[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 208 (Wednesday, December 20, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S8155]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         FUNDING THE GOVERNMENT

  Mr. SCHUMER. Now to the end of the year, Mr. President, as a result 
of the Republican efforts to jam the tax bill through before the end of 
the year, we now have precious little time left to keep the government 
open and to solve a legion of problems.
  We still haven't reached a budget deal to lift the spending caps 
equally for both defense and urgent domestic priorities such as 
combatting the opioid crisis, improving veterans' healthcare, and 
building infrastructure.
  We have not reached a deal to reauthorize the Children's Health 
Insurance Program, community health centers, or to extend the 702 FISA 
Court program.
  Two major sticking points remain in the form of the disaster 
supplemental, which still does not treat Puerto Rico, California, and 
the U.S. Virgin Islands as well as Florida, Texas, and Louisiana.
  Of course we have the Dreamers and a moral imperative to protect 
them. These are kids who were brought here very young through no fault 
of their own. Many of them know no other country but ours. They learn 
in our schools, work in our companies, serve in our military, and want 
to be Americans more than anything in the world. They are Americans in 
every single important way but one; they lack the paperwork. We have to 
solve that problem.
  We have been negotiating with our Republican counterparts for weeks 
in search of a deal to pair DACA protections with reasonable border 
security. Democrats have always believed in border security, as the 
comprehensive immigration bill in the Senate showed. I hope now that 
the tax bill is behind them, my Republican colleagues are finally 
willing to reach an agreement, but because of the particular importance 
of all of these issues, especially Dreamers, we cannot do a short-term 
funding bill that picks and chooses what problems to solve and what not 
to solve. That will not be fair and will not pass. We have to do them 
all together instead of in a piecemeal fashion.
  Whether that global deal comes before the week is out or a later date 
in January, it has to be a truly global deal. We can't leave any of the 
issues behind. Our Republican colleagues on tax and healthcare decided 
not to work with us. In this case they have to work with us, and 
working with us means that we sit down around the table and decide 
there are some things you want, some things we want, and let's 
compromise and get it done--not just picking and choosing what you want 
to get done and telling us to deal with it. That will not work this 
time.
  I can assure my friend the majority leader that my caucus will be 
working in good faith with his caucus as long as they choose to work 
with us, and we will work with our colleagues in the House as well to 
reach a deal as soon as possible.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

                          ____________________