[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 170 (Wednesday, September 29, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6765-S6766]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



             Unanimous Consent Request--Executive Calendar

  Mr. WYDEN. Madam President, in a few minutes, I will put forward the 
unanimous consent request that the Senate take up and approve a highly 
qualified and unquestionably noncontroversial nominee. I am going to 
take just a few minutes to talk about Jonathan Davidson, nominated to 
be the next Deputy Under Secretary for Legislative Affairs at the 
Treasury Department.
  To do this briefly, there are a few key points to make about this 
important nomination. To start, Jon isn't just a person off the street 
being nominated for a new job in the Biden administration. In fact, my 
guess is, virtually every Member of this body, Democrats and 
Republicans alike, have worked with Jon at one point or another.
  From 2011 until he was nominated this past spring, Jon served as 
chief of staff to another Finance Committee colleague, Senator Bennet. 
He is known as somebody who is honest, who is hardworking, and who is 
committed, most importantly, to bringing people together to tackle big 
challenges, and he has been doing it a long time.
  Before his work with Senator Bennet, Jon served as chief of staff to 
Senator Paul Sarbanes. He spent time in the office of Representative 
John Sarbanes, and he was later chief counsel to our friend and 
colleague, Senator Mark Warner. You don't have to take it from me that 
Jon knows his way around the Congress. All of those Members trusted Jon 
as a right-hand man.

  The second issue: I can't find any controversy with respect to his 
nomination. He cleared the Senate's Finance Committee on a 28-to-0 
vote.
  Let me repeat that: 28-to-0 vote.
  In fact, the Finance Committee reported out several nominees this 
Congress without any Republican opposition, none at all. Normally, that 
would be enough to pave the way for prompt and full Senate 
consideration, but I think we all understand these are not normal times 
here in the U.S. Senate.
  It used to be the case, at the end of July, the two sides would come 
together and look to pass a package of noncontroversial nominees by 
unanimous consent. My Finance Committee team thought this would be the 
case this year. Unfortunately, that did not take place. Senate 
Republicans were just in no mood to clear even the most uncontroversial 
nominees.
  This is an extraordinary level of obstruction beyond what you saw 
when the previous administration was staffing up. For example, let's 
take the previous two nominees for the same position Jon is up for.
  Drew Maloney was the first Trump nominee for Legislative Affairs at 
Treasury. The Finance Committee held a hearing on this nomination on 
June 7, 2017. The committee voted on his nomination a week later, 
favorably reported by a vote of 25 to 1. A few weeks after that, the 
full Senate passed his nomination by unanimous consent, along with 
several other nominations for roles in the Trump Treasury Department. 
That is how the process generally unfolds.
  Two years later, Brian McGuire was nominated to replace Mr. Maloney. 
His hearing was held July 24, 2019. The Finance Committee approved his 
nomination a week later. He was confirmed to serve in the Trump 
administration on September 24.
  In both cases, these two nominees, colleagues, were confirmed 2 
months after their hearings.
  Jon Davidson has been waiting 4 months since his hearing on May 25--
nearly twice as long as Trump nominees waited for the same job.
  I think we all understand that it is essential to have qualified 
individuals heading up offices of Legislative Affairs. They help to 
make sure administrations follow the laws, just as the Senate passes as 
intended. They help Members write legislation. They make sure that all 
Members get responses to their questions with respect to oversight.
  Setting everything else aside, you would think Senate Republicans 
would be especially interested now in making sure the Senate can 
perform that essential oversight. I myself am looking for some straight 
answers to a number of oversight requests I had posed to the Treasury 
Department, and having Jon installed in his new role as Treasury would 
sure help to move that process along. Federal Agencies and the Congress 
need these legislative point guards in order for Agencies to run as 
smoothly as possible.
  This isn't a policy position, nor is Jon Davidson a nominee who 
raises any major concern from anybody. I have yet to hear even anything 
resembling a substantive reason from Senate Republicans for opposing a 
nominee like Jon Davidson, who got a 28-to-nothing vote out of 
committee to lead this office. There is no reason for delaying any 
longer.
  Therefore, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the 
following nomination: Calendar No. 168, Jonathan Davidson, to be Deputy 
Under Secretary of the Treasury; that the nomination be confirmed, the 
motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no 
intervening action or debate; that no further motions be in order to 
the nomination; and that the President be immediately notified of the 
Senate's action.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Hickenlooper). Is there objection?
  Mr. CRUZ. Mr. President.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.
  Mr. CRUZ. Reserving the right to object. Mr. President, this 
continues a discussion we have been having for days and indeed weeks 
and indeed months. Joe Biden is being flagrantly

[[Page S6766]]

lawless, in that he is refusing to impose mandatory congressional 
sanctions passed by Congress in the Countering America's Adversaries 
Through Sanctions Act, also known as CAATSA.
  CAATSA was designed for precisely the purpose of taking away the 
President's discretion to impose sanctions on Russia in cases where 
Congress deemed it necessary to mandate them.
  CAATSA passed Congress overwhelmingly. The vote was 98 to 2. Indeed, 
in September 2020, my colleague Senator Wyden wrote a letter that was 
joined by 10 other Democrats about Russian malign activities.
  Senator Wyden's letter stated: ``Congress has mandated a broad range 
of sanctions tools, and it is long past time for the administration to 
send a direct message to President Putin.''
  The letter continues, specifically citing the ``sanctions mandated 
provided for in'' CAATSA.
  President Biden is legally obligated to Nord Stream 2 AG, the company 
responsible for the planning, the construction, and the eventual 
operation of Putin's Nord Stream 2 Pipeline.
  Nord Stream 2 AG has committed acts that require the imposition of 
these mandated sanctions under CAATSA Section 228. Section 228 mandates 
sanctions on any company that conducts any ``significant 
transactions,'' including ``deceptive transactions,'' for Russian 
companies that are already sanctioned.
  In May, the Biden State Department sent Congress a certification 
confirming that Nord Stream 2 AG had engaged in those actions. It is 
clear that Nord Stream 2 AG falls under the mandatory sanctions of 
CAATSA. Nobody, not even the Biden administration, denies that the 
Biden State Department sent that certification confirming those 
actions. Nevertheless, President Biden and, in particular, the 
Department of Treasury is refusing to implement the law.
  I have spoken directly with Secretary Yellen. I have spoken directly 
with the Deputy Secretary of Treasury. The law is clear and 
unequivocal. And because of the political agenda of the Biden White 
House, because of President Biden's desire to surrender to Vladimir 
Putin and to give him a multibillion-dollar pipeline, weakening 
America, weakening Europe, and giving vast resources to Putin to hold 
Europe subject to energy blackmail, Treasury is refusing to follow the 
law.
  Nevertheless, I have been willing to offer a compromise. I have 
placed holds on nominees to the State Department and some of the 
nominees to the Treasury Department. And I have offered a compromise to 
lift the holds on this nominee and other nominees to the Treasury 
Department, and also to lift the holds on career nominees to State if 
either the Biden administration follows the law in CAATSA and impose 
sanctions. That is option A. That would be the best option.
  Or option B, if they decide because, for whatever political reason, 
they believe surrendering to Putin is a good idea notwithstanding 
America's national security interest, there is a second option that I 
have offered to lift those holds, which is they could impose the 
sanctions under CAATSA and then immediately delist Nord Stream 2 AG. 
That would prevent the sanctions from going into effect, but it would 
also trigger an automatic vote here in this Congress to override that 
decision.
  I have made that offer, along with Senator Toomey, in writing months 
ago. It is a reasonable compromise, and yet the Biden administration 
won't take it. They won't take it because they are terrified, if and 
when Congress votes on that override, that an overwhelming bipartisan 
majority of Congress in the Senate and the House will vote to override 
Joe Biden's indefensible decision to surrender to Vladimir Putin.
  Nonetheless, in the spirit of reasonableness, I am happy to offer the 
Senator from Oregon the same deal or a similar deal, at least, right 
here and right now.