mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
ORDERS FOR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022
Margaret Wood Hassan (Democrat, NH) \u2014 2022-3-22

finally, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m Wednesday, March 23; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of 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 resume consideration of the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 282, H.R. 4521, America COMPETES Act, postcloture; further, that the vote on the motion to proceed occur at 10:30 a.m.; finally, that if any nominations are confirmed during Wednesday's session of the Senate, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's actions.
AMERICA CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR MANUFACTURING, PRE-EMINENCE IN TECHNOLOGY, AND ECONOMIC STRENGTH ACT OF 2022--MOTION TO PROCEED-- Continued
Sherrod Brown (Democrat, OH) \u2014 2022-3-22

for generations, manufacturing was the lifeblood of communities across Ohio and throughout the country. It was heavily unionized, and the jobs paid well. It is not a coincidence that those two things go together. These jobs allowed generations of Americans to build a middle-class life. prgtoken I walked the halls at Mansfield Senior High School and Johnny Appleseed Junior High School with the sons and daughters of steelworkers and ironworkers and carpenters and machinists and auto workers and electricians. Workers, the parents of kids in my school-- those workers--innovated on the shop floor. They propelled our economy to new heights. They allowed us to lead the world in developing new industries. prgtoken But Ohioans know all too well what happened next. Beginning in the 1970s and the 1980s, we stopped making things in our country. prgtoken Look at places like my hometown in Mansfield, OH. It is an industrial city of about 50,000 people, halfway between Cleveland and Columbus. Companies like Westinghouse, Tappan Stove, Ohio Brass, and General Motors closed down, one after another, after another. prgtoken Go to any town in Ohio, and people can name a similar list. They will measure, oftentimes, their local history in lost plants and lost jobs. prgtoken All over America, companies were moving production elsewhere in the name of efficiency. ``Efficiency'' was business speak for lower wages. Corporate America always wanted cheaper labor wherever they could find it. prgtoken First, they went to anti-union, anti-worker, low-wage States, often in the South. Then, when those wages weren't low enough, they moved overseas, first to Mexico and then to China. prgtoken When those companies moved out, they weren't replaced by new investment. The market fundamentalists would talk about creative destruction, but it wasn't followed by any construction, creative or otherwise. prgtoken That corporate greed was aided by decades of underinvestment, by bad trade policies, which these corporations lobbied this body for-- successfully, unfortunately--in NAFTA, PNTR with China, and the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Then it was also followed by even worse tax policy, which these special interests also lobbied this institution for. prgtoken It all drove production overseas. It left us relying on other countries, too often our economic competitors. It exposed us to supply shocks. It gutted--ultimately gutted--the middle class in Mansfield, OH, and communities all over this country. prgtoken Ohioans and workers in historic industrial towns felt it first. Now, the whole country feels it in the form of higher prices and empty shelves and months-long waits for products people need. prgtoken We need to make more things in America. It is not going to happen on its own, not when the economy of the last four decades was built on corporations hopping the globe in search of workers to exploit, not when countries like China prop u
AMERICA CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR MANUFACTURING, PRE-EMINENCE IN TECHNOLOGY, AND ECONOMIC STRENGTH ACT OF 2022--MOTION TO PROCEED-- Continued
Catherine Cortez Masto (Democrat, NV) \u2014 2022-3-22

this week, the Senate considers two outstanding nominees to the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. They have my full support and the support of Senator Rosen, and I urge the Senate to confirm them. prgtoken Nevada's Federal bench has had vacancies since 2016 and 2018, so the need is urgent. Senator Rosen and I have carefully reviewed the records of the President's nominees, Judge Cristina Silva and Professor Anne Traum, in cooperation with the bipartisan judicial commissions in our State. prgtoken Both of these women have the skill, the dedication, and knowledge of the law to serve Nevadans and the Nation as district court judges. Judge Cristina Silva held leadership positions at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Nevada, where she became the first woman and Latina to serve as chief of the criminal division and worked on the investigation into the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting in Las Vegas. prgtoken Since 2019, she has been a judge on the Eighth Judicial District Court in Las Vegas. Nevada has benefited immensely from Judge Silva's public service, and I am confident she will continue that service on the Federal bench. prgtoken Professor Anne Traum has served as an attorney for civil courts in the U.S. Attorney's Office, as an assistant Federal public defender, and as a practitioner who has argued more than 30 cases before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. prgtoken She currently teaches at UNLV's William S. Boyd School of Law, where she directs the law school's appellate clinic in working on cases before the Ninth Circuit and the Nevada Supreme Court. prgtoken Professor Traum's record, as both a practitioner and as an academic, will make her a strong addition to the U.S. District Court. prgtoken These two nominees have received the support of many in Nevada's legal community, including former Governor Brian Sandoval, a former Federal judge himself. They have demonstrated their commitment to justice, the law, and to their community. prgtoken They represent the best of Nevada, and I will vote for them enthusiastically, and I ask and call on my colleagues to do the same. prgtoken .
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2022-3-22

last week, the U.S. Congress lost a one-of-a-kind colleague, and the State of Alaska lost an unbelievably devoted champion. prgtoken Congressman Don Young, the dean of the House, was the longest serving in the history of that Chamber. He arrived in 1973, and his fellow Alaskans rehired him to represent them every 2 years since. prgtoken Over the decades, Congressman Young's leadership and advocacy had a literally transformative effect on his home State. He secured resources for Alaska's infrastructure and its people. I understand his office contains photographs of Don with no fewer than 10 prgtoken different Presidents, each of whom had signed into law a bill that he had written. prgtoken Don Young first moved to Alaska back in 1959, the same year it became our 49th State. He once explained his rationale like this: I can't stand the heat and I was working on a ranch and I used to dream of some place cold and no snakes and no poison oak. prgtoken Well, Alaska sure delivered for Don. And starting with a mayoral election in 1964, he spent practically his entire adult life delivering for Alaska in return. prgtoken Our late colleague across the Rotunda wasn't just a legendary legislator and committee chairman; he was also a wildly unique character. Even after decades in public service, he remained every bit the former fisher, trapper, construction worker, gold miner, and tugboat captain. prgtoken The Senate sends our prayers to Don's family, his staff, and his colleagues, who miss him already. Border Security prgtoken , on a completely different matter, in 2021, the administration's border crisis set a record. We saw the most arrests that Customs and Border Protection ever reported in a single year on the southern border. As the Washington Post put it at the time, illegal border crossings ``skyrocketed in the months after President took office.'' prgtoken Well, the humanitarian and security crisis has only gotten worse. Last month was the busiest February for CBP migrant encounters in over two decades, exceeding February 2021 by 64 percent, and intelligence officials are reportedly ``bracing'' for an even steeper surge. prgtoken The left spent years calling on Washington to ``abolish ICE.'' On the campaign trail, President signaled support for subsidizing healthcare for illegal immigrants. prgtoken Once in office, the administration spent months seemingly more interested in policing government terminology than policing our actual border. The Vice President, ostensibly tasked with leading the White House border security efforts, seemed keen to travel anywhere but the border. prgtoken When ' approach left border facilities overwhelmed, the administration diverted billions of dollars away from pandemic response funds to cover for their crisis. prgtoken To prevent their border crisis from getting even wors
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Deb Fischer (Republican, NE) \u2014 2022-3-22

earlier this month, the commanders of the U.S. Strategic Command and the U.S. Space Command, ADM Charles Richard and GEN James Dickinson, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee for their annual posture hearing. prgtoken The backdrop for their testimony was two twin challenges facing the United States and our allies: Putin's desire to recreate the Russian Empire, demonstrated most recently in his unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, and China's plan to massively expand their power, rolling back U.S. influence in the process. prgtoken Both of these American adversaries are expanding their nuclear arsenals to back up their ambitions. prgtoken As ranking member of the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces and with STRATCOM's headquarters in my State of Nebraska, I appreciated this chance to engage with Admiral Richard on such an important issue. prgtoken As the commander of STRATCOM, Admiral Richard has one of the highest pressure jobs in the world--overseeing America's nuclear forces. He knows prgtoken better than anyone how important our nuclear deterrent is to preventing war around the world, and he understands the threat posed by our adversaries' growing arsenals. prgtoken Admiral Richard told the Armed Services Committee that Putin's war in Ukraine is giving us ``a very vivid real-world example of the importance of extended deterrence.'' What he meant by that is that, even though Putin has brought a major war back to Europe for the first time since the end of World War II and heartbreaking destruction to the people of Ukraine, nuclear deterrence, including the extended deterrence commitments that we provide our allies, has shielded NATO countries and discouraged the conflict's spread. More specifically, without our nuclear deterrent, our plans to protect American citizens and our allies would fall apart. prgtoken Take it straight from Admiral Richard. He said: Every operational plan in the Department of Defense, and every other capability we have, rests on the assumption that strategic deterrence is holding, and in particular that nuclear deterrence is holding. If strategic or nuclear deterrence fails, no other plan and no other capability in the Department of Defense is going to work as designed. prgtoken When people who care about a safe and secure America say that strategic deterrence, especially nuclear deterrence, is the bedrock of our national security, that is exactly what we mean because, at the end of the day, American strength is the only thing that tyrants like Putin actually respect. prgtoken Just as we need to reassess our approach to Putin in light of his invasion of Ukraine, we also need to rethink our approach to our nuclear deterrent. Barely 2 months ago, on January 3, the five members of the U.N. Security Council released a joint declaration on ``Preventing Nuclear War and Avoiding Arms Races.'' Russia, of course, is on
RECOGNIZING IDAHO OLYMPIANS
Mike Crapo (Republican, ID) \u2014 2022-3-22

along with my colleagues Senator Jim Risch and Representative Mike Simpson, I congratulate three Idaho athletes who competed in the XXIV Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. I commend Andrew Blaser, Chase Josey, and Hilary Knight for their diligence and dedication that resulted in them representing our great State and country on this world stage. prgtoken Four-time Olympic medalist Hilary Knight, of Sun Valley, once again competed with distinction on the U.S. women's hockey team. The team earned a silver medal, and Hilary scored one of the team's two goals in the final game. In the 2022 Olympic Games, she scored her 12th career Olympic goals, becoming the second leading scorer in U.S. Olympics Women's Hockey history. With 15 career Olympic assists, Hilary also ranks second in most career assists. She played in her 22nd career Olympic Game, giving her the record for the most Olympic Games played in U.S. women's hockey history. This follows her earning a gold medal in the XXIII Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang; a silver medal in the XXII Olympic Winter Games in Sochi; and a silver medal in the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. prgtoken Two-time Olympian Chase Josey, of Hailey, earned seventh place in the snowboard halfpipe. Chase completed two frontside double cork 1080s and a cab double cork 1260 in his third run of the 2022 Olympics, earning 79.50 points. He earned sixth place in the halfpipe in the XXIII Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang and was fifth at the 2021 world championships. prgtoken Nick Blaser, of Meridian, who ranked 28th in the world, competed in his first Olympic games on the U.S. Olympic Skeleton Team. With three competitors, the team was characterized as ``small but mighty.'' Nick, who came in 21st place at the 2022 Olympics, was a top pole vaulter and hurdler at the University of Idaho before competing in skeleton after college. prgtoken These athletes lead through their examples of dedication and persistence. As younger generations watch, they show us all how to turn preparation into achievements. Thank you, Olympians, for representing Idaho and our country so well in the Olympics, while overcoming the added pressures of training and competing during a global pandemic, in a high-risk and dangerous political environment. We commend you for your extraordinary hard work and commitment.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2022-3-22

the Russian assault on Ukraine continues unabated. Each morning seems to bring a fresh horror. In the last few days alone, we have seen the Russians bomb an arts school where as many as 400 civilians had taken cover. We have seen the bombing of a theater where an estimated 1,300 women and children and the elderly were sheltered--not a military target, a theater providing shelter to civilians, to children--a theater that was clearly labeled with the word ``children.'' That is right. On the pavement outside, in large white letters, visible in satellite images, was the word ``children'' written in Russian. prgtoken So it is pretty impossible that the Russians didn't know what or who they were bombing. But they bombed anyway. prgtoken And this is just one example of the depravity of the Russian siege of Mariupol, which has largely destroyed this port city. Residents in Mariupol are without electricity, without running water, at times without food. As important as words are, they fail when it comes to describing the horrors that Ukrainians are experiencing, the inferno that so many of them now exist in on a daily basis. prgtoken As we go about our lives in peace and security, most of us have no notion of what it means to live where air raid sirens have become commonplace, where bombed-out buildings line the streets you used to walk on, where crossing a road or leaving a building at the wrong moment can mean your death. The pictures convey some of the horror--the postapocalyptic streetscapes, the buildings gray with ash, the gaping holes in apartment blocks and businesses--images akin to the bombed-out cities seen in old World War II photographs, the total destruction of once vibrant places. prgtoken Mariupol is perhaps the foremost example of the devastation Russia has wrought. The last EU diplomat to leave that city summed up the situation in stark words on Sunday: What I saw, I hope no one will ever see. Mariupol will become part of a list of cities that were completely destroyed by war. ``What I saw, I hope no one will ever see. Mariupol will become part of a list of cities that were completely destroyed by war.'' We don't have to look far for the source of these horrors; they can be attributed to one man, to Vladimir Putin. prgtoken To achieve his vision of a Russian Empire, he has laid waste to the country of Ukraine; thousands of lives sacrificed, on both sides, because he wants Ukraine, because he thinks Ukraine should be part of Russia. It doesn't matter that the people of Ukraine have made it unmistakably clear that they are their own people and a sovereign nation willing to lay down their lives for their freedom. Putin wants Ukraine, and he is apparently willing to destroy Ukraine to get it. prgtoken All this evil, all this destruction, so many--so many--human lives wasted all because of one man's fixation on a Russian Empire. More than 3.3 million refugees have fle
AMERICA CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR MANUFACTURING, PRE-EMINENCE IN TECHNOLOGY, AND ECONOMIC STRENGTH ACT OF 2022--MOTION TO PROCEED-- Continued
John Cornyn (Republican, TX) \u2014 2022-3-22

as anybody who has been watching C-SPAN knows, the confirmation process for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is well underway. prgtoken Over the last few weeks, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on which I am honored to serve, have conducted a meticulous review of Judge Jackson's record and qualifications. prgtoken During this week's hearing, though, we have an opportunity to dig deeper and to hear directly from the nominee about her ability to serve as a fair and impartial Supreme Court Justice--somebody without an agenda, somebody who doesn't dabble in politics, prgtoken and somebody who doesn't use this position to enact policies that they prefer. prgtoken Many of our colleagues are familiar with Judge Jackson's experience because she was recently confirmed to the District of Columbia's Circuit Court just 9 months ago. She received her undergraduate degree and law degree from Harvard, certainly sterling credentials, and she worked for Justice Steve Breyer, who is the judge that she is succeeding on the Court. prgtoken She has had varied experience, which I think is to her credit. She has been a public defender. She later served on the U.S. Sentencing Commission. And she has spent the last 9 years as a trial court judge on the Federal bench. Judge Jackson is obviously smart, and she is quite accomplished. prgtoken But we know that a lifetime appointment on the Supreme Court requires more than just an impressive resume. Our democracy requires that judges rule based on the law. To use the words that Judge Jackson used this morning in the Judiciary Committee hearing, she said, Judges need to stay in their lane, which I actually appreciate, because under the separation of powers, obviously, a lifetime-tenured Federal judge who does not stand for election should not be making policy. That should be left to those of us in the electoral process to make those decisions, and then, of course, the Courts determine the constitutionality and legality of those policy choices. It is not appropriate for them to impose their own preferences instead. prgtoken Unlike previous nominees who had no experience on the bench, we don't have to make assumptions about Judge Jackson's decisions; we have the ability to examine hundreds of prior opinions that she has issued and to ask for clarity from the nominee herself. prgtoken In addition to her time on the Federal bench, we have a responsibility to dive into Judge Jackson's record as both a prosecutor and as a member of the U.S. Sentencing Commission. prgtoken Despite what some of our colleagues have suggested, none of these lines of questioning are out of bounds. It is really amazing to me that even though the President has a constitutional right to nominate whomsoever he chooses, we have a constitutional duty to provide what is called ``advice and consent.'' prgtoken And so that means asking tough, but respectful, questions about her record and background. The Sena
AMERICA CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR MANUFACTURING, PRE-EMINENCE IN TECHNOLOGY, AND ECONOMIC STRENGTH ACT OF 2022
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2022-3-23

tomorrow will be 1 month since Putin started his war in Ukraine. Every day, we get a chance to see that war being fought on our TV, so I want to tell you what I have seen in 1 month of viewing the war in Ukraine or what I have heard from people who report on that war in Ukraine. prgtoken Putin is a child killer. prgtoken Putin kills hospital patients. prgtoken Putin is a bully. prgtoken Putin kills elderly people. prgtoken Putin kills pregnant mothers and their babies. prgtoken Putin has uprooted at least 10 million people. prgtoken Putin deliberately shells residential areas. prgtoken Putin shells shopping centers. prgtoken Putin shells apartment buildings. prgtoken Putin destroys historic buildings. prgtoken Putin bombs theaters. prgtoken Putin bombs hospitals. prgtoken Putin destroys cultural heritage. prgtoken Putin threatens world peace. prgtoken Putin silences dissent. prgtoken Putin threatens nuclear war. prgtoken Putin starts war to boost his popularity. prgtoken Putin jails his political opponents. prgtoken Putin jails citizens speaking against the war. prgtoken Putin twists history. prgtoken Putin is consumed with power. prgtoken Putin feeds off corruption. prgtoken Putin is acting like a true Nazi. prgtoken Putin kills to feed his ego. prgtoken Putin lies to his own people and the world. prgtoken Putin admires Stalin. prgtoken Putin acts like Stalin. prgtoken Putin forcefully deports civilians, like Stalin. prgtoken Putin is intentionally starving Ukrainian civilians, like Stalin. prgtoken Putin is destroying families. prgtoken Putin reintroduced mass graves to Europe--no different than the executions of 20,000 Polish generals and soldiers at Katyn Forest in 1940. prgtoken Putin lies to mothers of Russian soldiers. prgtoken Putin poisons with impunity, particularly people whom he considers traitors. prgtoken Putin came to power by bombing Russian apartments and blaming Chechens. prgtoken Putin is still KGB. prgtoken Putin lied before invading Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula. prgtoken Putin lied about Russian troops in the Donbas. prgtoken Putin lied that he would not invade the rest of Ukraine. prgtoken Putin lies that NATO had anything to do with his decision to invade. prgtoken Putin thinks Ukraine isn't a real country. prgtoken Putin thinks other Eastern European countries belong to Russia. prgtoken Putin thinks Ukrainians are lesser people than Russians. prgtoken Putin is afraid of his own people. prgtoken Putin imprisons political opponents. prgtoken Putin is afraid of Ukrainian democracy. prgtoken Putin got rich by stealing from Russians. prgtoken Putin is destroying his own country. prgtoken Putin has damaged the global economy. prgtoken Putin uses banned weapons against civilians. prgtoken Putin kidnapped Ukrainian mayors. prgtoken Putin tries to assassinate Ukrainian President Zelenskyy. prgtoken Putin has troops fire on humanitarian corridors. prgtoken Putin is in bed with organized crime. prgtoken Putin supports America's enemies. prgtoken Putin has made