mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
CORONAVIRUS
Rand Paul (Republican, KY) \u2014 2020-3-18

I rise in support of my amendment to pay for this economic stimulus package by removing less important spending from elsewhere in the budget. prgtoken I would ask every American: If you were faced with a personal crisis and had to spend extra money and you had to spend extra money on food and medicine--money that you had to borrow from a relative--wouldn't you prioritize your resources and immediately stop loaning money to friends overseas for their children to go to, for example, space camp? Wouldn't you stop funding clown colleges in Argentina? If you had a true emergency like this pandemic, wouldn't you stop building roads and gas stations in Pakistan? If you had a true emergency like this corona pandemic, wouldn't you immediately stop spending money studying why drunk people fall down more than sober people? prgtoken I ask my colleagues to stop wasting money in this time of crisis. Stop being a rubberstamp for wasteful spending. Do your jobs and prioritize our precious resources. It is our job and our responsibility to conserve these resources. prgtoken Why is this important? Why shouldn't we just print or borrow the money instead of making cuts in things like foreign aid? Because next time, maybe in the not too distant future, our children may not even be able to borrow their way out of a crisis. Our dollar will be devalued, our economy ruined, and all because we will have been profligate fools with our resources; all because we refused to do what we were elected to do, which is to prioritize the truly vital, such as coronavirus relief and medical research, over the extraneous, such as spending money on clown colleges, gas stations, and roads in Afghanistan. prgtoken To my fellow Americans, remain hopeful, remain kind, remain faithful, and above all, remain resilient. In the world's history, pandemics are the norm, not the exception. It is only recently--in the modern era of antibiotics and vaccines--that pandemics have become less frequent. prgtoken Ever since vaccines eradicated polio and smallpox, modern man has become accustomed to the idea that life is relatively safe and that a long life is to be expected. Consequently, any re-eruption of diseases beyond our control paralyzes us with fear. prgtoken People have forgotten what it is like to experience the annual dread of recurring infectious disease. My parents remember vividly the polio pandemics of the 1950s. In one of the last great outbreaks of polio, before the vaccine, almost 60,000 people contracted polio and over 3,100 died. Jonas Salk was greeted as a conquering hero for developing the first widespread polio vaccine, but that was nearly 70 years ago. In the early 18th century, Dr. Zabdiel Boylston showed great courage in introducing inoculation for smallpox. Within a generation, smallpox was on the wane and ultimately defeated when Edward Jenner discovered how to vaccinate using the milder cowpox. prgtoken This latest pandemic al
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Ron Johnson (Republican, WI) \u2014 2020-3-18

we are facing, with the coronavirus, an unprecedented situation, certainly in my lifetime. These are extraordinary times we are living in and trying to live through, and there is no doubt that extraordinary times require extraordinary measures. prgtoken The good news is that there is a lot of agreement in terms of what we need to do. We all recognize that Americans and American businesses are suffering, through no fault of their own, and they need help. We all want to provide that help. Hopefully, we want to provide that effectively and efficiently with as few negative, unintended consequences as possible. prgtoken What I would suggest is, this is really no time, though, to follow Rahm Emanuel's famous dictate that you should never let a crisis go to waste. From my viewpoint, I think one of the reasons we have had a more successful economy--certainly far more successful than the economy, the slow recovery we had out of the 2009 recession--is that this administration has focused on reducing the regulatory burden. First we stopped adding to it, and then we actually reduced it. That brought a fair amount of optimism and animate spirits to our economy because businesspeople could actually concentrate on their products and their services rather than looking over their shoulders to find out what new government regulation was going to cause them to hire a new compliance officer, increase their cost, and possibly put them out of business. prgtoken What I am suggesting is, when we provide that help--and we need to provide that help to both hard-working American workers as well as American businesses--that we do it in the most efficient and effective manner, and we do more good than harm. Now, I would argue that a new mandate on business is going to do a great deal of economic harm. It may sound good, but it is not the right way to go. prgtoken We will eventually come out of this. We will be recovering from economic woes. We need to learn the lesson from 2009, where overregulation hampered our recovery. So let's not add a new mandate. I know the House bill is only temporary, but temporary becomes permanent around this place pretty good. As Ronald Reagan once said, the closest thing to eternal life in our lifetime is a government program. prgtoken I will also say that my office has been flooded with businesses calling in also not believing this is only going to be temporary and not really having confidence in the Rube Goldberg financing mechanism for this, again, temporary mandate for paid sick and family leave. prgtoken The good news is, there is a better way, and that is what my amendment does. It creates a temporary emergency Federal unemployment insurance program sitting on top of what already exists. Rather than having two or three or more programs trying to provide that funding to workers for whom we all want to provide that support, we would have basically a single program, a single method for doi
ORDERS FOR THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2020-3-18

I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 12 noon, Thursday, March 19; further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; finally, that following leader remarks, the Senate be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.
CORONAVIRUS
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2020-3-18

here in the Senate, we are continuing to move forward with the next installment of coronavirus relief legislation. I expect, later today, we will pass the bill that was passed by the House earlier, and we are looking beyond it to a third bill that will provide additional relief to the American people. prgtoken As the leader has said, we have three priorities: providing direct assistance to American workers and families, many whose lives have been disrupted and dislocated in jobs, who are feeling a lot of economic harm, economic pain; giving our economy, especially our small businesses, the necessary support with which to weather the storm; and most importantly, providing medical professionals with the resources they need in order to fight this virus. The House bill addresses these priorities to some degree, but it is not a comprehensive bill, and additional legislation is going to be needed. prgtoken We especially need to ensure that the worker benefit requirements the House bill places on small businesses are accompanied by sufficient support. Small businesses are at the most risk economically during this time, and we need to ensure they have the resources they need to get through this. I am looking forward to continuing to work with my colleagues of both parties on the House bill and on additional legislation. prgtoken This is a time for all of us to come together to ensure that medical professionals, American businesses, and American families have what they need to combat the coronavirus and to deal with its effects. I can't think of a time at which we have seen schools and businesses close on such a mass scale. It is a challenging time for our country, but if we pull together, we can get through this and come out even stronger. prgtoken All of us have roles to play in combating this virus--washing our hands regularly and thoroughly, practicing social distancing, staying at home as much as possible, listening to advice from healthcare officials. All of these things are essential to our flattening the curve and limiting the number of infected Americans. prgtoken It is vital that we keep as many people as possible from getting infected so that our hospitals and medical professionals are not overwhelmed with cases. Our medical professionals are putting their lives on the line every day to care for coronavirus patients. Let's make sure we do everything we can to keep the number of cases they are dealing with as low as possible. prgtoken In difficult times, Americans rise to the occasion, and I am confident that is what we will do again. prgtoken .
CORONAVIRUS
James Lankford (Republican, OK) \u2014 2020-3-18

3 months ago, no one in the country-- in fact, no one in the world--had heard the term ``COVID-19.'' The term ``coronavirus'' was around, but most folks didn't use that because it was connected to SARS or to MERS in the past. prgtoken In December of 2019, an infection started in China, and it spread rapidly through the Wuhan region. By January, there were thousands of people affected before most of the world even knew it existed. Now, almost every country in the world has infections. We have hundreds of thousands of people who have had contact with this virus, and unfortunately we have lost thousands of people worldwide. prgtoken In the United States, the numbers continue to increase as we are continuing to increase the number of people we can actually test. Fortunately, the vast majority of the people who get this virus have little to no symptoms. It is a cold; it is a mild flu to them. But for our vulnerable populations--our elderly populations, those with heart issues, those with lung issues, smokers, diabetics--this can be a very, very serious thing. prgtoken The challenge we face in our healthcare is that every person who walks in to get tested is face to face with one of our healthcare workers, especially in rural areas of our State, who may be the only healthcare professional for that entire county. If that person--who has not been vaccinated as well because there is no vaccine yet--is not able to serve the rest of the population, that health situation becomes even worse because of diminishing care. prgtoken We, as Americans, have taken this seriously, as we should. We are paying attention. The younger population is spending time trying to get away from other individuals, to self-isolate, to self-quarantine-- ``social distancing'' is the new term--to find some way to not be close to someone else so they don't accidentally pass the virus on, because although the virus may be within them and they are not personally physically affected much, the effect on someone else could be pretty dramatic. So, out of respect for others, they are trying to manage that distance and be attentive to that. prgtoken There have been multiple actions from the government over the past several months. There are the travel bans we all know very much about, starting with China and now in multiple areas of the world, and lots of encouragement to limit gatherings, first to 250 and then to 50 and now to 10. Now it is a series of just keep social distancing, to make sure you are aware of that. There have been emergency declarations. prgtoken CMS has changed coverage, as recently as yesterday, dealing with issues like telehealth, making sure individuals who may have other care needs don't have to actually go in to a healthcare professional--for their fear of who else is sitting in the waiting room--but they can get access to telehealth, which is a much needed change. prgtoken The FDA has been very aggressive in giving acce
CORONAVIRUS
Jerry Moran (Republican, KS) \u2014 2020-3-18

thank you very much. This has been a trying and difficult and challenging time in our country and in my home State of Kansas. There are lots of conversations, care, and compassion going on. We can't give anybody a hug these days. We can't extend a hand--at least literally--but we are extending a hand to all of our friends and our neighbors--those across our community, those across our State, and across the country. prgtoken I am troubled, of course, by what circumstances Americans find themselves in. There are those who are in a poor circumstance in which they can recover from the circumstances that we face. I want to make sure that Kansans know that we hear their cries, that we know of their problems, and that work is afoot to try to make a difference. prgtoken Just a couple of examples of things that perhaps, in the overall scale of where we are, don't seem significant enough but can make a difference in individual lives and families' well-being: We have been successful to this point in getting the school lunch program available for students whose schools are no longer in session, who don't go to the classroom, and therefore aren't in the school lunchroom. The USDA and the school food program are now available for those who are at home because their school classes have been canceled as a result of the virus. prgtoken We are paying a lot of attention, as I hope Kansans know and Americans know, to the veteran and the veteran community. We have had success in passing legislation on the Senate floor--waiting for House consideration--that will allow those veterans who are no longer in the classroom, in a university, or in a technical college and are now learning by distance education, by technology, to be able to continue to receive their GIeducational benefits. That required a change in the law, and it is in the works so that those benefits continue, even though the student is not, as now required, in a classroom itself. prgtoken We are trying to make sure the Department of Veterans Affairs has the resources necessary to meet the needs of our veterans. It is a vulnerable population because of the age and existing condition of many of our veterans. We are in constant contact not only with the Department of Veterans Affairs but with veterans themselves and with our veteran hospitals and clinics and other healthcare providers in Kansas. prgtoken Today, we are dealing with economic relief for those who are losing their job, fearful of losing their job, or have already lost their job. Much of life's meaning comes from our employment, from what we do. A job is certainly something that helps put food on a family's table and provides some security for an individual, but it also provides meaning. No one can understand, unless they are without a job, how devastating that can be. prgtoken I am pleased by the number of business men and women who have called me to tell me the last thing they want to do is
CORONAVIRUS
Lamar Alexander (Republican, TN) \u2014 2020-3-18

I congratulate the Senator from Kansas on his eloquent remarks, expressing the feelings--certainly mine and those, I believe, of virtually every Member of this body--that we are here not as or s but to work together to do whatever we can to address the concerns that are literally unprecedented. prgtoken This is an unprecedented time in our country. I cannot remember a time in my life or in our history when the government has literally closed down the country in order to contain a disease. That is literally what we are doing. Whether it is the Federal Government by its travel restrictions, or whether it is the State governments suggesting that schools be closed, or whether it is mayors saying that restaurants must be closed, we are closing down the country to contain a disease. Because the government is doing that on behalf of all the people, we are going to have to pay the costs of closing down the country to contain this disease. prgtoken Today, the news is that the auto industry across the country is closing down, at least temporarily. There are layoffs. prgtoken I have watched over the last 40 years as Tennessee has gone from almost no auto jobs to proudly calling itself, in many ways, the No. 1 auto State. One hundred forty thousand Tennesseans work in auto jobs in Tennessee; that is one-third of all of our manufacturing jobs. They are spread through 88 counties. And over these 40 years as textiles and other industries moved away from the United States and out of our State, the auto companies moved in--virtually into every county--and our family incomes went up. So if we are, in many ways, the No. 1 auto State, then we are the No. 1 State to be hurt when the auto plants begin to close. prgtoken We are also hurt, as are citizens in every State, when the restaurants shut down. Fifteen million Americans work in restaurants. It is one of our largest industries, if not our largest industry. Almost all of those workers are being laid off in Tennessee and in many other places in the country and even more will be. prgtoken Not all of those affected are working for big auto companies or medium-sized restaurants. I received an email yesterday from friends in Tennessee who run a kennel. Well, you may say that is not so important. Well, it is important to a lot of us. They say: We are . . . suffering a massive drop off in our business as a result of the Coronavirus. I fear we may have to close our doors for a month or two (hopefully not that long), as our wonderful customers are forced to curtail travel. I am currently trying to secure around $50,000 in loans to supplement our dwindling reserves to see us through until May [or] June. I am currently applying . . . for SBA disaster relief. This precipitous drop in business comes on the heels of major flood damages to our fencing [caused] by the [recent] floods . . . our flood in
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Patrick J. Toomey (Republican, PA) \u2014 2020-3-18

from Wisconsin for leading on this effort. prgtoken I rise in strong support of this amendment. The two of us--and I suspect almost everybody in this Chamber--fully support the idea, the goal, and the need to provide relief to workers who have been affected by this pandemic. That is not what is in dispute here. There is a legitimate and serious concern about the mechanism by which that is provided. prgtoken The House bill imposes a very significant administrative burden on the very small businesses struggling to survive. We are all taking these phone calls from all across our States--men and women who are operating a business. They are on the edge, and they are trying to figure out: How do we stay alive? How do we keep this business alive until we can come out on the other side? They are struggling with all kinds of very, very tough decisions that they are having to make for the first time ever in completely unchartered waters. prgtoken Then this legislation comes along and says: Now, by the way, you are going to have to figure out and navigate your way through a whole new system you have never heard of before, and you are going to have to go through all the books and the rules and regulations and consult your lawyer and figure out exactly how you comply with this complex, new mechanism so that you comply with the law and get the reimbursement that is intended. That is a huge problem for these folks who are struggling to stay alive. prgtoken So what Senator Johnson's amendment does is this: It just shifts the substantial administrative costs and burdens off the back of the business owner and operator and allows it to be managed by the State unemployment systems that are in the business of providing compensation. We plus it up, and we waive the waiting periods so that the individual workers who are adversely affected by this COVID-19 pandemic will still get the benefits that we all want them to get. It is just a better way to deliver this. prgtoken So I hope my colleagues will vote in favor of it. prgtoken .
CORONAVIRUS
Joe Manchin, III (Democrat, WV) \u2014 2020-3-18

thank you. I want to thank my colleague from Oregon for his big heart and his compassion, continually always worrying about those being left behind and forgotten. I can assure you that Mr. Merkley does not leave anybody behind, and he never forgets those who are in need of help. prgtoken Let me just say, in speaking about what we are dealing with, unlike anything we have ever seen in my lifetime and most people's lifetimes, up until a couple days ago, my State of West Virginia felt like we were immune. There were no cases reported, and we were like an island in a sea of infestation around us. I knew that was not the case. Many people did not know that we were just not testing and the amount of tests were just not out there, so people had a false sense of hope and security. prgtoken That has been shattered. We have our first case now. I am praying to the good Lord we don't have many more, but I suspect because of the fragility of our citizens and the elderly population that we have, those who have done prgtoken hard work all their lives and have respiratory ailments could be in jeopardy. We are very concerned about that. prgtoken I was reluctant to come and speak, but I think there are some things that need to be said. We are moving in an unprecedented way to how much money should be thrown at a pandemic and how much money do they believe it will take to get us through this horrible time. First of all, we should be thinking about are we investing and trying to build our healthcare defense system back up? It has been basically decimated over the last 2 or 3 years. Should we not put the scientists and people who know back in positions where they can be looking at these horrible illnesses and diseases, pandemics, and viruses that we have coming from different parts of the world to protect us from them hitting our country again like this? prgtoken Next of all, should we not be putting everything we have into our research capabilities and working with all the scientists in all the different centers so that we can find a way to treat this virus with a vaccine that would prevent people from contracting this virus? Those are the measures we should be totally and absolutely committed to and spending our time and effort immediately upon. prgtoken Next of all, the financial help that we are going to need. First of all, don't you think we should be using this--through every challenge that we have ever had in this great country, we have found a way to come out of it bigger and stronger. Don't you think we should be manufacturing the medical devices that we need to heal and cure and take care of American citizens right here in the good old USA? Don't you think we should have the amount of products it takes to make the pharmaceutical pills that we need in order to keep us healthy or cure us, if you will? Don't you think some of that should be done in the USA that we have allowed to leave our shores and which no