mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Patty Murray (Democrat, WA) \u2014 2024-1-18

I urge all of our colleagues to join us in voting to pass the CR so we can continue the work of negotiating and passing full-year funding bills without a shutdown, causing needless harm and chaos for folks back home. prgtoken We know a shutdown come end of day Friday would be devastating. I will be frank. Just the fact that our Agencies have to continually plan around the potential of a shutdown nearly constantly is a huge opportunity cost. A shutdown tomorrow would force staff administering our Nation's veterans and nutrition assistance programs and so much else to either work without pay or stop working altogether. prgtoken The Chair of the National Transportation Safety Board said a shutdown this week would force the Board to hit pause on investigations it is conducting, including the recent incident when a door plug blew out midflight. This should not be an acceptable option to anyone. prgtoken Now, I have been working nonstop with my colleagues in both Chambers to keep this process moving as quickly as we possibly can so we can write and pass the strongest possible funding bills. Passing this measure will allow us the time we need to hammer out those funding bills for fiscal year 2024 after many months of needless delays. prgtoken I think we all want this to be a drama-free and reliable process, so I hope House s will work with us to make that possible now, too, which means leaving extreme partisan demands at the door. We are all working as quickly as possible, but we aren't going to lose sight of the millions of Americans who count on the programs we fund whether it is WIC--for so many moms and babies we don't want to go hungry--or lifesaving healthcare research. prgtoken We have a lot of work left to do, but it has to happen in a bipartisan way. So let's get this CR passed and then work to make sure it is the last by keeping our focus on finalizing serious appropriations bills, which means no partisan poison pills and understanding that there needs to be a bipartisan agreement when it comes to key investments in our country's future. prgtoken . Vote on H.R. 2872
RECOGNIZING ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF THE KERHONKSON VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY
Patrick Ryan (Democrat, NY) \u2014 2024-1-18

I rise to recognize the historic 100-year anniversary of the Kerhonkson Volunteer Fire Company. prgtoken On December 26, 1924, the Kerhonkson Fire Company was organized as a meeting of 31 men. In a community that needed their men to step up, the community worked together to build a fire company that has continuously protected Kerhonkson and the surrounding areas. Today, the fire company includes 84 men and women among its ranks. prgtoken Over the past 100 years, the Kerhonkson Volunteer Fire Company has maintained a strong group of dedicated workers and generations of families. Creating such a strong institution is inspiring and I wish them success in the next 100 years as they continue protecting their neighbors. prgtoken I want to personally thank the men who started this fire company 100 years ago as well as those who lead this great group of men and women today. I thank Fire Chief Steve Stephens and President, Former Chief, and Life Member Christopher D. DePew. Their work does not go unnoticed, and I wish them great success in the future.
SUPPORTING PREGNANT AND PARENTING WOMEN AND FAMILIES ACT
Danny K. Davis (Democrat, IL) \u2014 2024-1-18

I strongly oppose H.R. 6918 because it is just another attempt by the leadership to advance their extremist war on women. prgtoken As we again face another -manufactured shutdown crisis, the leadership advances this bill to divert money intended for poor children to anti-abortion propaganda and facilities that provide deceptive and inaccurate information. prgtoken The House should take immediate action to eliminate child poverty, not promote efforts to restrict women's reproductive choices. prgtoken Alarmingly, just one year after the -led expiration of ic poverty-lowering investments in workers and families, the child poverty rate more than doubled, causing the biggest one-year increase in poverty we have ever seen. prgtoken If s truly wanted to help pregnant and parenting families, they prgtoken would fully restore the child tax credit, dramatically increase childcare funding to address the childcare crisis, and make it easier to get critical services like Medicaid.
REMEMBERING ARCHITECT ROBERT BONNER NORCROSS
Steve Cohen (Democrat, TN) \u2014 2024-1-18

I rise today to pay my deep respects to Robert Bonner Norcross, a Memphis architect known for his designs of many Memphis landmarks, who died from complications of Early Onset Alzheimer's on December 27 at the age of 62. A native of Tyronza, Arkansas, and a graduate of Marked Tree High School and Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas, Mr. Norcross became a principal in the architecture firm Looney Rick Kiss and led projects that transformed the city of Memphis and nearby communities for three decades. He was licensed in seven states and perhaps best known for his work on AutoZone Park, named the Minor League Ballpark of the Year in 2009 by Baseball America, and the FedEx Forum, home of the NBA Grizzlies and the University of Memphis Tigers. He had a hand in South City, the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital expansion, Soulsville Charter School and Multipurpose Building, Central Station, many homes in Harbor Town, the University of Memphis Men's Basketball Training Center, AutoZone's headquarters and the FedEx World Technology Center in Collierville. In 2020, he won the prestigious Francis Gassner Award from the American Institute of Architects-- Memphis Chapter. Active in his Grace-St. Luke's Episcopal Church and its Vestry St. Columba outreach ministry in West Tennessee, Mr. Norcross was also a board member of the Boys & Girls Club of Memphis, Leadership Memphis, the Memphis Leadership Academy of Arkansas, Dean's Circle at Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design, and was a founding committee member of the Regional Memphis Design Center. I attended his service at Grace-St. Luke's on Saturday which was packed to the walls. I read the eulogy written by his children and will never look at butterflies again in the same way. I express my sincere condolences to his wife of 37 years, Jill, and their children Phoebe and Brandt, his colleagues and his many friends. He led a good life, but he left us too soon.
ORDERS FOR FRIDAY, JANUARY 19, 2024, THROUGH MONDAY, JANUARY 22, 2024
Cory A. Booker (Democrat, NJ) \u2014 2024-1-18

finally, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 3 p.m. on Monday, January 22; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of prgtoken proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; that upon the conclusion of morning business, the Senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the Koos nomination; further, that the cloture motions filed during today's session ripen at 5:30 p.m.
AUTHORIZING FULLY ELECTRONIC STAMPS
Chip Roy (Republican, TX) \u2014 2024-1-18

. Madam , such time as I may consume. prgtoken The American people are tired of getting a complete lack of representation from their Representatives. Nobody in this country looks at Congress and says: Wow. Heck of a job, guys and gals. Well done. prgtoken Who would do that? Would we do that? prgtoken By the way, it does not matter who is sitting in the 's seat or who has got the majority. We keep doing the same stupid stuff. prgtoken My colleagues on the other side of the aisle have no problem with wide-open borders endangering the people that I represent. None. My constituents are the ones left holding the bag, and the people of Texas are the ones left spending $12.5 billion. My people are the ones who have had six kids die from fentanyl poisoning in the school district that I represent. prgtoken It is not fun to smirk at that, is it? We are talking about dead children from fentanyl poisoning because of wide-open borders because of the policies of my colleagues who refuse to do anything about it. My colleagues won't do anything about the prgtoken wide-open borders. I will continue to speak to my colleagues.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Roger Marshall (Republican, KS) \u2014 2024-1-18

a reminder of two dates: a date in June when the Appropriations Committee did their job--they got all their appropriations bills done--and another date in November when we last worked on this on this floor through a minibus. prgtoken We asked for more time. We stand at the ready. We are begging to bring these bills to the floor. Let them see the light of day. Let us finish our job. But in the meantime, I believe that this CR is the best path for American citizens. prgtoken . Vote on Motion to Commit
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2024-1-18

. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Wyoming (Mr. Barrasso), the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Graham), the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Kennedy), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott), and the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley). prgtoken Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Missouri Mr. Hawley would have voted ``yea.''
AUTHORIZING FULLY ELECTRONIC STAMPS
Warren Davidson (Republican, OH) \u2014 2024-1-18

. Madam , I always tell people back home: Beware of bipartisanship. The most bipartisan thing in Washington, D.C is bankrupting our country, if not financially, morally. prgtoken As my colleague from Texas just highlighted, it is not just the spending; it is all the terrible policies that are attached to the spending. prgtoken We can tell by the way the time is structured, but it is bipartisan. It is 50/50 s and . One of the mottos in the first unit I was in in the Army was, ``Deeds Not Words.'' The words are so good. prgtoken I was down at the border with the and 60 of my colleagues, and we were going to fight. We were only going to fund a border that is secure. We were going to fund the government, but only if we secure the border. We were going to make the Senate a counteroffer, but by the time we could even get back to this town, our had surrendered to a four-corners deal, the very thing we said we wouldn't do. prgtoken It is the deeds that are the problem. If we were back in the minority, we would be united again. We would be opposed to this. We were just a year ago. We were opposed to it. The words were good, and the deeds were also good, but now when we have the chance to govern, it seems we have lost our resolve. prgtoken Who is getting hurt by this? The American people are getting hurt by this. prgtoken None of us promised to come here and do this. We promised, as s, things that are in conflict with the administration's promises, and the only way we are going to do that is to force the vote. prgtoken By going along with this, let's be clear, we are being buried. We are being buried by debt. We are being buried by crime. We are being buried by an invasion at our border, buried by fentanyl, buried by drugs, by suicide, by endless wars, by failing schools, by corruption. Frankly, it is a fatal overdose of government. I wish I could just wake up and it not be true, but it is.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
Tom Cotton (Republican, AR) \u2014 2024-1-18

after selected to be his Vice President in 2008, one newspaper columnist labeled him ``Tehran's favorite Senator.'' Well, Tehran's favorite Senator has now become Tehran's favorite President. prgtoken Since taking office, has taken every opportunity to enrich and empower Iran and its terrorist proxies. There is, perhaps, no greater single example of this than his obscene coddling of the Iranian-backed Yemeni terrorists known as the Houthis. prgtoken These barbarians with rockets have kidnapped, tortured, and murdered American citizens--along with shooting down American aircraft. They have attacked our allies and slaughtered Yemeni civilians. The Houthi motto isn't subtle: ``God is Great, Death to America, Death to Israel, A curse upon the Jews, Victory to Islam.'' And in case anyone missed it, they also put it on their flag. Yet in his first days in office, removed the Houthis from the list of foreign terrorist organizations. prgtoken The Houthis quickly rewarded this one-sided, unreciprocated generosity by launching a major military offensive against our friends in Saudi Arabia. At that point, could have simply admitted that he had made a mistake and redesignated the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization. He refused. prgtoken In the 2 years since, the Houthis raked in money, expanded their territorial control, and stockpiled Iranian-supplied weapons. Unencumbered by American terrorist designation, they gathered their strength and waited for an opportunity to live out their creed of, again, ``Death to America, Death to Israel, A curse upon the Jews.'' prgtoken After the October 7 atrocities in Israel, they saw that opportunity. Less than 2 weeks after the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the end of the Holocaust, the Houthis began launching missiles at the Jewish State. In November, the Houthis then began hijacking ships and launching missiles and drones at both civilian and U.S. naval vessels-- all in an attempt to put pressure on Israel and protect their terrorist brothers in Hamas. prgtoken Since November, the Houthis have attacked American and allied forces and international shipping an estimated 45 times, launching an estimated 31 missiles, 94 drones, and 1 drone ship. prgtoken Yet, the President and his team of Iran accomplices, appeasers, and accommodators stood by for a month and a half as these terrorists attacked with impunity. prgtoken When the administration finally did take action last week, its weak, pinprick airstrikes only took out a small fraction of the Houthis's offensive capabilities. Even the New York Times acknowledged in a headline that ``Much of Houthis' Offensive Ability Remains Intact After U.S.-Led Airstrikes.'' prgtoken The least this administration could do is to redesignate the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization. Yet refuses even to fix that mistake. prgtoken Americans are dead, but J
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Susan M. Collins (Republican, ME) \u2014 2024-1-18

I, too, urge our colleagues to reject this motion that calls for the Appropriations Committee to put forward a year-long continuing resolution for fiscal year 2024. prgtoken Adopting this motion would wipe out the work of the appropriations committee that led to 12 stand-alone bills being reported last summer with overwhelming bipartisan support. It would also lock in dangerously inadequate funding levels for our national security and lead to cuts in other vital programs serving our veterans, older Americans, low-income families. It would stall biomedical research, harm our farmers, and slow progress that we are making on our infrastructure. prgtoken A year-long CR would result in defense funding levels that are nearly $27 billion less than the President's request in the Fiscal Responsibility Act. According to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, under a year-long CR: Thousands of [defense] programs will be impacted with the most devastating impacts being to personnel, the nuclear triad modernization, shipbuilding and maintenance, munitions productions and replenishments, and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command priorities. prgtoken A year-long CR would result in our military being less ready to respond to the serious security threats around the globe. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to reject this motion and support the reasonable approach of completing our work.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2024-1-18

yesterday, the administration added the Houthis to the government's terrorist list in light of the group's sustained terrorist violence against U.S. military and commercial ships in the Red Sea. It might seem like the sensible response of a clear-eyed Commander in Chief, except that Iran-backed Houthi terror isn't new. For years, this group has made no secret of its aims. Here is their motto: God is great. Death to America. Death to Israel. Curse on the Jews. Victory for Islam. prgtoken Why on Earth did President remove the Houthis from the Terror Watchlist in the first place? And why did it take so long to admit that denying a reality of Iran-backed Houthi terror was a mistake? prgtoken It is good that the President finally mustered the fortitude to authorize strikes against the terrorists who threaten America. But just like its response to Putin's war against Ukraine, the administration's response to Iran-backed terrorism has been hesitant, half-measured, and openly conflicted over the risk of escalation. prgtoken It is Iran that should fear the cost of escalation, not the United States and our allies. Iran must fear that terror against America's interests will result in military responses against its interests; that its complicity in Houthi attacks on global shipping will produce devastating economic pressure from all across the free world; that continued terrorism, whether by proxies or by Iranian personnel themselves, will be met with swift and costly retribution. prgtoken It is all well and good for President to authorize yet another round of strikes against Houthi missiles, but having to do so multiple times in the span of a week is a pretty good indication that his initial effort did not exactly send the desired message to Tehran or its proxies. The world's most active state sponsor of terrorism is actually stepping up its violence against U.S. personnel in the Middle East precisely because it doesn't believe we have the resolve to respond with strength and impose serious costs. prgtoken And the chronic, compulsive effort to tie our hands only validates this assumption. It only encourages our adversaries to lash out with impunity. prgtoken We know exactly what an undeterred Iran looks like. After 3 years of the administration's desperate policy of conciliation, it is what we are experiencing right now. prgtoken Regardless of which corners of our politics are willing to acknowledge it, America cannot hope to deter aggression with weakness. We need to start investing seriously in the capabilities and capacity to meet the tasks at hand. We are facing an axis of connected threats that stretch from Moscow to Beijing and Tehran to Pyongyang. Our adversaries speak the language of strength. Americans can't afford not to be fluent. Economic Recovery prgtoken Now on another matter, this year, like last year, President i
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
Eric Schmitt (Republican, MO) \u2014 2024-1-18

I rise today to honor the extraordinary life of Ken Luttrell of St. Louis, a true American hero, on the occasion of his 100th birthday. prgtoken In the dark days that followed the attacks on Pearl Harbor, Mr. Luttrell answered his country's call, enlisting in the Marines and completing boot camp and radio training before shipping out to the Pacific. Sergeant Luttrell saw combat on the Marshall Islands and throughout the Pacific Islands and was part of the initial wave of marines landing on the shores of Iwo Jima. There, shrapnel from a Japanese shell tore through his lower face as he and his detachment set up their radios to coordinate the assault. prgtoken After numerous reconstructive surgeries, Mr. Luttrell returned to his home and family in St. Louis, and he has been a pillar of the community prgtoken ever since. His story--one of courage, strength, and resilience--is an example for us all, and I ask my Senate colleagues to join me in expressing our gratitude for his courageous service to our Nation and in celebrating Mr. Luttrell's 100th birthday.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Rand Paul (Republican, KY) \u2014 2024-1-18

today, we are gathered once again to kick the can down the road. We are gathered to continue spending money, not individually in appropriations bills and not with any real accountability for the money that is being spent but just to keep spending. But at the rate we are spending the money, we have accumulated a $34 trillion debt. We are accumulating debt at about $1 trillion every 3 months. prgtoken If you look at how we spend the money, about two-thirds of the money is spent on mandatory programs, and there are no votes on mandatory programs. They are on autopilot, growing at about 5 to 6 percent a year, but they consume two-thirds of the spending. So when we come before you and they say, ``We are going to vote on a budget; we are going to vote on spending,'' we are actually voting on only about 28 percent of the budget. That is called discretionary spending. About half of that is military, and half of it is nonmilitary. prgtoken Amongst that, they have this great agreement they came to. In the military, they decided we are going to increase the military by 3 percent. So this big chunk over here that is mandatory--we are not going to vote on it--is going up about 5 or 6 percent. Then we are going to vote on discretionary, but half of that is going up at 3 percent. prgtoken So, really, we are looking at about 14 percent of the budget and saying: Oh, we are going to try to do something. prgtoken You can eliminate the 14 percent of the budget, and it doesn't do anything to the debt. In fact, the debt equals the entire discretionary spending. prgtoken So when we vote on whether it is $1.5 trillion or $1.6 trillion or $1.7 trillion, it is all borrowed. The taxes that you pay essentially pay only for the entitlement programs. Everything else is borrowed. Why is that a big deal? Why does it make a big difference to the average American? Because that is why your grocery prices go up. That is why your gas goes up. It is why people can't afford houses and why interest rates are high. Why? Because the Federal Reserve buys your debt, prints money, and your dollars become worth less and less. That is what inflation is. prgtoken We are just days into the new year, and the Treasury Department has announced that the debt has surpassed $34 trillion. The situation is only getting worse. We are spending money and borrowing at about $1 trillion every 90 days. You know, I can remember before, you know, back in the eighties, when we were in the hundreds of billions of dollars. Now we are adding $1 trillion in 90 days. If that pace continues, that will amount to a mind-boggling $4 trillion added to the debt every single year. We are spending ourselves into oblivion. prgtoken Since last fall, the United States has been borrowing over $5 billion every day, over $220 million an hour, nearly $4 million every minute, and over $62,000 a second. This is literally out of control. We are destroying the dollar. We are creating