[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 109 (Thursday, June 22, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2212-S2213]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                             Cloture Motion

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The cloture motion having been presented under 
rule XXII, the Chair directs the clerk to read the motion.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

                             Cloture Motion

       We, the undersigned Senators, in accordance with the 
     provisions of rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, 
     do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination 
     of Executive Calendar No. 8, Tiffany M. Cartwright, of 
     Washington, to be United States District Judge for the 
     Western District of Washington.
         Charles E. Schumer, Richard J. Durbin, Margaret Wood 
           Hassan, Brian Schatz, Tina Smith, Elizabeth Warren, Tim 
           Kaine, Ron Wyden, Patty Murray, Richard Blumenthal, 
           Chris Van Hollen, Martin Heinrich, Jack Reed, 
           Christopher A. Coons, Alex Padilla, Christopher Murphy, 
           Sheldon Whitehouse, Benjamin L. Cardin.

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
mandatory quorum calls for the cloture motions filed today, June 22, be 
waived.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. SCHUMER. 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. WYDEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.


                  Unanimous Consent Request--H.R. 4004

  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, in a moment I am going to put forward a 
unanimous consent request to pass a trade bill cosponsored by all the 
Democrats and Republicans on the relevant committee in the other body--
the Ways and Means Committee--and was ultimately passed by the other 
body--the House--by voice vote. So there was no opposition in the other 
body. In fact, it was put forward by the Republican Chair Jason Smith 
and the Democratic Ranking Member Richard Neal, as well as Senator 
Crapo and myself over here.
  I think it would be fair to say that this kind of unanimity over in 
the House, where sometimes they can't agree to order a 7-Up, is pretty 
amazing--that they passed a trade bill unanimously.
  Before I make the UC request on this bipartisan, bicameral bill 
called the United States-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade First 
Agreement Implementation, I am just going to talk briefly about why the 
bill is so important.
  The basic proposition is this: First and foremost, the U.S. Congress 
fully supports deepening our trading relationship with Taiwan and wants 
to ensure the recent agreement covering trade facilitation, anti-
corruption, and small business is durable and legally sound. Not only 
is Taiwan a critical market for U.S. exporters, it is also a democracy 
that shares our values and has strong ties with Oregonians and 
Americans across the land.
  Next, this body wants to be clear that trade and trade agreements are 
within the constitutional authority of the Congress. One of the ways 
the Senate demonstrates this is by approving trade agreements just like 
this one.
  Finally, this bill requires greater transparency and consultation, as 
well as public review, for future Taiwan trade agreements. These ideas 
can sound a little abstract, so I will put it in real-world terms.
  In a few hours, I am heading to rural Oregon to meet with my 
constituents and hold town hall meetings. Farmers and ranchers in 
Grant, Harney, and Malheur counties care a lot about trade. They want 
new markets to sell wheat and potatoes and the like.
  I am never going to tell a farmer in Ontario or La Grande that they 
don't deserve the right to read a trade agreement and understand how it 
affects them before it is signed and wrapped up.
  Trade agreements that affect millions of Americans can't be done in 
the dark. Congress and the American people need to know what is in 
these deals and how they benefit American interests.
  I look forward to working with the USTR as it negotiates the bigger 
ticket items with Taiwan--issues like digital trade, labor, 
environment, and agriculture, as outlined in the negotiating mandate. 
Future agreements need to bulldoze barriers to trade for Oregon 
exporters, including red tape like labeling rules and technical 
standards that make it hard for exporters to sell their goods. 
Involving Congress and the public is going to help the administration 
break down these barriers.
  This is a proposal that brings both sides together. As I said, every 
Member of the Ways and Means Committee--every Democrat, every 
Republican--is on board. So the glide path to passage here was no 
accident. My colleagues, Ranking Member Crapo, as well as Chair Smith 
and Ranking Member Neal worked with me to hammer out a bill that could 
receive that kind of attention.
  My colleagues are eager to get back home, so here's the bottom line: 
Passing the Taiwan trade agreement bill is a can't-miss opportunity for 
the Senate to support Taiwan, clarify Congress's role in trade, and 
call for more transparency and consultation.
  In a moment, I am going to make a unanimous consent request.
  In fact, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record my 
good friend from Idaho Senator Crapo's statement.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

       Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I rise in strong support of 
     Senator Wyden's request for unanimous consent for the Senate 
     to proceed to consideration of H.R. 4004, the U.S.-Taiwan 
     Initiative Implementation Act.
       This is a short bipartisan bill--but the principles it 
     defends are immense. The U.S.-Taiwan Initiative 
     Implementation Act provides a firm ``no'' to attempts to take 
     away power from where it properly belongs.
       First, it says ``no'' to China's demand that the United 
     States ``immediately revoke'' the agreement that the bill 
     approves. The agreement itself is very limited--and based on 
     a small subset of commitments in the United States-Mexico-
     Canada Agreement.
       Many in this chamber correctly wanted something far more 
     ambitious. Yet, even this narrow agreement is too much for 
     China. China has no right to interfere in Taiwan's trade 
     policy.
       For decades, Taiwan participated independently of China at 
     the World Trade Organization and negotiated trade agreements. 
     This bill rejects China's attempt to deny the people of 
     Taiwan their right to deepen economic relations with their 
     trading partners.
       Second, this bill says ``no'' to the attempts made by the 
     executive branch to usurp the constitutional authority 
     Congress has over trade. This Administration wrongly asserts 
     that it can conclude trade agreements if changes to existing 
     law are ``unnecessary.'' It is Congress that constitutionally 
     leads on trade.
       Finally, this bill says ``no'' to denying Congress and the 
     American people a fair understanding of our trade policy. It 
     requires the Administration to share negotiating texts with 
     Congress and make public any subsequent agreement under this 
     initiative for at least 60 days before the Administration 
     signs it.

[[Page S2213]]

       The Senate should join me in saying ``yes'' to this bill, 
     as did every single one of our colleagues in the House of 
     Representatives. I second Senator Wyden's request and ask the 
     Senate to agree.
  Mr. WYDEN. I am going to yield now to Chairman Menendez, the chair of 
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, because he and I work very 
closely together on all of these kinds of issues, on the Foreign 
Relations Committee and the Finance Committee, and I have the good 
fortune of having Senator Menendez, essentially, sit next to me in the 
Finance Committee.
  So we are going to be working together. I am going to make the 
unanimous consent request in a minute. But I want to yield to Chairman 
Menendez.
  Thank you for the fact that we are working together today. We have 
got lots to do in the future and we are going to work together.
  I yield to my colleague.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The senior Senator from New Jersey.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. I thank the Senator. Mr. President, I love your booming 
voice.
  I just want to come to the floor very quickly. I look forward to 
working with Chairman Wyden so we can forge even stronger economic ties 
between the United States and Taiwan. As Chairman of the Foreign 
Relations Committee and the Democratic cochair of the Senate-Taiwan 
caucus, I can tell you that such efforts are deeply important to U.S. 
businesses and our economic and national security.
  I reviewed the United States-Taiwan 21st Century Trade First 
Agreement Implementation Act. It reasserts important Congressional 
prerogatives with which I agree, and I appreciate Chairman Wyden's 
leadership in this regard.
  I want to just add this point: If we truly want to help our 
businesses and if we are committed to taking our economic ties with 
Taiwan to the next level, we have to pass the Taiwan tax agreement.
  Taiwan has made clear that they want a tax agreement with the United 
States, and U.S. businesses want a tax agreement with Taiwan, but there 
is a gap in the law that means there can be no agreement unless there 
is some new legislation. The Taiwan Tax Agreement Act eliminates this 
gap. It sets into motion an agreement with Taiwan that matches the 
substance of the commitments we have with our partners around the 
world, and it does so consistent with our Taiwan Relations Act.
  I know that Chairman Wyden has also another aspect of this, and I 
look forward to working together so we can come to a mutually agreeable 
conclusion to achieve it.
  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, before I make my unanimous consent request, 
I just want to reiterate that Senator Menendez and I are going to be 
working together on these issues. He made this point with respect to 
taxes, and we are going to be able to find common ground, I believe, 
with Senator Crapo, who can't be here today but who is very, very 
strongly in support of this effort.
  Let me repeat that, colleagues. Senator Crapo, the ranking member on 
the Finance Committee, is very strong for this effort.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the 
immediate consideration of H.R. 4004, which was received from the House 
and is at the desk. 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 with no intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  The Senator from Arkansas.
  Mr. COTTON. Mr. President, in reserving the right to object, I will 
object to this bill and to the process by which we have reached this 
point.
  Several of my colleagues and I are studying this matter. This is a 
highly complicated, 70-page agreement. It only passed out of the House 
last night. It has only been on the Senate floor for barely a day. We 
were supposed to have 15 minutes ago gone to a joint meeting of 
Congress. The Senate should not be ramming through such agreements at 
the very last minute without our having had the time to review them. 
There is more than enough time for Senators and their aides, over the 
next 2 weeks of recess, to review this 70-page, complicated agreement 
and then address it in the month of July.
  So I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I will be brief because I know my 
colleagues want to go to the other body.
  I think this is very unfortunate. This is an extraordinary 
opportunity for our country, and this is a great opportunity for the 
world.
  The fact is that there has been an extensive review of this 
particular agreement. The administration talked to a number of Members 
of Congress on both sides of the aisle. This legislation went through 
the House of Representatives unanimously, and that was after every 
member of the relevant committee--the House Ways and Means Committee--
cosponsored the legislation. They didn't just vote for it; they 
cosponsored it.
  I think it is very unfortunate for my colleagues on the other side of 
the aisle to object. The chair of the Ways and Means Committee, 
Congressman Smith, the ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee, 
Congressman Neal, and the ranking Republican on the Finance Committee, 
Senator Crapo--all of us--have been working for months now on this 
particular proposal, and I think it is very unfortunate that our 
colleague from Arkansas has decided to object. It is his right, but I 
think it is very unfortunate for our country because this could have 
been a very, very special day with the passage of this.
  We are going to be back here, working together, as you have heard--
Chairman Menendez from the Foreign Relations Committee and I and 
Senator Crapo. We are going to work together with every Member of this 
body to get this very important trade initiative enacted into law.

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