mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Dan Sullivan (Republican, AK) \u2014 2018-3-22

I wish to add my words to what we saw on the Senate floor here a couple of minutes ago. I had the honor of presiding over much of the ceremony recognizing Senator Thad Cochran's incredible service to Mississippi and to America. You heard a lot. It was really remarkable--45 years in the Congress and four decades as a U.S. Senator. I think Senator Leahy, from Vermont, said it best when he talked about Thad Cochran's integrity--a man who will always keep his word. prgtoken As Alaska's Senator, I also want to mention what a great friend he was to our State and to our Senators. Senator Cochran was very close to Senator Ted Stevens--the late Senator Ted Stevens--and to Frank Murkowski. He really supported our State--my State--and I want to thank him for that. prgtoken He has this great nickname that I think was given to him in 2006, when Time Magazine said he was one of the best U.S. Senators and called him the ``quiet persuader.'' You heard that term a lot just a few minutes ago. In that article, they said that he had gained the trust of the administration and on Capitol Hill for his quiet, courtly manner, using his experience and mastery of the issues to persuade his colleagues privately rather than making demands of them in public. prgtoken It is a great example we can all learn from. I was proud to have been able to serve and learn from Thad Cochran for the last 3 years. Tribute to Carlos Gomez prgtoken , one of the things I enjoy doing in my duties in the Senate is to come down each week to recognize somebody special in my State--somebody who has made a difference for their community, somebody who might not get the attention that people get in the press or in other areas but someone who has really made an impact. I like to call that person our Alaskan of the Week. prgtoken Right now what has been happening in Alaska is a very special time. Our State, in many ways, is shrouded with myth and mystique. We certainly have, I believe, the most beautiful State in the country. There is a lot of excitement that happens, a lot of special things. Just last week, we had 60 mushers who were being pulled by dog teams, dozens of dogs--these great athletes, as we call them--nearly 1,000 miles through some of the harshest landscapes and some of the harshest climates. We just finished the Iditarod, the last great race. We want to encourage people watching on TV and people in the Galleries to come on up to Alaska. You will love it. It will be the trip of a lifetime. Come see the Iditarod next year, the last great race. We just finished that. prgtoken It is a great time to be in Alaska. It is still winter, of course. It is time to ski and for snow machines. It is still cold, and there is lots of snow, but the sun is now coming out high in the sky. Of course, in Alaska, there is hockey. We love hockey. We all know it is a tough and competitive sport, but it certainly fits into
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF THE SENATE AMENDMENT TO H.R. 1625, TARGETED REWARDS FOR THE GLOBAL ERADICATION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING; AND PROVIDING FOR PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PERIOD FROM MARCH 23...
Rob Woodall (Republican, GA) \u2014 2018-3-22

I thank the chairman for his leadership on the committee. It seems like I just saw him a couple of hours ago, but only because I just saw him a couple of hours ago. prgtoken , you know as well as anyone that it is hard to get things done around here. It is never made any easier by the recriminations that circulate so widely. I appreciate the 's admonition about engaging in conflicts of personality. This is hard. prgtoken This isn't the bill I would have voted for. In fact, it is not the bill I voted for the first time around. When this House did its job 9 months ago, when it was supposed to do its job, we voted on a completely different bill. But as my friend from Massachusetts knows full well, , if s had 60 votes in the Senate, we wouldn't be going through these machinations. prgtoken We go through these machinations for one reason and one reason only, and that is, after a -led House gets its work done, the Senate can't. The Senate can't because they work in a much more bipartisan way. As bipartisan as this institution is, that institution is even more so by the Senate rules. prgtoken We talk about this as if it is a spending bill, . I just want to be clear: this includes brownfields act reauthorization. That is the bill that lets us go into environmentally damaged areas and restore them. We haven't been able to get that done just in the normal course of doing business. So to get it across the Senate floor, it is now added into this bill. prgtoken The Child Protection Improvement Act, , is the bill that provides the database so that caregivers and parents can go and see who it is that is taking care of their children and make sure folks are properly vetted. We couldn't get that through in the normal process, so we had to add it into this bill. prgtoken , the CLOUD Act is the bill that allows law enforcement to go and access information stored on clouds in other countries so that you don't have to wait 9 months through bureaucracies so that you can identify those terrorists, those criminals, earlier and more often. We couldn't get that through the regular process, so we have got that in the bill. prgtoken E-Verify, , is the provision that allows any employer to dial in online to make sure that they are hiring American citizens. It is buried in this bill, . prgtoken Together, we are getting things done. This bill is an example of that. It is a source of progress, not an impediment.
TRIBUTE TO LILLIEMARIE GORE
Marco Rubio (Republican, FL) \u2014 2018-3-22

today I recognize Lilliemarie Gore, the Alachua County Teacher of the Year from Idylwild Elementary School in Gainesville, FL. prgtoken When Lilliemarie was named Teacher of the Year, she thanked two of her own teachers who played important roles in her life, Mrs. Jackson and Mrs. Gloria Jean Merriex. Mrs. Jackson was her third-grade teacher who inspired her to use education as a vehicle to escape the tough Miami neighborhood where she grew up. Mrs. Merriex was a teacher Lilliemarie worked with at Duval Elementary School who was known for using rhymes, music, and other innovative techniques to teach math to students. prgtoken While Lilliemarie learned about teaching concepts and theories in college, she said the 4 years of mentoring by Gloria taught her the fundamentals of teaching. Lilliemarie says teaching starts with having a genuine love for students and believes that, when the children know you love them, they are willing to jump through hoops to do whatever needs to be done. She loves her kids with everything she has, and they know she loves them. prgtoken Lilliemarie attended the University of Florida and earned degrees in early elementary and special education. She is a fourth-grade teacher at Idylwild Elementary School and has been an Alachua County Public School teacher for 5 years. prgtoken I would like to extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Lilliemarie for all the fine work she has done and wish her continued success in the years to come.
TARGETED REWARDS FOR THE GLOBAL ERADICATION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
John R. Carter (Republican, TX) \u2014 2018-3-22

I thank the gentleman for yielding. prgtoken , I rise in support of this legislation. prgtoken The Homeland Security division of this bill contains $47.7 billion to fund the Department of Homeland Security. prgtoken This bill provides strong funding to help Americans recover when disaster hits; ensures the security of our air, land, and sea borders; and protects our local communities from outside threats. prgtoken This bill provides more than 90 miles of barrier fencing, to include 33 miles of new fencing in the Rio Grande Valley. It includes $284 million for inspection equipment to combat drug trafficking, to include $71 million to specifically target opioid detection. It sustains ICE detention activities and provides additional funding to hire more agents. prgtoken It funds the vessels and aircraft our Coast Guard needs to protect our coastline. It also fully funds activities to combat cyber attacks. prgtoken , this last year has been a tough year for Texans, who suffered from our most ruthless hurricane season. I saw the devastation firsthand. This bill will go a long way to help those folks and their homes. prgtoken This bill includes $7.9 billion for FEMA to continue to respond to this and future disasters, and $249 million for grants to prevent future storms from causing damage like this again. prgtoken I would like to thank very much my colleague, Ms. Lucille Roybal- Allard, the ranking member on my committee. She is a dream to work with, and we are great partners in this process. I would also like to thank the majority and minority staffs for their hard work on this bill. prgtoken , as I conclude, I would like to take a moment to say farewell and thanks to a member of our Homeland Security Subcommittee team. prgtoken Christopher Romig is leaving our committee at the end of April, after 30 years of service to our Nation. He spent 27 of those years in our great Army as a helicopter pilot. He brought his military background to our Homeland Security Subcommittee team, and we benefited from his experience and sharp mind for the past 3 years. Now we wish him well on his next adventure. prgtoken I also would like to take a minute to thank the FBI and the ATF for the great work they have done in the central Texas area for the person we call the Austin bomber.
ISSUES OF THE DAY
Louie Gohmert (Republican, TX) \u2014 2018-3-22

it is always an honor to address this Hallowed Hall, sometimes more hallowed than others, but today was a bit of a sad day for some of us. The Federalist reported the headline: Congress Rushes Towards Spending Vote to Prevent a Shutdown. ``Congressional leaders released a $1.3 trillion government spending plan for the rest of the fiscal year and asked lawmakers to begin voting on it with only hours to read and analyze the 2,232-page text. ``The measure is wide ranging, with funds for fencing on the U.S.- Mexico border, combating opioid addiction and building new roads, along with incentives to bolster reporting to a database for gun-buyer background checks.'' prgtoken I have got to assert, , that this fix NICS bill, as it's been called, leaves in place a practice that has been going on. It grieved me greatly that s would rush to embrace this thing, which allows the practice that the administration started that administrative procedures by unelected, unaccountable-to-voters bureaucrats could decide people were not, in their opinion, entitled to have their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. prgtoken We have heard accounts of people who didn't realize that they were being questioned in a way that would be used to take their guns away and their right to keep and bear arms to protect themselves, to engage in self-defense, and the VA is the most notorious. Simply asking a question like, ``Who takes care of your checkbook finances?'' and answer anything like, ``Oh, my wife takes care of that,'' then a matter of weeks later, a letter is received saying you don't have a right to have a gun. prgtoken It is amazing that the administration would start such an unconstitutional practice, and it is, to me, even more grievous that s would participate in a bill that says it is going to correct a problem and make America safer when, actually, what it does will not make a difference in the mass shootings that have occurred. prgtoken But in the tradition of Congress, if there is a problem, too often people in this body feel it is not important that we do something that will make a difference; it is just important that we look like we are doing something. That is really where the fix NICS bill came into play. prgtoken It really wouldn't make people safer. It will add some restrictiveness, and it allows this heinous practice of having some bureaucrat at the VA just decide that a veteran who served his or her prgtoken Nation valiantly, qualified to use a weapon, can't have a weapon. prgtoken Forget the Constitution. We are the VA, and we decide you don't get one. Rather egregious. prgtoken But most egregious of all, we have about half a year to go, and we just voted $1.3 trillion to be spent between now and the end of the fiscal year, which ends midnight September 30. Quite tragic. prgtoken And we are told, over and over, by pollsters that the American public doesn't want to hear about pr
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Johnny Isakson (Republican, GA) \u2014 2018-3-22

it is an honor for me to come to the floor of the Senate and talk for a minute about my friend Thad Cochran. I know everybody has probably said everything that needs to be said; just everybody hasn't said it yet. Kind of in the vein of what Senator Blunt said, everybody says the same thing about Senator Cochran: He is gracious, smart, gentle, effective, and a great colleague. prgtoken I want to tell my colleagues about Thad Cochran. When I came to the Senate 14 years ago, I had served in every legislative body I could be elected to where I live. I served in the Georgia House, the Georgia Senate, the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate--all representative legislative bodies. In each one of them, I got some advice. prgtoken My first year in the Georgia House, 41 years ago, I got some very good advice. A good friend of mine said: Johnny, I will tell you what you do. The first year you are here, don't say a word. Just watch everybody talk. Watch what everybody else does. Look at people you would like to be like, and for the remainder of your career, be like that person, because in the end, this business is about relationships and effectiveness, not about bluster and bragging. prgtoken I did pick out a guy; his name was Carl on. Carl on has since passed away, but he was one of the best friends I have ever had in life. I watched him in the Georgia Legislature, and I patterned myself after Carl on, and the success I had was because I followed a great leader like him. prgtoken When I got to the U.S. Senate, I knew I needed leadership. I knew I needed to find a book or something to tell me how to be a good Senator. I remembered Carl. I said: You know, I am going to sit in this body. I have 6 years in this term. Surely I can take a few months for the first year and kind of figure things out. prgtoken So I started watching. I could see the characteristics and the quality of each and every individual in the Senate, and everybody offers unique gifts that they have given to this body. I kept watching Thad Cochran. He was respected. He always had time for you. He never let you know he had been here a lot longer than you ever thought about being here, maybe even longer than you had been born. He listened to you, and if you asked him a question, he gave you an answer. prgtoken So I called my wife and I said: Sweetheart, when we come back to Washington next week, I want to take Thad Cochran to dinner because I have decided he is the guy I would like to be most like. prgtoken I am not making this up; this is exactly what happened. prgtoken So we went to Ocean Air. Thad, I don't know if you remember that night. It was pretty crowded. Thad is not a loud guy, but when Thad walks in a room, it gets a little bit quieter because everybody knows wisdom has arrived. My wife and I enjoyed that dinner that night, and we became great friends. prgtoken We had a number of issues on which we engaged each other over the cou
CONGRATULATING KRISTI PACE
Mike Bishop (Republican, MI) \u2014 2018-3-22

I rise today--during Women's History Month--to congratulate Kristi Pace, who was named the 2017 Brighton Police Officer of the Year. While she has only been with the force for two years, Officer Pace has already left an enormous mark and impression on her fellow officers. Police Chief Rob Bradford noted that she--the only female on the force--is ``highly prgtoken regarded as a new, up-and-coming leader of the department, and is very well-respected'' by her peers. prgtoken Officer Pace continues to seek ways to improve herself. After attending the FBI's Crisis Negotiator, Evidence Technician, and Taser Instructor Schools, Officer Pace became a member of the Brighton department's Crisis Negotiator Team. I commend Officer Pace for her service and thank her for her selfless dedication to our community, and to the state of Michigan.
BUDGETARY REVISIONS
Michael B. Enzi (Republican, WY) \u2014 2018-3-22

on February 9, 2018, the President signed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 into law, H.R. 1892, P.L. 115-123. This bill passed the Senate by a vote of 71 to 28 and the House of Representatives by a vote of 240 to 186. Section 30101 of H.R. 1892 increased the statutory discretionary spending limits for Fiscal Year 2018. More specifically, it increased the Fiscal Year 2018 discretionary spending limit for the revised security category to $629 billion in new budget authority and the revised nonsecurity category to $579 billion in new budget authority. Section 4108 of the Fiscal Year 2018 congressional budget resolution provides me with the authority to adjust enforceable levels and allocations for such changes in the statutory limits. I am therefore adjusting the allocation to the Committee on Appropriations and the budgetary aggregates to reflect the new spending limits imposed by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018. prgtoken In addition to the changes triggered by P.L. 115-123, section 251 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, BBEDCA, establishes statutory limits on discretionary spending and allows for various adjustments to those limits, while sections 302 and 314(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 allow the chairman of the Budget Committee to establish and make revisions to allocations, aggregates, and levels consistent with those adjustments. The Senate is considering the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 1625, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018. This measure provides full-year appropriations for Federal Government agencies and contains spending that qualifies for cap adjustments under current statute. prgtoken This measure includes $78,097 million in budget authority that is designated as being for overseas contingency operations/Global War on Terrorism pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(ii) of BBEDCA. Of that amount, $66,079 million is for spending in the security category and $12,018 million is for nonsecurity spending. CBO estimates that this budget authority will result in $43,344 million in outlays in, Fiscal Year 2018. prgtoken This measure also includes $7,366 million in nonsecurity discretionary budget authority designated for disaster relief pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(D) of BBEDCA. This designation makes the spending associated with this provision and its associated outlays of $368 million eligible for an adjustment. prgtoken This legislation provides $1,896 million in nonsecurity discretionary budget authority for program integrity efforts. This funding is designated pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(B) and section 251(b)(2)(C) of BBEDCA. CBO estimates that this budget authority will result in $1,576 million in outlays this fiscal year. prgtoken Finally, this legislation repurposes existing emergency funding increasing outlays by $1 million. This action is designated as an emergency pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of BBEDCA
TARGETED REWARDS FOR THE GLOBAL ERADICATION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
James M. Inhofe (Republican, OK) \u2014 2018-3-22

this is going to be kind of a strange statement to make. I have great regret that I am going to have to vote for this bill when it comes up--and I am talking about the spending bill--and I don't like it. prgtoken I went through a lot of years as being--in fact, since I have been here, I have been ranked with the three most conservative Members every year--more times than anybody else has. I am looking at this right now, and I was listening to some of my colleagues who are concerned about the spending, and no one is more concerned than I am about the spending. We have a problem, though, that a lot of people don't understand. prgtoken I have been on the Senate Armed Services Committee for 24 years in the Senate, and I was on the same committee in the House before that, and I have never seen anything like this. We went through things back in the Carter administration where we had a hollow force, and then Ronald Reagan came along in 1980, and we rebuilt our military. Everybody knows that. They knew what was happening. A hollow force is not good. A hollow force means we can't really fight a war. Certainly we can't do two contingencies simultaneously, as has been our policy for a long period of time. And that is what we got into back then. Now, this hasn't happened since 1980. prgtoken I chair one of the subcommittees, and we had the vices in--this was at the end of the administration--and the four vices of the services all said the same thing: We are in a position now where we have a hollow force like we had back in the late seventies. prgtoken The public doesn't know this, and our press doesn't talk very much about this. They talk about all the problems that ring the bells and sell the newspapers and all of that, but they don't want to talk about the military. This is the reality of what we are faced with right now. prgtoken General Dunford is the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He said that we are losing our qualitative and quantitative edge in America. That means we have two great forces out there--one Russia and one China--and they are passing us up. Right now, both China and Russia, with the artillery pieces they have on tanks, can fire eight rounds a minute. Do you know how many rounds we can fire with ours? Four rounds a minute. prgtoken We got ourselves into a position where we had our ground brigades of the U.S. Army--this was at the end of the last administration--of our ground brigades, only 30 percent of them could be deployed. prgtoken I don't like to sound like I am being partisan when I talk about . I respect him in one area, and that is, he was admittedly a very proud prgtoken liberal, and proud liberals don't care that much about a defense system. They think that if all countries will stand in a circle and hold hands and unilaterally disarm, all threats will go away. So we went through that, and people didn't seem to care. prgtoken There is this myth out there th