mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Accomplishments of the Republican-Led Congress (Executive Session)
John Cornyn (Republican, TX) \u2014 2018-5-22

I am sure I am not unique in the fact that when I go home, my constituents ask: What in the heck is going on up there? prgtoken The truth is, amid the polarization, the misinformation, the arguments, the disagreements we naturally will have--because we represent different parties, different regions, and different points of view--it is really important to occasionally reflect on what it is we have actually done because, as I learned a long time ago as a journalism student, good news is not news. prgtoken What makes news is when there is conflict and disagreement. That is what people pay attention to. That is what reporters write about, that is what the cable TV channels run because they know people will watch it. They can sell advertising. That is sort of the way the system works. prgtoken Good news needs to be told and needs to be spread. So what I would like to do is just reflect for a few minutes on the last 17 months and what has been accomplished during that year and a half by a - led Congress and by the administration working together. prgtoken I think, perhaps, the single biggest accomplishment that has benefited the most people broadly across this great land of ours is the new energized state of our economy. During the last administration, following the great recession of 2008, we had this ahistorical idea that slow economic growth was the new norm; that sub-2 percent economic growth each year--which isn't fast enough to create enough jobs to keep people employed--was something we were just going to have to live with. The fact is, since World War II, the economy has not grown at 2 percent or less; it has grown at about 3.2 percent. prgtoken What we are beginning to see is the slumbering giant of the American economy wake up and grow. People have confidence again and optimism in the future, which is a good thing. Unemployment fell to 3.9 percent recently, which is the lowest in 17 years, and 14 States hit record-low unemployment as well. prgtoken As I said, consumer confidence is high. As a matter of fact, it is at an 18-year high, and the tax reform package we passed last December has been the biggest, single game-changer. Although, I want to talk about regulations in a minute, the tax reform package got America back in the game. It made us more competitive globally as a place where people who want to invest money and create a business or grow their business--it is attractive, finally. We aren't chasing people off, having to move offshore in order to compete globally. They now see America as a favorable place to invest, and that benefits all of us. prgtoken Nearly 800,000 jobs have been created, 164,000 in April alone. To me, one of the most encouraging statistics is, in February, we saw more than 800,000 people rejoin the workforce. Unemployment statistics, as the Presiding Officer knows, can be a little bit misleading because sometimes when people quit looking for work, th
TRIBUTE TO UTAH'S SERVICE ACADEMY NOMINEES
Mike Lee (Republican, UT) \u2014 2018-5-22

I come before you today to recognize seven exemplary young men and women from the great State of Utah who have answered the call of service to our country. It is a great privilege to represent these exceptional Utahns in the U.S. Senate, who will attend the U.S. Air Force Academy, the U.S. Military Academy, and the U.S. Naval Academy. prgtoken Each year Members of Congress, under title 10 of the U.S. Code, are authorized to nominate a number of young men and women from their district or State to attend the country's service academies. I am proud to honor these Utahns as they undertake this calling. prgtoken Each of these students is of sound mind and body, which will serve them well in Colorado Springs, West Point, and Annapolis, but to succeed, they will need more than this. prgtoken In addition to mental and physical aptitude, the journey upon which these young men and women will soon embark demands strong moral character: leadership, courage, honesty, prudence, and self-discipline. It calls for a commitment to service and love of country. prgtoken These students have already displayed these qualities of character and standards of excellence upon which America's service academies are built. Today, I would like to recognize and congratulate these dedicated and generous young men and women. prgtoken Delia Margene will be attending the Air Force Academy after graduating from the Utah Military Academy, where she served as commander of the largest Air Force JROTC program in the western United States. She was captain of both her school's academic team and volleyball team and served as a member of their State champion drill team. Delia was also a delegate to Girls State and served as an intern for two sessions of the Utah State Senate. She stayed active in her community through service with the National Honor Society, as well as her choir and church youth group. prgtoken Daniel Scott Dwyer, from Bingham High School, accepted an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy. Daniel serves in the Boy Scouts as a senior patrol leader and earned the rank of Eagle Scout with a project that entailed sending care packages to marines serving in the Middle East. He ran with both the Bingham Miners' track and cross-country teams and was a member of the JROTC. He also served his peers as a volunteer with special needs youth, all while taking rigorous classes and maintaining a high GPA. prgtoken Talmage Cragun Gaisford will be attending the U.S. Military Academy. As a graduate of Orem High School, Talmage was a member of the National Honor Society and received high honor roll awards. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts and served as a volunteer in Accra, Ghana, where he worked to build an orphanage. In addition to serving as a leader in his church's youth organization, he served on the Orem City Youth Council and is an avid mountain biker and hiker. prgtoken Gage Geoffrey Maki attended the New Mexic
ECONOMIC GROWTH, REGULATORY RELIEF, AND CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT
Scott R. Tipton (Republican, CO) \u2014 2018-5-22

for too long, there has been a culture of disregard for our community financial institutions out of Washington, D.C. prgtoken Regulations that were intended to bring discipline to the Nation's largest institutions have instead suffocated Main Street and prevented communities across the country from finding their footing on the path to prosperity. prgtoken The passage of this historic, bipartisan, progrowth package today will mark a change in the regulatory rhetoric out of Washington. Communities will be heard instead of ignored. Families will find open doors where previously they were shut out. And small businesses will be empowered to grow rather than languish in regulatory uncertainty. prgtoken One provision of this legislation that I authored, the MOBILE Act, embodies exactly the kind of commonsense help for families that today's vote will provide. prgtoken The MOBILE Act will allow consumers across the country to open bank accounts on their mobile devices using a driver's license or personal ID, meaning access to financial services will start in your pocket and be more convenient than ever. prgtoken Approximately three-quarters of the 20 percent of the U.S. population that prgtoken is underbanked has access to a smartphone. This provision will help these Americans get access to the critical banking services that will set them on the path to financial success. prgtoken , this historic package is about unraveling red tape that stifles the financial success of all Americans, and I urge its passage here today.
ECONOMIC GROWTH, REGULATORY RELIEF, AND CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT
Al Green (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2018-5-22

I am amazed at what I am hearing today, because I was there, and I understand that at the time we entered the financial crisis, the banks were not lending to each other. prgtoken There are many aspects of this to focus on, but today I will simply focus on the $163 billion that the banks made last year. A better name for this bill would be ``Too Much Is Not Enough.'' $163 billion, but that is not enough. prgtoken The banks would have us now eliminate the Volcker rule, which prevents the banks from using the money on the consumer side, taking that money and moving it over to the investment side, and go to Wall Street and gamble. If they win, they keep the profits; if they lose, they can socialize the losses. prgtoken This bill is not a bill that benefits consumers. It is a Big Bank bonanza. Too much is not enough, and too much is too much for me. I will vote against it.
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Joe Donnelly (Democrat, IN) \u2014 2018-5-22

today I wish to recognize and honor the extraordinary service and sacrifice of Jeffrey Holt, a firefighter from Brownsburg who served in the Lawrence Fire Department. Selflessness, caring for others, and service to his community were defining traits of Jeff's life. prgtoken On the morning of April 30, 2018, Jeff was participating in an annual physical assessment training when he collapsed and suffered an apparent heart attack. He passed away at Indiana Heart Hospital. Jeff's death left his fellow firefighters without one of their leaders, and he will be sorely missed by his fellow firefighters and loved ones. prgtoken Jeff was a graduate of Indiana's Benton Central High School. After finishing high school, he worked at the Otterbein Fire Department in Otterbein, IN, as a firefighter and then as an EMT and subsequently joined the Purdue Fire Department in 1985. In 1994, Jeff began training to be a paramedic and, while training, met his future wife, Lindi. In 1996, he began his service in the Lawrence Fire Department as a firefighter and paramedic. Over the course of his career with the Lawrence Fire Department, Jeff served as an engineer, lieutenant, division chief of training, and deputy chief of operations. prgtoken Outside of work, Jeff pursued his passion for music and was the lead singer in several bands. He shared this love of music and rescuing special needs animals with Lindi, his wife of nearly 20 years. prgtoken He is survived and deeply missed by his wife, Dr. Lindi Holt, stepdaughters Jennifer and Rachael Kempfer, parents Dr. Donald and Marilyn Holt, brothers Dr. Steve Holt and Bill Holt, sister Kathy Stichnoth, as well as nieces, nephews, and a great-nephew. prgtoken Jeff represented the best of Hoosier values. He put his life on the line day-in, day-out, serving his community and working to keep his fellow citizens safe. Those who knew Jeff described him as well-liked and respected, compassionate, dedicated, and loyal. Jeff set a strong example for others, and let us remember and emulate the example this selfless man set for us and honor his commitment to serving his community. prgtoken On behalf of Hoosiers, we mourn with Jeff's family, the men and women he served with, and the Lawrence community. His legacy will live on and his memory will not be soon forgotten.
GUN SAFETY
Bradley Scott Schneider (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2018-5-22

I rise today, joining the families and friends in Santa Fe, Texas, grieving for another 10 lives tragically cut short by senseless gun violence. prgtoken Yesterday, this body held the now routine moment of silence in respect for the victims, just as we did after the Waffle House shooting in Nashville; Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Route 91 Harvest music festival in Las Vegas; and the list goes on and on and on. prgtoken Forty-six times this Chamber has stood to remember the victims, and every single time congressional obstructionists stood in the way of doing anything concrete to change this deadly pattern. We haven't considered background checks or bans on the sale of assault weapons or gun violence restraining orders to keep firearms out of the hands of the mentally ill or even, for goodness' sake, bump stocks. prgtoken I sit on the Judiciary Committee. We haven't held a single hearing about reducing gun violence or working to keep prgtoken our children safe. We can't prevent every tragedy, but there are actions we can take right now, today, to save lives. We have the power. prgtoken , I urge my colleagues to find the courage to act. Our kids are counting on us.
VA MISSION BILL (Executive Session)
Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2018-5-22

. I take this extraordinary step because she has failed to provide it in response to a specific question I asked in the written inquiries we submitted after her testimony. She said, in effect, she was ``duty bound to maintain the confidential nature of legal advice sought by or provided to any client.'' prgtoken This claim of attorney-client privilege is absolutely bogus and ought to insult this body because there is no reason for the name of the client to be kept confidential or that attorney-client privilege to be sustained. prgtoken I think invocation of attorney-client privilege in this way speaks volumes to the kind of member of this Commission she would be. In fact, she has refused to reveal her full list of consumer product clients, other than the ones like Mattel and Yamaha, which are available through court filings and other public records. I have entered many of those other clients into the Record, but we prgtoken have no assurance that we know that full list. prgtoken She has also refused to recuse herself from matters involving her current firm, Jones Day, or its clients for more than 1 year. The Office of Government Ethics requires 1 year of recusal from the time she last represented that client, but no more than that length of time, and she has committed no more than the bare minimum requirement by law. In addition, her husband has represented IKEA in a major product liability suit involving furniture tipovers. She has refused to recuse herself from matters involving IKEA. prgtoken We are in a perilous time, when the norms concerning conflicts of interest have been reduced, almost eviscerated. We have an obligation to protect consumer interests at the Consumer Product Safety Commission. That responsibility is to make sure serious defects, dangerous products, problems, and hazards that will face consumers as a result of deadly or defective products are prevented from reaching the market. Consumers may have no knowledge of how they are deadly or dangerous. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has the mission to protect consumers. prgtoken For someone who has the ability, skills, and expertise to represent wrongdoers which threaten consumers is the responsibility of admirable and able law firms, like Jones Day, and those skills and experience enable lawyers who work there. It is not the job of a Commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. prgtoken So it is really not about her personal ability, it is about the mission of this agency and who is qualified to serve on it and whether they have told us everything we need to know to hold them accountable if they are confirmed. prgtoken On all those scores, this nominee is lacking. Therefore, I urge my colleagues to vote no today on her nomination. prgtoken .
FORMERLY INCARCERATED REENTER SOCIETY TRANSFORMED SAFELY TRANSITIONING EVERY PERSON ACT
Diana DeGette (Democrat, CO) \u2014 2018-5-22

I rise today in opposition of H.R. 5682, the FIRST STEP Act. While I support several provisions in the legislation, including prohibiting shackling of pregnant inmates, requiring that individuals be incarcerated closer to their families, and clarifying good time calculations, I cannot support other provisions of the legislation. prgtoken I strongly believe the House should be working to ensure that once convicted individuals have paid their debt to society they have the skills and support to reintegrate into society, but this bill puts in place too many barriers to that goal. prgtoken The bill excludes undocumented individuals, including those who remained in the United States longer than authorized from the recidivism reduction programming. Worse, the bill also excludes some lawful permanent residents from the program and could trigger their prgtoken removal. The bill also excludes those who have been convicted of drug crimes, including marijuana related convictions. prgtoken Given that immigrant and minority communities make up a disproportionate share of immigration and drug related offenders in the criminal justice system, these exclusions will by their very nature exclude those who most need the benefits of the bill. prgtoken Finally, any conversation about reducing recidivism must include sentencing reform that would keep low risk nonviolent offenders out of prison in the first place and address our draconian federal mandatory minimum laws. prgtoken , we can do better, and we must do better if we are to address this issue.
David N. Cicilline (Democrat, RI) \u2014 2018-5-22

. Madam , I thank the gentleman for yielding. prgtoken We pride ourselves on being the most deliberative body on the planet, and all of us come here to contribute our best ideas to improve the lives of the American people. prgtoken You wonder why this place doesn't work? It is the whole set of exclusion of ideas from nearly half this body. prgtoken I am one of those people who has offered just about 25 amendments that were blocked by the s. What are they afraid of? Debate your ideas. Make your arguments. Vote. Be held accountable. prgtoken Some of the things they blocked, the amendments I offered: an amendment to increase student loan interest tax deductions in our tax bill; a provision to end tax breaks for companies that ship American jobs overseas; an amendment to increase funding to combat violent extremism; and an amendment to increase funding for fire departments in the SAFER grants. Those are just four examples. prgtoken Their practice, they marked an important moment in history, not a good moment: the most closed Congress in the history of the United States, excluding from consideration debate, argument, and accountability. prgtoken Vote on these things so the American people know where you stand. That is what we have here, over 1,000 ideas proffered by that our colleagues won't even bring to the floor for consideration so the American people know where they stand on a range of important issues. prgtoken This is a dark day for Congress, the most closed Congress in our history. It means the voices of the American people as reflected in nearly half of this body are not being considered, debated, and voted upon by the Congress. prgtoken It is wrong. It is negatively impacting the lives of the American people. There are real consequences. It is not just that we want our own amendments considered. It is because we understand it will benefit the American people. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to have some self-reflection on what they are doing here.
VETERANS CEMETERY BENEFIT CORRECTION ACT
Christopher Murphy (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2018-5-22

2 days before the tragic shooting in Santa Fe, which has rightly dominated the news for the last several days, Texas experienced another mass shooting when a man killed his three children, his ex-wife's boyfriend, and himself. Mass shootings are generally characterized as incidents where four or more people are shot at one time. It is a catastrophic event for a community to have four people shot in one instance. That shooting 2 days before the Santa Fe school shooting was the 100th mass shooting in the United States of America in 2018. We average about a mass shooting every single day in this country. prgtoken In the 3 days following the Santa Fe High School shooting, there were around 88 gun deaths and 222 gun injuries in this country. That is a big number. It is the most in any 72-hour span so far in 2018. prgtoken Rightly, our attention has been directed toward the community of Santa Fe as they try to recover from the unrecoverable--another targeting of children in a school in this country. It is important to remind ourselves that no prgtoken matter whether the shooting happens on a street corner, in a school, in a movie theater, or in one's home, the devastation for those who lose their brother or their sister or their husband or their wife is no less or no greater, whatever the circumstances may be. prgtoken In the 3 days after Santa Fe, as the country could have been deluded into thinking that was the only shooting of any consequence in the country, 88 people lost their lives from guns, and 222 others were shot and survived--part of the 33,000 a year, 2,800 a month, and 93 on average a day who are killed by guns in this country. It is a mix of suicides and accidental shootings, domestic violence incidents, mass shootings, and homicides, but there is no other country in the world in which the number is this big. prgtoken There have been 5,531 deaths from gun violence in 2018 alone. That is according to Gun Violence Archive. Twelve hundred kids have been killed or injured, and we are not even halfway through the year. prgtoken Our rate of gun violence in this country is 20 times higher than that of all our other competitor OECD nations. It is not because our schools are less safe. It is not because we have more instances of mental illness. It is not because we have more troubled young men. It is not because we spend less money on law enforcement. You control all of the other factors that people claim to be the reason for these crimes, and it cannot--it does not--explain why this epidemic is happening here and nowhere else. prgtoken What is different about the United States is that we have the loosest, laxest gun laws of the OECD nations. What is different about the United States is that in shooting after shooting, killing after killing, we do nothing. We do nothing of substance or significance to condemn or change this trajectory of violence. prgtoken I argue to you that would-be shooters who a
ECONOMIC GROWTH, REGULATORY RELIEF, AND CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT
Nydia M. Velázquez (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2018-5-22

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. prgtoken , I rise in strong opposition to S. 2155, which strips back and weakens many of the regulatory tools and safeguards we enacted in Dodd-Frank. prgtoken Make no mistake, : this bill will make our financial system more vulnerable to a financial crisis. prgtoken The bill undermines important safety and soundness protections like stress tests and capital requirements, key reforms that put in place following the financial crisis that prevent the risk of bank bailouts and protect our economy and taxpayers. prgtoken The bill also weakens critical consumer protections like Dodd-Frank's enhanced HMDA data monitoring and reporting requirements. Under this bill, 85 percent of depository institutions are excused from these important requirements. prgtoken While many financial institutions say that these reporting requirements are too onerous and too difficult to comply with, S. 2155 will make it harder to determine if lenders are serving the credit needs of minority borrowers and to identify harmful and discriminatory lending patterns. prgtoken Instead of eliminating important tools like HMDA, we should be finding ways to eliminate discrimination in lending.
TRIBUTE TO MaKENZIE SHEEHAN
Margaret Wood Hassan (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2018-5-22

I am proud to recognize second grader MaKenzie Sheehan of Monroe, NH, as the May Granite Stater of the Month for her bravery and quick thinking that helped save her family when their house caught on fire recently. prgtoken On the night of the fire, MaKenzie woke to a crash in her bedroom, and when she saw a wall of fire, she quickly acted to wake her sister. Remembering from her fire education at school that the door would be hot, she knew not to touch it and began screaming for help. Her cries alerted the rest of the family, and they were able to make it out just in time. prgtoken Her family is very proud and grateful for MaKenzie's grace under pressure and considers her their hero. prgtoken I am honored to recognize MaKenzie as the May Granite Stater of the Month. MaKenzie represents the strength of character that defines the Granite State, and her actions are an excellent reminder that, no matter our age, it is critical that we are equipped with the knowledge of what to do in case of an emergency.