mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR--(Continued)
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2022-5-18

when blew up the filibuster for nominees some 8 years ago, s warned then that they would regret that move when the tables were turned. It seemed like such short-term thinking on the ' part, but I have said before that progressive ideology has many convinced that they are, so to speak, on the side of history in the long run. prgtoken If you believe history is heading only in one direction and that direction is your way, you don't worry about the pendulum swinging back. That explains why they broke from 200 years of precedent to filibuster conservative judges nominated by President and then expressed shock and outrage when their own precedent was used against them under President . That ideology also explains why can passionately defend the filibuster one day as a vital protection for the minority and then just months later, after taking control of a 50-50 Senate thanks only to the Vice President's tie- breaking vote, call the filibuster racist. prgtoken The phrase ``demography is destiny'' as applied to politics today is another version of progressive ideology. The assumption with ``demography is destiny'' is that ethnic minorities who tend to vote are bound to vote that way forever, so they support an open- border policy, with a push for amnesty, even if it green-lights human trafficking and lets the lethal fentanyl pour into the bloodstreams of young Americans, driving down life expectancy in our country. prgtoken Progressive assume more Hispanic citizens means more votes for them and then, somehow, a permanent majority. prgtoken Let me remind you that s thought that, after the elections of 1994 and 2010, that we would have a permanent majority. It didn't work out that way. Just like the Irish and Italians of the late 1800s and early 1900s, Hispanic citizens who have assimilated into the fabric of our Nation do not vote as a bloc. prgtoken So, just maybe, that is why the left seems increasingly desperate to stoke identity politics and racial division. Such thinking leads to counterproductive calls to, as an example, defund the police, followed by a desperate attempt to do a 180-degree turn when crime spikes and the very communities they sought to pander then end up suffering. prgtoken Remember how so many prominent felt compelled to defend and justify rioters they deemed to be on their side? Now insist not just on prosecuting January 6 rioters, as we should with all rioters, but on weaponizing that horrible day for political purposes. prgtoken They decry disinformation. They decry conspiracy theories on the right about the election while perpetuating conspiracy theories on the left. Remember the absurd claim that because the Postmaster General supported President , absentee ballots wouldn't be delivered in the 2020 election? It caused a lot of unnecessary worry for many Iowans
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR--(Continued)
Deb Fischer (Republican, NE) \u2014 2022-5-18

I rise today to voice my concern about attempts to undermine American institutions. prgtoken There is a difference between constructive efforts to ensure public institutions are accountable and trying to cut down these foundational institutions at their core. prgtoken Recently, our country commemorated National Police Week, and it was an opportunity to show our gratitude and appreciation to the men and women who put their lives on the line to keep our people and our communities safe. Yet we continue to see those on the left trying to villainize all law enforcement in this country. prgtoken President and Pelosi, scared about their party's dropping poll numbers, can keep trying to muffle their colleagues' destructive comments, but what the have already said has harmed our Nation's law enforcement. prgtoken We heard ``defund the police'' from many--too many--ic elected officials. prgtoken During a CNN interview in June 2021, a Massachusetts Congresswoman said: I support a radical re-imagining of community safety and public safety, which means reallocating and not further investing in a carceral state. prgtoken A New York Congresswoman has called for the Federal Government to apply pressure to disrupt the system in reference to police departments. prgtoken Others have said time and time again that we must ``completely re- imagine what policing looks like in our country.'' prgtoken What affect is this antipolice rhetoric having on those who swear to serve and protect? Not surprisingly, we are seeing a drain on law enforcement agencies. Numbers of law enforcement officers rose from 2014 to 2020; however, over the past 2 years, retirements and resignations are climbing while recruitment numbers are down. Many of our law enforcement agencies are receiving far fewer applications. prgtoken This is something that I directly discussed with Sergeant Tony Conner, the president of the Omaha Police Officer's Association, when we met recently. Application numbers for some Nebraska law enforcement agencies are down 75 prgtoken percent or more compared to just a few years ago. prgtoken Contributing to these challenges, police officers' jobs have also become increasingly dangerous. Last year, we saw surges in violence and aggression towards officers. Three hundred and forty-six police officers were shot in the line of duty, and 130 of them were targeted and shot in ambush-style attacks. In a recent CBS ``60 Minutes'' interview, FBI Director Christopher Wray said there had been a 59- percent increase in the murders of police officers, with 73--73-- officers killed in 2021. That is a rate of about one officer killed every 5 days. prgtoken Without a doubt, ' antipolice rhetoric has diminished morale and eroded public trust in law enforcement. Maybe that was the goal. prgtoken But dwindling application numbers to join the force also are contributing to rising crime all across th
Border Security (Executive Calendar)
James Lankford (Republican, OK) \u2014 2022-5-18

in tracking through what is happening on our southern border, it is interesting I still have folks that catch me and say, ``I don't see anything about it in the news anymore, so what is happening?'' prgtoken So I try to periodically come here to the floor to be able to describe what is happening. Interestingly enough, just yesterday, the leadership of CBP did their news release that they normally do to kind of outline what is happening at the border. prgtoken In their news release they released out: CBP works to secure and manage our borders while building a fair and orderly [im]migration system. prgtoken This is what they put out yesterday--while we build an orderly and fair migration system. prgtoken Interestingly enough, this was a picture taken the day before their press release. This was taken in the Eagle Pass area of Texas in the Rio Grande Valley, and, yes, that line you see are people coming across the river in Eagle Pass. prgtoken Now, you don't catch everything because you can't see how much farther it goes this way and how much farther it goes that way. prgtoken This was the day before CBP released this statement: We work to secure and manage our borders while building a fair and orderly migration system. prgtoken Earlier in the report, the very first page of the news release, CBP leadership said: After many months of planning, we are executing a comprehensive strategy to safely, orderly, and humanely manage our borders. CBP is surging personnel and resources to the border, increasing processing capacity, securing more air and ground transportation, and increasing medical supplies, food, water and other resources to ensure a humane environment for those being processed, screened, and vetted. prgtoken By the way, just south and west of this, just the day before this was taken, Border Patrol picked up two child sex predators, four MS-13 gang members, and an 18th Street gang member--just right before this, just the day before this was released. prgtoken This is our frustration with the administration right now. Because the media has turned away and decided they are not going to look at this, that they are not going to pay attention to it, everyone seems to think everything has just gotten fine. prgtoken What is really happening on our southern border, again, from current statistics right now, they are only able to handle 44 percent of the flow coming across the border. At 44 percent of the flow, right now, they are releasing thousands of people directly into the country with a notice to report saying: ``Turn yourself in to an ICE facility anywhere in the country, and they will process you there,'' because they can't handle the backlog of the thousands of people coming across. prgtoken What are we talking about, thousands of people? Well, remember last year when the cameras were all focused on the southern border? Last year, there were 6,500
Agriculture (Executive Session)
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2022-5-18

farming and ranching are industries that are particularly subject to the whims of the weather. Just one storm can wipe out an entire herd or crop, sometimes in a matter of minutes. prgtoken Last Thursday, several storms struck eastern South Dakota and farmers were hit hard. Fortunately, it was too early in the season to wipe out any crops, but farmers lost essential equipment and resources, feed, grain bins, outbuildings, and more. prgtoken My office will be doing everything it can to make sure those affected get the assistance they need to recover, and I know many are already planning to rebuild. Whether it is a natural disaster or an ordinary day, farmers and ranchers are always at the top of my mind here in the Senate. Agriculture is the lifeblood of our South Dakota economy, and I am committed to doing everything I can to ensure that our farmers and ranchers have the resources they need to help feed our country. prgtoken I am fortunate enough to be a long-time member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, which gives me an important platform in which to address the needs of South Dakota ag producers. Right now, a big focus of mine is the 2023 farm bill. prgtoken I have already held the first of a series of roundtables to hear from South Dakota farmers and ranchers about what they need out of the 2023 farm bill. And I have introduced the first of what will be a number of proposals prgtoken that I hope to get included in next year's legislation. prgtoken My Conservation Reserve Program Improvement Act, which I introduced in March, would make CRP grazing a more attractive option by providing cost-share payments for all CRP practices for the establishment of grazing infrastructure, including fencing and water distribution. prgtoken It would also increase the annual payment limit for CRP, which hasn't been changed since 1985, to help account for inflation and the increase in land value. prgtoken I am also working with colleagues from agriculture States on legislation based on my conversations with South Dakota farmers and ranchers. In fact, last week I joined Senator Klobuchar to introduce the Agriculture Innovation Act. prgtoken Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture collects reams of data on conservation practices. The problem is that a lot of this data is often not analyzed and presented in a way that would be useful for farmers and ranchers. prgtoken The legislation Senator Klobuchar and I have introduced would provide for better processing and development of the data that the USDA collects so that farmers and ranchers can evaluate the impact of conservation and other production practices on things like soil health, crop yields, and profitability. prgtoken Our bill would make it easier for farmers and ranchers to decide what conservation practices to adopt by, among other things, helping producers identify the ways adopting conservation practices can improve their bottom line. prgtoken And Senato
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR--(Continued)
Joni Ernst (Republican, IA) \u2014 2022-5-18

etched in marble above the chair you are sitting in is the Latin phrase ``E Pluribus Unum,'' meaning ``out of many, one.'' prgtoken Despite our differences, the union among our respective States as a single nation expressed by this motto has endured for nearly 250 years. The principles of liberty and equality upon which our Nation was conceived have not only survived but continued to flourish and expand from one generation to the next. prgtoken Many of us who are Members of this body would not have been eligible to cast a vote, much less serve in Congress, not so long ago. We stand here as real, live proof that the American experiment in self- determination has been a success unlike any other in history. This triumph has been made possible by the institutions established by our Founders to serve as guardrails to ensure liberty and maintain order while preventing tyranny. prgtoken Today more than ever, those institutions are under attack by the intrusion prgtoken of a woke counterculture that has taken over the ic Party. They condemn America as culpable rather than exceptional and embrace socialism, a system in which government controls everything. prgtoken Under the spell of these radical elements, the have unleashed a strange multiverse of madness in which reality no longer has meaning and the foundations upon which our Nation was built are being turned upside down and inside out or destroyed altogether. prgtoken The left tells us to trust the science and to believe all women--yet they can't even define what a woman is--and that criminals are victims and the law enforcement officers who risk their own lives every day to protect us are somehow the real perpetrators of injustice. Now they want Washington to be the arbiter of truth. That is right, folks. The Department of Homeland Security, which should be focused on securing our borders, is now trying to police what the administration deems disinformation. It sounds like a novel idea, and by that, I mean George Orwell's novel ``1984'' in which the Ministry of Truth pushed state propaganda which was the exact opposite of truth. prgtoken This attempt to control what you can and cannot say is not only an attack on our First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech and the press, but an assault on truth itself. We don't need anyone in Washington--especially , who is factually challenged himself-- telling us how to think or what to say. That may be how things are run in socialist countries like Russia and China but not in America, the land of the free. prgtoken The Senate itself is a prime target of this effort to undermine America's institutions by silencing opposing views. The are determined to end the Senate's long tradition of unlimited debate that has long guaranteed all voices can be heard. Senator Schumer once said that eliminating the filibuster would be ``a doomsday for democracy.'' He then ignored
RECOGNIZING THE RETIREMENT OF MS. LISHA H. ADAMS
Mike Rogers (Republican, AL) \u2014 2022-5-18

. Madam , I would like to pay tribute to Ms. Lisha H. Adams, Executive Deputy to the Commanding General of Army Materiel Command. prgtoken Ms. Adams has 39 years of government service experience supporting Army and Joint prgtoken Force programs, with 35 of those years served at Army Materiel Command. A graduate of the Army Materiel Command Materiel Maintenance Management Intern Program, she has held various leadership positions in acquisition and sustainment, including Logistics Division Chief, Unmanned Vehicle Systems Project Office; Director of Logistics, PEO for Tactical Missiles; and Principal Deputy, G-3, U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command. Selected for the Senior Executive Service in January 2011, Ms. Adams also served as the Executive Director, Integrated Materiel Management Center, U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command. prgtoken In June 2011, Ms. Adams was assigned as the Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/4 for Logistics Integration, responsible for sustaining the Joint Warfighter through command and control of supply chain management, depot and National Maintenance Program operations, asset management and distribution, reset, and ammunition/chemical stockpile management. prgtoken Prior to her appointment to Executive Deputy to the Commanding General, she served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Materiel Readiness, where she was the principal advisor to the Office of the Secretary of Defense leadership on policies, procedures and actions related to the materiel readiness of Department of Defense weapons and other materiel systems. prgtoken In her current capacity as Executive Deputy to the Commanding General, Ms. Adams is responsible for materiel life cycle management, acquisition support, personnel and resource management, industrial base operations and enterprise integration for a globally reaching command with over 175,000 military, civilian and contractor employees, impacting all 50 states and more than 150 countries. prgtoken Ms. Adams earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Birmingham-Southern College and received her Master of Business Administration degree from the Florida Institute of Technology. Ms. Adams is Defense Acquisition Level III certified in Program Management and Lifecycle Logistics. Her awards include the Department of the Army Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service; DA Meritorious Civilian Service Award; DA Superior Civilian Service Award; DA Civilian of the Year; Redstone Chapter AUSA, 2010; DA Integrated Logistics Support Achievement of the Year Award for ILS Management; and the Commander's Award for Civilian Service. prgtoken I congratulate Ms. Adams on her retirement and thank her for her service to America.
Indo-Pacific Region (Executive Calendar)
Bill Hagerty (Republican, TN) \u2014 2022-5-18

with the President of the United States soon to be departing on his first Asia trip, I rise to speak today about U.S. policy in the Indo-Pacific, an area of the world that I know very well, having served as U.S. Ambassador to Japan prior to joining the U.S. Senate. prgtoken While U.S. foreign policy in recent months has focused largely on Eastern Europe, we cannot take our attention away from our Nation's greatest strategic adversary, namely, the Chinese Communist Party. Confronting communist China is the essential responsibility of our time, as the China challenge--and how the United States and prgtoken our allies respond to it--will determine whether freedom or autocracy defines the 21st century. That is why I am pleased to see President investing the time and energy to travel to South Korea and to Japan this weekend. prgtoken I can tell you just how critical I believe this trip is because I made a trip similar to this just last month. In April, I led the first congressional delegation to visit Japan since the pandemic began. I was joined by my colleagues Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland and Senator John Cornyn of Texas. prgtoken During our 6 days in Japan, our bipartisan delegation met with the country's top leaders, including the Prime Minister, his Cabinet members, Parliamentarians, and top leaders from Japanese industry. I think it is fair to say that our delegation returned with a great sense of optimism--optimism about the opportunities that lie before our two nations to increase our cooperation diplomatically, militarily, economically, and technologically and, by so doing, strengthening our alliance. prgtoken While I certainly have policy disagreements with the current administration, I am hopeful that this is one area in which we can find common ground. The fates of our Nation and the world depend on it. This challenge, quite frankly, is just far too important to get wrong. So I am hopeful that President will seize upon the opportunities presented to him in the Indo-Pacific region to confront the China challenge head-on and that this trip will provide him with a greater perspective to do so. prgtoken I am pleased to see this administration maintain a focus on the Indo- Pacific region, a focus that President began and that I personally was proud to help lead from my diplomatic post in Tokyo. I also applaud President for the actions that he has taken to engage the Quad at the leader level. Much more can be done. prgtoken In terms of strengthening our diplomatic cooperation, the United States should warmly welcome Japan's proactive leadership in response to recent international crises. Japan is the world's third largest economy and a major financial player on the world stage. Japan is a member of the G7. prgtoken In the days after Russia's unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, the Government of Japan joined by imposing strong, multilateral sanctions again
HONORING MONTGOMERY COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL'S MOCK TRIAL TEAM
Andy Barr (Republican, KY) \u2014 2022-5-18

. Madam , I rise to honor the members and coaches of the Montgomery County High School Mock Trial Team, winners of the National High School Mock Trial Championship. prgtoken The students defeated over 40 state champion high school debate teams to capture the title on May 7, 2022 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. These students worked for months in preparation for this challenging competition. Mock Trial provides students with the opportunity to improve critical thinking and public speaking skills, to gain exposure to the legal system, and to compete at the highest level. Over the years, Montgomery County High School has won 14 state titles. prgtoken Special congratulations are in order for Bryce Charles, who was named a National Top-10 Witness, and Ollie Fegenbush, a National Top 10 Attorney. prgtoken Thank you to coaches Ryan Allison, Jamie Allison, and Elizabeth Davis for their leadership and for the opportunity they provide for the students. Thank you also to the parents and the entire Montgomery County community for their support and encouragement. Winning against much larger schools from across this Nation brings a great deal of pride and hope to all in the community. prgtoken As a former debate team member myself, I appreciate the dedication and hard work of these students. They have learned skills that will serve them well as adults and have made memories that will last a lifetime. I commend them for their wonderful accomplishment as National Champions.