[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 131 (Wednesday, August 2, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4701-S4702]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                         Work Before the Senate

  Mr. President, we sometimes are our own worst enemy in the U.S. 
Senate. We do something really important, really good, and really 
bipartisan, and then we do not tell anybody about it. We leave it to 
them to discover it for themselves. Last night, for example, we passed 
major, bipartisan, bicameral legislation to continue the Veterans 
Choice Program. At a time when so much is polarized here in Washington 
and people are hungry for bipartisanship and solution-oriented 
leadership,

[[Page S4702]]

when they get it on something like the Veterans Choice Program, we do 
not talk about it. This is really important to our veterans--people to 
whom, I believe, we have a solemn commitment as a result of their 
service to our country.
  Over the last few years, we have heard how the Veterans Health 
Administration has been plagued by inefficiency, unaccountability, and 
poor quality of care. The VA has been hindered too long by unnecessary 
bureaucratic hurdles, which have been incredibly frustrating and 
deadly, I am afraid, in some cases, for our veterans. We have heard 
stories about veterans having to travel hours to get medical care, 
sometimes causing them to accept lower quality care or to forgo that 
care entirely. Sadly, in some cases, veterans turn to coping 
mechanisms, self-destructive activity--self-medicating--with drugs or 
alcohol because they simply cannot get access to genuinely helpful 
medical care.
  The Veterans Choice Program was designed to help address that by 
ensuring that veterans could receive timely appointments close to where 
they live. If they had to drive too far or if they had to wait too long 
for an appointment at a veterans facility, we said: You could show up 
at your local healthcare provider's, and we will pay for it through the 
Veterans Choice Program.
  The VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017 continues that 
important program and guarantees veterans that they will have access to 
care without interruption.
  This bill also strengthens the VA's ability to recruit, train, and 
retain its valuable workforce, which will help the VA continue to 
improve veterans' care. I am glad we were able to pass this legislation 
last night to ensure that this program can continue serving veterans. 
In moving forward, both Chambers should continue to work with the VA to 
get the agency back on track and right the years of poor quality of 
care and of service to our veterans for whom, I believe, we have a 
sacred obligation, a solemn commitment, based on their service to our 
country.
  Next, we will focus on another important piece of legislation. This 
is authorizing the Food and Drug Administration's user fee program.
  This is how the Food and Drug Administration actually considers and 
approves new drugs that can save lives and improve the quality of 
lives. These partnerships between the public and private sectors ensure 
that patients will have access to safe and effective drugs and medical 
devices while also maintaining America's position as a global leader in 
medical innovation. Faster approvals mean treatments and cures reach 
patients sooner. Increased competition leads to lower costs, and that, 
in turn, means more lives saved. This is another example of what, I 
believe, will be a bipartisan accomplishment of the current Senate and 
current Congress.
  I heard one of our colleagues last week stand in front of the Nation 
and say nothing ever gets done. Well, we are doing some important 
things. The Veterans Choice Program and the FDA reauthorization bill 
are important, lifesaving bills that are being passed on a bipartisan 
basis.
  Then, of course, there is the backlog of the President's nominees.
  I have never seen anything quite like it. We had an election on 
November 8, but for many of our colleagues, the election remains 
undecided. They do not accept the verdict of the American people and 
the electoral college that President Trump won the election and that 
Hillary Clinton lost. That is how they, somehow, justify their 
consistent foot-dragging and obstruction when it comes to the 
President's nominees for important offices, including his Cabinet.
  It is the President's prerogative to nominate whom he wants to serve 
in the executive branch, but it is our duty, our responsibility, to 
carefully consider their qualifications before coming together to 
confirm them. Now, we have had people who had been waiting months for 
their nominations to be confirmed and who were confirmed by almost 
unanimous votes of the Senate, which tells me we were delaying those 
votes unnecessarily. If they were truly controversial, I think it would 
be reflected in the votes for their confirmations, but they are not.
  Let me just name one--our former colleague, Kay Bailey Hutchison, who 
has been nominated to serve as the Ambassador to NATO. I cannot think 
of a more qualified person than my good friend, the former Senator from 
Texas. Our country needs leadership in Brussels, at NATO, to help 
counter Russian aggression and threats and intimidation against our 
allies in the region, but that is just one example.
  Last night, the Senate confirmed the FBI Director--I am grateful for 
that--but they also confirmed--again, in the dead of night when nobody 
was paying attention--eight other Department of Defense nominees. Now, 
if our Democratic colleagues had good reason to delay those 
confirmations because they felt like they were controversial, that is 
their right, but evidently they were willing to let those people who 
had been nominated to the Department of Defense be confirmed, 
basically, by consent after months and months of delay.
  We have a lot of other nominations that are backlogged due to the 
unfortunate obstruction and foot-dragging of our Democratic colleagues, 
and I, for one, do not think we ought to leave in August--this month--
without a big, robust package of the confirmations of these 
noncontroversial nominees.
  It is time to get over the election. That was on November 8. We used 
to see a difference between elections and the responsibility of 
governing. Regardless of who wins the election, we still have the 
responsibility to govern. Some people seem to have forgotten that.
  Again, I hope we have a big, robust package of noncontroversial 
nominations approved before we leave for the rest of the month of 
August. I think it is too important to leave town without that. We need 
our President to succeed so the country can succeed. This is what every 
American who voted for President Trump hoped for, and they trusted him 
to choose men and women for his Cabinet to lead and guide our country. 
I have to say, he has done a remarkably good job in the people whom he 
has chosen for his Cabinet so let's come together and confirm these 
appointees so the administration can better serve our Nation and all 
Americans.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, thank you.
  I come to the floor today to urge my colleagues to vote no on the 
nomination that we will vote on shortly.
  On the campaign trail, President Trump promised to put workers first. 
Instead, President Trump's administration has rolled back worker 
protections and prioritized corporate interests at the expense of 
workers.
  It is critical, now more than ever, that the NLRB remain independent 
and committed to advocating for workers and their right to organize, 
but I am deeply concerned that President Trump's nominee, Mr. Kaplan, 
does not have a record of supporting the rights of workers and unions.
  At his nomination hearing, Mr. Kaplan confused basic labor issues and 
decisions, further proving he lacks the knowledge and experience to 
serve on this important board. NLRB members should be committed to 
standing up for workers, and it is clear Mr. Kaplan does not make the 
cut.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in doing what President Trump has 
failed to do, and that is to put workers first. Vote against this 
nomination.
  Thank you.
  I yield the floor.