mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2019
Richard M. Nolan (Democrat, MN) \u2014 2018-5-22

my amendment would strip all funding authorizations for the overseas contingency operations fund for fiscal year 2019, saving the American taxpayers $69 billion, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. prgtoken The overseas contingency fund has been called out by many, myself included, and including and s and liberals and conservatives, that this OCO budget is nothing but a slush fund for the purpose of circumventing the Budget Control Act in order to fund these endless wars of choice and the so-called nation-building that has been so costly to our country and our people in blood and in treasury. prgtoken As a result of the Cost of War Act, sponsored by our good friend John Lewis in 2016, we now have a more elaborate and adequate picture of how much these endless wars are costing us. prgtoken You will see from the chart that I have here that we are now involved in conflicts in 76 different countries all over the world. That is right. Forty-six percent of the countries in the world are involved in one kind of a conflict or another, and we have gotten ourselves involved in those. prgtoken Twenty-two of them happen to be in the Middle East, in Africa, where I have a little background to qualify myself on this. I lived in the Middle East. I have studied the language. I have got a fairly good idea what has been happening and what is going on there. So what I would like you to do is to just bear with me and look at the numbers as a result of that cost of war resolution. prgtoken Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University estimated we spent $5.6 trillion on these so-called wars of choice, that we have an additional $7.9 trillion going forward just on the interest paying for those costly wars, and that we have $2 trillion going forward to take care of the veterans. prgtoken That is right, the men and women who stood up to serve and protect us. They suffered irreparable damage. They lost arms. They lost legs. They had irreparable damage to their bodies and minds and spirits. Twenty-three of them are committing suicide every day. This totals up to be a little over $15 trillion. prgtoken I don't have time in my 5 minutes to go through it, but I could tell you in detail how we have been on every side of every one of these conflicts at one time or another, and it is time to put an end to it. We have so many unmet domestic needs in this country. prgtoken You all know, as Members of Congress, we need more money for infrastructure. We need more money for education. We need more money for healthcare. We need more money for mental health. We need more money for this and that, and indeed we do, but the money is not there. prgtoken That is the answer all the time: No, we don't have money to spend at the National Institutes of Health or anyplace else. prgtoken Why? Well, show me your budget. Show me your budget, and I will show you your priorities. $15 trillion has gone i
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2019
John Garamendi (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-5-22

such time as I may consume. prgtoken , this amendment deals with the new low-yield D5 or W76-2 nuclear warhead. prgtoken In the NDAA, there is the establishment of this new low-yield nuclear warhead. This amendment would fence 50 percent of the funding for the warhead until such time as the Secretary of Defense submits a report on the program's impacts on strategic stability and options to reduce the risk of miscalculation associated with the inability of adversaries to be able to distinguish between an SSBN missile carrying a single low- yield warhead and a missile carrying several high-yield nuclear warheads, and to preserve the survivability of the second-strike capability of the SSBNs. It also strikes the unnecessary provision in the mark. prgtoken People who have looked at these issues--for example, former Secretary of State George Shultz and Senator Lugar, recently wrote: ``The justification for new Trident warheads fails on many levels. It is unlikely that there is such a thing as a limited nuclear war; preparing for one is folly.'' prgtoken Back in January, 2018, former Secretary of State George Shultz wrote in Congressional testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee: ``One of the alarming things to me is this notion that we can have something called a small nuclear weapon, which I understand the Russians are doing, and that somehow that's usable,'' he told the panel. prgtoken He went on to say: ``Your mind goes to the idea that, yes, nuclear weapons become usable. And then we're really in trouble, because a big nuclear exchange can wipe out the world.'' prgtoken Senator Nunn and former Secretary Moniz talked about this, saying: ``The most immediate priority should be to structure and posture U.S. and Russian nuclear forces to deter nuclear use and reduce the risk of an accidental, mistaken or unauthorized launch. Against this backdrop, the current Russian concept of `escalate to de-escalate'--i.e limited nuclear use designed to create a pause in the conflict and open a pathway for a negotiated settlement on Moscow's terms--and U.S. calls for more `usable' nuclear weapons taken together make the world a vastly more dangerous place.'' prgtoken So what we would like to do here is simply have a report, again, from the Secretary of Defense to lay out exactly what this is all about, why it is important, and what it means for our principal deterrent force: nuclear-armed submarines. That is what it is. prgtoken , .
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2019
Ro Khanna (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-5-22

I want to thank Representative Gabbard for offering this amendment for one simple reason: it is going to stop the march to war in Iran, another blunder like Iraq. prgtoken I don't understand our foreign policy. It seems that the qualification, in John Bolton's case, is to be wrong for the last 25 years, and then that makes you an expert--wrong about Iraq and wrong about the neoconservative philosophy that got us into this mess. prgtoken This amendment, forget all the details; we are rushing again to another historic blunder, and this Congress needs to stop that. I respect Representative Gabbard for putting this forward so we don't make another blunder in our foreign policy.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Sheldon Whitehouse (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2018-5-22

in this, my 20th speech about the climate changes and ocean changes being driven by fossil fuels, I would like to discuss America's largest oil company, ExxonMobil. prgtoken For decades, ExxonMobil did everything in its power to deceive the American public about the existence and causes of climate change. I believe that full transparency would show ExxonMobil and its agents still obstructing efforts here in Washington to resolve the climate crisis, but I want to focus on one particular audience I believe Exxon has long misled--its shareholders. An Exxon CEO once went so far as to cite a bogus scientists petition to his shareholders--yes, that infamous ``petition'' cooked up by climate deniers that included cartoon characters and Spice Girls among the scientists. prgtoken For decades, Exxon investors have filed resolutions at shareholder meetings starting back as far as 1990 urging ExxonMobil to address climate and sustainability issues. Exxon succeeded in quashing every single one of them--quashing more than 40 shareholder resolutions in total, year after year--until last year. prgtoken At last year's meeting, big institutional investors like BlackRock threw their weight behind a resolution requiring Exxon to produce an annual report explaining how it will be affected by climate change and global efforts to protect us against climate change. Again, Exxon fiercely opposed this resolution, but this time Exxon lost. The resolution passed with 62 percent of the vote. prgtoken That gave Exxon some serious questions to answer: As the world transitions to a low-carbon economy, how much oil and gas does Exxon think we will need? How might declining demand for oil and gas affect Exxon's operations and bottom line? Will it be economical to produce all of the reserves currently listed on Exxon's books? Most significantly, can we burn all Exxon's reserves and not damage the planet? prgtoken Well, Exxon's inaugural climate risk report is out--I have been through it--and it looks to me like they are still playing hide the ball. It looks to me like a report that started with the conclusion that Exxon can develop all its reserves and then back-calculated the assumptions necessary to get to that conclusion. Let's have a look. prgtoken Scientists tell us that we must limit global warming to no more than 2 degrees Celsius if we are to avoid catastrophic changes to the planet we inhabit. Many believe that to keep a margin of safety, we actually need to target 1.5 degrees. prgtoken There is an article that just came out today headlined ``Limiting warming to 1.5 degree C would save majority of global species from climate change.'' To quote the article, it would ``avoid half the risks associated with warming of 2 degrees C.'' So there is a big difference of outcomes between 2 degrees Centigrade and 1.5 degrees Centigrade, and it will affect innumerable species on our planet. prgtoken Well, in its report, Exxon doesn't ad
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2019
Joe Courtney (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2018-5-22

I rise in support of this bill. prgtoken I want to begin by thanking the chair and ranking member of the full committee for their leadership in getting this bill to the floor and their commitment to regular order. prgtoken The bill before us has already gone through several rounds of bipartisan input, from the thousands of individual requests from members of the House Committee on Armed Services to more than 420 amendments and more than 14 hours of debate at full committee markup, to more than 560 amendments submitted from the whole House for potential debate this week. prgtoken I believe that this commitment to regular order is one of the main reasons, when we pass this bill this week, it will be the 58th year in a row that the House has passed a defense authorization. prgtoken I also salute my friend and colleague, Chairman Rob Wittman, for his inclusive and bipartisan approach to his role on the Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces. prgtoken This year's mark continues a multiyear, bipartisan effort by the Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces to push the Navy to explore options to build up important capabilities. To that end, the bill before us recommends 3 additional battle force ships above the 10 ships in the President's request. prgtoken It also continues the National Security Multi-Mission Vessel program to ensure that future mariners at our State maritime academies have new, American-made training ships and follows on last year's work on the subcommittee to recapitalize the Ready Reserve Force. prgtoken This bill also builds on the work our subcommittee has done to ensure that the Navy and industry have the resources to expand our undersea force. The need and rationale for a larger force of 66 fast attack submarines was laid out in the Navy's 2016 Force Structure Assessment, which was based on a thorough analysis of strategic challenges that are emerging in the maritime domain. prgtoken This year, and for the second year in a row, the committee heard blunt and powerful testimony from both Admiral of Pacific Command and General Scaparrotti of European Command that their requirements for submarines are not being met by our current force structure and warned that the expected decline in the undersea fleet carried unacceptable risk for the country. prgtoken Last year, the Committee on Armed Services responded to these warnings by including authorization to procure additional submarines in our mark--authority that was eventually carried to the final NDAA and this year's omnibus. prgtoken Navy officials have recently testified before the subcommittee about their intention to use this new authority to provide options for additional submarines in the next 5-year construction contract. Therefore, this year, the NDAA will make a downpayment on two additional submarines by providing authorization to fund the long-lead materials necessary to take advantage of industrial base capa
VETERANS CEMETERY BENEFIT CORRECTION ACT
Joe Manchin, III (Democrat, WV) \u2014 2018-5-22

I would like the right to proceed. prgtoken I thank my good friend from North Carolina, Senator Tillis. He is always willing to work in a bipartisan way. I thank him very much. prgtoken We have concerns about the VA and all of our veterans. He is in a State that has a tremendous population, and prgtoken I am in a State with a tremendous population of veterans. I am disappointed there is an objection to my bill. prgtoken I rise to speak to my frustration that the Asset and Infrastructure Review, or the so-called AIR Act, provision is being included in what is otherwise a very good package. I thank Chairman Isakson, Ranking Member Tester, and Senator Tillis for all their hard work on the overall MISSION Act. prgtoken The MISSION Act is going to do so many good things. It is going to streamline how we provide non-VA care. It is finally expanding caregivers for veterans of all eras, and it will make it easier for the VA to hire high-quality providers. prgtoken I am against adding the AIR, which is the Asset and Infrastructure Review Act, or I like to call it the VA BRAC. This bill could be detrimental to rural veterans. prgtoken The AIR Act provision was supposedly added by House s to the MISSION Act because the Senate insisted the caregivers bill be included. I am a proud cosponsor of the caregivers bill because it does not make sense to give a benefit to one era of veterans and not give it to them all. prgtoken Senator Murray for the year she has dedicated to the caregivers issue. The AIR Act was never voted on or discussed in the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee. The House Caregivers companion bill is bipartisan and has 90 cosponsors. We could pass this bill without the AIR Act in a heartbeat. prgtoken While I am generally supportive of efforts to cut waste, the AIR Act will not come close to paying for this bill. Instead, it puts rural hospitals and facilities like those in West Virginia in the crosshairs of the VA bureaucrats and technocrats who do not know my veterans and what they need. prgtoken The last time there was an asset review--the CARES Commission--was in the early 2000s. It recommended closing the acute inpatient hospital beds and contracting for acute care in the community for the Beckley VA Medical Center. Only after stakeholders yelled and screamed did the Secretary not follow their recommendations. prgtoken Today, those 25 acute care beds and 5 ICU beds are vitally important, not just to our Southern West Virginia veteran community but the entire community. Administrators at the surrounding hospitals have told me they could not absorb the Beckley VA patient load. We were lucky then to have vocal stakeholders holler and scream and a Secretary who listened, but will we be so lucky in the future? Furthermore, should veterans have to endure the uncertainty their VA hospital or CBOC may not always be there for them? prgtoken My veteran population is nearly 4
VETERANS CEMETERY BENEFIT CORRECTION ACT
Patty Murray (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2018-5-22

I come to the floor today to bring attention to a particular provision of the bill now before the Senate-- a provision that would do so much to help our country fulfill its promise to our veterans--and that is to expand and strengthen the VA's caregiver program. prgtoken This program may not be well known outside of military family circles, but, make no mistake, the caregiver program could be a game changer for the estimated 5.5 million people across this country who put their lives on hold to care for a loved one who returned from service with illness or injury. prgtoken I met one of those caregivers not too long ago in my home State of Washington. Tiffany Smiley wears many hats. She is a mother, a wife, a nurse, and a veteran caregiver. She and her husband Scotty first met back in junior high, and years later they were married. He signed up to serve our country and Tiffany became a military spouse. Then, in 2005, she got the call every military family fears. Scotty had been severely injured in a suicide bombing in Iraq. He was alive, but he lost his eyesight permanently. prgtoken As Tiffany describes it, her world was shaken to its core, and their lives were never the same again. But Tiffany, like so many other military spouses, didn't think twice about whether she would care for her husband and their growing family. It was just a matter of how she could do it. To this day, Tiffany is an amazing advocate for the caregiver program and what it has meant to her and to her family. prgtoken She describes both the good days and the bad days, so those of us not in her shoes can understand some of the challenges they face. She does it because she knows she is not alone. She knows that sharing her experience is making a difference to educate the rest of the country about what it means to be a veteran's caregiver. prgtoken It is so true. I heard from countless people who, when their loved one came home from service with an injury or illness, made big life changes by quitting a job, scaling back their hours, or taking leave from college. They put big purchases, retirements, and dream vacations on hold or they took on more parenting responsibilities. You name it. They sprang into action and did what they needed to do, because that is just what you do when it is someone you love. prgtoken We know that the care military caregivers provide comes at a cost. Several years ago, the Dole Foundation commissioned the largest ever study of its kind to examine the sacrifice of military caregivers. It showed that some caregivers spend more than 40 hours a week caring for veterans. That is the equivalent of a full-time job, and that takes a toll. The study showed that caregivers have significantly worse health than noncaregivers. They run a higher risk of depression because they put their own physical and mental well-being on hold. The stress of providing care can strain relationships and increase divorce rates. So ca
VETERANS CEMETERY BENEFIT CORRECTION ACT
Jon Tester (Democrat, MT) \u2014 2018-5-22

I thank Senator Moran for his kind comments. prgtoken I want to begin my comments by acknowledging the chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee. We would not be here today taking up the VA MISSION Act without the leadership of Senator Johnny Isakson of the majority. He is a fierce advocate for veterans, and he has been an incredible pleasure for me to work with. The bipartisanship and collaboration on our Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee happens because we leave politics at the door. That is possible because of Johnny's personality and leadership style, as well as his commitment to the veterans of this Nation. prgtoken I would also like to thank the many veterans service organizations that have weighed in and provided positive feedback on the VA MISSION Act. Thirty-eight veterans organizations representing millions of veterans and service men and women nationwide support the VA MISSION Act. They have been asking for Choice reform and responsible investment in the VA, and this bill gets it done. prgtoken I also thank the House Veterans' Affairs Committee for working with us in getting a bill drafted that we can all be proud of. prgtoken At the beginning of this Congress, we set out to draft a bill that reforms community care and also strengthens the VA. As Senator Moran pointed out, coming from a State like Montana--a rural State, 147,000 square miles--I know we cannot have a VA clinic in every community, but veterans cannot always drive 2 hours to the nearest VA clinic, and they certainly can't afford to wait months for an appointment. That is why we need private healthcare to fill in the gaps when the VA cannot deliver that healthcare. prgtoken I also know how much veterans need the services they get from a VA clinic. In my dozens and dozens of face-to-face listening sessions with veterans, they have told me that the kind of care they get from the VA is important. They are surrounded by their peers, many of whom have experienced the mental and physical implications of being in combat. VA doctors and nurses know how to treat PTSD, toxic exposure, and other wounds unique to their service. prgtoken The best defense against any effort to privatize the VA or send veterans wholesale to the private sector is to make sure the VA is living up to our promise to veterans. The VA MISSION Act recognizes that there is a balance prgtoken between VA care and community care and invests in medical and clinical staff to serve veterans at the VA. It builds capacity within the VA, and it uses the private sector to fill in the gaps where the VA falls short. prgtoken It takes the bill that Johnny and I wrote, the Caring for Our Veterans Act, and adds a few things, but the foundation of this legislation is something Senator Isakson and I have written over the course of the last year with veterans groups. So I am incredibly proud to be standing here today to hopefully push this bill to the President's desk.