mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
REMEMBERING GENE SULLIVAN
John Boozman (Republican, AR) \u2014 2017-9-25

today I wish to recognize the life and legacy of Arkansan Gene Sullivan. Gene will forever be remembered as the great optimist with the can-do attitude and endless determnation. There was no project too small and, certainly, no project too large that he wouldn't tackle with his trademark tenacity. Gene led a life dedicated to the outdoors and was a man of great faith. prgtoken While there are many remarkable stories that we remember about Gene, I want to share a personal letter that he sent to his grandchildren on his 81st birthday. On February 8, 2017, Gene wrote the following: As I sit in my easy chair in the early morning of my 81st birthday, I give thanks to the Lord for how He has blessed me throughout my life with love and mercy rather than justice. I want to share with you some things I know to be true and pray that you will consider them in your short journey through this life on earth. (1) God's judgement of how you live your life is the only one that is really important. (2) The Bible provides God's directions for having a successful life. Read it and live it. (3) When you are older and look back, you will not regret any time you spent with family, serving the Lord and loving and serving others. I love you and you are one of the blessings of my life. prgtoken He also included two Scriptures for them to read and contemplate. prgtoken Deuteronomy 11:1: ``Therefore you shall love the LORD your God, and always keep His charge, His statutes, His precepts, and His commandments [it is your obligation to Him].'' prgtoken 1 John 4:20: ``Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.'' prgtoken As we mourn the loss of this Arkansas leader, I think it would serve us all well to reflect upon the timeless wisdom that he passed along to his grandchildren on his 81st birthday.
TEXAS COACHES FIGHT HURRICANE HARVEY
Ted Poe (Republican, TX) \u2014 2017-9-25

. Madam , undaunted by the massive 50 inches of hammering rains and devastation of Hurricane Harvey, Texans quickly volunteered to help other water-soaked neighbors. prgtoken Bay City High School Secretary Linda Leissner was manning the city's emergency operations call center when she realized the city needed school buses and drivers to help in the rescue because of Harvey's quickly rising floodwaters, so she called the coaches. The coaches quickly manned the high school's buses, and in the torrential rain they began rescuing and evacuating residents of the town, including some of their very own students. prgtoken One of the coaches, Nathan Janak, put it best: ``It was just people helping people. It was one of the greatest displays of human kindness I have ever seen.'' prgtoken Madam , stories like this make us Texas Proud and give us the determination to recover from one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history. Harvey will not defeat us. As we say, ``Don't mess with Texas.'' prgtoken And that is just the way it is.
Healthcare (Executive Calendar)
Ron Johnson (Republican, WI) \u2014 2017-9-25

I rise today to talk about the disasters of Care and a possible solution. It is a powerful first step--not perfect but a step that would take us off the path toward a single- payer system and put us on a path toward federalism, with greater State control but, in many respects, greater freedom for the American public. prgtoken During the last healthcare discussion and debate, I spoke with a couple, Sherry and Vern Colby from River Falls, WI. They had a real problem: They had preexisting conditions. They were quite pleased when Care passed because their preexisting conditions, they believed, would be covered. So they signed up for Care in 2014, paid the premiums, sent in their paycheck stubs to make sure their income levels qualified for the subsidies. Then a funny thing happened when they got their tax returns in March of 2015: They had to pay back more than $15,000 in subsidies because they made $59,000. They had to cash in pretty much all of their 401(k). They had to sell their house so they wouldn't lose it in foreclosure. prgtoken I spoke with Sherry Colby today because, as we have debated the possibility of passage of Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson, we have heard a lot of demagoguery. We have heard a lot of false charges. I would like to refute a couple of those. prgtoken One of the claims of Care is it guaranteed that if you have a preexisting condition, you are free from worry, you will be covered. Well, in Sherry and Vern Colby's case, that is simply not true. prgtoken I spoke with Sherry just this afternoon. Again, they had to sell their house, and they had to cash in their 401(k). Their nightmare didn't end at that point in time because President , as he left office, took short-term, limited-duration plans--that duration from 264 days down to 90 days. Now Sherry and Vern Colby are forced to buy these short-term, limited-duration plans that only last for 90 days. When I say ``forced,'' the problem they have is that they work. Vern drives milk trucks 60 hours a week. Sherry works in a florist's shop 30 hours a week. They make too much to be subsidized under Care. They don't make enough to be able to afford the premium of $14,000 per year with a $12,500 deductible. So right now they are paying $5,500 a year, and they have a $5,000 deductible per quarter and a 70/30 copay for a short-term, limited-duration plan that can and did exclude their preexisting conditions. prgtoken Shortly after they signed up with IHC, Vern had a condition that required a hospital stay. The problem is, his preexisting condition wasn't covered under their insurance. The bill for that hospital stay was $45,000. To add insult to injury, because their short-term, limited-duration plan is not Care compliant, they are also paying the penalty. They are purchasing insurance, paying $5,500 per year, $20,000 in deductibles, a $45,000 hospital bill, and they are still penalized by the Ameri
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2018
Elise M. Stefanik (Republican, NY) \u2014 2017-9-25

. Mr. Chair, today I rise to recognize and support the Environmental Protection Agency's work on acid rain. My district is the proud home of the Adirondacks, which for decades were being destroyed by acid rain from the mid-west. Thanks to the work of the EPA to support efforts to halt this epidemic, we are recovering in spectacular fashion. Trout populations are returning to once dead lakes, waters and trees are getting healthier, and the park is a booming economic engine for our district. I've visited a lab in Ray Brook where the water samples collected by the Adirondack Lake Survey Corporation are tested, and ask that you help me ensure that the grant funding for this important work is renewed. The EPA's programs and grants have been essential in restoring this ecological gem in my district. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in Congress to support these important programs.
RECOGNIZING JUDGE JOLENE GRUBB KOPRIVA FOR 30 YEARS OF DEVOTED SERVICE TO BLAIR COUNTY
Bill Shuster (Republican, PA) \u2014 2017-9-25

I rise today to recognize Judge Jolene Grubb Kopriva for 30 years of devoted service to Blair County and to wish her well on her upcoming retirement. Since earning her Juris Doctorate Degree in 1978 at the Duquesne School of Law in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Judge Kopriva has been an essential part of the Blair County community. In November of 1987, Judge Kopriva challenged the status quo by becoming the first elected female judge in Blair County. In January 2006, she broke through another barrier by becoming the first female President Judge of Blair County--a position she held for over ten years. Judge Kopriva has been rightfully recognized time and time again for her service to the community. Despite her busy career, Judge Kopriva has been an active volunteer serving on the United Way Board of Directors, the Hollidaysburg Area YMCA Board of Directors and Officer, the Multi-Disciplinary Child Abuse Team of Blair County, the Governor's Community Partnership for Safe Children, as well as several other spots in her church and around Blair County. These positions earned her many distinctions such as the Altoona YWCA Tribute to Women Award, a NAACP Humanitarian Award, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from WISE Women of Blair County. Judge Kopriva's devoted service is an inspiration to us all, and I wish her the best on her retirement. Though her time in court may be coming to a close, the impact she has made to improve the lives of those in Blair County will be felt for decades to come.
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Cory A. Booker (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2017-9-26

I appreciate the words from all the colleagues I have seen. It is great to see bipartisan sentiments about dealing with the most powerful hurricanes in recorded history. These hurricanes have left thousands of families homeless, destroying infrastructure, and leaving most people without power for the foreseeable future. There are thousands of individual stories of loss of life, of loss of possessions, of everything people own, devastated by this storm. prgtoken What is important to me now is that we turn these words into action. I am grateful for the leadership we are seeing from the State of Texas and the State of Florida, but I want to focus in on what is happening in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. We know, right now, close to 31.5 million American citizens on these islands are on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe, including the 3.4 million people who live in Puerto Rico and over 100,000 Americans on the U.S. Virgin Islands. The American citizens living in Puerto Rico are part of a population that is bigger than the States of Wyoming, Vermont, North Dakota, and Alaska combined, but they don't have eight Senators representing them in this body--working for them, fighting for them. prgtoken When Superstorm Sandy hit New Jersey, I know the constant work Senator Menendez, I, and my predecessor Senator Frank Lautenberg put into working on making sure our communities could recover. We don't have direct Senators representing this incredible population of Americans. They don't have folks here every single day who are pressing for the interests of these Americans, for their safety, their security, their lives. We have to--the 100 of us--step up to make sure that we are focusing on the interests of our fellow Americans after what has been one of the worst storms in recorded history. prgtoken The Americans in Puerto Rico pay taxes. They love this country. They serve in the military. In fact, they serve in the military at a rate almost twice as high as the general U.S. population. These are patriots. They are our brothers and our sisters. These Americans deserve action from this body and from the President of the United States. prgtoken Puerto Rico's Governor has spoken directly to this crisis, noting that just 40 percent of the residents of Puerto Rico have access to drinking water--meaning that 2 million American citizens right now in Puerto Rico do not have access to clean drinking water. This is a serious crisis. prgtoken More than this, we know the vast majority of Puerto Rican residents still don't have electricity. They are struggling to access food. They do not have basic means of communications on the island, even to family here. They can't access bank accounts. Their sanitation systems have come to a complete standstill. Access to basic medications--often urgently needed medication and healthcare--is under threat. prgtoken It is estimated that it is going to take months before power
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Jeff Merkley (Democrat, OR) \u2014 2017-9-26

climate disruption is the seminal challenge of our generation. It affects everything from our farms to our forests, to our fisheries. We see the impact from disappearing ice sheets and melting permafrost and glaciers. We see it in the coral reefs. We see it in the moving insect populations. We see it in the more powerful storms. prgtoken In response, communities across our globe are transforming their energy economies. They are working on energy efficiency, certainly-- more efficient appliances and a little more mileage in their cars. Yet many are also working to transform their energy economies from a fossil fuel energy economy to a renewable energy economy. prgtoken How much do you know about the changes that are underway? Let's find out. prgtoken Welcome to episode 5 of the Senate Climate Disruption Quiz. Here we go. Here is the first question. prgtoken This August, an electric 500 horsepower Tesla Model X SUV raced a 740 horsepower Lamborghini Aventador SV in a quarter-mile drag race. Who won? Was it the 500 horsepower electric Tesla or the 740 horsepower Lamborghini? Was the race called off or did they tie? prgtoken Take a moment. Feel free to lock in your answer. prgtoken The answer is, the Tesla won the race. The Tesla won the race, despite the fact that it had far less horsepower. In fact, it set a record for an SV in a quarter mile. It beat the Lamborghini by about 500ths of a second. prgtoken It just goes to help demonstrate the incredible torque and acceleration that comes with electric power, and if you have ever tried driving a Tesla and had it accelerate so fast that it pinned you against the back of the seat, you would know what I am talking about. prgtoken OK. Let's turn to question No. 2. Taking a page from the white roof movement, which city in America has begun painting its streets white in order to lower temperatures? Is it the city of Phoenix, AZ? Is it Austin, TX? Is it Kansas City, MO, or perhaps Los Angeles, CA? prgtoken The answer is, among those cities, Los Angeles, CA. You may have seen this in the news. After a heat wave and recordbreaking temperatures, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced plans to cut the average temperature in L.A. by 3 degrees Fahrenheit over the next two decades. prgtoken One of the keys to doing this is to coat the city's roads in something called CoolSeal, which is a light-colored paint. Originally, it was a paint that was developed by engineers for military air bases so as to keep spy planes cool while they were resting on the tarmac. CoolSeal keeps streets and parking lots 10 degrees cooler than does black asphalt. prgtoken This is an interesting innovation, and I am sure the work L.A. does will help create information for other cities because cities are heat islands. Because of the asphalt, they are often much hotter than the surrounding countryside. prgtoken OK. Question No. 3. In which State do 31 communities face an imminent threat of destruction from clim
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED
Richard J. Durbin (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2017-9-26

over the last few days, three Senators have publicly stated that they prgtoken will vote against the healthcare repeal bill that may come to the Senate this week. prgtoken In announcing his opposition, one Senator, John McCain of Arizona, issued the following statement: ``As I have repeatedly stressed, healthcare reform legislation ought to be the product of regular order in the Senate.'' prgtoken Last night, Senator Susan Collins of Maine stated: ``This is simply not the way that we should be approaching an important and complex issue.'' prgtoken She went on to say: ``The fact that a new version of this bill was released the very week we are supposed to vote compounds the problem.'' prgtoken This should be the end of the Graham-Cassidy repeal debate. leadership should finally scrap this one-sided effort to literally change the healthcare system for America. prgtoken There was a hearing yesterday--the only hearing on the bill we are about to vote on. It was a lengthy hearing, but it, frankly, did not entertain all of the witnesses or any amendment process so that Members could really have input into the bill we are going to face. prgtoken The Congressional Budget Office is supposed to tell us what this critical legislation will do for America. It issued a preliminary finding yesterday that millions of Americans would lose their health insurance and that those with preexisting conditions, as well as their families, if they could buy insurance, would find it very, very expensive. prgtoken At the end of this week, funding for our Nation's community healthcare centers will run out, as will funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program. Shouldn't we be focused on reauthorizing those programs appropriately in a timely way? Let's allow the HELP Committee, which is the committee of jurisdiction when it comes to healthcare, to do its work. I have faith in two Senators--one and one --to do the right thing on this. Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a , and Senator Patty Murray of Washington, a , have proven before that they can take complex issues such as Federal funding for education and find a bipartisan compromise. prgtoken What would America say if we announced at the end of next week or even this week that we have a bipartisan compromise to make healthcare stronger in the United States, that it is going to pass the Senate, that we are going to send to it the House, and that we are going to get something done this year in the Senate? prgtoken First, most Americans would be amazed and skeptical, as they should be, but if we can prove that we are going to do it, they would applaud us for finally reaching a point at which we do something on a bipartisan basis. prgtoken That was the process that was underway until last week. Senator Alexander was given orders by the leadership: Step back. Let's vote on Graham-Cassidy. Don'
INCREASING OPPORTUNITY AND SUCCESS FOR CHILDREN AND PARENTS THROUGH EVIDENCE-BASED HOME VISITING ACT
Bill Pascrell, Jr. (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2017-9-26

as I said, there are currently 18 evidence-based home visiting models. Also, there is nothing added to the budget; no extra currency I am asking for. prgtoken I would ask the sponsor of the bill what he would tell this woman from Passaic County, New Jersey, one of many examples that I have. I ask him what his answer would be to that woman. prgtoken , .
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Bill Nelson (Democrat, FL) \u2014 2017-9-26

I want to express my appreciation to the fellow Senators who have come up innumerable times to express their regrets for what has happened to Florida, as we did with our colleagues from Texas with regard to the hurricane in Texas. Indeed, that was an unusual storm. prgtoken The almost gold standard storm of Hurricane Andrew 25 years ago crossed the State of Florida in 4 hours. It was small in diameter compared to this present hurricane that hit Florida and traveled right up the peninsula and, therefore, covered up the entire State. prgtoken For the past few weeks, in my traveling all around, there was vast devastation either by the wind or by flooding. It is really hard to believe that a State as large as ours could be virtually covered up by a storm. There was limited access to critical supplies like gasoline, and some places sustained considerable damage. I remember down in the Keys, in the part that hit the northeastern quadrant of the eye wall, in Big Pine Key, I went to a trailer park--a place of mobile homes--and there was not one mobile home that was sitting upright. They were all turned on their sides or turned over on their roofs. It was something that you just cannot believe--the force of the wind. prgtoken The cost of rebuilding is going to be in the billions. We have passed a temporary measure of $15 billion, and that is running out. We are going to have to do something immediately for the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, but there is going to be a continuing cost in Texas and a huge cost in Florida. Many people have been dislocated, and they are unable to move back into their homes. prgtoken Take people in the Florida Keys. There is a tourism economy there, and to have a tourism economy, you have to get the service personnel back in. Well, they don't have any homes. So you have to bring in temporary housing. In the Keys, there is one way in and one way out. So that is going to take some time. prgtoken Then, sadly, in the tragedy of all tragedies, 11 frail, elderly seniors died in a hot box that was a nursing home that had lost power, and the generators that were required under the existing law and existing regulations of the State of Florida were for putting the lights back on. They were not generators that were sufficient in order to run the air conditioning systems. The 11 senior citizens perished after there were a number of calls that had been made to the Governor's cell phone and calls that were made to Florida Power & Light. prgtoken There is a criminal investigation that is underway that will answer some of the questions of why, as they pled for help to come and get back on the power, those calls were never answered. As a result, 11 people died. Something like that simply just shouldn't happen in America, a country that has the resources and the compassion that our people have. prgtoken I want to state that, if people can't get through in an emergency like this to a Federal
PUERTO RICO AND THE VIRGIN ISLANDS ARE IN CRISIS
Darren Soto (Democrat, FL) \u2014 2017-9-26

first, to the President: Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are in crisis. People are dying, and the time for action is now. prgtoken Send our ships. Send our planes. Send our soldiers and our personnel over. We need water and food and medicine. These are Americans, and we can't turn our backs on them. prgtoken To : We need a FEMA supplemental package without delay, and include not only Texas and Florida, but the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico with the same funding per capita as the States. They need resources just like our great State of Florida. prgtoken To the Governors in many States from whom folks from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands will seek refuge in the meantime: Be prepared--your schools, your hospitals, shelters. Families in these areas, open your homes to our friends and to your neighbors. prgtoken The United States Government must act with urgency beginning today.