[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 2 (Tuesday, January 4, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S6]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Business Before the Senate

  Now, Mr. President, the Senate gavels in on this icy January morning 
to mark the beginning of a new year, and there is much we must 
accomplish. At the start of 2020, few could have foreseen the awful 
trials our country has endured over the past 2 years.
  But, against adversity, the American people responded. Last year, 
over 200 million Americans got vaccinated against COVID, 6 million jobs 
were added back to the economy, and Congress delivered on historic 
legislation that gave Americans a much needed lifeline to get through 
the worst of COVID.
  In a 50-50 Senate, we passed the first stand-alone infrastructure 
bill in decades, passed historic funding for the sciences and tech 
innovation, and confirmed the most judicial nominees in a President's 
first year since Ronald Reagan.
  Despite the immense challenges before us, we now begin 2022 better 
off compared to where we were 1 year ago. But, of course, there is 
much, much still left to do. So let us continue.
  To begin this week, the Senate will vote to confirm Gabriel Sanchez 
as U.S. circuit court judge for the Ninth Circuit. A graduate of Yale, 
a Fulbright scholar, and a current associate justice of the California 
Court of Appeals, Justice Sanchez has presided in hundreds of cases and 
has the experience and expertise necessary to be an excellent addition 
to the Federal bench.
  Off the floor, the negotiations will continue with Members of our 
caucus and with the White House on finding a path forward on Build Back 
Better. As I mentioned before Christmas, I intend to hold a vote in the 
Senate on BBB, and we will keep voting until we get a bill passed. The 
stakes are high for us to find common ground on this legislation. The 
climate crisis continues to worsen. Families and children continue 
dealing with the impacts of COVID, and too many Americans still 
struggle to pay the high cost of healthcare and prescription drugs. We 
will keep working until we get something done.