[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 216 (Saturday, December 19, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Page S7832]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           GOVERNMENT FUNDING

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, last night, we extended government 
funding for 2 additional days. The Senate and the House need to 
finalize another rescue package containing all the policies I just 
named and many more. We need to finalize government funding legislation 
for next year, and we need to pass these measures with a big, 
bipartisan vote and get them signed into law without further delay.
  We need cooperation and focus from all sides. There is a kind of 
gravitational pull here in Congress, where, unless we are careful, any 
major negotiation can easily slide into an unending catalogue of 
disagreements. Let's guard against that.
  The American people have already waited for more assistance longer 
than they could afford. In my judgment, they have waited far too long 
for a relief package of the same general size and scope that Senate 
Republicans have been proposing literally since last summer. Every one 
of us in the Senate and the House represent American families who 
simply cannot wait any longer for Congress to conclude these 
discussions. Every day that we delay may very well cost more small 
businesses their survival, cost more American workers their jobs, and, 
yes, cost more Americans their very lives.
  We have had productive discussions this week. I appreciate the good-
faith spirit that has characterized my talks with the Democratic 
leader, Speaker Pelosi, Leader McCarthy, and Secretary Mnuchin, but the 
American people cannot feed their families or pay their bills with 
Congress's good-faith discussions. They need us to act. We need to 
conclude our talks, draft legislation, and land this plane.

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