mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
NATIONAL DIRECT SUPPORT PROFESSIONALS RECOGNITION WEEK
Benjamin L. Cardin (Democrat, MD) \u2014 2022-9-15

I rise today to mark the week beginning on September 11, 2022, as National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week. Direct support professionals assist millions of individuals living with disabilities to perform a wide range of prgtoken essential daily tasks such as meal preparation, transportation, and medication management. Direct support professionals provide critical home- and community-based services--HCBS--that allow individuals to stay connected with their communities. prgtoken As direct support professionals stepped up during the pandemic and provided care while facing increased personal risks as frontline workers, many faced long-standing difficulties such as inadequate wages and benefits. These challenges disproportionately affect racial and ethnic minorities, who comprise 62 percent of the home care workforce, which includes direct support professionals. These issues have led to high turnover and vacancy rates, contributing to a growing shortage of direct support professionals. prgtoken Even as this shortage persists and millions of jobs in the field remain open, demand for direct support professionals is expected to increase by at least 1.4 million new direct care jobs by 2026, according to PHI. An insufficient number of direct support professionals will likely mean longer wait lists for individuals seeking assistance, force providers to turn away new referrals, or discontinue programs and services. These circumstances hurt quality of care and put further stress on family caregivers. prgtoken Under President 's leadership, we have taken steps to invest in home- and community-based services by building up the home care workforce and expanding access to care. I am proud to have voted for the American Rescue Plan Act, which--among many critical provisions-- included $12.7 billion for HCBS. I am also a cosponsor of the Better Care Better Jobs Act, which would build on the funding from American Rescue Plan Act by continuing enhanced Medicaid funding for HCBS for States that expand access to these services and invest in the workforce, such as the direct support professionals. prgtoken It is more important than ever that we take the time to recognize the work of those who choose to be direct support professionals. I would like to congratulate two Marylanders who were recognized this year for their work as direct support professionals: Maria Swift of Penn-Mar Humans Services received the American Network of Community Options and Resources' National Direct Support Professional of the Year Award and Tammy Wright of Consumer Direct Care Network received the Maryland State award. Maria and Tammy are making an enormous difference and I appreciate their service to others. I would also like to thank Senators Collins, Blumenthal, Brown, Casey, Kaine, King, Klobuchar, Menendez, Smith, Van Hollen, and Warren for joining me in showing our appreciation for direct support professionals acro
PREVENTING A PATRONAGE SYSTEM ACT OF 2021
Al Green (Democrat, TX) \u2014 2022-9-15

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding time, and I say to the gentlewoman that it has been a preeminent privilege to serve with her for lo these many years; indeed, superlative pleasure. I miss you already. Thank you for what you are doing. prgtoken I am grateful to my colleague, Chairman Connolly. I see this as another example of his legislative brilliance: to make a decision that will allow people to succeed on their merits or fail on their demerits, to take the political patronage out of the civil service system. prgtoken The civil service system functions efficaciously across the length and breadth of this country. Police departments and fire departments across the country that have civil servants provide the institutional knowledge. They have the expertise you don't want to just throw out all the best of the best that have been working there and understand what the system is all about. prgtoken Every new person who comes in would like to bring in people to support his or her political philosophy. I support your having people to work with you, but I don't support destroying a system that allows us to have the institutional knowledge to keep the government functioning efficaciously. prgtoken This patronage system that has developed under F has been a failure, and it is little more than fatuous folly that will prove to be harmful to this country. prgtoken , I support H.R. 302, and I beg that my colleagues would do so, as well.
Railway Labor Management Dispute (Executive Session)
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2022-9-15

as of 12:01 tomorrow morning, our Nation's transportation system was set to come to a screeching halt. It now sounds like prgtoken we have a bit of a reprieve, but we still have a threat. prgtoken Since 2019, railroads and unions have been negotiating a new contract. Two months ago, President appropriately appointed members of what is called the Presidential Emergency Board. This Board recommended the largest pay increase in industry history at 24 percent, in addition to an annual bonus and healthcare changes. prgtoken President promised to be the ``most pro-union president'' in history, but even President 's recommendations weren't enough for these unions. A few unions continued to hold out and, in fact, took us to the verge of a nationwide strike. prgtoken A railroad strike would really plunge us back into the supply chain issues that have just now started to somewhat improve. These trains that would be stopped actually carry the food we eat, the gas for our tanks, and the energy that heats our homes. prgtoken Already, I am hearing from grain elevator operators in my State that they are having trouble transporting their grain. Hazardous cargo, like the chlorine cities need to purify drinking water, stopped moving earlier this week. Amtrak has canceled long-distance routes. Maybe they are going to be up and running now, but at least they were getting ready to stop. prgtoken But what I just described is the tip of the iceberg unless these unions agree to a long-term deal. The last thing we need is for grain shipments to grind to a halt right as farmers are going to the fields to harvest their grain. Iowa corn and soybeans can't feed the world if they are stuck on the farm or in the local elevator. prgtoken That is why I cosponsored Senator Burr's joint resolution to prevent all of this. The resolution would mandate that both sides adopt the recommendations of President 's emergency Board. Then, of course, if we pass that, the trains would keep running. prgtoken We are just learning about a tentative deal that would let unions back away from the cliff. If they don't, then Congress must step in and pass the joint resolution to keep our economy going. The alternative is unacceptable. prgtoken . prgtoken .
HONORING LES CLARK II ON HIS SELECTION AS KERN COUNTY FAIR PERSON OF THE YEAR FOR 2022
Kevin McCarthy (Republican, CA) \u2014 2022-9-15

. Madam , I rise today, along with my colleague, Congressman David Valadao, to honor Les Clark on his selection as the 2022 Kern County Fair Person of the Year. This significant achievement builds upon Les' incredible legacy of 50 years of community service, which has been recognized by the City of Taft, the Kern County Board of Supervisors, and the State of California. prgtoken Nearly five years ago, Congressman David Valadao and I rose to recognize and pay tribute to Les on his retirement as Executive Vice President of the Independent Oil Producers' Agency after 37 years of dedicated service to hardworking local oil producers. In that statement, we spoke to Les' character, drive, knowledge of the Kern oil patch, and vision for our community. And most importantly, we attested to his life of service, which has never stopped, even after his official retirement. That is why Congressman Valadao and I are proud to see Les being honored at this year's Kern County Fair. prgtoken Dating back to 1916, the Kern County Fair has a rich history that cuts across generations and brings Californians together to celebrate all Kern County has to offer. During the 12 days of festivities, community members have the opportunity to play carnival games, eat barbeque, and listen to lively music, including the famous ``Bakersfield Sound.'' It is also where our next generation of agricultural producers exhibit a variety of their livestock showings, demonstrating their husbandry skills. With Les being recognized as Person of the Year at this year's fair, his name will forever be tied to the Kern County Fair's rich history and all that it represents in our community and across the Central Valley. prgtoken On behalf of the 23rd and 21st Congressional Districts of California, Congressman Valadao and I would like to thank Les for the impact he has made and continues to make on countless individuals, both professionally and privately, and congratulate him on receiving this special recognition. We wish him and his family, including his wife, June, two daughters, Tessa and Kerrie, son ``Little Les,'' ten grandchildren, Arizona, Ayana, Cash, Darius, Easton, Keylan, Logun, Sierra, Tanisha, and Willow, and six great grandchildren, Zaria, Ivy, Koast, River, Luka, and Kaisley the very best as they celebrate at this year's fair.
Inflation (Executive Calendar)
John Hoeven (Republican, ND) \u2014 2022-9-15

I rise today to discuss the harmful economic consequences Americans are seeing from President 's reckless tax-and-spend agenda. Earlier this week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the latest Consumer Price Index figures for the month of August, showing that inflation increased 8.3 percent compared to August 2021. Inflation has now exceeded 8 percent for 6 straight months. This persistent high inflation is causing price increases for American families at the grocery store, the gas pump, and for basic housing needs, leaving many Americans struggling to make ends meet. prgtoken Rather than getting government out of the way, increasing domestic energy production, securing our border, and taking meaningful action to reduce inflation, the administration is instead doubling down on its failed economic policies. Gas prices are $1.34 per gallon higher than when President took office, and diesel fuel prices are even higher, at nearly $2.40 per gallon more than January 2021. A gallon of diesel now costs more than $5 a gallon. prgtoken Yet, last month, as followup to the massive $2 trillion spending package from March 2021 that fueled the inflationary fire we are now dealing with, jammed through another package on a party-line vote, a tax-and-spend bill that imposes new energy taxes and Green New Deal-style subsidies that will only worsen our energy crisis and weaken our Nation's economic and national security. prgtoken Ironically, the so-called Inflation Reduction Act does nothing to reduce inflation. Analysis by economists at Penn Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, the Federal Reserve, Moody's Analytics, the Congressional Budget Office, and others, all agree that this bill will do nothing to help reduce inflation. prgtoken Meanwhile, the cost of food at the grocery store has increased 13.5 percent over the last 12 months--the largest 12-month increase since March 1979. Yet the administration has done nothing to help alleviate these inflationary price increases on Americans. prgtoken This week, we neared the brink of another inflationary supply chain disaster as railroad unions threatened to go on strike. Obviously, shutting down freight rail movement throughout the country would be a huge disruption to prgtoken our economy. It cannot be overstated how significant a rail strike would be to our national supply chain. With fall harvest, particularly for my State, that is a huge concern, and it is vitally important that we avoid a rail strike. prgtoken On the energy front, North Dakota is a huge provider of energy for this Nation. So it is very important. Whether it is our energy producers or energy producers across this country, we need to empower our domestic energy production. We also need to get our debt and deficit under control. We need to help our farmers and ranchers produce the highest quality, lowest cost food supply in the world. We need to addr
Inflation (Executive Session)
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2022-9-15

the August inflation numbers came out prgtoken this week, and they weren't good. Inflation was even higher than expected. It was very clear that soaring prices are likely to continue for quite a while, but as usual, it doesn't seem to concern the one bit. prgtoken The President was asked Tuesday if he was concerned about August's even-worse-than-expected inflation report. prgtoken His answer? ``No, I'm not.'' prgtoken It was just one more tone-deaf moment for the President and the . prgtoken On Tuesday, the President and the gathered at the White House to congratulate themselves for having passed their so-called Inflation Reduction Act, a bill that will do nothing--nothing--to reduce inflation. That is not just my opinion. That was the conclusion of the nonpartisan Penn Wharton Budget Model and of the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, who referred to the bill as the ``so-called Inflation Reduction Act'' on the Senate floor while admitting it would do nothing to solve our Nation's inflation crisis. prgtoken But that didn't stop the from celebrating yesterday. For most of us, of course, it is difficult to understand what there was to celebrate. Leaving aside the issue of the 40-year-high inflation, we already know that the bill will also fall short in another respect--on deficit reduction. prgtoken The ' claims that the bill would provide meaningful deficit reduction were always somewhat dubious, but even granting the ' rosiest assumptions, President wiped out any deficit reduction when he announced his massive student loan giveaway 8 days--8 days--after the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law. prgtoken So no inflation reduction, no deficit reduction. Oh, one other thing: The Inflation Reduction Act will drive up energy bills for Americans. prgtoken So the question is: What was there to celebrate? prgtoken Well, for the , the Inflation Reduction Act marked a chance to finally push through some of their far-left, Green New Deal fantasies, things like electric vehicle tax credits to help wealthy Americans buy electric cars, more than $60 billion--$60 billion--for ``environmental justice priorities,'' including $1.9 billion for things like identifying gaps in tree canopy coverage, and the list goes on. So I think the are pretty satisfied with themselves over finally jamming through elements of their Green New Deal agenda. prgtoken Then, of course, they succeeded in extending increased Care subsidies that will push Americans off of private healthcare plans and into government-run care. prgtoken Then--then--there are the tax hikes. The current ic leader once said, ``You don't want to take money out of the economy when the economy is shrinking,'' like it has in the previous two quarters. But those days are gone. For the , raising taxes has become an article of faith. prgtoken And it goe
HONORING KATHERIN ELAM
H. Morgan Griffith (Republican, VA) \u2014 2022-9-15

. Madam , I rise today to recognize Katherin Elam of Salem, Virginia, who over the years has been a consistent positive influence in Salem and the Roanoke region, on her upcoming retirement from the presidency of Junior Achievement of Southwest Virginia. During a 24-year career at the organization, Ms. Elam has been a tremendous positive presence for young people in the Roanoke Valley. prgtoken Junior Achievement seeks to prepare students for their futures by offering lessons in financial literacy, work and career readiness, and entrepreneurship. Since 1998, Ms. Elam led this volunteer organization's efforts in the Roanoke Valley. In cooperation with local teachers, Junior Achievement reaches into classrooms to offer guidance and support as students set goals and plan to attain them. Ms. Elam has grown and maintained a volunteer corps and networks that connect students to the knowledge and skills they need to thrive. prgtoken Over Ms. Elam's time as president of Junior Achievement of Southwest Virginia, it worked with 220,000 local students. That number is incredible, but for the students who have made progress toward their dreams over the course of her long and fruitful career, Ms. Elam's true impact is beyond measure. I wish her all the best as she concludes her service at Junior Achievement of Southwest Virginia and pursues her own goals in the future.
PREVENTING A PATRONAGE SYSTEM ACT OF 2021
Chip Roy (Republican, TX) \u2014 2022-9-15

I listened to my colleagues talking about the politicization of how we deal with Federal employees. The fact is, the bureaucracy has never been more politicized than it is today. prgtoken This bill is the Federal bureaucrat protection act. That is what this is. Let's be a hundred percent clear. This is about leftists in this body wanting to protect the entrenched leftists in the bureaucracy, undermining the will of the American people every single day. That is what it is about. prgtoken We don't want to allow the people who are running the agencies to go in and fire people who are either not doing their job, completely violating their ethics at the desk, or, frankly, are going right against the law or the will of the American people. prgtoken Look no further than the Department of Homeland Security, which is turning a blind eye to our border. Look no further than an FBI that is targeting parents for daring to challenge school boards. That is what your Federal bureaucracy is doing. prgtoken All of these charges being levied, saying, oh, this is about hate, going after Federal employees--I am a former Federal prosecutor and worked with the Department of Justice. My father worked in the Federal Government for 20 years right here. But I know why the prgtoken gentleman, my friend, Mr. Beyer, was here: Because the richest counties in America are right here in Fairfax, Loudoun County, Montgomery County, feeding right off of the back of the beast that is the Federal Government, the bureaucrats that are stepping over the will of the American people. prgtoken If we dare put forward legislation, like I have, to say that those bureaucrats should be able to be fired at will--for example, how about the HUD employee caught using his work email for private business deals, the postal employee arrested for bringing cocaine into the workplace, and the EPA employee who spent years viewing pornography for 2 to 6 hours a workday? prgtoken The fact is, only 25 percent of Federal supervisors felt they could successfully remove an employee, while 78 percent reported that previous efforts to remove an employee had no effect. Only 3 percent of whistleblower complaints are substantiated 175 of 16,000 discrimination complaints were substantiated in 2019. prgtoken My colleagues on the other side of the aisle want to preserve an entrenched bureaucracy to step over the will of the people so that this town can decide the well-being of the American people. That is what it is about. prgtoken It is about power. It is about the entrenchment of power among bureaucrats. My colleagues know it, and that is why they are trying to advance this legislation.
BIDENFLATION IS A TAX ON ALL AMERICANS
Joe Wilson (Republican, SC) \u2014 2022-9-15

inflation is at the highest in over 40 years. Yet, by passing the inflation expansion act, and the are further plunging American families into debt and destroying jobs. prgtoken Signed into law by President , the Congressional Budget Office reports this bill will increase the deficit through 2026 and cost working families an additional $60 billion. prgtoken Families are paying 14 percent more at the grocery store, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics--the largest 1-year jump since 1979. Eggs are up 40 percent. Milk is up 17 percent. Bread is up 16 percent. prgtoken Since took office, inflation has surged 13 percent, while wages have only risen 8 percent over the same period. The inflation crisis has cost the average American worker over $3,000 in annual income. prgtoken flation is a tax on all Americans. prgtoken In conclusion, God bless our troops who successfully protected America for 20 years as the global war on terrorism moves from a safe haven in Afghanistan to America. prgtoken God bless victory for Ukraine.
INFLATION
Ben Sasse (Republican, NE) \u2014 2022-9-15

first, I would like to associate myself with the comments of the Senator from Oklahoma and thank him for all of the work he has done on this. prgtoken The Abraham Accords are really something to celebrate, something that we should be building on. And there is not a lot of good news right now on a whole bunch of scores, and this is worth celebrating. So commendations on your resolution. prgtoken Something we shouldn't be celebrating is inflation, and I wasn't invited, but it looks like there was one heck of a party this week at the White House. prgtoken In case folks missed it, President , Majority Leader Schumer, Pelosi, and others gathered on the south lawn of the White House on Tuesday afternoon to clink champagne glasses and celebrate the so-called Inflation Reduction Act, passed along straight party lines last month. James Taylor even flew in for the festivities. prgtoken But at the same time that Washington politicians were patting themselves on the back, here is actual reality--not Orwellian rhetoric, not sort of made-up names for legislation to spend hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars--here is actual reality: Americans are getting slapped in the face with yet another month of bad news. Core inflation grew another six-tenths of a percent just in the month of August, defying even the most pessimistic estimations and analyses heading into those reporting numbers. prgtoken Both the Dow and the S&P had their worst day since the very arrival of COVID. prgtoken Consumer prices are now up 8.3 percent for the year, but it is worse than that for median-income households in America. Grocery prices are 13 percent more expensive this middle of September than they were the last middle of September. prgtoken How do you think about what 13 percent inflation looks like? Here is the way I explained it to my kids: You know, if a year ago today, you went to the grocery store checkout line and you had $100 in your pocket and you had a cart full of groceries and you paid your $100 for the $100 of groceries, if you showed up today at the checkout line at the grocery store with the exact same cart and the exact same hundred bucks, you would then have to awkwardly and in an embarrassed way, in front of the people behind you in line, say: I have to figure out how to take $13 of stuff off this checkout line because the $100 that I had last year that bought $100 of food only buys $87 of food right now. That is what 13 percent inflation means. prgtoken Even CNN had to admit that the White House's timing was awkward, calling the event ``a bizarre split-screen moment,'' with President taking a victory lap with a so-called Inflation Reduction Act while in the real world, inflation was tanking markets. That was actually what was happening on Tuesday. On air, the CNN anchor suggested it ``feels a little hard to be celebratory.'' That is a kind of awkward, timid way to tell the truth. prgtoken Lots