mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
SCOTT JONES' QUEST OF ALL 419 NATIONAL PARKS
Raúl M. Grijalva (Democrat, AZ) \u2014 2020-1-14

. Madam , I rise today to honor Scott Jones, who last summer completed a quest to see all 419 units of our National Park System, an impressive feat. Apparently, this wasn't enough for Mr. Jones though, who added all the National Monuments and National Conservation Areas managed by the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management just for good measure. On August 26, 2019, Mr Jones became the first person to visit all 478 of the federal protected lands he calls our nation's Treasured Places. prgtoken The list includes some of our most iconic and inspiring landscapes (such as Grand Canyon and Yellowstone), and places that serve to interpret some of our most important historical lessons (Gettysburg and the Lincoln Memorial). Mr. Jones' travels took him to both the best of America, and to places that help us remember the turbulent and even unsavory history that is part of our shared national experience. Mr. Jones is quick to admit that each trip was an education and his experiences at many sites were rich opportunities to understand more about himself and about the United States. prgtoken For instance, Mr. Jones spoke to local reporters about his moving experience at Topeka's Brown V. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka, Kansas, which chronicles the fight to end school segregation. He recalled walking down a hallway lined as video of people yelling racial epithets played around him--mimicking the experience of Linda Brown on her walk to school. prgtoken From Topeka to 477 other sites, the Treasured Places quest took almost 15 years and involved a lot of travel. Mr Jones started out just like anyone would, visiting places close to his home in Phoenix, Arizona, but he had to venture a bit further than most, with trips to interior Alaska, the Northern woods, and even the War in the Pacific National Historical Park in Guam, his farthest trip at over 6,500 miles. prgtoken Mr. Jones' quest was not just a personal whim, he used it as an opportunity to inspire others. Through his blog and social media, he invited anyone interested to follow his adventures. Each of his quests are designed to encourage others to ``just get out more'' at whatever ability and with whatever time each of us has, whether for just a day trip or an epic adventure. His three slogans: explore eagerly, travel cheaply, and adventure often. prgtoken Many of his trips provide examples of how achievable and inexpensive it is to visit some of our nation's exceptional public lands. He completed this quest while working full-time for conservation nonprofits and made a point of not counting any visits that were made for his job toward completion of the total goal. prgtoken But for Mr Jones, adventuring is a constant goal and his thirst for adventures is far from slaked. In 2016, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, he took an epic trip to visit 100 parks in 100 days. He examined every ``World Largest Ball of T
Jamie Raskin (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2020-1-14

I have been a professor of constitutional law for 29 years, so I know the relationship between universities and students is sacred. We pledge to teach young people everything we know in order to propel them to become engaged citizens, educated human beings, and effective actors in the economy and society. prgtoken When I hear about for-profit colleges and universities ripping off young people and their families and plunging them into debt for unconscionable get-rich-quick schemes, it infuriates me as a professor, as a father, and as a Member of the House of Representatives representing the people of Maryland. prgtoken These rip-off institutions like Corinthian Colleges and ITT Technical Institute, which collapsed last year, leaves students with crushing debt, degrees that are not worth the paper they are printed on, and broken promises for the future. prgtoken The administration adopted the borrower defense rule to authorize the Department of Education to provide debt relief to student borrowers who have been defrauded by these predatory, low-rent higher ed rip-off academies. prgtoken In Maryland, we have 3,754 students waiting for the Department of Education to review their borrower defense claims and relieve them of millions of dollars in loans that the American government disbursed to predatory colleges. Secretary Betsy DeVos, who is to education what Attorney General Barr is to justice, is not only keeping the Department of Education from processing 240,000 defrauded borrower claims nationwide, but she has drafted a new rule to make it nearly impossible for students to obtain relief from fraudulent colleges as of June 2020. prgtoken Secretary DeVos wants to replace a system of higher ed with a new system of higher debt. Under the old rule, groups of students defrauded by a predatory college would have received an automatic loan discharge of the debt from the rip-off institution. Under the new rule, defrauded students would have to submit individualized evidence to the satisfaction of the department that rip-off colleges intentionally misrepresented degree program outcomes, quality of instruction, or job placement opportunities. So even where these Bonnie-and-Clyde schools clearly violated the law en masse, students can still be denied relief if they can't prove that they were individually and intentionally deceived, if they can't file their claim fast enough, or if they can't document how much financial harm they have personally suffered. prgtoken Billionaire Secretary DeVos, the patron saint of the rip-off academies, is basically telling working class kids across America that life isn't fair, and now she is making that the law. Most victims of the higher debt industry will never fully recover from the lost time and opportunity, but by allowing these miseducation hucksters to rip them off, we are implicated as a Nation, and we must not fail them again. We must fully forgive every penny that the s
PAYING TRIBUTE TO RICHARD BARNETT
Danny K. Davis (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2020-1-14

. Madam , I appreciate the opportunity to come to the floor at this time. prgtoken I come to pay tribute to a person who is not easy to describe. As a matter of fact, he has been called many things, has been many things, and will always be many things. As a matter of fact, his name is Richard Barnett. He held no title and he held no office. As a matter of fact, he never ran for public office, to my knowledge. But he probably helped more individuals get elected to judgeships in Cook County than anybody in the history of the county. prgtoken As a matter of fact, he also happened to have been the manager of my first campaign for public office which was about 40 years ago. After the campaign was over, he went into the hospital. He had taken ill but would not go into the hospital until after the election was done. He finally did go after we had won, and he looked as though he only weighed about 90 pounds which means that he was just that sick, he was just that ill. But he bounced back and went back to work at his actual job which was that of a postal clerk. prgtoken He went back and worked until retirement. Then he became very actively engaged in the election of Harold Washington for mayor of the city of Chicago. He took a job and worked for the city until he quit that after Harold had passed away, because he really was not looking for a job or didn't want a job. prgtoken He became significantly important because we have all heard the term political machine. We don't hear it as much now as we did in the past, but political machines have been described in many different ways, sometimes good, sometimes not so good, and sometimes bad. prgtoken One definition that people generally accept as being fairly common is that a political machine is a political group in which an authoritative leader or small group commands the support of a core of supporters and businesses, usually campaign workers, who receive rewards for their efforts. The machine is based on the ability of the boss or group to get out the vote for their candidate on election day. prgtoken The term ``political machine'' dates back to the 20th century in the United States. In the late 19th century, large cities in the United States--Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Kansas City, New York, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and others--were accused of forming, building, and making use of political machines. prgtoken Chicago, being one of those, emerged as one of the big cities with a strong political machine. The machine was known to totally dominate and control all the machinery of government, especially in the immigrant and Black communities. prgtoken When I came to Chicago in 1961, Chicago was seriously segregated, as it is today, and seriously politically organized, much more than it is today. These were what was called the movement years. prgtoken This is the period when Dr. Martin Luther King came into Chicago. This is the period when we experienced the War on Poverty, gre
THE 47TH ANNUAL MARCH FOR LIFE
Doug Lamborn (Republican, CO) \u2014 2020-1-15

today I rise to mark, with sadness, the 47th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. This tragic Supreme Court decision has resulted in the loss of over 60 million unborn babies' lives. This surpasses the number killed by Stalin and Hitler, combined. prgtoken In a country, today, where so many social and technological advancements have been achieved, how is it that we still fail to value the most fundamental part of human society--a human life? prgtoken The repercussions of Roe have been disastrous. Over 60 million children have lost their lives because of Roe. prgtoken I am dismayed by the arguments I hear coming from those who call themselves pro-choice. Those 60 million unborn were not given a choice. prgtoken I have two wonderful and lovely daughters-in-law who are expecting babies as we speak right now. I am so glad that these two principled women and their husbands value life. prgtoken Now, our choice is to be the voice for the voiceless. I am proud to stand here with my colleagues in Congress for the cause of life.
THE 47TH ANNUAL MARCH FOR LIFE
Mark E. Green (Republican, TN) \u2014 2020-1-15

for almost half a century, we have watched our Nation dehumanize an entire group of people based on their age with the Roe decision allowing the killing of 60 million unborn children. This is the largest human rights violation of our time. prgtoken As Martin Luther King, Jr said: ``There is no graded scale of essential worth'' among people. prgtoken This truth is something the evil organization Planned Parenthood deliberately chooses not to see, ending lives and selling baby parts for the sake of science. As America's largest abortion provider, it performs over 320,000 every single year, all in the name of freedom. But there is quite obviously absolutely no such thing as a right or freedom to end someone else's life. prgtoken As Ronald Reagan said, isn't it interesting that all who support abortion have already been born? prgtoken We must defend the equal right to life for everyone. If we can't do that, what are we even doing here?
UNITED STATES-MEXICO-CANADA TRADE AGREEMENT
John Cornyn (Republican, TX) \u2014 2020-1-15

finally there is some good news here in Washington that we will actually get some important things done, and, particularly, I am talking about the USMCA, or the United States- Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement. I am hopeful that we can get that voted out of the Senate by tomorrow and get it onto the President's desk. This is a top priority for my constituents, who are farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers, as well as consumers, whose daily lives are impacted by trade with our neighbors to the north and south. We will soon be able to mark it as yet another win for Texas under this administration. prgtoken For more than a quarter of a century, NAFTA, or the North American Free Trade Agreement, the predecessor to the USMCA, has been the guiding force in our trading relationships with Mexico and Canada. By virtually any measure, it has been a great success. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates that 13 million American jobs have been created and are dependent on trade with Mexico and Canada. That is a big deal. prgtoken A lot has changed over the last 25 years. In fact, then, the internet was in its infancy, smartphones didn't exist, and the only shopping you did was at a brick-and-mortar store. The way business is conducted today has evolved significantly. It is time we bring our trade agreements up to date. prgtoken That is where the USMCA comes in. It preserves the basic hallmark provisions of NAFTA, like duty-free access to Mexican and Canadian markets, and it adds measures to modernize the agreement. Additionally, the USMCA includes strong protections for intellectual property, which is critical to protecting the incredible innovation that Americans create right here at home. It also cuts the redtape that has been preventing countless small businesses from tapping into foreign markets. prgtoken It also accounts for e-commerce and digital products at a time when governments around the world are proposing all kinds of new taxes on e- commerce. It is actually the first free-trade agreement with a digital trade chapter. That is why a lot of folks call the USMCA ``NAFTA-2.0.'' It is better, it is stronger, and it is up to date. prgtoken I have no doubt that this agreement will be a boon to both our national and Texas economies, but I do have some concerns about the path it has taken to ratification. This product was essentially negotiated with the House and given to the Senate as a fait accompli, and I worry that that can set a dangerous precedent for future trade agreements. I hope that is not something we will allow to become a habit, but it doesn't diminish the fact that this trade agreement will bring serious benefits to my constituents and my State and continue to strengthen our national economy. prgtoken I appreciate the President's commitment to strengthening our trading agreements with our neighbors and bolstering a stronger North America. The USMCA is a big win for all three countries involved, a
AMERICA IS BECOMING MORE PRO-LIFE
Steve King (Republican, IA) \u2014 2020-1-15

it is my privilege and honor to address you here on the floor of the House of Representatives. And given that we have had some serious discussion here this evening, I really appreciate my colleagues, Chris Smith and others, who have spent an hour addressing the life issue here. prgtoken As we come up on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, January 22--I believe that is a date that will live in infamy--America is becoming a more and more pro-life country. And as we watch the transition that is taking place in this country, that has to do with the March for Life that comes out here every year, when thousands of people, many, many young people ride from my neighborhood about 18 or 20 hours on a bus to get here, and they gather on The Mall for the events and the speeches and the rally and then march to the Supreme Court building. We often host them here with some hot chocolate. prgtoken Each of these years that go by, I meet more and more young people that have become part of the pro-life network. So the network that is here, it strengthens people. They look around and they see that they are not alone. They come from churches; they come from schools; they come from families; they come from neighborhoods; and they understand that they are not alone, that there is a patchwork of people that are active across this country that is emerging into the majority in America. prgtoken I will submit that we are now a majority pro-life nation, and that would be consistent with polling, the Barna poll that we did about, I suppose, a year and a half ago or a little more that showed that, just on the Heartbeat bill alone, which I happen to be the author of, H.R. 490, that we saw 61 percent support for the Heartbeat bill, without exceptions. s were up at about 85 or 86 percent; independents were around in the 60th percentile; and are even in support of it, in the majority, at 59 percent of . prgtoken So it may have been that America was a little bit ignorant about the beginning of life and the science of life and the moment that life begins, but we all knew that in our hearts when, in 1973, it was one thing, and it was a political agenda that was driven. prgtoken And Norma McCorvey regretted that she happened to be Jane Roe. So she actually didn't get an abortion, and she became pro-life in her later years and became a pro-life activist. prgtoken So it didn't serve her, and it surely didn't serve America. But some number of over 61 million American babies have been aborted since that period of time. prgtoken And there have been struggles in this city. There have been women that come to this city and march for abortion, and so many women who come and march for life. prgtoken But here is what I see. In 1976, , our firstborn child came into the world; and, of course I anticipated that with eager and nervous anticipation. prgtoken But when that little boy--actually, not so little. He was almost 9 pounds. When
PROTECTING OLDER WORKERS AGAINST DISCRIMINATION ACT
Elise M. Stefanik (Republican, NY) \u2014 2020-1-15

. Mr. Chair, in my district, older Americans are staying in the workforce longer than previous generations, making significant contributions to our growing economy; yet these later years of a worker's career are becoming increasingly unstable. prgtoken Over half of the workers over the age of 50 are pushed out of longtime jobs before they are ready to retire. prgtoken The consequences of age discrimination are particularly harmful because, once older workers are removed from the workforce, they are more likely to remain unemployed. The economic strain that this can cause for them and their families is significant. prgtoken But losing a career is bigger than just financial security. Separating adults from the dignity of work has a broader impact on the well-being of communities like my district, where I serve one of the largest constituencies of older Americans in the entire country. prgtoken This bill strengthens the ADEA by reaffirming the pre-2009 standard, simply, that age discrimination cannot be a motivating factor in employment decisions. prgtoken I am proud to support H.R. 1230 on behalf of the many constituents of the 21st District who have advocated for this bill for over a decade.
PROTECTING OLDER WORKERS AGAINST DISCRIMINATION ACT
Rick W. Allen (Republican, GA) \u2014 2020-1-15

. Mr. Chair, such time as I may consume. prgtoken When considering any legislation, the House should first determine whether the legislation is needed and, next, whether the bill under consideration will adequately address or improve the situation. prgtoken The Committee on Education and Labor, unfortunately, did not have a full hearing on H.R. 1230 and heard from only one witness, invited by the , about the bill at a general hearing on multiple topics. prgtoken This legislation, at the very least, deserved a standalone hearing so that committee members and the House could get more information to make a considered decision regarding this legislation. prgtoken Publicly available data does not show the Supreme Court decisions in Gross v. FBL Financial Services or Nassar v. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have discouraged individuals from filing discrimination charges with the EEOC, which is the primary agency that enforces Federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate. A discrimination charge is a signed statement asserting employment discrimination. prgtoken The lone -invited witness who testified in favor of H.R. 1230 at the Committee on Education and Labor's hearing in May, which covered prgtoken several topics and bills, acknowledged that it is difficult to quantify the impact that the Gross decision has had on the number of older workers who bring cases and the number of those who win them. prgtoken This witness also acknowledged that when we might have expected a drop in charges due to Gross-inspired discouragement from employment attorneys, there was a sizeable jump in the number of ADEA charges filed at EEOC. prgtoken EEOC data shows that the rate of EEOC age discrimination charges as a percentage of all charges filed is approximately the same for the 9 years before and after the Gross decision. prgtoken There has been a slight uptick in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act retaliation charges as a percentage of all charges filed in the 4 years following the Nassar decision, which does not indicate individuals have been discouraged from filing these charges. prgtoken Court decisions show that the plaintiffs have continued to win age discrimination and Title VII retaliation cases in the wake of the Supreme Court's decisions in Gross and Nassar. prgtoken This amendment will provide Congress much-needed data on the impact of the two Supreme Court cases at issue in H.R. 1230. prgtoken If the GAO report indicates Gross and Nassar have not discouraged individuals from seeking relief or from achieving it, the bill would not go into effect. prgtoken The House should look before it leaps, and Members should vote in favor of this amendment to ensure this happens. prgtoken Mr. Chair, .
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
John Barrasso (Republican, WY) \u2014 2020-1-15

I come to the floor after Pelosi has ended her delay of the Senate impeachment trial today. prgtoken For the past month, the American people have watched the , I believe, make a spectacle of herself. They talked about the need to pass this in a way that was rushed, that was partisan, that was sloppy, but they had to get it done. Their key word from the and from so many in the House was ``urgency.'' We have to get this done, they said--urgency, urgency, urgency. So they took the vote in the House before Christmas. Then the decided to sit on this for 4 long weeks. She blocked the moving of the articles from the House to the Senate by refusing to send over the necessary papers. prgtoken In the end, the American people, including key Members of the in the Senate, realized that this was just a political stunt. Even the Senate lost patience with her cynical scheming. The American people saw what this was. A Harvard- poll cites that 56 percent of Americans say that what she was doing was just a political stunt. We are talking about the impeachment of the President of the United States, but it was just a political stunt. She should have done her job. She should have delivered the articles in a timely manner. prgtoken Nevertheless, the Senate s are ready to move forward today. We have the majority's support to adopt the rules that were used in the impeachment trial of President Clinton. President deserves the same treatment. In 1999, all 100 Senators--all 100--including the ic leader, Senator Schumer, voted for these rules, and 77 percent of the American public says: Hey, if it is good enough for Clinton, we ought to do the same thing today. So, after making his own, unreasonable demands for weeks, Senator Schumer now says he is ready to begin the trial. prgtoken The truth is that the have already made a mockery of impeachment. What they really want is a show trial, not a fair trial, and that is what happened in the House of Representatives. It was all for show. What do I mean by that? Let's take a look at what happened in the House. prgtoken First of all, their hearings were in secret, behind closed doors, in the basement of the Capitol. Then they selectively released misleading information. They denied the President due process, and they denied the President the opportunity to face his accusers and to face the whistleblower. Even though there was immediate interest and, at first, they said ``Oh, the whistleblower will testify,'' they then said ``No, no, no. We don't want you to even know who the whistleblower is or what reason or personal issues related to the whistleblower may have brought forth the reason for that person to come forward. We don't want you to know where the whistleblower's alliances may lie.'' prgtoken The have always known they cannot remove this President. prgtoken Their real agenda is the 2020 Presidential e