mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
REMEMBERING MARION CAMARDO
Claudia Tenney (Republican, NY) \u2014 2024-3-11

I rise to honor and remember the extraordinary life of Marion Camardo. prgtoken Marion was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who passed away on November 1, 2023. Throughout her long and admirable life, she made a significant contribution to her family and community in historic Auburn, New York. prgtoken I am so grateful that I had the honor and privilege to meet Marion. Her kindness and love shone through her gleaming and welcoming smile. prgtoken I also welcome here in the Chamber today her son John and grandson Anthony as they sit and actually get to witness a beautiful memory of their great mother and grandmother. prgtoken Marion was born in East Rochester, New York, to Ralph and Argerinda Reginelli on August 28, 1929, and moved to Auburn as a child. After graduating from Auburn Central High School, she worked at several clothing stores and went on to manage Stevens Department Store. prgtoken Marion married Joseph Camardo in 1955 and eventually grew their family to include their children, Joseph Jr MaryAnn, Donna, John, and Lisa. Leaning on her good business sense, she earned a small fortune and was able to send all of her children to college. prgtoken I can say from experience that Marion raised her children to be kind, tenacious, and community-oriented, as her son, John, who is here today, has become a good friend and is a leader in our community. prgtoken Marion was also a respected community leader herself, being part of the Italian Heritage Society and a patron of the Auburn Civic Band. She continued her civic duty as an elections inspector for the board of elections and participated in elections, serving on the Cayuga County Committee. She was known for her flair for design, which she took to create a beautiful home for her family to host parties throughout the decades in the community. prgtoken Marion led her community based on her faith, having served as a parishioner of St. Francis of Assisi Church and serving as a Eucharist minister and on the school and parish committees. Marion always served with distinguished humility and graciousness, having put faith and family ahead of herself. prgtoken For fun, Marion enjoyed the classic movies and music such as Frank Sinatra, Jr and Cristina Fontanelli, both of whom she was instrumental in bringing to Auburn through her work at the Italian Heritage Society. Her joy in life was helping others and her family all while keeping herself humble and committed to embodying her faith outwardly. prgtoken As she was a woman of strong faith and devotion, it is heartwarming and maybe not coincidental that she passed away on All Saints Day, but not without waiting to be with her family one last time during her final moments. She parted her family with one last piece of advice, which is to never give up hope no matter how difficult life may be. prgtoken Today, we honor and remember Marion and her wonderful family. She is an inspiration
FAMILY FARMS ARE IN CRISIS
Glenn Thompson (Republican, PA) \u2014 2024-3-11

during President 's politically charged, factually inaccurate, and often confusing State of the Union speech, we heard a lot of excuses about the problems American families are facing. prgtoken One line from the President's speech stood out to me: Because of my investments, family farms are better able to stay in the family. prgtoken Well, this rosy picture painted by our President doesn't tell the whole story, and his own Department of Agriculture's data proves it. prgtoken Under President , rural America and our family farms are in crisis. We are in the middle of the largest agricultural trade deficit on record. Farm input costs from fuel to fertilizer have skyrocketed. Interest rates are sky high. Grocery prices are up 21 percent since took office. prgtoken The state of the Union is expensive. Rural America is struggling. Our family farms are in dire straits. prgtoken As the New York Post recently said: ``Shrinkflation and many other problems are the bitter harvest of omics.'' prgtoken Thankfully, we have the opportunity to course correct, to revitalize rural America, and truly get our family farms back on track. We will do this prgtoken through the farm bill, one of the few remaining exercises in good governance left in Washington, D.C. prgtoken , I hope my colleagues on both sides of the aisle will join me and truly uplift our family farms.
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Joni Ernst (Republican, IA) \u2014 2024-3-11

as ranking member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, each week I recognize an outstanding Iowa small business that exemplifies the American entrepreneurial spirit. This week, I am privileged to recognize Martin Hildreth Company of Rockwell City, IA, as the Senate Small Business of the Week. prgtoken Martin Hildreth founded the Martin Hildreth Company in 1954 to provide excavation contracting services in Rockwell City and the surrounding counties. Martin started the company after serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean war. He began his civilian career working with his father Ben in the petroleum industry at Hildreth Mobile Oil and Hildreth Super Service before embarking on his entrepreneurial journey. In 1990, Martin's son Tom joined the company full-time and currently serves as the president. Martin Hildreth Company has remained in the same location on High Street in Rockwell City since its inception, offering excavation services to the telecommunication and utility industries and gravedigging for cemeteries throughout Calhoun and the surrounding counties. In 2009, Tom's wife Theresa joined Martin Hildreth Company as their chief financial officer. In 2023, Martin Hildreth passed away, leaving behind a legacy of hard work and service to the Rockwell City community. prgtoken Martin Hildreth Company is truly a family-owned and operated business. Tom and Theresa's son David serves as vice president, marking the third generation of the Hildreth family legacy. David Hildreth started at the company part-time at the age of 14 and plans to lead it following Tom's retirement. In the near future, David's son Collin will be the fourth generation to join the family company. prgtoken The Hildreth family is actively involved in both the Rockwell City and Calhoun County communities. Tom Hildreth is a legend in the sport of wrestling. After a decorated college career at Westmar College, Tom coached wrestling at the high school and middle school levels and was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and the Iowa High School Athletic Association Wrestling Hall of Fame. In addition to serving as chief financial officer for the Martin Hildreth Company, Theresa also serves as executive director of the Calhoun County Economic Development Corporation. Service to the prgtoken country is also integral to the Hildreth family. Three of Tom and Theresa's children have served in the armed services. Martin Hildreth Company was awarded the ESGR Patriot Award for their dedication to supporting employees who are serving in the military. Due to their hard work, the Martin Hildreth Company celebrated their 70th business anniversary in 2024. prgtoken I want to commend the Hildreth family for achieving their American dream and operating a fantastic small business. Congratulations to the Hildreth family and the entire Martin Hildreth Company team on their incredible commitment to our com
Flood Insurance (Executive Calendar)
Bill Cassidy (Republican, LA) \u2014 2024-3-11

I am here to talk about flood insurance, an issue facing Louisiana, and, I am sorry to say, an issue now facing the Presiding Officer's State. prgtoken Floods can occur anywhere--for example, on the top of a mountaintop. People don't realize that, but you have this gully going down from the top to the bottom, and if it gets a big rain--boom--going down from the top of that mountain, you will have a flood. prgtoken And that has occurred, unfortunately, in California. I spent several years in Southern California, and I can relate to that. prgtoken But it happens regularly in my State. Now, why in my State? Well, folks think of hurricanes as wind, rain, and lightning, but one of the greatest threats is actually the risk of flooding. prgtoken And these floods can destroy homes, businesses and leave them--if they don't destroy them right away, they can leave them moist. And when it is moist, it begins to rot from the inside. And homes that families have lived in for over 50 years that have never flooded before can become unlivable. prgtoken So if you come down to Louisiana or California or Pennsylvania or West Virginia or other things, and you ask folks in the bottom of a riverbed, for example, if a flood can upend their life, they will say emphatically yes. prgtoken So if we know the answer is an emphatic yes, then what can Congress do about it, if anything? Well, we have a mechanism to address it, the National Flood Insurance Program which currently ensures 4.7 million American families. It is a Federal program, and we are the ones that can change it to make it more reliable, more affordable, more sustainable. prgtoken But the challenge is that it is a tough topic. A lot of folks in Congress just don't understand the issue. And so we need to have the understanding, but then we also need the political will. prgtoken Now, this has just kind of--boom--up, up, up in urgency. The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently implemented a new risk assessment called Risk Rating 2.0. Now Risk Rating 2.0 affects Louisiana, the Gulf Coast--frankly, all coasts and anyplace where there is a river or stream that can overflow, and it particularly affects folks who are lower income. prgtoken Sometimes people say that the flood insurance program is a program for rich people. Not true; 62 percent of all NFIP policies are in parishes or counties where the median household income is below the national average of $54,000. And truth be told that, as we again just saw in California--what you think of as a desert State--flooding can occur in any State. prgtoken So if we look here, here are NFIP claims by cost: 44 out of 50 States have had over $50 million of National Flood Insurance Program claims from 1978 to 2021. And there are only 6 States that have less than $50 million in claims; 13 States have had over a billion in damage, and they are all over the map. It is Virginia--and not just the coastal states--it is Missouri
POSSIBLE LINK OF MYOCARDITIS TO COVID VACCINES
Doug LaMalfa (Republican, CA) \u2014 2024-3-11

. Madam , the CDC, which stands for the Centers for Disease Control, based in Atlanta, Georgia, recently released a 148- page study on myocarditis being possibly linked to the COVID vaccines-- whether it is by Pfizer or Moderna or what have you. prgtoken In order to have good science, you would want these studies to get information out there so people can understand what the link may or may not be with myocarditis. prgtoken What is CDC's approach to that? Of that 148-page report, they edited out, they redacted not just some of the names, but every one of the 148 pages. prgtoken What is that as far as having openness, having clarity? That sounds pretty corrupt to me. Certainly, this body is going to be taking a better look at that. The CDC needs to be held accountable to all of us--directly to us in Congress and the American people, because the truth still needs to get out there on how the injections work and what effects they cause to the public.
Biden Administration (Executive Session)
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2024-3-12

President came to Congress on Thursday night to deliver the State of the Union Address. And, unfortunately, it was exactly what you might expect from the President: the same old tired tax-and- prgtoken spend proposals, a far-left agenda, and a couple--or I should say--a complete failure to address some of the biggest challenges facing the country. prgtoken Let's step back in time for a minute to the beginning of the President's administration 3 years ago this month, the President signed into law a massive and partisan $1.9 trillion spending bill under the guise of COVID relief, despite the fact that Congress had just passed a fifth--fifth--bipartisan COVID bill that met, essentially, all current pressing COVID needs. prgtoken Economists, including some left-leaning economists--warned at the time that the bill ran the risk of setting off inflation. But and the President proceeded anyway. And every American knows what resulted--an inflation crisis that saw inflation reach its highest level in more than 40 years. An inflation crisis that, 3 years later, still--still--isn't over. prgtoken But if you thought 3 years of inflation had taught President to be wary of excessive government spending, you would be wrong. The President's State of the Union address was bursting with ideas for new spending--and new taxes to go along with them. prgtoken Yet the President had the audacity to claim that he is ``delivering real results in fiscally responsible ways.'' prgtoken Well, when you have passed an unnecessary $1.9 trillion spending bill that plunged the country into an inflation crisis from which it has not still emerged, I would think you might be cautious about asserting any claims to fiscal responsibility. prgtoken But the President isn't overly troubled by the facts in these matters. He went on to assert that he has cut the Federal deficit by more than $1 trillion, a deceptive claim he has repeated so often that it earned him a ``Bottomless Pinocchio'' from the Washington Post's Fact Checker column. prgtoken As CNN put it in its State of the Union fact check, ``'s actions have clearly added to deficits.'' prgtoken , the President's address featured lots of new spending ideas and proposals for new taxes. What it didn't feature was solutions to the challenges that are actually facing the American people. prgtoken The President didn't get around to discussing the border and inflation--two of the biggest issues on the minds of Americans--until around halfway through his speech. And even then--even then--it was not to offer solutions; it was to dodge responsibility for these crises. prgtoken Despite the fact that the crisis at our southern border is a direct result of President 's policies, the President spent his entire discussion of the border suggesting that it is Congress's responsibility to act. prgtoken President created this border crisis, and
President Biden's Budget (Executive Session)
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2024-3-12

yesterday, President released his budget request for the next fiscal year. Here is the top line: He wants the American people to take on more than $16 trillion in cumulative deficits over the next decade. The President who told the Nation last week that he was cutting the deficit just put out a budget request that would do the exact opposite. prgtoken Unfortunately, this is hardly the only pledge that President 's request would break. After repeatedly promising not to raise taxes on households making less than $400,000 a year, the President is now selling a plan that would heap $5 trillion in new and expanded taxes on American workers and job creators. prgtoken Let's put this in perspective. The administration's budget proposal would raise taxes as a share of the U.S. economy to levels our Nation hasn't seen since World War II. prgtoken Let me say that again. President wants to bring taxes as a share of GDP higher than they have been since the middle of the fight against Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan. prgtoken Now, I have been pretty frank in my assessment that the threats America is facing today are as dangerous as we have seen since the Cold War, if not the era of the Axis Powers. But here is the rub: The President apparently only wants to tax the American people at wartime levels. By contrast, he shows no interest in the sort of defense investments that were needed to squeeze the Soviets in the 1980s, let alone to liberate Europe and Asia in the 1940s. prgtoken It is far more expensive to fight wars than to deter them. American defense spending during World War II spiked at 37 percent of GDP; during the Korean war, 14 percent of GDP; Vietnam, 9 percent of GDP. By contrast, the Reagan buildup that helped end the Cold War hit only 6 percent of GDP in 1986. But today, in a renewed era of major power competition, the administration appears to lack the will even to sustain such credible deterrence. prgtoken Here lies another broken promise: After engaging in political hostage-taking over the debt limit last year, the administration apparently doesn't intend to honor their own agreement on spending limits. The latest budget request uses accounting gimmicks to blow clear through agreed-upon limits for domestic discretionary spending. Yet, at the same time, administration officials insist it should ``not have been a surprise'' that the President sees spending caps on national defense as sacrosanct. prgtoken Of course, this reckless behavior follows a predictable pattern. Under this Commander in Chief, U.S. military faces the same historic inflation as everyone else in our country. As gas and groceries get more expensive, so do the capabilities our servicemembers need. prgtoken Yet this is the fourth straight time the administration has turned in a defense budget request that amounts to a net cut after inflation. Apparently, the President hadn't yet learned the
CONGRATULATING VOICES OF UNITY YOUTH CHOIR
Jim Banks (Republican, IN) \u2014 2024-3-12

I rise today to congratulate Voices of Unity Youth Choir as they head to Auckland, New Zealand to compete in the 2024 World Choir Games. prgtoken This honor is well deserved, considering the setbacks the choir has faced over the last few years. Perhaps the most significant of these recent challenges was the departure of over 40 of their student participants in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. This did not hinder Voices of Unity; they rallied by launching the ``Rising With Purpose Rebuilding Initiative,'' which engaged a new wave of talented Northeast Indiana youth. prgtoken It was with this soulful new chorale group that Voices of Unity achieved this tremendous success. Unity will be representing Fort Wayne across the world in the Gospel Music Category of the ``Olympics'' of the chorale world. This experience will be transformational for the young people involved, and an ideal opportunity for them to represent their community, culture, and Nation to an international audience. prgtoken I am proud that our community will be represented by this choir with beautiful song, and I congratulate the singers, staff, and board of Voices of Unity Youth Choir on their great achievement.
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 6276, UTILIZING SPACE EFFICIENTLY AND IMPROVING TECHNOLOGIES ACT OF 2023, AND PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H. RES. 1065, DENOUNCING THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION'S...
Thomas Massie (Republican, KY) \u2014 2024-3-12

such time as I may consume. prgtoken , during his first 100 days in office, President took 94 executive actions on immigration, including halting construction of the border wall. prgtoken In August of 2022, the administration formally halted President 's successful remain in Mexico program. prgtoken In May of 2023, the administration announced that it would allow for the release of some migrants into the U.S. with no way to track them. prgtoken The administration also ended title 42, the CDC order that allowed the Department of Homeland Security to remove noncitizens who did not have proper travel documentation, whose entry was otherwise contrary to law, or who were apprehended at or near the border seeking unlawful entry into the United States without regard to asylum claims or proceedings. prgtoken Shortly after taking office, President terminated the asylum cooperative agreements with Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras to facilitate cooperation in resolving the migration crisis. prgtoken The administration has also abused its authority under the Immigration and Nationality Act to grant parole on a case-by-case basis and has instead used this authority to grant mass parole to over 1 million migrants. prgtoken The administration has also failed to detain migrants encountered at the southern border and has failed to use its authority to perform expedited removal of individuals illegally present in the United States. prgtoken As a result, since President took office, 9.3 million illegal aliens from all over the world have arrived at the southern border. The administration has allowed at least 6.3 million illegal aliens to travel from the southern border to enter American communities. prgtoken This is a tragedy. We need to call attention to it. prgtoken President says there is nothing he can do. Well, I have just listed a number of things that he has done to create this crisis, and further in this debate I will talk about some of the things that he can do, that we know he can do, things that are stated in the resolution contained in this rule to end this national security, legal, and humanitarian crisis at our border. prgtoken , .
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
James E. Risch (Republican, ID) \u2014 2024-3-12

as a member and former chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, each month I recognize and celebrate the American entrepreneurial spirit by highlighting the success of a small business in my home State of Idaho. Today, I am pleased to honor the Tracy General Store as the Idaho Small Business of the Month for March 2024. prgtoken For over a century, the Tracy General Store, the longest continuously operating store in Idaho, has called Almo home. Established in 1894 by William and Henry Eames, the general store offered food staples, dry goods, shoes, household and farm equipment, and a Post Office. The upstairs served as an amusement hall for the thriving Southern Idaho community where plays, dances, and weddings were performed. The building's unique brickwork, often of interest to tourists visiting the nearby City of Rocks National Reserve, demonstrates the building styles of two different cultures. The lower level was built in the English method of bricklaying. The upper floor with its decorative design was the handywork of two Swiss bricklayers who helped the brothers in the construction of the store's upper addition. In 1940, William Eames sold the store to his daughter Otella and her husband Josep Tracy, changing the name of the store from Eames to Tracy. The lively general store remained in the Tracy family until about 2007. prgtoken Currently owned by Kent and Janis Durfee, the Tracy General Store boasts a wide selection of grocery items, as well as fresh and homemade food and ice cream. Scattered across the shelves, shoppers can find relics from the past; most notable is the original cash register which was in use until 2003. Today, the beloved Tracy General Store still houses the Post Office, plenty of goods for locals and travelers, and a community space where everyone can come together to appreciate the building's long history. prgtoken Congratulations to the Durfees and the employees of the Tracy General Store on their selection as the Idaho Small Business of the Month for March 2024. Thank you for serving Idaho as small business owners and entrepreneurs. You make our great State proud, and I look forward to your continued growth and success.