[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 67 (Monday, April 25, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2119-S2120]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              Coronavirus

  Madam President, in the next couple of weeks, as we know, we could 
well see another pandemic relief bill come to the floor for a vote.
  I hope this package includes a piece of legislation that Senator 
Padilla, the Senator from California, and I authored, that would give 
State and local governments more flexibility to spend their excess 
COVID dollars, in this case, on infrastructure or disaster relief.
  This bill passed the Senate unanimously and addresses a problem 
communities across our Nation are facing. And there is no reason for it 
to be excluded from the larger package, so I am optimistic.
  In the coming days, I hope the Senate will also take action to 
preserve the use of title 42, the public health title, addressing 
COVID-19, following the President's reckless decision to eliminate it 
with no alternative plan in place, which would invite even more chaos 
at our southern border.
  Months ago, during the height of COVID, the Border Patrol told me 
that title 42 was helpful in repelling migrants who were not claiming 
asylum and avoiding having to process them on this side of the border. 
But that was one of the few things, given the huge number of asylum 
claims that were being made, that permitted them to control the flow of 
people across the border, at least in some manner.
  I am proud to cosponsor a bipartisan bill introduced by Senator 
Lankford and Senator Sinema, which would delay the end of title 42 
until there is a reasonable, workable alternative in place. There is 
bipartisan support for this legislation, and I hope it will receive a 
vote here on the Senate floor very soon.
  These are just a few of the items on the Senate's lengthy to-do list, 
but of course the single biggest item looming in the news and on our 
minds and hearts is the war in Ukraine.
  Over the last 2 months, Ukraine has endured unimaginable suffering, 
and its brave people and soldiers continue to fight to save their 
country. As Americans, we cannot lose sight of our role in the 
conflict. Our sons and daughters are not on the frontlines, nor are we 
obligated by a treaty, like the North Atlantic Treaty, to come to the 
aid of Ukraine.
  But I believe we have a moral responsibility to aid a fellow 
democracy against this kind of unprovoked and outrageous aggression. We 
can't just send money and weapons halfway around the world and then pat 
ourselves on the back and say: Job well done.
  As I said, we have a moral responsibility to help Ukraine not only 
fight but also to win this war. We can't just prop up its forces to 
continue to take more hits without providing them a plan for them to 
sustain their efforts in the long run.
  Over the last couple of months, folks across the political spectrum 
have united in support of Ukraine. As a matter of fact, this has been 
one of the truly bipartisan responses that we have seen here in 
Congress--bipartisan support of Ukraine.
  I have to say, amid so much pain and suffering, it has been 
encouraging to see people around the world--not just here in America 
but around the world--stand shoulder-to-shoulder in support of Ukraine.
  As we know, since the war began, the United States has provided 
billions of dollars in military assistance as well as humanitarian 
relief. This has come in the form of everything from body armor to 
helmets, to ammunition to Javelin antitank missiles.
  But as we know, more is needed. That was the message President 
Zelenskyy delivered to Members of Congress. It was a message I heard 
from our partners in Europe when I traveled to Poland and Germany last 
month. And it is the same message we are hearing today: Send us the 
weapons we need to defend ourselves against this unprovoked and 
barbarous invasion by the Russian Federation.
  Daily, Ukrainian soldiers and civilians are being bludgeoned. We need 
to get them the resources they need to hold the line, and we need to 
continue to act with dispatch.
  Just before the State work period, the Senate passed legislation that 
would help make that more likely. It was called the bipartisan Ukraine 
Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act, which I introduced with Senator 
Cardin, that has broad bipartisan support in the Senate, and it passed 
unanimously here early last month.
  This legislation is rooted in the same principle as the original 
Lend-Lease Act, which occurred during World War II, whereby the United 
States became what Franklin Delano Roosevelt called the ``arsenal of 
democracy,'' and we provided, at the time, up to $30 billion worth of 
materials--airplanes, ships, ammunition, all manner of weaponry--which 
allowed Great Britain to hang on against Nazi aggression.
  Now, if you translate the amount of assistance that the United States 
gave our allies in World War II under the Lend-Lease Act that was 
passed then and signed into law by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, it would 
translate into more than $400 billion today.
  And I think it is important for us to send a strong bipartisan 
message that the U.S. Congress supports Ukraine not just for today, not 
just for tomorrow but for the long run.
  Now that the Senate has unanimously passed this bipartisan 
legislation, it is up to the House. As I said, this legislation is 
important, one, because it cuts the redtape and expedites the shipment 
and delivery of weapons. As it stands today, there are a lot of time-
consuming steps between the United States deciding to send more 
resources to the forces on the ground and between the time that the 
decision is made and the time that weapons are actually received.

  As we can see by the devastating videos of this war, there is no time 
for delay or redtape. Our assistance cannot move at the speed of the 
bureaucracy.
  And equally important is point No. 2. This bill ensures that we can 
send Ukraine the resources it actually needs, not just what current 
authorities allow.
  President Zelenskyy himself said: Ukraine can't shoot down Russian 
missiles with shotguns and machineguns. We need to listen to what 
Ukraine needs and send those items with dispatch.

[[Page S2120]]

  That is what this legislation provides for, nothing more and nothing 
less. It doesn't just help speed up the process of getting this 
equipment to Ukraine; it will ensure that we are actually sending them 
the items they actually need and can actually use.
  Now, I know I don't have to convince my Senate colleagues that this 
is a good piece of legislation. We passed it unanimously 2 weeks ago. 
So we all understand what is at stake, and we are eager to remove the 
hurdles that prevent the United States from arming the Ukrainian forces 
with what they need to win this war as soon as we can get it in their 
hands.
  I hope our Senate colleagues and the American people will contact our 
colleagues in the House and encourage them to pass the Ukraine 
Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act this week.
  Every day we are learning more about the horrors unfolding in 
Ukraine. We have seen Russian war crimes in Bucha, and there are well-
founded fears that the same carnage is unfolding in Mariupol. These 
developments should light a fire under our colleagues in the House to 
pass this legislation as soon as possible.
  Chris Alexander is a former Canadian diplomat, who spent time posted 
at the Canadian Embassy in Russia. He recently said: ``Lend-Lease is a 
potential game-changer for the war in Ukraine.''
  A potential game-changer--there is no better way to describe this 
legislation or to underscore its urgency.
  Last week, the Ukrainian Prime Minister himself said that our Lend-
Lease Program is what Ukraine needs to win the war.
  Over the last 2 months, Ukrainian forces have demonstrated 
unbelievable strength and bravery. So it is time, once again, for the 
United States to serve as that ``arsenal of democracy,'' as Franklin 
Roosevelt called it, and ensure that Ukraine has the full range of 
resources it needs not just for today, not just for tomorrow but for 
the future as well.
  After this bill passed the Senate, Ukraine's Minister for Foreign 
Affairs expressed his gratitude to all 100 Senators who voted to pass 
the bill, and he said he looks forward to its swift passage in the 
House.
  So I would respectfully encourage Speaker Pelosi to bring this 
legislation to the floor for a vote this week so we can answer 
Ukraine's call to provide more weapons more quickly for the indefinite 
future.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. King). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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