[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 191 (Monday, December 2, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S6784]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                             Appropriations

  Mr. President, finally on appropriations, while the Senate was away 
for the Thanksgiving holiday, there was an important bit of progress in 
the appropriations process. House and Senate appropriators have agreed 
to the allocations to the various committees--known as 302(b)s--and are 
now working to finalize the 12 appropriations bills.
  I applaud the appropriators on both sides of the aisle and on both 
sides of the Capitol for clearing this major hurdle and potentially 
paving the way to finish appropriations by the end of this year, 2019.
  Now that we have an agreement on allocations in place, Senate 
Democrats want to ensure that the final appropriations bills include 
several of our policies and priorities. These are what we Senate 
Democrats want to make sure are in these bills: significant resources 
to combat the opioid and gun violence epidemics; significant investment 
in infrastructure; significant investment in childcare; funding for the 
Violence Against Women Act needs to be maintained or, ideally, 
increased, which is a Democratic priority; and there must be--must be--
funding to secure our elections in advance of next year's Presidential 
election.
  Of course, there is still the impediment of President Trump's 
insistence on funding an expensive and ineffective border wall. Senate 
Democrats strongly oppose the President's stealing money from our 
military families to pay for this border wall. We have fought for 
provisions to stop this theft, and we will continue to do so. I hope my 
Republican colleagues muster the courage to stand with the military 
families in their States whose funds have been robbed to build this 
vanity project of President Trump.
  Again, I am very pleased we have an agreement on 302(b)s. We must now 
build on that momentum to make sure the final appropriations bills help 
the American people as much as possible.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Ernst). The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. WYDEN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.