mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2023-12-6

later today, Senate s are going to deny cloture on a bill that fails to address America's top national security priorities in a serious way. As we have said for weeks, legislation that doesn't include policy changes to secure our borders will not pass the Senate. prgtoken The situation unfolding at our southern border on President 's watch is a crisis of historic proportions. It is glaring, it is acute, and it is undermining America's national security. prgtoken President 's DHS Secretary used to say that 1,000 border crossings a day ``overwhelms the system.'' Today, they are reporting encountering over--listen to this--10,000 people a day down at the border--a large town's worth of illegal aliens each day. Thanks to a broken asylum and parole system, the vast majority of them are admitted into the country before their legal status is even determined. prgtoken , 10,000 arrivals a day would mean a population the size of a middle-sized town in Kentucky every month--every month. The sheer volume has forced officials in the Tucson, AZ, sector, which has recently accounted for nearly 3,000 of those daily arrivals by itself, to shut down one port of entry altogether. prgtoken This is the crisis undermining America's national security right here at home, and today, some of our ic colleagues are showing just how little they want to do anything about it. prgtoken Senate s know this isn't an either-or proposition. We know that national security begins with border security. prgtoken I have spent months highlighting the undeniable links between the threats we face in Europe, in the Middle East, and in the Indo-Pacific, but ic leadership appears to be telling us today that they are willing to risk each of these urgent priorities to avoid--avoid--fixing our own borders right here at home. Apparently, some of our colleagues would rather let Russia trample a sovereign nation in Europe than do what it takes to enforce America's own sovereign borders. prgtoken Now, it wasn't always like this. didn't always have such a hard time following the logic that national security begins right here at home. prgtoken I am reminded of the commission President Reagan set up in the mid- 1980s to assess the importance of peace and security in the Western Hemisphere. It was a bipartisan exercise that included everyone from Henry Kissinger to the former chair of the DNC and the president of the AFL-CIO. The commission concluded that America's security in the world ``depends on the inherent security of its land borders'' and that our adversaries would reap ``a major strategic coup to impose on the United States the burden of defending our southern approaches.'' ``[A] major strategic coup'' for our adversaries. A past generation of understood the logic implicitly when it pertained to the threat of Soviet influence. Well, that logic applies even more today to
DEFENDING EDUCATION TRANSPARENCY AND ENDING ROGUE REGIMES ENGAGING IN NEFARIOUS TRANSACTIONS ACT
Michelle Steel (Republican, CA) \u2014 2023-12-6

. Mr. Chair, I thank the chairwoman, Dr. Foxx, for yielding time. prgtoken Actually, this has nothing to do with an anti-Asian bill. This is my bill, and we want to protect our children from this propaganda. prgtoken Yesterday, before the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the entire world, leaders of three of our Nation's most prestigious universities failed to demonstrate the most basic levels of humanity when discussing anti-Semitism on campus. prgtoken Make no mistake: Their lack of moral clarity shows exactly what happens when we permit hostile foreign actors like Qatar, Iran, and Communist China to buy influence on our college campuses. prgtoken When they give money without return, actually, there is no such thing as a free lunch. That is why today I am offering a legislative solution to crack down on this crisis in our higher education system. That is why I rise today to urge support and passage of the DETERRENT Act. prgtoken Justice Brandeis once said: Sunlight is the best disinfectant. As we saw yesterday, our college campuses are infected. prgtoken The DETERRENT Act brings desperately needed sunlight by strengthening transparency and disclosure requirements under section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965. prgtoken While the previous administration reinvigorated the use of this tool, the current administration has repeatedly downplayed the threat of foreign actors and failed to take meaningful steps to protect our students, research, and national security. If the President will not act, Congress must. prgtoken The DETERRENT Act has three pillars to strengthen section 117. The first pillar brings much-needed transparency. prgtoken Foreign adversaries look for any loophole to hide their intentions. This is especially true for states that pose the greatest threats to our Nation, like Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. prgtoken The DETERRENT Act eliminates these loopholes by lowering the foreign gifts reporting threshold from $250,000 to $50,000 for all foreign donors and eliminating the threshold entirely for those from countries of concern. prgtoken The bill also requires the disclosures include detailed information about the foreign source, the intent of the gift, and the complete text of any contracts with the concerned entities. prgtoken The second pillar of my bill establishes accountability. For too long, schools have adopted a take the money first, ask questions later approach to billions of dollars of foreign funds. prgtoken As reporting and congressional oversight revealed in the case of UC Berkeley in my home State of California, these problematic relationships are often discovered years after the fact when the damage has already been done. prgtoken Requiring timely transparency for institutions receiving foreign funds means ensuring the penalties for nonreporting are more than a slap on the wrist. prgtoken The DETERRENT Act institutes a progressive fine schedule, culminating in the loss
DEFENDING EDUCATION TRANSPARENCY AND ENDING ROGUE REGIMES ENGAGING IN NEFARIOUS TRANSACTIONS ACT
Marcus J. Molinaro (Republican, NY) \u2014 2023-12-6

the DETERRENT Act is an important bill. It seeks to hold colleges, universities, and foreign actors accountable while providing the transparency necessary into any influence foreign countries are attempting to exert onto our Nation's students and academic institutions through new disclosure requirements. This bill could not be more timely. prgtoken My amendment will clarify that ties to a designated terrorist organizations, such as Hamas, must be disclosed when receiving funds from a foreign group or individual. prgtoken In light of the disgustingly callous and vile pro-Hamas demonstration seen on college campuses across the country, including, sadly, even in my own district, this amendment is more important than ever. prgtoken Mr. Chair, I will remark that after comments made by college and university presidents in my colleague, Dr. Foxx from North Carolina's, committee hearing, those comments were so horribly dishonest, disturbing, and, quite frankly, dangerous. prgtoken This amendment and the necessary exclamation point it sends is necessary. prgtoken The public deserves to know the source of foreign money being poured into our universities, especially if these sources have any ties to terrorist groups and organizations like Hamas. prgtoken Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to adopt the amendment, and .
CONCERN FOR OUR COUNTRY
Andy Biggs (Republican, AZ) \u2014 2023-12-6

. It is my suggestion and it is this: This administration is lawless and has no desire to enforce the laws already in place. What I would say is, how do you incentivize them? prgtoken Do you incentivize them by allowing them to keep the FRA spending? prgtoken Do you incentivize them when you say, okay, I will tell you what, we are going to keep your Green New Deal subsidies that you said would not cost more than $350 billion, which will now cost more than $2 trillion? prgtoken Will you do anything if we don't stop funding the things you desire? prgtoken The answer is no. prgtoken What I would say is, we know that Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and veterans' benefits will continue on. Why not then identify that we are going to pay for ICE, CBP, the air traffic controllers, TSA, the military men and women, and then say that is it, Mr. . That is all we are going to continue funding. That is the basic minimum to make sure that Americans are safe. prgtoken We refuse to do more spending. By the way, we are having to borrow significant portions of that. We refuse to keep borrowing money and go in debt so future generations will go bankrupt themselves until you secure the border with demonstrable and measurable metrics. prgtoken I will give you one example. Yuma, Arizona. Yuma has one hospital and there are about 80,000 people in Yuma. The emergency room on most days is completely filled with illegal aliens. The local people, people who are going to have babies. If there is a woman ready to deliver, do you know where she is going? prgtoken She is driving 3 hours up to Phoenix or 3\1/2\ hours over to San Diego. The people with heart conditions that need procedures on an emergency basis, same thing, they are getting Air Evac'd up to Phoenix or San Diego. prgtoken Here is the deal. Under the last full year of as the President, do you know what they had? prgtoken They had a total of 8,600 encounters. That is for a year. Do you know what they are doing in a week now? prgtoken About 8,000 a week. That is under this administration. prgtoken Do you think it is not a crisis? prgtoken Go down there and talk to the planters who have had to literally plow under fields because these people come across, they go walking through the fields. These are sensitive fields. Why is that important? prgtoken Because more than 90 percent of all green vegetables provided to this country during the winter months come out of Yuma, Arizona. It is a hazard to our food supply. prgtoken This administration doesn't care if it is a hazard to food supply. They don't care if you have got 1,200 people going to die of fentanyl overdose in Portland, Oregon. They just don't care. They are not going to actually follow the law, so we have got to incentivize them. prgtoken If we do not have the courage to incentivize them, then why the hell did we come to Congress?
Supplemental Funding (Executive Session)
Pete Ricketts (Republican, NE) \u2014 2023-12-6

I am going to say something that I don't think ought to be controversial--that Hamas should receive no U.S. taxpayer dollars. But apparently some people think that is controversial. prgtoken On October 7, Hamas, a terrorist organization dedicated to the destruction of Israel and to killing Jews, broke the cease-fire and attacked Israel. prgtoken Now, this was not a military attack; these were terrorists who came across the border to kill civilians. They killed 1,200 Israelis and 33 Americans. prgtoken Last week, along with my Senate colleagues, I watched an uncensored video prgtoken taken from Hamas body cameras, cell phones, on surveillance television, intercepts of radio and telephone conversations. It was horrific. This atrocity was perpetrated by barbaric savages. We witnessed them shoot unarmed civilians. We saw the evidence of young girls raped. We saw the dead bodies of children, some burned beyond recognition. We watched as a Hamas terrorist decapitated an Israeli soldier. It was truly horrifying. prgtoken Hamas started the war. They are responsible for every person who died on that day and every person who has died in Gaza since. They are a terrorist organization dedicated to destroying Israel. In fact, we heard some of the phone conversations from Hamas terrorists who called back their parents, bragging about how many Jews they had killed. It is absolutely horrific. prgtoken We must stand with Israel until Hamas is destroyed utterly. Humanity will have been done a favor by the State of Israel when Hamas is destroyed. We also must examine the policies that are supporting Hamas. I know--yes, I said that. It is crazy, but it is true. The administration has already given $730 million and wants to add another $260 million to it. prgtoken You see, there is this organization called the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, and it has long been documented that they have been infiltrated by Hamas. prgtoken This organization, also known as UNRWA, has hired Hamas agents. Their teachers have been preaching about killing Jews. Their textbooks glorify martyrdom. They demonize Israelis and sow anti-Semitism. UNRWA schools have stored weapons facilities for Hamas. There is a U.N. report that shows UNRWA schools have launched attacks against Israel. On October 7, UNRWA employees applauded the attack, including 14 UNRWA teachers. Now we have a report that an UNRWA teacher held one of the hostages in that teacher's attic, barely feeding the hostage. prgtoken This is an organization that has been described as essentially a branch of Hamas. The administration knew this, and so they cut off funds, with President saying the organization UNRWA was irredeemable. Inexplicably, the administration resumed funding and wants to continue resumed funding. prgtoken We must not let our tax dollars go to support Hamas, and that is why I have introduce
ERICA REED
Brittany Pettersen (Democrat, CO) \u2014 2023-12-6

I rise today to recognize Erica Reed for earning the Arvada Wheat Ridge Service Ambassadors for Youth Award. prgtoken Erica has achieved great things, all while overcoming adversity and challenges along the way. Students like Erica, who strive to make the most of their education, develop crucial skills and a work ethic that will guide them for the rest of their lives. This award is a testament to Erica's hard work, determination, and perseverance at Arvada High School and is clearly just the beginning of a bright and promising future. prgtoken It is my honor to congratulate Erica Reed on achieving the Arvada Wheat Ridge Service Ambassadors for Youth award.
Unanimous Consent Request--S. 173 (Executive Session)
Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2023-12-6

as I listen to the objection of my colleague from Utah, I am really struck by the absurdity and exaggeration involved in opposition to these commonsense measures that would simply save lives. The idea that we haven't debated background checks--what could be more untethered to reality? We have debated background checks for as long as I have been in the U.S. Senate and before then, when I was attorney general seeking to champion universal background checks. We have debated them in the Judiciary Committee ad nauseam. And we have shown, through the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, that we can break the hold of the gun lobby that is the source of those absurd and ridiculous arguments. prgtoken Background checks take no guns away from any law-abiding citizen. They simply assure that people who are dangerous to themselves or others don't have them. That is the purpose of red flag laws, which I have also championed, and many of the other measures that we seek to pass--the repeal of PLCAA, which guarantees unbridled immunity to gun manufacturers; ghost guns, which we seek to ban because law enforcement finds them so dangerous; and numerous other commonsense measures. prgtoken I am here on behalf of a bill, Ethan's Law, S. 173, which ought to be common ground for everyone. It simply requires safe storage. And we know that 500 Americans every year, including more than 100 children, die from unintentional firearm injuries, many of them involving weapons that are unsafely stored. prgtoken There are loaded and unlocked guns in the homes of 4.6 million American children, and many of them perish because their parents or their neighbors' parents fail to safely store those weapons. prgtoken Nobody knows it better than Kristin Song. Her son died as a result of an unsafely stored weapon just after his 15th birthday. He was with a friend, and a firearm stored in a Tupperware box was used in play by these two young boys. Ethan Song died, and Ethan's Law, which I am seeking to pass by unanimous consent today, is in his memory. It was passed by the State house of representatives in Connecticut and our State senate. And 26 States--red, blue, purple--already have some form of safe storage and child access prevention laws on the books. prgtoken We know from the record of these laws in Connecticut that they work; they save lives. And we know also that gun owners believe that safe storage ought to be the law, ought to be required, ought to be mandated so that lives are saved. prgtoken In fact, even the firearms industry--including the National Rifle Association and the National Shooting Sports Foundation--agree that safe storage is a critical part of responsible gun ownership. prgtoken The NRA tells gun owners that ``[s]trong boxes and security cases . . . are inexpensive and give . . . quick access to . . . firearms in a defensive situation.'' prgtoken The NSSF tells gun owners to ``[a]lways make absolutely sure that firearm
CHOICE IN AUTOMOBILE RETAIL SALES ACT OF 2023
Mike Levin (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2023-12-6

I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 4468. This legislation is misguided and will take us backward in combating climate change and air pollution. prgtoken If I may offer some brief history from my home State, for much of the mid-20th century, California was plagued by smog. Thankfully, the Clean Air Act allowed California to establish stronger vehicle emission standards than those at the Federal level. Standards like those in my home State empowered the auto industry to produce better, cleaner cars, which expanded American manufacturing and reduced our reliance on foreign oil. prgtoken These standards were a win for consumers, for our domestic auto industry, and for meeting our air quality and climate goals. However, H.R. 4468 would erase the decades of progress we have made by blocking EPA from reducing air and climate pollution. prgtoken In fact, the only party that would benefit from rolling back EPA's efforts to slash air pollution is the fossil fuel industry. prgtoken This bill isn't based in science, and it fails to recognize the climate impacts our constituents are already feeling. prgtoken , I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill.
ORDERS FOR THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2023
Brian Schatz (Democrat, HI) \u2014 2023-12-6

I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m. on Thursday, December 7; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; that upon conclusion of morning business, the Senate resume consideration of the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 30, H.R. 815; further, that if Senator Paul makes a motion to discharge S.J. Res. 51 from the Committee on Foreign Relations, that the Senate vote on the motion at 11:30 a.m.; further, that the cloture motion filed during yesterday's session ripen at 1:45 p.m.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Jack Reed (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2023-12-6

just a few minutes ago, my colleagues voted down the National Security and Border Act. In doing so, they essentially said no to supporting Israel, no to supporting Ukraine, no to supporting Taiwan, no to humanitarian assistance, which is absolutely critical, no to rebuilding our defense industrial base, no to border security funding, and no to combating fentanyl. prgtoken These items are not the partisan demands of any one party; they are bipartisan priorities and necessities. They are the fulfillment of our commitments to our allies and to our national security. prgtoken I believe the majority of our colleagues do believe this, but some may see this as leverage--as one of my colleagues put it in a discussion, leverage for extreme immigration legislation that they don't at the moment have the votes to pass. prgtoken In delaying the much needed assistance that I indicated, my colleagues are indirectly, directly, or however you want to put it, giving too many opportunities or at least ideas to people like Putin and Chinese communists and others who are engaged in trying to undermine democracy throughout the world. prgtoken Speaking for myself, I hope that what we can do is begin a serious debate now--not on the one issue that I listed but on all those issues--and come to a serious, principled compromise so that we can move forward together. prgtoken It seems that my colleagues on the other side simply want us to accept their version of immigration reform, and then everything else will be OK. It is not that at all. In fact, one of the aspects of the legislation that was just voted down was a significant infusion of resources into the border area--1,300 additional Border Patrol agents, 1,000 law enforcement personnel and investigative capabilities to prevent cartels from moving fentanyl into the country, 1,600 additional asylum officers, funding to conduct robust child labor investigations and enforcement to protect vulnerable migrant children entering the United States through the southern border, and the bipartisan FEND Off Fentanyl Act, led by our colleague, Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina. prgtoken My colleagues just voted against a series of important ways to fix our problems at the border. We need them desperately, and we could have gotten them if we had moved forward procedurally. prgtoken I have been here for a couple of years, and I have seen several occasions where we have been together on a bipartisan basis. I know in 2013, led by Senator McCain and others, we passed comprehensive immigration reform, only to see it set aside by the House of Representatives at the time. prgtoken So we, I think, have to do much more, and we can, but it will be on a bipartisan, cooperative basis. We have to do much more to help not just Israel-- prgtoken it is critical--but also Ukraine. It has been a long time since we have had their funding request--August of thi