mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
COVID-19 EMERGENCY MEDICAL SUPPLIES ENHANCEMENT ACT OF 2021
Juan Vargas (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2021-5-18

I rise today in support of the COVID-19 Emergency Medical Supplies Enhancement Act, H.R. 3125, because I agree with my good friend from Arkansas that we don't want to get caught at low tide with no bathing suit. In fact, that is a very bad idea. prgtoken The administration has been extremely effective in using the Defense Production Act to help produce vaccines and PPE. Following these efforts, cases and deaths have declined significantly. My bipartisan bill will support the current use of DPA and facilitate its use in the future to save lives. prgtoken This bill amends the DPA to explicitly include public health emergency preparedness as a core activity for national defense, as was mentioned by my good friend from Arkansas. prgtoken It also provides guidance to create an outreach representative who would act as the point person for Federal and private engagement to increase production of medically necessary materials. prgtoken It also requires the administration to provide a much-needed report clearly conveying the Federal contracts awarded under the DPA authorities. prgtoken Finally, it requires additional reporting on the percentage of contracts awarded to small businesses. prgtoken I urge the administration to disaggregate data on small businesses awarded the DPA contracts. We need to clearly see the number of contracts going to individuals from underserved communities, including communities of color, veterans, and individuals with disabilities. prgtoken I am proud to have introduced this bill with my good friend from Arkansas, Representative Hill; and also my colleagues as cosponsors, Representatives Taylor, Ryan, and Gonzalez-Colon. In a bipartisan manner, we have recognized the importance of public health emergency preparedness, including PPE and vaccine production. (English translation of the statement made in Spanish is as follows:) prgtoken I also want to say that too many people in our Latino communities have died due to this virus. So, please, now that the vaccine is available, protect yourselves and protect our community--get vaccinated today. prgtoken Tambien quiero decir que demasiadas personas de nuestras comunidades Latinas han muerto por este virus. Entonces, por favor, ya que la vacuna esta disponible, protejanse y protejan a nuestra comunidad-- vayanse a vacunar hoy.
INSIDER TRADING PROHIBITION ACT
James A. Himes (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2021-5-18

I thank Mr. Emanuel Cleaver for yielding, and I thank my subcommittee ranking member, Mr. Hill, for a very good characterization of the project we are undertaking here. prgtoken I will emphasize two things. prgtoken Number one, at a moment when we are working hard to find ways to work in a bipartisan fashion in the public interest, this is landmark legislation. As Mr. Hill pointed out, we passed it in the last Congress with a vote of 410-13, and that was the result of a very comprehensive and fairly technical negotiation around the fine points of insider trading. prgtoken The second thing I would point out is that everyone in this Chamber should agree that law is to be made in this Chamber, not in the chambers of unelected judges throughout the land. While Mr. Hill is correct that there has been a vast body of court-made law around insider trading developed over the generations, that is far from ideal and, frankly, an abrogation of the legislative responsibilities of the United States Congress. So, we are where we are. prgtoken We have attempted to make clear and clear up a great deal of the uncertainty, the reversed convictions, the activities in the Second Circuit that have overturned convictions and created uncertainty in the law. This is an effort to make clear what I think everyone understands, which is that if you trade on information that you know to have been wrongly obtained or that you wrongly obtained or that you recklessly disregard was wrongly obtained, you are doing something wrong. In this case, with the passage of this legislation, it will be clear that you have violated the law. prgtoken I am excited for the passage of this legislation because I am a believer that it is, in fact, the elected legislators of this country and not the judges, as important as their role may be, who should determine what we consider wrong in statute and what we punish people for doing. prgtoken Finally, of course, it is essential that everyone out there have confidence in our markets. Every time there is another headline about an insider trader or a reversed conviction of insider trading, that confidence is damaged. So, I applaud the bringing of this bill to the floor.
H.R. 210, RURAL STEM EDUCATION RESEARCH ACT
Eddie Bernice Johnson (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2021-5-18

. Madam , I was proud to join Ranking Member Lucas in introducing his Rural STEM Education Research Act. Access to high-quality STEM education has too long been place-based. For students who grow up in rural areas of this country, even in states that boast some of the world's best research universities, a STEM career may seem unattainable. Many rural students have never met a practicing scientist or engineer. Their teachers often struggle with limited resources for the STEM curriculum. It is unlikely that their schools have well equipped science laboratories that may provide hands- on experiences that are known to inspire scientific curiosity and a love of STEM at an early age. The nearest science museum may be too far for a field trip, if the district can even afford to transport them. And broadband access remains an urgent challenge. prgtoken Yet we know with certainty that talent for science has nothing to do with one where is born, any more than it has to do with the color of one's skin or one's gender. Our country is filled with smart young people from all backgrounds who may one day contribute to our science and innovation leadership. In fact, we need them to contribute to our science and innovation future if we are to continue to compete on the global stage and develop solutions to our most pressing challenges. But these young people must first see it as a possibility for themselves, and that starts with access to high-quality STEM education and hands-on research experiences in their local schools. prgtoken The Rural STEM Education Act provides for research and development to increase access to STEM education opportunities in rural schools and to provide teachers with the resources they need to teach more effectively. The bill also directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to develop a prize competition to advance research and development of creative technologies for expanded broadband access. This bill further provides for assessments of Federal investments in rural STEM education to be conducted by the National Academies and the Government Accountability Office. prgtoken H.R. 210 is a good, bipartisan bill. I am pleased that the House passed it today along with a series of other bills focused on growing, diversifying, and strengthening our STEM workforce for the future. I look forward to working with Ranking Member Lucas and colleagues in both bodies to enact all of these bills.
FINANCIAL INCLUSION IN BANKING ACT OF 2021
David Scott (Democrat, GA) \u2014 2021-5-18

. Madam , I thank the gentleman very much for yielding. I thank my distinguished colleague for his very fine comments. prgtoken Madam , this is one of our most important bills because it is happening at a time when so many of our people are facing such ravaging financial problems and concerns. prgtoken Since the passage of Dodd-Frank, which I worked hard on, as many of you did, and the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, we charged that agency with ensuring that consumers have access to safe, accessible, and affordable financial products. prgtoken Yet, Madam , do you know that we still have 7.1 million of our American citizens who are unbanked, relying on pawn shops and payday lenders to get by? As this past year has laid bare, many families are just one crisis, one sickness, one broken vehicle, one emergency from absolute financial devastation. prgtoken Without support from regulated, legitimate financial institutions, these consumers are forced to turn to predatory lenders and unsound products. They are at the mercy of some of the most unscrupulous characters we know. prgtoken Our bill is a very strong bipartisan bill, which the gentleman from Arkansas has articulated well. prgtoken Madam , with this bill, we will prioritize the most underserved and unbanked persons across our great Nation, and we will be taking the first step toward improving access and affordability in banking for all of our American people. prgtoken I urge my colleagues everywhere to give this a unanimous vote on the floor later today.
COVID-19 HATE CRIMES ACT
Mondaire Jones (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2021-5-18

. Madam , as we near the beginning of the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is long past time to confront what my colleague and dear friend, Representative Meng, has described as the additional pandemic of hatred, violence, and discrimination against our Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. prgtoken Madam , I am proud to support the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act today. prgtoken I would like to address our AAPI communities directly: I cannot know exactly what you are feeling in this moment, but as an openly gay Black man in America, I know what it is like to be marginalized and to be harassed because of who you are. prgtoken I turned 34 years old today, and while the end product may look okay, there is a lot that I carry with me. I know what it is like to feel both invisible and exposed, both unseen and targeted. I know what it is like to have to fight for rights that you should just be able to take for granted. And I know that in the United States of America no one should ever have to feel this way. prgtoken So what I want the AAPI community to know is this: As surely as the Earth revolves around the Sun, I will be with you always because we can only get through this together.
ENDLESS FRONTIER ACT--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Richard J. Durbin (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2021-5-18

very shortly, we will be voting on the Kristen Clarke nomination to the Department of Justice. This week is an apt time to start the discussion about her nomination because it marks the anniversary of two of the most important Supreme Court decisions in the history of America. The first is the infamous Plessy v. Ferguson decision in 1896, wherein the Supreme Court established a standard of separate but equal. That was the standard that was used to justify-- legally justify--racial discrimination throughout America. Sixty years later, in the landmark decision of Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court unanimously--unanimously--rejected that shameful document and blazed a trail for the modern civil rights movement. prgtoken This year, 2021, the Senate has a chance to continue America's long march toward equality and racial justice by confirming principled, experienced leaders to the Department of Justice. The Senate should work expeditiously to consider and confirm these nominees. We have already confirmed Attorney General Merrick Garland, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. The next one in the order of the administration's priority on hiring in the Department of Justice is Kristen Clarke. President has nominated her to lead the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. prgtoken Ms. Clarke is the right person to restore credibility to the Civil Rights Division. Under the previous President, the former Attorneys General Sessions and Barr, that Division was warped into a target and a tool to discriminate against marginalized Americans. During that previous administration, the Division rescinded guidance that strengthened protections for transgender students. They prohibited the use of consent decrees with local police departments that engaged in systemic misconduct. And they abandoned the longstanding principle of defending Americans' right to vote. Now we have an opportunity for a course correction in the Civil Rights Division by confirming a proven civil rights leader to head that Division. prgtoken As a former trial attorney in the Division's Voting Section and as a prosecutor in its Criminal Section, Ms. Clarke has clearly played in the big leagues. She personally understands the role that the Division's line attorneys play on a day-to-day basis. Ms. Clarke knows that these career attorneys must be independent from political pressure in order to carry out the mission to defend the civil rights of all Americans, and her diverse background as a legal expert will serve her well. prgtoken As the former codirector of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund's voting rights group, Clarke confronted assaults on voting rights and ballot access, like those we are seeing in State legislatures across America today. As the former chief of the New York Attorney General's Civil Rights Bureau, she helped establish the Office of Religious Rig
COVID-19 HATE CRIMES ACT
Judy Chu (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2021-5-18

. Madam , I rise today in strong support of the COVID- 19 Hate Crimes Act. prgtoken Since the start of this pandemic, Asian Americans have been terrified by the near-daily attacks in our communities. Shocking videos like the fatal assault of 84-year-old Vicha Ratanapakdee, and the horrific shootings of eight people at three Asian-owned spas in Georgia brought national attention to this issue, but it also showed that our national response to combating hate crimes is lacking. prgtoken That is why today's vote is so important. The bill would create a new position at the U.S. Department of Justice to better track and address COVID-19 hate crimes. It also includes the text of the bill I co-lead, the NO HATE Act, which improves hate crime reporting by law enforcement and provides grants for community-centered solutions to fight hate. prgtoken After a year in which we have seen over 6,600 anti-Asian hate crimes and incidents, finally we are helping the Asian-American community fight back. prgtoken Madam , I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''
CONDEMNING THE HORRIFIC SHOOTINGS IN ATLANTA, GEORGIA, ON MARCH 16, 2021
Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (Democrat, GA) \u2014 2021-5-18

. Madam , millions of people here and around the globe were shocked to learn of the shootings at three Atlanta spas last March that killed eight people and injured one. Six of the eight victims were of Asian descent. prgtoken Many of us saw a link between the discriminatory and often hateful rhetoric against the Asian-American community during the COVID-19 pandemic and this unspeakable act of violence. In fact, the last year has seen an unacceptable rise in anti-Asian racism and violent attacks, especially against the elderly. There are many such incidents across the nation that are said to be unreported as well. prgtoken As the Dean of the Georgia Delegation, I strongly condemn these heinous acts of violence against our Asian-American brothers and sisters. They have no place in Georgia or anywhere else in our nation for that matter. prgtoken I therefore urge my colleagues to support not only this important resolution to condemn this act of violence and to remember the lives that were so tragically taken from us last March in Atlanta. I also urge them to support the bipartisan COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act to bolster the investigation and prosecution of hate crimes in the United States.
COVID-19 HATE CRIMES ACT
Ed Case (Democrat, HI) \u2014 2021-5-18

. Madam , I rise today to give voice, not just to the 80 percent of my constituents whose heritage lies in Asia and the Pacific, but to all I represent; that we join with our brothers and sisters across our country in solidarity; that hate against any of us based on our race, our ethnicity, our heritage, is hate against us all; that this must end here now. prgtoken I rise today to recognize my Senator, Mazie Hirono, a pioneer in her own right, who brought this message to us in anger and in faith. I rise today for my granddaughter, 2-year-old, Cadence Masako Ansdell, and for millions like her for whom we must, today, make this choice, that when they come of age, they will know only the harsh lessons of their past and not the tragic reality of their present. prgtoken Madam , I rise for us all.
RECOGNIZING JULIANA URTUBEY
Steven Horsford (Democrat, NV) \u2014 2021-5-18

. Madam , I rise to recognize and celebrate Ms. Juliana Urtubey, a Nevada teacher whose commitment to joyful and just education has led to her well-deserved selection as the 2021 National Teacher of the Year. prgtoken Ms. Urtubey is a first-generation immigrant and bilingual educator who works in special education at Booker Elementary in Nevada's Fourth Congressional District. prgtoken At Booker Elementary, she is known as Ms. Earth for beautifying the community with gardens and murals. prgtoken She teaches her students to take pride in themselves, their identities, and their strengths. prgtoken She is the best of Nevada, the best of our educators, and we are so proud of her.
PROVIDING FOR CONGRESSIONAL DISAPPROVAL UNDER CHAPTER 8 OF TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE, OF THE RULE SUBMITTED BY THE EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION RELATING TO ``UPDATE OF COMMISSION'S...
Patty Murray (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2021-5-18

right now, are hard at work building back an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top. We are committed to fighting for workers. And we have big, bold ideas to do that, like establishing national paid sick, family and medical leave policies; rebuilding our childcare infrastructure; raising the Federal minimum wage to $15 an hour; ending the wage gap; and strengthening our Nation's labor laws. prgtoken But after 4 years of nonstop attacks on workers' rights, it is also critical that we undo the damage done by the administration. So I am urging my colleagues to join me in voting to overturn a administration rule that imposed strict limits on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's ability to address workplace discrimination. prgtoken The EEOC is a critical Agency. It is responsible for holding employers accountable for following workplace discrimination laws. And when they don't, it is one of the few places a worker can go to make sure they get a fair hearing, accountability, and justice. But in January, the administration's Commissioners voted to finalize a rule that tipped the scales in favor of employers in EEOC's process to settle discrimination cases. prgtoken That rule gave employers access to information about the worker's case, but not the other way around. It made it easier for employers to demand the identity of victims and witnesses, increasing the risk of retaliation. And it was set to worsen the backlog of cases at the EEOC, forcing workers to wait longer for justice. Put simply, that rule was designed to make it easier for employers to delay or deny justice to workers who have experienced discrimination on the job. prgtoken We cannot accept a system that is designed to let employers get away with violating workers' rights. So we absolutely cannot let this rule stand. Let's overturn this rule and restore a fair settlement process for the tens of thousands of workers who file discrimination charges with the EEOC each year. prgtoken This is a small but important step in the fight to build a more fair and inclusive economy for all workers, and I believe every one of us who thinks workers deserve to do their jobs free from harassment and discrimination can support this. prgtoken Thank you. prgtoken , I move to proceed to S.J. Res. 13.
RECOGNIZING TLC FOR TOTS
James E. Risch (Republican, ID) \u2014 2021-5-19

the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic have not been easy for small business owners and their employees to overcome. Throughout the pandemic, many were forced to temporarily close their doors. Those that reopened had to innovate their business models to comply with local guidelines and public health mandates. As we turn the corner on the COVID-19 pandemic, I am proud to relaunch Support Local Gems, a statewide initiative, on May 21 to encourage Idahoans to support local small businesses in their communities. This month, as a senior member and former chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, I will honor six small businesses located throughout the State of Idaho. I am pleased to honor TLC for Tots as one of the Idaho Small Businesses of the Month for May 2021. prgtoken TLC for Tots is a family-owned childcare and preschool learning center located in Nampa, ID. In 2006, owners Dave and Elizabeth Fetzer started the business out of their home, providing individualized attention to each of its students. The business quickly outgrew its original location, relocating in 2008 to a larger facility where it remains today. The owners credit their success to their phenomenal staff who are constantly training and reeducating themselves to provide high-quality care. Additionally, TLC for Tots facilitates early intervention programs and sponsors family events to ensure the continued growth of their students. prgtoken TLC for Tots has remained committed to combating the spread of COVID- 19. At its facility, temperature checks are regularly administered, daily cleanings are conducted throughout the facility, and staff were required to wear masks throughout the day during the height of the pandemic. The business provides more than a dozen jobs to the Nampa community and has been dedicated to serving local families while adhering to COVID-19 guidelines. prgtoken Congratulations to TLC for Tots on being selected as an Idaho Gem for the month of May. You serve as an example in your community and are an outstanding example of what it means to be one of Idaho's Local Gems.
RECOGNIZING SERGEANT DAN McBRIDE
Yvette Herrell (Republican, NM) \u2014 2021-5-19

. Madam , in 1942, Dan McBride enlisted as a paratrooper in the U.S. Army. Sergeant Dan McBride is an American hero from New Mexico. prgtoken Assigned to Fox Company, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne, Dan's job was a new modernization in military tactics. Paratroopers jumped out of perfectly good airplanes to parachute behind enemy lines. prgtoken On June 6, 1944, Dan jumped into Normandy on D-day as part of Operation Overlord. There he earned his first Purple Heart. prgtoken On September 17, 1944, Dan jumped into Holland as part of Operation Market Garden. There he earned his second Purple Heart. prgtoken In December of 1944, Dan and the 101st Airborne made their way to Bastogne, Belgium, where they held off a desperate push by the Germans in temperatures well below zero, with no winter clothes. The Battle of the Bulge is where Dan earned his third Purple Heart. prgtoken His actions did not go overlooked. Amongst the multitude of medals he was awarded, Dan and his fellow paratroopers, Dick Kline and James Martin, were featured in the book ``Three of the Last Screaming Eagles.'' prgtoken That book has now been made into a documentary film called ``A Rendezvous with Destiny,'' which premieres on May 29 in Columbus, Ohio, at the National Veterans Memorial and Museum. prgtoken We owe so much to our World War II veterans, of whom we have fewer every day. I am so proud of Sergeant McBride. I can't think of a better way to honor his legacy than by immortalizing his story on film.