[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 23, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S448-S450]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                 Funding the Government and Tax Reform

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I am glad that Democrats decided that they 
needed to reopen the government. The political theater they engaged in 
over the weekend endangered funding for our military, threatened the 
future of the Children's Health Insurance Program, and created 
uncertainty about important government services, from programs for 
veterans, to worker and product safety, to public health. And for what? 
For politics. Democrats were feeling pressure from certain interest 
groups within their party, and so they decided to use the government 
funding bill to take a stand on an unrelated illegal immigration issue. 
It didn't matter that Republicans had already expressed an interest in 
working on an immigration bill with Democrats or that the deadline for 
such a bill was not imminent. No, Democrats weren't getting the bill 
that they and their interest groups wanted, when they wanted it, so 
they decided to jeopardize the operation of the entire government.
  Unfortunately, obstructing for political reasons has been the 
Democrats' modus operandi so far this Congress. Democrats were 
supposedly fervent advocates of extending the Children's Health 
Insurance Program, but they chose to obstruct the substantial 6-year 
extension of CHIP included in the government funding bill because they 
wanted to make a political point. On Presidential nominees, they have 
obstructed and obstructed again, even when they planned to eventually 
support the nominee. And of course I don't need to remind anyone of 
Democrats' refusal to accept Republicans' offer to work together on tax 
reform--this, of course, despite the fact that Democrats had previously 
called for tax reform and supported many of the proposals that were 
included in the law.
  Obviously, there are going to be disagreements in politics, sometimes 
very serious ones. Sometimes opposing legislation is absolutely the 
right thing to do, but opposing legislation because you have a serious 
disagreement with it and opposing legislation for political reasons are 
two very different things. But unfortunately, since their defeat in the 
2016 elections, Democrats have spent a lot of time doing the latter. 
That is irresponsible, it is shortsighted, and it is a disservice to 
their constituents. Democrats are missing the chance to help deliver 
major benefits for the American people.
  That tax reform legislation Democrats fiercely decried despite their 
previous support for many of the included proposals, well, that 
legislation, which has been the law of the land for barely a month, is 
already delivering big benefits for the American people. More than 200 
companies have announced wage hikes, 401(k) increases, and/or bonuses.
  The Nation's largest private employer, Walmart, announced an increase 
in its starting wage for hourly employees and bonuses for eligible 
employees. It also announced expanded maternity and parental leave 
benefits and the creation of a new adoption benefit for their 
employees. More than 1 million Walmart employees will benefit from the 
changes.
  Tech giant Apple announced last week that thanks to tax reform, it 
will bring home almost $250 billion in cash that it has been keeping 
overseas and invest it here in the United States. It also announced 
that it will create 20,000 new jobs and provide $2,500 stock bonuses to 
employees.
  The list goes on--better retirement benefits at Aflac; increased 
capital investment and bonuses at AT&T bonuses at PNC; increased 
investment in infrastructure and facilities at Boeing; a hike in 
starting wages at Capital One; new jobs, bonuses, and investment from 
Fiat Chrysler; bonuses at Southwest, JetBlue, and American Airlines; 
better retirement benefits at Visa; and the list goes on and on. There 
are the utility companies that are seeking approval from the regulators 
to pass savings on to consumers. These benefits are going to make a 
real difference in families' lives this year and, in some cases, well 
into the future.
  The main benefits of tax reform are still to come. The IRS has 
released the new withholding tables for the tax law, and Americans 
should start seeing the results in February. Thanks to lower income tax 
rates and the near doubling of the standard deduction, 90 percent of 
American workers should see bigger paychecks starting next month. On 
top of that, the doubling of the child tax credit will mean even 
greater tax relief for hard-working parents, and that is just the 
beginning.
  One major goal of tax reform was to provide immediate, direct relief 
to hard-working Americans, and that is happening right now. But our 
other goal was to create the kind of robust, long-term economic growth 
that would provide long-term security for American families. That is 
already starting with the wave of wage increases and bonuses, but there 
is a lot more to come. As businesses large and small experience the 
benefits of tax reform, American workers will see increased access to 
the kinds of jobs, wages, and opportunities that will secure their 
American dream for the long term.
  I am proud that we passed tax reform, and I am very excited about the 
benefits that it is already delivering for American families and 
American

[[Page S449]]

workers. We have a lot more to accomplish this year, from improving our 
Nation's infrastructure to strengthening our military, to border 
security.
  I hope yesterday's vote to end the shutdown is a sign that the 
Democrats are ready to stop obstructing. We can get a lot more done for 
the American people when we are working together.
  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.
  Mr. BROWN. 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. BROWN. Mr. President, today, we consider the nomination of 
Federal Reserve Board Governor Jerome Powell to be Chair of the Board 
of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, one of the most important 
jobs in our government. The Federal Reserve System is the central bank 
of the United States. It is responsible for monetary policy, ensuring 
the stability of the financial system and the safety and soundness of 
our banks.
  The Federal Reserve in Washington, DC, also has 12 regions or 
districts around the country. One of them is located in my hometown of 
Cleveland. Governor Powell has been a member of the Federal Reserve 
Board since 2012. He supported important principles of monetary policy 
and critical elements of financial regulation. His track record over 
the past 6 years shows that he is a thoughtful policymaker.
  As the Chair of the Board of Governors, he would lead the Federal 
Open Market Committee within the Federal Reserve. Governor Powell 
supports the statutory dual monetary policy goals of maximum employment 
and price stability--the cornerstones of a well-functioning economy.
  Senator Crapo, who is joining me today, is chairman of the committee. 
We listened to testimony today about the nomination of another Fed 
Governor--not the highest position, as the Chairman of the Federal 
Reserve, but a Federal Reserve Governor--Mr. Goodfriend. The answers we 
elicited from him seemed to be, from my interpretation, that it was not 
clear that he has the same belief and respect for the dual mandate. The 
dual mandate, unlike what the Europeans do, is especially important for 
workers in this country. In Europe, the only charge of the central bank 
is to keep inflation down. In our country, the Federal Reserve, what we 
call our central bank, has two jobs equally balanced--the dual policy--
and that is to keep inflation down and to keep employment up. They are 
maximum employment and price stability, the cornerstones of a well-
functioning economy.
  To advance those policy goals, Governor Powell supports the Federal 
Reserve's current path of gradual increases in interest rates. He 
believes they should continue. At the same time, Governor Powell 
recognizes the importance of an independent Federal Reserve. That is 
very important. I don't want Members of Congress--with our prejudices, 
biases, and political ideologies--to influence or to compromise the 
independence of the Federal Reserve. Governor Powell recognizes that 
independence. He is committed to following an example of prior Federal 
Reserve Chairs by doing the job without a view to political outcomes.
  Governor Powell played a significant role in implementing crucial 
reforms under Dodd-Frank. He understands the importance of the rules 
for stress tests, capital standards, and resolution planning. We need 
the Federal Reserve to make sure that those rules are applied 
thoroughly and consistently so that gaps or failures don't create 
larger risks through the financial system.
  We know that too many people in this body seem to have a collective 
amnesia about what happened 10 years ago. It is up to us to remind 
Governor Powell, and it is up to him to remember what happened 10 years 
ago and to learn from it. As Chair, Governor Powell is responsible for 
making sure the Fed fulfills its consumer protection role.
  Americans work hard to make ends meet. They shouldn't have to 
struggle with unfair and abusive practices by financial institutions.
  The Trump administration is engaged in an effort to undermine 
important financial system protections and reforms put in place in the 
wake of the great recession.
  Governor Powell has seen the developments in the safety and stability 
of our banks during his time at the Fed. I expect him to maintain and 
to improve those standards. Ohioans, still recovering from the last 
financial crisis, can't afford the consequences of another financial 
crisis. I know Governor Powell wants the Fed to play a part in the 
success of the economy and American families. I call on him to continue 
the Federal Reserve's measured path for monetary policy and to support 
the strong regulations he helped put in place.
  For some people, it is easy to forget how much damage was done by 
this lack of strong oversight of our financial system, especially 
during the last 4 years of the Bush administration, where millions lost 
their homes. I know Chairman Crapo and I have talked about this. The 
44105 ZIP Code that my wife Connie and I live in, in Cleveland, in the 
first half of 2007, we had more foreclosures in that ZIP Code than any 
ZIP Code in the United States. Think of what it does to people's lives. 
Think of what it does to our families. Millions of people lost homes, 
millions lost jobs, millions lost much of their life savings.
  For the wealthiest Americans, the nearly 9 years of gains in the 
stock market makes the crash of a decade ago a distant memory, but for 
the vast majority of Americans who have little in direct holdings in 
the stock market and not too much in other areas either, their wages 
have been flat, and many still have not recovered from the crisis.
  The Fed's latest survey of household wealth indicates--get this--44 
percent of Americans can't cover an emergency expense of $400. Forty-
four percent of Americans can't cover an emergency expense of $400 
without selling something or borrowing. For some, if their car breaks 
down, and they need $400 to fix their car to get to work, they have to 
go to a payday lender, and then their trouble starts. Then they have to 
go get a second payday loan and then a third payday loan.
  Income inequality is the worst since the 1920s. The racial wealth gap 
is enormous. The median Black household has only $11,000 to its name, 
one-twelfth of its White counterpart.
  The Fed can't solve all of our problems, but it can make them worse. 
Right now, the Fed seems puzzled by why low unemployment is not 
producing more inflation. Perhaps it is because more Americans are 
struggling paycheck to paycheck. They can't bid up the price of goods 
until they get out of debt. Yet even in the face of continued low 
inflation, there are those pushing for rate increases to give 
bondholders better returns. Others want to go back to some of the same 
banking practices that brought about the financial crisis.
  The independence of the Fed is critical but only if it is used to 
make decisions based on data and experience, not ideology. That is 
exactly what Ben Bernanke and Janet Yellen did over the past decade in 
helping to guide the Nation to one of the longest lasting recoveries in 
our history.
  Go back to the year 2010. We know when President Obama took office, 
we were losing 800,000 jobs per month in this country--700,000 the 
second month--hundreds of thousands, millions of jobs at the beginning 
of his administration.
  Starting in 2010, in large part because of the auto rescue and other 
things, our economy began to turn around. Since 2010, we have had job 
growth in every single quarter--every single quarter--since the auto 
rescue. President Trump loves to take credit for the job growth month 
after month. The fact is, it was launched early in the Obama years, and 
we have been able to sustain it--not economic growth to the level we 
want, not job growth to the level we want, certainly not pay increases 
to the level we want but something.
  I hope Governor Powell will uphold that tradition that Chairman 
Bernanke and Chairwoman Yellen began.
  I plan to support Governor Powell's nomination. I urge my colleagues 
to do the same.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Idaho.
  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I, too, rise in support of the nomination 
of the

[[Page S450]]

Honorable Jerome, or ``Jay,'' Powell to be the Chairman of the Board of 
Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
  I appreciate this opportunity to immediately follow my colleague 
Senator Brown, as he and I serve together in leading the Banking 
Committee on critical issues like this. Senator Brown has very well 
described a number of the critical aspects of what this nomination 
means to America. I don't think there is any overstating the importance 
of this nomination--one of the very few most important nominations any 
President gets to make.
  The Federal Reserve Chairman plays a critical role in shaping the 
U.S. and global economic landscape as well as the regulations affecting 
financial institutions and markets.
  If confirmed to this position, Governor Powell would be central to 
ensuring a safe and sound financial system while also supporting a 
vibrant, growing economy. He will play a key role in right-sizing 
Federal regulations and alleviating unnecessary burdens, a stated goal 
of the Federal Reserve. He would also Chair the Federal Open Market 
Committee, the body charged with making key decisions for the Nation's 
monetary policy.
  Governor Powell has a unique background, which will help him lead the 
Federal Reserve. He has demonstrated his understanding of the markets 
and regulations during his tenure over the past 5 years at the Federal 
Reserve.
  Most recently, he has served as Chairman of the Fed's Committee on 
Supervision and Regulation, a highly important and impactful position.
  Governor Powell previously served as Assistant Secretary and Under 
Secretary of the Treasury under President George H.W. Bush, where he 
was responsible for policy affecting financial institutions, the 
Treasury market, and other critical areas of our economy. He also has 
firsthand experience in investment banking and was a partner in the 
Carlyle Group before being appointed to the Board of Governors.
  Governor Powell was reported out of the Banking Committee with 
overwhelming bipartisan support last year and was recently approved 
again this year with near-unanimous support. If confirmed to this new 
role, I look forward to continuing our work together with Governor 
Powell on a host of important issues before the Banking Committee.
  I support this nomination today and urge all of my colleagues to do 
the same.
  Thank you.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to engage in a 
colloquy with Mr. Flake, the Senator from Arizona.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.