mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
AMENDING THE WHITE MOUNTAIN APACHE TRIBE WATER RIGHTS QUANTIFICATION ACT OF 2010
Steny H. Hoyer (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2018-1-10

what a sad state of affairs. There are scores of critically important issues that need to be considered by this House, not the least of which is funding our government. We failed to do that, and now we are confronted with a bill that is recycled, and we have added two natural resources bills on it that could have passed unanimously. prgtoken I am a big defender of Native Tribes' rights and sovereignty, and I know that my colleagues on both sides of the aisle remain committed to their sovereignty as well. This bill, however, is about undermining the National Labor Relations Act, not about Tribal sovereignty. prgtoken That act, the National Labor Relations Act, safeguards workers' rights to organize and bargain collectively. Most of my friends on the other side of the aisle are not for that. I know that. I have seen them vote that way. prgtoken No matter where you work, the basic protections for American workers, however, ought to apply. It is already prgtoken settled law that the National Labor Relations Act and other worker protection laws apply to businesses even on Tribal lands outside the context of inherently governmental functions carried out by Tribal governments. This was not decided by some faceless bureaucrat. This was a court of our land that made this decision. prgtoken Instead of undermining workers' rights, this House ought to be moving forward with policies that help our workers and their families make it in America as part of a strong middle class. That means raising wages. It means making childcare more affordable. It means expanding access to opportunities like higher education, homeownership, and a secure retirement. Those are the issues that continue to be focused on. prgtoken That is not what this bill focuses on. Instead, s are focused not on helping workers, but trying to pit one group, Tribes, against another group, workers. That is not what we ought to have in this country. prgtoken And they are attaching popular, noncontroversial natural resources bills to this legislation. They have nothing to do with this legislation and would pass overwhelmingly. prgtoken I am going to vote against this bill, and I hope they will bring the natural resources bills back so we can pass those, as everybody wants to do. prgtoken This is not the kind of regular order Ryan promised when he took the gavel and that s promised when they took the majority.
CHIP and Community Health Centers (Executive Session)
Patty Murray (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2018-1-10

I come to the floor today to talk about an issue that is critical to patients and families in my home State of Washington and across the country. Today, parents are wondering if they will be able to get the healthcare their kids need, and communities are wondering if they will be able to provide it. prgtoken That is unacceptable. prgtoken Congress has to swiftly and fully restore the Children's Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, and funding for other services families need, like community health centers, which have been waiting more than 100 days for a long-term solution. They should do so without making deep cuts to successful prevention programs in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that tackle avoidable conditions like heart disease and diabetes. prgtoken have wanted to get this done for months. By focusing on pushing through partisan tax reform at the end of the year, s instead put massive corporations and the wealthiest ahead of making sure our children and their families have the healthcare they need. I hope they are now ready to give these issues their full and immediate attention. In case they aren't, I want to make sure they know exactly what this is about. prgtoken It is about children like Stella. Stella lives in Washington State. She is 5 years old. She has two brothers. She has a love of the outdoors, especially swimming and kayaking. She has a typical kindergartner's boundless energy and excitement. But Stella was born with spina bifida, an issue with how her spinal cord was formed. In the past year of dealing with that condition, Stella's family went through 5 catheters a day, almost 2,000 in total. They went on 10 different occasions to have MRI scans. They went to get her new leg braces. Given the cost of all that, they went through their $5,000 deductible in the first 5 weeks of the year. That is right. It took just 5 weeks. Additionally, this year Stella is also scheduled to have bladder and kidney surgery. prgtoken As one can imagine, the expenses are really adding up. Even with both parents working, covering Stella's healthcare needs would be an unimaginable task. Fortunately, Stella does qualify for health insurance through CHIP. CHIP has helped her family afford the treatment she needs, including physical therapy. prgtoken Stella's story is just one of many examples of families who rely on this program. There are 60,000 children in Washington State who are now insured through CHIP. Nine million families nationwide rely on it to help address the healthcare needs of their children. Yet Congress has taken over 102 days and counting to restore it. There is no excuse for this inaction. prgtoken Families who rely on the CHIP Program are not alone in needing our immediate attention. Thanks to CHIP and Medicaid, the uninsured rate among children is now at an all-time low. Jeopardizing this accomplishment by letting CHIP twist in the wind is simply
DACA (Executive Calendar)
Amy Klobuchar (Democrat, MN) \u2014 2018-1-10

I join my colleague from Virginia, as well as Senator Durbin, who has been working so hard to get this done, to stand up for the Dreamers. I give my strong support once again for taking action on the Dream Act. We need to take up this bill. prgtoken As Senator Kaine just noted, I was also heartened, after the meeting at the White House, by the fact that this President understands--he said he understands that we can't wait until March to get this done, that we need to get this done soon. For me, the easiest way to do this is by passing the Dream Act. prgtoken The Federal court decision in California yesterday will provide some temporary relief, as every single day more and more kids fall out of status. That sounds like a legal term, but for them, it changes their whole life. These are kids who literally believed our government. They were told: You register. You sign up. We are going to allow you to stay. prgtoken And then, in one little moment and with a signature, that all changed. Their lives changed. So it is now our obligation in the Senate to get this done. prgtoken We have already seen the harmful effects of the administration's decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program, and the situation will continue to get worse until we take action. This is not just a small thing. I have met these kids. Ninety-seven percent of them either work or are in school. The average age they were when they were brought to this country is 6\1/2\ years old. prgtoken A few months back, I stood in front of a Catholic church with our archbishop of the Twin Cities, Archbishop Hebda, and a number of his parishioners and a number of the priests from that church to talk about what this meant in people's lives--kids brought over through no fault of their own. prgtoken My favorite example of a Dreamer, Senator Kaine and , is Joseph Medina. He was brought over--and he didn't know this at the time--as a baby. His parents had died, and he was brought over to Sleepy Eye, MN, where he was raised. This was a long time ago. When he got to be the right age, he decided that he wanted to serve our country, and he signed up to serve in World War II. prgtoken Well, back then, he went to the military, to the Army, and said: I want to sign up. prgtoken They said: Well, it turns out--I don't know what term they used back then, but he was undocumented. And when I first met him at the young age of 99, as he explained to me, back then, all you did was you went to Canada for a day, with our country's OK, and slept in a hotel for a night, which is what he did, and then came back. Then he was made legal, and the Army signed him up, and he ended up going over and serving in the Pacific. He came back to this country, met his wife, got married, had a son, and that son served in the Vietnam war. prgtoken A few years ago, when he was 99, I got to bring him to Washington, and we stood in front of the World War II M
LANDMINES
Patrick J. Leahy (Democrat, VT) \u2014 2018-1-10

according to Landmine Monitor, which is the world's best source of data on the production, use, export, stockpiling, and clearance of landmines, cluster munitions, and other unexploded ordnance, 2016 was a terrible year for casualties caused by mines and other UXO. prgtoken In 2016, the Monitor recorded 8,605 casualties, of which at least 2,089 people were fatalities. That is the highest number since 1999, and it includes the most casualties of children ever recorded. Civilians represented 78 percent of recorded casualties in 2016. There are still 61 countries that are known to be contaminated with landmines. prgtoken On the positive side, approximately 232,000 landmines were destroyed in 2016, and 66 square miles of land were cleared of mines and other UXO. International donors and UXO affected countries increased support in 2016 for UXO clearance programs by $40 million above the previous year to $564.5 million. The United States was, like previous years, by far the largest donor. prgtoken It is also encouraging that, since March 1, 1999, when the international treaty banning antipersonnel landmines came into force, 163 countries have joined. That is an extraordinary achievement for a treaty that owes its existence to the vision and perseverance of hundreds of advocacy, human rights, arms control, humanitarian organizations, and journalists, around the world, and the leadership of former Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy; yet despite this progress and substantial declining in the past few years, the number of innocent people maimed and killed by mines has steadily increased. prgtoken There are several explanations for this. Rebel groups like ISIS routinely use landmines and other improvised explosive devices. The wars in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Yemen have been largely responsible. It may never be possible to completely eradicate the use of landmines by rebel groups, for the weapon is so cheap to manufacture while causing such harm. prgtoken But the major powers that have not joined the treaty--the United States, Russia, China, Pakistan, and India--also share the blame. Antipersonnel landmines, which are designed to be triggered indiscriminately by the victim, whether an unsuspecting farmer or an enemy or friendly combatant, have no place in the arsenals of modern militaries. It is hypocrisy to claim on the one hand, as our military does, that it uses every precaution to avoid harming civilians and prides itself on its precision weapons, and on the other hand to insist on the right to use a weapon that is the antithesis of precise and overwhelmingly harms civilians. prgtoken I have spoken more times than I can count about the scourge of antipersonnel landmines and the need for the United States to join the Mine Ban Treaty so we are no longer an excuse for other countries not to join. Our military has not used landmines for more than two decades. In fact, U.S. policy now strictly
COMPACT IMPACT RELIEF ACT
Madeleine Z. Bordallo (Democrat, GU) \u2014 2018-1-10

I reintroduce the Compact Impact Relief Act to address the costs of providing local public services to migrants under the Compacts of Free Association. prgtoken I am very pleased to have the support of our colleagues from Hawai'i and the Northern Mariana Islands, as original cosponsors. prgtoken Under the Compacts, an unlimited number of citizens from three Freely Associated States (FAS)--the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau--may live and work in the United States. prgtoken Compact migrants effectively enjoy the same freedoms of movement and to work as lawful permanent residents, like green card holders, in our country do. prgtoken As such, our bill seeks to allow Compact migrants to participate in select federal programs, if they meet the program criteria, the same way that green card holders can under current law. prgtoken Importantly, our bill ensures that federal resources are not diverted from U.S. citizens and nationals in order to accommodate Compact migrants. prgtoken Economic conditions and the reality of climate change for Pacific island nations have driven more and more Compact migrants to the United States. prgtoken Guam remains the primary destination for Compact migrants, followed closely by Hawai'i. prgtoken According to the most recent Census Bureau figures, more than 76,000 FAS citizens reside in the United States, including nearly 18,000 on Guam. prgtoken I appreciate that the Compacts remain important to American strategic interests in the Asia-Pacific region, including Guam's security. prgtoken I also know--firsthand--the significant contributions that Compact migrants make to prgtoken Guam and other communities as far away as Springdale, Arkansas. prgtoken Many citizens of the Freely Associated States serve proudly in the United States military. prgtoken However, insufficient support from the federal government causes serious strain on local jurisdictions with significant Compact migrant communities. prgtoken The costs borne by GovGuam and other local governments are simply unsustainable. prgtoken Congress must act to provide federal relief to Guam and other jurisdictions required to serve these underprivileged Compact migrant communities. prgtoken , that is exactly what the Compact Impact Relief Act would do. prgtoken Our bill includes novel policy changes that would provide additional federal resources for Guam, Hawai'i, and other states and territories. prgtoken In particular, the Compact Impact Relief Act ensures that Guam--and other territories--can utilize fully important federal programs including: Job Corps centers funded by the U.S. Department of Labor; national and community service programs like AmeriCorps and the Youth Conservation Corps; and an accurate 10-year census that counts Compact migrant residents. prgtoken Our bill would permit Guam and other affected jurisdictions to apply costs spent providing public services to Compact migrants toward the non-feder
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
Bill Nelson (Democrat, FL) \u2014 2018-1-10

I must say, I have seen political games being played with trying to drill off of the coast of Florida. Not only am I appalled--I have recoiled at this political game--but unfortunately I am not surprised because of what we have seen happen in the last 15 hours. prgtoken It all started late last week when the Department of the Interior released a new 5-year drilling plan. It virtually had all of the coastal waters--the Outer Continental Shelf of the entire United States--included in this plan, including that area of Florida that is off limits to drilling in law--a law that Senator Mel Martinez and I passed back in 2006 that keeps drilling off of the gulf coast of Florida until the year 2022. prgtoken This new proposal would open up nearly all of the Federal waters to drilling, including all of the coastal waters of Florida, both the west coast--gulf coast--and the east coast--the Atlantic--and also the Straits of Florida, those waters that come around the Florida Keys, which is the Gulf Stream that comes right up the southeast coast of Florida. The Gulf Stream then goes out across the Atlantic, past Bermuda, and ends up in Northern Europe. prgtoken Well, our colleagues have heard this Senator many times come and talk about how keeping oil rigs away from Florida's coast is an issue that is important to our State because of our tourism economy but also because of the military missions on the west coast--the gulf--as well as the Atlantic. prgtoken As a Floridian, this Senator has been fighting this fight ever since the mid-1980s when Secretary of the Interior James Watt intended to drill off the east coast of Florida where we were launching our space shuttle, dropping the solid rocket boosters, and where we were launching our military rockets, taking our clandestine satellites into orbit and dropping the first stages. That is how I beat it back in the 1980s, but lo and behold, here we are again in the same place. prgtoken We know you can't allow drilling in the Straits of Florida right off the Florida Keys because an oilspill there would be in the Gulf Stream, and that Gulf Stream hugs the coast of southeast Florida. Can you imagine what it would do to the beaches of the Florida Keys, Miami Beach, and all up the Gold Coast of Florida, all the way to Palm Beach, all the way north to Fort Pierce, where then the Gulf Stream heads farther in a northeasterly direction out into the Atlantic? prgtoken Well, let me show you what is happening in the gulf coast. All of this in yellow is what is off limits in the Gulf of Mexico as a result of the 2006 law. prgtoken There is an obvious reason for all of this--because this line is known as the Military Mission Line. Everything east of here is the largest testing and training area in the world for the U.S. military. That is why we put this off limits to oil activity. prgtoken Oh, by the way, the testing and training mission for the entire Department of D
DACA (Executive Calendar)
Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2018-1-10

a number of us are here today with a very simple, straightforward demand. We must act now to pass a Dream Act. Very simply, the honor and integrity of this Chamber are at stake. prgtoken The young people who would be covered under the Dream Act are Americans in all but name. They came here as children. They grew up as Americans. They go to our schools, serve in our military, and support our economy. They work hard and they give back and they believe in the American dream. Deporting Dreamers would be cruel and irrational, inhumane, and, very simply, repugnant to basic American values. prgtoken Just think of Jonathan Gonzalez-Cruz. He is a college student at Southern Connecticut State University. I had the privilege of meeting him in December. His story has stuck with me. His story haunts me when I think of the moral imperative of this Nation to pass the Dream Act. prgtoken Jonathan was born in Mexico. He came to this country when he was just 4 years old. The United States is home for him. It is the only country he has ever known. He received a full scholarship to attend Southern Connecticut prgtoken State University, and he is set to graduate this spring with an honors degree in economics and math. prgtoken His dream is to attend law school, but due to the uncertainty surrounding DACA, he has decided to delay applying, knowing he will be unable to receive scholarships without his DACA status. He could attend, but he can't pay for it with scholarships unless he has that DACA status. prgtoken Jonathan first became compelled to speak up and tell his story after his father was deported, and they were unable to even say goodbye. Despite his own struggles, Jonathan is a passionate advocate for his community, and he actively works for Connecticut Students for a Dream. That organization, Connecticut Students for a Dream, is a group of students who help empower and advocate on behalf of other undocumented students. In fact, today, Jonathan is in DC to help ensure that the voices of students are, in fact, heard. Jonathan is a volunteer peer mentor through that organization because he is so passionate about raising graduation rates and ensuring that all students like himself have the support they need to succeed. prgtoken During his senior year, Jonathan has been interning at an immigration law firm, and he is glad to be helping others gain legal status in this country. The irony is not lost on him--and should not be lost on us-- that he, himself, could face deportation this year. If Jonathan is not permitted to stay--if Congress does not act and he loses his DACA protection--Connecticut and this Nation will be the losers. Connecticut and this Nation will lose an educated and compassionate public service- minded individual who gives back to his community, to his fellow students, and to our State. He is just one example of the estimated 10,000 like him in Connecticut--and at least 700,000 around the country--wh
DREAMERS DREAM OF THE GREATNESS OF AMERICA
Sheila Jackson Lee (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2018-1-10

a little clarity I think is very important on a very, very important issue. prgtoken I would like to call 140,000 young people in my State DREAMers because they dream of the greatness of America. The status that they are under is something called DACA, which was instituted by President because this Congress could not provide legislative relief, so he saw the lives that were being impacted. In a few months, however, the present President, who feigns not knowing what happened, was the individual who removed that DACA status. prgtoken So let me be very clear: it is a dire situation, and the reason is because there are individuals whose status is now expiring or has already expired, therefore, they are living in limbo. These are doctors, lawyers, teachers, and young people with families. prgtoken It is crucial that we move quickly for a DACA fix, and we do it without impacting family reunification or diversity visas. We do it out of humanity, caring, and respect. Let's do it now. Let's do it for America.