[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 20 (Monday, February 6, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S714-S716]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                Congratulating the New England Patriots

  Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, American history was made last night. The 
New England Patriots won the Super Bowl. This triumvirate of Robert 
Kraft, Bill Belichick, and Tom Brady continues this historic journey to 
being recognized as the greatest single football team in the history of 
the United States. Even as the Falcons were ahead by 25 points, even as 
the rest of the country thought the game was over, we in Massachusetts, 
we in New England, we have our own motto: In Belichick we trust. In 
Brady we trust.
  We knew it was not over. We knew there was still hope. We knew there 
was a plan that could be implemented that would ensure that the 
Patriots once again would prevail.
  I thank the Presiding Officer for giving me this opportunity to be 
recognized on this most important of all subjects. This incredible 
Patriots victory has brought joy to people all across New England. It 
has brought dismay to people in other parts of the country. They still 
continue to be mystified by this incredible team and the incredible 
leadership those three great leaders provide. But for us, we realize we 
are in the presence of greatness. We know how spoiled we are to have 
such a great team.
  I just wanted to rise and congratulate the New England Patriots, 
their leadership of Bob Kraft, Bill Belichick, Tom Brady, but all of 
this team, because their motto is a very simple motto. It says: Do your 
job. That is what every Patriot did last night. Because they stuck it 
out through every single play, at the end of the day, they were able to 
enjoy that historic victory.
  For my part, I can't be more proud of any group of New Englanders. It 
was just a fantastic victory. As a season ticket holder, when I was 19 
years old, when it was seven games at $6 apiece--$42 as a season ticket 
holder at Fenway Park. You can imagine how almost impossible it is to 
believe that we have reached such a stage where even those who have 
been critics of the Patriots now are forced to recognize that Bill 
Belichick is the greatest coach of all time; Tom Brady is the greatest 
quarterback of all time; and the Patriots, led by Robert Kraft, is the 
greatest franchise of all time. We are very proud that victory last 
night cemented that place in history.
  Once again, I just want to congratulate each and every one of them 
and especially the Patriots fans who, through thick and thin, have been 
with that team every step of the way.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I rise today as a product of New Jersey 
public schools, the son of Cuban refugees whose parents decided to 
leave everything behind because they did not like the dictatorship from 
the right and did not like what they saw in the Sierra Maestra, as the 
Castros were seeking to overthrow that government from the right, and 
who fled their own country in order to seek a better life in the United 
States.
  They were the lucky ones. They saw the handwriting on the wall, and 
they got out before the true brutality of the Castro regime took hold 
in Cuba. When they arrived here, they had nothing more than the promise 
of a brighter future and, if not for them, then for their children.
  In so many ways, it is the quintessential immigrant story; indeed, 
the quintessential American story. My mother worked as a seamstress in 
the factories of New Jersey. My father was an itinerant carpenter. We 
didn't have a lot of money--just enough to live in a small apartment in 
a tenement in Union City and put food on the table. But that was 
plenty. It was plenty because my parents knew that living in America 
gave their children access to a free public education, and they always 
taught us that an education was the key toward a better life.
  Growing up, I was a quiet kid. I was very studious. I got good 
grades, but I struggled with public speaking. I know some of my 
colleagues wouldn't believe that today, but it is true.
  Unfortunately for me, one of the final requirements before I 
graduated high school was a public speech class. Again, I did all the 
work, but I refused to actually stand up in front of the class and 
speak. I thought I could get away with it, but my teacher, Gail Harper, 
had other ideas.
  She kept me after class. After my classmates left, she forced me to 
recite short stories and poetry and speeches I had written that were 
part of the classwork. Eventually she told me that I was going to be 
the narrator in a school production, which meant that I was going to be 
speaking on stage in front of the entire student body. I was

[[Page S715]]

petrified--petrified. And I was inclined to refuse.
  I am not sure if there would have been a more terrifying thought to 
me in the world than having to get up in front of my entire student 
body, but Ms. Harper told me that she knew that I could succeed. If I 
refused, however, she would have no choice but to fail me. And if you 
knew my late mother, that was not an option.
  So I swallowed my fear, and when I got out there, I found that Ms. 
Harper's work paid off. Not only did I realize that I could overcome 
all of that fear and anxiety, but it had instilled in me a hunger to 
keep working, to get better at speaking in front of people, a skill 
that I honestly owe my life's work to.
  For me, Ms. Harper was so much more than a teacher; she was a mentor 
and one of the unsung heroes of our public education system. And I am 
privileged to have had an opportunity to tell her that during her 
lifetime.
  Now, thanks to my parents' commitment and incredible public 
schoolteachers like Ms. Harper, this product of New Jersey public 
schools went on to get a law degree from Rutgers University, a State 
institution, and was able to rise from a tenement in Union City to 1 of 
100 Senators in a country of over 300 million people.
  I got my start in politics fighting for public schools in my 
hometown. When I was in high school, I was told that because of my 
grades and my activities, I could be in the senior honors program but 
that I had to cough up $200 for the books. My parents were poor. We 
lived in a tenement. I didn't have $200 for the books. And I couldn't 
understand, for the life of me, if I had the ability and the grades but 
not the money, that I would be barred from being in the honors program. 
So I raised such a ruckus that they gave me the books, told me to be 
quiet, and they put me in the honors program. But I had friends who had 
the same circumstances; they had the ability and the grades, but they 
didn't have the money. Unlike me, they didn't say anything, and they 
didn't get in. So I didn't think that was right.
  I petitioned to change the school board from being appointed by the 
mayor at the time to being elected by the public. Ultimately, I won the 
fight to change that school board and became the youngest school board 
member at that time in history when I was 20 years old.
  So I understand the promise of public education. I understand the 
challenges that come with it. I understand the need for parental 
engagement and the extraordinary impact that good teachers can have on 
our children's lives.
  I understand that our schools need access to adequate resources in 
order to allow every student to reach their full potential. And I 
understand that we have a long way to go to ensure that we truly do 
guarantee every child in America equal access to a high quality public 
education regardless of where they live, regardless of the happenstance 
of where they were born, regardless of their station in life.
  Most importantly, I understand that our public education system has 
formed the foundation upon which the American dream has been built for 
generations. It is the great socializing factor of our Nation, and 
there is no substitute for it. At its core, it is an all-taker system. 
It does not care whether you are wealthy or poor, whether your family 
predates European settlement, came on the Mayflower, or is first-
generation American. It does not care whether you are White or Black or 
Hispanic or Asian or Christian or Jewish or Muslim. It does not care 
whether you struggle with learning disabilities or autism or Down 
syndrome.
  Our public education system welcomes you with open arms and adheres 
to the fundamental principles that all are welcome, all are equal, and 
all deserve a chance to learn and earn a better life for themselves and 
their families.
  While we work to improve public education and renew our commitment to 
our children, we need a partner in the Federal Department of Education 
that also understands these challenges and shares our values. 
Unfortunately, I do not believe that Betsy DeVos is that candidate.
  While I do not question her intentions, her limited experience and 
advocacy for policies that fundamentally undermine public education 
make her unqualified to be the Secretary of Education.
  Mrs. DeVos has never participated in the public education system that 
she would be tasked with overseeing either as a student or a parent or 
a teacher or an administrator. I don't see that fact in and of itself 
alone as disqualifying but, coupled with the policies that she has 
advocated for in her home State of Michigan--pushing for more charter 
schools while simultaneously working against accountability for them, 
even as they profit off the backs of children while showing little 
improvement in student outcomes; advocating for voucher schemes that 
put public funding into private schools even for families that do not 
need the additional assistance, while depriving public schools of vital 
funding that they depend upon to provide a quality education to every 
student--it becomes clear that Mrs. DeVos does not understand that 
fundamental commitment to American children.
  My concerns about Mrs. DeVos were compounded by the answers she gave 
in her confirmation hearing before the HELP Committee. Guns have no 
place in our schools--at least in my view--except in the hands of 
trained law enforcement personnel tasked with keeping our children 
safe, yet when asked if she would do away with gun-free school zones, 
if told to do so by the President, Mrs. DeVos, after trying to avoid 
the question with a nonanswer about grizzly bears attacking schools, 
said she would ``support the President.''
  I do not believe that it is the role of a Cabinet Secretary to simply 
and blindly support the President, regardless of how misguided or 
dangerous an idea might be, nor do I believe that it is reasonable or 
responsible to make it easier to bring guns in and around schools, 
where they endanger our children. We must do a better job of securing 
universal background checks and treating mental health issues, but more 
guns is not the answer.
  Mrs. DeVos also said in her testimony that she believed that 
compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act should 
be left up to the States. IDEA, as the act is known, guarantees a 
``free, appropriate public education'' that is individualized to meet 
the needs of every student with disabilities.
  When Congress first passed IDEA in 1975--though it was called then 
the Education for All Handicapped Children Act--it came with a promise 
that the Federal Government would cover 40 percent of the cost to 
educate those with special needs. Unfortunately, we have not met that 
obligation, providing less than half of that funding in recent history.
  IDEA is Federal--not State--law. It is Federal law that needs 
increased funding and attention from the Federal Government. And when 
this was pointed out to Mrs. DeVos, she said simply that she ``may have 
been confused.''
  Our children with disabilities deserve a real Federal partner that 
understands the challenges they face and is committed to getting them 
the resources they deserve, not a Secretary of Education who is 
confused about the Federal role in education.
  These are only a few examples of how Mrs. DeVos has shown herself to 
be unprepared and unqualified for the very serious position to which 
she has been nominated.
  If confirmed, Mrs. DeVos would take over a multibillion-dollar 
Federal student aid and student loan program that helps American 
families afford the skyrocketing cost of higher education.
  I, myself, was a recipient of Pell grants and other Federal student 
aid and would not have been able to afford the cost of a college degree 
without them. Yet not only does Mrs. DeVos have no experience with 
student loans or managing such a program, she has very little, if any, 
engagement with any policy issues pertaining to higher education.
  At a time when trillions of dollars of student debt are acting as a 
barrier to obtaining a higher education, hindering a generation of 
graduates from entering the middle class, and acting as a drag on our 
economy, we deserve a nominee who understands these issues.
  As we continue to struggle with the best ways to measure student 
progress and achievement, we deserve a Secretary of Education who 
understands basic concepts like the difference between proficiency and 
growth.
  So let me just say, my own experiences have given me an incredible 
faith

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in the power of public education systems, while Mrs. DeVos has worked 
only to undermine them. I believe that the Federal Government can be a 
strong partner in ensuring a free, quality public education for all 
students, especially those with disabilities, while Mrs. DeVos seems to 
think that the Federal Government should not be involved in these 
endeavors.
  I believe that guns must remain out of our schools, but Mrs. DeVos 
seemed to indicate that they could have a place there. Most 
importantly, I believe that our students, parents, teachers, and 
educators should be able to trust the person tasked with overseeing 
them. And the 50,000 New Jerseyans who have reached out to me to oppose 
her nomination have clearly shown that she has not earned that trust.
  Here is one example of a constituent who reached out to my office.

       Dear Senator,
       My name is Beth More and I live in your great State of New 
     Jersey in Fanwood in Union County. I am writing today to 
     express my deep opposition to the appointment of Betsy DeVos 
     as Secretary of Education. As a mother of two boys in our 
     public school system, and one with special needs, I am deeply 
     concerned and troubled by Mrs. DeVos's lack of public school 
     experience. In fact, the thought of her steering money and 
     funding away from public schools is not only a threat to my 
     children, but a threat to the 50 million other children 
     currently receiving a public education. She lacks 
     understanding in even the most basic issues that affect our 
     schools, and that, my Senator, is scary. I urge you to 
     strongly oppose this and tell your other colleagues in the 
     Senate the same.

  So I implore my colleagues to put politics aside, to examine Mrs. 
DeVos's qualifications closely, and to be open to the input that you 
all are receiving from your own constituents, like Beth More.
  I hope that if you are open in your mind in that regard, you will 
oppose Betsy DeVos's nomination to be Secretary of Education, as I 
will.
  With that, Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.