[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 160 (Saturday, September 30, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4896-S4897]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         CONTINUING RESOLUTION

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I have been down here all week, saying 
again and again that the only way that we are going to avoid a shutdown 
is with a CR that can get bipartisan support to quickly pass the House 
and Senate, and we have been working nonstop to pass that commonsense, 
bipartisan CR that I put together with my colleagues across the aisle.
  But, tonight, we had a bill from the House that passed in a 
bipartisan way, with nearly every House Democrat voting in support, and 
I am now glad the Senate has been able to pass it, as well, and get it 
the President's desk for his signature. This bill does not contain the 
devastating cuts House Republicans were pushing just yesterday. It does 
not contain the ineffective, partisan border provisions they were 
demanding. So there were good reasons to vote for it.
  First and foremost, it will prevent a senseless government shutdown, 
one that House Republicans have been pushing us toward for weeks. But 
this bill also meets the President's full request for disaster relief 
funds, and that is good and important to so many of us. It will ensure 
that our brave Federal firefighters don't see a drastic pay cut, and it 
maintains current funding levels through November 17.
  We know a CR is never a good long-term policy outcome, but it is 
certainly good to see that some House Republicans have, at least for 
this moment, given up the fruitless and cruel cuts they were demanding 
just yesterday. It is good to see some of those Members coming to their 
senses.
  But we also have to be clear about where this bill falls seriously 
short, why we found ourselves in this moment, and how House 
Republicans' recklessness has caused so much unnecessary chaos, because 
let's be clear: There is a lot of work left to do now that we have 
passed this bill.
  First, we have to absolutely do more to support our allies in 
Ukraine. Dictators across the world are watching. Will we stand with 
democracy? I say yes. The Senate absolutely will stand with our friends 
in Ukraine as they continue to defend themselves against Putin's brutal 
invasion, because continuing to support Ukraine is not just about 
addressing a humanitarian crisis; it is also about our own national 
security, what kind of world we want to live in. It is in America's 
national security interest to send a strong message to dictators like 
Putin that they cannot just invade a sovereign nation and steamroll 
democracy wherever and whenever they want.
  And let's make sure we are crystal clear about this: There are strong 
bipartisan supermajorities in both Chambers that have shown they 
understood that. Just a few days ago, support for Ukraine got over 330 
votes in the House--3 in 4 House Members. The United States does not 
abandon its allies, and the United States will not give Putin a free 
pass to continue his brutal war of aggression.
  I need to make it clear: We are sticking with our allies in Ukraine, 
and we are not letting up. We are going to make sure we get this done, 
period. So I will work with all of my colleagues to make certain we 
stand with Ukraine and deliver the resources in a supplemental we know 
are so vital at this moment and do it in a timely manner.
  I know my vice chair shares that commitment. We both look forward to 
continuing our efforts and working with many colleagues on both sides 
of the aisle.
  We, of course, also need to take action to address the childcare 
crisis, especially as the funding cliff makes things even worse for 
parents, providers, and our economy.
  To my Republican colleagues, I am positive you are hearing from your 
constituents on this. I am ready to work with anyone to make progress 
here. So please talk to me, and let's work together on that front.
  Now, let me also say that there was no reason for it to come this 
close. House Republicans should have worked with us from the very 
start. Instead, they spent weeks entertaining the most extreme ideas 
from their far right, spending the last week voting on really extreme 
appropriations bills that would not even, actually, have averted a 
shutdown--appropriations bills that would deny our servicemembers the 
ability to get the reproductive care they need in emergencies, severely 
restricting women's access to medication abortion in every State; bills 
that would decimate rural communities, eliminate essential resources 
for our diplomats abroad, and so much more.

  And then, just yesterday, they proposed an across-the-board 30-
percent cut to virtually all domestic spending. They wanted to gut 
funding, come Monday, for childcare, support for K-12 schools, law 
enforcement, heating assistance for families on tight budgets, air 
traffic controllers, lifesaving cancer research, and much more. Even 
that proposal, apparently, wasn't enough for the most extreme Members 
of the House Republican conference, and it went down in flames.
  But let's not forget--and I know the American people won't--that the 
vast majority of House Republicans voted, just yesterday, to gut 
programs families count on--programs that keep all of us safe--by 30 
percent. Needless to say, I am glad to see some of them have, at least 
for the moment, abandoned those cruel efforts to slash funding for 
families, with no rhyme or reason.
  Now, as we look ahead, I urge my House Republican colleagues to spare 
us and the American people the unnecessary drama and chaos, and learn 
to work with your colleagues, not against them.
  Look, the Speaker and the President shook hands on a deal. Congress 
passed it into law. We are going to stick with it. I voted for this 
bill today with a firm commitment that, here in the Senate, we will not 
waste any time in moving forward to support our Ukrainian allies and a 
continued determination to make bipartisan progress on the many issues 
we need to address.
  And, of course, we still need to pass all 12 of our bipartisan 
appropriations bills so we aren't back here in a few weeks.
  On that note, we need to get moving to the Military Construction-
Veterans Affairs, T-HUD, and Ag appropriations minibus that a few of my 
colleagues--very few of them--have been blocking. I hope both leaders 
will facilitate the vice chair and I getting back to work on those 
bills in the next few days. And as we pass short-term CRs, we need to 
make progress and begin conferencing our spending bills with the House 
to avoid another CR or an omnibus at the end of this year, which I know 
my colleagues are focused on avoiding.
  If we are going to get any of that done, it has to be bipartisan. It 
is going to involve our being serious and focused on getting our job 
done to have real results for the American people.
  If there is one lesson for House Republicans to take from the 
absolute

[[Page S4897]]

chaos they have caused this past week, it is that partisanship is not a 
path forward; it is a path to chaos. The only way to avoid a shutdown, 
the only way to get things done, especially in a divided Congress, is 
to sit down with the other side and do the hard work of negotiating, 
talking to one another, not to cave to the most extreme Members of your 
caucus or go back on your word.
  I think most of us have known that from the start. Apparently, 
Speaker McCarthy needed to learn that lesson the hard way. Now it is 
time for him to show he has truly learned it. I urge him not to retreat 
back to a partisan corner, not to push for extreme partisan spending 
bills that go back on the deal he made just a few months ago. If you 
follow the most extreme Members of your party and go down that same 
partisan path, they are going to lead you to the same dead end.
  The American people need us to move forward. They need us to work 
together. The senior Senator from Maine and I have 12 bipartisan bills 
in the Senate. We drafted them after many hearings and serious debate 
and discussion with Members on both sides of the aisle, and they passed 
our committee in overwhelming bipartisan votes--unanimous or near-
unanimous votes. These are serious bills that can be signed into law.
  Let's now leave behind the partisan politics being championed by the 
loudest voices, who are the farthest on the right, and come together so 
we can help people and solve problems just like we were sent to do.
  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. BENNET. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Klobuchar). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. BENNET. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to be able to 
speak without objection.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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