible fear screen, you get to stay in the United States to process that claim. prgtoken And so this idea that people coming to the United States to apply for asylum are here illegally is obviated by longstanding law that, in fact, requires the United States to allow those people to stay here while that claim is being processed. prgtoken I just think it is important for everybody to understand what the law is and that both ic and administrations have allowed people with valid claims of asylum to stay here and to process those claims. prgtoken As to the specifics of this bill the Senator is asking for unanimous consent on--again, I say this with great respect for my friend--I have no idea what the Senator is talking about. I literally have no concept of the problem that he just described because it doesn't exist. There are not hundreds of thousands of people coming to the United States using CBP One as their only form of identification. That is not true, and I would suggest that the Senator check with his staff. prgtoken In order to qualify for CBP One, you have to have a passport. In fact, you have to have another means of identification in order to qualify for the CBP One program. prgtoken CBP One papers are not an accepted form of documentation by TSA. Individuals who are showing up at the airports are showing up with a passport or another means of acceptable identification. prgtoken The Senator may have examples of exceptions, but there are certainly not hundreds of thousands of people coming to the United States with only CBP One documentation to present to TSA. It is just not true. prgtoken CBP One, in fact, is the way by which we assure that individuals who are coming to the United States are, in fact, who they say they are. M
Unanimous Consent Request--S. 4292 (Executive Calendar)
Alex Padilla (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2024-5-22

I read the measure that is being attempted to be brought up by this motion. I want to make one thing perfectly clear. It is already a Federal crime for noncitizens to vote in Federal elections. Every Member of the Senate should know that. In fact, any noncitizen convicted of even registering to vote could face up to 5 years in prison. prgtoken Every single State has a law prohibiting noncitizens from voting in Federal elections. The consequences for noncitizens go beyond prison time. Claiming to be a U.S. citizen, under penalty of perjury, while registering to vote or while actually voting are deportable offenses. So it is already against the law with significant consequences for violations. prgtoken And, in fact, experts have found that voting by noncitizens is exceedingly rare. A study of the 2016 election, for example, found that noncitizen votes accounted for--let me get this right--0.0001 percent. Doing the math, that is about 30 incidents of suspected--not even proven, suspected--noncitizens voting out of 23.5 million votes cast. prgtoken What does that tell us? It tells us that our current laws are working. Don't just take my word for it. The Cato Institute agrees. In November of 2020, the Cato Institute found that ``noncitizens don't illegally vote in detectable numbers.'' prgtoken So, colleagues, plain and simple, this bill is a solution in search of a problem. What it attempts to do is, once again, make it harder for eligible Americans to vote or to discourage people from voting, particularly American citizens who happen to be experiencing homelessness, for U.S. citizens of color, for U.S. citizens without driver's licenses. Do they have any less of a right to vote than any of us or less of a claim to our country? prgtoken I speak today, , as both a former California secretary of state as well as being a Member of this body. I have always believed that our democracy works best when as many eligible people participate. That is why I, along with several of our ic colleagues, introduced the Freedom to Vote Act. Now, the Freedom to Vote Act does not extend registration or voting rights to noncitizens. What does the Freedom to Vote Act do? It includes pro-voter policies for eligible Americans, like early voting, vote-by-mail. Imagine that, making it easier for eligible U.S. citizens to exercise their franchise. That is the American way. Whereas, this bill would only serve as yet another barrier to participation by imposing not just extremely burdensome but unnecessary requirements on registering to vote. prgtoken Therefore, , I object.
Border Act of 2024 (Executive Calendar)
Gary C. Peters (Democrat, MI) \u2014 2024-5-22

tomorrow, the Senate will consider legislation that would send critical resources to secure our borders. This legislation was forged by serious bipartisan negotiations, but when it first came to the Senate floor this past February as part of a foreign aid package, my colleagues voted against it and blocked us from even having a debate on this most serious of issues. prgtoken They plan, unfortunately, to do the same tomorrow. They are, once again, refusing to even come to the table to help strengthen our border security and support lawful trade and travel that drives our economy. prgtoken This bill is not perfect. It is not comprehensive immigration reform. We must keep working toward a broader approach where we modernize immigration laws and address the immigration system as a whole. But we cannot let that hold us back from taking action right now to secure our borders. This legislation is a meaningful step in the right direction. It would address some of our most pressing challenges on the issue and tackle them head-on. prgtoken The bill would allow us to hire more than 2,000 CBP officers, addressing a critical shortage of frontline personnel who safeguard our national security at points of entry each and every day. It would provide $2 billion for advanced screening technology. This would allow CBP to expand use of these tools, helping them to identify illegal cargo and stop dangerous drugs like fentanyl from reaching and poisoning our communities. Fentanyl overwhelmingly enters this country through our ports of entry. prgtoken This bill also aims to change the asylum application process, a priority that Congress has been unable to pass for decades. prgtoken s in Congress certainly like to talk about the need to secure our borders, but they use this issue to stoke fear in our communities all across the country. But when you get a commonsense bill, like the bill that we have before us, to vote on--a bill that aims to address the problems they claim that they want to solve--they simply walk away. prgtoken They talk the talk, but they refuse to walk the walk. We need to walk the walk. And that is why s walked away last February. They took orders from , when he told them to vote against this bipartisan legislation. They made it abundantly clear that s would rather campaign on this issue than actually fix it. They would rather throw rocks than solve the problems facing our country. And, unfortunately, it looks like they are going to do it all again tomorrow. prgtoken Americans deserve better. Our communities deserve better. Our frontline personnel deserve better. The victims of the fentanyl crisis deserve better. Those fleeing often horrendous conditions in their home countries and seeking asylum on our southern border, they deserve better. And it is an absolute shame that my colleagues have decided not to act, because these challenges
FINANCIAL INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY FOR THE 21ST CENTURY ACT
Stephen F. Lynch (Democrat, MA) \u2014 2024-5-22

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding time. prgtoken , I have been a Member of Congress for over 20 years, and I have to say that while this may not be the worst, it is in the top three in terms of the worst bills that I have seen actually progress to the floor of the House. prgtoken Anybody who is excited about this bill either has not read it or does not understand it. This bill is a radical rewrite of the securities laws in this country. prgtoken As most people who know our history realize, in 1929, when the markets crashed, we established the Securities and Exchange Commission in 1934, shortly after the crash. prgtoken What that did was it created an agency that became the cop on the beat in financial services. They became the protectors of investors. prgtoken Since that time in 1934, as courts have interpreted that law that is protecting investors, we built up a body of case law that now makes the United States financial markets the most robust, and they have become the marvel of the world. Everyone comes to the United States for investment because they know that their investment is protected and that they will be treated fairly in the courts because we have well- defined laws. prgtoken This bill undoes all of that. This bill is a radical rewriting of the securities laws since 1934. It redefines what a security is. It allows financial companies to escape the cop on the beat. Now, they can leave the jurisdiction of the SEC and go over to the CFTC, which is about six times as small as the SEC. prgtoken What will happen here is you will see a migration of companies going out from under the SEC jurisdiction over to the CFTC, and this will cause havoc in our financial markets eventually. prgtoken The one amendment I would have liked to see on this bill is that any company that becomes insolvent because of their involvement with crypto cannot receive a taxpayer bailout because that is where this bill is heading. This is going to cause infirmity in the financial institutions in this country as they get commingled with crypto, and eventually, we will be forced into a situation where we are going to have to bail some of these banks out because of their involvement in crypto. prgtoken , this is a very bad bill, and I urge my colleagues to vote against it.
UNANIMOUS CONSENT REQUEST--S. 4392
Ron Wyden (Democrat, OR) \u2014 2024-5-22

just very briefly, having participated in these debates--this specific discussion now, on several occasions-- again, my friend and I just have a difference of opinion. Senator Cornyn and Senator Padilla have repeatedly talked about this being for the roads and bridges and dealing with lead pipes in schools. That is so central to the brighter future we all-- and s-- want for our country. prgtoken So as we wrap up, I want it understood that I share my colleague's view about how serious the southern border is. What we differ on is how we are going to pay for it. And defunding infrastructure--which Senator Cornyn and Senator Padilla set out to do, and I think in a very smart way--is not the way to go. prgtoken .
Border Act of 2024 (Executive Calendar)
Amy Klobuchar (Democrat, MN) \u2014 2024-5-22

I rise today along with Senators Murphy and Blumenthal and so many others in support of bipartisan legislation to improve our immigration system. prgtoken As we face global and domestic threats, securing our borders and points of entry must be a top priority. As we have discussed, we had an opportunity in February to move forward in a bipartisan manner on broad and important reforms and security measures that Senators Murphy, Lankford, and Sinema spent months negotiating. prgtoken I will note that this legislation, as Senator Blumenthal noted, included my bipartisan bill to keep our covenant with the thousands of Afghans living in the United States who fought shoulder to shoulder with our troops. It is a top priority of the VFW and top priority of the American Legion, a top priority of those who have served in Afghanistan. These were their interpreters. These were the ones that gathered their intelligence. And now 80,000 of them are in our country, living with a trapdoor under them, not knowing if they will be sent back to the Taliban. They are working, yes, but what they need is permanent status. prgtoken And that is what this bill that I have with Senator Graham, with support, on the Afghan Adjustment Act. As cosponsors, there are Senators like Senator Mullin and Senator Wicker, the ranking member of Armed Services, and Senator Risch, the ranking on Foreign Relations. They are all on this bill. prgtoken When it comes to our borders, though, as we are talking about today, this comprehensive legislation would have invested in hiring more Border Patrol agents and immigration judges while giving law enforcement the tools and technologies they need to make a safe border--order at the border. It would have fixed our broken asylum system, providing 250,000 new employment and family visas. prgtoken Yes, , we have another opportunity to actually right this wrong and get this bipartisan bill done. Border security demands that we invest in both our southern and northern borders, which is something I like about this legislation, having lived in a State that borders Canada--the longest border in the world, America and Canada. A strong, secure northern border is critical for maintaining our trade relations, for maintaining the terror screening database. prgtoken And we have witnessed terrible instances of drug smuggling and human trafficking. Last year, Border Patrol agents and sheriff deputies in Kittson County, MN, stopped a human smuggling attempt. That is why this legislation is so important. prgtoken And of key importance to me and I know you, , and the State of Wisconsin is fentanyl and the work that can be done if this bill passes. It not only gives the President emergency powers to shut down the border but also ensures that we take on fentanyl trafficking. prgtoken These pills are getting in the hands of schoolchildren. These pills are getting in the hands of people who
Border Act of 2024 (Executive Calendar)
Debbie Stabenow (Democrat, MI) \u2014 2024-5-22

I am really pleased to be here on the floor with my colleagues who just want to get something done on the border. I mean, how long have we talked about this? Senator Kaine talked about 2013. I was here as well. It was an amazingly difficult piece of legislation to negotiate at the time, but it was comprehensive, and in the end, it was a big bipartisan vote in the U.S. Senate. prgtoken I agree with Senator Kaine. When it went to the House, we thought: OK. We put together this comprehensive bill that is not only border security, it is about how we manage and create a pathway to citizenship and address young people who have been here their whole lives--who have been here as juniors--and for agriculture jobs, which I work with all the time. Our farmers need ag labor and want to know there is a legal path to be able to have people work here. It covered everything. At that time, s in the House didn't want to deal with it, didn't want to solve it. prgtoken So we have been down this road before, but I really did think, this time, in the context of the national security bill, the demand from colleagues, that they wouldn't consider the supplemental security issues without a tough border bill. I said: OK, here we go. prgtoken We all know, there were major negotiations, months of negotiations. Senator Murphy, Senator Sinema, Senator Lankford--everybody was stretching and pushing and trying to get to a spot for something that would really, really make a difference. prgtoken They did, and the vast majority of us said OK, we are going to support it. But that was 105 days ago--105 days ago that colleagues had a chance to solve the issue that they come to the floor to speak on every day. They keep coming to the floor every day saying: We need you to do something about the border. We need you to do something about the border. prgtoken Well, we offered a bipartisan bill--a tough bill--to do something about the border, and at the last minute, they said no. prgtoken I want to speak for a moment about one piece in here that is so important. We think about the southern border, and there is certainly funding in here for the northern border. But one of the things that is in here I know our Presiding Officer cares deeply about as well, affects every part of the country--it certainly affects Michigan--is the capacity to stop the flow of deadly fentanyl. It is so important, and it is in this bill. prgtoken On April 2 the Justice Department announced the largest law enforcement seizure of fentanyl in the entire history of Michigan, April 2. Forty kilos of fentanyl were found--enough to kill every single Michigan resident. prgtoken On April 19, a Michigan medical examiner raised the alarm on what was quoted as a really bad patch of fentanyl in Michigan and warned the public that there had been 6 drug overdoses in 11 days, raising the flag of what was going on here. It only takes one pill to b