mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS ACCOUNTABILITY AND WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION ACT OF 2017
Brian J. Mast (Republican, FL) \u2014 2017-6-13

I want to thank the chairman for yielding me time, and the ranking member, both of the gentlemen, for their leadership, and also our Senator from Florida, Senator Rubio, for his leadership on this bill. prgtoken This is a great bill, and that is why I couldn't be more happy than to rise and speak about this bill. For a long time, our veterans have deserved better, and this bill is exactly that: It is better. prgtoken Veterans across the board--Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard--they have common experiences and common healthcare challenges as a result of certainly combat, but also as a result of just simply the austere life of being in the military. Whether it is a daily life of jumping out of planes or roping out of helicopters or kicking in doors or jumping off the back end of trucks, you live an austere life. prgtoken Oftentimes, I hear people say a year in the military can be like a dog-year. It is tough on you, and that is why the VA is so critical. It is so critical that the VA maintain an expertise in providing for our unique healthcare needs. prgtoken I get my healthcare from the VA. I know many VA employees who are hardworking and certainly unyielding in their dedication, but I have also encountered many who are not, plain and simple, many who lack the hunger or who lack the appropriate mentality or the decorum to care for our men and women who are willing to give their last breath in defense of our country. This is the reality. prgtoken Every single veteran needs to be treated like the most important patient ever to be seen every single time they walk into the VA. Anything less is a failure. prgtoken In the past several years, this bureaucracy of rules, it has obstructed the VA's ability to go out there and fire employees who have been charged with armed robbery, who have been accused of being drunk while performing surgeries, and this simply cannot stand. prgtoken There should never be somebody allowed to service our veterans who would receive a dishonorable discharge in the military for what their actions are. They shouldn't be allowed the honor of serving people who served this country in World War II or Korea or Vietnam or Panama, Kosovo, Bosnia, Somalia, the Gulf war, Iraq, Afghanistan. Folks shouldn't be given that honor lightly. prgtoken It is exactly why this bill, the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act is so important. The bill establishes whistleblower protections so that we can ensure veterans get the best possible care and make sure that no veteran is ever dishonored twice by the same person. prgtoken I want to thank you again for yielding me time. I want to thank you on behalf of every single veteran across this country for this great bill.
RECOGNIZING SEVEN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS CHOSEN TO REPRESENT COLORADO AS DELEGATES AT THE CONGRESS OF FUTURE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY LEADERS
Ken Buck (Republican, CO) \u2014 2017-6-13

I rise today to recognize seven high school students who have been chosen to represent the state of Colorado as delegates at the Congress of Future Science and Technology Leaders. The students are Sebastian Comeaux, Dominic Plaia, Michael Bremd, Ethan Drake, Itzel Martinez Bernal, Crystal Kechter, and James Reeder. prgtoken The Congress of Future Science and Technology Leaders is an honors program that recognizes exceptional high school students who are pursuing careers as engineers, scientists, or technologists. prgtoken These students are the future leaders of the STEM fields and our country. Through their studies, they have embodied the meaning of hard work and perseverance to achieve their goals, and will advance science and technology for future generations. prgtoken , I am delighted to recognize these students from the fourth district of Colorado for their hard work and service to our community. I wish them the best in their future endeavors.
COUNTERING IRAN'S DESTABILIZING ACTIVITIES ACT OF 2017
Bob Corker (Republican, TN) \u2014 2017-6-13

I am glad to be down here with our ranking member, Senator Ben Cardin from Maryland. I want to thank him and his staff for working until 10:20 last night to complete negotiations on a Russia amendment. I want to thank Senator Crapo and his staff and Senator Brown and his staff for the work they did on the sanctions component, where over the last 5 months they have worked with our counterparts around the world to make sure that what we did in this piece of legislation was something that was workable. Truly, I think it has been a great effort by four different offices. I am glad that cloture has been filed on that amendment, and I understand we are going to vote on it tomorrow at 2 o'clock. prgtoken I will be very brief. Senator Cardin and I are here on the floor together, and I know he wants to make some comments about this. Let me just give a brief summary, if I could. prgtoken The amendment enhances Congress's role in determining sanctions policy on Russia. It provides for the President to use a national security waiver or sanctions termination after giving Congress 30 days to review the proposed action. prgtoken I think everyone here knows I am a strong proponent of congressional review. We began that under President . To me, it gets us in a place where we are playing an appropriate role in foreign policy. prgtoken The amendment codifies existing sanctions on Russia for their activities in Ukraine and cyber space. prgtoken The amendment strengthens and expands existing conduct-based sanctions by requiring the imposition of sanctions on actors undermining cyber security, supplying arms to Syria, human rights abusers, and those involved in corrupt privatization of government- owned assets. prgtoken It mandates sanctions on Russian deep-water, Arctic, and shale projects worldwide and yet allows for waivers to be made based on national security interests of the United States. prgtoken This amendment prioritizes U.S. foreign assistance to allies in their fight against Russian aggression. This is something I know Senator Cardin worked hard on, and I appreciate his efforts. prgtoken It authorizes $250 million to establish the Countering Russian Influence Fund to implement programs in EU and NATO member countries-- Senator Portman played a role in this as well, and I appreciate his efforts--as well as candidate nations, to combat Russian interference, with a priority given to programs that develop cyber security, address public corruption, respond to humanitarian crises, counter disinformation, and support democratic institutions. prgtoken It requires the State Department and other Federal agencies to collaborate and develop a plan to reduce Ukraine's dependence on Russian energy imports, which we know Russia has used to extort Ukraine. prgtoken I think it is a very good piece of legislation. I appreciate the contributions of many Members here. I know Senator McCain, Senator Graham, Senator Rubio, and s
LAWRENCE ZHAO
John Shimkus (Republican, IL) \u2014 2017-6-13

I rise today to congratulate Lawrence Zhao, who is a 7th grade student at Next Generation School in Champaign, Illinois. Lawrence will be competing in the 2017 National You Be the Chemist Challenge. The You Be the Chemist Challenge is an interactive academic contest that invites students from all around the United States in Grades 5 to 8 to explore chemistry concepts and their real- world applications. prgtoken Lawrence has advanced through many rigorous levels of competition over the past school year to qualify for the national competition, which is held Monday, June 19th, in Washington D.C. The competition starts out at a local level, where students participate individually, with first the distribution of a quiz that relates to chemistry and those who pass it are eligible to participate in the local contest. The local contest consists of a quiz-bowl style format containing several rounds of multiple choice questions. prgtoken Lawrence won the local challenge and had the opportunity to compete in a similar style state-wide competition. Having received the highest score at the state challenge, he advanced to the national challenge. I applaud Lawrence Zhao for his exemplary performance thus far, and I wish him the best of luck in not only the challenge, but all his future endeavors.
COUNTERING IRAN'S DESTABILIZING ACTIVITIES ACT OF 2017
Patrick J. Toomey (Republican, PA) \u2014 2017-6-13

I rise this afternoon to express my considerable disappointment with the U.S.-Mexico sugar agreement that was announced just last week. This deal was concluded recently. The fact is that this is a bad deal for the United States. I am completely mystified as to why our Commerce Department would agree to it. It is a bad deal for U.S. consumers, and we are all consumers. It is a bad deal for American workers. prgtoken It completely fails to address the high price of sugar that we have in America today. In fact, it makes the problem worse. It increases the price that we all have to pay for sugar. It reduces choices for consumers, and it absolutely threatens jobs in the many food-producing industries that we have across our country. What it does is that it continues the protectionist policies that favor a handful of big sugar producers and refiners. prgtoken These are large, agribusiness companies, generally, already subsidized by domestic agricultural policies that force American consumers to pay artificially inflated prices for their products. It also limits imports, and the fact is that the agreement should be doing just the opposite. It should be giving us a free market in sugar so that American consumers can shop for the best deal available in the world, and that is exactly what it does not do. prgtoken Unfortunately, what they did at the Commerce Department is they failed to prioritize the concerns of ordinary American consumers, ordinary American workers. The fact is that the United States is a significant net importer of sugar. We are a huge country, and we don't produce as much sugar as we consume. So we import the difference. Mexico happens to be the No. 1 source of imported sugar. We get about 35 percent of our imported sugar from Mexico. The NAFTA trade agreement provided for free trade in sugar. It took a long time to get there, but it contemplated an arrangement where Mexico could sell to American consumers--like my wife, when she goes shopping at the store, and all of our families--without duties, without tariffs, without taxes, without obstacles. prgtoken But that didn't work out so well for some of the sugar producers. So they went to court, and they accused Mexico of dumping sugar. prgtoken In order to avoid tariffs, the Mexican Government agreed to what they call the suspension agreement. It is an agreement that basically sets a minimum price. prgtoken So that is what we do. That is our sugar policy. The government dictates it, essentially, in conjunction with foreign governments. It is the American Government that has all the leverage here. We set prices. We fix prices. We don't have a free market. We establish, by central government fiat, what the price will be. prgtoken We also establish import quotas. We decide how much of foreign sugar an American will be permitted to buy, reminiscent of ``Moscow on the Mississippi.'' This is not how you have a free market that allows consumer
MOTION TO DISCHARGE--S.J. RES. 42
Todd Young (Republican, IN) \u2014 2017-6-13

I come to the Senate floor today to express my support for S.J. Res. 42 and my opposition to the transfer of specific defense articles to the Government of Saudi Arabia. I have arrived at this decision after extensive research and careful deliberation. I would like to state very clearly for the record why I have come to this decision. I have decided to support S.J. Res. 42 and oppose the transfer of specific defense articles to Saudi Arabia primarily because of the Saudi Government's refusal to take specific steps that I repeatedly requested to alleviate the horrible humanitarian suffering in Yemen. prgtoken Before I further explain that decision, I would like to explain what is not informing my decision. I am not reflexively opposed to arms sales in general or to Saudi Arabia specifically. On the contrary, after a series of questions are satisfactorily addressed, I believe arm sales to key partners and allies can enable them to more effectively defend our common interests and oppose common threats. After all, the United States cannot and should not employ U.S. military forces in every instance. When the United States and our partners confront common threats, we should encourage and empower regional allies and regional partners to play prominent roles wherever possible. When our partners are defending our common interests, we want them to be as well-equipped and well-trained and effective as possible. prgtoken I recognize that despite our differences, the Saudi Government is an important regional security partner for the United States of America. However, when we work through our allies and partners, we shouldn't set aside our national security interests, and we certainly shouldn't set aside our support for universal humanitarian principles. That principle certainly applies to the Saudis and to the situation in Yemen. prgtoken My decision today is based neither on an opposition to arms sales in general nor an opposition to arms sales to the Saudis in particular. Instead, my decision today is based primarily on the persistent and misguided refusal of the Saudi Government to take specific steps that I have requested to alleviate some of the humanitarian suffering in Yemen. prgtoken My decision should come as a surprise to no one. As I have said on the Senate floor before, the United Nations calls the situation in Yemen the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. According to the U.N.--which, incidentally, our intelligence resources rely on for much of their information--Yemen has almost 19 million people. Two-thirds of the population is in need of humanitarian or protection assistance, including approximately 10 million who require immediate assistance to save or sustain their lives--two-thirds of their population. If that is not a recipe for instability in a dangerous region of the world, I don't know what is. So 17 million people are food-insecure, while 7 million people don't know where
COUNTERING IRAN'S DESTABILIZING ACTIVITIES ACT OF 2017
Mike Crapo (Republican, ID) \u2014 2017-6-13

I rise to speak on the Crapo-Brown-Corker- Cardin Countering Russian Aggression and Cyber Attacks Act of 2017. This bill, filed as an amendment, was filed as amendment No. 232 to the Iran sanctions bill late last night. prgtoken Yesterday, the Senate Banking and Foreign Relations Committees concluded their work on a groundbreaking piece of legislation regarding Russia sanctions. I say groundbreaking because the legislation not only ratchets up pressure against the Russian Federation for its illegal invasion and annexation of Crimea, continuing escalation of violence in eastern Ukraine, and its cyber activities against businesses and citizens of the United States, but it also, importantly, provides Congress with a strong oversight process over almost any termination or suspension of these sanctions. prgtoken Senators Corker, Brown, Cardin, and their staffs spent many hours to ensure that we put together a thoughtful and measured product, and I thank them for their work. prgtoken Senator Brown and I have worked together for months to try to craft a responsible Russia sanctions package, and Senator Corker has been a tireless champion of this measure as has Senator Cardin. I also would be remiss if I did not recognize the work of Senators McCain, Brown, Shaheen, and the many others who have worked to develop much of what has ended up in this legislation. All of us appreciate the leadership of Majority Leader McConnell and Senator Schumer, who worked with us as we came to our final agreement. prgtoken The need for this legislation was underlined by the fact that many Americans have deep concerns about Russia's behavior over the past few years. Since coming to power, Russian President Putin has become increasingly belligerent, nationalistic, and autocratic. prgtoken Currently, the United States has imposed sanctions on Russia for Russia's invasion and annexation of Crimea and its role in supporting the separatist movements in eastern Ukraine, Russia's increasing cyber attacks and cyber espionage against the United States, Russia's support for the Assad regime in Syria, and Russia's complicity for corruption. prgtoken Although this is not an exhaustive list, it demonstrates the lengths to which Russia will go to seize power and influence in the international arena. prgtoken Unfortunately, Putin's desire to increase Russia's political influence is not driven by a desire to raise the standard of living for Russians. Instead, it is driven by a craving to enrich and empower himself and his cronies. prgtoken Over the course of the past 3 months, the Senate Banking Committee has held hearings assessing the impacts of the current sanctions regime against Russia. We examined the existing Russian sanctions architecture in terms of its effectiveness and its economic impact. The Russians have largely learned to live within the economic confines of the existing sanctions regime. prgtoken In Putin's calculation, the cos
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS ACCOUNTABILITY AND WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION ACT OF 2017
David P. Roe (Republican, TN) \u2014 2017-6-13

such time as I may consume. prgtoken Today is a proud day, I think, for this Nation. The United States of America does more for its veterans than all other nations in the world combined; and I don't think that, on some days, that is even enough for these heroes that have served us and many of whom have spoken this afternoon. prgtoken I want to express my appreciation to the minority and the majority staff, and to Sergeant Major Walz for walking hand in hand. As he said, this was not an easy process. There were a lot of difficult issues that we both dealt with. prgtoken I also want to thank our friends on the Senate side who also went through the same process and brought a bill to the floor that we can all, I think, enthusiastically support. prgtoken The Secretary said when he was first chosen--and I might add, 100-0, Secretary Shulkin was a bipartisan agreement in the Senate. I think he is a leader to transform the VA. He asked for accountability. He said: I cannot do my job as Secretary if I don't have this piece of legislation. prgtoken So he was very supportive, along with President , so we gave him that. prgtoken We also protected due process rights for the employees who work for the VA--a very important issue. prgtoken Whistleblower protections. We could not do our job, , if we did not have these whistleblowers. There are 350,000 employees, 154 medical centers, and over 800 outpatient clinics. There is no way that we could monitor that without their help. So their protections are there. prgtoken , I want to encourage both sides of the aisle to support S. 1094, and .
EXPORT AMERICAN LIQUIFIED NATURAL GAS
Ted Poe (Republican, TX) \u2014 2017-6-13

last week, Cheniere Energy, headquartered in Houston, Texas, delivered its first liquified natural gas shipment out of the Sabine Pass terminal to northern Europe, to the Netherlands, and to Poland. This follows shipments to southern Europe from earlier this year. prgtoken Put simply, this is a tremendous game changer. Exporting LNG is not just an economic issue, it is a geopolitical security issue. These shipments help thwart Russian aggression and weaken Russia's stranglehold over Europe, and it is about time. prgtoken Under Secretary Perry's leadership, the Energy Department is finally approving licenses for LNG terminals to ship LNG overseas. prgtoken Our natural gas is cheaper and more abundant in supply than anywhere in the world. Harnessing our domestic energy resources and exporting some of it to our friends and to our allies around the world makes sense for our economy and for our national security. prgtoken We should apply the Blue Bell ice cream philosophy to our domestic energy resources. It is: Use what we can and sell the rest. prgtoken And that is just the way it is.
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS ACCOUNTABILITY AND WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION ACT OF 2017
Bruce Poliquin (Republican, ME) \u2014 2017-6-13

I appreciate the opportunity to address the Floor on this important issue. prgtoken Gentlemen, it was our first Commander in Chief, George Washington, who said something to the effect that we can never expect our young men and women to step forward and fight for our country unless those who have already returned from the battlefield are taken care of. prgtoken This is a solemn oath that we all have to honor. It is critically important. I will tell you, , in the State of Maine, we have about 125,000 veterans, and we love our veterans. We understand what it is like to fight for our freedom and to stand up for our way of life. prgtoken In the State of Maine, we have Togus Medical Center, which is the first veterans hospital in the country, about 150 years old. We understand this. They have great employees, and many of them are veterans themselves. prgtoken However, a couple of years ago our country was shocked to learn that there were and are some bad actors in this whole process. A few years ago, we learned that some of the folks at the veterans facility in Phoenix, Arizona, were cooking the scheduling books in order to get paid more money through a bonus program when, in fact, they did not and had not scheduled mental health appointments for some of our veterans who were at risk, and, as a result, a number of those veterans died. This is absolutely unacceptable. prgtoken There is nobody who has fought for this country on the front lines who comes home, who needs help, that should be denied help; and it certainty shouldn't be those who are supposed to take care of them who are cooking the books for their own benefit. prgtoken , that is why I am asking every and here in this Chamber to support the Senate's bill, 1094. This is a good bill that holds the VA employees accountable for improper behavior. And, yes, sir, it does give, , management at the VA the opportunity to replace, fire, or otherwise, those who are supposed to care for our veterans who have chosen not to do so. Please support S. 1094
MOTION TO DISCHARGE--S.J. RES. 42--Continued
John McCain (Republican, AZ) \u2014 2017-6-13

I rise to speak in opposition to the resolution before us. prgtoken It has obviously been tried before, and I think there is no doubt that if it were to pass, this could pose a very dangerous threat to our relationship with Saudi Arabia at a time when the Iranians have now achieved a peninsula all the way across from Tehran all the way to Baghdad, and there is no doubt that the Iranians have continued their aggressive behavior. prgtoken If we vote down this arms sale to Saudi Arabia, it would have a devastating effect on our standing in the Middle East and a long-term impact on our ability to counter what is clearly Iranian aggressive behavior. So I strongly urge my colleagues to vote against this resolution.