mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT OF 2021
Christopher Murphy (Democrat, CT) \u2014 2021-3-4

I was presiding on Tuesday. Sometimes my staff will give me a folder of things to review while I am presiding, and often they will be upset when I come back having not reviewed what they have given me. The reason for that is simple: When there are Members speaking before the body, I am, frankly, very interested to listen and to hear what our colleagues have to say. We don't do enough of that in this place. We are so busy during the day, we don't spend a lot of time on the Senate floor. We might have the floor on on our TV in our office, but we are not always paying attention to what our colleagues have to say. One of the benefits of being able to preside is that you do get to listen to the arguments that are being made right here on the floor. prgtoken In the hour or so that I was presiding on Tuesday, I got to hear about four or five of my colleagues come down in sequence to make their case as to why they would be voting against the American Rescue Plan, and so I got to hear a number of themes being developed. prgtoken I don't think coincidentally a number of arguments were made repeatedly by many of our friends on the side of the aisle, and so I decided it might be worthwhile to just spend a few minutes talking about the claims that are made about this bill by s, the reasons why they are voting against it, and to talk about how some of these arguments may be a little bit more disingenuous than we might like. prgtoken The first thing that I heard was that this bill was just too expensive. It is $1.9 trillion. That is a lot of money, no doubt, but this country has never ever faced a healthcare crisis or an economic crisis like we do today. This is an unprecedented moment in our Nation's history, and it requires us to step up and do something that isn't just going to sound like it will work and help people but actually will. prgtoken What is, I guess, to me ironic about this claim that it is too expensive, that it is going to cost our kids and grandkids too much money, is that s passed a tax bill that was almost to the dollar the exact same amount as this relief bill is. They passed a $1.9 trillion tax bill where the majority of the benefits went to the richest Americans who needed no more help. There was no crisis in 2017 amongst American millionaires and billionaires. Yet s were very willing to draw down $1.9 trillion in debt-financed tax cuts; $1.3 trillion in corporate tax cuts; $83 billion to let heirs of huge mega- estates be able to inherit more money without taxation; $435 billion tax cut for the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans. So it is a little hard to listen to my colleagues claim that this bill is too expensive when they were willing to spend the exact same amount of money in 2017 on tax cuts for their wealthy corporate and millionaire friends. prgtoken It is also hard to listen to this argument because just a year a
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Bill Hagerty (Republican, TN) \u2014 2021-3-5

I am pleased to be joined by a host of my colleagues. The motions we are proposing are very simple and should attract wide support. prgtoken Senators on both sides have said this must be a bipartisan process, but so far, it isn't. Not once did any of the 11 Senate subcommittees with jurisdiction over relevant aspects of this legislation meet to consider it--not once. What is the purpose of the Senate's system of expert committees if, as we consider one of the largest bills ever before this body, we are just going to act as if the committees never existed? prgtoken We are for pandemic relief. What we are not for is a decade-long spending spree, rushed through this body, much of which has nothing to do with pandemic relief. Our motions would simply prgtoken send this legislation back to committee for 3 days so it can be reviewed in a bipartisan manner. These motions would ensure that the legislation supports proven bipartisan programs before launching new programs or spending more money on programs that are already flush with cash. By midweek, we would have bipartisan legislation with committee input that is targeted to timely pandemic relief for those in need. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to support these motions.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Rand Paul (Republican, KY) \u2014 2021-3-5

the Paycheck Protection Program was created to help small businesses. We should all agree that an organization with thousands of employees working in dozens of cities across the country is not a small business, but this bill has a provision that would extend small business assistance to these kinds of large organizations. prgtoken That means that an organization operating in 100 cities across America, with thousands of employees, will get money that was really intended for small businesses. My amendment would remove this provision, and I urge a ``yes'' vote.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Bill Cassidy (Republican, LA) \u2014 2021-3-5

. This is the exact same language that we used in December. It targets children with private schools. To say that you are going to restrict it further than that is merely a way to keep the kids from having it. Seven percent of kids in poverty go to private schools. About 7 percent of this money will go to private kids. We should support the children. Vote on Amendment No. 1161
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Ted Cruz (Republican, TX) \u2014 2021-3-5

we are facing an absolute crisis with our schools. Today, only 40 percent of school kids in America are attending in-person school 5 days a week. prgtoken It has been a year since these COVID lockdowns began. Millions of school kids are falling behind, and it is falling disproportionately on low-income kids, on African-American kids, on Hispanic kids. prgtoken This bill spends billions of dollars on schools and doesn't require that they open. My amendment does something very simple. It says if a school is open, it gets the new money that is in this bill, but if the school is not open 5 days a week, then that money goes to the parents, up to $10,000 per child, so they can get their kids an education. prgtoken We have single moms with kids trapped in schools that are not open, and this crisis, this body can do something about. Those kids, if they fall behind, the science and the data tells us that they will be behind, potentially, for the rest of their lives. We should come together in a bipartisan way to say: We are going to open the schools, and we are going to give hope and relief to the kids who are being left behind.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Shelley Moore Capito (Republican, WV) \u2014 2021-3-5

one of our top priorities will be the surface transportation reauthorization bill. prgtoken Our EPW Committee has already kicked off bipartisan efforts to meet our Nation's transportation needs. Every State needs the certainty of a long-term reauthorization plan to complete projects. Paying for infrastructure is a difficult challenge. A status quo reauthorization bill would require at least $70 billion in new funding for the highway trust fund, which we all know falls short, and we all want to make sure that we make robust investments in our roads and bridges. prgtoken The bill on the floor provides $350 billion to State and local on top of the $150 billion that was provided in the CARES Act. This motion instructs the Finance Committee to divert some of that $350 billion to, instead, help pay forward for a bipartisan surface transportation reauthorization bill. Funds would still go to our States and localities, but the dollars would be better spent on road and bridge projects that create a safer and more efficient transportation system. prgtoken I urge my colleagues to support the motion to commit.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Lisa Murkowski (Republican, AK) \u2014 2021-3-5

this is the amendment we are waiting for. This is a bipartisan amendment. This is so bipartisan that we have already agreed to a voice vote, so listen carefully. Yes, thank you for that. prgtoken Prepandemic, our public schools had identified about 1.5 million kids who experience homelessness. That is 2.7 percent of all public school students. So think about what that means. That was prepandemic. We know that number is higher now. prgtoken Our amendment is pretty simple here. We reallocate less than 1 percent of the funding for the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund to ensure that homeless youth and kids have the resources they need to get into and succeed in school. prgtoken In Alaska and around the country, the COVID-19 pandemic and economic downturn have increased the strain on our families and the need for services. Too many of the kids have left their homes, been pushed out of their homes, sometimes many of them to escape a dangerous situation. They are dealing with the challenges of virtual learning. These kids are worrying about where to sleep at night, how they are going to eat dinner, if they are going to be safe. prgtoken This amendment ensures that these kids, no matter the trauma and the challenges they face outside of the classroom, will have a safe place to sleep and access to the wraparound services that they need. We have a responsibility to ensure that this vulnerable population, many of whom will be subject to predation, violence, or trafficking, is not forgotten or left behind. prgtoken I would like to yield to my friend and my colleague Senator Manchin.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Tom Cotton (Republican, AR) \u2014 2021-3-5

my motion to commit is to send this bill back to the Finance Committee to adopt the commonsense rule that should have been in there from the beginning that we are not going to give bailout money to sanctuary States and sanctuary cities. prgtoken Now, to whom are the States and cities giving sanctuary? Criminal illegal aliens. Where is the sanctuary for their victims? Why should cities and States that refuse to cooperate with Federal law enforcement receive Federal bailouts? They should not. prgtoken I reserve my time.
CRIS ALLEN MULTIEMPLOYER PENSION RECAPITALIZATION AND REFORM PLAN
Chuck Grassley (Republican, IA) \u2014 2021-3-5

the multiemployer pension system has been in need of a major overhaul for years. More than 300 plans are critically underfunded. Moreover, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, PBGC, multiemployer insurance fund, which is a backstop for these plans, is projected to become insolvent in the next 5 years. prgtoken If this occurs, 1.5 million retirees, due to no fault of their own, could see their hard-earned retirement benefits slashed to pennies on the dollar. This is unacceptable, and it is one of the reasons that, when I took over as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee in 2019, I made it a priority to fix the failing multiemployer pension system. To me, this has always meant helping secure the retirement benefits of millions of retirees and ensuring that this retirement system is sustainable over the long term. Working with former Senator and HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander, I immediately got to work on a draft proposal, which was released for public input and stakeholder feedback in November of 2019. We received numerous comments from workers, retirees, unions, employers, actuaries, academics, plan officials, and members of the general public that helped me refine my approach and create a balanced plan. prgtoken Yesterday, I reintroduced this version of my plan, which is titled the ``Chris Allen Multiemployer Pension Recapitalization and Reform Act.'' This legislation recognizes that, given the severity of the underfunding issue, some Federal dollars will be necessary to shore up severely troubled plans in the short term. But, this limited assistance must be coupled with structural reforms intended to address the root causes of our current situation. This includes reforms to multiemployer funding rules to ensure plans are adequately capitalized to make good on promises made to plan participants. Furthermore, it would increase PBGC oversight of troubled plans and enhance transparency for plan participants. Critically, it also overhauls the financing of the PBGC multiemployer insurance fund so that it can resume its role as the insurer of last resort for these plans without additional taxpayer funding. prgtoken The fundamental tenet of my plan is that all stakeholders have a role in fixing the multiemployer pension system. The American taxpayer shouldn't be expected to simply write a blank check. Stakeholders need to have skin in the game if the system is to be sustainable moving forward. prgtoken I understand that this is an extremely complex situation. There is no perfect solution. From the start, I have let it be known I want to work with my ic colleagues to find a bipartisan compromise. In June of last year, I came to the floor to plead with my ic colleagues to come to the table in hopes we could work toward a bipartisan agreement prior to the end of last Congress. Unfortunately, for months I heard nothing. Then, with only a few weeks left in the 116th Co
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Mitt Romney (Republican, UT) \u2014 2021-3-5

. First of all, those States that I described didn't lay people off. They didn't lay off firefighters. They didn't lay off teachers. They have held their teachers. They have held their firefighters. My State has actually paid bonuses to teachers and to State workers, they have so much money coming in. prgtoken You see, COVID, the pandemic, did not hit all the States in the same way. So States that need more money, give them more money. I am happy to do that. But States like mine, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, California, they don't need more money. Why are we borrowing more money and sending on the burden of debt and interest payments to our kids and grandkids to send money to States that don't need it? prgtoken By the way, we are talking about States that don't have deficits; they have surpluses. All of their COVID expenses would be reimbursed under the prgtoken proposal that I make. There is no COVID expense that is not reimbursed.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Todd Young (Republican, IN) \u2014 2021-3-5

in February, I met with the President of the United States along with nine of my colleagues. The objective here was to find middle ground on a targeted COVID relief package focused on vaccine distribution and getting Americans back to work and back to school as quickly as possible. Instead, we have been offered a bloated and wasteful spending bill, only 10 percent of which actually goes toward COVID-related needs. prgtoken Meanwhile, the COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated America's drug epidemic with synthetic opioids being the primary driver of the 38- percent annual increase in overdose deaths. prgtoken We know illegal narcotics are coming through our southern border at ports of prgtoken entry. My unobjectionable amendment simply increases funding for Customs and Border Protection by $300 million for technology to detect fentanyl and other drugs of lower purity levels. prgtoken This funding is more than offset by reducing funding from a provision granting 600 hours of paid leave to Federal employees--600 hours. That is 15 weeks of paid leave. So if an employee took every day of this paid leave in this bloated spending bill starting today, that would be by June 18. Oh, by the way, we are supposed to all be vaccinated by the end of May, according to the President.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Tim Scott (Republican, SC) \u2014 2021-3-5

I have been doing some research as the ranking member of the Aging Committee. As of last month, 40 percent of COVID-related deaths in this country were residents or staff of long-term care facilities. Lawmakers are charged with the responsibility of protecting the most vulnerable populations in our country, and those numbers represent absolute failure. prgtoken Some States have underreported deaths in nursing homes, and some public officials made this move intentionally, a clear effort to deceive their populations into thinking the situation was not as dire. Inaccurate information affects life-and-death decisions for communities. prgtoken Requiring States to provide accurate data is common sense for anyone who believes, as I do, that we should have a science-based, fact-driven response to the pandemic. We should not offer more funding to States that have mismanaged and then covered up their pandemic response. It makes no sense.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Marsha Blackburn (Republican, TN) \u2014 2021-3-5

to most people back home in Tennessee, ``business as usual'' here in Washington means a combination of partisan bickering and reckless spending, usually after someone up high decides not to let a crisis go to waste. They are used to watching this all play out on TV, then looking at the receipt and seeing a billion dollars' worth of earmarks and pork barrel spending they didn't order. prgtoken Right now, are doing their best to spin the scandal their absurb $1.9 trillion bailout bill has caused as ``business as usual'' but Tennesseans aren't stupid. They know the spin is a lie because over the past year they have seen what ``business as usual'' looks like when it comes to passing COVID relief funding. prgtoken Since last March, the Senate has passed five separate relief laws with overwhelming bipartisan support, 96-1, 90-8, 96-0, 100-0, and 92- 6. prgtoken But what happened with last month's vote on the budget resolution? Why did it end in a tiebreaker? For the same reason the House passed their version of the bill we are considering today in the dead of night. No amount of good PR could ever make the American people forget that this little exercise the are leading us through has almost nothing to do with providing emergency COVID relief. prgtoken Nine percent. That is how much of this package want to dedicate to a national vaccination program, expanded testing, and public health jobs. They slapped a ``COVID RELIEF'' label on one of the largest transfers of wealth ever proposed in the history of the U.S. Congress and tried to sneak it through reconciliation before anyone caught on. prgtoken This bill is so far over the line that my friends across the aisle have spent the past week fighting over the very provisions House and the White House used to pitch it. The bill is fatally flawed, right down to the formula it employs to allocate State funding. The previous, bipartisan relief packages used population to determine this. It very straightforward. But this time, ran the numbers and decided they could benefit by making unemployment rate the deciding factor. And, wouldn't you know it, this new system disproportionately benefits poorly mannaged blue States at the expense of well-managed red ones. New Jersey, New York, and California, whose destructive shutdowns led to high unemployment rates, will walk away with a combined gain of almost $9 billion. Tennessee, on the other hand, is still one of the best fiscally managed States in the country. We will lose $164 million for doing the right thing. Alabama will lose almost $900 million. Both Florida and Georgia will lose over $l.2 billion each. prgtoken If this body mandates a transfer of wealth based solely on ' desire to clean up their prepandemic mistakes, we will scare off investment and hamper innovation in every State long after we are able to fully reopen. This isn't a hypothetical--leaders
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Marco Rubio (Republican, FL) \u2014 2021-3-5

I think we can all agree we have kids in America who need to be in school who haven't been in school over a year now, in some cases. prgtoken The science is clear that you can open up schools safely. Now, I know different districts have different challenges about opening up. This bill provides money for everybody to open up. We don't want to change that. We want to help every district. prgtoken Under my amendment, every district in the country would get money, but the more days of the week you are open, the more money you are going to get, which makes all the sense in the world. If you are going to open 4 days a week, you shouldn't have as much money as a district that is going to open 5 days a week. prgtoken The purpose of the money that is being provided is so that schools can fund the cost of opening safely. All this amendment tries to do is create an incentive for these districts to open up more days because we do have unions--to be fair, not all, but we do have teachers unions in this country that are saying they are not going back until next year, even if they are vaccinated, even if all the measures are put in place. prgtoken We have a crisis in this country. We have seen now a surge in mental health problems, with young people showing up at hospitals, and across the country, it is a terrible situation, not to mention the year of lost learning. This amendment incentivizes us to get our kids back in school.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Rob Portman (Republican, OH) \u2014 2021-3-5

No. 1, the 4-week average on unemployment claims are actually going the right way. Why? Because the economy is opening up, folks. If you don't see that, you are not going home to your States and talking to your employers. prgtoken Second, we have a situation here where the s are saying we want to continue the $300 per month--or per week after March 15, but let's end it on July 18. If things turn south--which no one is predicting, by the way, not a single economist--I know a lot of us would be willing to work with the other side of the aisle to extend, but there is no reason to do that at this point. prgtoken With regard to your tax cut, it is a tax increase. It is a tax increase on small businesses. Vote on Amendment No. 1378
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Lindsey Graham (Republican, SC) \u2014 2021-3-5

. There was a time about a year ago when we were together, and we passed a COVID relief bill of $1.9 trillion, 96 to nothing. What happened? You all got it now. prgtoken So here is what I want you to know. That CARES formula, that bill we passed, had an allocation for State and local funding that has been changed by our ic friends, and the biggest winners are New York and California. So the formula they are using now, New York and California wins big. You need to check what you are doing because you are giving a lot of money to New York and California because they can do it. prgtoken This is a big State bailout. You need to check and explain to people back in your State why they need more money than you do. You are rewarding people who have closed down the economy, won't reopen, so I am asking to go back to the bipartisan formula, reject this partisan formula that rewards ic blue States at the expense of most everybody else in this building. prgtoken So if you don't know how your State is doing, we know how your State is doing, and you will hear about it.
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Patrick J. Toomey (Republican, PA) \u2014 2021-3-5

my amendment would simply strike the section that provides ``such sums as may be necessary to make payments of 120 percent of outstanding debts to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.'' prgtoken There are only two requirements to get this money. One is to have a USDA prgtoken farm loan, and there are billions of dollars' worth out there, and the other is, you must be a member of a favored racial or ethnic group, including African American, Hispanic, Asian Americans, and some others. There is no income test. There is no asset test. It doesn't matter whether you are rich or poor. You don't have to have experienced any harm of any kind whatsoever, including from COVID. You just have to be the right race. prgtoken The senior Senator from Michigan called this provision ``an important piece of reparations.'' This bill is supposed to be about COVID relief and helping the people who are adversely affected by the economics of the lockdown. Instead, we are handing out money based exclusively on race. This is unconstitutional. It is outrageous. My amendment strikes the provision, and I urge its adoption.