[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 106 (Tuesday, June 9, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2771-S2772]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 JUSTICE IN POLICING ACT AND HEROES ACT

  Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, as protests over the death of George 
Floyd continue, House and Senate Democrats came together yesterday to 
unveil sweeping reforms to our Nation's police departments.
  The Justice in Policing Act was not only a response to the recent 
protests but a reflection of years of failed efforts to root out 
injustice and racial bias in our law enforcement. The bill would ban 
the use of choke holds and other tactics that have left Black Americans 
dead. It would limit the transfer of military weaponry and equipment to 
police departments. It would change the legal standard to make it 
easier to hold police accountable for misconduct when they use

[[Page S2772]]

deadly force on American citizens, and through increased data and 
transparency, as well as important modifications to training and 
practices, it would help prevent police misconduct in the first place.
  This is a very strong bill, and rightly so. I give tremendous credit 
to Senators Booker, Harris, and so many others who contributed, as well 
as the Black Caucus, led by Karen Bass and Chairman Nadler of the 
Judiciary. They put together a very strong bill. The reason is simple. 
The moment does not call for half measures.
  Hundreds of thousands of American protesters are not asking us to 
chip away around the edges. They want bold reform and meaningful 
changes to assist them in something that all too often delivers unequal 
justice for too many Black Americans, and that has existed that way for 
too, too long. Well, that kind of bold reform and meaningful change is 
what the Justice in Policing Act will deliver--meaningful change. 
Democrats are going to fight very, very hard to make this proposal a 
reality.
  Now, of course, in the Senate, it is ultimately up to Leader 
McConnell to decide what proposals, if any, come to the Senate floor. 
That is his prerogative as majority leader. But for 2 weeks, Leader 
McConnell has refused to respond to my requests for the Senate to 
consider a police reform bill before July 4, the end of the current 
work period. I have heard the Republican leader speak to the 
frustrations that have swept the Nation. I trust he is aware of the 
many abuses that have been allowed to persist unchecked in our police 
departments. Where is Leader McConnell on actually doing something 
about it?
  Of course, there is another crisis at the moment, the COVID pandemic. 
According to reports in the press, Leader McConnell has told the 
Republican caucus not to expect another relief bill until late July at 
the earliest. This is happening even as some States begin loosening 
restrictions on business and travel. But even as that happens, our 
economy is hampered by severe Depression-level unemployment. While the 
number of new cases is falling on the east coast, the number of cases 
remains steady in much of the country and is increasing in a good 
number of States.
  We are coming to a whole lot of cliffs. States are preparing their 
budgets in advance of the new fiscal year in July. If they don't get 
help soon, they may be forced to make severe cuts to public service, 
and thousands, hundreds of thousands, and even millions will be laid 
off--hard-working State and local officials whom our communities depend 
on.
  There are other cliffs as well. The 3-month moratorium on eviction 
expires. Unemployment expires July 31. There are so many cliffs here, 
and make no mistake about it, COVID is related to racial justice as 
well. In the HEROES bill, for instance, hazard workers and frontline 
workers get extra pay--hazard pay. More than 40 percent of them are 
minorities. These are the people on our frontlines. Rental assistance 
for people who might be evicted, a large percentage of minority folks 
cannot afford to own a home or rent, so we must act on that as well.
  So the kind of racial justice we are talking about, the kind of 
inequality that exists--some of it--a good chunk of it would be 
relieved if we passed the HEROES Act, COVID 4 bill. Both of these are 
important to do. Racial justice, civil rights, a global pandemic, and 
economic disaster--these are not merely issues of the month but of this 
moment in American history. It is truly a time of historic challenge, 
and Leader McConnell and the Republican Senate are missing in action. 
There is no commitment to consider police reform and no urgency to 
provide our country relief, despite the upcoming cliffs that are going 
to be soon upon us.
  Now there is a full 4 weeks remaining before July 4. I say to Leader 
McConnell: commit to a police reform bill on the Senate floor. Work 
with us on another emergency package that can come to the floor as well 
before July 4. We have waited too long already.
  For weeks, we Democrats have had to relentlessly pressure our 
Republican colleagues to even hold the most routine oversight hearings. 
The Republican majority on the Homeland Security Committee, in 
particular, has wasted time these past few weeks trying to smear the 
family of the President's political opponent instead. Here we have a 
major crisis--a major crisis on the health front, on the economic 
front, on the racial justice front, and what are so many of our 
Republican friends doing? Raising back already discredited conspiracy 
theories to go after the President's political opponent at a time when 
Americans are calling for unity and coming together and doing something 
about our problems. It is a shame.
  The Homeland Security Committee will finally, today, conduct a 
hearing with the FEMA Administrator for the first time in so long. This 
crisis has been raging for months. More than 8 weeks ago, we passed a 
$3 trillion bill. Why is it taking so long to have any oversight at 
all? Finally, members of the committee will have the opportunity to 
press administration officials as to why, in the early days of the 
pandemic, the distribution of PPE and other critical medical supplies 
was marked by so much confusion, secrecy, incompetence, and delays. In 
fact, Senators Warren, Blumenthal, and I formally requested an 
investigation into Project Airbridge, the name of the Trump 
administration's opaque medical supply chain management project, which, 
by most reports, was a failure. Why aren't we looking into why that 
went wrong, what went wrong, and how we can correct it?
  The harsh fact of the matter is this: We have lost too many 
Americans, frontline workers, and hospital emergency personnel to this 
horrible COVID-19 disease. We will never know how many we lost because 
we weren't better prepared with the necessary protective equipment. The 
Trump administration's failure should be thoroughly investigated so it 
does not make the same mistake again if there is a resurgence of the 
disease.
  Meanwhile, America is still waiting for the President to even 
acknowledge the issues of police violence and racial justice that are 
driving protests across the country, including across the street from 
the White House.
  The President appears too preoccupied trying to emulate Richard 
Nixon, of all Presidents, and he doesn't offer even a scintilla of 
leadership. The President seems too preoccupied with his political 
precariousness to even try to bring the country together.
  As former Defense Secretary Mattis wrote, ``Donald Trump is the first 
president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American 
people--does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us. 
We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate 
effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without 
mature leadership. We can unite without him . . . ''
  And do that, we must, as Americans. Those words were not written by 
some liberal Democrat whom they will call names, cast aspersions on, 
never discussing the argument. It was written by one of our great 
military leaders, former Defense Secretary General Mattis
  Every day provides fresh evidence that this country will have to 
unite in spite of the President, not because of him.
  I yield the floor.

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