mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Nomination of Lawrence VanDyke (Executive Session)
Richard J. Durbin (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2019-12-12

the majority leader was on the floor a little earlier, and he talked about the business of the Senate and how busy we are in the Senate. I would like to state for the record, so far in the calendar year 2019, on the floor of this U.S. Senate, where the greatest deliberative body meets and considers the lofty issues of our time, in the year 2019--currently this year--we have considered 22 amendments in the entire year--22 amendments. prgtoken , six of them were offered by the junior Senator from Kentucky. One Senator had six amendments: Senator Rand Paul. They were all defeated. Then some 16 other amendments were offered. prgtoken To put that into perspective, on a good day in the Senate, when the Senate was the Senate, there would be 10 amendments; bills would come to the floor; we would debate; amendments would be adopted. Some would lose. People would give speeches. We would pass legislation, send it over to the House, go to a conference. We don't do that anymore. prgtoken Under Senator McConnell, the leader of the Senate, we do not do that anymore. There were 22 amendments in the course of the entire year. If we were paid for the actual piecework that we do, we would not get a paycheck this year because we haven't done anything. prgtoken I will take that back. What we have done is to fill as many Federal court vacancies as possible with some of the most unqualified people ever offered by a President of the United States. This week, a man named VanDyke is being named to the court in Nevada. He has such a limited connection with Nevada that both Nevada Senators refuse to approve him for this court appointment. He has no connection to their State, but he was chosen by the White House. prgtoken He went through a background check by the American Bar Association, and they concluded unanimously that he was unqualified to be a Federal judge--unqualified. He is not the first. Under this President, we have had nine different court nominees found unqualified by the American Bar Association. You say, Well, that is going to happen, lawyers disagree. prgtoken Do you know how many were found unqualified under the administration in 8 years? None, not one. There are nine unqualified men and women now with lifetime appointments on the Federal bench because, for Senator McConnell, that is his priority: Fill the bench with people of his political stripe at any cost. prgtoken Take up legislation? No. The ically-controlled House of Representatives has sent us over 200 different measures to consider on the floor of the Senate. Senator McConnell has refused. He will not take up any legislation. He is very proud of it. To his credit, he is not ashamed or embarrassed. He says to call himself the Grim Reaper when it comes to measures coming over from the House. He is here to kill them, and he has done a pretty good job of that, if that is his goal in what he wants to ac
LOWER DRUG COSTS NOW ACT OF 2019
Ann Kirkpatrick (Democrat, AZ) \u2014 2019-12-12

. Madam Chair, I thank the Congresswoman for yielding. prgtoken I want to echo what I hear from my constituents: Do I put gas in my car, or do I buy my medication? Do I put food on the table for my family, or do I pay for my prescription drugs? Do I buy a generic drug here in the United States that costs $900, or do I drive to Mexico where I can buy it for $9? prgtoken These are real, lifesaving, life-or-death issues that we are dealing with. prgtoken I want you to know this is personal to me because, when I was a 19- year-old waitress, I came home one night to my family, and my parents weren't home. They said, ``Your mom took your dad to the hospital,'' and I drove to the hospital. prgtoken I said: ``Okay, I will go check on him.'' prgtoken As I was walking in the door, the doctor walked out, and he said: ``Your dad is dead.'' prgtoken That was due to a lack of healthcare, including prescription drugs. prgtoken He had an undiagnosed heart disease that could have been treated, and in this day and age it would not have been an issue. So I fully support H.R. 3. This is something that is critical to American families and they are dealing with every day. prgtoken A mother shouldn't have to decide if she is going to drive to Mexico, where she is not exactly sure if the drug she is purchasing for her child has the same standards and quality that she would get here in the United States. prgtoken So, Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3. This is life or death.
EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT IT IS THE POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES TO COMMEMORATE THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
Joe Manchin, III (Democrat, WV) \u2014 2019-12-12

I rise today to reflect on the accomplishments that Chairman Murkowski, my colleague and friend on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and I have been able to make this year. Today, I will focus on my remarks on the energy agenda we have put in place to address climate change, as well as a path forward for a bipartisan energy bill. prgtoken The year began with my appointment to ranking member of the committee. There were some expressions of uncertainty about where Chairman Murkowski and I might lead that committee, and there was a great deal of skepticism about my ability and interest in addressing climate change, but I can assure you it is strong. prgtoken On March 5, 2019, we held the first hearing on climate in the committee in 7 years. Just this morning, we passed an additional five Energy bills, making the total count for this year 52 Energy bills reported out of committee. prgtoken We have endlessly examined our Nation's work on innovation in the energy and manufacturing sectors, and we have been reminded that the United States must lead in this space in order to ensure we can address climate change effectively. prgtoken As discussions about large climate bills move forward, it is important that Congress is doing the work to ensure we have the technology necessary to meet the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in a comprehensive and timely way. prgtoken In the midst of all the political noise, our committee has been quietly leading this effort over the last year. The strong bipartisan nature of our committee has enabled us to move dozens of pieces of legislation that will push the Department of Energy and the private sector into their next phase of research and development as we seek technological emissions-reducing solutions. prgtoken In reflecting on this year's progress, I want to highlight that bipartisanship because I believe it is absolutely the reason we are delivering solutions worthy of the people of West Virginia, Alaska, and the entire country. It is simple--the chairman and I talk to each other, we talk to one another's colleagues on either side of the aisle, and sometimes we disagree, but we never disrespectfully disagree because we are friends. prgtoken We must come together in this Chamber to solve this crisis and also ensure that no community is left behind. prgtoken From even before the founding of our country, my home State of West Virginia has poured its natural resources and its human resources into every one of our Nation's ambitions. It is well known that West Virginia has produced the coal that has powered our grid and built our steel skyscrapers for decades. We have literally done the heavy lifting. What you may not know is that our salt deposits were used to make gun powder in the French and Indian and Revolutionary Wars. Our deeply ingrained culture of hard work and entrepreneurship led to James Rumsey's steamboat innovation in 1787, just as it i
Impeachment (Executive Session)
Charles E. Schumer (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2019-12-12

on impeachment, the House Judiciary Committee will continue today its markup of Articles of Impeachment against . prgtoken The articles charge that President abused the Office of the Presidency by soliciting the interference of a foreign power in our elections to benefit himself personally. The articles also charge him with obstruction of justice in the investigation into those matters. prgtoken Those articles were drafted after a months-long investigation into the President's dealings with Ukraine, which included scores of fact witnesses and expert testimony. Throughout that time, and still today, the White House refuses to participate in the House process. It has blocked key witnesses. It has withheld relevant documents. It has instructed members of the administration to defy congressional subpoenas and not to testify. Those that did testify did so bravely against the wishes of the White House. prgtoken What is the President hiding? What do these witnesses know? What do these documents show? prgtoken Those are fair questions that every American could ask and, because neither the President nor Congress Members have presented any refutation of the facts in the impeachment charges or any exculpatory evidence other than grand conspiracy theories, the American people have a right to say the President must be hiding something. prgtoken If there are documents or witnesses the President believes could provide exculpatory evidence, nothing is stopping the witnesses from testifying and the documents from being sent over, except the President of the United States, who in all likelihood is afraid of what they show because they confirm and corroborate the lengthy factual basis that the House compiled to come up with the Articles of Impeachment. The fact that President is blocking witnesses from testifying and blocking documents from release means that, more likely than not, those witnesses and documents do not and cannot refute the charges against the President. prgtoken When someone who might be guilty of a crime says he doesn't want witnesses of the crime to come forward, what do you think that means? prgtoken Why haven't the President and his allies presented exculpatory evidence--evidence that says this is not true? Why, instead, have they created these bobbles, these objects far away, saying: There is a conspiracy here. There is a conspiracy there. prgtoken It is the old lawyer saying: When you have the facts, argue the facts. When you have the law, argue the law. When you have neither, pound the table. prgtoken In this case, pounding the table means coming up with diversionary conspiratorial theories. prgtoken House s, rather than mount a vigorous defense of the President on the merits, have attacked the process. If House s could focus on the merits, could find evidence that said: No, this is not true; that is not true; he did not try to influence U
EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT IT IS THE POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES TO COMMEMORATE THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
Sheldon Whitehouse (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2019-12-12

I am here to speak about the success of the Affordable Care Act in Rhode Island. It has been very well managed in Rhode Island, and it has made a very big difference in many, many lives. prgtoken The marketplace plan that the Affordable Care Act set up in Rhode Island is called Health Source Rhode Island. It has been well run, and it has been successful. For 2019, it has 34,533 people getting health insurance through the plan. prgtoken We also expanded Medicaid, as the Affordable Care Act allowed. Under the Medicaid expansion, 72,000 Rhode Islanders got coverage that they didn't have before. So if you put those two together, that is 106,000- plus Rhode Islanders who got the benefit, the comfort, and the confidence of coverage for healthcare as a result of this bill. It is 10 percent of our population, and it has driven our uninsured numbers way, way down, into low single digits, which has been a very big win for us. prgtoken I will also say that we have taken very good advantage of the accountable care organization provisions of the Affordable Care Act, with two of the best prgtoken performing ACOs in the country as two of our lead primary care provider groups: Coastal Medical and Primary Care Partners. They are showing just terrific results, as they are changing the way they deliver care. They can do so because we have changed the way they can be reimbursed for care. prgtoken That Rhode Island snapshot is part of a larger story of success. prgtoken Eleven and a half million Americans around the country have enrolled in ACA marketplace insurance in 2019. There are 11.8 million Medicare beneficiaries who have saved a total of $26.8 billion on prescription drug costs. That is over $2,200 per senior. That is something to celebrate. Unfortunately, it is still at risk in the courts. prgtoken President and this administration are still trying to knock it down. If they succeed, 133 million Americans with preexisting conditions will be at risk of losing healthcare coverage protections. prgtoken One hundred and fifty-six million Americans with private or employer- sponsored insurance will lose the consumer protections in the ACA for preventive care, disallowing lifetime or annual limits and closing waiting periods to enroll--things that have really made a difference in people's lives. prgtoken These are big numbers, and they add to a tremendous story of success, but behind the numbers are faces. Every one of those 34,533 Rhode Islanders who signed up and got health coverage through Health Source Rhode Island has their own story. prgtoken Today it is my privilege to come to the floor of the U.S. Senate to tell the story of Bridget from Tiverton, RI. I can't tell it better than she does, so I will simply read her story. She says: For the majority of my life, I have suffered from chronic pain. Though I am only in my 20's, I have suffered from acute arthritis in my left hip due to
AND STILL I RISE
Al Green (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2019-12-12

and still I rise, with love of country at heart and my mnemonic notes in hand. prgtoken I rise today, , remembering something from my childhood. My grandfather was a minister, and he reminded the grandchildren that there is no one so blind as he who chooses not to see. 20/20 vision, but the person who chooses not to see is the blindest of all. No one is so blind as those who choose not to see. prgtoken I bring this to the attention of those who are listening for a specific reason. I cannot impose understanding. I cannot cause people to say that they understand that which they already understand but choose not to acknowledge. prgtoken What I can do is this: I can encourage us to open our eyes and see what is happening to our country, the country that I assume we all love. I encourage us to see what is happening to public discourse, to pay attention to things that are happening in the public arena that are greatly different than the things we have been acclimated to. prgtoken , I don't believe that we should have, in our public discourse, the Chief Executive Officer saying things that we don't want our children to repeat. The Chief Executive Officer is to be a leader in many ways. prgtoken We tell our children: One day you can grow up and be the Chief Executive Officer. You can be the head of state. And we want people to look up to the Chief Executive Officer, to the head of state. prgtoken I don't think most of us would have our children go to a public rally and engage in some of the discourse that we have seen, some of the scatology, the profanity that seems to become a part of this discourse and is almost commonplace now from the Chief Executive Officer. prgtoken My dear friends, there is something happening to us. While it may not occur all in 1 day, over a period of time, it can become commonplace. prgtoken Have you not noticed how on the various talk shows people are using a level of discourse that we would find unacceptable, that I find unacceptable, that was not commonplace some years ago, not so very long ago? I am hearing more profanity being used. prgtoken I am not a perfect servant. I am a public servant. I am not a perfect person. I don't claim to be perfect. But I can say to you that I want to live in a country where children are proud to grow up and say they want to be like that person who happens to be the Chief Executive Officer. prgtoken At some point, something has to say to us that something is going on here that is unacceptable. When you weaponize hate so that you can have an advantage, there is something wrong. We ought not weaponize hate and bigotry to gain an advantage. We ought not try to, with intentionality, create ashes on the dreams of others, turn them into ashes so that we can fulfill some desire. We ought not, with intentionality, say things that we know are not true that can be harmful to others. prgtoken I am not a perfect servant, but I see something happening to my country, and
EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT IT IS THE POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES TO COMMEMORATE THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
Robert Menendez (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2019-12-12

we have just passed the Armenian genocide resolution recognition. It is fitting and appropriate that the Senate stands on the right side of history in doing so. It commemorates the truth of the Armenian genocide. prgtoken On Monday, we commemorated the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the victims of the crime of genocide and of the prevention of this crime. The UN General Assembly established this day of remembrance to commemorate and honor the victims of genocide and highlight efforts to combat and prevent genocide. Passing this resolution is a fitting tribute to this day of remembrance. prgtoken I have come to the floor on various occasions to talk about the history of the Armenian genocide. An Armenian priest, Krikoris Balakian, recorded some of the massacres against the Armenians. He said: In Ankara and its surroundings, only a couple hundred miles east of Constantinople, the killing was done with ``axes, cleavers, shovels, and pitchforks.'' It was like a slaughterhouse; Armenians were hacked to pieces . . . infants were dashed on rocks before the eyes of their mothers. prgtoken It was indescribable horror. Even when Armenians were supposedly deported, the conditions they were forced to live in made clear that Turkey's ultimate goal was to eliminate the Armenian people. prgtoken A visitor to one Turkish city in October of 1915 wrote: ``The 16,000 deported Armenians who were living in the tents have been sent to Konia in cattle trucks. At night, while thousands of these unfortunate people, without food or shelter, shiver with cold, those brutes who are supposed to be their guardians attack them with clubs. And push them towards the station. Women, children, and old men are packed together in the trucks. The men have to climb on to the top of the trucks, in spite of the dreadful cold. Their cries are heart-breaking, but all is in vain. Hunger, cold, and fatigue, together with the Government's deeds of violence, will soon achieve the extermination of the last remnant of the Armenian people.'' prgtoken Henry Morgenthau, the U.S. Ambassador for Turkey, from 1913 to 1916, understood full well what was transpiring. He left his post in early 1916 because, as he later recalled, ``My failure to stop the destruction of the Armenians had made Turkey for me a place of horror.'' prgtoken American diplomats like Henry Morgenthau were on the ground in Turkey, and they made heroic efforts to help the Armenian people, but here in Washington at the time, no one did anything in the face of this heinous crime. prgtoken As former UN Ambassador Samantha Power wrote in her Pulitzer Prize- winning book, ``A Problem from Hell,'' ``America's nonresponse to the Turkish horrors established patterns that would be repeated.'' prgtoken As my colleague from Texas, my cosponsor who has been such a stalwart advocate with me, has very often noted, this is the first genocide to be re
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM
Steny H. Hoyer (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2019-12-12

I thank the gentleman for yielding. prgtoken First of all, of course, this is not the jury in the sense of a petit jury that is going to decide guilt and innocence. It is, from a lawyer's standpoint, more analogous to a grand jury, which simply decides whether or not there is probable cause to believe the President abused his power in the exercise of his authority and, secondly, in the second Article, refused to cooperate with the Congress exercising its constitutional responsibility of oversight. prgtoken Secondly, let me say to the gentleman, as the gentleman knows, the President was given the opportunity to appear with counsel and to call such witnesses as he wanted to call--I believe that is correct--but to appear and defend against the allegations that are incorporated in the Articles of Impeachment, and the President chose not to appear. prgtoken The President chose not to have counsel present. Mr. Cipollone, counsel to the White House, in fact, responded to the offer to appear and said: We have chosen not to do so. prgtoken So to say that the respondent in this case--I won't call him a defendant. But the respondent in this case, the President of the United States, chose not to respond, chose not to appear, chose not to produce evidence in his defense. One could conclude that perhaps they decided they didn't have any, but I won't conclude that, but that could be one conclusion drawn. prgtoken But I will tell the gentleman, first of all, this is not a jury that is deciding guilt or innocence; it is a jury deciding probable cause whether or not there is cause to believe. prgtoken And, of course, we had extensive hearings at which many witnesses testified, some of whom worked for the administration, with the administration, in the White House, who testified to the facts, which most constitutional experts believe, if believed, constitute an abuse of power. prgtoken But, again, I will say to the gentleman, the central reality is the President refused to appear.
STARFISH EQUINE RESCUE
Jefferson Van Drew (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2019-12-12

today, I want to recognize a nonprofit organization in my district providing a home and a future for horses who have experienced abuse and neglect. Starfish Equine Rescue works to rehabilitate and ultimately adopt unwanted, abused, and neglected horses. prgtoken Since 2012, this organization has been rescuing horses from the most deplorable conditions and giving them a second chance at life. Starfish Equine Rescue works hard to bring these horses back to health and identify caring and supportive homes in south Jersey and in surrounding states. prgtoken In addition to rescuing horses from abuse and neglect, Starfish Equine rescues horses that were slated for slaughter and are saved. And this is a practice that I have joined with Representative Schakowsky and other House colleagues in opposing under H.R. 961, which I hope someday will be the law of the land. prgtoken The volunteers at Starfish and the adoptive homes of these once vulnerable horses have provided a great service to south Jersey and into the future. We are proud of them. May God bless them.
URGING SUPPORT FOR PASSAGE OF ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS LOWER DRUG COSTS NOW ACT
Lucille Roybal-Allard (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2019-12-12

. Madam , I am proud to be voting today for the passage of the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, a bill to lower healthcare costs by allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices for certain high-cost drugs. prgtoken I am even prouder that H.R. 3 will reinvest the savings from these drug negotiations into a transformational expansion of Medicare benefits, which includes routine vision, hearing, and dental care. prgtoken I have fought for years to include these critical services in my Seniors Have Eyes, Ears, and Teeth Act because they will prevent healthcare costs and suffering due to senior accidents, falls, cognitive impairment, oral cancer, and increased chronic conditions. prgtoken Most importantly, giving our older adults the gift of hearing, vision, and oral health would go a long way to helping them enjoy their golden years free from depression and social isolation. prgtoken It is time to recognize total healthcare for our seniors must include adequate access to vision, hearing, and dental services. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 3.