mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Cuba (Executive Calendar)
Marsha Blackburn (Republican, TN) \u2014 2021-7-12

this weekend, the people of Cuba rose up in opposition to their repressive socialist government. prgtoken I think it is important to be clear on that point because much of the mainstream media that is reporting on these protests makes it sound as if everything is pandemic related, but what is happening in Cuba is not an economic fluke, and every single person serving in this body, working in the media, and analyzing the policy implications knows better than to say otherwise. prgtoken This isn't the pop socialism touted by the American left. It is not fashionable. There is no empowerment or equality in the socialist regime; there is just starvation, shortages, violence, and failure. For 62 years, the ruling Communists have bled the Cuban people dry, and now armed thugs have taken to the streets to repress the opposition at any cost. prgtoken Make no mistake, this is a test for President . He must draw a line in the sand. prgtoken I call on my colleagues in the majority and on President and the members of his Cabinet to join me in supporting all who would risk their lives to expose the ravages of socialism in Cuba. prgtoken We must lead in discussions with the U.N. and the EU and coordinate opposition to this violence being carried out against the people of Cuba. prgtoken We must demand that the Cuban Government allow for a free and open internet and initiate investigations into if and how Havana used technology supported by the Chinese Communist Party to cut off access to the internet just as the protests started gaining mainstream attention. prgtoken We cannot stand by while Communist thugs gun down their own people. We cannot let this become another Venezuela. prgtoken Just as we stand with the freedom fighters suffering in Hong Kong, on mainland China, and in other socialist regimes around the world, we must stand with the people of Cuba.
Veterans (Executive Calendar)
Tommy Tuberville (Republican, AL) \u2014 2021-7-12

last week, when we were all back home, we all got to celebrate the Fourth of July. Cooking out, spending time with our family and friends, watching fireworks is always special. prgtoken Sitting there with my family, I thought about how blessed we are to live in the United States of America. We get to live in the most free and prosperous country in the history of the world. We owe that freedom and prosperity to the people who declared their independence on July 4, 245 years ago. prgtoken They fought and won their freedom for an idea called America. That American idea lives on two-and-a-half centuries later, thanks to the generations of men and women who, like many before them, put on the uniform to defend this great country. Many gave their lives, the ultimate sacrifice, to defend the United States. But many more are still with us, and future generations will continue to volunteer to protect the freedoms and liberties this country affords us every day. prgtoken Today we have got almost 20 million veterans in the United States, and 400,000 of them call Alabama home. I have had the honor and pleasure to meet many Alabama veterans the past few years. I am always heartened to talk with them about their service to our great country, but what I hear over and over again is that there is more we can do for all of our veterans: better access to care, better opportunities to reenter civilian life. prgtoken Taking care of our veterans is personal for me. My dad served in World War II and died on Active Duty after the war. But he taught me so many valuable lessons, like work ethic, perseverance, and love of country. When I meet with veterans, I see the same patriotism my dad lived out every day of his life. prgtoken You know, I never served myself. The Vietnam war was over before I got out of college, but many guys I knew from back home served in Vietnam. I saw how badly they were treated by the media, by Hollywood, and even by their fellow Americans. They were just trying to serve their country. They watched their friends die, and when they got home, they weren't treated very well. prgtoken I thank God we treat our veterans today better than we did when I was growing up. And veterans from the Vietnam era are still the largest of the veteran group in this United States that we live in today. More than 100,000 Vietnam vets live in Alabama. prgtoken But there is still more we can do to give them the care and resources that they need and deserve. I am honored to be a member of the Senate's Veterans' Affairs Committee, where we can hear about the problems facing our veterans firsthand and work together on commonsense solutions. prgtoken The biggest challenge our veterans face is the access to quality care. We have all seen it in the news. We have heard about it firsthand. Far too often, veterans can't get the care they need in a timely manner. One veteran who doesn't have access to care is one too many. prgtoken
RECOGNIZING DR. WAYNE CALHOUN TEMPLE
Rodney Davis (Republican, IL) \u2014 2021-7-13

. Madam , I rise today to recognize Dr. Wayne Calhoun Temple for his distinguished service to the State of Illinois and the American people. prgtoken Wayne was born on his family farm in Delaware County, Ohio. Until eighth grade he worked on the farm and attended a one room schoolhouse a mile from his home. He went on to graduate as valedictorian of Prospect High School and earned a football scholarship to Ohio State University. prgtoken He attended college for only two quarters before answering the call to serve in the U.S. Army during World War II. He was sent to the University of Illinois to study engineering and was later assigned to an Army communications service-plant engineering agency. While overseas, he was responsible for authoring General Dwight D. Eisenhower's communications and was awarded the Bronze Star for his work at the Rhine River. prgtoken Following World War II, Wayne attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1946, where he graduated with honors in engineering and received a PhD in history. During his time at the University of Illinois he served as a research assistant to ``The Dean of Lincoln Scholars'' Professor James G. Randall and contributed to Professor Randall's writing of four books. prgtoken Throughout his life, Wayne has authored over 600 works on the life of President Abraham Lincoln. In 1964, he moved to Springfield to work in the Illinois State Archives depository of public records and served as both the Chief Deputy Director and Acting Director of the depository. prgtoken His dedication to serve and educate others is evident through his life's work and I would like to personally thank him for his continued service to the State of Illinois.
RECOGNIZING POLICE CHIEF MATT BURNS
Dusty Johnson (Republican, SD) \u2014 2021-7-13

. Madam , I rise today to recognize and honor Police Chief Matt Burns for his 25 years of service with the Sioux Falls Police Department. prgtoken Chief Burns' career with the Sioux Falls Police Department began in 1996 as a patrol officer. He later went on to serve as a SWAT team member, detective, lieutenant, and assistant chief. In 2015, Burns became chief of police. prgtoken During his honorable career, Burns has spearheaded several key initiatives including promoting, designing, and funding the New Public Safety Training Center and leading the effort to host remote Basic Certification Academy classes. prgtoken Despite the many challenges the city of Sioux Falls has faced in recent years, I am grateful for Burns' leadership in keeping the community of Sioux Falls safe. prgtoken I commend Chief Burns for his outstanding record of service, hard work, and leadership. I extend my deepest congratulations to him on his well-earned retirement.
Infrastructure (Executive Calendar)
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2021-7-13

every State of the Nation has many infrastructure needs. In Iowa, we rely on our roads, bridges, air, and freight to move our goods and people throughout Iowa, throughout the United States, and eventually throughout the world. I am encouraged that a bipartisan framework has been agreed to for moving forward on an infrastructure bill. I will be interested in seeing more details about the policy and the way to pay for the bill as the bill proceeds forward. prgtoken Today, I would like to discuss one aspect of infrastructure, and that is our inland waterways. For Iowa, that is the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. For other States, it is a lot of other important rivers. prgtoken I ask my colleagues to take this important mode of transportation into account as they work on legislation. I have also sent this request in a letter to both the Senate Environment and Public Works as well as the Appropriations Committees. prgtoken The inland and intercostal waterways and our ports are vital to the United States and serve 41 States throughout our Nation. Shippers and consumers depend on the ability to move around 630 million tons of cargo each year, valued at about $232 billion on these waterways. In turn, the inland waterways system supports well over half a million jobs. prgtoken Now, I am going to go into some of the information that is on the chart here. prgtoken Our Nation's inland waterways system also provides a safe, cost- effective, fuel-efficient, and environmentally friendly way to move our bulk products. This translates into more than $12 billion annually in transportation savings to the American economy. prgtoken Furthermore--and when I say ``furthermore,'' this point is important for the environment--1 gallon of fuel oil allows 1 ton of cargo to be shipped 647 miles by barge as compared to 477 miles by rail and only 145 miles by truck. prgtoken In addition, the inland waterway transport generates far fewer emissions of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and nitrous oxide than rail or truck per million tons of miles does. prgtoken As for safety, there are 21--let's say 22 rail fatalities compared to 79 truck fatalities for every 1 fatality on the waterways system that I am addressing. prgtoken By moving goods on inland waterways, we are helping to relieve congestion on the roadways and adding to the Nation's economic prosperity. Moving goods on inland waterways is the most efficient transportation mode. A typical inland barge has a capacity 15 times greater than 1 railcar and 60 times greater than 1 semi-trailer truck. One 15-barge tow can move the equivalent of 216 railcars pulled by 6 locomotives or 1,050 semi-trailer trucks, just as a comparison of the efficiency of this mode of transportation. If the cargo transported on the inland waterways each year had to be moved by another mode, it would take an additional 16 percent more tonnage on the railroad system and 49 million truck trips annually t
TRIBUTE TO SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY SHERIFF JOHN McMAHON ON THE OCCASION OF HIS RETIREMENT
Jay Obernolte (Republican, CA) \u2014 2021-7-13

. Madam , I rise today to honor Sheriff-Coroner John McMahon of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department in California's 8th Congressional District. Sheriff McMahon has served as a law enforcement officer in San Bernardino County for the past 36 years. He began his career in 1985 as a patrol deputy at the Needles station in California's 8th District and has been promoted to every rank in the department since then, serving at a total of 15 stations during his career. In 2014, John was elected as the 35th Sheriff- Coroner of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, and his leadership has been an invaluable asset to our law enforcement community. prgtoken During his tenure, Sheriff McMahon successfully led the department through many challenging times and high-profile incidents, including the December 2nd terror attack in San Bernardino. Long-term solutions implemented by his department have helped to keep crime down in our communities and improve safety across the largest county in our state. Under his leadership, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department has become known as one of the premier law enforcement agencies in the nation. I wish Sheriff McMahon and his wife Shelly all the best as he begins his retirement and I thank him for his dedication to serving the people of San Bernardino County.
Border Security (Executive Calendar)
John Barrasso (Republican, WY) \u2014 2021-7-13

I come to the floor today to talk about the crisis at our southern border. We have the humanitarian crisis there. We have a healthcare crisis there. And we also have a national security crisis there. prgtoken Over the last 2 weeks, as I traveled the State of Wyoming, I heard from people all across the State about the condition of the southern border, and not surprisingly, the people of Wyoming recognize that there is actually a crisis at the southern border, and there is chaos at our border. prgtoken People across the State of Wyoming are shocked--shocked--at the way the administration has been acting deliberately to weaken our national security and security at our border. We need to strengthen our southern border. Leaving the border open is like leaving the door to your home open; maybe some good friends will come through the door, but sooner or later, the wrong people will enter your home. prgtoken An open border is an open invitation, and it is an invitation to the whole world. Now, this includes drug dealers, sex traffickers, and it includes gang members, and it even includes terrorists. When President took office, he flipped on the green light, and he rolled out the welcome mat. He sent a message to the world. The message was received: The border is open. prgtoken Since President took office, 600,000 illegal immigrants have been arrested crossing the border. This is more than the entire population of my home State of Wyoming. Border arrests have gone up every month since President has been in the White House. prgtoken Last month, a deputy Commissioner of the Border Patrol retired after 27 years in that office. His name is Robert Perez. Since leaving office, he has had a few things to say. He said: ``What [Border Patrol is] seeing since February . . . is absolutely unprecedented.'' He said, ``It's a crisis unlike anything I've ever seen. . . .'' prgtoken Right now, we are on the pace to 2 million illegal immigrants. That is what we are looking at, 2 million illegal immigrants crossing the southern border into the United States this year alone. That is the most in two decades, and those are just the illegal immigrants that we know about. In addition, tens of thousands of additional illegal immigrants are coming across the border and are not being stopped. prgtoken At the same time, we are seizing more fentanyl at our border than ever before. The numbers are astonishing. This drug is so powerful that a fatal dose is the equivalent to just a pinch of salt. In the last 6 months, Border Patrol has seized enough fentanyl to kill every man, woman, and child in America. Some experts will say that the amount they have captured, in terms of the synthetic drug fentanyl, is a small fraction of the amount that is actually getting across the border every day. This would mean a quarter-million pounds of fentanyl is likely to flow into the United States this year alone, and it is not j
AWARDING AND CELEBRATING MEC'S FIBER-OPTIC PROJECT
Paul A. Gosar (Republican, AZ) \u2014 2021-7-13

. Madam , I rise today to celebrate the first Mohave Electric member connections for MEC's fiber-optic project and broadband service. In a first-of-its-kind endeavor for an electric co-op in Arizona, MEC is building a fiber-optic network to enhance electric operations and provide reliable broadband service for each member in MEC's service territory which consists of 33,000 members and 42,000 end points. prgtoken MEC was created in 1946 by local residents who took initiative to provide themselves with electricity investor-owned utilities refused to supply. MEC crews have now already installed more than 190,000 feet of fiber line, increasing that number every day. The work the MEC is producing for reliable internet is very important because it helps small businesses, local emergency responders, and hospitals to be able to do their job and help the people of Mohave County. prgtoken Madam , I express a sincere form of gratitude to MEC, and I encourage my colleagues to join me in celebrating a successful project and legacy as a valuable organization to the people of Arizona. These notable efforts and accomplishments to provide reliable broadband service should be recognized and acknowledged. For these reasons I stand with MEC for their remarkable impact on the Mohave County communities.
THE ECONOMY
Mitch McConnell (Republican, KY) \u2014 2021-7-13

now on a totally different matter, Senators have just spent 2 weeks traveling our home States and hearing what is on the minds of working families. I got to spend time with all kinds of hard-working Kentuckians across the Bluegrass. prgtoken There is no question we are in better shape than we were a year ago. Thanks to the genius of science, the success of Operation Warp Speed, and the bipartisan rescue packages the -led Senate passed in 2020, the year 2021 was primed and set up for a historic American comeback well before the new ic Congress or the new ic administration was even sworn in. prgtoken But still wanted to rush ahead with the huge borrowing and spending sprees they had promised their far left. Top economists, including famous , warned our colleagues to think again. Even liberal experts tried to warn our colleagues that the socialist ideas they had drawn up in 2020 were not suited to what Americans needed in 2021. Overspending and overborrowing would unleash inflation, slow rehiring, and hurt small businesses. prgtoken All that was predicted, but rushed ahead. They rammed through what the White House bragged was the most leftwing legislation in our Nation's history, and now want to follow up with an even more absurd summer sequel. prgtoken Well, let me tell you, I just spent 2 weeks hearing from my fellow Kentuckians, and they are already paying a heavy price. Manufacturers are still absolutely hammered by supply chain shocks. Employers large and small say ' special bonus for workers to stay unemployed is badly hampering their ability to fully reopen and to serve their customers. Most of our surrounding States have already put a stop to this awful idea, but Kentucky's Governor, regretfully, hasn't. prgtoken It isn't just for-profit businesses, either, that are having trouble getting people back to work. I heard from one residential treatment center for pregnant women and new moms grappling with substance abuse. They said that because of the generous Federal bonus for staying home, they have had trouble finding enough support staff to even reopen one of their facilities post-COVID. About 80 percent of the people who schedule an interview don't even show up. prgtoken These backward bonuses have also invited heaps--heaps--of fraud. In California, for example, a significant share of the State's COVID unemployment benefits were paid out fraudulently, billions and billions of dollars to people who shouldn't have gotten them at all. And now-- get this-- want to give the California labor secretary who was in charge of that nightmare a promotion. In fact, we are scheduled to vote on her confirmation today to a leading position at the Department of Labor. You really can't make this stuff up. prgtoken And then there is inflation. Just this morning, we learned that runaway inflation has continued to hit working famili
Abortion (Executive Session)
John Thune (Republican, SD) \u2014 2021-7-13

last month, Pelosi was asked if she thought a 15-week-old unborn baby was a human being. She declined to answer. A few days later, the President's Press Secretary was asked if the President thinks a 15-week-old unborn baby is a human being. She also declined to answer. prgtoken In case the President and the are in any doubt, let me just clear things up for them. A 15-week-old unborn baby is a human being. That baby has a human mom and a human dad, and human beings have other human beings. That is not a complex moral or philosophical question. That is biology 101. prgtoken Of course, I am pretty sure the reason the and the President's Press Secretary declined to answer these questions is not because they are confused about the answer. I don't think there is anybody out there who isn't aware on some level that unborn human beings are human beings. The moment of birth does not magically confer humanity. prgtoken No, the and the President don't want to admit that unborn children are human beings because admitting it would make it hard to defend the fact that they support the right to kill these babies. If you support abortion, it is much easier to pretend an unborn baby is just a clump of cells rather than a separate human being with his or her own fingerprints and DNA. It is a lot easier to defend killing that baby if you pretend that baby is just a part of the mother instead of a unique, separate, unrepeatable individual. prgtoken That is why the of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Press Secretary for the President of the United States have declined to answer a question any 10-year-old could answer: whether the baby inside his or her mom is a human being. prgtoken At the end of May, President released his budget. It was a slap in the face to pro-life Americans. The President's budget abandons decades of bipartisan compromise and calls for the elimination of the Hyde amendment, which protects taxpayers from having their tax dollars go to fund abortions. prgtoken And that is not all. The budget contains a whole host of pro-abortion measures that would, among other things, direct taxpayer dollars to fund abortion providers here at home and overseas. prgtoken This isn't just some theatrical proposal. in the House of Representatives have already acted in committee to exclude the Hyde amendment and other pro-life measures from appropriations bills. If we can't agree that unborn human beings deserve to have their human rights protected, we should at least be able to agree that taxpayers should not be forced to fund the killing of unborn persons. prgtoken The American people don't think taxpayers should fund abortions. In fact, nearly 60 percent of Americans oppose taxpayer funding of abortions. The President himself has, as recently as his Presidential campaign, supported the Hyde amendment, but there is one interest group that controls the ic Party. It is the abo
PERSONAL EXPLANATION
Yvette Herrell (Republican, NM) \u2014 2021-7-13

. Madam , I missed these votes because I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 192; NAY on Roll Call No. 193; YEA on Roll Call No. 194; NAY on Roll Call No. 195; NAY on Roll Call No. 196; NAY on Roll Call No. 197; NAY on Roll Call No. 198; NAY on Roll Call No. 199; NAY on Roll Call No. 200; NAY on Roll Call No. 201; YEA on Roll Call No. 202; NAY on Roll Call No. 203; and YEA on Roll Call No. 204.