[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 19 (Monday, January 31, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S396-S397]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                      Tribute to Stephen G. Breyer

  Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, last Thursday, Associate Justice 
Stephen Breyer announced that after 27 years of service, he will retire 
from the Supreme Court at the conclusion of this term.
  Shortly after his nomination was first announced in 1994, then-Judge 
Breyer mused publicly about what he expected his time on the High Court 
would bring. He told reporters it was his hope to ``make the average 
person's ordinary life better.'' Nearly three decades later, we can 
safely say that Justice Breyer has met that mark and then some.
  Throughout American history, only 115 individuals have sat on the 
Nation's High Court, and few have served as long and as effectively as 
Justice Breyer. From his opinions on voting rights, environmental 
protections, women's reproductive freedom, and protecting access to 
affordable healthcare, Justice Breyer's impact upon our Nation will 
last for generations. America is a more perfect Union today because of 
Justice Stephen Breyer.
  Of course, Justice Breyer's legacy of service extends beyond even his 
remarkable time on the Supreme Court. For 13 years, he also sat on the 
U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Before that, he served for 
8 years as a member of the Army Reserves. And, of course, Members of 
this Chamber cannot forget that he was once a part of the Senate 
itself, serving as an aide on the Judiciary Committee in the seventies, 
where he worked closely with our dear friend, the late Senator Ted 
Kennedy. At every step of the way, he remained his essential self--
decent, brilliant, and dedicated to our democracy.
  Now, with this new vacancy on the Court, President Biden will have an 
opportunity to make history by nominating the first ever Black woman to 
serve on the Supreme Court. I am confident that the President will 
select an outstanding individual to fill Justice Breyer's seat, and we 
intend to move quickly on our constitutional duty to act on his nominee 
when announced. I can assure all Senators that the Senate will have a 
fair process that moves quickly so we can confirm President Biden's 
nominee to fill Justice Breyer's seat as soon as possible.
  Today, Members of this Chamber say thank you to Justice Breyer for 
his lifetime of public service.


                      America COMPETES Act of 2022

  Now, Madam President, as our country continues to recover from the 
darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, last week, we received a 
remarkable bit of news: The U.S. economy grew 5.7 percent--5.7 percent 
in 2021.
  Let me say it again. Last year, the U.S. economy grew by 5.7 
percent--the largest single-year growth rate in about 40 years.
  Last year's economic growth did not happen on its own. Faced with a 
historic crisis, Democrats took unprecedented steps in 2021 to give 
American families and businesses the support they needed to make ends 
meet and stay healthy. Although we have more work to do to lower costs 
and expand opportunity, we are undeniably better off today than we were 
a year ago when we first took office as a majority Senate.
  It is frightening to merely remember how bad things were at the start 
of 2021. We were entering the very worst of the pandemic. The economy 
had its worst year since World War II, and 11 million people were out 
of work. More than 3,000 Americans were dying each day from COVID-19.
  But Democrats responded by passing the American Rescue Plan 2 months 
into the President's term. We later passed a historic infrastructure 
package that is putting people to work fixing our roads and our bridges 
and our highways. Thanks to the heroism of health workers, the 
leadership of the Biden administration, and action taken by 
congressional Democrats, over 200 million Americans have now been 
vaccinated.
  Because of these steps that Democrats took last year, unemployment 
has plummeted faster than many forecasts predicted a year ago, to below 
4 percent. The economy added the largest number of manufacturing jobs 
in three decades. As wages keep climbing, layoffs are near record lows.
  Make no mistake, this economy is in the midst of a historic 
turnaround, thanks in large part to swift action by Democrats in the 
Congress and in the White House, but, of course, the work is far from 
over. We must keep working to lower costs for American families. We 
need to help businesses struggling with strained supply chains, 
particularly the chip shortage affecting everything from auto 
manufacturing to household appliances. Workers need protections to 
ensure they share in our continued economic recovery.

[[Page S397]]

  That is why Congress must keep working on legislation like the United 
States Innovation and Competition Act, which the Senate passed last 
year with strong bipartisan support. This week, the House will hold a 
vote to pass their counterpart to this bill, the America COMPETES Act. 
I am glad the House is taking this important step in the right 
direction. When the America COMPETES Act passes, the House and Senate 
can begin the bicameral process of resolving the differences in each 
bill and send a final product to the President's desk.
  With historic investments in science, technology, and American 
manufacturing, the policies of USICA represent the boldest steps in 
decades to secure America's economic future.
  By bringing manufacturing back to the United States from overseas, it 
would strengthen domestic supply chains and help address our country's 
dangerous semiconductor shortage that has driven up prices in 
everything from cars to microwaves.
  All this would not only relieve rising costs by making us less 
reliant on foreign manufacturing; it would also advance our national 
security.
  This legislation would help fix our country's dangerous semiconductor 
shortage that has driven prices up in everything from cars to 
microwaves by strengthening domestic supply chains and by increasing 
production. It would not only relieve rising costs; it would also 
advance our national security.
  For months--months--I have spoken with both my Republican and 
Democratic colleagues about finding a way to get this bill to the 
President's desk.
  Now I am glad that the House will take action later this week on 
their version of this legislation, and I look forward to working 
through this bill so that President Biden can finally sign this 
landmark manufacturing and innovation bill into law.