mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Recognition of the Majority Leader (Executive Session)
Charles E. Schumer (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2022-1-11

let me begin with the following figure: 55 million people; that is the estimated number of eligible voters who now live within States that have passed legislation restricting the right to vote and potentially undermining the electoral process. prgtoken Today, President will travel to one such State, Georgia--home to one of the most egregious voter suppression and election subversion laws we have seen in a long time. I believe the President will give a strong speech and will urge that we in the Senate change the rules so that we can prevent these awful and nasty laws from being implemented. In an address to the Nation, he will use the bully pulpit of the Presidency to make the case that the time has come for the Senate to pass voting rights legislation and take whatever steps necessary to address this Chamber's rules in order to accomplish that goal. prgtoken The Senate is going to act as soon as tomorrow. It is my intention to, once again, bring legislation to the floor to fight back against the threats to democracy and protect people's access to the ballot. prgtoken Once again, I urge my colleagues to take up the flag of the traditional Party, not only of Lincoln but of Reagan and H. W. and W. and vote yes to move forward so we can have a debate like the debate we just had or the discussion we just had. But if s continue to hijack the rules of the Senate to prevent voting rights from happening, if they continue paralyzing this Chamber to the point where we are helpless to fight back against the Big Lie, we must consider the necessary steps we can take so the Senate can adapt and act. prgtoken For the past few months, Senate have been holding talks within our caucus to discern how we can best move forward to restore the function of the Senate and, more importantly, pass legislation to defend democracy and protect voting rights. Last night, I held another round of talks with a number of my colleagues about the path forward, and we did so again this morning. prgtoken Over the past few days, our colleagues have escalated their attacks against our efforts to pass voting rights legislation. prgtoken Listen to this one: Last night, the leader worked to place a number of ``gotcha'' bills onto the legislative calendar as some sort of payback for pursuing legislation to protect the sacred right to vote. He was basically saying: Here are 18 bills that don't like. Let's go for 50 votes on those. Well, I proposed to the leader, in a unanimous consent request, that it would be perfectly fine with us taking votes on his bills on a simple majority threshold if, in exchange, he agreed to do the same for the Freedom to Vote Act and the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. Of course, the leader immediately objected--immediately objected--to having all of them done with 50 votes: the 18 bills he
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2022-1-11

today I rise to recognize the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT as it celebrates 100 years of artistic achievement and advocacy. prgtoken The Palace Theater originally opened on January 28, 1922. With the culmination of a $1 million investment in decor by Sylvester Z. Poli and the remarkable architectural work of Thomas Lamb, the theater soon became a hub for cultural activity in Waterbury before the onset of World War II. prgtoken The ornate building started as a movie and vaudeville house. Over the past century, the Palace has hosted a wide breadth of performances and productions, from silent films to rock concerts and everything in between. In 1983, the U.S. Department of the Interior honored the Palace Theater by listing it on the National Register of Historic Places. prgtoken In 1987, the theater closed for 18 years. However, a 3-year, $30 million restoration, renovation, and expansion project impressively reshaped the Palace. When it reopened, the theater was a state-of-the- art, 90,000-square-foot arena. Now a vast complex, the Palace is known as Greater Waterbury's Center for the Performing Arts. prgtoken In its current state, the Palace hosts educational programming, Broadway tours, and a variety of family entertainment. The theater's team is committed to serving the greater Waterbury community by establishing not just a magnificent artistic site but also a highly regarded educational and cultural center. prgtoken The Palace Theater is recognized as one of the premier arts facilities in New England, and I have had the privilege of visiting on a number of occasions to speak with the staff there. I am continuously impressed by the Palace's record of achievement and the tireless dedication of everyone involved to furthering arts education and advocacy for countless Connecticut residents and visitors. prgtoken I applaud the theater on its extraordinary history of accomplishment, and I hope my colleagues will join me in congratulating the Palace Theater on 100 years of excellence.
REFLECTING ON DEMOCRATIC ACHIEVEMENTS OF PAST YEAR
Kathy E. Manning (Democrat, NC) \u2014 2022-1-11

as Congress reconvenes for the Second Session of the 117th Congress, I want to take a moment to reflect on the important achievements that the have made this past year. prgtoken The pandemic continues to be a challenge, but thanks to the funding provided by the ' American Rescue Plan Act, the vast majority of Americans have been vaccinated and are protected from severe illness, hospitalization, and death. prgtoken We must also acknowledge that the ' commitment to building back stronger and more equitably than before has resulted in unprecedented economic recovery from the initial impact of the pandemic. prgtoken Last month, the unemployment rate fell to 3.9 percent, the largest calendar-year decrease in the unemployment rate in history. We reached this rate 5 years before experts anticipated. That is the result of adding 6.4 million jobs to the economy since President took office, regaining 84 percent of the jobs lost during the pandemic. prgtoken This economic boom was brought to you by President and the in Congress who voted for the American Rescue Plan. prgtoken The American Rescue Plan supercharged our economic recovery by providing critical support to small businesses as they navigated the pandemic. It expanded the child tax credit, which helped families put food on the table and pay for childcare. It provided rent assistance so families could keep their housing. prgtoken Now, the bipartisan infrastructure law is creating millions of good- paying jobs while rebuilding our Nation's crumbling infrastructure and combating the climate crisis. prgtoken Through the American Rescue Plan and the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, have delivered for the American people and created historic economic growth. prgtoken We have more important work to do. We must encourage the Senate to pass the voting rights protections that we in the House passed months ago that are critical to ensure that all citizens can exercise their most precious right to vote. prgtoken I look forward to working with my colleagues to continue our important work, building back stronger and more equitably than ever before.
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR--Continued The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Maria Cantwell (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2022-1-11

I rise to speak in support of our next vote, the nominee to head the National Telecommunications and Information Administration at the Department of Commerce, Alan Davidson. prgtoken My colleagues know now, in an information age, how important access to broadband is. They know because of COVID-19 how important it is for healthcare, how important it is for education, and how important it is for people to have the flexibility in all parts of the United States to have access to the ability to connect and to connect with people around the world. prgtoken We have long talked about the need for an NTIA Administrator who understands the public sector and understands the private sector. Mr. Davidson does that. He comes to us with a wealth of experience in both sectors, and he is coming at a time when my colleagues have been asking for more leadership from the administration on broadband issues. That is to say, many of my colleagues, like Senator Wicker, Senator Klobuchar, and many others, have asked for coordination between various programs that exist within the Department of Commerce, the Department of Agriculture, and the issues in coordination with the FCC and oversight of their programs to better maximize the delivery of broadband. prgtoken The Presiding Officer knows how much money is now on the table for broadband. We all know that this implementation is going to take a very skilled hand at trying to address both the issues of affordability and access. But more importantly, we will be getting with Mr. Davidson somebody who understands these issues well and will help us strive to get America better connected as quickly as possible. prgtoken We can't say enough about how important that is as COVID-19 continues across the United States of America with different variants. I am not saying it is going to be the new normal and continue for the next several years, but we know this: We need Mr. Davidson's help. We need his help effectively and speedily to get broadband deployed to both sectors of our economy--those who are unserved and those who are underserved. prgtoken We look forward to advancing this nominee and putting him to work as quickly as possible, and I personally look forward to working with him on these very important issues. There is much to do to leverage the dollars we have made available, but we have to work cooperatively with all parts of the United States to make that a reality. prgtoken Nothing could be more important now to upgrading U.S. infrastructure than getting fiber deployed, getting broadband to American homes, and making our grid more secure. With all of these things, I look forward to working with Mr. Davidson, and I appreciate his comments to me about his commitment to those issues as well. prgtoken . Vote on Davidson Nomination
CONGRATULATING AUSTIN HUFF FOR WINNING THE SPECIAL OLYMPICS STATE BOWLING CHAMPIONSHIP
Cheri Bustos (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2022-1-11

. Madam , I rise today to congratulate Austin Huff on winning the Special Olympics State Bowling Championship. prgtoken In the state championship, Austin bowled 89, 71, and 75 to win the gold. I am pleased to see Austin representing the Rock Island community in the Special Olympics. I congratulate Austin on his win at the state championship, and I commend him for his good sportsmanship and exciting win at the state championship. prgtoken It is because of inspirational people such as Austin Huff that I am especially proud to serve Illinois' 17th Congressional District. Madam , I would like to again formally congratulate Austin Huff on his win at the Special Olympics State Bowling Championship.
U.S. Supreme Court (Executive Calendar)
Sheldon Whitehouse (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2022-1-11

with my distinguished colleague from Utah here, I would just--before I get to my remarks--suggest that there may be an exception to his rule that when a piece of legislation is only sponsored by Members of one party it can't be serious legislation; and, in my view, that would include climate legislation, where it has been extremely hard to get s to cosponsor any serious climate bill. And I think that has nothing to do with the seriousness of the legislation and everything to do with the influence of the fossil fuel industry. prgtoken But that said, , I am here to speak for the 11th time in my series discussing the scheme through which a bunch of big, anonymous donors captured our Supreme Court. prgtoken Today, I am going to talk about the Supreme Court commission, which could have done a useful, even authoritative investigation of the scheme and all its terrible effects at the Court but which, regrettably, ended up as an exercise in ineffectual time-killing. prgtoken I have laid out the scheme in detail in earlier speeches in this series. In a nutshell, there is a very well-studied phenomenon of regulatory capture, sometimes called agency capture, through which big industries try to capture and control the regulatory agencies that are supposed to be policing them. prgtoken Well, in the same way, big, rightwing donor interests set out to capture the Supreme Court. And they did it. It worked. Now, the Court's 6-to-3, big-donor-chosen supermajority is delivering massive wins for those donor interests, and the American people can smell what Justice Sotomayor aptly characterized as the ``stench'' of a captured Court. prgtoken The problems of the Court are real, and they demand action. Enter the Court commission. Charged with thinking through solutions to the Court's many problems, the commission was perfectly positioned to report on the scheme and offer a blueprint for restoring the Court. But its final findings, released last month, offered instead what I have called faculty-lounge pabulum. prgtoken Sure, yes, they gestured toward the need for a code of ethics for the Justices, which makes sense because Supreme Court Justices have the lowest ethics standard of any top Federal official. But pointing that out is a little bit like pointing out a flat tire on a totaled car. prgtoken Consider the facts the commission ignored: A private, partisan, anonymously funded organization--the Federalist Society--handpicked the last three Supreme Court Justices. President and his White House counsel admitted they had ``in-sourced''--their word--the Federalist Society to the White House to choose their nominees. prgtoken Senator Hatch, our former colleague, former chairman of the Judiciary, was asked if this role was outsourced to the Federalist Society, and he said, ``Damn right.'' prgtoken No other democracy in the world has had such a ridiculous system for selecting Judges. That is
IN MEMORY OF REVEREND LAWRENCE IRVING SLATER SR.
Marc A. Veasey (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2022-1-11

. Madam , I rise today to commemorate the life and accomplishments of Reverend Lawrence Irving Slater, Sr.--a pillar of our Fort Worth community. prgtoken Reverend Slater was a graduate of Como High School in Fort Worth, Texas before serving as a brave member of the United States Army and then graduating from Southwestern Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth. Reverend Slater was a man of faith who proudly served our community through his preaching tenure at Strangers Rest Baptist Church and as an Associate Pastor at Greater Rising Star Baptist Church. prgtoken My thoughts and prayers are with all those who knew and loved Reverend Slater, particularly his wife, Lessie Slater, and his five children, Diana Lynn Wright, Shirley Thomas, Kathy Slater, Lisa Holmes, and Lawrence Slater, Jr. May his memory last forever.
VOTE EXPLANATION
Kyrsten Sinema (Democrat, AZ) \u2014 2022-1-11

I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 1 on the motion to invoke cloture on Anne Witkowsky to be an Assistant Secretary of State (Conflict and Stabilization Operations). prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 2 on the confirmation of Anne Witkowsky to be an Assistant Secretary of State (Conflict and Stabilization Operations). prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 510 on the motion to invoke cloture on Jinsook Ohta to be U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of California. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 511 on the confirmation of Jinsook Ohta to be U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of California. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 512 on the motion to invoke cloture on David Urias to be U.S. District Judge for the District of New Mexico. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 513 on the confirmation of David Urias to be U.S. District Judge for the District of New Mexico. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 514 on the motion to invoke cloture on Maame Frimpong to be U.S. District Judge for the Central District of California. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 515 on the confirmation of Maame Frimpong to be U.S. District Judge for the Central District of California. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 516 on the motion to invoke cloture on Jane Beckering to be U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Michigan. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 517 on the confirmation of Jane Beckering to be U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Michigan. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 518 on the motion to invoke cloture on Shalina Kumar to be U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Michigan. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 519 on the confirmation of Shalina Kumar to be U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Michigan. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 520 on the motion to invoke cloture on Jennifer Thurston to be U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of California. prgtoken I was necessarily absent, but had I been present I would have voted yes on rollcall vote 521 on the confirmation of Jennifer Thurston to be U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of California. <|p|
PAYING TRIBUTE TO JOHN MADDEN
Jerry McNerney (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2022-1-11

. Madam , I thank my friend for allowing me to speak today. prgtoken Madam , I rise and join my colleagues in honoring the late Pro Football Hall of Fame Inductee, John Madden. prgtoken John Madden was a giant in the world of football who brought an appreciation and an understanding of the game into the homes of Americans. prgtoken Selected in the 21st round of the 1958 NFL draft, Madden suffered a severe knee injury during his rookie training camp, ending his pro football playing career when it was just getting started. prgtoken Undeterred by his injuries, Madden's love for the game of football propelled him to pursue a coaching career. In 1969, he was hired as the head coach for the Oakland Raiders, making him the youngest head coach in the NFL, with only 1 year of coaching experience. prgtoken Now, somebody saw something to promote him to head coach in just 1 year of coaching. As head coach, he amassed an incredible record of 103 regular season victories, with only 32 losses in 10 seasons. That gave him the second-highest winning percentage for NFL coaches. prgtoken Madden's ferocious will to win would not be denied in Super Bowl XI, the first Super Bowl championship for the silver and black. prgtoken While already a legendary Hall of Fame head coach, John Madden cemented his legacy as an icon of the sport from the broadcasting booth, becoming the first sports analyst to have worked all four of the ``Big Four'' U.S. television networks, and earning an incredible 16 Emmy awards. prgtoken With a career in professional football spanning 4 decades, very few have transcended generations the way John Madden has, and his legacy will live on forever in the memories of players, fans, friends, and through the memories made by millions who played the best-selling Madden NFL Football game. prgtoken On a personal note, I had the privilege of meeting John Madden and, yes, he was kind, he was personable, and it is true, we all ate very well that day. prgtoken Not everyone gets to make a difference to so many people in this life, and John Madden was one of those people.
Voting Rights (Executive Session)
Marco Rubio (Republican, FL) \u2014 2022-1-12

last week, the Vice President of the United States told us that a riot that happened here in the U.S. Capitol last year was the equivalent of the day in which Japan attacked us at Pearl Harbor and the United States was pulled into a world war that took the lives of over 3 percent of the world's population. prgtoken And yesterday, we were treated to the President telling us that election laws that are being passed by various States across the country over the last year are basically the same, the equivalent, of the segregation that existed in this country in the 1950s and 1960s and before. prgtoken Now, look, if your daily routine is to wake up in the morning and turn on MSNBC as you ride your Peloton and then you go on Twitter as you are drinking your caramel macchiato and then you are reading the New York Times as you are eating your avocado toast, I imagine all this makes perfect sense to you. After all, for these people, they believe this ridiculous narrative that every --every --is an insurrectionist, probably a racist, wants to overthrow the U.S. Government, and wants to destroy democracy. prgtoken The good news is that the overwhelming majority of Americans happen to live back here on planet Earth. And what they are worried about, to the extent they even pay attention to any of this stuff that has been said over the last 2 weeks--what they are really worried about is the fact that everything costs more; you go to the grocery store and the shelves are empty; they have a small business and they hire someone on Monday who just disappears on Thursday and never comes back; you have got, every day, thousands of people illegally entering the United States across an open border; and, by the way, we have a surge in violent crime and lawlessness across the country. That is probably what they are worried about--in fact, I know it is--on a daily basis. prgtoken But to the extent they have paid attention to any of this, let me tell you something. First of all, I think almost everyone would tell you that what happened on January 6 here was a terrible thing; it should never have happened; and it should never happen again. prgtoken But I don't care how many candlelight vigils and musical performances you have from the cast of ``Hamilton,'' you are not going to convince, at least most normal and sane people, that our government last year was almost overthrown by a guy wearing a Viking hat and Speedos. OK? prgtoken And I don't care, you know, how many of these speeches the President gives in which he shouts out this hyperbole and all this melodrama, you are not going to convince people that having a State pass a law that says, for example, that you have to produce an identification is the same as segregation. prgtoken Nevertheless, despite the fact that that is what most people in this country are worried about--inflation and all these other things--that is not what we are working on here.
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENT TO H.R. 5746, NASA ENHANCED USE LEASING EXTENSION ACT OF 2021
August Pfluger (Republican, TX) \u2014 2022-1-12

. Tonight, are twisting the rules to pass a bill to nationalize our election system, allowing for hard-earned taxpayer dollars to finance political campaigns and handing control of congressional district boundaries to the powers that be in Washington, requiring States to allow felons to vote, and overriding wildly popular voter ID laws. prgtoken To reference the President's disappointing speech yesterday, supporting voter ID or opposing this Washington power grab does not make you George Wallace or Jefferson Davis. That is nonsense. Americans deserve a President and a government that will lead us out of crises, not create them.