[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 203 (Wednesday, December 2, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7154-S7155]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Business Before the Senate

  Madam President, now, on Senate business, before the end of the year, 
the Senate has three major priorities: Fund the government; pass the 
annual Defense bill; and deliver another round of significant COVID 
relief.

[[Page S7155]]

  The appropriators from both sides of the aisle continue to have good 
discussions, and I hope on the funding of the government that the final 
agreement can be announced soon.
  Now, the other two priorities, unfortunately, are a bit murkier. 
Yesterday, President Trump issued over Twitter a renewed threat on the 
annual Defense bill. Previously, the President threatened to veto this 
important legislation over a provision to rename military installations 
named after Confederate traitors.
  Now President Trump has issued a veto threat by tweet over a policy 
concerning social media companies, section 230, which is in neither 
version of the NDAA already passed by both Houses of Congress.
  President Trump must have realized that vetoing a pay raise for our 
troops in order to defend the honor of Confederate traitors wasn't the 
best message to send, so he has found a new complaint. After 4 years of 
ignoring the President's most vitriolic, conspiracy-fueled, and absurd 
comments on social media, I wonder if our Republican colleagues would 
say that they didn't see this particular tweet.
  The truth is, section 230 may actually need some reform, but that is 
a serious undertaking that should be done in a regular order and can be 
left for another day, and it is certainly not an acceptable reason to 
veto the annual Defense bill, which includes policies to keep our 
military prepared, well-resourced, and equipped to do a difficult and 
vital job.
  Nevertheless, it is silly season at the White House. The President 
seems intent on filling each of his remaining days in office with 
petulance, grievance, and self-interest.
  The President is reportedly asking his staff about whether he can 
issue preemptive pardons for himself, his family members, and Rudy 
Giuliani. There is a simple answer: No. No, Mr. President, that would 
be a gross abuse of the Presidential pardon authority. But I have a 
more important question: Just how long are our Republican colleagues 
going to indulge the President in this nonsense?
  Many of our Republican colleagues gave the President space to contest 
the validity of our elections, poisoning Americans' faith in our 
democracy. Now he is threatening to veto a pay raise for our troops and 
considering preemptively pardoning the entire Trump family. When are 
our Republican colleagues in the Senate going to say ``Enough 
already''?
  At the very least, with respect to the Defense bill, Senate 
Republicans ought to find the courage to ignore the President's 
eleventh hour ramblings and pass the NDAA.