mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
GUN VIOLENCE SURVIVORS WEEK
Joseph D. Morelle (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2020-2-5

. Madam , it pains me to stand before you today and recognize Gun Violence Survivors Week. As a Nation, we grieve for all the lives lost senselessly and all those who must live in the wake of these acts of horror. prgtoken This week alone, we have seen another school devastated by gun violence, another community uncertain how to move forward. prgtoken Our country is faced with a growing epidemic, and it is our responsibility as lawmakers to take action to protect our communities. prgtoken That is why I am proud to have joined Senator Elizabeth Warren, Congressman Hank Johnson, and a group of colleagues to introduce the Gun Violence Prevention and Community Safety Act. prgtoken This bold reform includes my bill to strengthen gun shop regulations and prevent the theft of legal firearms. Over 30 percent of guns used in a crime are identified as stolen, and every one we keep out of the hands of the wrong people is a step closer to a safer reality for our Nation. The time to act is now.
IMPEACHMENT
Michael F. Bennet (Democrat, CO) \u2014 2020-2-5

when I was in the second grade--which I did twice because I was dyslexic, so I don't know which year of the second grade it was, but one of those 2 years--we were asked to line up in order of whose family had been here the longest period of time and whose family had been here the shortest period of time. prgtoken I turned out to be the answer to both of those questions. My father's family went all the way back to the Mayflower, and my mom's family were Polish Jews who survived the Holocaust. They didn't leave Warsaw because my grandfather had a large family he didn't want to leave behind. And in the event--everybody was killed in the war, except my mom, her parents, and an aunt. They lived in Warsaw for 2 years after the war. Then they went to Stockholm for a year. They went to prgtoken Mexico City for a year, of all places. And then they came to the United States--the one place in the world they could rebuild their shattered lives, and they did rebuild their shattered lives. My mom was the only person in the family who could speak any English. She registered herself in the New York City public schools. She graduated from Hunter College High School. She went on to graduate from Wellesley College in Massachusetts in one generation. My grandparents rebuilt the business they had lost during the war. prgtoken I knew from them how important this symbol of America was to people struggling all over the world. They had been through some of the worst events in human history, and their joy of being Americans was completely unadulterated. I have met many immigrants across this country, and I still haven't met anybody with a stronger accent than my grandparents had, and I have never met anybody who were greater patriots than they were. They understood how important the idea of America was, not because we were perfect--exactly the opposite of that--because we were imperfect. But we lived in a free society that was able to cure its imperfections with the hard work of our citizens to make this country more democratic, more free, and more fair--a country committed to the rule of law. Nobody was above the rule of law, and nobody was treated unfairly by the law, even if you were an immigrant to this country. prgtoken From my dad's example, I learned something really different. It might interest some people around here to know he was a staffer in the Senate for many years. I actually grew up coming here on Saturday mornings, throwing paper airplanes around the hallways of the Dirksen Building and Russell Building. prgtoken He worked here at a very different time in the Senate. He worked here at a time when s and worked together to uphold the rule of law, to pass important legislation that was needed by the American people to move our country forward, a time when and s went back home and said: I didn't get everything I wanted, to be sure, but the 65 percent I did get is w
FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
Sheila Jackson Lee (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2020-2-5

. Madam , our emerging Nation sought to be a bright light for democracy and the rule of law. This afternoon, I sat in the Senate Chamber and watched the Senate one by one announce the words guilty or not guilty: Article I, guilty 48, not guilty 52; Article II, guilty 47, not guilty 53. prgtoken I believe the presentation of the Judiciary, Oversight, Intelligence, and Foreign Affairs Committees was brilliantly presented. prgtoken I wondered whether there would be one moment for a profile in courage, one understanding that the norm of this Nation cannot tolerate what the Framers were most frightened about, which was the constitutional crime of abuse of power or having a sovereign nation interfere with our elections. Yet, there was one in Article I that made it bipartisan in the guilt, but no one in Article II. prgtoken Simply stated, now what is the answer? That this Nation no longer loves its democracy; does not stand by the rule of law; and, therefore, the person who remains in office is a king? prgtoken I believe, Madam , that we must raise the Constitution and fight for justice.
USPS FAIRNESS ACT
Peter A. DeFazio (Democrat, OR) \u2014 2020-2-5

I thank the gentlewoman. prgtoken , in a Christmas Eve bill with no legislative consideration, an otherwise noncontroversial bill, a provision was stuck in to say that the Postal Service should prefund 75 years of health benefits for retirees. prgtoken Now, think about that. That means people who have not yet been born, who have not yet gone to work for the Postal Service for a career and then might retire, we are paying for their healthcare now. Name one other entity in the United States of America, corporate or government, that does anything like this. It is nuts. And it is a piggybank. prgtoken The money isn't being put into a trust fund to pay for their health insurance. It is going into the maw of the Treasury. Who knows where it goes. It maybe makes the debt look a little smaller. That was why President pushed for it. But it is accounting for the majority of the losses at the Postal Service. prgtoken So, yes, this will help relieve pressure on the Postal Service and on rates. And I think there are a lot of Americans who would like not to see the postal rates keep going up. prgtoken Now, there are 300 bipartisan cosponsors. There aren't too many things around here these days like that because I think many people realize this doesn't make much sense. prgtoken And the Postal Service is a critical service. It is not a government- run business to make a profit. It is the U.S. Postal Service. prgtoken Star routes don't make money. If you represent a rural area, you can't make money out there. FedEx and UPS won't go out there. They get the Postal Service to take the stuff out there. If we dismantle the Postal Service, then everybody in rural America is out of luck. prgtoken And there are a whole heck of a lot of other people who are dependent upon this: newspapers, rural newspapers, small businesses. prgtoken Many years ago, when I first started working on this, I posted something on the website: Tell me if you need the Postal Service. prgtoken People from all the small towns all around my very large district said: I sell on eBay. That is how I make a living out here in Powers, Oregon, or in prgtoken other little places around my district. I couldn't afford UPS or FedEx. I get the one package price. prgtoken So this is critical. prgtoken And, every day, hundreds of thousands of our veterans get their drugs delivered by the United States Postal Service, many of them in rural areas, hard to serve, and, sure as heck, hard for them to get to the VA hospital or get into town. prgtoken So we need to stop burdening the Postal Service with something that makes no sense. Are there other things that need to be reformed? Yes. prgtoken But once we take this $5 billion a year burden off them--they have already put $50 billion into a theoretical account to pay for healthcare for future postal employees who haven't been born yet, who might work there, might retire some day, and might get health benefits. That is more than enough.
USPS FAIRNESS ACT
Brenda L. Lawrence (Democrat, MI) \u2014 2020-2-5

I rise today in support of H.R. 2382. This legislation is a positive first step--and I emphasize first step-- to address a significantly more complex issue at hand: the financial solvency crisis plaguing the United States Postal Service. prgtoken After a 30-year career in the Postal Service--and I think I am the only member of Congress who is actually a letter carrier--I come to Congress with the intention of helping USPS return to a strong financial standing through legislative reform. prgtoken While decreased mail volume plays a role, there are other actions Congress must take to provide the Postal Service with the flexibility needed to reverse and mend the downward financial trend. prgtoken For the last few years, I have worked with several colleagues on the Oversight Committee, including Representatives Connolly, Lynch, Meadows, and the late, amazing Chairman Elijah Cummings, to introduce comprehensive postal reform. prgtoken As the House stands poised to pass H.R. 2382, I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues on the committee to introduce a comprehensive postal reform package that will provide the Postal Service with the reform needed to help lessen the financial battle. prgtoken I want to thank Chairwoman Maloney for her leadership on this issue, and I look forward to the continued work to build the Postal Service Fairness Act. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
GREAT LAKES RESTORATION INITIATIVE ACT OF 2019
Gwen Moore (Democrat, WI) \u2014 2020-2-5

cleaning up the river changed the river from a place that people didn't want to go, and now it is where families go to paddle board, swim, and explore the river and our city. Of course, Milwaukee is A Great Place on a Great Lake. prgtoken The Milwaukee Water Commons, while not directly funded by the GLRI, has been working with grantees and others to make sure that communities that have been historically disengaged are in those conversations. prgtoken Our Metropolitan Sewerage District is using it to clean up the Milwaukee Estuary, where there is a gathering of three rivers: the Kinnickinnic, the Milwaukee, and the Menomonee Rivers. This estuary is one of 30 areas of pollution concerns in the Great Lakes. The GLRI would fund 65 percent of these projects. prgtoken , I urge passage of this bill, and I am so delighted that we are debating it here on the floor in this bipartisan manner. prgtoken , I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
GUN VIOLENCE IS AN EPIDEMIC
Salud O. Carbajal (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2020-2-5

. Madam , today, I rise because there is an epidemic in our country. One hundred Americans die every day from gun violence. We are 25 times more likely to die from guns than people who live in comparable nations. prgtoken Gun violence is personal to me. When I was a young boy, my sister took her life with my father's revolver. In 2014, my community was devastated by the Isla Vista shooting that killed six people and left 14 injured. prgtoken I rise because there are commonsense solutions to curb this violent trend. One of those is my bipartisan Extreme Risk Protection Order Act of 2019, which will help ensure people who have demonstrated that they are at risk of hurting themselves or others temporarily don't have access to guns. The bill passed out of the committee. I now ask the House to bring this legislation to the floor. prgtoken The House has already sent two bipartisan background check bills to the Senate; yet, Senate Majority Leader McConnell has not acted. There is no excuse. prgtoken I will continue to rise until we end this epidemic.
IMPEACHMENT
Elizabeth Warren (Democrat, MA) \u2014 2020-2-5

when I was elected to serve in the U.S. Senate, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. Every U.S. Senator takes the same oath. The Constitution makes clear that no one is above the law, not even the President of the United States. prgtoken Over the past 2 weeks, the Senate has heard overwhelming evidence showing that the President of the United States, Donald J abused the power of his office to pressure the President of Ukraine to dig up dirt on a political rival to help President in the next election. The President then executed an unprecedented campaign to cover up his actions, including a wholesale obstruction of Congress's effort to investigate his abuse of power. prgtoken The Constitution gives the Senate the sole power to conduct impeachment trials. A fair trial is one in which Senators are allowed to see and hear all of the relevant information needed to evaluate the Articles of Impeachment, including relevant witnesses and documents. The American people expected and deserved a fair trial, but that is not what they got. Instead of engaging in a pursuit for the truth, Senate s locked arms with the President and refused to subpoena a single witness or document. They even refused to allow the testimony of the President's former National Security Advisor, John Bolton, who possesses direct evidence related to the issues at the heart of the trial, even as more evidence continued to come to light and as Bolton repeatedly volunteered to share what he knows. prgtoken This trial boils down to one word: corruption--the corruption of a President who has repeatedly put his interests ahead of the interests of the American people and violated the Constitution in the process; the corruption of this President's political appointees, including individuals like U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland, who paid $1 million for an ambassadorship; the corruption running throughout our government that protects and defends the interests of the wealthy and powerful to the detriment of everyone else. prgtoken Americans have a right to hear and see information that further exposes the gravity of the President's actions and the unprecedented steps he and his agents took to hide it from the American people. But more importantly, Americans deserve to know that the President of the United States is using the power of his office to work in the Nation's interest, not his own personal interest. prgtoken I voted to convict and to remove the President from office in order to stand up to the corruption that has permeated this administration and that was on full display with President 's abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. I will continue to call out this corruption and fight to make this government work not just for the wealthy and well-connected but to make it work for everyone.
HONORING MARY BUTLER
Mike Thompson (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2020-2-5

. Madam , I rise today to honor Mary Butler and to celebrate her retirement after 27 years of public service to Napa County. prgtoken Ms. Butler began her career when she graduated from Sonoma State University with a Bachelor's in Psychology and a Master's in Counseling. Since then, her tenure has been marked by both practicality and purpose. As a crisis worker, she began her career managing children's mental health at the Child Welfare Services Court Unit and supervised behavioral health for their Mental Health Divisions. prgtoken In 2002, Ms. Butler led the Napa County Probation Department where she championed important issues like implementing Evidence Based Practice (EBP), a practice designed to identify and treat the reasons people commit crime, and was instrumental in the passing of AB 109, legislation that transferred jurisdiction of juvenile offenders from the state government to the county government. Her passion for restorative justice is a mark of compassion that has set the tone for the future of juvenile justice in Napa County and across the State of California. prgtoken As the President of the Chief Probation Officers of California, she was responsible for opening the Napa County Juvenile Justice Center. Through Ms. Butler's efforts and leadership, Napa County has effectively diverted youth offenders from juvenile hall and left significantly more juvenile hall beds empty. And now, after 17 years of service as the Chief Probation Officer, Ms. Butler is the current, longest-tenured Chief in the State of California. prgtoken Madam , thanks to Mary Butler's work, many children have been taught how to succeed regardless of their circumstances. She is a community hero, visionary and an example of public service for us all. It is therefore fitting and proper that we honor Mary Butler here today.
IMPEACHMENT
Tammy Duckworth (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2020-2-5

from the first words in the Constitution, the weight that lies on every American's shoulders has been clear: We the people are the ones who dreamed up this wild experiment that we call America, and we the people are the ones charged with ensuring its survival. prgtoken That is the tension--the push and the pull--behind our democracy because, while there is no greater privilege than living in a country whose Constitution guarantees our rights, there is no greater burden than knowing that our actions could sap that very same Constitution of its power; that our inaction risks allowing it to wither like any other piece of parchment from some bygone era. prgtoken For the past few weeks, it has been my sworn duty as a U.S. Senator to sit as an impartial juror in the impeachment trial of Donald J. . While I wish the President had not put our Nation in this position, after having listened closely with an open mind to both sides, it is now my duty as an American to vote on whether to remove him from office. Other than sending our troops into harm's way, I cannot think of a more serious, more somber vote to take in this Chamber, but as sobering as it is, the right path forward is clear. prgtoken Throughout this trial, we have seen unprecedented obstruction from the administration--obstruction so flagrant that it makes Nixon, when in the thick of Watergate, look like the model of transparency. Yet the facts uncovered still prove the truth of the matter: abused his power when he secretly withheld security aid and a White House meeting to try to force Ukraine to announce investigations into a political rival in order to help him swing November's election. He put his political self-interest ahead of our national security. He smeared the name of an American Ambassador, even seemingly risking her safety because she was simply too principled to further his corruption, because she was too clean to help him strong-arm Ukraine into that favor he demanded. prgtoken When the reports first emerged about what he had done, he denied it. Then his explanation changed to: Well, maybe I did do it, but it was only because I was trying to root out corruption. prgtoken If that were true, there would be some documentary record to prove that, and we have seen absolutely none, even after I asked for it during the questioning period. prgtoken Now his defense team has gone so far as to claim that, well, it doesn't matter if he did it because he is the President, and the President can do anything he wants if it will help him get reelected. Breathtaking. To put it another way, when he got caught, he lied. Then, when that lie was found out, he lied again, then again, then again. prgtoken Along the way, his own defense counsel could not papier-mache together even the most basic argument to actually exonerate him. The best case they could muster boiled down to: When the President does it, it is not illegal. Nixon already
MOTHER FRANCES XAVIER CABRINI POST OFFICE BUILDING
Max Rose (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2020-2-5

I thank Congresswoman Lawrence for that kind introduction, and the gentlewoman is an honorary fellow New Yorker. prgtoken , I rise to support my bill, H.R. 4794, to rename the post office in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn as the Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini Post Office. Mother Cabrini was a great New Yorker and a great American who devoted her life to helping the poor and underserved to include immigrants throughout New York City. prgtoken Mother Cabrini is famous across the United States for her work providing education in underserved communities. She began her work organizing classes for Italian immigrants and orphans through the city. She helped found Columbus Hospital in New York City's Lower East Side, which is now a part of the world-renowned Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. prgtoken After her success in New York, she was called upon to open up schools all around the world; not only across the United States, but also in Europe, and Central and South America. prgtoken Mother Cabrini is not just a New York icon, although she is that. Her name is affixed to buildings in Chicago, Seattle, New Orleans, Denver, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. prgtoken Cabrini was naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1909 and canonized as Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini on July 7, 1946 by Pope Pius XII as the patron saint of immigrants. prgtoken I am proud to have the support of my colleagues from the New York delegation, both and s, who have come together in recognition that the time has come to give Mother Cabrini her due recognition. prgtoken Mother Cabrini will always be a shining example of our country's commitment to the less fortunate, particularly immigrants in our country. She also serves as a testament for the power of education, the power of education to relieve poverty and empower communities, regardless of their background. prgtoken , I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this bill.