mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR
John McCain (Republican, AZ) \u2014 2017-2-13

I am proud to support Dr. David Shulkin's nomination for Secretary of Veterans Affairs. The Department of Veterans Affairs, VA, faces massive challenges in delivering care to our veterans, but I believe that Dr. Shulkin is well equipped for the task at hand. prgtoken Dr. Shulkin has committed to fully implementing the Veterans Choice Program as Secretary and will work to expand this program to provide a network that meets the needs of veterans, their families, and providers in the community--every veteran deserves access to care, whether that be at the VA or in the community. prgtoken Through the Veterans Choice Program, we have seen more than 7 million appointments made for veterans in their communities, a network expanded by 350,000 providers and over 1.5 million veterans that have benefitted from using the Choice Card. I will seek to build and expand upon this progress and look to Dr. Shulkin's support for legislation that would bring care in the community under an integrated and coordinated system that utilizes a Veterans Choice Card. This will ensure access to timely, flexible, and quality care that our veterans have earned and deserve. prgtoken I believe that Dr. Shulkin is the person that can repair the culture of the VA to focus on the veteran and restore honesty and accountability to the Department. I thank him for accepting this challenge to serve our Nation and look forward to working with him in the days ahead. prgtoken Thank you.
RECOGNIZING FANNIN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
Doug Collins (Republican, GA) \u2014 2017-2-13

I rise today to recognize the Fannin County Public Library and to commend its Food for Fines program. The Fannin County Public Library started this initiative a decade ago, and this year's program runs through the end of the month. Food for Fines is a smart, creative way to give back to the community. It allows individuals with overdue fines to donate non-perishable food items in lieu of a fee. For every food item donated, the library forgives one dollar of fines. prgtoken All of the donations from this food drive will go to support the Fannin County Family Connection. The program benefits individuals in need and library patrons alike. Last year the library estimated that it collected nearly $500 worth of non-perishable food items. Over the years, it has become commonplace for those who donate to do so in excess of their fine out of support for this community cause. prgtoken , the ongoing success of this program speaks to the investment that the Fannin County Public Library staff and library patrons have made in their community. It is a privilege to represent such civic-minded individuals and to recognize their service to their neighbors. The Fannin County Public Library's Food for Fines program is an example of the inclusive service I see throughout Northeast Georgia.
STANDING FOR A STRONG AND SOVEREIGN MACEDONIA
David A. Trott (Republican, MI) \u2014 2017-2-13

I rise today to underscore my support of a strong and sovereign Macedonia. The nation of Macedonia has been a critical partner in advancing U.S. national security efforts around the world. Furthermore, the Macedonian diaspora in the United States has been a critical part of our community and has contributed to the diversity and advancement of our entire nation. As co-chair of the Congressional Macedonia and Macedonian-Americans Caucus and Representative for Michigan's 11th district, the Macedonian people in Southeast Michigan are a vibrant and esteemed part of our community. A sovereign and strong Macedonia and Macedonian people serves to benefit our mutual interests and we must support, not undermine, our important ally.
HONORING INVESTMENTS IN RECRUITING AND EMPLOYING AMERICAN MILITARY VETERANS ACT OF 2017
Paul Cook (Republican, CA) \u2014 2017-2-13

. I thank Mr. Bilirakis for yielding. prgtoken , as a combat veteran, I am deeply concerned that the men and women of our Armed Forces continue to struggle to find jobs upon their return to civilian life. These individuals have not only displayed great courage in serving their country, but have acquired certain skills that make them ideal candidates for employment. prgtoken I am not going to go over many of the things that were said about how the program is an incentive, as I think that has already been covered. I just want to underscore the fact that this is a problem. It is not a new problem. You can have the statistics, but one has to ask oneself: Why do we have a lower percentage of veterans who are getting the jobs? prgtoken As was already mentioned, I am a product of the Vietnam war; and the veterans who were getting out there, a lot of people were afraid to hire them. They didn't know whether they would be recalled back into the service, and they didn't know whether they had post-traumatic stress disorder. They were not going to take a chance on them, and that was sad. That was many, many years ago, but the stats don't lie. prgtoken I am very, very supportive. I get passionate about these programs because the bottom line is we have to make sure that we take care of the troops, and this is a bill that, with the cooperation of private industry, has those incentives built in there. I am optimistic. We had bipartisan support the last time. We went all the way up there and were waiting the last time for the Senate--holding our breath. Everybody knows you don't always get what you want. I am not going to give up and neither will the people who have been supporting this bill because we are all very, very passionate about veterans. prgtoken I thank Chairman Roe. I thank Ranking Member Walz for his great support and military service. I thank Representative Tulsi Gabbard for, once again, being the original cosponsor of this important legislation and for always being there for the veterans and the military. I also thank Congressman Bilirakis for his great support. prgtoken Once again, this passed out of the House last November and had unanimous support. I urge my colleagues to once again vote in favor of this bill.
PERSONAL EXPLANATION
Lynn Jenkins (Republican, KS) \u2014 2017-2-13

I was absent from Roll Call votes 86 and 87 on the evening of February 13, 2017. I would have voted in favor of H.R. 244 which encourages the hiring and contributes to the well-being of our veterans, as well as provide community and charitable services supporting the veteran community. Lastly, I would have voted in favor of H.R. 974 which would boost veteran employment as the VA would be directed to give preference to organizations that employ a higher percentage of full-time employees when awarding contracts. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 86 and YEA on Roll Call No. 87.
Nomination of Neil Gorsuch (Executive Session)
Orrin G. Hatch (Republican, UT) \u2014 2017-2-13

we are currently in the midst of the longest transitional leadership gap at the Department of Treasury in our Nation's history. The Senate has never let this much time go without a Treasury Secretary. In fact, the Senate has never left Treasury without a confirmed Secretary in between administrations for this long. Yet, despite the obvious need to fill this position, we have had to deal with continual and pointless delays, courtesy of some of our colleagues. prgtoken I will not begrudge any Senator for taking advantage of the privileges offered to them under the rules of the Senate; however, I think we have ample reason to question some of our colleagues' judgment and priorities with regard to how we have dealt with the nomination of Steven Mnuchin to the Office of Treasury Secretary. prgtoken Let's get the obvious points out of the way. Mr. Mnuchin has 30 years' experience working in a variety of capacities in the financial sector. He has experience managing large and complicated private-sector enterprises and in negotiating difficult compromises and making tough decisions--and being accountable for those decisions. He has the support of a number of key organizations and associations within the finance industry, and experts across the ideological spectrum have endorsed his nomination. prgtoken Long story short: Under any objective standard, Mr. Mnuchin has ample experience, credentials, and qualifications for this important position. Yet my colleagues have done all they can under the rules-- even to the point of casting aside some longstanding customs and traditions of the Senate--in order to delay his confirmation. prgtoken I will not relive the entire chain of events that got this nomination through the Finance Committee, bringing us to this point. For now, I would urge my colleagues to look fairly at the record. In every case, as the committee processed his nomination, Mr. Mnuchin responded to questions and allegations with full and complete answers and demonstrated no signs of acting or responding in bad faith toward the committee or its members. prgtoken People are free, I suppose, to walk into the confirmation process with an assumption of bad faith. But throughout my time in the Senate-- and keep in mind, I have been here a long time--that isn't usually how we operate around here. prgtoken My colleagues on the other side have put forward a number of claims and allegations about Mr. Mnuchin. They have essentially thrown everything, including the kitchen sink, at this nominee in a desperate attempt to block his confirmation. Well, so far, nothing has worked. That is because none of the allegations my colleagues have raised can withstand even a modest amount of scrutiny. But that hasn't stopped some of them from trying. prgtoken I have found it particularly interesting to see my friends raise concerns about matters that did not bother them in the least when it came to voting for ic
WORKING TO INTEGRATE NETWORKS GUARANTEEING MEMBER ACCESS NOW ACT
David P. Roe (Republican, TN) \u2014 2017-2-13

such time as I may consume. prgtoken , I rise today and urge all Members to support H.R. 512, as amended, the WINGMAN Act. prgtoken First, I want to say a special thanks to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis), our colleagues, for introducing the WINGMAN Act. This bill will help Members cut through the red tape and help constituents who have applied for benefits from VA. prgtoken Isn't that why we are here, to help our constituents? prgtoken The problem is that when a constituent calls one of our offices to ask about the status of a claim for benefits, the only thing we can do is write VA and wait for the VA to respond. I know I get very frustrated, and I am sure my colleagues do as well, with how long it takes for the VA to get back to us. The WINGMAN Act provides a simple solution. The bill allows designated, permanent, full-time congressional staffers to look up the status of a claim on VA's database, but only if the veteran has given the staffer permission. Staffers would have read-only access to VA databases, meaning they wouldn't be able to add or remove any information. prgtoken Passing H.R. 512, as amended, would allow Members to help constituents who simply want to understand the status of their claim for benefits. I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 512, as amended. prgtoken , .
IN HONOR OF JOHN S. SEDLAK
Barbara Comstock (Republican, VA) \u2014 2017-2-13

I rise to acknowledge my constituent, Mr. John S. Sedlak, who will be departing from his position as Technical Advisor in the Office of Commercial Vessel Compliance this month after a 20-year career of distinguished public service. Mr. Sedlak has made tremendous contributions to his community and country as both an active duty serviceman in the U.S. Coast Guard and as a civilian employee. prgtoken Mr. Sedlak graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1974, beginning a long career in active duty service that included assignments to a Coast Guard Cutter, multiple Marine Safety Offices, and a Staff Engineer position at the Coast Guard Headquarters. After serving as Staff Engineer, Mr. Sedlak earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering at the Naval Post Graduate School of Monterey, California and served his final tour of active duty as the Electrical Branch Chief handling operations at the Coast Guard Marine Safety Center. prgtoken Following his departure from active duty service, Mr. Sedlak assumed his current position as Technical Advisor in the Office of Commercial Vessel Compliance in 2002. As one of only three Technical Advisors in CVC and an internationally recognized expert in his field, Mr. Sedlak developed national policy in a number of passenger ships and offshore vessel areas. While developing these policies, Mr. Sedlak routinely collaborated with other Federal Agencies and represented the Coast prgtoken Guard in international meetings and conferences. prgtoken Mr. Sedlak has been an integral member of the U.S. Coast Guard throughout his career, and his contributions in both active duty service and as a civilian employee are greatly appreciated by all members of the district and community. prgtoken At this moment, , I ask that my colleagues join me in extending our sincerest thanks to Mr. Sedlak for his service to our nation and all the work he has done for the CVC.
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR
Johnny Isakson (Republican, GA) \u2014 2017-2-13

I want to make a statement that has not been heard much around these Halls or these Chambers in a couple of years. But on February 7--this month--the Veterans' Affairs Committee reported by a vote of 17 to 0 the name of David Shulkin to be the next Secretary of Veterans' Administration. That is a unanimous vote. Nine s and eight --everybody voted for this man to be Secretary of the VA. I am going to ask each Member in the Chamber today: Let's do it as an entire body and find one person, one thing we agree upon. prgtoken They are not veterans or veterans; they are American veterans who went to the battlefield and fought for us. It is time we fought for them. prgtoken Dr. Shulkin is the right man at the right time for the Veterans' Administration. On March 15, 2015, we hired him to come in and take over and be Under Secretary of Veterans Health. The President looked around to find the best man to run the VA and found him in David Shulkin. prgtoken David Shulkin is committed to the following: fixing the problems at the Veterans' Administration, making sure the Choice Program works, making sure every veteran gets the care they deserve, the care we all want them to get, and seeing to it they get it from us. prgtoken I am going to ask each Member to cast their vote today for David Shulkin but also cast their vote for our veterans. This is a time for us to send a message to them: We don't want to privatize the VA. We don't want to reorganize the VA. We want to make the VA work, to give our veterans access to every bit of care they can possibly get, and follow in the line of the great leaders who have been in the Veterans' Administration before. prgtoken I am very pleased to serve with Jon Tester of Montana as my ranking member. We have worked together as a team-- and s-- to make this happen. prgtoken to Jon Tester of Montana on the nomination of David Shulkin to be Secretary of the VA.
TRIBUTE TO TIM TEBOW
Marco Rubio (Republican, FL) \u2014 2017-2-13

finally, on a separate topic, I did want to take this moment to recognize someone I am proud to represent in the Senate. He is a fellow Floridian and a constituent by the name of Tim Tebow. By now, a lot of people know I am proud to be a University of Florida alum. So as a proud Gator fan, I have been rooting for Tim Tebow since he first stepped foot on campus in 2006. prgtoken He went on to win two national championships, becoming the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy, and in the process he rewrote the record books. When I was the of the Florida House of Representatives, we hosted the Gators championship team. One of my favorite memories of my time in State government was catching a pass from Tim Tebow--No. 15--on the floor of the Florida House. It was not a great pass, but I caught it. The rules are a little different in the Senate. I wish it were OK to throw passes in here, but it was a great pleasure to be able to do that. prgtoken From the moment Tim arrived in Gainesville, we football fans saw that he was as good as advertised on the field, but we also started learning that as good a football player as he is, he is an even more extraordinary human being off the field. prgtoken He is a man to much has been given, whether it was the chance to be born to two great parents, an incredible support network, and of course God. He has been given much, and he has given back even more. We saw this once again this past Friday, when the Tim Tebow Foundation held its Night to Shine Initiative, an annual prom for special needs students from all over the world. prgtoken All told, 375 churches participated as Night to Shine hosts in all 50 States, 11 countries, and on 6 continents. There were 150,000 volunteers, and 75,000 special needs students were the guests of honor at events across the world. I encourage those of you here today or watching this or watching this in the future to Google search Night to Shine, to visit Tim Tebow's Facebook page, or to see the hashtag ``Night to Shine'' on Twitter. There you will see all of the photos that have been shared from Friday night's events. You will see 75,000 young people with special needs having the time of their lives. You will see volunteers and teachers and especially parents overcome with joy and emotion at the sight of their children feeling as loved, as important, and as special as each and every one of them truly is. prgtoken Personally, I was very moved. So I wanted to take a few minutes this evening to recognize Tim Tebow, the Tebow Foundation, the churches and the volunteers who participated, and all of the incredible students and parents who inspire us every day. I know I speak on behalf of the entire Gator Nation--I should say the entire State of Florida--in saying that we are proud of Tim. We are even prouder of all he has done and continues to do. prgtoken With that, , .
TRIBUTE TO DR. JEFFERY P. HOLLAND
Thad Cochran (Republican, MS) \u2014 2017-2-13

I wish to commend Dr. Jeffery P. Holland for 37 years of service to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. prgtoken Dr. Holland will soon retire as the Director of the Research and Development and Director of the Corps Engineer Research Center, ERDC, headquartered in Vicksburg, MS. He is capping his career with a highly successful management term leading one of the most diverse research organizations in the world--an organization that includes seven laboratories in four States with more than 2,000 employees, including more than 1,200 Federal engineers and scientists. prgtoken As director of R&D and chief scientist for the Corps since 2010, Dr. Holland has effectively promoted its research missions, including warfighter support, military installations, the environment, water resources, and information technology. His work has enhanced our Nation's knowledge and sparked innovation related to military and civilian missions of the Department of Defense and other agencies. prgtoken His leadership in research and development led to numerous achievements, among them increased soldier survivability and improved unit protection in combat zones. He distinguished himself within the Senior Executive Service with his work to establish excellence in human capital benchmarks, to develop an enterprise knowledge management and technology transfer plan for the Corps, and to develop a science and technology initiative to improve Defense Department acquisition. prgtoken Over his long career, Dr. Holland earned a reputation as a strong leader and coalition builder, who empowered thousands of engineers and scientists to find new ways to solve problems. His career has resulted in significant and lasting contributions to the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense, the Vicksburg community, and the Nation. prgtoken His distinguished tenure and outstanding accomplishments are in keeping with the highest standards of civilian service and reflect great credit upon him, the Department of the Army, and the Department of Defense. prgtoken I am pleased to commend Dr. Holland for his many years of service and to wish him well in the years ahead.
CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION MONTH
Glenn Thompson (Republican, PA) \u2014 2017-2-13

February is Career and Technical Education Month. prgtoken As co-chairman of the Career and Technical Education Caucus, and as a senior member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, I have long been aware of the importance of CTE programs that provide learners of all ages with career-ready skills. prgtoken From agriculture to the arts, from marketing to manufacturing, CTE programs work to develop America's most valuable resource--its people. prgtoken CTE is taught in a range of settings, from high schools and area technical centers, to technical and 2-year community colleges. In total, 12.5 million prgtoken high school and college students are enrolled in CTE programs across the Nation. prgtoken Last Congress, I was proud to introduce the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act. This bill, which passed the House by a vote of 405-5, aimed to close the skills gap by modernizing the Federal investment in CTE programs and connecting educators with industry stakeholders. prgtoken I look forward to reintroducing similar legislation this Congress and I remain committed to working with the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin), my CTE Caucus co-chair and good friend, to improve our Nation's career and technical education system.