mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
GOVERNMENT SERVICE DELIVERY IMPROVEMENT ACT
Jamie Raskin (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2024-5-21

. Madam , such time as I may consume. prgtoken Madam , I thank the distinguished gentlewoman, again, from South Carolina, and I thank my wonderful colleague from California, Mr. Ro Khanna, for his leadership on H.R. 5887, the Government Service Delivery Improvement Act. I am really proud to declare our support for this bipartisan legislation. prgtoken Federal Government services should be accessible and responsive to the American people. This means ensuring agencies have the resources and staffing they need to fulfill their missions, as well as the infrastructure and technology they need to have effective interactions with the public. Committee have fought for adequate funding so that the government makes the necessary Federal IT modernization investments that our agencies need to deliver for the people. It also means strengthening and standardizing Federal agencies' efforts to improve the delivery of government services. prgtoken Mr. Khanna's bill would create a Federal Government service delivery lead position in the Office of Management and Budget to coordinate government-wide efforts to improve the delivery of services. Working with lead service delivery officials designated at each Federal agency, the service delivery lead at OMB would develop and oversee the implementation of government-wide standards, policies, and guidelines to improve government service delivery, and would evaluate agency progress, including by collecting and reporting information, data, and metrics. prgtoken This bipartisan bill will help ensure the Federal government is providing the best service possible to the people and that it is acting in transparent, methodical, and accountable ways to improve our delivery of government services. prgtoken I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 5887. prgtoken Madam , I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Khanna).
REMEMBERING GEORGE FLOYD
Jonathan L. Jackson (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2024-5-21

I thank the Honorable Congresswoman from the great State of Michigan (Ms. Tlaib) for her outspokenness. prgtoken , we have heard from my distinguished colleagues today about policing in our communities and about the loss of innocence, all issues of great importance to the Congressional Black Caucus, our constituents, Congress, and all Americans tonight. prgtoken , .
AUTHORITY FOR COMMITTEES TO MEET
Margaret Wood Hassan (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2024-5-21

I have 10 requests, for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the majority and minority Leaders. prgtoken Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: committee on commerce, science, and transportation prgtoken The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is authorized to meet during the session of the prgtoken Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 2:30 p.m to conduct a hearing. committee on energy and natural resources prgtoken The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 10 a.m to conduct a hearing. committee on finance prgtoken The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 10 a.m to conduct a hearing. committee on foreign relations prgtoken The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 10:30 a.m to conduct a hearing. committee on health, education, labor, and pensions prgtoken The Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 2:30 p.m to conduct a hearing. committee on the judiciary prgtoken The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 10 a.m to conduct a hearing. committee on the judiciary prgtoken The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 2:30 p.m to conduct a hearing. permanent subcommittee on investigations prgtoken The Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 2:30 p.m to conduct a hearing. subcommittee on international trade, customs, and global competitiveness prgtoken The Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness of the Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 2:30 p.m to conduct a hearing. subcommittee on strategic forces prgtoken The Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 9:30 a.m to conduct a hearing.
RECOGNIZING THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF 2024 PATHFINDER SCHOLARSHIP FIRST PLACE WINNER NIKKI LEALI IN THE COMPUTER ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY CATEGORY
Jared Moskowitz (Democrat, FL) \u2014 2024-5-21

. Mr , I rise today to recognize Ms. Nikki Leali, the first-place winner of the prestigious Pathfinder Scholarship in the Computer Engineering and Technology category. This scholarship is awarded to Palm Beach and Martin County students who have displayed excellence in their academic and communal endeavors in a multitude of categories prgtoken Nikki, a student at FAU High School, is a shining example of hard work and dedication. She is not only taking dual enrollment courses at the FAU Wilkes Honors College but also working towards a major in data analytics. Her future includes continuing her education at FAU and graduating in 2027 with a master's degree, with the aim of becoming a data analyst. Her experience volunteering with FAU's Privacy, Security, and Trust in Autonomy Lab, where she has gained experience interpreting research papers and using Python coding, has prepared her to launch into a career in which she hopes to become a leader in implementing and advancing artificial intelligence and data visualization. prgtoken , I ask that you join me today in recognizing Ms. Nikki Leali as an excellent student and notable contributor to the field of computer engineering and technology.
Border Act of 2024 (Executive Session)
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2024-5-21

April border numbers came out last week, bringing us up to more than 1\1/2\ million migrant encounters at the southern border so far in fiscal year 2024--1\1/2\ million in just 7 months. prgtoken Between official U.S. Customs and Border Protection encounters and known ``got-aways''--which are individuals the Border Patrol saw but were unable to apprehend--we are closing in on a staggering 10 million migrant encounters at our southern border under President . That is substantially more than the population of New York City. In fact, it is more than the population of all but the largest U.S. States, if you can believe that. And there are still 8 more months in the President's term. prgtoken After 3 years of half measures, deflections, and outright ignoring the raging crisis at our Nation's border, the President and appear to have finally woken up to the fact that their border crisis might be a major political liability for them in the upcoming election. prgtoken Fear for their election prospects is doing what 3 years of chaos at the southern border could not, and that is get them focused on illegal immigration--sort of, because the vote on border legislation the leaders announced for this week isn't really about addressing illegal immigration; it is about giving the American people the impression that care about illegal immigration. prgtoken If the leader were serious about addressing the crisis at our southern border, he would be bringing up legislation that actually stood a chance of making it out of both Houses of Congress and to the President's desk, but he is not. Instead he is bringing up a vote that he knows will fail in the hope of giving political cover to vulnerable and with the side benefit, he hopes, of putting s in a difficult spot--political theater at its finest. prgtoken If the leader goes through with this vote this week, he should expect some difficult conversations. Perhaps he would like to explain why, if are so concerned about illegal immigration and securing the border, they have repeatedly banded together this year to oppose--to oppose--commonsense amendments that came to the floor. prgtoken You would think that if were really worried about addressing the illegal immigration crisis, they might have supported Senator Blackburn's motion to allow State and local law enforcement to detain criminal illegal aliens for ICE to deport them. Or Senator Lankford's amendment to prohibit funding from being used to release special-interest aliens--those are individuals who may pose a threat to the United States--during legal proceedings. Or Senator Hagerty's amendments to prevent taxpayer dollars from being used to fly illegal immigrants into the United States or to have them count in the census. The list goes on. prgtoken It is hard to understand why anyone would oppose such commonsense measures, a
JAMES R. DOMINGUEZ MEMORIAL ACT OF 2023
Tony Gonzales (Republican, TX) \u2014 2024-5-21

I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 5799, the James R. Dominguez Memorial Act. I thank this Chamber for bringing this bill to the floor for a vote today. prgtoken I have the privilege of serving Texas 23 and the people of Uvalde. I was in Uvalde yesterday. It has been a tough couple of years for us in the district. prgtoken Just outside of Uvalde is a checkpoint called the Uvalde Checkpoint Station. Very soon that checkpoint will be known as the James R. Dominguez Checkpoint. prgtoken When I met with Border Patrol agents that day, it was nothing but smiles, whether they had been in for 2 years or they had been in for 30 years, like Agent Moreno, it was all smiles. They were smiling because they knew that they weren't going to be forgotten, whether they passed away during service over 12 years ago, they were not going to be forgotten. Their families weren't going to be forgotten. prgtoken In 2012, Border Patrol Agent James Dominguez tragically passed away in the line of duty when he was struck by a vehicle along Highway 90 in Texas. prgtoken Agent Dominguez was a loving father, a husband, a friend to all that knew him, and a strong man of faith. He dedicated 12 years of his life as a Border Patrol agent, the last serving in the Uvalde station in the Del Rio sector. prgtoken Today is a special day for this Chamber. We will move forward tonight on legislation that will honor the memory of Border Patrol Agent James Dominguez by renaming the checkpoint in Uvalde in his honor. prgtoken I am proud to work very closely with Chief Owens and his wife, Cassy Garcia, as well as the family members of Agent Dominguez, his brothers and sisters, his widow, to rename this Uvalde station and make this memorial possible. prgtoken Agent James Dominguez' legacy will live on for generations to come, and his service will never be forgotten.
INFLATION UNDER THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
John Joyce (Republican, PA) \u2014 2024-5-21

since President took office, the price of gasoline has risen 55 percent, the price of electricity is up close to 30 percent, the price of groceries is up more than 20 percent, and the price of baby food is up 30 percent. prgtoken Across Pennsylvania, families are feeling the effects of this inflation. On average, they are paying an additional $70 a month for housing and an additional $240 a month for transportation. Since 2021, Pennsylvania households have spent over $20,000 more than they would have because of inflation. prgtoken Recently, President has attempted to claim that inflation was already at 9 percent annually when he took office, when, in fact, it was only at 1.4 percent. prgtoken What we are seeing is a President who has failed in his duty to protect American families. In central Pennsylvania, more than 100,000 families make less than $50,000 a year. Mothers shouldn't have to make a decision on whether to buy gasoline or to buy school lunches. Parents should not have to worry at the kitchen table about paying their credit card bill or their rent. prgtoken This is the reality that President 's radical spending spree has created over the past 4 years. It is time to return to fiscal sanity, and it is time to once again be responsible stewards of the taxpayer dollar. prgtoken No matter what President says in his campaign speeches, inflation is the fault of his administration, and it is time to put a stop to the President's failed policies. Recognizing Memorial Day
STUDENT LOANS
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2024-5-21

on one final matter, speaking of the failure to discharge basic responsibilities--the administration's Department of Education. prgtoken Around the country, high school seniors and their parents are still reeling from delays and processing errors in a botched rollout of the Free Application prgtoken for Federal Student Aid. Families have had to make tough decisions ahead of enrollment deadlines with incomplete information. prgtoken One such parent described the frustration she and her daughter were facing back in April: She's supposed to decide by the end of this month and pay her housing deposit, but we can't commit to anything until we know what the financials look like. prgtoken It certainly makes one wonder: What are all those bureaucrats at the Education Department up to if they can't complete a fundamental part of their job? Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, the answer seems to be spending time and taxpayer dollars on activities that run contrary to the Department's mandate. prgtoken The first of these activities, as I have discussed before, is student loan socialism. Of course, the Supreme Court made it clear that this scheme is illegal, and basic common sense tells us it is profoundly unfair both to folks who opted not to pursue a 4-year degree and to those who worked through college and paid their own bills. But President has continued undeterred. Last month, his administration proposed a new rule to allow the Secretary of Education to cancel additional student debt for certain borrowers. It is estimated this will cost taxpayers nearly $150 billion. prgtoken But the Department's illegal nonsense doesn't stop there. Unelected bureaucrats are also trying to rewrite title IX of the Civil Rights Act. The administration apparently wants to take a law that was designed to promote equal opportunities for women in education and make it do the exact opposite. This rule would require States and educational institutions to abandon biological sex as the determinant in program decisions and use so-called gender identity instead, and institutions that refuse to comply would lose access to Federal funding. More than 25 States have already sued to overturn this absurd rule, but the damage to the Department of Education's reputation is already done. prgtoken High school seniors and parents have already had to make college choices without crucial financial aid information. Working taxpayers are already footing the bill for the highest earning segments of the Washington ' base. Laws that enacted protections for women are already being used to violate those same protections. It is shaping up to be a banner year for the administration bureaucrats.
ROLLING STOCK PROTECTION ACT
Eric A. "Rick" Crawford (Republican, AR) \u2014 2024-5-21

I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I rise in support of my bill H.R. 3317, the Rolling Stock Protection Act. I ask that my colleagues join me in supporting this simple and direct bill. prgtoken In May of last year, this bipartisan legislation was favorably reported out of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. prgtoken My bill will close a loophole in Federal law that currently allows some of the country's largest transit agencies that receive Federal Transit Administration dollars to purchase rolling prgtoken stock, such as railcars, from State-owned enterprises and State- connected businesses, including those linked to the Chinese Communist Party. prgtoken , I will be honest with you. I thought Congress had fixed this problem back in 2019 with the passage of the Transportation Infrastructure Vehicle Security Act, or TIVSA. That measure, which was included in the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, prohibited the purchase of rolling stock from State-owned enterprises by transit agencies receiving Federal funds. prgtoken Why are we back today? We are here today to make it crystal clear to the FTA that CCP-connected companies are never allowed to receive taxpayer dollars. prgtoken While TIVSA should have eliminated any future payments of American taxpayer dollars to CCP-connected companies, like the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation, the FTA's execution of the law provided lifetime exemptions to four transit agencies from the prohibitions on contracting with CCP-connected companies. prgtoken I mentioned that the FTA granted lifetime exemptions to four transit agencies from the law's prohibitions, and I think it is important that we know who we are talking about. The four agencies receiving this exemption from the FTA were the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, or SEPTA; the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, MBTA; the Chicago Transit Authority; and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit Authority. prgtoken I am pleased to report that one of those transit agencies, SEPTA, just announced in April that after significant production delays and cost overruns, it was exercising the right to terminate its contract with CRRC for cause. That is a positive step. prgtoken Alternatively, another agency that received the lifetime exemption, the MBTA, recently announced that it is re-upping the contract with CRRC and adding another $148 million in rolling stock purchases. prgtoken The enactment of TIVSA should have eliminated any possibility that transit agencies that receive Federal funding could continue using those dollars to pay for contracts with companies connected to the CCP, but 5 years after TIVSA was made law, a major public transit agency is expanding just such a contract. prgtoken That is all the more reason we are taking action to pass H.R. 3317 today. This bill will end, once and for all, the practice of sending Federal dollars to CCP-controlled rolling st
40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WYOMING WILD SHEEP FOUNDATION
John Barrasso (Republican, WY) \u2014 2024-5-21

I rise today to recognize the 40th anniversary of the Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation. prgtoken On June 7, 2024, the Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation will celebrate its 40th anniversary. The celebration will be held in conjunction with its summer convention at the Little America Hotel and Conference Center in Cheyenne, WY. The foundation is dedicated to preserving Wyoming's bighorn sheep herds and their habitats, to conservation education, and to hunter's rights. prgtoken The 1960s saw a drastic decline in bighorn sheep populations and their habitats throughout the country. This prompted the formation of the Foundation for North American Wild Sheep in 1974. It is now known as the Wild Sheep Foundation. The foundation aimed to restore and manage sheep herds and their ranges. prgtoken In 1983, Dave Steger, Ron Ball, Alex Wolfer, John Suda, and Terry Reach established the Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation. The Wyoming foundation sought the same goals as the national group, but solely within the borders of the State. prgtoken Wyoming's rugged mountains and western plains are home to 15 bighorn sheep herds. With over 5,900 wild sheep, Wyoming is a mecca for bighorn sheep. prgtoken The Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation plays a critical role in maintaining the health and vitality of each herd and the habitat in which they thrive. Conservation efforts to preserve these herds includes bighorn sheep reintroduction, recreational trail closure, and prescribed burns. prgtoken The re-establishment of the Ferris-Seminoe herd near Rawlins proves to be one of the most successful transplant efforts for bighorn sheep in Wyoming. The low population prompted the Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation, in partnership with the Wyoming Game prgtoken and Fish, to capture and transplant bighorn sheep from the Whiskey Mountain and Devil Canyon herds to augment and re-establish the Ferris- Seminoe herd. Those continued efforts help the herd thrive and reach population objectives set forth by the Wyoming Game and Fish. prgtoken Similar to the Ferris-Seminoe herd, the Sweetwater Rocks herd was completely decimated by 1907 and again in 1980. Recently, the foundation established the Sweetwater Rocks Initiative to reintroduce sheep into the region. The foundation is collaborating with the Wyoming Game and Fish and local ranchers to ``put wild sheep back on the mountain.'' prgtoken The snowcapped peaks and rocky mountains in northwestern Wyoming are home to the Teton Range herd. The herd nearly died out in the 19th and 20th centuries due to over harvest, disease, habitat depletion, and disturbance of their migration routes. The foundation's mitigation efforts include working with the Wyoming Game and Fish and Grand Teton National Park to close recreation areas in important bighorn sheep habitats and to collar the sheep to track survival patterns. prgtoken The survival and growth of the herds, the vitality of the habitat, and the endless dedication of every