mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Nomination of Ketanji Brown Jackson (Executive Calendar)
Marsha Blackburn (Republican, TN) \u2014 2022-3-30

earlier this week, I gave some examples of how the media is covering for Judge Jackson's lackluster performance in her Supreme Court confirmation hearing. I am not sure who they think they will persuade with these unhinged attacks, but what I do know is that the subtext has come through loud and clear for Tennesseans. It is: Sit down, shut up, stop questioning authority; and if you don't, we are going to come and get you. prgtoken That is what these headlines are basically saying. prgtoken Last night, I hosted a telephone townhall with more than 30,000 people across middle and east Tennessee, and they have rejected the message that they are seeing in these headlines. It is really pretty simple for them. The harder the media pushes and tries to shut them up, the more they are pushing for accountability, especially when it comes to protecting the future for their children and their grandchildren. prgtoken As I am sure many people will recall, during a line of questioning in Judge Jackson's confirmation hearing, I asked her a very simple question. All I wanted her to do was define the word ``woman.'' She told me she couldn't answer the question because she wasn't a biologist. If we had not been in the middle of a committee hearing, I would have thought that this was a joke. But we were in the middle of this committee hearing, and it wasn't. It was a very deliberate signal to a very specific group of individuals. prgtoken Of course, our friends in the media sensed this was going to backfire, as it did, so they flew into damage control mode. But I think it is safe to say they overplayed their hand on this one. According to this particular outlet, science says there is no simple answer to what a woman is. Don't question the science. That sounds familiar, doesn't it? We have heard that a lot lately. They went to great lengths to refute a simple fact that every single American learned in their grade school science class. Judge Jackson's answer and the media's panicked defense of it were both completely divorced from reality. prgtoken I have spoken at length about how Judge Jackson's total lack of a judicial philosophy causes these kinds of problems. But my ic colleagues and their activist friends still seem to be under the impression it is unreasonable to ask a Supreme Court nominee about her approach to interpreting the law. This makes no sense. Without that philosophy--without that basic standard--you cannot achieve stability or predictability, which are two things Judge Jackson repeatedly told us are important for a functioning judicial system. prgtoken I have serious questions about the nominee's refusal to engage us on this question. But what worries me more is her refusal to acknowledge that when it comes to law, not everything can or should be up for debate because political activists demand it. Our legal system is built on a foundation of definitions and rules, which are two equally impo
CARE IS AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY ACT
Daniel Webster (Republican, FL) \u2014 2022-3-30

. Madam , such time as I may consume. prgtoken Madam , H.R. 5547, the Care is an Economic Development Strategy Act, will ensure that recipients of Economic Development Administration grants consider the availability of childcare, early childhood education, disability, and eldercare in their comprehensive economic development strategy. prgtoken This helps ensure that the children, the elderly, and those with disabilities who live in rural and distressed communities are rightfully included in economic development planning. prgtoken Our friend and colleague from Alaska, the late Don Young, cosponsored this legislation as the champion for this bill. It is an example of the commitment he had to bipartisanship and to supporting efforts to help distressed communities not only in Alaska, but throughout the Nation. prgtoken Madam , I urge support of this legislation, and .
BIDEN'S ECONOMIC FAILURES
Tim Burchett (Republican, TN) \u2014 2022-3-30

. Madam , I rise to honor Specialist 4 Class Victor Hodge, an American hero who served his country as Tennessee's Second District's March 2022 Veteran of the Month. prgtoken Specialist 4 Hodge has battled health issues his entire life, but he never let that break his spirit. One day when he was 17 years old, he was out driving with his mother and saw an Uncle Sam poster on a building in Maryville, Tennessee. He told her to stop the car because he was joining the Army. She told him that they wouldn't take him, but Specialist 4 Hodge got out of the car anyway. And on July 28, 1978, he officially became a member of the United States Army, despite the obstacles created by his health. prgtoken He received his initial military training at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, and then was assigned to a Nike Hercules as a missile crewman. Upon completing his training, Specialist 4 Hodge was stationed at Homestead Air Force Base in Florida. His duty location was in the Florida Everglades, and he went on to become the leader of his squad. He served in Florida for a year and a half before health issues forced him to return to Fort Bliss. prgtoken Due to his health, Specialist 4 Hodge received a medical discharge from the Army. One of his favorite memories from his service in Florida was when he had the privilege of meeting General Bradley, the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. prgtoken Since retiring from the military, Specialist 4 Hodge has been blessed with three children, two stepchildren, and three he helps raise. Specialist 4 Hodge is a man of strong faith and thanks God every day for all the blessings in his life. prgtoken Despite persistent health struggles, Specialist 4 Hodge did not let that stop him from serving his country. It is my honor to recognize him as Tennessee's Second District's March 2022 Veteran of the Month.
100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE RESERVE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICA
Joe Wilson (Republican, SC) \u2014 2022-3-30

. Madam , happy 100th anniversary to the Reserve Organization of America, formerly known as the Reserve Officers Association of the United States. prgtoken As the only organization solely dedicated to supporting the Reserve components at all ranks of all services, the ROA is a professional association that supports the rights and benefits of its members and their families, promoting national security. prgtoken I know firsthand the effectiveness of ROA, having served with Colonel Leonard Metz as Midland's chapter president. prgtoken Shortly after World War I, in 1922, General John J. Pershing helped establish the ROA to ensure that America had a strong Reserve force to reinforce peace through strength. prgtoken ROA membership is open to all Federally commissioned officers, warrant officers, noncommissioned officers, enlisted, and their families of all services, along with the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. prgtoken In conclusion, God bless our troops, and we will never forget September the 11th and the global war on terrorism which comes to America, sadly, from a safe haven in Afghanistan. prgtoken Long live Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
THE STRENGTH OF AMERICAN AGRICULTURE
Glenn Thompson (Republican, PA) \u2014 2022-3-31

I thank Congressman Mann for yielding and for hosting this Special Order tonight on an industry that I believe is the most important industry in America. It is the industry that impacts and touches the lives of American families more times in a given day than any other. It is not just the food. It is the fiber; it is the building materials; it is the energy resources; it is the economy. prgtoken I am honored to be here. I am proud to be the leader of the House Agriculture Committee, where we celebrate the contributions of American farmers, ranchers, producers, and foresters all year long. prgtoken Farm country is no stranger to struggle, and the past couple of years have been a punch to the gut. Between a global pandemic, historic fires and floods, wind events, and a President who is waging a never-ending war on agriculture, times have been particularly tough. prgtoken The supply chain crisis paired with skyrocketing inflation is kicking our farm families while they are down--folks who buy retail, sell wholesale, and pay shipping each way; the men and women who work around the clock to provide us with a safe and reliable food supply. prgtoken But rural America is tough; rural America is resilient; and rural America is the backbone of this Nation. prgtoken I am grateful to Congressman Mann for being on our farm team, as well as all the other agriculture advocates who will be speaking this evening. prgtoken Before I go, I specifically recognize Pennsylvania's contribution to agriculture, which is the Commonwealth's prgtoken number one industry. One out of every seven jobs is directly or indirectly related to agriculture: 59,000 farms; 280,500 direct jobs; and more than $135 billion in revenue, or about 18 percent of Pennsylvania's economy. Agriculture's impact in the Keystone State is undeniable. prgtoken , I thank the families, the men and women who work 24/7, 365 days a year to feed, to clothe, and to fuel this great Nation. Once again, thanks to Congressman Mann for leading this important Special Order.
OCEAN SHIPPING REFORM ACT OF 2022
Josh Hawley (Republican, MO) \u2014 2022-3-31

it is now March. It has been 7 months since the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. prgtoken Thirteen servicemembers lost their lives in the attack on Abbey Gate along with hundreds of civilians. As a result of the botched evacuation operation, hundreds, if not thousands, of American civilians were left behind to the enemy. prgtoken We hear from our friends on the other side of the aisle that my insistence that we actually vote on nominees is unprecedented. I would humbly suggest that the Afghanistan crisis into which this President led our country was unprecedented. prgtoken And who has been held accountable for that disaster? No one. Who has the President fired? Who has offered their resignation? Which of the planners at the Department of State or the Department of Defense or the National Security Council have been relieved of duty? No one. prgtoken Until there is accountability, I am going to ask that the Senate do the simple task of its job, which is to actually vote on these nominees. The least we could do is observe regular order and vote on these leadership positions at the Department of Defense. prgtoken My colleagues say that we have got to put national security first. I agree with them about that. But I believe that begins at the top, with the President of the United States and the leadership of the Department of Defense and the Department of State. I, for one, am not going to stand by and look the other way while this administration systematically endangers our national security, imperils the American people, and watches the sacrifice of our soldiers go by without any accountability, without any change in direction. prgtoken Accountability for the Afghanistan disaster is all the more urgent given revelations last month from the U.S. Central Command investigation of the Abbey Gate bombing. The investigative report makes clear that the Administration had ample warning prior to mid-August that Kabul could collapse rapidly in the face of the Taliban's offensive. It shows further how the Administration refused to acknowledge those warnings and act in a timely manner to prepare for Kabul's fall. And it shows in astounding detail just how chaotic the final evacuation effort was, with U.S. servicemembers often left without clear guidance, the State Department constantly missing in action, and the Administration itself intent only on evacuating as many people as possible, regardless of whether those individuals were eligible for evacuation or might pose a threat to America's own security. prgtoken I am not willing to look the other way and just pretend that Afghanistan didn't happen, which seems to be the posture that many in this body have adopted. I am not willing to do that. I can't do that because I promised the parents of the fallen that I wouldn't do that. prgtoken I am going to discharge my responsibility. And as long as it takes, I will continue to draw attention to what happened at
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2022-3-31

. Today, I come to the Senate floor to discuss the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act. This has been introduced in the House and now introduced in the Senate by this Senator and by my colleague and friend, Senator Feinstein. prgtoken This bill is a product of bipartisan work and much collaboration. I also want to thank Senators Cornyn and Klobuchar, who are true leaders in this area and also introduced their trafficking legislation this week. I look forward to continuing to work with those two Senators, as well, on this issue. prgtoken Many Americans tend to view human slavery as a thing of the past. We read about it in our history books and collectively cringe at the concept of such injustice. Unfortunately, however, the reality is that human slavery is alive and well, even today, in the form of sex and labor trafficking. According to the State Department's annual Trafficking in Persons Report, human trafficking is a $150 billion business worldwide. Through deception, through threats, through violence, the perpetrators of these crimes will do whatever--whatever-- it takes to turn a profit at their victims' expense. prgtoken With the introduction of this bill, we are acting as a voice for those human trafficking victims in the United States who cannot speak for themselves. To combat this crime within our borders, we have addressed the scourge on multiple fronts. The bill we have championed would extend several key victims' services programs that were established under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. It would promote screening of human trafficking victims, enhance training for Federal investigators, and start a pilot program for young people at high risk of being trafficked. prgtoken Our bill also includes the Survivor's Bill of Rights, a bill I developed with survivors and an advocate named Amanda Nguyen, which encourages States to ensure that survivors have, at minimum, the rights guaranteed to survivors under Federal law. prgtoken Fighting for victims has been one of my top priorities as chairman and now ranking member of Senate Judiciary. I consider it a privilege to shape the law to ensure that trafficking victims receive necessary services. I also take pride in helping law enforcement and prosecutors hold the perpetrators accountable for these selfish acts. prgtoken Lastly, this bill has the support of the National District Attorneys Association, Rights4Girls, Shared Hope International, Covenant House, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation. I am grateful for all of these groups and the important work that they do. prgtoken This bipartisan bill is a strong start, and, of course, the work doesn't stop with a single piece of legislation. I look forward to marking this bill up in the Judiciary Committee and getting it signed into law. Prescription Drug Costs
AFFORDABLE INSULIN NOW ACT
Cathy McMorris Rodgers (Republican, WA) \u2014 2022-3-31

. Madam , such time as I may consume. prgtoken Madam , I hear the talking about this helping all Americans. This does nothing to help those without insurance. Let me repeat this. If you do not have insurance, this does not lower your cost, it may actually increase the price of your insulin. prgtoken Increasing competition to lower prices, as we do in H.R. 19 is the way, not dictating a price cap. We have break-through biosimilars right now. We had two approved last year; biosimilars that would help bring down the costs; costs savings within all markets so that patients would have access to lower-cost insulin. prgtoken The problem is getting those savings to the patients. The PBMs are the ones pocketing the money. Net prices have come down because of innovation. We can lower costs without shifting them. Let's go to work. s and , we all want to lower the price of insulin and we can do it without government price controls and we can do it by working together and actually solving the problem. prgtoken Madam , .
RESCINDING TITLE 42 OF THE SOUTHERN BORDER
Scott Perry (Republican, PA) \u2014 2022-3-31

. There are a few Senators. I think there are a few Representatives who said so, too. They can put their money, so to speak, where their mouth is. You can say it, but you can take some action. Talk is cheap, right? Take some action and walk down there and sign the paper. And once one does, maybe a few more will because their constituents--their bosses, their citizens, and their communities--are being wrecked, too.
ISSUES OF THE DAY
David Schweikert (Republican, AZ) \u2014 2022-3-31

. So in the President's proposal, in the ' proposals, they want to tax the rich more. The new President 's budget, I think, has 36 new taxes in it. But here is the great irony. Okay. So they want to do this one tax where they want to functionally tax unrealized capital or unrealized gains which is the taking--it will be ruled unconstitutional. But it is an interesting concept. We want to make a simple proposal that something both s and might agree upon, stop subsidizing the rich. We have come here to this floor a couple of times and shown there are $1.4 trillion every 10 years that the left subsidizes the rich. prgtoken And so what do the do? prgtoken They say: We need to tax the rich more. prgtoken Okay. And then they put in Build Back Better you can make $800,000 a prgtoken year and we are going to hand you $125,000 of tax credits--not tax deductions--credits. prgtoken Does anyone see the lunacy going on here? prgtoken So the virtue signaling is rich people aren't paying enough, and then over here we are going to give them 1 trillion-plus dollars in subsidies, and then they are going to add more in their Build Back Better for more rich people to have more subsidies. It is just infuriating. prgtoken Does anyone actually read this stuff? prgtoken Does anyone own a calculator? prgtoken , you start to see the numbers. prgtoken I have a number of these slides here, and the point is really simple: policy after policy, if you can afford your fourth $6-million house on a beach somewhere, do you deserve subsidized flood insurance? prgtoken But all through this government there are items like that where we wink and nod, we say we are going to tax rich people more, and then we are handing out massive subsidies. prgtoken As a , I want to cut spending. You say you want more revenues, . Great. Stop putting through the Tax Code, regulatory code, these programs of wink, wink, nod, nod, a bunch of subsidies to people who write checks. prgtoken So, , you have had a number of, particularly, s who have come behind the microphone and said: You canceled the Keystone pipeline. You made it really hard to put new land into production for pulling hydrocarbons out. prgtoken That is actually not the big thing that the left did. What the left did are things like this where the Securities and Exchange Commission is functionally adding new rules that if you invest in hydrocarbons or you are a pension system or these, you are going to have to fill out paperwork to explain your effect on global warming. prgtoken What are your effects on carbon? prgtoken They functionally did what we call, they screwed up the capital stack. So you could have a natural gas field that was substantially shut down when prices collapsed during the pandemic. It is ready to go, but you need a bunch of capital to put it back into production. prgtoken And where do you go to get a loan, ? prgtoken The did someth
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Dan Sullivan (Republican, AK) \u2014 2022-3-31

thank you for allowing me to open the Senate with you. It was a true honor to have Rabbi Mendy Greenberg, who is doing amazing work in Palmer, AK, open the Senate with his very powerful and meaningful prayer and very appropriate prayer for what is happening in the world. prgtoken I just want to say a little bit about our incredible Jewish community in Alaska. Rabbi Greenberg's parents are actually up in the Gallery watching--his father, Rabbi Greenberg and his incredible wife, Esti. prgtoken I just want to say what they do for our--community--communities throughout Alaska--is so powerful, so meaningful, and touches so many lives way beyond the Jewish community of Alaska--way beyond that community. I love the phrase referring to our wonderful Jewish community of Alaska, the ``frozen chosen,'' because it is a little cold in our State, as most Americans know. prgtoken But here is the thing about this community: They are incredible in terms of prgtoken bringing all Alaskans together. We have this annual event called the Jewish Gala that has hundreds and hundreds of Alaskans of all faiths who participate in this every year. It is one of my favorite things to do as an Alaskan, to come and celebrate not just the Jewish community, but the spirit of togetherness, the spirit of faith, and the spirit of taking care of one another. That is what this incredible community does, led by both Rabbi Greenbergs, who we saw the younger today give this very powerful prayer. prgtoken I want to thank him and his parents for being here today. It is not always easy to get to DC from Alaska--a couple of thousand miles at least. To our Jewish community back home, to the Greenbergs for all they have done, I just want to, on the Senate floor here, offer my deepest thanks for the example they set for the entire State of Alaska. It is great having them here, and what they do for our State is really powerful, really important. prgtoken Thank you, , for allowing me to participate in the opening and the prayer this morning. prgtoken . Recognition of the Majority Leader