[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 187 (Wednesday, November 15, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S7230]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                      Nomination of David Zatezalo

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I wish to make a statement about the 
second vote we are going to have, and I urge my colleagues to vote 
against the nomination of David Zatezalo as the Mine Safety and Health 
Administrator.
  MSHA is responsible for protecting the safety and health of miners in 
this country and for holding companies that put their workers' lives at 
risk accountable. So it really is disappointing to me that President 
Trump nominated one of the industry's worst health and safety offenders 
to lead this critically important agency.
  This is, unfortunately, just another in a long list of decisions by 
President Trump that jeopardizes workers' health, safety, and financial 
security in order to prioritize corporations and special interests.
  I really hope our colleagues will join me in rejecting President 
Trump's extreme agenda and this nominee.
  Thank you.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCAIN. 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the quorum call be rescinded.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. McCAIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak on the 
nomination of Dr. Mark Esper to be Secretary of the Army.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I rise today to support the nomination of 
Dr. Mark Esper to be Secretary of the Army. Perhaps more than any other 
service, our Army is experiencing the strain of 16 years of continuous 
conflict. From our troops on the ground in Afghanistan and Iraq to 
recent headlines about the tragic loss of four soldiers in Niger, there 
are constant reminders that we remain a nation at war. And with rising 
threats around the world, the operational tempo is not slowing down.
  We owe our young men and women in uniform leadership that fits their 
service. I am confident that Dr. Esper will provide our Army with that 
leadership. His record of service in the Army, in the Pentagon, and on 
Capitol Hill provides the foundation for the leadership our soldiers 
deserve. I am also confident that he will call upon his experience in 
the private sector to bring a reform mindset to the many challenges 
facing our Army, such as the readiness crisis and the urgent gaps in 
capabilities and modernization.
  Dr. Esper began his career as an Infantry officer in the 101st 
Airborne Division, serving with distinction in the first Gulf war. He 
later served on active duty in Europe, and on the Army staff in 
Washington, DC, before transitioning to the National Guard and retiring 
after 21 years of service. He was an Airborne Ranger and recipient of 
the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, and Meritorious Service Medals, among 
other awards and qualifications.
  Dr. Esper also worked national security issues on Capitol Hill with 
many of my colleagues here. He was a professional staff member on the 
Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House Armed Services 
Committee. Later, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense.
  I will not hold it against him that he is a graduate of the U.S. 
Military Academy at West Point. He also holds degrees from Harvard 
University's John F. Kennedy School of Government and George Washington 
University.
  Our soldiers continue to prove their commitment, courage, skill, and 
determination. In return, we owe them the same kind of leadership. I 
believe Dr. Esper will provide that leadership.
  I am proud to support Dr. Esper's nomination, and I ask my colleagues 
to do the same.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the question is, 
Will the Senate advise and consent to the Esper nomination?
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There is a sufficient second.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk called the roll.
  Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the 
Senator from Texas (Mr. Cruz) and the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. 
Tillis).
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker), 
the Senator from California (Mrs. Feinstein) and the Senator from New 
Jersey (Mr. Menendez) are necessarily absent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 89, nays 6, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 274 Ex.]

                                YEAS--89

     Alexander
     Baldwin
     Barrasso
     Bennet
     Blumenthal
     Blunt
     Boozman
     Brown
     Burr
     Cantwell
     Capito
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Cassidy
     Cochran
     Collins
     Coons
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Cortez Masto
     Cotton
     Crapo
     Daines
     Donnelly
     Duckworth
     Durbin
     Enzi
     Ernst
     Fischer
     Flake
     Franken
     Gardner
     Graham
     Grassley
     Hassan
     Hatch
     Heinrich
     Heitkamp
     Heller
     Hirono
     Hoeven
     Inhofe
     Isakson
     Johnson
     Kaine
     Kennedy
     King
     Klobuchar
     Lankford
     Leahy
     Lee
     Manchin
     McCain
     McCaskill
     McConnell
     Moran
     Murkowski
     Murphy
     Murray
     Nelson
     Paul
     Perdue
     Peters
     Portman
     Reed
     Risch
     Roberts
     Rounds
     Rubio
     Sasse
     Schatz
     Schumer
     Scott
     Shaheen
     Shelby
     Stabenow
     Strange
     Sullivan
     Tester
     Thune
     Toomey
     Udall
     Van Hollen
     Warner
     Whitehouse
     Wicker
     Wyden
     Young

                                NAYS--6

     Gillibrand
     Harris
     Markey
     Merkley
     Sanders
     Warren

                             NOT VOTING--5

     Booker
     Cruz
     Feinstein
     Menendez
     Tillis
  The nomination was confirmed.

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