mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
FERC Nominations (Executive Session)
John Barrasso (Republican, WY) \u2014 2024-6-12

I come to the floor today to support the three individuals nominated to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission: David Rosner, Lindsay See, and Judy Chang. prgtoken The Commission, or the FERC, is often called the most important Agency that people have never heard of. FERC regulates the interstate transmission of electricity and the interstate transportation of oil and natural gas. It ensures that the rates for electric power in the wholesale market are ``just and reasonable.'' It oversees electric reliability. It licenses interstate natural gas pipelines, liquefied natural gas terminals, and hydropower projects. prgtoken By one estimate, the Commission regulates activities that account for 7 percent of our Nation's economy. For that reason, we must fulfill our responsibility to maintain a quorum on the Commission. prgtoken In 2015 and 2016, President refused to fill the vacancies left by two Commissioners. Then in January of 2017, the outgoing Chairman of FERC resigned as well. The departure left the Commission without a quorum. prgtoken It then took 7 full months to restore the quorum at FERC. During that time, too many projects that help keep the lights on, help heat our homes, and aid our allies abroad were reluctantly put on hold. prgtoken We can't let that happen again. Too much is at stake for American workers, for our energy security, and for our Nation's economy. That is why I am glad the Senate is acting on these three nominations this very week. While I may not agree with each of the nominees on all of the items all of the time, all of them are well qualified. prgtoken I am especially supportive of Ms. Lindsay See. From a young age, she has distinguished herself as a person of exemplary discipline, drive, and determination. She graduated summa cum laude from Patrick Henry College. She then graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School, where she served as the executive editor of the Harvard Law Review. After law school, she clerked for Judge Thomas Griffith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. prgtoken Ms. See is an outstanding appellate lawyer. She has spent the last 7 years as solicitor general of West Virginia. During that time, she has overseen civil and criminal appeals in both State and Federal courts. Ms. See has fought tirelessly for affordable and reliable energy for American families. She has argued two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. In one of those cases, she not only advocated on behalf of West Virginia, she also advocated on behalf of other States, including my home State of Wyoming. And she won. prgtoken Ms. See has a long track record of giving a voice to people who are impacted by Federal actions. In fact, my concern for farmers and other landowners is a principal reason why I do support Ms. See. prgtoken During the Energy and Natural Resource Committee's hearing on the nomination, Ms. See was asked if she would ``exercise extreme ca
Remembering Patrick Gottsch (Executive Calendar)
Pete Ricketts (Republican, NE) \u2014 2024-6-12

I rise today to honor the life and legacy of a great Nebraskan and great American, Patrick Gottsch. prgtoken Growing up on his family farm in Elkhorn, NE, Patrick learned to love rural America and the Western lifestyle. His father grew corn and had a cattle feedlot. After college, he worked as a commodities broker for 5 years in Chicago and in Omaha. prgtoken On the day his daughter was born, Patrick came down the hill from the hospital and saw a guy trying to put a satellite dish together. He decided to help. After 6 hours of work, the dish was installed, and Patrick was hooked on satellite television. prgtoken Patrick then started E.T. Installations, which was a pioneer in the home satellite industry. During this time, Patrick first began exploring the idea of a TV channel devoted to the issues and interests of rural America, but at that moment, it was only a dream. Patrick worked hard making that dream a reality. prgtoken In 1991, Patrick moved to Texas. He worked as the director of sales for Superior Livestock Auction, which pioneered satellite marketing in the livestock industry. Because of Patrick's innovations, Superior Livestock became the largest livestock auction enterprise in the country. prgtoken In 2000, Patrick decided to take a leap of faith. He committed full time to the task of creating a 24-hour TV network for rural America. He called his company Rural Media Group. prgtoken Patrick Gottsch's dream was becoming a reality. Rural Free Delivery Television, RFD-TV, launched with DISH Network in September of 2000. Distribution quickly increased. Today, RFD-TV is available in more than 50 million homes nationwide. prgtoken Patrick's Rural Media Group continued to expand, adding RFD The Magazine, RFD HD, Rural TV, Rural Radio, and the RFD-TV Now app. prgtoken In 2017, Patrick launched the Cowboy Channel, the first 24-hour network devoted entirely to Western sports like rodeo. The Cowboy Channel is now the official network of ProRodeo, bringing the talents of world-class cowboys and cowgirls to people all over the world. prgtoken In addition, Patrick last year launched the Cowgirl Channel, dedicated exclusively to women in Western sports and the modern-day cowgirl. prgtoken Patrick Gottsch loved rural America. He loved its people, its values, and its lifestyle. His visionary leadership brought the best of rural America to tens of millions of homes around the world. He reconnected the city and the country. His contributions to broadcasting, ranching, rodeo, and business will long be remembered. prgtoken My wife Susanne and I send our condolences to Patrick's beloved wife Angie; his three daughters, Raquel, Gatsby, and Rose; and his grandchildren. prgtoken I am grateful to Senator Hyde-Smith for leading the resolution to honor Patrick Gottsch's life and legacy. prgtoken With that, .
Unaccompanied Minor Rule (Executive Calendar)
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2024-6-12

I am here to inform my colleagues what is wrong with our immigration enforcement involving children. prgtoken In April, the administration finalized a rule governing its Unaccompanied Minors Program. They did this over the objections of this Senator and 38 others when we informed the administration in a letter. And we didn't object lightly. prgtoken For nearly a decade, my oversight has shown that the Office of Refugee Resettlement--that is ORR for short--has failed to protect unaccompanied minors. 's new rule cements ORR's dangerous policies. prgtoken Here is just one example of ORR's many failures. This is taken straight from a Justice Department court filing. A sexual predator smuggled a 10-year-old girl. I will call her Mary. That is not her real name. Mary was from Guatemala, smuggled to the United States on false promises of an education. prgtoken When she reached the border, ORR officials promised Mary they would find a safe sponsor for her. Then they simply trusted everything to Mary's predator and what that predator said. prgtoken Mary's predator lied about being her father. He gave ORR phony documents and phony forms approving Mary's release to his sister, who he claimed was Mary's aunt. prgtoken Under 's rule, ORR doesn't have to verify a sponsor's proof of identity or even guardianship. It doesn't even fully background-check the sponsor. The ORR rule takes a sponsor's representations at near face value and then puts employees on a 10- or 14-day clock to get kids into the hands of the sponsors as fast as possible. prgtoken Then, without even batting an eye, the ORR escorted Mary to her fake aunt in Chicago. There, this 10-year-old girl was stabbed with a kitchen knife, scalded with cooking oil, and repeatedly sexually assaulted by four men. prgtoken Mary, you know, thought she was coming to America to have a better life and pursue the American dream. Instead, she was enduring a nightmare. I imagine Mary prayed every night for help. I reckon she spent every day asking God how this happened to her. prgtoken It happened because the United States turned a blind eye, and by finalizing this rule, the administration of President is refusing to remove the blindfold. prgtoken ORR knows it has a problem. The Justice Department told ORR what happened to Mary. prgtoken Last December, I led 38 other Senators in demanding ORR change its policies, but our warning fell on deaf ears. 's ORR just finalized a rule with policies that are even worse than those that placed Mary with her abusers. Under these policies, in 2021, ORR sent another little girl to a sexual predator in the State of Kentucky who falsely claimed to be her uncle. ORR accepted fake paperwork and unverified claims. It moves kids to sponsors as if they were nothing more than products on an assembly line. We ought to protect kids from predators. prgtoken There is a process that Congress can object to these rules. It is
Biden Administration (Executive Calendar)
Shelley Moore Capito (Republican, WV) \u2014 2024-6-12

here we go again. I rise today in this Chamber as President and his administration enter yet another summer of executive overreach as the administration adds layer after layer of bureaucracy that spells negative consequences for nearly every aspect of American life. Actually, I just had the homebuilders in my office today making this very point--the West Virginia Home Builders Association. prgtoken Throughout the President's time in the White House, we haven't really seen much consistency except when it comes to his desire to grow the influence of unelected government bureaucrats or to defy congressional intent or to impose unnecessary rules, regulations, and redtape. These things will forever define his administration, and as of June 7 of this year, the 946 final rules imposed by President have cost the American taxpayer over $1.6 trillion. prgtoken So, for President and his administration, I would recommend a brief refresher on the history of the United States and the intent that inspired the Framers of our Constitution. prgtoken Our Founding Fathers were quick to recognize that power and authority vested in one body would create devastating costs for the future of our Nation. That was the motivation behind establishing separated powers, of creating a system of checks and balances across three equal branches of government. However, President 's advocacy for the growth of the administrative state has put this separation into question. It kind of goes against article I of the Constitution, which states: All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States. prgtoken Let's just take a few examples that we have seen recently of what I would consider to be outrageous overreach. prgtoken No. 1, first--something I have been very vocal about--is the EPA's Clean Power Plan 2.0, which will eliminate coal-powered generation completely, but it will also block new natural gas plants from coming online in the future. Don't ask me how we are going to power the Nation. prgtoken This rule from the EPA is meant to put coal and natural gas employees out of work and shutter those baseload power plants once and for all. prgtoken Next, we have the final rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that imposes burdensome Federal staffing mandates on long-term care facilities. prgtoken This is something that could be incredibly harmful to rural States like mine. Now, safety is first in a long-term care facility, but unattainable employee requirements like this one would force many of our rural nursing homes to shut their doors, especially as rural health facilities are facing staffing challenges all across the country. prgtoken Then there is the HHS rule that endangers the safety and well- being of unaccompanied migrant children. prgtoken Currently, migrant children who enter into the country illegally without an adult are detained and
SERVICEMEMBER QUALITY OF LIFE IMPROVEMENT AND NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025
Marjorie Taylor Greene (Republican, GA) \u2014 2024-6-12

. Madam Chair, my amendment would basically say that no funds authorized or to be appropriated in this act or otherwise made available for the Department of Defense for fiscal year 2025 may be used for electric vehicles or electric vehicle charging infrastructure. prgtoken My amendment would ensure that no funds are authorized in this year's NDAA to be used on electric vehicles or electric vehicle charging infrastructure. prgtoken Electric vehicles made up only about 7.6 percent of U.S. car sales in 2023 and remain a very small percentage of all cars nationwide. The reason why that is, is because they are not popular, they are not practical, and none of Americans' hard-earned tax dollars should be used for our military to be forced onto electric vehicles. prgtoken Automakers continue to report millions of dollars in losses on electric vehicles. They have already begun scaling back pronounced investments in electric vehicles to production targets more in line with consumer demand. Remember, that is less than 10 percent. prgtoken CNBC reports Ford Motors, General Motors, Mercedes Benz, Volkswagen, Jaguar, Land Rover, and Aston Martin are all scaling back or delaying their electric vehicle plans. prgtoken On Earth Day in 2022, a day not traditionally associated with the grand national security pronouncements, said: ``We are going to start the process for every vehicle in the United States military, every vehicle is going to be climate-friendly. ``Every vehicle. I mean it. We are spending billions of dollars to do it.'' prgtoken Energy Secretary Granholm said: The admin set a 2030 target to switch all nontactical military vehicles to electric. prgtoken That is quite the opposite of what my colleagues across the aisle are saying. prgtoken Our military, our Department of Defense, is for the defense of the United States, and their mission goal is to protect our national security, not to play climate politics. prgtoken It is absolutely ludicrous that, as we continue to waste our precious military resources in Ukraine, wants the military to rely on China, which is on track to control a third of the world's lithium by 2025, and to provide the materials for electric vehicles. prgtoken China currently produces over 80 percent of the world's batteries. We don't need Americans' military to be dependent on China's batteries. Forcing the military to adopt unreliable electric vehicles would endanger the lives of servicemembers and weaken our ability to defend ourselves from attacks. It prgtoken also will waste money on an already-failing industry that Americans just do not want to take part of. prgtoken My amendment will ensure the charade is no longer funded. prgtoken Madam Chair, .
Unanimous Consent Request--S. 4368 (Executive Calendar)
Ted Cruz (Republican, TX) \u2014 2024-6-12

the Senator from Washington suggested that this bill does not protect IVF. Let me prgtoken read you the clear statutory language that unambiguously protects IVF: A State shall not prohibit in vitro fertilization as defined in section 4(B) of the IVF Protection Act services and shall ensure that no unit of local government in the State prohibits such services. prgtoken That is clear. That is unambiguous. That is explicit. And that is ironclad. prgtoken Had the not cynically said ``I object,'' that language would have just passed the U.S. Senate 100 to nothing, a strong Federal protection of IVF. prgtoken Now, know that out of 50 States, not a single State is seeking to ban IVF. They know that the threat that they plan to spend millions of dollars trying to convince the voters is real, no State is currently pursuing. They know that Alabama--whose Supreme Court started this issue--the legislature promptly came into session and acted to make clear that IVF is protected. prgtoken And the Senator from Washington asked a question. I do find it interesting. She asked a question and wanted me to answer it, but she is no longer on the Senate floor to hear my answer to the question, but I will answer it anyway. The Senator from Washington suggests that those States that pursue personhood amendments, that that is somehow inconsistent with IVF. The one problem she has is facts and reality because there are three States--Alabama, Georgia, and Missouri--all of which have adopted personhood amendments, and all of which protect IVF. So IVF is legal in Alabama. It is legal in Georgia. It is legal in Missouri. prgtoken So the maintain that IVF is in jeopardy, and yet the facts are precisely contrary. Understand why the just did what they did. Every on the ballot is going to tell the voters: If you don't vote for me, a , mean s are going to come take away IVF. And I will tell you the reason they are going to say that is because the ' record on abortion is extreme and out of the mainstream. Every Senator in this body has voted for legislation that would legalize abortion literally up until the moment of birth, up to and including the 39th and 40th week of pregnancy. That is radical. Only 9 percent of Americans support the extreme policy position of Senate on abortion. Ninety-one percent of Americans look at that and say: That goes too far. prgtoken Even among those Americans who call themselves pro-choice, a majority of pro-choice Americans look at the position of the , and they say: Wow. Abortion up until the moment of delivery in the ninth month of pregnancy, that is too much. prgtoken So what is the ' political strategy? Don't talk about their actual record on abortion; instead, try to change the topic to, last week, contraception and this week IVF. prgtoken And they know that no St
HONORING THE SERVICE OF GEORGE HERBERT WALKER BUSH
Jodey C. Arrington (Republican, TX) \u2014 2024-6-12

I rise to commemorate the 100th birthday of one of our Nation's most revered statesmen-leaders and American heroes, our 41st President, George Herbert Walker . prgtoken President 41 was not only a highly decorated combat veteran, but had one of the most distinguished tenures in public service in our Nation's history. prgtoken He lived out his own maxim, that public service is a noble calling. I would add, it is only as noble as the caliber of people who answer that call. Thank God he did. My life, your life, and the life of our country are all the better for it. prgtoken May his legacy continue to inspire the servant leadership he modeled, and may it remind us that being a statesman and a politician don't have to be mutually exclusive. prgtoken I am proud to have served alongside his son, President . I am thinking of him and the entire family today as we honor one of the most decent, patriotic, and loving leaders our Nation has ever known.
Farm Bill (Executive Session)
John Boozman (Republican, AR) \u2014 2024-6-12

prior to breaking for the Memorial Day recess, the House Agriculture Committee did something few beltway pundits thought was possible. The committee approved, in a bipartisan manner, a farm bill that meets the needs of farmers, ranchers, foresters, rural communities, and consumers across America. prgtoken I commend Chairman GT Thompson for his stewardship of this bill through an open process that let every committee member have a say in the bill. prgtoken Likewise, I wanted to express my appreciation for each of the Members that voted to advance this legislation out of committee. Chairwoman Stabenow also recently released her farm bill framework, putting the Senate majority's priorities on paper and advancing the discussion forward. prgtoken Cumulatively, these efforts exhibit the first real progress toward passage of a new farm bill since the process began 2 years ago. This week, s on the Agriculture Committee are building on that momentum by releasing our farm bill framework. prgtoken We believe that our framework reflects the Chamber's shared commitments across all 12 titles while putting more farm in the farm bill, something we have been calling for since the onset. prgtoken Let's talk about what that means. It means we direct additional resources to the tools that farmers rely on and they are calling for us to invest in, while ensuring we do no harm to our prgtoken nutrition programs which account for over 80 percent of the bill's baseline spending. prgtoken For example, we have doubled the funding for the farm bill's premier trade programs to help increase our competitiveness overseas. This is desperately needed considering we are projected to see a record $32 billion agricultural trade deficit this year. U.S. farmers have been able to point to their positive trade balance in agriculture as a source of pride for the better part of the last 50 years as they worked to feed, clothe, and fuel the world. prgtoken Unfortunately, this administration's refusal to engage on the issue has created an agricultural trade imbalance that is projected to reach record heights and is showing no signs of slowing. Our framework can help reverse this unsustainable trend. prgtoken Another area where we double funding is agricultural research. Our public sector investment in agricultural research lags other developed economies and has fallen by more than a third over the past two decades. This is another concerning trend that our framework can help reverse. prgtoken Agricultural research programs spur innovation and productivity, allowing farmers to produce more while using less and in an environmentally friendly manner, even as threats from pests and diseases and unpredictable weather become more common. prgtoken Not only do our farmers gain in the long term, but our land-grant institutions and colleges of agriculture that conduct groundbreaking research see immediate benefits. This truly is a win-win inves