mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 6237, MATTHEW YOUNG POLLARD INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEARS 2018 AND 2019
Alcee L. Hastings (Democrat, FL) \u2014 2018-7-12

I have no further speakers, and the balance of my time to close. prgtoken , we consider today's important bill as we approach the hour of our President, 's, private sit down with President Vladimir Putin in Russia. We don't know what will come of this meeting, but if past is indeed prologue and we look to the President's handling of his negotiations with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, or his steadfast denial of the obvious, namely Russia's meddling in our elections, or his policy of tearing toddlers away from their mothers and fathers, then we can assume that nothing good will come from this upcoming get together. prgtoken And I would urge those traveling with him to sweep the room with Vladimir Putin because he will certainly be being listened to. prgtoken We can assume that there will be further concessions that benefit Russian interests. We can assume that the President will further insult our friends and allies, as he did yesterday morning in Brussels. We can assume that he will further erode the institutions created by the greatest generation, institutions that have made and kept the United States the dominant power in an uncertain world, institutions that have kept war off of western European soil for more than a generation, institutions that have kept at bay those nation-states that champion oppression and fear rather than freedom and the rule of law. prgtoken Finally, I will say this. In the current environment, it is more important than ever to stand united against those forces that wish to see us divided. It is more important than ever that we support the difficult and brave work of those individuals who make up our intelligence community. And the latter can be achieved, quite simply, by s in this Chamber taking a note from our friends on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and learn how to call a spade a spade. prgtoken The assessment that the Russians meddled in our election; that the Russians concertedly attempted to undermine Secretary Clinton's chances to be elected the first female President of the United States; that the Russians did this work to favor the election of the current President are all trustworthy and well-founded assessments. prgtoken And remember, that it is not Alcee Lamar Hastings saying that, though I do. That is the assessment of the entire -led Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. That is the assessment of the intelligence agencies of this community. prgtoken , I urge a ``no'' vote on the rule, and .
TRIBUTE TO COLONEL EDWARD CHAMBERLAYNE
Benjamin L. Cardin (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2018-7-12

today I wish to recognize the service and achievements of COL Edward P. Chamberlayne upon his retirement from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. prgtoken Colonel Chamberlayne has been a valued member of the Army Corps for the past 25 years. He has served with distinction from Germany to Afghanistan to Iraq, where he participated in crucial route clearance operations during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Colonel Chamberlayne's accomplishments have earned him the Bronze Star Medal among numerous other decorations, but his most crucial mission, from my perspective, has been his service as the 67th commander of the Baltimore District. prgtoken The commander of the Baltimore District leads more than 1,200 employees in the protection and restoration of Maryland's military installations, waterways, infrastructure, and environment. Under Colonel Chamberlayne's leadership, the Baltimore District has maintained 290 miles of Federal channels and 148 miles of Federal flood protection levees; managed 15 reservoirs and the Washington Aqueduct, which supplies an average of 150 million gallons of drinking water daily; constructed 500 acres of oyster reefs in Maryland; restored 1,140 acres of environmentally fragile remote island habitat; completed aerostat pads for a missile defense system; coordinated tens of millions of dollars in dredging and restoration projects throughout the State of Maryland and streamlined the aquaculture permitting process. prgtoken Colonel Chamberlayne's vision and skills in navigating the budget forces within his own agency have brought many local projects to fruition. From dredging, construction, beach replenishment, habitat restoration, and permitting, Colonel Chamberlayne and his team have significantly improved the infrastructure, environment, business climate, regional partnerships, and economic development opportunities throughout the State of Maryland. prgtoken The State of Maryland has benefitted tremendously from Colonel Chamberlayne's service. Therefore, it is my honor to recognize the contributions of COL Edward P. Chamberlayne in his role as commander of the Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, and to thank him for his years of dedicated service to our country and his tremendously positive impact on the State of Maryland.
HONORING AL GERHARDT
Mike Thompson (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-7-12

I rise today with the Honorable Jared Huffman to honor Al Gerhardt for his lifetime commitment to Sonoma County agriculture and to recognize his unparalleled contributions to our farming community. prgtoken Mr. Gerhardt was born in 1938 and grew up in Sebastopol, California and attended Green Valley School. He graduated from Analy High School and was a member of the school's chapter of Future Farmers of America (FFA). Mr. Gerhardt was married to Pat Jesse from 1963 until she passed away. They had four children, Kathe, Gerry, Diana and the late Anna Marie. In 2000, he married Jan Smith and they moved to the family ranch near Occidental, California. prgtoken Mr. Gerhardt served on the Sonoma County Farm Bureau Board of Directors for sixteen years. While on the Board, he was on many committees, including agriculture education, membership and water. Mr. Gerhardt was known for his attention to detail and dedication to the Farm Bureau. He read the monthly Board packets cover to cover to ensure he was ready to discuss the issues facing Sonoma County farmers and ranchers and rarely missed a meeting. prgtoken Agriculture was a passion and community involvement was a lifestyle for Mr. Gerhardt. His dedication to our farming community is a main reason agriculture is still vital to Sonoma County's identity. Mr. Gerhardt was a supporter of FFA and 4-H and loved to support and encourage young farmers. He was a founder and director of the North Coast Livestock Protective Association and was a Commissioner on the County of Sonoma's Fish and Wildlife Commission. He was also a member of the Sonoma County Taxpayers Association and the Sonoma County Trailblazers. Mr. Gerhardt was an active member of St. Philip's Catholic Church in Occidental, California and was a committed volunteer for the Rural Food Program of St. Philip and St. Teresa Parish. prgtoken , Al Gerhardt was always willing to lend a hand and help our community flourish. He was a devoted steward of the land and was dedicated to preserving Sonoma County's agricultural integrity and history. It is therefore fitting and proper that we honor him here today.
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 6237, MATTHEW YOUNG POLLARD INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEARS 2018 AND 2019
Norma J. Torres (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-7-12

although I may be the newest member of the Rules Committee, I know that it is our job to discuss how our committees come up with their legislation and, by extension, how the House should consider these bills in a manner that is orderly and respectful. Unfortunately, we were not given that opportunity yesterday. prgtoken I had questions for the Intelligence Committee chairman--tough questions, maybe, but fair questions. Questions like: How do we prevent witnesses from lying in our committees? Questions like: How did the committee come up with their findings on the Russian meddling that differ so much from every other intelligence agency? prgtoken I had offered an amendment to this bill to give the House the opportunity to vote on the Senate Intelligence Committee's Russia findings, and I wanted to ask the chairman if he felt prgtoken that the House was prepared to vote on such an amendment; and, if not, why not. A tough question, maybe, but a fair question. prgtoken However, I never got the opportunity to ask that--any of that. Instead, I was shouted down by a male colleague from across the dais and cut off abruptly before I could even finish the first question. It was incredibly disrespectful and a far cry from the decorum that we should uphold as members of the powerful Rules Committee and Congress. prgtoken Never before had a member of the committee majority or minority been cut off from active questioning. That is unprecedented. As a fact, I have observed male colleagues talk to each other and ask each other to yield time to each other; but you see, as the only female Latina in that committee, that respect was not extended to me. prgtoken I am concerned, , what this means for our committee and this Congress. What is more troubling to me is that this is the second time a male colleague has yelled at me from the other side of the dais. This is not to be tolerated--not by me, and not by any Member of Congress.
CONGRATULATIONS TO JUDY SCHNEIDER
Janice D. Schakowsky (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2018-7-12

like so many of my colleagues, I rely on Judy Schneider of the Congressional Research Service. A long-time Hill staffer with 42 years of Congressional experience, she is a valued source of guidance and trusted source of information. Tomorrow, Judy will receive the Congressional Management Foundation's first Staff Lifetime Achievement Democracy Award, and I can think of no one more deserving of that honor. prgtoken Judy literally wrote the book on Congressional procedures--The Congressional Deskbook--which she co-authored with Michael Koempel. In addition to giving us this written reference guide, Judy is always available to give personal guidance. Her knowledge and her creativity are both invaluable and legendary. prgtoken When I got to Congress, one of the first things I did was reach out to Judy to train my staff and me. She taught us how to use sometimes arcane rules and procedures to get things done. Whenever we had a question about committee or floor procedures or wanted to know about Congressional precedent, we called Judy Schneider. We still do today. Judy is always available to answer our questions--and to let us know the questions we should have been asking, then answer those as well. prgtoken Throughout her career, Judy has served to help all of us on the Hill and many off the Hill understand how Congress was designed to work, how it actually works and how we could make it work better. Her commitment to public service, her love of the institution and its people, and her willingness to share her gifts are evident. Judy is valued and a valuable resource, and she is also my friend. prgtoken I congratulate Judy on winning the Democracy Award, and thank her for all the help she's given me and so many others. I look forward to benefitting from her wisdom for years to come.
MATTHEW YOUNG POLLARD INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEARS 2018 AND 2019
Adam B. Schiff (Democrat, CA) \u2014 2018-7-12

such time as I may consume. prgtoken , I join the chairman in urging support for the combined 2018 and 2019 Intelligence Authorization Act, which has been named in honor of Matthew Young Pollard, a Senate Intelligence Committee staffer who recently passed away, leaving behind a young son and bereaved colleagues both in the Senate and here in the House. prgtoken For well over a year now, considerable attention has been focused on the House Intelligence Committee and the profound disagreements that we have had about the Russia investigation. Those differences remain, and the American people should know that my ic colleagues on the Intelligence Committee and I continue the important work of investigating Russia's interference in the 2016 Presidential election. prgtoken Despite our disagreements over Russia with the majority, however, I have consistently and publicly maintained that the committee must seek to cordon off our disagreements over the Russia investigation and continue with our other work on as bipartisan a basis as possible. We owe the tens of thousands of men and women in the intelligence community nothing less, not only because they put themselves at personal risk every day, but also because their work is so important to the country that it demands the shared responsibility and oversight of the Congress. prgtoken The Intelligence Committee has a history of producing bipartisan bills even under the most difficult political circumstances. prgtoken I am pleased that our staffs have worked to reach a mutually acceptable final text, and have been able to weed out provisions that would have made it impossible to move forward jointly. prgtoken Much of the committee's oversight work is reflected in the bill as classified, but we can discuss some of the 2018-2019 IAA's elements openly, including the fact that the bill helps to better ensure that our elections are free from interference or manipulation. prgtoken This is essential to our democracy, and the bill includes important provisions that continue the work that we have been doing in the committee during the course of the work on the Russia investigation, and as a part of our normal oversight to maintain the integrity of our election system. prgtoken The bill also provides funding to our intelligence community in order to meet all threats from terrorism to nation-state actors. The bill authorizes funding across a wide range of endeavors that will allow the intelligence community and the Department of Defense to not only respond to threats, but to preempt them. prgtoken The bill takes steps to prevent a repeat of the Russian active measures campaign that targeted our 2016 election, by including a minority-authored provision requiring a briefing to key congressional leaders, including members of the intelligence community and committee, if the United States faces a significant foreign cyber intrusion or active m
Nomination of Brett Kavanaugh (Executive Session)
Edward J. Markey (Democrat, MA) \u2014 2018-7-12

the retirement of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy has created one of the most consequential vacancies on the High Court that this country has ever seen. There is a reason pundits have often referred to the Supreme Court as the ``Kennedy Court.'' His influence on so many politically salient cases cannot be overstated. During his 30 years on the Supreme Court, Justice Kennedy was often the swing vote in decisions decided 5 to 4 on a divided bench of the Supreme Court. These include some of the most historic cases in our Nation's history: on a woman's right to choose, environmental protections, and same-sex marriage. prgtoken In 1992 Justice Kennedy wrote the controlling opinion in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which reaffirmed Roe v. Wade's core holding that the Constitution protects a woman's right to make a fundamental decision about her own healthcare, including a woman's right to choose. prgtoken In 2007 Justice Kennedy joined a 5-to-4 opinion in Massachusetts v. EPA, which held that greenhouse gas emissions are pollutants under the Clean Air Act and that the EPA must regulate those emissions under that statute, unless it can provide a scientific basis for its refusal to do so. prgtoken In 2013 Justice Kennedy wrote the majority opinion in United States v. Windsor, striking down as unconstitutional the Defense of Marriage Act because it violated basic due process and equal protection principles by extending certain Federal benefits to opposite-sex married couples but denying those same benefits to same-sex married couples. prgtoken In 2015 Justice Kennedy wrote the landmark opinion on same-sex marriage in Obergefell v. Hodges, which held that the Constitution guarantees same-sex couples the right to marriage. prgtoken In 2016 Justice Kennedy wrote the majority opinion in Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, which struck down a restrictive anti-choice law in Texas because it put an undue burden on women's access to reproductive healthcare services. prgtoken All of these decisions were decided by the single vote of a single Supreme Court Justice. That Justice was Anthony Kennedy. The Justice who succeeds Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court will have the opportunity to leave a deep and lasting mark on issues of the highest constitutional magnitude--issues that impact the health and freedom of women, the environment, LGBTQ rights, consumer protection, labor protections, affirmative action, criminal justice, gun safety, and more. prgtoken There are, without a doubt, important issues that will be decided. These will be the most important decisions of our generation, and this Supreme Court will be in a position to make that history. prgtoken Justice Kennedy's retirement handed President the opportunity to fulfill his campaign promise to shift the balance of power on the Supreme Court to the far right on these issues. So the President dusted off a preapproved list of candidates for the Hig
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Sherrod Brown (Democrat, OH) \u2014 2018-7-12

today I wish to congratulate Miss Elsie Steward Young of Highland County, OH, on her 102nd birthday and her recent induction into the Ohio Civil Rights Hall of Fame. prgtoken Miss Elsie is a legend in southwest Ohio and a lifelong fighter for justice and opportunity for all Ohio children. prgtoken In 1954, after the Supreme Court issued its landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision and ordered an end to segregation in America's schools, the two all-White primary schools in Hillsboro, OH, refused to integrate. The district continued to send Black students to the one all-Black school, which was in shambles. prgtoken Miss Elsie and a group of mothers took matters into their own hands. For 2-years, the ``Marching Mothers of Hillsboro'' walked to the town's all-White primary schools every single day, just to be sent home, but they continued to march and to show that they would not rest until their children were given the quality education they were guaranteed under the law. They joined with the NAACP to file a lawsuit against the Hillsboro Board of Education, which made it all the way to the Supreme Court--and they won. prgtoken Because of Miss Elsie and her fellow mothers' advocacy, the Court ordered the schools to integrate, and paved the way for integration in other Northern cities. Their activism is a reminder of what ordinary citizens can achieve when they band together to fight for justice. prgtoken I am sure that my Senate colleagues join me in Honoring Miss Elsie Steward Young for her service to justice and equality.
UNFUNDED MANDATES INFORMATION AND TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 2017
Elijah E. Cummings (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2018-7-13

. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from Virginia, the vice ranking member of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, for yielding time and for doing such a phenomenal job on our committee. prgtoken Mr. Chair, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 50, the Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act. This legislation would obstruct the regulatory process with new requirements that would make it more difficult to promulgate regulations that protect the health and safety of Americans. prgtoken This bill also would give regulated companies the ability to weigh in on rules before other stakeholders. That is simply not right. prgtoken Under this bill, gun manufacturers could influence a gun safety rule before child safety experts. prgtoken Under this bill, banks could shape rules related to obtaining lines of credit before consumer advocates. prgtoken Under this bill, a coal company could weigh in on a clean air rule before doctors, scientists, and other public health experts. prgtoken This is a gross distortion of how this process should work, and it would put the interests of polluters and other corporate offenders ahead of the American people. I simply say that we are better than that. prgtoken This bill also must be viewed in the context of the broader assault on regulations underway by President and his allies in Congress. Using the Congressional Review Act, s in Congress have repealed 16 health, safety, environmental, and consumer protection rules. prgtoken They repealed a rule that prevented individuals with severe mental illnesses from gaining access to guns. Give me a break. prgtoken They repealed the stream protection rule, which required monitoring of streams and groundwater for toxic contaminants dumped by coal mining companies. Yes, they did that, too. prgtoken They repealed the fair pay and safe workplaces rule, which required that American tax dollars be spent only on companies that comply with the workplace health, safety, and civil rights laws by which all private businesses must abide. prgtoken The bill before us today is yet another attack on regulations, one that s have passed many times before but have never been able to enact. prgtoken This bill would amend the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, which was enacted as part of Newt Gingrich's Contract with America. Even in the context of the extreme agenda of the Contract with America, Congress included several limitations in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. This bill would repeal those limitations. prgtoken This bill also would put independent agencies in jeopardy of political interference. The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act currently exempts independent agencies from its reporting requirements. This bill would remove that exemption. prgtoken That means independent regulatory agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Consumer Product Safety Commission would have to submit their rules to the Office of Manageme
INSULTING BEHAVIOR IS UNBECOMING
Sheila Jackson Lee (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2018-7-13

I come from the fourth largest city in the Nation, soon, I hope, to be the third. We take great pride in the number of consular offices that we have and the languages that we speak. prgtoken I particularly sought to engage in international affairs by participating with international organizations that engage the European Union as well as the OSCE. prgtoken There are individuals in Houston from France, from England, from Italy, from Bulgaria, and many places in and around Europe, Western and Eastern. So the behavior that I watched over the last couple of days with the assault on NATO by our Commander in Chief is, frankly, embarrassing. prgtoken America stands as a bastion of democracy and freedom, and the world looks to us. Insults are not becoming of the American people. Insults to heads of state are not becoming to the American people. prgtoken Frankly, I am against Brexit. I think it is the wrong thing to do. I think Europe should be a unified group of individuals supporting democracy and standing tall. But it is outrageous that our representative engaged in NATO, as well as interacting with our foreign leaders, would, one, have a dastardly and rude commentary in the Sun- Times insulting our news media, such as CNN. And then, frankly, going on to one of our worst adversaries, a person who has poisoned people on foreign land, who has jailed journalists, who has shot down airplanes, and now Vladimir Putin will be giving our President a performance review. That is not the American way. Shape up. Shape up, .