mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Joe Manchin, III (Democrat, WV) \u2014 2018-3-22

after 2 years of hard work and because of the determination and strength of David and Kate Grubb of Charleston, WV, Jessie's Law was finally passed by Congress and signed into law, and I thank each and every one of my colleagues for their support. prgtoken Jessie's Law is different from other pieces of legislation. Jessie's Law will actually save lives and prevent parents from experiencing the heartbreak of losing a child. prgtoken Jessie Grubb's story is known to many of you already, but for those of you who haven't heard it and for those of you who don't know it, I want to go over some of the highlights. prgtoken After years of struggling with heroin addiction, Jessie had been doing very well. She had been sober for 6 months. She was focusing on making a life for herself in Michigan and was training for a marathon. She had surgery for an infection related to her running injury and died the day after leaving the hospital. All of her hard work was ruined because of a careless mistake. prgtoken Jessie's death is particularly heartbreaking because it was 100 percent preventable. Her parents, David and Kate, traveled to Michigan for Jessie's surgery. Both Jesse and her parents told her doctors and hospital personnel that she was a recovering addict. It was reflected in her medical records in eight different places. However, it was not highlighted the same as it would be when you have any type of an allergy or if you go in and they ask--the question is usually asked-- are you allergic to penicillin? Then it is very much highlighted, to the point that a mistake would not be made. This was not done. prgtoken After Jessie's surgery, the discharging doctor said he didn't know she was a recovering addict and sent her home with a prescription for 50 oxycodone pills. She should never have been given a description for opioid medication in the first place, as she had asked when she entered the hospital. prgtoken With the passage of Jessie's Law, we have taken the critical step toward saying that this will never happen again. Jessie's Law will establish new standards for healthcare providers to ensure that when a patient provides information about their opiate addiction, that information is shared with their doctors and nurses and is flagged just like we would flag a drug allergy. Having this critical information will help ensure that healthcare providers can make medically appropriate decisions about pain management for recovering opiate addicts. This simple step could have saved Jessie's life, and we owe it to her memory to make the change and keep other families from experiencing the same pain. prgtoken It has been over 2 years. You would have thought this would have been done within 2 weeks. It is such common sense. I don't think anyone realized before that they could not or did not or were not responsible for or were not by law supposed to basically make sure that every record--every transcript that she ha
TARGETED REWARDS FOR THE GLOBAL ERADICATION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Steny H. Hoyer (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2018-3-22

not a single person has read this bill. It was filed at 8 o'clock last night. If we had put this on the floor, not a single one of those on the other side of the aisle would have voted for it. Not one. prgtoken They have demagogued for years about reading the bills. This doesn't come close to their 3-day layover rule. Not close. It is being rushed through because some have fundraisers, perhaps, this weekend, or have flights or codels they want to go on. We have wasted 6 months in passing the appropriations bills, which, supposedly, should have been passed by September 30 of last year. prgtoken No one can be proud of this process. The said, when we set the caps, that he would bring a bill to the floor. He promised the 73 of us that made it possible to set these caps--because you don't have the votes on your side--that he would bring to this floor a fix for the Dreamers who are at risk of being kicked out of the country. I know there is a case, but it is short-term, not permanent. The did not keep that promise. It has not been on the floor. prgtoken What we now have on the floor is an appropriations bill. I think most of us know what is in this appropriations bill. These are earmarks. You don't call them earmarks. You call them authorizing language. They are bills that prgtoken nobody in the Appropriations Committee has read. If you have, stand up and correct me. As I said, nobody has read that either. prgtoken This is report language. Come to the well if you have read this language. prgtoken None of you--none of you--would support this process if we had offered it. prgtoken Now, the good news is that what the Appropriations Committee has done is quality work; and I congratulate Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Frelinghuysen, the subcommittee chairs, and the ranking members. It is worthy of support. But I am waiting for all the Tea Party people who harangued me and others on my side about reading the bills, giving us sufficient time to consider them. The of the House said, when he became : We will take issues one at a time. prgtoken Is there no shame? prgtoken Is there no realization of the hypocrisy that is being displayed? prgtoken , the product is a good one. And I say that about the appropriations bill. I have no idea what all the report language says.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY WISHES TO SKY AND SAGE
Raul Ruiz (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-3-22

today I rise to say happy birthday to my daughters, Sky and Sage. There is no greater love than the love I have for my twin girls, Sky and Sage, and for my wife, Monica. prgtoken There is no greater role or responsibility I have than to be their father and Monica's husband. There is no greater title more honorable and more meaningful in my life than the title of father and husband. prgtoken There is no greater joy than to hear my girls sing with happiness, play with vigor, and laugh with gusto. There is no greater medicine for my soul than feeling their bear hugs when I arrive home after being away at work for days. prgtoken Today, I celebrate their birth, their 3 years of life, and their future with the highest hopes and aspirations any father can have throughout all generations of fatherhood. prgtoken Today I sing our love story, and I sing Happy Birthday to my Sky Bear and Sage Monkey. prgtoken Happy birthday. I love you a lot--te amo mucho.
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
Jeff Merkley (Democrat, OR) \u2014 2018-3-22

reserving the right to object, I cannot in good faith support a nominee who has a lengthy track record of tweets attacking both prominent ic women and prominent women. Since his nomination, these tweets have continued, showing a complete disregard for the Senate confirmation process and a disregard for the seriousness of the position for which he has been nominated. prgtoken At the same time, Mr. Grenell has been dismissive of the importance of the threat Russia poses to U.S. democracy, and we certainly need to have U.S. Ambassadors who can work with our European allies and partners, now more than ever, to reinforce the strength of the institutions we have built to protect the rule of law and democracy and to defend our western democracies against Russian interference. prgtoken So with that, I object.
HONORING DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
Steve Cohen (Democrat, TN) \u2014 2018-3-22

while we are on recess, the city of Memphis, Tennessee, will be the center of civil rights history as the 50th anniversary of the tragic assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr will be memorialized on April 4 in Memphis, where he was slain. prgtoken At the Lorraine Motel where he was staying and killed, a great civil rights museum has sprung up like a phoenix from the ashes, the great history of the civil rights movement. At that spot, at the same time he was killed, there will prgtoken be a bell ringing, and there will be civil rights leaders from all over the country in Memphis to mark the occasion: our own John Lewis, Andrew Young, Danny Glover, and Cary Kennedy. There are so many that I shouldn't start, but they will be there to honor Dr. King's memory. prgtoken Dr. King's dream is not fulfilled yet. We need to continue to work to make his dream fulfilled in this country to where everybody, regardless of their race or their gender, for that matter, or their sexual orientation, has an opportunity to climb ladders of opportunity to participate in the American Dream and have a successful life and be a part of the middle class, if possible. prgtoken I hope everybody will give some thought to Dr. King and his dream on April 4.
ECONOMIC GROWTH, REGULATORY RELIEF, AND CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT
Chris Van Hollen (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2018-3-22

I want to discuss S. 2155, the banking bill, and explain the provisions of the bill I supported, those I opposed, and my reasons for ultimately opposing this legislation. prgtoken Over the past year, I have appreciated the opportunity to meet with Maryland community bankers, consumers, and an array of stakeholders who would be impacted by this bill. I have organized roundtables on economic development in Howard County and Baltimore. I have met with consumer groups who want a strong regulatory framework to ensure fair lending and to protect taxpayers from excessive risk-taking by some of the biggest banks. Most recently, I held a forum with my State's attorney general, Brian Frosh, where hundreds of passionate Marylanders came out on a rainy night to talk about consumer protection. prgtoken We need a healthy banking system that serves Maryland businesses and consumers, and banking regulations should be appropriately tailored to the risks a bank poses to consumers, taxpayers, and the economy. Community banks should not have to comply with all of the regulations that apply to large Wall Street banks. That is why I support many of the reforms in this bill to relieve community banks of some unnecessary regulations. I also support provisions to modernize the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, so that reciprocal deposits are not considered to be brokered deposits. prgtoken While I supported most of the reforms relating to community banks and credit unions, I have concerns with provisions in the bill that will encourage excessive risk-taking in systemically important banks and am disappointed by the absence of strengthened protections for consumers. prgtoken For example, this legislation significantly raises the threshold for enhanced prudential standards for systemically important financial institutions, SIFIs. While I can support an increase in the threshold, I believe this bill goes too far. Gary Gensler, the chair of the Maryland Financial Consumer Protection Commission, and the former chairman of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, has pointed out that this bill dials down prudential oversight for about 20 percent of U.S. banking sector assets. Mr. Gensler also noted that section 401 could be construed as possibly requiring the Federal Reserve to raise the threshold at which foreign megabanks are subject to the enhanced standards, thereby potentially allowing the very biggest banks to escape some of the current regulations. prgtoken I am also concerned that section 402 of the bill modifies the supplementary leverage ratio by excluding custodial assets for custodial banks. This provision allows for greater risk-taking among megabanks. Removing custodial assets from the denominator of the supplementary leverage ratio will allow these banks to take on risk in all areas. Former Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo said that removing one type of asset from a ratio on the grounds that it is safe
TARGETED REWARDS FOR THE GLOBAL ERADICATION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Nancy Pelosi (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-3-22

I thank our distinguished ranking member of the Appropriations Committee for yielding this time, but, more importantly, for exceptional leadership. To her and to the other members of the committee, Mr. Frelinghuysen, I thank them for their leadership as well. And to the chairs and ranking members of the subcommittee, all the members of the Appropriations Committee, Mr. Hoyer and I and Mr. Clyburn are from the culture of the Appropriations Committee, and we know that, left to your own devices, the appropriators can get the job done. prgtoken It is not until the leadership rains its poison pills on the process that the delay sets in. And I want to thank Congresswoman Ranking Member Lowey for ridding this bill of so many of those poison pills. prgtoken Mr. Hoyer very eloquently presented the situation as we see it now that the s have this bill. They didn't even have three days. It was last night to today, and here we are on the floor with a yard--a yard--of bill. And he said they are rushing because people have codels, trips, fundraisers, and this and that. prgtoken I contend there may be another reason why they are rushing it through. First of all, they don't want anybody to know what is in the bill, because this is a tremendous victory for the American people in terms of what Mrs. Lowey was able to negotiate, in a bipartisan way, on the domestic side. We all take an oath to protect and defend our country, so the defense investments are important to our Nation; but one-third of the domestic budget is security: homeland security, veterans affairs, State Department, antiterrorism activities of the Justice Department, and the list goes on. prgtoken But it is also a fact that we can measure the strength of our country not only in the important military might and security measures but also in the health, education, and well-being of the American people; and this bill goes to a place for that. prgtoken So yes, a yard of bill, certainly not read or read to the Members. But I contend, in addition to Mr. Hoyer's list of why they are rushing this to the end instead of having this negotiation take place much earlier, it is because they really don't want the Members to see what is in this bill, A; and, B, because they really want to get out of town before the March for Our Lives, before the young people come from all over the country to ask Congress to give us responsible, commonsense gun violence prevention legislation. That is what I heard about the s: they just don't want to be around when these young people come to town. prgtoken So here we are. We could have had this happen weeks ago and had a much more transparent way to deal with it. But having said that, we are here, and I think it is very important to set the record straight on some of the contentions that the s are making about this bill. prgtoken Let me start with the President of the United States. He has said, in one of his twe
NATIONAL STOP THE BLEED DAY
Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2018-3-22

I would like to take the time to recognize March 31, 2018, as National Stop the Bleed Day. Stop the Bleed is a program offered by the American College of Surgeons to help educate the general public on techniques to assist victims suffering from uncontrolled bleeding using direct pressure, gauze and bandages, and tourniquets. As someone who has personally been trained to ``Stop the Bleed,'' I can attest to its importance and value. prgtoken Each year, more than 180,000 people die from traumatic injuries sustained as a result of events including vehicle crashes, falls, industrial and farm accidents, shootings, and natural disasters. The most common preventable cause of these deaths is losing too much blood in the minutes before trained responders arrive. Just like CPR training, a civilian familiar with basic bleeding control techniques is better equipped to save a life. The effort to make this training available to the public is driven by the goal to reduce or eliminate preventable death from bleeding. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to join me in recognizing National Stop the Bleed Day so that we may raise awareness and work to end the loss of life from uncontrolled bleeding by getting trained to ``Stop the Bleed.''
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF THE SENATE AMENDMENT TO H.R. 1625, TARGETED REWARDS FOR THE GLOBAL ERADICATION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING; AND PROVIDING FOR PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PERIOD FROM MARCH 23...
Darren Soto (Democrat, FL) \u2014 2018-3-22

from Massachusetts for yielding. prgtoken Yesterday, the University of Central Florida in Orlando had a unique student body president election. The candidates were Karen Caudillo, my constituent, and Josh Bolona, both Dreamers, beneficiaries of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Act. They ran on a platform of justice and equality, and so did I. Today we celebrate Josh Bolona's victory on becoming UCF's first Dreamer student body president. prgtoken So what a sad backdrop we have here today. President declared victory for getting $1.6 billion to start his wall in a tweet late last night--$1.6 billion to start 's wall. So his wall gets funding, but our Dreamers get left behind. How can I, in good conscience, go home to my constituents and explain this? prgtoken I wonder aloud: When will our Dreamers be the priority? When will it be their time to shine? When will they have their moment of opportunity, a reprieve from worrying and from looking over their shoulders every day? prgtoken , when will the waiting finally stop for them and the living begin? When will the Dreamers finally get to dream? prgtoken Every week for 198 days, we have come here to ask our colleagues for their consideration of the bipartisan Dream Act. I remind you of that because it has been 198 days since the President put hundreds of thousands of Dreamers at risk of losing their jobs, careers, their families, and everything they have worked for their entire lives. Many take solace in a court injunction issued in California and New York. prgtoken As a lawyer, I can tell you these Dreamers are hanging by a thread. They are one adverse ruling away from oblivion. prgtoken What about the over 1 million Dreamers who are not part of the case? Those young people who would be entering the program, the young sisters and the young brothers of Dreamers who are in the DACA program and those Dreamers who did not apply out of concern and out of a mistrust they had for giving their information to a Federal Government that has turned their back on them? They would have no quarter under these injunctions and no rest. They have no peace. prgtoken Why can't we, once and for all, come together to give these deserving young patriots who embody our deepest values the opportunity to earn their citizenship, hardworking patriots like Josh, Karen, and hundreds of thousands of others who will have contributed an estimated $460 billion to the U.S. economy over the next decade? These young people are making positive and significant contributions to the economic growth of our country which benefits all of us.
TARGETED REWARDS FOR THE GLOBAL ERADICATION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Thomas R. Carper (Democrat, DE) \u2014 2018-3-22

we are here today to discuss what we call an omnibus bill. I know that ``omnibus'' is another funny-sounding word that we use sometimes here in Washington, but it simply means a bill that covers a lot of topics. prgtoken There are provisions in the omnibus legislation that deal with everything from homeland security to the environment to veterans and science, just to name a few. It is particularly fitting that we are discussing an appropriations bill that covers such a wide range of topics, as I come to the floor to recognize the service of a member of our staff who has worked on most of the policies covered in the omnibus legislation--maybe all of them. prgtoken Gabrielle Batkin, seated to my left, will probably wish that I wasn't doing this right now, but there is no doubt that she deserves to be recognized for her more than 20 years of hard work in the U.S. Senate. For as long as I have known her, Gabrielle has been an incredibly gracious person--kind, easy with praise, making sure that her own staff and the staff across the aisle were appropriately recognized for their efforts. Now I think she deserves some recognition of her own. prgtoken To all of the young staff members who may be watching this right now or to those who aspire to be staff members of the Senate someday, I would present Gabrielle Batkin as a shining example of what it means to be an exceptional staffer and a true public servant. prgtoken Every now and then we hear the term ``nameless, faceless bureaucrat.'' This is not a nameless, faceless bureaucrat. This is a beautiful public servant. She works tirelessly and really believes in making government work better for the people that it serves. prgtoken Gabrielle and I first started working together back in 2014, when she came to lead my team on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee when I served as its chairman. Then, a little over a year ago, she seamlessly transitioned to her current role as staff director for the minority on the Environment and Public Works Committee. This encapsulates just a fraction of her service. prgtoken For over a decade, Gabrielle served as an appropriations staff member to former Senator Barbara Mikulski. I think she was the No. 2 person on Barbara's appropriations team. Gabrielle started on the Appropriations Committtee's Subcommittees on Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development and then moved on to the Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee, where she handled everything from NASA to the grasses on the Chesapeake Bay. prgtoken Before that, she served in the office of the late Senator from New Jersey, Frank Lautenberg. She also worked on the House side for Congressman Frank Pallone from New Jersey and also served on the Senate Budget Committee. prgtoken Gabrielle has worked on everything from blue crabs to the Hubble telescope to cybersecurity and Central America. Those who know her will confirm that few people c