[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 11 (Thursday, January 18, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S269-S270]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              THE ECONOMY

  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, later this week, we are going to reach 1 
year since President Trump was sworn into office as President of the 
United States. From what I have seen and from what I have heard, 
visiting with people at home, all around the State of Wyoming, his 
first year has been a huge success.
  People are telling me, telling their friends, and telling their 
neighbors that America is finally headed in the right direction again. 
People tell me that they feel optimistic--optimistic because of the 
policies that Republicans have put in place over this past year.
  The polling company Gallup says it is not just happening in Wyoming; 
it is happening all across the country. They had a report the other day 
that said Americans' confidence in our economy was positive in 2017, 
and they say that this was the first positive annual average since they 
started tracking these numbers back in 2008--the first time ever.
  As soon as Donald Trump was elected President, economic confidence 
began to soar. It has stayed positive every single month since election 
day of 2016.
  Gallup has said that this is the exact opposite of what they had seen 
for the previous 8 years.
  In another poll last week, Gallup said that people are also more 
optimistic about the job market. They found that Americans' confidence 
about finding a job--a quality job--was the highest it has been in the 
17 years since they have been asking that question as well.
  They said that there was a ``sharp increase'' over the year before--
in 2016, when President Obama was in charge--in people's feelings about 
being able to find a quality job. People are confident, and they are 
much more optimistic about the future. We see the signs of it 
everywhere we turn.
  Stores had their biggest holiday sales since 2008. When people are 
feeling confident, they feel it is OK to go shopping. They feel there 
is going to be the income to cover the things they are interested in 
having for Christmas and the gifts they can give. They can relax. That 
is the kind of optimism we are seeing now.
  It is because they see that President Trump and Republicans in 
Congress are serious about improving America's economy. They see that 
we are serious about giving relief to Americans who have been getting 
buried under an avalanche of redtape.
  The President has cut through massive amounts of regulations. 
Congress has rolled back 15 different major regulations from the Obama 
administration. That is going to save Americans as much as $36 billion 
over time because of the regulatory burden that has been relieved. 
These are regulations that harmed Americans and wiped out American 
jobs. Now those regulations are gone.
  When people see that Washington is finally taking the right approach 
to regulation, it gives them confidence. It makes them more optimistic 
about the future.
  A lot of the regulations that Democrats wrote had to do with their 
war on American energy. Democrats shut down a lot of energy exploration 
and energy development in America. They shut down attempts to export 
American energy. They even wrote rules to put the United States at a 
competitive disadvantage when we tried to develop energy resources 
overseas.
  Republicans have stopped Washington's war on American energy. We are 
opening up more areas to responsible energy production off of our 
coasts and in part of Alaska. Our goal should be to make American 
energy as clean as we can, as fast as we can, without raising costs on 
American families.
  Republicans have put policies in place to restore that balance to 
America's energy policy.
  Now people are talking about not just energy security, energy 
independence, but American energy dominance. When people see that 
Washington is finally taking the right approach to energy, it gives 
them confidence.
  People see that Republicans are delivering on other promises as well, 
such as giving American families serious tax relief. This tax law that 
passed at the end of last year is giving back more than $1 trillion to 
Americans over time. It is letting people keep more of their hard-
earned money. It is spurring economic growth. It is going to make it 
simpler for a lot of families to fill out their taxes.
  When people see that Washington is finally taking the right approach 
to taxes, it gives them more confidence, more optimism. They are 
confident because they are already seeing the direct result in their 
paychecks.
  At least 166 companies have said that they are going to give raises, 
give out bonuses, and invest more in their workers because of the tax 
law. More than 2,236,000 workers across this country are getting more 
money in their pockets as a result of these raises and bonuses. Some of 
the folks who are getting bonuses are people who work at Walmart. That 
is one of the biggest employers in my State of Wyoming. People who work 
there are getting bonuses, they are getting higher wages, and they are 
getting expanded maternity leave benefits--one advantage after 
another--as a result of the tax law that was passed by a Republican 
House, a Republican Senate, and signed by President Trump. These 
workers are noticing the extra money. It is going to make a difference 
to them and to their families. It is not just a one-time bump for 
people; economists say that this tax relief legislation is going to 
boost the economy for years to come.
  There was a story on CNBC Monday that quoted an official from one 
European bank. He said that President Trump has ``changed the 
perception of what's possible in Washington.''
  The American economy has roared back to life. We are finally--
finally--having the economic recovery that we should have had 8 years 
ago. That is because we finally got the policies that allow our economy 
to grow the way it should. We had a big recession in this country. 
Democrats used that as an excuse to pile a bunch of regulations on the 
American people. That had a lot to do with keeping the economy from 
recovering at the pace it should have.
  During the Obama administration, there was talk about the ``new 
normal.'' People said that maybe it was just the way things were going 
to be in America from now on--slow, tepid economic growth, weak 
recovery, wages that didn't grow, people out of work for years at a 
time. That is what we saw in that administration. Now we know that it 
was never normal, it was never acceptable, and it was never the way 
things had to be. Things could be different, and the American people 
voted to make things different. In 2016, they said it was time for a 
change. Republicans are showing that the economy can grow faster once 
we get the right policies in place. America can be a greater place for 
all of us.
  We head into President Trump's second year with an economy much 
stronger than it was the day he took office. We have more Americans at 
work. We have businesses and families confident that the economy will 
be even better this year. I think that is the kind of thing that people 
mean when they tell me they feel confident and optimistic in the 
direction of our country again. I see that confidence in Wyoming. We 
see it on Wall Street, and we see it all across the United States.
  Democrats might miss the Obama economy of higher taxes and more 
regulation. Republicans are fighting to continue the policies that are 
giving Americans confidence, optimism, and hope. Republicans know this 
is just the beginning.
  (The remarks of Mr. Barrasso pertaining to the introduction of S. 
2319 are printed in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced 
Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')

[[Page S270]]

  

  Mr. BARRASSO. I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Fischer). The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. WARNER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. WARNER. Madam President, I rise very briefly to thank my friend, 
the chairman of the Intelligence Committee.
  One more time, I urge all of our colleagues to vote for S. 139, which 
will be coming up for a vote in a few moments.
  This is a critical tool that our intelligence community uses on a 
regular basis to keep America safe. It is a tool that--as someone who 
has more, perhaps, observance of this program than most--I do not 
believe has been abused or will be abused. This legislation includes 
meaningful reforms on furthering civil liberties protections and making 
sure that a year from now, the questions that many Members have asked 
over the years, particularly of the Bureau, will be answered.
  I think this foreminded legislation needs to pass and needs to pass 
with an overwhelming majority.
  Again, I thank the chairman for his good work. We had a 12-to-3 vote 
out of our committee on this legislation. We had a 60-to-38 vote that 
moved us forward on the cloture motion. My hope is that many other 
colleagues who care deeply about national security will join us in the 
final passage of this legislation.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.
  Mr. BURR. Madam President, I thank the vice chairman of the 
committee, Senator Warner.
  I think what we have seen is a process that has tried to take into 
account concerns that not just Members but the American people have had 
with programs that operate in a degree of secrecy, and I think most 
Americans understand why.
  The assurance I have tried to make and the vice chairman has tried to 
make to our colleagues and to the American people is that we are 
vigilant in the rigorous oversight of not just this program but of the 
entire complex of intelligence in the United States. It is our job as 
committee members, and we do it without the clarity that most members 
would like to have on issues. I respect the fact that some still 
disagree with us, though the number is small. I also feel extremely 
proud today that we are getting ready to, in the next few minutes, 
reauthorize the single most important intelligence tool that exists for 
us to keep the American people safe.
  I think we will look back on this as a needed tool. Today, the threat 
landscape looks worse than it probably ever has. The reason Americans 
can safely go to bed at night is that there are a lot of dedicated 
folks to whom we provide tools in order to keep them safe. It starts 
with a vote in this body, and I encourage all of my colleagues to vote, 
when given the opportunity shortly, to reauthorize the 702 program.


            Vote on Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1870

  Madam President, I move to table the motion to concur with amendment.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
  The motion was agreed to.


                        Vote on Motion to Concur

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question now occurs on agreeing to the 
motion to concur in the House amendment to accompany S. 139.
  Mr. BURR. Madam 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 Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator 
from Arizona (Mr. McCain).
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 65, nays 34, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 12 Leg.]

                                YEAS--65

     Alexander
     Barrasso
     Blunt
     Boozman
     Burr
     Capito
     Carper
     Casey
     Cassidy
     Cochran
     Collins
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Cortez Masto
     Cotton
     Crapo
     Cruz
     Donnelly
     Duckworth
     Enzi
     Ernst
     Feinstein
     Fischer
     Flake
     Graham
     Grassley
     Hassan
     Hatch
     Heitkamp
     Hoeven
     Inhofe
     Isakson
     Johnson
     Jones
     Kaine
     Kennedy
     King
     Klobuchar
     Lankford
     Manchin
     McCaskill
     McConnell
     Moran
     Nelson
     Perdue
     Peters
     Portman
     Reed
     Risch
     Roberts
     Rounds
     Rubio
     Sasse
     Schumer
     Scott
     Shaheen
     Shelby
     Stabenow
     Thune
     Tillis
     Toomey
     Warner
     Whitehouse
     Wicker
     Young

                                NAYS--34

     Baldwin
     Bennet
     Blumenthal
     Booker
     Brown
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Coons
     Daines
     Durbin
     Gardner
     Gillibrand
     Harris
     Heinrich
     Heller
     Hirono
     Leahy
     Lee
     Markey
     Menendez
     Merkley
     Murkowski
     Murphy
     Murray
     Paul
     Sanders
     Schatz
     Smith
     Sullivan
     Tester
     Udall
     Van Hollen
     Warren
     Wyden

                             NOT VOTING--1

       
     McCain
       
  The motion was agreed to.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.

                          ____________________