mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
IN HONOR OF JOHN F. ``JAY'' HURLEY OF SOUTH BOSTON, MA
Stephen F. Lynch (Democrat, MA) \u2014 2018-9-5

I rise today to pay tribute and honor a true son of South Boston, John F. ``Jay'' Hurley, in recognition of over fifty years of dedicated service to the South Boston community. prgtoken The son of Catherine (Murray) of South Boston and John Hurley of South Boston (via Medford, MA), Jay was born in Boston on September 1, 1954 and lived on East 4th Street in South Boston until he married his wife, Patricia (Farrell) ``Patty'' Hurley in 1979. They moved to Hart Place in South Boston, where they still reside. prgtoken Jay attended Saint Brigid School at O Street and East Broadway and graduated in 1972 from South Boston High School. On June 5, 1974, Jay became a member of Ironworkers Local Union No. 7 (Book No. 922845). prgtoken Upon completion of a three-year apprenticeship, Jay became a journeyman ironworker on June 1, 1977. Jay held various offices at Local 7 between 1988 and 2001, including: Recording Secretary, President, Business Agent, and as the first Business Manager in Local 7's then 101-year history. prgtoken On December 1, 2001, Jay was appointed General Organizer for the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental, and Reinforcing Iron Workers, and was subsequently elected the President of the Ironworkers District Council of New England in September of 2002. Jay was elected as the 9th General Vice President of the International in May 2005 and retired as the 1st General Vice President on March 1, 2018. prgtoken Over the course of his career, Jay poured his heart and soul into bettering the lives of all workers through the machinations of the labor movement. The admiration and respect of his colleagues and peers throughout the United States and Canada is unsurpassed. prgtoken Along with providing distinguished service to the Ironworkers, Jay is also an active member of his community. He has won many awards over the years, most notably in 2006, when he won the Cushing Gavin award for outstanding service to the Labor community. In 2008, Jay wrote a novel, Irony . . and he has donated all proceeds to Julie's Family Learning Program, a South Boston non-profit organization. prgtoken Jay is known as a loyal, hardworking leader in the labor movement; but also, a loving and caring family man. He has had the good fortune to be married to his wife Patty for 39 years, and they are the proud parents of John, Kaitlyn and Brian and proud grandparents to John (``Jack''), Michael and James. prgtoken , it is my distinct honor to join with John F. ``Jay'' Hurley's family, friends, and contemporaries to thank him for his remarkable service to his union brothers and sisters and to his community of South Boston.
WASHINGTON'S CULTURE OF CORRUPTION IS OUT OF CONTROL
Hakeem S. Jeffries (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2018-9-5

wages are down; gas prices are up; and the culture of corruption here in Washington, D.C is out of control. And all the while, the 45th President of the United States of America spends more time on the golf course than any other President in American history. prgtoken Things are spiraling out of control. The stakes are incredibly high. Notwithstanding that, the 115th Congress has been one of the most unproductive Congresses in the history of the Nation. prgtoken and s have two competing visions for what we need to do in order to make sure that every American can continue to experience the American Dream. prgtoken , we want to move the country forward. Others want to turn back the clock. prgtoken We are working hard to bring people together. Others are tearing us apart. prgtoken We are fighting for working families and middle-class folks. Others are fighting for the wealthy and the well off. prgtoken We believe in the public interest. Others are all about the special interests. prgtoken are fighting for the people. Others are fighting for the privileged few. We are fighting for working families, middle-class folks, senior citizens, the poor, the sick, the afflicted, veterans, people in rural America, urban America, suburban America. prgtoken are fighting for the people. But my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, unfortunately, are fighting for millionaires, billionaires, mega corporations, lobbyists, big donors, all to subsidize the lifestyles of the rich and shameless. prgtoken Exhibit A is the tax scam. That is their signature piece of legislation. That is what they are talking to the American people about. prgtoken You are proud of the fact that you passed a bill where 83 percent of the benefits go to the wealthiest 1 percent in America, explodes the debt by more than $1.5 trillion, then you want to come back to Congress and lecture us about cutting Social Security and Medicare? Are you kidding? prgtoken Our For the People agenda will focus on lowering healthcare costs, strengthening the Affordable Care Act, protecting people with preexisting conditions, more than 100 million Americans. They want to take away that protection. We are working hard to dramatically lower the cost of lifesaving prescription drugs. That is the ic For the People agenda. prgtoken Wage stagnation is still a problem for the American people. The productivity of the American worker over the last 40-plus years has increased by more than 285 percent. During the same period of time, wages have gone up by less than 10 percent. prgtoken The productivity gains of the American worker have not gone to the American worker, they have gone to the privileged few. What do the s do about it? Pass a tax bill where 83 percent of the benefits go to the wealthiest 1 percent. prgtoken We have a different idea for what should take place. We are fighting for the people thro
TONAWANDA COKE NEEDS TO COMPLY WITH ENVIRONMENTAL LAW
Brian Higgins (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2018-9-5

on September 3, first responders were called to a fire at Tonawanda Coke in western New York. As they approached the blaze, the company blocked them from entering the plant. prgtoken This obstruction of firefighters from the blaze threatened the health and safety of first responders, plant employees, and the surrounding neighborhood. prgtoken Tonawanda Coke has a long history of this kind of erratic corporate behavior and is in violation of Federal and State environmental laws, including dozens of provisions of the Clean Air Act. prgtoken The Environmental Protection Agency and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation needs to put an end to Tonawanda Coke's reckless actions. prgtoken Tonawanda Coke needs to be made to comply with the letter of any and all environmental law, or they should be shut down.
UNANIMOUS CONSENT REQUEST--S. RES. 581
Joe Manchin, III (Democrat, WV) \u2014 2018-9-5

today I call for a live unanimous consent request on my resolution to protect nearly 800,000 West Virginians and millions of Americans from losing their health insurance because of their preexisting conditions. This is an immediate danger. It is life and death for over 800,000 West Virginians and millions of Americans. prgtoken Today oral arguments began in the Texas v. United States lawsuit being waged by 20 U.S. attorneys general, including West Virginia's attorney general, that will, once again, allow insurance companies to have total control to be able to deny health insurance to people with preexisting conditions. Now that the Department of Justice has recklessly refused to defend the existing law, people with cancer, heart disease, asthma, diabetes, or pregnant women are at risk of financial and physical duress. Today, we have a chance to help right this wrong. prgtoken My resolution, S. Res. 581, will allow the Senate legal counsel to intervene and defend West Virginians and Americans with preexisting conditions from this inhumane lawsuit. Even my colleagues have admitted that millions of Americans will lose their health insurance if attorneys general succeed. prgtoken Now, that is something when my own colleagues, over nine of my friends in the Senate, have introduced a piece of legislation that also acknowledges how destructive this will be. prgtoken In a press release, my good friend from North Carolina, Senator Tillis, and nine other s who introduced the bill wrote that oral arguments in Texas v. United States will begin today, on September 5, and if the judge rules in favor of the plaintiffs, protections for patients with preexisting conditions could be eliminated. What it basically says is, insurance companies will be allowed to determine if you are too sick and too costly for them and they can't make enough profit or see that there is no end in sight, they will just deny you. prgtoken Four hundred thousand West Virginians will be denied. They couldn't even buy insurance if they could afford it. The other 400,000 in West Virginia are going to basically have their rates raised or capped. That means they are one illness away--one illness away--from financial disaster. prgtoken Senator Tillis said this legislation is a commonsense solution. This is a commonsense solution. We want to fix it together. We are just asking people, who basically believe the same as we all have agreed on both sides of the aisle, to ask our attorneys general to stop this senseless lawsuit and withdraw it. That would cure the problem overnight, but without it, we need to intervene, and we are asking for this to happen. prgtoken , I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Rules and Administration be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 581; that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration; and that the resolution be agreed to, the
FEMA BUNGLING IN PUERTO RICO
Donald M. Payne, Jr. (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2018-9-5

recently FEMA released a report into its own response after Hurricane Maria swept Puerto Rico last year. prgtoken To sum up the report, FEMA screwed up. prgtoken FEMA underestimated how much food people would need. prgtoken FEMA miscalculated how much fresh water people would need. prgtoken FEMA didn't foresee how difficult it would be to get supplies to the island. prgtoken And when Hurricane Maria struck, FEMA's warehouse in Puerto Rico was basically empty. prgtoken I was most shocked by FEMA's admission that its plans for a crisis in Puerto Rico were based on a focused disaster like a tsunami, not a major hurricane devastating the whole island. prgtoken Just last week, the island's death toll was adjusted to reflect the reality that thousands of people died because of Hurricane Maria. Mr these were American citizens. prgtoken The Federal Government must do better. Lives are at stake.
SHAM NOMINATION HEARINGS IN THE SENATE
Pramila Jayapal (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2018-9-5

I rise to oppose Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination and the sham hearings that are happening in the Senate today. prgtoken Even before President nominated Judge Kavanaugh, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell warned that the millions of pages in Judge Kavanaugh's White House records would reopen controversies dating back to 's administration and delay consideration of his nomination. But instead of following regular order, rather than obtaining Judge Kavanaugh's full record and sharing it in a timely fashion with all the Senators, Senate s simply changed the rules. This is unacceptable. prgtoken The nine Justices who sit on the Supreme Court make crucial decisions about justice in our country. At times, the Court's landmark decisions have shown the best of who we are and what our country stands for, the ideas that our public schools should not be segregated based on race, that women have a right to make their own decisions about their bodies, and that everybody has the right to marry the person they love. prgtoken In other cases, Supreme Court decisions have been stains on our Nation; prgtoken for instance, deciding that African Americans could not be U.S. citizens, upholding the cruel and unjust internment of Japanese Americans during World War I, maintaining segregation, and striking down key provisions protecting access to voting. prgtoken Make no mistake, Judge Kavanaugh poses a serious threat to the rights that we hold so dear. Take, for instance, the case of Jane Doe, the teenage girl who sought an abortion last year while being held in government custody in Texas. prgtoken Jane Doe did everything herself to secure that abortion. She got permission from a judge. She got her own transportation. And yet, the Federal Government physically blocked her from leaving the government- run shelter where she was detained. prgtoken So then the ACLU sued on her behalf, and her case eventually made it in front of Judge Kavanaugh. Although he recognized the time sensitivity, even clarifying that she would no longer be able to seek a legal abortion in Texas at 20 weeks, Judge Kavanaugh blocked Jane Doe's access to her legally allowable abortion when she was about 15 weeks pregnant. He gave the administration 11 more days to find a sponsor, a process that he was aware takes months to complete. He told Jane Doe that, after those 11 days, she could ask a lower court again for an abortion. If at 17 weeks she was unsuccessful, then he told her that she could bring it up again to him for consideration, which would have been scheduled when she was, at that point, 18 or 19 weeks pregnant, if she were lucky. Court delays could have pushed it even further, seriously putting her at risk of being outside the window to obtain something that was her legal right. prgtoken But, fortunately, the full court overturned Judge Kavanaugh's decision a few days later, and Jane Doe was able to proce
OPIOID EPIDEMIC
Rob Portman (Republican, OH) \u2014 2018-9-6

I wish to speak about this issue of opioids and the crisis our country faces. prgtoken Just in the last couple of weeks we have gotten reports from the Centers for Disease Control from last year's data on overdoses and deaths: 72,000 Americans lost their lives to overdoses last year from drugs. Most of those were from opioids. This is heroin, prescription drugs, and, now, these synthetic opioids--72,000 Americans. prgtoken In the wake of that, it is encouraging to me to hear the Senate talking about the possibility of bringing a package of legislation to the floor that will help to push back against this crisis and begin to turn the tide. We have to do it--not just talk about it. We have to act because this crisis is upon us and is very real. prgtoken These new efforts that we should move forward on would build on what this Senate has already done with regard to the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, or the CARA legislation, which is now being implemented in my State of Ohio and around the country. There is also the Cures legislation, or the 21st Century Cures Act. It has some additional provisions that allow States to take funding and use it to fight this opioid addiction. That is smart. There are smart ways for us to fight this opioid epidemic. We know that, and we are beginning to do that. prgtoken At the Federal level we can play a role in this, among other things, by taking better practices from around the country and ensuring they are being used back home in our States. I have seen this firsthand because I have been around the State of Ohio a lot since this legislation actually passed. I have actually visited more than a dozen grant recipients of CARA and Cures grants to see what they are doing and then spreading that around to other communities--maybe communities that haven't been able to get the grants but want to see something innovative to be able to push back. prgtoken Last Friday I visited Hope Village Recovery Center in Portage County, OH. They received more than $500,000 in CARA funding to expand a badly needed medication-assisted treatment program. They decided to look at this in a very comprehensive way, and it is working. They are getting people who normally wouldn't step up for treatment to come for treatment, and their success rate for getting people through treatment and not relapsing is relatively high. That is so important right now, because if you don't get people into treatment with an addiction, which is a disease, you are not going to be able to solve this problem. prgtoken The comprehensive approach includes treatment, counseling, outpatient treatment, aftercare services, peer support--and these are coaches who are in recovery themselves, and that is very effective--and transportation services to get people back and forth. This holistic approach is what we need to help people begin to heal, get over their addiction, get back to their families, back to work, and
NOMINATION OF BRETT KAVANAUGH
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2018-9-6

day 2 of Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation hearings proved to be a marathon session. For 13 hours, Judge Kavanaugh was grilled by our colleagues on the Judiciary Committee. Through that testing, the Senate got to see exactly why the American Bar Association deemed this nominee to be unanimously ``well qualified,'' which is the highest possible rating, a distinction that many of our ic colleagues in the past called the gold standard. prgtoken We saw precisely why he has earned such praise from accomplished legal figures, like Lisa Blatt, a self-described liberal and a leading Supreme Court litigator who proudly introduced Judge Kavanaugh before the committee; and Neal Katyal, the administration's Solicitor General who said: ``It's very hard for anyone who's worked with Judge Kavanaugh, appeared before him, to frankly say a bad word about him.'' prgtoken Judge Kavanaugh was patient and professional. His answers showed total command of everything, from the fine details of case law to the principles upon which our Founders built the Constitution. prgtoken In July, one of Judge Kavanaugh's former Yale Law School professors explained that he is ``an avid consumer of legal scholarship. He reads and learns.'' prgtoken It certainly shows. Judge Kavanaugh's widely acclaimed temperament was on full display. He gave thoughtful, expansive answers, while also respecting the independence of the judiciary. Even as some of our ic colleagues seemed to forget--seemed to forget--that we are examining a potential Supreme Court Justice and not interviewing a superlegislator who will be writing his own policy preferences into law, Judge Kavanaugh remained very gracious and spoke at length about his past jurisprudence and his understanding of the role judges play in our Republic. prgtoken It was striking to contrast Judge Kavanaugh's poise, on the one hand, and professionalism with the continued unhinged--literally, unhinged-- antics of the far left, which once again resorted to yelling and screaming and interrupting the hearing with nonsensical protests. The Capitol Police deserves all of our gratitude for keeping order, as does Chairman Grassley for keeping the proceedings moving smoothly. prgtoken Perhaps it is finally dawning on the far left that Judge Kavanaugh is an impressive, mainstream, and brilliant nominee who almost any objective observer would agree is more than qualified to serve on the Supreme Court. Maybe that is why they are resorting to futile attempts to disrupt the proceedings. Maybe that is why no fewer than 66 individuals were removed from the hearing room for interruptions. prgtoken I will be perfectly clear about this. Hysterical stunts are not going to stop the U.S. Senate from completing its business. There is no heckler's veto here. I look forward to more excellent testimony from Judge Kavanaugh today.
RECOGNIZING 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF FULBRIGHT COMMISSION
George Holding (Republican, NC) \u2014 2018-9-6

I rise today to recognize the 70th anniversary of the creation of the bilateral US-UK Fulbright Commission. prgtoken I would like to take this opportunity to honor the many exchange scholars who have crossed the Atlantic to strengthen the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. In doing so, these individuals have forged a bond between our two nations, rooted in Senator Fulbright's vision at the end of the Second World War. prgtoken I quote his vision: ``The vital mortar to seal the bricks of world order is education across international boundaries, not with the expectation that knowledge would make us love each other, but in the hope that it would encourage empathy between nations, and foster the emergence of leaders whose sense of other nations and cultures would enable them to shape specific policies based on tolerance and rational restraint.'' prgtoken The Fulbright program stands out as a symbol of collaboration and friendship between nations. It enables students and scholars of all stages of their academic careers to garner a deeper understanding of and appreciation for a culture and nation different from their own. prgtoken While much has changed since the first US-UK Fulbright exchange nearly 70 years ago, much remains the same. prgtoken As chairman of the British-American Parliamentary Group, I am proud of the broad bipartisan and bicameral support for the US-UK Fulbright Commission. The special relationship we have with the United Kingdom has undoubtedly been further cemented by the friendships forged as succeeding generations have come to a deeper understanding of each other through academic exchange. prgtoken Important scientific discoveries have been made and Nobel Prizes won. A Fulbright scholarship has been the catalyst for great novelists and playwrights, economists, scientists, entrepreneurs, and, yes, even politicians. prgtoken Today, I invite my colleagues to commemorate this 70th anniversary of the US-UK Fulbright program by celebrating the achievements of its alumni and pledging their continued support to ensure its enduring success.
HONORING JOHN McCAIN
Mario Diaz-Balart (Republican, FL) \u2014 2018-9-6

one thing that some of you may not know about John McCain's time at the Hanoi Hilton was that he spoke of a Castro regime thug and his Cuban underling. They were sent to Vietnam to torture American POWs, to torture John McCain's friends. He had hoped to one day identify those barbaric individuals and bring them to justice. prgtoken Sadly, John did not see that egregious injustice, along with so many perpetuated by the Castro regime, resolved in his lifetime. prgtoken John witnessed firsthand the evil of communism, along with the tyranny and the inhumanity that it breeds. A tyrant capable of such brutal oppression of his own people could also be responsible for unspeakable atrocities to those who would stand up to the tyranny. prgtoken Perhaps that experience, , personally motivated John McCain's passionate advocacy for freedom and human dignity, as well as his untiring outreach to those languishing under tyranny anywhere in the world, as Mr. Costa mentioned just a little while ago. prgtoken He was a fitting chairman of the International Institute's board since 1993, an organization whose mission is to promote freedom and civil society and democracy to some of the world's most repressive environments. That mission aligned perfectly with Senator McCain. prgtoken So, yes, although I am deeply saddened by a loss of such magnitude, I will tell you that I am encouraged by the knowledge that his example will continue to inspire and educate for many, many generations to come. prgtoken There will never be another one like John McCain and we are all fortunate to have had the benefit of his service to our Nation.