[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 215 (Friday, December 18, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7686-S7688]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              Coronavirus

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, there is a lot going on and not enough of 
some things we really need to go on going on.
  But I think it is worth noting again--lest the moment be lost somehow 
in all the back and forth and all the chaos--that we have reached a 
watershed moment in the war against COVID-19.
  As you know, the first successful vaccine was approved last week. I 
watched online as the Vice President of the United States and his wife 
received the vaccine. I applaud them for demonstrating their 
confidence, which should be all of our confidence, that this vaccine is 
not only effective but also safe.

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  In my State of Texas, it is estimated that there will be a million 
people vaccinated by the end of this month. That is a modern medical 
and logistical miracle.
  Yesterday--the news keeps getting better--the FDA's expert advisory 
panel recommended the Agency approve a second successful vaccine, 
meaning millions more doses, over and above the Pfizer vaccine, could 
be headed out the door in a matter of days, if not hours.
  The light at the end of the tunnel is getting bigger and brighter 
every day, but we are not out of the dark yet. As we know, tragically, 
more than 300,000 Americans have lost their lives to this virus. 
Millions have lost their jobs and their livelihood. Countless small 
businesses have permanently closed their doors, and the devastating 
impact of the virus across the country is growing day by day.
  Earlier this year, we were able to come together in four separate 
pieces of legislation in a bipartisan--nearly unanimous--manner and 
respond with the sort of alacrity and speed and with the scope that I 
think our constituents expected us to. We didn't exactly know how big 
we needed to go. We just knew we needed to go big and we needed to go 
fast.
  We appropriated more than $3 trillion of coronavirus relief. We 
didn't know how long the virus was going to last. And when we tried to 
offer additional aid to the American people, unfortunately, the 
partisan dysfunction that sometimes creeps in--particularly, in the 
days leading up to a national election--prevented us from providing 
that relief.
  But the election is over, and it is time for us to do our jobs. 
Really, we need to build on our past success.
  The bills culminating in the CARES Act in March bolstered our 
healthcare response by making testing free of charge. Remember that 
used to be the watchword, what people would continue to say day after 
day after day: testing, testing, testing. You are not hearing that 
anymore because testing is ubiquitous.
  We provided vital funding for hospitals and armed our medical workers 
with the personal protective equipment they needed to sustain this 
fight on the frontline. We poured funding into research and development 
of vaccines, therapeutics, and treatment. And by any measure, those 
efforts have been a success.
  While, as I said, the number of people testing positive has gone up 
pretty dramatically, the death rate has remained much lower than it was 
in the early days of the virus. That is because, I believe, the 
treatments have improved, the therapeutics are working, and our 
healthcare providers are learning how to treat people with the virus in 
ways that are saving lives.
  The work we did up through March buoyed the workers and families who 
needed the help with direct payments, bolstered unemployment insurance 
benefits, and even gave the option to defer student loan payments with 
no penalty. We knew people needed help, and we acted responsibly, I 
believe.
  We also supported our wobbly economy with the assistance for the Main 
Street businesses through the Paycheck Protection Program and loans for 
the industries that our States and Country rely on.
  But as time has gone on, much of the funding provided by those bills 
has run out. As I said, we didn't know in March how long this was going 
to last, either the public health challenges or the economic challenges 
associated with it. But we have a better picture of what is needed now 
and we need to act and act soon--money for schools, vaccine 
distribution, and for airlines, which, through no fault of their own, 
are seeing their ridership plummet. They need help. Each of these are 
worthy of our best efforts to help.
  Critical provisions that supported everything from unemployment 
benefits to the Paycheck Protection Program have already lapsed or are 
within just a few days of doing so. I know people wonder: Why does 
Congress wait so long, to the 11th hour to act?
  Well, call it human nature, call it stubbornness, call it politics, 
call it what you will, but deadlines do force action, especially here 
in the Congress. I believe we are on the cusp of positive results for 
the American people.
  For months now, disagreements on what the next relief bill should 
look like have stopped us from making progress. Unfortunately, I think 
it was more about the election and stoking the fears and anxieties of 
the American electorate in the run up to the election. I think that is 
what prevented us from passing additional bills after the CARES Act in 
March.
  Then Nancy Pelosi and the House passed the Heroes Act, which 
everybody recognized--the mainstream media and even Democrats 
acknowledged--was not going to go anywhere. That was another $3 
trillion bill that helped the nascent marijuana industry, providing tax 
cuts to the wealthy people living in high-tax jurisdictions like New 
York and San Francisco. It was clearly not designed to pass, but rather 
to send a message.
  Well, we knew we needed a targeted bill to send relief to those who 
needed it most, without driving up government spending even higher than 
necessary. Over these last several months, too much of the discussion 
has been focused on the areas where we disagree and, truthfully, there 
is no such thing as a perfect bill. You can always find a reason to say 
no.
  But I don't believe that is the reason our constituents have sent us 
here. They want us to be responsible. They want us to be careful with 
their tax dollars, but they do want us to act in their best interests 
by trying to find ways to build consensus--even when we can't agree on 
everything, to at least agree on the things we agree on. I think they 
expect us to do that.
  We all understand that our workers and many people have had the rug 
pulled out from under them. They had no money coming in the front door. 
They are worried about paying the rent or mortgage. Their kids are at 
home going through virtual schooling. I mean, it is tough on a lot of 
people. It is not so tough if you are a Member of Congress and are 
receiving a paycheck. But for millions of our constituents back home, 
they have been waiting and waiting, and they have been hurting because 
we have not been able to get our act together.
  The second round of the job-saving Paycheck Protection Program would 
help a lot. It would help our small businesses, throw them another 
lifeline. That was really one of the most popular parts of what we were 
able to do in March.
  As the Presiding Officer will remember, we appropriated $350 billion 
and it went in 2 weeks. So we appropriated another $320 billion to 
provide loans to small businesses and incentives for them to maintain 
their payroll so people would have income and so that those small 
businesses, once we got the virus in the rearview mirror, would still 
be around and help rebound our economy.
  In Texas alone, there were 417,000 Paycheck Protection loans--$41 
billion worth. The average loan was $115,000; although, I was on a Zoom 
call with some in the Texas Bankers Association, and one of them told 
me that their smallest loan was $300. I am sure there is an interesting 
story behind that. The point is this was needed help, and it has run 
out.
  Then we need another investment in vaccine distribution. The 
logistical challenge of getting this vaccine around the country is 
mind-boggling, but we can see it is already working because of thorough 
planning and good execution, but they need more money to make sure that 
we get the job done. We also need to make sure that schools, 
particularly as people feel more comfortable going back to school in 
person, get additional support so they can bring the children back into 
the classrooms and keep them and the teachers and other employees 
healthy at the schools.
  We know virtual learning has been a disaster, particularly for low-
income students. Unfortunately, broadband is not universally available 
in the United States, and there are parts of my State wherein as many 
as a third of the students don't have access to broadband. So how in 
the world are they going to continue their educations? Local officials 
and State officials have tried to help, leaving parking lots outside of 
the school libraries available so you can drive up and gain access to 
the Wi-Fi from the schools, or they have distributed hotspots so that, 
if you get access to cellular service, you can actually tie into Wi-Fi 
and get online and

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continue your studies. Yet, for many of our young people, these school 
lockdowns have been a disaster in terms of their educations. So we need 
to do more in that area as well.
  Common sense tells us that, when you are sitting across the table, 
negotiating with somebody, if 80 percent of what you are talking about 
is agreed to, the process should move along pretty quickly because 
nobody gets 100 percent of what one wants around here. It is just not 
possible. While it is unfortunate it has taken us so long to reach this 
point, I am encouraged that maybe, just maybe--now with the deadline 
for government funding running out tonight at 12 midnight--this is 
forcing action and that a deal is in sight.
  There has been more bipartisan cooperation and communication over the 
last several days than there has been in the last several months. A lot 
of people have put a lot of effort into this on a bipartisan basis, and 
now the decision is with what we call the ``four corners''--rank-and-
file Members of the House and Senate. We are not going to have a chance 
to amend this deal. It is going to be proposed by Speaker Pelosi, 
Democratic Leader Schumer, Leader McCarthy, Majority Leader McConnell, 
and the White House. So I am sure it is not going to be perfect. 
Unfortunately, we will not have a chance to make it better. I hope the 
partisan divisions that have paralyzed Congress for much of the year do 
not rear their ugly heads in these final hours and at this critical 
stage of negotiation.
  There is too much at stake for us to go home for the holidays 
emptyhanded. There are too many people who are hurting, too many people 
who are anxious. The number of people having overdosed by self-
medicating since the virus hit is, I think, about 80,000, I read. You 
can imagine people self-medicating, whether it is with alcohol or drugs 
or people who are trapped with an abuser, either a spousal abuser or a 
child abuser. Because they are not going to school, their teachers 
can't look for signs of that abuse and get them help. Reports of child 
sexual abuse are down 40 percent. It is not because it is not 
happening; it is because kids aren't in school, where teachers and 
others can come to their aid.
  I can only imagine a single mom, say, with three kids of different 
ages at home, trying to continue their educations, but she is worried: 
How do I keep working--maybe she is an essential worker--so she can pay 
the bills to put food on the table and pay the rent. Can you imagine 
the chaos and stress?
  There is too much at stake for us to go home for the holidays 
emptyhanded. We need to remember we are not here for our benefit; we 
are here for the benefit of the people we are honored to represent--in 
my case, 29 million Texans. We have a fiduciary responsibility. We are 
in a position of trust. They have entrusted us with their welfare. The 
American people have waited long enough. We can't let them down again. 
We are on the 5-yard line, and we need to deliver. We need to get this 
done and get this done soon.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.