[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 190 (Thursday, October 28, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7440-S7442]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                           EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will 
resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will 
report.
  The bill clerk read the nomination of Hampton Y. Dellinger, of North 
Carolina, to be an Assistant Attorney General.

[[Page S7441]]

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.


                   Unanimous Consent Request--S. 2851

  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, earlier today, President Biden announced his 
new, revised, supposedly curtailed, social spending plan for America. 
It seems that the depressing economic numbers, the soaring costs of 
goods, mounting data that government spending is to blame, or perhaps 
some more moderate voices within the Democratic conference forced him 
to walk this latest monstrosity back.
  Democrats, who won control with the slimmest of majorities, feel that 
they have a mandate to change more about American society and spend 
more money than any group of elected officials in American history.
  The White House Chief of Staff tweeted today, bragging that this deal 
is still twice as big as the New Deal in real dollars.
  Be it at $3.5 trillion or a little less, we have lost almost all 
sense of what money means, at least when it comes to money being spent 
by Washington--by public officials who congratulate themselves, each 
other, and, in return, are congratulated by many in the media for 
spending other people's money or spending money we don't have, money 
that ends up, effectively, being printed.
  Our Founding Fathers entrusted Congress with the power of the purse 
because they expected Congress, which is the branch of government most 
accountable to the people at the most regular intervals, to be most 
likely to jealously guard the funds of those who sent us here.
  Understanding that as every Member of the House is required to stand 
for election every 2 years, and one-third of the Members of this body 
are required to stand for election every 2 years, that ought to have an 
effect. It ought to have precisely the effect that we remember: that it 
is not our money; it is the people's money, and that when we run out of 
it, we can't just pretend that we have more. When you do that, it 
causes problems--especially for the poor and the middle class.

  The Framers assumed that Congress would be the most responsible 
branch in managing our Nation's finances--again, because we are the 
branch most accountable to the people. But in this respect we failed. 
We failed in every sense. We failed dismally, miserably.
  Americans work for months out of every single year just to pay their 
Federal taxes. Yet our Nation is still barreling toward $30 trillion of 
national debt. We are now reaching devastating debt-to-GDP ratios that 
we have never contemplated during peacetime in America. And Americans 
are feeling the pain--real Americans, everyday Americans.
  Inflation is at its highest rate in decades. Everything from gas to 
groceries, from housing to healthcare--it is all more expensive and 
getting more expensive every single day. We know from sad experience 
that this isn't going to go away anytime soon. Prices, once they go up, 
tend to stick.
  Meanwhile, President Biden, apparently, is not satisfied with only 
making things more expensive, but he is also making it harder and in 
some cases impossible for many Americans to work. His still-unpublished 
vaccine mandate is causing millions of Americans to be at risk of 
losing their employment or, alternatively, acquiescing to Federal 
medical extortion. These are everyday Americans, all too often 
struggling just to get by. They are not bad people. They are not people 
whom we should shun. No. These are mothers and fathers. Some are first 
responders, and others are military heroes. They are our neighbors, 
friends, and fellow citizens. They deserve the respect and autonomy to 
make this decision for themselves.
  And the Constitution, when properly followed, protects Americans from 
precisely this type of Federal intrusion, especially this type of 
Federal intrusion wielded by one man, one person, in one office.
  I have heard now from over 300 Utahans just in the last few weeks who 
are at risk of losing their livelihoods due to the President's mandate. 
These are just the ones I have heard from. For every one I have heard 
from, there are many, many others who are being affected. Their stories 
are moving, and they are as moving as they are tragic. And we must do 
something to help.
  Allow me to be very clear. While I am very much against the mandate, 
I am for the vaccine. I have been vaccinated. My entire family has been 
vaccinated. I have encouraged other people to get vaccinated. These 
vaccines are helping to protect many, many millions of Americans 
against the harmful effects of COVID-19.
  That does not, however, excuse the heavy-handed, nanny state approach 
of forcing this decision on Americans, of threatening Americans, 
coercing them, extorting them into doing the will of the President of 
the United States. This is not only an action not backed up by law or 
consistent with the constitutional separation of powers, but it is 
immoral. And it is mean to tell a mom or a dad you are not going to be 
able to put food on the table for your children if you don't get a 
medical procedure that we want you to get but that you don't want to 
get, for whatever reason: a religious reason, a particular medical 
condition that you have been warned about from your doctor, or whatever 
else it may be. People shouldn't have to choose between the ability to 
make a living and the coerced receipt of an unwanted medical procedure.
  This is why I have come to the Senate floor 11 times now to fight 
against the mandate and why I am going to keep coming. Today, I am 
offering what should be an incredibly uncontroversial bill. My 
Transparency in COVID-19 Expenditures Act, which is cosponsored by 
Senators Braun, Lummis, Sullivan, and Tuberville, would simply require 
an audit of COVID-19 relief funding. It would allow Congress to 
determine what spending in this pandemic worked and what spending did 
not. It would help us return a little bit of financial oversight and 
sanity and responsibility and accountability to Congress and to our 
government.
  This information would also allow taxpayers to see how their dollars 
are being spent and whether they are being spent wisely. It is that 
simple. And I encourage my colleagues to support the bill.
  I would like now to yield time to my friend and distinguished 
colleague, the Senator from Wyoming.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wyoming.
  Ms. LUMMIS. Mr. President, I thank the gentleman from Utah.
  I wish to address the subject of the President's overreaching vaccine 
mandates. First, we all recognize the devastation caused by the COVID-
19 pandemic spread from Wuhan, China, throughout the world. This virus 
has taken too many lives: more than 4.7 million around the globe and 
over 686,000 here in the United States. Each death is a tragedy. My 
heart goes out to the families who have lost loved ones and suffered 
from this terrible disease.
  Many of those families in Wyoming have reached out to me. I have 
heard from thousands of constituents concerned about the vaccine, pro 
and con, but mostly about confusing guidance and particularly about 
masking--most notably in our schools.
  Our response to this pandemic should have been unifying, but, 
instead, it has sown discord and distrust across our country, and that 
discord is exacerbated by the Federal Government's extreme overreach.
  I want to be clear. I support individuals getting the COVID vaccine. 
I am vaccinated. I got vaccinated to protect myself because I have no 
natural immunity. I haven't had COVID. I have no underlying health 
concerns. I was not advised by a physician not to get it. It made sense 
for me making that decision for myself.
  Scientists have been researching and working for decades to make the 
emergency treatments that we have all had access to in 2021 available 
to us. However, I do not support the government mandating--mandating--
matters that come between a patient and their conscience, a patient and 
their healthcare provider, a patient and their own care decisions.

  And the recent mandates from the Biden administration do just that. I 
believe they are far-reaching and burdensome, as do my constituents, 
including those who have been vaccinated. They will not achieve the 
desired result. They will not convince millions of Americans on the 
fence about the vaccine to suddenly get it. They cause people to dig 
in. They further politicize

[[Page S7442]]

our healthcare system. They compound our unemployment problems.
  Don't take my word for it. Look at the Federal Government itself. 
Even unions are opposed to a vaccine mandate, with the American Postal 
Workers Union, the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, and 
the American Federation of Teachers coming out in opposition not to the 
vaccine but to the mandate.
  The pandemic does not make the Constitution irrelevant or put our 
rights as private citizens up for discussion. We are a nation of 
liberties, not mandates. We respect individuals.
  That is why I am cosponsoring several different bills that would 
protect our citizens from this overreach. One bill, S. 2849, clarifies 
that Federal Agencies do not have the power to mandate COVID-19 
vaccines. While this should be self-evident, sadly, many in Washington, 
DC, have forgotten about America's founding principles.
  Another bill, S. 2843, blocks Federal Agencies from fining anyone who 
violates the COVID-19 mandates.
  Further, the bill that Senator Lee is offering today, S. 2851, audits 
COVID funding so the American people know where their tax dollars went 
over the past year and a half, so we can evaluate what has worked and 
what has not, as Senator Lee has said.
  The Biden administration should work to bring us together, not drive 
us further apart through politicized Executive actions. No matter what 
President Biden decides to do, an individual's right to be in charge of 
their own healthcare is sacrosanct, and I believe Senator Lee's bills 
are a step in the right direction.
  Thank you.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, as if in legislative session, I ask unanimous 
consent that the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee 
be discharged from further consideration of S. 2851 and that the Senate 
proceed to its immediate consideration. I further ask that the bill be 
considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to 
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  The Senator from Michigan.
  Mr. PETERS. Mr. President, I reserve the right to object. I certainly 
welcome the Senator from Utah's interest in oversight of coronavirus 
emergency relief funds. There is no question Americans deserve to know 
where their hard-earned tax dollars are going and how these critical 
relief funds are being used to help communities all across our country 
in the wake of this public health crisis, especially for those who need 
it the most.
  I am also thankful that my colleague agreed with the importance of 
conducting thorough oversight of these programs and supported the 
creation of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee when we 
passed the CARES Act. These oversight requirements, based on the 
successful oversight model of the American Recovery and Reinvestment 
Act, ensure that we have strong oversight of all coronavirus relief 
dollars through regular, detailed reports and recommendations from the 
PRAC, the GAO, and the inspector general.
  Following guidance from the Office of Management and Budget, all 
COVID-19 relief funding from the legislation that the Senator has 
identified is already being tracked on USASpending.gov. Anyone--
anyone--can go to the website right now and see the figures.
  As of August 31, Congress has provided $4.7 trillion in relief 
spending. The administration has committed $3.9 trillion of those funds 
to helping communities, and $3.4 trillion in assistance has already 
reached those who need help through this crisis.
  I would also urge the Senator to consult the more than 1,300 
oversight reports that the PRAC has already completed related to the 
pandemic response, in addition to the more than 100 reports that the 
GAO has also issued on this topic, rather than creating additional and 
redundant work for the GAO at taxpayer expense.
  The Senator's proposal is duplicative and unnecessary, and for that 
reason I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
  The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, I appreciate the insight from my friend, 
colleague, and distinguished Senator from Michigan. I appreciate his 
willingness to look out for making sure that there isn't duplication in 
government.
  I also think it is important that at a time when we are spending an 
unprecedented amount of money, that we are on the side of redoubling 
efforts to audit, to oversee.
  There has never been a time in American history when we have brought 
in more money than we have brought in in the year 2020. We brought in 
over $3 trillion. But there has never been a time when we have spent 
nearly as much money in total dollars or as far as a number of dollars 
relative to what we brought in.
  I mean, we spent $6.6 trillion last year. This is an enormous amount 
of money. We are spending a comparable amount again this year--again, 
trillions of dollars more than we are bringing in. We are doing it 
ostensibly because of the COVID pandemic. And for that reason, it is 
good that we make sure that we know where we are spending that money, 
where it is going. If it can make our efforts more effective and more 
efficient, if this is about protecting and sustaining life, then why 
wouldn't we want to make sure that it is being done in the most 
effective, efficient way possible?
  We work for the people. They deserve to know where the money is being 
spent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.