mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
DREAMERS ARE AMERICANS
Adriano Espaillat (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2019-11-13

. Madam , as the whip of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, I am pleased to lead this monthly Special Order hour. It comes at a critical time in America, a critical time for our Nation and for the communities that we represent. prgtoken Yesterday morning, Madam , you may know that the Supreme Court heard a case. They heard arguments on Dreamers. This decision will determine the lives of nearly 1 million young Americans in the Supreme Court of the United States, a million people who were brought here at a very early age, at a very young age, and have known no other country but the United States of America. prgtoken We have come to call them Dreamers because they symbolize, in a quintessential way, what the American Dream stands for. They derived the name from bipartisan legislation introduced in 2001 by none other than the former president pro tempore of the Senate, Orrin Hatch of the State of Utah and Dick Durbin of the State of Illinois. prgtoken That legislation, which was reintroduced multiple times, would have granted residency status to immigrants who came here as minors, assuming they had no criminal record and had a high school diploma; and they could become permanent residents if they got a college degree or served honorably in the U.S. military. prgtoken This proposal was seen as a critical component of any comprehensive immigration reform and for many was considered a low-hanging fruit, the easiest thing we could all agree on, both sides of the aisle. Opinion polling of the American people bore that out. In fact, we have seen poll after poll after poll indicate that over 80 percent of the American people, whether in red States or blue States, support Dreamers. prgtoken In 2013, after the House majority flat-out refused to even consider an overwhelmingly bipartisan comprehensive immigration package painstakingly negotiated, amended, and, finally, approved by the Senate on a healthy bipartisan vote, President looked at what his options were, and he saw the very last deal was this low-hanging fruit. prgtoken He used his administrative discretion in enforcing immigration laws, a longstanding authority used by Presidents on both sides of the aisle, to create the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or the DACA program. prgtoken While the program couldn't provide permanent legal certainty, it did, essentially, tell those who have been eligible under the DREAM Act that, if they came forward and followed various steps to ensure they met conditions similar to those in the DREAM Act, they would be granted relief from deportation and issued documents allowing them to remain and work legally in the United States. prgtoken In essence, the Dreamers came forward and shared their personal information--their address, their date of birth--they shared that with us, the government. They were forward. They were transparent in their approach to share vital, personal, and confidential in
DREAMERS ARE AMERICANS
J. Luis Correa (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2019-11-13

. Madam , I thank the gentleman from New York for yielding. prgtoken Madam , I want to correct the record about Dreamers, who they are in the United States. prgtoken I represent central Orange County, home to the largest number of Dreamers in the United States. I will talk a little bit about a few of the Dreamers in my district. prgtoken The first one, Jose Angel Garibay, who lived in my district in Santa Ana, enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. Jose was deployed to Iraq, and in 2003 he was killed at the age of 21. Jose was the first servicemember from Orange County to make the ultimate sacrifice. prgtoken Jose Angel Garibay, rest in peace. prgtoken Jose is a Dreamer. prgtoken Madam , I want to correct the record about the Dreamers, who they are. prgtoken Police officer Germain Martinez Garcia grew up in southern Illinois. As an intern, his hard work and positive attitude set him apart and earned him a slot in the local academy. Germain Martinez Garcia is a valued member of his team and his department. In the words of his police chief: ``He is part of this community. He's a good citizen. He's a good person. We need him.'' prgtoken Germain Martinez, a Dreamer. prgtoken Madam , I want to correct the record about who Dreamers are. They are lawyers. prgtoken Cesar Vargas grew up in Staten Island in New York. He has served our Nation in the Army. After law school, Cesar passed the New York bar on his first try in 2011. Then he applied for admission to the New York bar, but due to his immigration status, he was denied. It would take him 5 more years before Cesar became the first Dreamer admitted to the New York State bar. prgtoken Cesar Vargas, he is a Dreamer. prgtoken Madam , I want to correct the record about Dreamers. They are American soldiers. prgtoken John grew up in southern California. John joined the U.S. Army, and on March 18 of last year, he shipped out to basic training. John wants nothing more than to defend our country. prgtoken John is a warrior and a patriot. John is a Dreamer. John, U.S. Army. prgtoken Madam , I want to correct the record about Dreamers and who they are: American soldiers. prgtoken James grew up in southern California. James enlisted in the United States Army. James' goal is to protect the United States of America because he loves this country. James needs DACA reform to ensure that he can come home after being deployed to defend our Nation. prgtoken James is a Dreamer. James is part of the U.S. Army. prgtoken Madam , I want to correct the record about who Dreamers are. They are Harvard graduates. prgtoken Gloria Montiel grew up in the heart of my district in Santa Ana. Gloria is the first student from Santa Ana High School to be accepted to Harvard. Gloria was the first undocumented student to receive a master's degree from Harvard. Gloria was the first undocumented Ph.D. candidate from Claremont Graduate University. prgtoken Gloria Montiel is a Dreamer.
National Homeless Children and Youth Awareness Month (Executive Calendar)
Joe Manchin, III (Democrat, WV) \u2014 2019-11-13

I rise today to talk about a resolution that I have introduced with my fellow Senator from Maine, Susan Collins, and 11 other fellow Senators from both sides of the aisle-- truly bipartisan--to designate November 2019 as National Homeless Children and Youth Awareness Month. prgtoken Specifically, this resolution highlights the issue of children and youth homelessness and supports the efforts of businesses, organizations, educators, and volunteers who are dedicated to meeting the needs of homeless children and youth. prgtoken In the 2016-to-2017 school year, there were 1.3 million children and youth--I repeat, 1.3 million children and youth--who experienced homelessness in the United States. prgtoken In West Virginia alone, our schools have identified more than 10,500 students experiencing homelessness. This is simply unacceptable, and we must do more to support our future generations. That is why I am a firm believer that there are five promises--five promises--we, as adults, should make to every child. prgtoken No. 1 is every child must have an unconditionally loving and caring adult in their life. That is the first. Every child must know that someone loves them unconditionally. No matter what you do and no matter what mistakes you make, at the end of the day, that person loves you. It could be your mom or dad; it could be a grandma or grandpa; it could be an aunt or uncle; or it could be a neighbor, someone who knows they have your back no matter what. prgtoken No. 2 is every child must have a safe place to call home where harm cannot enter. I would hope it is the home they live in. Sometimes it is not always the case. Sometimes it might be a school. It might be an after-school program. It could be a church. It could be a neighbor's home. Every child growing up has to have somewhere safe in their life where harm cannot enter and they are protected. prgtoken No. 3 is every child must have a healthy start and access to a nutritious diet. I think that is why you have seen in our school systems that we have expanded our nutrition programs from breakfasts to lunches. When I went to school way back when in rural areas, we had no cafeterias and no lunches, but for some reason, I could always tell when my mom or other parents had put an extra sandwich in the lunch pail knowing that we couldn't eat it but somebody could. There were always those who kind of stepped in and helped others. prgtoken Now we have that. Every child has to have a healthy start and access to a nutritious diet if they are going to grow and be engaged and, basically, be productive. prgtoken No. 4 is every child should be taught a livable skill so that they can make their own way through life. Primary and secondary education is free in America. It makes us different from every other country in the world. We commit to every child that they can get an education to be literate--every child. That is why education should be held to a high
NOMINATION OF CHAD F. WOLF
Chris Van Hollen (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2019-11-13

I rise to object to the nomination of Chad Wolf to serve as DHS Undersecretary of the Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans. prgtoken This nomination is yet another example of the administration's chaotic and inhumane approach to immigration issues. DHS is the third largest Federal agency, and under the administration, it has had four directors in less than 3 years. It has been widely reported that s are rushing to confirm Mr. Wolf so that President can then appoint him Acting DHS Secretary. He will be the fifth DHS Secretary and the third Acting. Rather than go through the normal channels of selecting a nominee and allowing Senators to properly vet and question the nominee, s are going along with 's plan to circumvent Federal law. prgtoken When asked directly by my colleague, Senator Rosen, about his role in formulating the family separation policy, Mr. Wolf denied any direct knowledge of that policy. Leaked emails later revealed that, as Secretary Nielsen's chief of staff, he presented her with a memo with options to deter migrants coming to the border. Separating parents from their children was the second option on that list. The family separation policy is repugnant to our country's values. prgtoken The timing of this nomination is especially concerning in light of the Supreme Court oral arguments this week on DACA. The administration ended DACA and then rejected compromise legislation, written by a bipartisan group of Senators, that would have given over 700,000 Dreamers who have grown up here stability and, ultimately, a path to citizenship. When those Senators were negotiating an immigration deal, in an unprecedented action, DHS Secretary Nielsen sent a letter lambasting the negotiations and accused them of undermining U.S. security. prgtoken The administration has weaponized and poorly managed DHS, and I cannot support this nominee.
LOWER THE COST OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS
Cynthia Axne (Democrat, IA) \u2014 2019-11-13

I rise today because the price of prescription drugs is too high and prescription drug prices have risen 44 percent in 5 years. prgtoken Big pharmaceutical companies have raised the cost of the most commonly used drugs by 100 percent. I am talking about every day, basic prescription drugs like insulin for diabetes or Advair for asthma. prgtoken Experts say there is no end in sight, and we will see prices rise in 2020 if this continues and if we don't act now. prgtoken I recently heard from Joan in west Des Moines, who said the cost of her generic suddenly skyrocketed, and there is nothing she can do, because if she doesn't take it she will need a liver transplant. prgtoken And I heard from John in Madrid, who discovered his insulin refills literally cost more than the price of gold if you broke it down by price per ounce. prgtoken That is why I am supporting H.R. 3, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act. Iowans and Americans can't wait any longer. Every dollar spent on overpriced drugs is stealing money away from someone's retirement, from someone's college fund, and from buying a home, and it is putting someone's life at risk. prgtoken We must act now and pass and support the Lower Drug Costs Now Act.
Nomination of Steven J. Menashi (Executive Calendar)
Patty Murray (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2019-11-13

I have come here before to call out Senate s and their unwavering support for President 's efforts to pack our courts with partisan and ideologically driven picks, but the nominee I am speaking against today is truly uniquely unfit to serve a lifetime appointment--a lifetime appointment--on a Federal court: Steven Menashi. prgtoken Mr. Menashi has a deeply disturbing history of disparaging comments against women, communities of color, immigrants, and the LGBTQI community. prgtoken He unabashedly helped to roll back protections for vulnerable communities. He defiantly refused to answer basic questions from U.S. Senators, both and s, about the policies he worked on while advising the President. He has time and again put extremism and ideology ahead of the rule of law, and he has proven himself incapable of serving as a fair and impartial judge. prgtoken As if his record of extremism and partisanship wasn't bad enough, we now know that Steven Menashi not only helped but was the key architect in Secretary DeVos's efforts to illegally deny relief to student borrows who were cheated by predatory for-profit colleges. These policies that Mr. Menashi provided ``legal advice'' for were subsequently ruled to be in violation of Federal law. prgtoken Secretary DeVos's policy on borrower defense led to her being held in contempt of court. Whether Mr. Menashi did not understand Federal law or whether he advised the Secretary of Education to blatantly ignore it at the expense of students, the fact is that this latest revelation undoubtedly and unequivocally disqualifies him from serving a lifetime appointment on a Federal court--or, at least, it should. prgtoken Tomorrow, the Senate will take a critical vote. This is a vote on whether the Senate once again rubberstamps President 's unprecedented effort to remake the Federal judiciary on a partisan ideological basis. It is a vote that shows whether s are willing to support a judicial nominee whose actions--his own actions-- have been found to violate the law as recently as just a few weeks ago. prgtoken I implore my colleagues to consider not just Mr. Menashi's record of bigotry and the harm he helped cause to cheated and defrauded students, but also his blatant disregard of the rule of law. prgtoken When casting their vote, I ask my colleagues not to worry about what the President might say on Twitter, but to worry about the rule of law and to worry about the idea yet another partisan nominee getting a lifetime on the Federal bench who doesn't. It is that simple. prgtoken Thank you, . prgtoken .
DREAMERS ARE AMERICANS
Juan Vargas (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2019-11-13

. Madam , I thank the gentleman from New York for yielding. prgtoken I rise today on behalf of hundreds of thousands of Dreamers. prgtoken Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard arguments over the future of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or, as you heard, DACA recipients. This decision will determine whether nearly 800,000 Dreamers will lose their legal protections to live and work in the United States. prgtoken The average DACA recipient came to the U.S. as a young child and has called our country their home for nearly 20 years. Denying their legal rights or rescinding the promise made to them 7 years ago would be immoral and wrong. They are students, teachers, first responders, entrepreneurs, and community organizers who make our country stronger and contribute to it every day. prgtoken Approximately 27,000 DACA recipients are currently employed as healthcare workers and support staff. Rescinding DACA would be a direct threat to the public health, as we heard from our colleague, Dr. Ruiz. We rely on these people. So, at this moment, it would be a disaster to not give them the legal status they need to remain in our country. prgtoken DACA recipients and their households hold a combined $24.1 billion in spending power each year. In addition, DACA recipients boost Social Security and Medicare through payroll taxes. prgtoken Many DACA recipients have completed high school, entered 4-year colleges and universities, and graduated. College enrollment rates have dramatically increased for DACA-eligible individuals, and completion rates have skyrocketed. prgtoken Dreamers are our brothers and our sisters and our neighbors. They don't know any other country as home. They were brought here as children and, many times, as infants. prgtoken They built their lives here since they were little kids. They grew up here in America learning our history and loving and celebrating our culture and freedoms, just like any other American. prgtoken They work, they pay taxes, and, like millions before, they dream of serving, too. Turning our backs on them is against our American values. prgtoken The choice is clear: We must keep our promise to Dreamers. We must protect the dream and uphold DACA in the highest court of the land. prgtoken We heard here very recently from a friend on the other side how we should open our hearts this holiday season to children who need adoption, and he is correct. At the same time, we should open our hearts to these children who came here, oftentimes, when they were infants--no fault of their own; their parents brought them here. They grew up in our country. In fact, many of them thought they were American citizens until they became older. prgtoken Madam , in the words of our great colleague who recently passed, Elijah Cummings: We are better than this. We are better than deporting these children who have never known another country other than our own. We are better than this, and hopefully the Supreme Court
Recognition of the Minority Leader (Executive Calendar)
Charles E. Schumer (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2019-11-13

I am so glad to be out here today to deal with the issue of reducing prices on drugs for seniors and others. There are so many things we must do. Some are small. Some are large. We want to do all of them. prgtoken We know how bad drug prices are for seniors. We know how bad the sabotage of our healthcare system is for seniors. If you don't have insurance, you probably can't pay for the drugs no matter what happens. prgtoken I would say to my good friend the Senator from Texas that we have a whole lot of legislative ideas, not just his. He demands his. It is good, but it is hardly large. There are millions and millions who need help who are not affected. The Senators from Illinois and Iowa have a bill to lower prescription drug costs. The HELP Committee has a bill that would help community health centers. The Senate Finance Committee has a good bipartisan bill to lower costs for seniors who are very prgtoken strong supporters of allowing Medicare to negotiate prices. That would do more than anything else. prgtoken I ask my friend from Texas, Will he get his leader and himself to allow us to bring an amendment to a bill on the floor that protects seniors who have preexisting conditions from their insurance companies withdrawing from them? Will he let us do that? That is far more consequential than his well-intended good but not largely effective bill. The No. 1 thing--ask AARP--the No. 1 thing that will protect senior citizens and others from high drug prices is to allow Medicare to negotiate with them, something the Senator has blocked repeatedly. Will he change his position? prgtoken Let's not have this charade, this manipulative charade, where my dear friend from Texas comes to the floor with a bill he proposes but blocks everything and his party blocks everything that would have a far larger consequence. prgtoken No. 1, allow Medicare to negotiate. Every Member of our caucus is for that. It will lower drug prices dramatically. No. 2, stop the administration--the administration the Senator from Texas supports 95 percent of the time--even my microphone is excited about these remarks. I, once again, thank our capable staff who always come to the rescue. prgtoken We need Senator Cornyn to come to the rescue of senior citizens and not play a little game like this. Again, preexisting conditions are probably the No. 1 bane of people. We want to bring an amendment to the floor to protect those people--a mom whose daughter has cancer, and the drug company says, ``You're off,'' and the insurance company says, ``You're gone.'' Isn't that important? Let's not make a comparison, but wouldn't it do far more for the health of the American middle class and working people than this bill? Let's do them both, but we are not going to cherry-pick one unless the Senator from Texas walks across the aisle and joins us in saying: I want to help you get a vote on eliminating preexisting condition prohibitions.
Nomination of Steven J. Menashi (Executive Calendar)
Jeanne Shaheen (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2019-11-13

I am pleased to join Mr. Grassley from Iowa on the floor today to talk about important legislation that we are cosponsoring that built upon previous efforts that both of us were engaged in to protect survivors of sexual assault in the criminal justice system. The efforts to extend rights to sexual assault survivors across the country is critically important, and I am hopeful that, once our legislation is known to our colleagues, that they will join us in passing this important bipartisan bill. prgtoken Amanda Nguyen of the Rise organization initially contacted our office in 2015. I know she also worked with Senator Grassley. When she came to us and detailed her harrowing story of sexual assault, she was raped, and then she felt like she was raped again by a criminal justice system that was not responsive to the challenges of survivors of sexual assault. Amanda described the system that further traumatized survivors and provided scarce protections for their rights. prgtoken Evidence of assault was being destroyed without survivors' consent, and survivors were forced to periodically follow up with law enforcement to preserve that evidence. The broken process that survivors were forced to endure resulted in a system where they were often re-victimized. Instead of a process that helped them move forward with their lives as they pursued justice, survivors were confronted with the trauma of reliving their attack each time they sought to preserve evidence or gather information about their case. prgtoken Well, because of Amanda's efforts, the Sexual Assault Survivors' Rights Act was created. It was legislation that provided for the first legally recognized set of rights for survivors that could be enforced in a court of law. Senator Grassley took that legislation, he included it in the Adam Walsh Reauthorization Act, and it was signed into law. It has provided survivors with greater protections in Federal cases because of focus on notice, on access to evidence, and on the preservation of sexual assault evidence collection kits. prgtoken By creating this set of court enforceable rights at the Federal level, Congress established a model for the States to adopt similar legislation to protect the rights of survivors. So far, 21 States, including my home State of New Hampshire, have adopted that legislation to guarantee survivors certain basic rights in the criminal justice system. prgtoken Now, unfortunately, we are trying to figure out how to encourage other States to follow the lead of Congress, States that have not yet adopted legislation protecting survivors. That is why the bill that Senator Grassley and I are here to discuss today is so critically important. The Survivors' Bill of Rights in the States Act, the legislation we are cosponsoring, would establish a grant program accessible to States that have in place a law which guarantees the rights contained in the Sexual Assault Survivors' Rights Act