mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2019-3-14

today I wish to recognize FuelCell Energy as it celebrates 50 years of dedication to the research and delivery of clean, affordable fuel cell solutions. prgtoken Founded in 1969 by Dr. Bernard Baker as the Energy Research Corporation, the company has grown exponentially over the past half century. Starting as a highly regarded research company focused on electrochemical battery and fuel cell technologies, FuelCell Energy is now a worldwide leader in its field. prgtoken The Danbury, CT, based company provides efficient commercial fuel cell solutions for the supply, recovery, and storage of energy. Fifty years of tireless commitment, diligent effort, and creative innovation has resulted in SureSource power plants located in three continents. These power plants have produced over 8.7 million megawatt-hours of ultraclean power. prgtoken FuelCell Energy invests its work in all steps of the process: recognizing a need, developing a solution, and then implementing a solution in an economic and sustainable manner. The breadth of their successes and the critical level of forward progress in the realm of clean energy are truly impressive. Thanks to their remarkable efforts, FuelCell Energy enables universities, commercial enterprises, government entities, and other industries the opportunity to make clean choices in a more affordable and accessible way than ever before. prgtoken As they mark this important anniversary, the company continues to look toward the future, searching for even more effective options that will benefit our planet and its people. Though there is still more progress to be made, FuelCell Energy stands at the forefront of past innovation and future possibility. prgtoken Devoted to creating energy solutions that will make it easier for more and more industries to use clean power, FuelCell Energy is a positive model for modernization and advancement in this vital field. I applaud the accomplishments of FuelCell Energy's visionary leaders and highly skilled and dedicated workers and hope my colleagues will join me in congratulating FuelCell Energy on 50 years of excellence.
DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE
Madeleine Dean (Democrat, PA) \u2014 2019-3-14

domestic violence is an insidious problem that affects far too many people across our country. prgtoken One in four women and one in seven men will be the victim of violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. prgtoken Sadly, the scourge of domestic and sexual violence affects our communities, our schools, our servicemembers, and threatens the well- being of women, men, children, the LGBTQ community, our veterans, and others. prgtoken But through education and legislative action like reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, or VAWA, we can and have made a difference. prgtoken Since its passage 25 years ago through 2012, the rate of domestic violence decreased by 63 percent. From 1996 to 2015, the rate of women murdered by men in a single-victim/single-offender incident dropped by 29 percent. prgtoken This week, we voted in the Judiciary Committee to reauthorize this life-saving legislation. prgtoken I look forward to bringing VAWA to the floor so that families may be protected from the tragedy of domestic and sexual violence; so that young women like my granddaughter, Aubrey, feel safe to focus on the things that are most important, like claiming her education, her career, and her happy life ahead of her. prgtoken , I encourage my colleagues to support this important legislation.
WE HAVE GOT TO KNOW IF OUR PRESIDENT IS A CROOK
Sean Casten (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2019-3-14

just last week we passed H.R. 1, the For the People Act, with its worthy aim: to ensure that this government represents the voices of all Americans and not just the privileged and powerful. prgtoken Now, among the many reforms in H.R. 1, one would require that candidates for President and Vice President must disclose their tax returns. Giving voters personal tax information has been a tradition of Presidents since 1973, when Richard Nixon, of all people, released his returns and said: ``People have got to know whether or not their President is a crook.'' On that issue, I agree with Mr. Nixon. prgtoken Now, that seems to be the thinking of my home State legislature, too, which has been working on legislation that would require any Presidential or Vice Presidential candidate who wants to be on the ballot in Illinois to release their tax returns. They think that the people have the right to know the true character of the person who will sit in the White House. prgtoken , we have got to know if our President is a crook. I would like to see the Senate take up this bill. prgtoken And if they are unable to follow in the great leadership of this House, I prgtoken hope that other States will follow the great leadership of the State of Illinois.
RECOGNIZING RAQUEL GUERRERO
Jesús G. "Chuy" García (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2019-3-14

during Women's History Month, I rise prgtoken to honor the life and legacy of Raquel Guerrero, a woman who immigrated as a child to Chicago's Pilsen community and who dedicated her life to make it a better place for her family and for all families. prgtoken She was instrumental in improving opportunities and demanding more resources and better education for the mostly Latino students in my district. prgtoken She understood the value of a good education for children, but it extended beyond books, and advocated for healthy hot meals for students at what is now known as the Pilsen Community Academy, where I had my first years of schooling. prgtoken She helped establish Pilsen's annual Fiesta del Sol, the largest community festival in the Midwest. prgtoken Raquel was instrumental in securing funds to build the new Benito Juarez Community Academy High School in Pilsen, which has since provided many generations of young people with good public education. prgtoken She helped found APO, the Association for Workers Rights, a workers' rights group that still operates in the community. prgtoken Raquel's organizing efforts also resulted in the funding of the Rudy Lozano Library in Pilsen. prgtoken She was the mother of 11, but treated every child in the community as a part of her family. prgtoken , we honor her during Women's History Month.
RELATING TO A NATIONAL EMERGENCY DECLARED BY THE PRESIDENT ON FEBRUARY 15, 2019
Richard J. Durbin (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2019-3-14

the President often claims that he knows how to make deals, but when it comes to the border, he seems uninterested in a good deal, a deal to provide effective border security, and he is hurting our military in the process. This week's vote to repeal the President's national emergency is a vote to restore sanity to our border security debate and restore Congress's constitutional power of the purse. prgtoken We all remember 's idea that we need a 2,000-mile concrete wall from sea to shining sea and his claim that Mexico would pay for it. He said it some 200 times on the campaign trail and in the Oval Office. In December, after asking and failing to receive funding from Congress for this wall, the President said, ``I am proud to shut down the government for border security.'' prgtoken What followed was the 35-day shutdown, the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. It cost our country $11 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office. After the President finally agreed to reopen the government, Congress provided funding to the Department of Homeland Security for smart and effective border security measures, including technology and additional Customs personnel. We did this because the President's own administration has stated that the vast majority of lethal narcotics that cross our southern border come through legal ports of entry. prgtoken But within hours of signing this bill, President announced that it wasn't enough. The President went on television to announce that he was declaring a national emergency over the border, and he announced that he was taking $6.5 billion from our military to build it. prgtoken Presidents of both parties have declared national emergencies. Each time, it was done in response to a specific crisis, in order to unlock certain statutory authorities. President declared a national emergency after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In the 1970s, President Carter declared a national emergency as it pertained to Iran. Presidents of both parties have declared and updated emergencies relating to instability in Syria. prgtoken What Presidents did in those situations varied--sometimes levying sanctions, sometimes seizing assets--but each time, it was accepted on a bipartisan basis as necessary, legitimate, and in defense of our national interests. What President did was different. For the last 2 years, he has struggled to fulfill a campaign promise, so when he didn't get his way, he created a fake crisis and declared a phony emergency. prgtoken The good news is that the American people aren't buying it. A poll conducted earlier this month by Quinnipiac University found that 66 percent of voters oppose the President's end-run around Congress and oppose his fake emergency declaration. prgtoken Newspapers around the country have concluded the same thing. The Tampa Bay Times editorial board said it clearly a few days afte
OPPOSING PRESIDENT TRUMP'S BUDGET PROPOSAL
Ben McAdams (Democrat, UT) \u2014 2019-3-14

I rise in opposition to the President's budget proposal, which would increase the Federal deficit from $779 billion in 2018 to $1.1 trillion in 2020. If the goal is to rein in deficits and debt, this budget represents epic failure. prgtoken I am a public servant who takes seriously the responsibility of spending other people's money. As a freshman Member of the Congress, the current deficit hole we have dug for ourselves wasn't my doing, but I was elected to solve problems, not make them worse. prgtoken America's $22 trillion debt is a bipartisan problem. and s have acted in a way that suggests that debt doesn't matter. But Utahns know that if it was their small business with books so badly out of balance, they would soon be out of business. prgtoken Our government has been living beyond its means for years, and I believe it is wrong for one generation to forever burden generations yet to come. prgtoken As a former mayor who had to balance, in bipartisan fashion, a budget every year, I know these choices aren't easy. But it is our job to roll up our sleeves, come together, and work out a budget that takes serious steps toward reducing the dangerous, unsustainable levels of debt in our country. Those steps are not in the President's budget.
NOMINATION OF GENERAL JOHN ABIZAID
Robert Menendez (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2019-3-14

I come to the floor to correct the record concerning statements the Senate majority leader made yesterday morning, prgtoken in which he claimed that GEN John Abizaid's nomination to be Ambassador to Saudi Arabia ``is being held up.'' prgtoken Allow me to ease the majority leader's concerns. Far from being ``held up,'' the Foreign Relations Committee, with my full support, has been extremely diligent in taking up General Abizaid's nomination; he appeared on the very first committee nominations hearing of the 116th Congress, and his nomination is advancing through the regular committee process expeditiously. I look forward to his approval by the committee and, hopefully, a speedy confirmation. As with all nominees, his final confirmation is under the control of the majority leader. prgtoken I am concerned that the majority leader has an inaccurate view of the nominations situation facing the Foreign Relations Committee. He stated yesterday that ``if we want to solve problems in the Middle East, through diplomacy, we'll need to confirm diplomats.'' Unfortunately, we cannot confirm diplomats that we do not have. prgtoken It took 23 months before the administration bothered to nominate General Abizaid, leaving a gaping hole in our diplomatic posture to Saudi Arabia and the region. It is possible that this failure of leadership is the result of the President believing that his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is capable of doing this job from the White House. prgtoken Regardless of the reason, Saudi Arabia is not an isolated example. It took even longer, over 2 years, before the administration nominated a candidate to be U.S. Ambassador to Turkey. We are now 26 months into the administration, and we still lack ambassadorial nominees to critical countries like Egypt, Pakistan, and our close ally, Jordan. This failure is a reckless abdication of a constitutional responsibility that is essential to projecting American power abroad. There is only one person responsible for this failure: President ; yet the majority leader appears to be curiously oblivious to that fact. prgtoken Let me be clear: When the committee has received nominations, we have worked with efficiency and diligence to vet and advance those nominations. I have devoted my time and staff resources to ensure this because of my strong belief that the State Department, USAID, and other foreign affairs agencies must be appropriately staffed. We cannot promote our foreign policy, protect American citizens, and advocate for American businesses without a robust diplomatic corps. In the 115th Congress, the committee reported 169 nominations. I reject any assertion that we have not done our part to ensure that the State Department is appropriately staffed. prgtoken All too often, however, the committee has received nominations late or not at all. prgtoken There is, unfortunately, there is another severe problem that we cannot ignore w
FOR THE PEOPLE AGENDA
Matt Cartwright (Democrat, PA) \u2014 2019-3-14

I rise to remind this House of the ic For the People agenda, which starts with rebuilding American infrastructure and creating good paying jobs doing so. prgtoken It includes expanding healthcare so that it is available to more and more Americans, and bringing down the costs of healthcare and prescription drugs. prgtoken It includes cleaning up our American democracy and rooting out corruption in our electoral process. prgtoken We achieved the third one this month with H.R. 1, the For the People Act, but the other two took a serious blow this week when we saw the President's budget, which cuts Medicare to the tune of $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years, breaking a core promise of the President's campaign, and also cuts infrastructure spending. prgtoken , I urge my colleagues to reject that shortsightedness in the President's budget, and let's go ahead and achieve the For the People agenda.
GENERAL LEAVE
Sheila Jackson Lee (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2019-3-14

I thank the chairman very much for yielding. prgtoken I, too, add my appreciation to Mr. Collins' eagerness to adhere to what I think is an appropriate policy that reasserts the article I authority, if you will, of the Congress. And I think it is important for my colleagues to recognize that Americans are wondering. They are wondering. They have heard over and over again of Russian collusion. They have heard the factual affirmation that the Russians did interfere with the 2016 election and tried to interfere with the 2018 election. Therefore, it is important for them, in their concern, to be informed. They are taxpayers. We say this all the time. prgtoken And it is important to note that, through this investigation, the National Security Advisor and former foreign policy advisor and many others have gone to court because of Mr. Mueller. prgtoken It is indeed important to know that we have learned much because of his report, but we have not learned all. And we must overcome Attorney General Barr's hesitation, because the American people have made the point. The point is that 68 percent of them say that they would like to see this report. prgtoken Now, we know that it has been bandied around that we cannot indict a President. This is not about indicting a President. But assuming, arguendo, that this regulation is correct, that someone thinks that that is constant law and the President cannot be subjected to criminal process and, therefore, cannot and should not be indicted, it is a logical fallacy to say that because he cannot be indicted by virtue of his office and because it is the Justice Department's regulation not to reveal information about unindicted parties and individuals. prgtoken The Justice Department cannot reveal any information or potential wrongdoing by the President and not reveal any information to the body that possesses the constitutional responsibility for holding this President accountable. prgtoken So let us follow good policy. Even the words of Attorney General Barr that recognizes that the DOJ's purpose is to release investigations in the public interest. This is in the public interest. prgtoken , I would suggest to all that we do this in a bipartisan way to give to the American people what they deserve and what they want. prgtoken , as a senior member of the Committee on Judiciary, which has oversight of the Department of Justice, and as a Senior Member of the Committee on Homeland Security, which has oversight over our election security infrastructure, I rise in strong support of H. Con. Res. 24. prgtoken , I rise because I believe our nation will soon be at an inflection point. prgtoken For many years now, Americans have wondered about the role of Russia's interference in the 2016 election and whether that crime was aided and abetted by Associates of the Campaign. prgtoken Americans have been concerned as we have watched a parade of colleagues and contemporaries of the Preside
EQUALITY FOR THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY
Chris Pappas (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2019-3-14

there are times in Washington that go beyond the mundane, times when you can feel the pull of public sentiment and the weight of history, times that aren't political but become personal. For some of us who serve here and for millions more around the country, this is one of those times. prgtoken Yesterday, I was proud to join so many Members of this House to introduce the Equality Act. This bill will ensure full equality under the law for the LGBTQ community, an essential step, given that Americans can still be prgtoken fired or discriminated against in nearly 30 States. prgtoken We have made marked progress over recent decades, no doubt, but full equality for LGBTQ Americans still lies somewhere over the horizon. prgtoken We are not asking for anything more or anything less than any other American enjoys. We are asking to be treated equally, and we are asking for it right now. prgtoken I grew up afraid about whether I would be accepted by the world around me and convinced I wouldn't be able to live a full life. This is, unfortunately, a reality today for too many LGBTQ Americans. Too many still live in fear of sharing their truth or telling their stories. Too many contend with injustice because of who they are or whom they love. prgtoken There is injustice when more than 4 million workers could face the risk of employment discrimination in this country. prgtoken There is injustice when more than 2 million students are left without protections against bullying, harassment, and roadblocks on their path to an education. prgtoken There is injustice when nearly 7 million Americans could be subject to discrimination in public accommodations. prgtoken There is injustice when 5\1/2\ million Americans could be denied equal opportunities to secure housing or credit. prgtoken This is heartbreaking. This is not what America stands for, and we can do something about it. prgtoken We can take action to support the values and the Constitution of this Nation. prgtoken We can take action that will protect the safety and well-being of millions and tell everyone, particularly the LGBTQ youth, that they can reach their full potential. prgtoken We can take action and pass the Equality Act. prgtoken The Equality Act will end these injustices and establish equality under the law by enshrining sexual orientation and gender identity language into the Civil Rights Act, the Fair Housing Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and the Jury Selection and Services Act. prgtoken We must address this at the Federal level. Equality and human dignity are not concepts that can be left up to the States. Americans who live in Nebraska deserve the same civil rights protections as those living in my home State of New Hampshire. The same goes for those living in Mississippi and in Massachusetts. prgtoken The end of discrimination can only begin when we protect our fellow citizens in each and every community across this Nation. prgtoken Since Stonewall, millions of
GENERAL LEAVE
Maxine Waters (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2019-3-14

I thank Chairman Nadler for yielding. prgtoken , I strongly support H. Con. Res. 24, which expresses the sense of Congress that the report of Special Counsel Robert Mueller should be available to the public and to Congress. prgtoken Special Counsel Mueller has been appointed to ensure a full and thorough investigation of the Russian Government's efforts to interfere in the 2016 Presidential election and to examine any links and/or coordination between the Russian Government and individuals associated with the campaign of President . prgtoken He has also been appointed with the authority to investigate and prosecute Federal crimes committed in the course of and with the intent to interfere with the investigation, including perjury, obstruction of justice, destruction of evidence, and intimidation of witnesses. prgtoken The gravity and magnitude of this investigation, given that it goes straight to the heart of our democracy and involves the President of the United States, requires the public release of the special counsel's findings. prgtoken This is an investigation that affects each and every American, whether it implicates or exonerates the President. Therefore, it must be brought to light so that the American people can see for themselves the findings and determinations made by an objective, impartial investigator who has a reputation for integrity. prgtoken In addition, the report will provide valuable insight and information for the important investigations being undertaken in the House, including the prgtoken investigation being conducted by the Committee on Financial Services on money laundering and the President's finances. prgtoken Special Counsel Mueller has been appropriately deliberate and discreet in conducting this investigation. It is clear from the manner in which the special counsel has approached this investigation that he has taken it seriously and has not conducted what President refers to as a ``witch hunt.'' prgtoken So far, the special counsel's investigation has resulted in 199 criminal charges, 37 indictments or guilty pleas, and five prison sentences. prgtoken Whatever his prosecutorial decisions may be going forward, it is in the public's interest to be given full transparency into those decisions and the explanations behind them.
SUPPORTING THE DREAM AND PROMISE ACT
Sylvia R. Garcia (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2019-3-14

I rise today to express my strong and unwavering support for H.R. 5, the Dream and Promise Act. prgtoken I am proud to represent the 29th Congressional District of Texas. One of the things I am most proud of is the strong and vibrant immigration communities that reside in our district, where thousands of DACA, TPS, and DED recipients live, work, and play beside us as neighbors and colleagues. If Dreamers were forced to leave our district tomorrow, we would lose over $400 million of GDP. prgtoken Our immigration policies put politics over people, which often hurt our children who are in constant fear of being separated and uprooted from the country they call their own. This is wrong for our economy. This is wrong for our communities. This is wrong for our country. prgtoken It is time that we pass a permanent solution for these vital members of our society, which is why I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 5.