[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 84 (Thursday, May 26, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S3232]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       THE REPUBLICAN-LED SENATE

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, so much has changed since the American 
people elected a new Republican majority to get the Senate back to 
work. Americans have told us to break through the gridlock and get the 
Senate focused on real solutions again. We have, and we are.
  This doesn't mean our colleagues across the aisle will always 
cooperate; we have certainly seen an unfortunate example of that this 
particular week. But what is clear is how the underlying fundamentals 
have changed: Committees are now functioning; legislative processes are 
now working; we now continue to get important things done for the 
people who sent us here.
  It all started with a simple philosophy: Give Senators and the people 
they represent more of a say in the legislative process, and they will 
take more of a stake in the legislative outcome, regardless of party. 
So we did, and the results have been encouraging. This is how we have 
been able to transform gridlock into progress and dysfunction into 
solutions.
  To give an example of what I mean, we recently took as many rollcall 
votes on one bill, the Energy Policy Modernization Act, as the Senate 
took in all--all--of 2014 under the previous majority. It is remarkable 
how far we have come in such a short time.
  Consider what we were able to achieve for our constituents in 2015 
alone. Some said Congress could never break old traditions of short-
term fixes and patches and punts, but we repeatedly proved them wrong 
with meaningful and substantial reforms instead.
  That is certainly true of the new education reform law we passed. It 
replaced No Child Left Behind with ``the largest devolution of federal 
control to the states in a quarter-century.'' It is a hugely important 
reform that empowers parents and prevents Washington from imposing 
Common Core. That is a notable conservative achievement.
  The same could be said of the decisive action we took to enact 
permanent tax relief for families and small businesses or to bring an 
end to a job-killing energy embargo from the 1970s or to place on 
President Obama's desk a bill that would finally end ObamaCare's cycle 
of broken promises and pain for the middle class.
  We secured pay raises for our troops, help for our veterans, and hope 
for the victims of human trafficking. We passed a landmark cyber 
security law that will help safeguard America's personal information. 
We achieved the most significant transportation solution in years, one 
that will finally allow us to rebuild roads, bridges, and crumbling 
infrastructure without raising taxes by a penny.
  We got a lot done for the American people in 2015. We are continuing 
to get a lot done for the American people in 2016.
  In just a few months, the Republican-led Senate has passed 
legislation providing real solutions on a range of issues: Addressing 
the prescription opioid and heroin epidemic that is ravaging our 
country with critical, comprehensive legislation; modernizing American 
energy with the first broad energy bill since the Bush administration; 
improving airport security and consumer protections with the most pro-
passenger, pro-security FAA reauthorization in years; deterring North 
Korea's growing aggression with comprehensive sanctions; keeping the 
Internet open and accessible by permanently banning government from 
taxing your access to the Internet; supporting American manufacturing 
by reducing tariffs that make it harder for American businesses to 
compete and to grow; defending American innovation and entrepreneurship 
protections against the theft of intellectual property; and just this 
week, combating sexual assault and human trafficking with new 
protections for victims and enhanced tools for law enforcement.
  These are just some of the things we have been able to accomplish the 
past few months alone. But we are not finished. None of this would have 
been possible without functioning committees and capable leaders to 
guide them. Those chairs often choose to focus on ideas where 
Republicans and Democrats can agree, not just where the two parties 
disagree, and we have gotten some really important legislation passed 
as a result.
  We have seen some truly notable anecdotes, too, like the fact that 
the Finance Committee has approved more bills to date in the 114th 
Congress ``than any single Congress since 1980''; like the fact that we 
got the appropriations process started this year at the earliest point 
in the modern budgeting era--in other words, in about 40 years; like 
the fact that we passed the first of these three appropriations bills 
at the earliest point in the modern budgeting era as well.
  It is good to see the appropriations process finally getting back on 
track after so many years of dysfunction. It is incredibly important 
for the Senate, it is definitely healthy for the democratic process, 
and it will certainly allow us to address a variety of funding issues 
in a more thoughtful and deliberative way.
  Take Zika, for instance. Combating the spread of the Zika virus has 
been a priority for both parties, so Republicans and Democrats 
deliberated and forged a compromise in committee. Senators debated that 
compromise out here on the floor and voted to pass it. Now Members of 
the Senate and the House are preparing the process of going to 
conference so we can get this measure down to the President. That is 
how you get good legislation to the President. That is what is known as 
doing your job around here.
  Of course, it will not be easy to get the appropriations process back 
on track completely after so many years of dysfunction, but we are 
committed to doing all we can. We have clearly demonstrated strong and 
steady progress already, and that is something that benefits both 
parties. It means more Members get a say. It means more scrutiny is 
brought to bear on the funds that are spent. It means more regular 
order and more of a Senate that functions even better for everyone.
  I am proud of all we have accomplished in such a short time. We have 
put the Senate back to work, we have continued to get our jobs done, 
and that has allowed us to pass important legislation for the American 
people who, after all, sent us all here.
  I thank Senators from both sides who have worked with us to restore 
this Chamber to a place of higher purpose. I know there is more we can 
accomplish together, so let's keep working to ensure that we do.

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