mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
RECOGNIZING PRESIDENT LYNETTE ZELEZNY
Kevin McCarthy (Republican, CA) \u2014 2023-12-15

I rise today, along with my friend and colleague, Congressman David Valadao, to recognize President Lynette Zelezny on her retirement today as President of California State University, Bakersfield. Over the course of her 35-year career in the education field, President Zelezny has inspired students, professors, and administrators through her passion for improving the academic success of our next generation, especially within the California State University system. prgtoken President Zelezny's career with the California State University system started in 1974 with her enrollment in Humboldt State University, where she earned her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology in 1979 and her Master's Degree in Psychology in 1981. Following her completion of a Doctorate in Social Psychology at Claremont Graduate University and an MBA from the Craig School of Business at California State University, Fresno, President Zelezny stayed at Fresno State, serving in a variety of educational and leadership roles. Most notably, President Zelezny served as Chief Academic Officer, Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs at Fresno State. In 2018, President Zelezny made history when she became the first female President of California State University, Bakersfield. prgtoken Over the past five years, under President Zelezny's leadership, California State University, Bakersfield has successfully navigated new challenges and achieved several important milestones. She not only led the university through the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic but did so with an unwavering commitment to the well-being of students and faculty. One of President Zelezny's top achievements has been developing CSUB's California Energy Research Center into a robust hub for energy research throughout the Central Valley. As Kern County gains and sustains ever more national importance as a hub for energy production, future generations in our region will look back on President Zelezny's initiative with great appreciation. prgtoken A true champion of Central Valley education, particularly in Bakersfield, President Zelezny's passion for the community has been a driving force behind her efforts. She recognized the unique challenges and opportunities presented in the region and strengthened the ties between the university and our community. prgtoken On behalf of the Central Valley of California, we would like to express our gratitude for President Zelezny's leadership to California State University, Bakersfield and her role in shaping the future careers of countless students. We would like to congratulate President Zelezny on a well-deserved retirement, a successful career in education, and for her many contributions to our community.
HONORING THE SERVICE OF LIEUTENANT COLONEL CHARLES VAUGHAN
Jeff Duncan (Republican, SC) \u2014 2023-12-15

I rise today to recognize the community and military service of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Vaughan, who celebrated his 100th birthday on December 10, 2023. prgtoken Lt. Col. Vaughan began his collegiate career in 1941 at Clemson College, which is now known as Clemson University, before leaving school to serve in WWII as a Combat Engineer in the U.S. Army. After his discharge in 1948, Lt. Col. Vaughan returned to Clemson University and completed a degree in Agricultural Engineering. Next, Lt. Col. Vaughan earned a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force Reserve. prgtoken In January 1953, Vaughan married Evelyn Lancaster Vaughan, who passed away earlier this year. He then left to defend our country in the Korean War. He would later retire from the U.S. Air Force Reserve after 28 years of faithful service and begin a new career with the South Carolina Soil Conservation Service--where he worked for 28 years before retiring in 1983. prgtoken Lt. Col. Vaughan is a loving father to three children, with seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. prgtoken , Charles Vaughan's life is one of devotion to his country and local community. General Douglas MacArthur once said, ``No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation.'' After 100 years of life, Lt. Col. Vaughan continues to embody the vigilance that Gen. MacArthur described. I hope he will continue to inspire those around him in the years to come.
CONSIDERING THE PROPOSED MENTHOL BAN
Mike Ezell (Republican, MS) \u2014 2023-12-15

I rise to express deep concern regarding the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s decision to ban the sale of menthol cigarettes. If the Administration continues with this proposal, it must work with the appropriate law enforcement agencies to mitigate the potential increase in illicit cross-border activities related to menthol cigarette smuggling. prgtoken While I acknowledge the negative health effects of cigarettes, the consequences of opening an illicit market could be detrimental. As a career law enforcement officer, I have seen the effect of imposing federal bans on contraband firsthand. Mandates such as this encourages terrorist and cartel organizations to smuggle cigarettes across our wide-open southern border. With the increasing influx of drugs, including fentanyl and narcotics, already coming across our border and the number of cartels reportedly expanding operations to include cigarette smuggling, our nation cannot afford to give terrorist and cartels another revenue stream to terrorize our communities. prgtoken As the Administration looks to finalize this rule, I urge the administration to consider all the consequences of this rule and take steps to lessen the risks associated with this ban.
HONORING SANDHILLS COMMUNITY COLLEGE WOMEN'S GOLF TEAM ON THEIR SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM
Richard Hudson (Republican, NC) \u2014 2023-12-15

I rise today to congratulate the student athletes of Sandhills Community College's (SCC) Women's Golf Team on being recognized as Academic All-Americans by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). prgtoken SCC has a proud history of both academic and athletic excellence and is a regional leader on both fronts. I was proud to see so many SCC student athletes carry on this great tradition and be named to the 2022-2023 Academic Teams of the Year. prgtoken In particular, I would like to recognize the SCC Women's Golf Team and the following members of this team on their achievement of this honor. Student athletes, Ava Ray and Trinity Ahing. prgtoken Their great success in the classroom is proof that each of them truly embody what it means to be a student athlete. I think I speak for everyone in our community when I say they have made Pinehurst and the whole of Moore County proud. prgtoken , please join me today in recognizing the SCC Women's Golf Team for this great achievement and to wish them continued success both on the green and in the classroom.
RECOGNIZING ROBERT E. `BOBBY' BURNS
August Pfluger (Republican, TX) \u2014 2023-12-15

I rise today to recognize Robert E. `Bobby' Burns on his retirement from the Midland Chamber of Commerce after twelve years leading the organization, and more than four decades of service to the Midland community. prgtoken Bobby is officially retiring after an illustrious career as a business owner, three-term mayor, and most recently as the President and CEO of the Midland Chamber of Commerce. Under Bobby's leadership, the city of Midland and its business community soared to new heights. prgtoken As Mayor, he led the charge to connect Midland and Odessa to the rest of the country through the creation of the Midland International Airport and connected Midlanders through the construction of Loop 250. He was also instrumental in the creation of the Scharbauer Sports Complex. prgtoken While leading the Chamber, Bobby revitalized the organization and oversaw the Four-Star Accreditation of the Midland Chamber with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He was instrumental in the development of the first-class Barbara & George H.W. Convention Center in the heart of downtown Midland, and he raised funds for the life-size sculpture of the President and Mrs. . prgtoken I especially want to recognize Bobby for his love of Midland and this great nation. Under his watch, Bobby organized the 4th of July Star- Spangled Salute and the Midland-Odessa Fly-In to Washington D.C. The Salute is still the most widely attended annual single-day event in all of Midland, and the Fly-In brings West Texas values--especially those foundational to the oil and gas industry--to our nation's capital. prgtoken Above all else Bobby is a family man: husband to Denise `Deni,' father of two, and grandfather of three. I want to sincerely thank his family for their service and for supporting his efforts. Please join me in recognizing Bobby for his decades of selfless service to the community of Midland.
RECOGNIZING NADINE WOODWARD
Cathy McMorris Rodgers (Republican, WA) \u2014 2023-12-15

I rise today to recognize Nadine Woodward and thank her for both her dedication and service as the 45th Mayor of Spokane. prgtoken Nadine has been a trusted member of our Spokane community since 1990, when she first arrived after earning her degree from the University of Portland. She began her career--and quickly became a household name-- working for two of our region's television news stations, KREM and KXLY. prgtoken In 2019, after nearly three decades as a broadcast journalist, Nadine decided to step into the political arena and run for public office. In 2020, she was sworn in as mayor and got to work for our city. For 4 years, she worked tirelessly and dedicated herself to making Spokane a better place for people to live, work, and enjoy. prgtoken This wasn't always easy. Mayor Woodward took office during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, and she quickly proved herself to be the fierce leader we needed in times of uncertainty. She fought to protect individual liberty, get children back in school, and did everything she could to keep businesses open--all while making sure people had access to the health care they needed during an unprecedented time in our nation's history. prgtoken Nadine also made it a top priority to support our city's men and women in blue who work around the clock to keep our community safe. She was instrumental in establishing a violent crime task force that empowered law enforcement officers to do their jobs and get dangerous offenders off the streets. She also tackled the homelessness crisis head-on, working hard to clean up Camp Hope, which was at one time the largest homeless encampment in Washington state and a hotbed for drug dealing and other criminal activity. prgtoken Leading with compassion on this issue, Mayor Woodward worked side-by- side with shelter organizations to increase capacity by more than 500 beds. But she didn't stop there, instead championing efforts to increase homeownership within our community, working with the city council on the Spokane Housing Action Plan to help increase affordable and accessible housing options for families. The plan, which included new zoning laws to fast-track construction, will have a long-lasting impact by making it easier to create new residential areas that meet Spokane's current and future housing needs. prgtoken Perhaps what I'm most grateful to Mayor Woodward for is her commitment to being a steadfast partner in the fight against fentanyl. It has been encouraging to work with her to bring together law enforcement, community leaders, and families in an effort to stop the flow of this deadly poison that is destroying lives and families in our city. Her leadership on this issue has been so important to not only raising awareness, but actually beginning to get these drugs off our streets. prgtoken , I am grateful for Nadine's committed service to the Spokane community that I am blessed to call home. She has been a tremendous ad
Business Before the Senate (Executive Session)
Charles E. Schumer (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2023-12-18

over the past week, and s have made important progress toward an agreement on the national security supplemental. While the job is not finished, I am confident we are headed in the right direction. prgtoken I want to thank all the Members and staff from Senate , Senate s, and the White House who worked through the weekend to get us closer to an agreement. I can imagine that they are tired after working nonstop, coming into the office early in the morning and working furiously into the evenings. With the holidays around the corner, they are sacrificing time with family, with their kids, and have to put travel plans on hold to get this done. prgtoken I salute my colleagues and staff for their excellent work, and I am encouraged by the progress we made over the weekend--significant progress--and I urge them to keep going. prgtoken Now, we all know this is extremely difficult work--among the most difficult things we have done in recent prgtoken memory. Everyone knows that something should be done to fix our broken immigration system, but we can't do so by compromising our values. Finding the middle ground is exceptionally hard, and both sides must accept that they will have to make concessions. And it is going to take some more time to get it done. But we must succeed. remain committed to working with our counterparts to reach an agreement. prgtoken As these negotiations continue off the floor, we must also finish the job on confirming military promotions and other nominees. In past years, these four-star generals would have been swiftly appointed to their posts. But this year, one Senator--the Senator from Alabama--has broken decades of bipartisan tradition by placing blanket holds on these highly qualified and dedicated nominees. prgtoken While I am glad the Senator has relinquished his holds, I am disappointed it has taken this long, and we will still need to confirm the last few of these nominees before the end of the week. prgtoken . prgtoken .
COP28 (Executive Session)
Benjamin L. Cardin (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2023-12-18

let me just underscore Senator Whitehouse's role in the CBAM that he has talked about, because that sets up a level playing field on carbon--the real price of carbon--so we are not at a competitive disadvantage. We have got to catch up to what Europe is doing. We have got to join the group. And Senator Whitehouse has been the champion of pointing out that there is a price that we all pay because of carbon emissions, and we asked our companies to do it in a friendlier way. They need to be on a level playing field with their competitors--of course, China being of principal concern. These CBAM proposals will establish that level playing field and put American producers on a level playing field if we join with these efforts. prgtoken Senator Carper, who chairs the Environment and Public Works Committee, has been the key leader in the U.S. engagement on the climate agenda. Through his leadership, we were able to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, which has been the envy of the world, for a commitment on the energy agenda. prgtoken But he also was responsible for the bipartisan infrastructure bill, and it had a heavy diet of greener transportation programs, establishing a way that we can electrify our transportation fleet with charging stations. All that came under Senator Carper's leadership. prgtoken And then there is the Kigali protocol. So we were able to ratify that through our committee, through his leadership. So he has been the real champion and leader for the U.S. Senate on these aggressive policies to be a leader in the world on climate issues, and I am proud to serve on this committee, along with the Presiding Officer. We have a real champion and leader in Senator Carper.
National Security (Executive Session)
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2023-12-18

over the weekend, our colleagues continued to make progress toward an agreement on border security. I am especially grateful to Senator Lankford for stewarding Senate s' efforts to produce meaningful policy changes, fix our broken asylum system, and secure the southern border. prgtoken Addressing the border crisis at home is a fundamental part of legislation that will help America meet each of the most glaring national security challenges we face around the world. And there are a number of significant issues our colleagues are still working to resolve. prgtoken The effects of years of failed border enforcement are compounded. Border security policy is complex. And our colleagues at the negotiating table are clear-eyed about the fact that getting this agreement right and producing legislative text is going to require some time. prgtoken Senate s will not make up for others showing up late to the table by waving our responsibility to carefully negotiate and review any agreement before voting on it. I am encouraged by our colleagues' commitment to keep making steady progress in negotiations over the coming week and beyond. prgtoken America is facing a never-before-seen border crisis. An imperialist thug is trying to redraw the map of Europe. A repressive authoritarian state is preparing to put more of the Indo-Pacific under its control. And the world's largest state sponsor of terror is showing us it is as determined as ever to kill American servicemembers and disrupt global commerce. There is simply no room for falling short here. We cannot afford to get this wrong.
Vote on O'Malley Nomination (Executive Session)
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2023-12-18

. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Wyoming (Mr. Barrasso), the Senator from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman), the Senator from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Alabama (Mrs. Britt), the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Budd), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Texas (Mr. Cornyn), the Senator from North Dakota (Mr. Cramer), the Senator from Texas (Mr. Cruz), and the Senator from Montana (Mr. Daines). prgtoken Further, if present and voting: the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Budd) would have voted ``nay''. prgtoken The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Ms. Ernst), the Senator from Nebraska (Mrs. Fischer), the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Graham), the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Hagerty), the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley), the Senator from Mississippi (Mrs. Hyde-Smith), the Senator from Wisconsin (Mr. Johnson), the Senator from Utah (Mr. Lee), the Senator from Wyoming (Ms. Lummis), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Marshall), and the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Moran). prgtoken Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Marshall) would have voted ``nay''. prgtoken The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Kentucky (Mr. Paul), the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Risch), the Senator from Utah (Mr. Romney), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Schmitt), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott), the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott), the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Sullivan), the Senator from Alabama (Mr. Tuberville), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance). prgtoken Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance) would have voted ``nay'' and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott) would have voted ``nay''.
Unanimous Consent Request--S. 2119 (Executive Calendar)
Robert Menendez (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2023-12-19

I appreciate that Senator Cotton is supportive. But let me just say, I wish Senator Paul and Senator Lee were here to have firefighters across this Nation understand why something that is bipartisan--something that passed the Senate through the NDAA, something that is presently exactly being mirrored by s in the House of Representatives--cannot ultimately pass this Chamber. prgtoken I guess it is ``bah humbug'' to firefighters this season. But we won't stop until we get it passed. prgtoken With that, . prgtoken .
HONORING WILLIE JAMES THOMAS, SR. ON HIS 103rd BIRTHDAY
Cori Bush (Democrat, MO) \u2014 2023-12-19

St. Louis and I rise to wish a happy 103rd birthday to Willie James Thomas, Sr. On behalf of Missouri's First District, we are thankful for everything he is and everything he has done to provide for his family, neighbors, coworkers, and friends. prgtoken 103 is a remarkable milestone and worthy of great celebration. Mr. Thomas has seen and lived through segments of history that most of us can only rely on through books and education, and from being in close community prgtoken with elders like him. His trials, triumphs, and everything in between are a beautiful testament to a remarkable and full life. prgtoken Throughout his life, Mr. Thomas has had many blessings. He is the beloved father of three, a grandfather of 10, a great-grandfather of 21, and great-great-great-grandfather of six. As a World War II Army Veteran serving in England, France, and Germany, we thank him for his dedication to his family and service to our country. prgtoken I am so grateful for the opportunity to celebrate his life because it is an inspiration to so many of us in St. Louis. I wish Mr. Thomas peace and continued joy tending to the best yard in University City throughout his 103rd year. prgtoken Happy birthday and bountiful blessings to Mr. Willie James Thomas, Sr.
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Margaret Wood Hassan (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2023-12-19

I am honored to recognize Paige Youschak-Thompson of Laconia as December's Granite Stater of the Month. Paige is known throughout the Lakes Region for her service to different organizations. Although she has always volunteered, she became more active when her daughter was in school, and now, with her daughter an adult, volunteering has become the equivalent of a full-time job. Paige volunteers 5 days a week for more than 40 hours a week. prgtoken Paige will never say no when someone asks for her help. Although she does not have a favorite cause or organization, the Saint Vincent de Paul Society, a local thrift shop, has a special place in her heart since it is where she first started to consistently volunteer. In addition, Paige is especially fond of helping kids in the community and believes in giving all children a chance, regardless of their income level. She worked with a local boutique to help provide free prom dresses to girls who may otherwise not be able to have one. Paige is also the chair of the community engagement committee for the Greater Lakes Region Children's Auction, which helps local children and families in need; it has distributed more than $8 million over the last 40 years to the community. prgtoken Paige's strong pull towards volunteer work stems from her deep and lifelong desire to be a person who helps out and holds space for others. Paige makes other people happy in any way that she can. Being able to help the community brings her great joy, and she plans to continue volunteering for as long as she can. prgtoken Paige showcases the Granite State spirit of giving every day of the year, and I am honored to name her Granite Stater of the Month. Especially as we enter the holiday season, I hope that we can all aspire to give our time and support to our community as freely as Paige does.