[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 10 (Thursday, January 18, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S175-S180]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          LEGISLATIVE SESSION

                                 ______
                                 

   AMENDING THE PERMANENT ELECTRONIC DUCK STAMP ACT OF 2013--Resumed

  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Under the previous order, the 
Senate will resume consideration of H.R. 2872, which the clerk will 
report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 2872) to amend the Permanent Electronic Duck 
     Stamp Act of 2013 to allow the Secretary of the Interior to 
     issue electronic stamps under such Act, and for other 
     purposes.

  Pending:

       Schumer (for Murray) amendment No. 1381, in the nature of a 
     substitute.


                   Recognition of the Majority Leader

  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The majority leader is recognized.


                           Government Funding

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I have good news. Last night, the Senate 
reached an agreement to pass a clean extension of government funding to 
avert a needless shutdown and give appropriators more time to finish 
their work. We expect to begin voting at 12:30 on two Republican 
amendments and then to final passage.
  Getting here wasn't easy. My colleagues and I worked late into the 
evening negotiating with the other side on amendments and on timing. 
But after a lot of hard work and compromise from both sides of the 
aisle, the Senate will pass the CR today, giving the House enough time 
to act before Friday's deadline.
  Once the Senate acts, I urge the House to move on the CR as soon as 
possible so we can send it to the President's desk as early as today.
  In order to give our House colleagues time to act, I ask that 
Senators vote quickly once votes are called later this morning. Again, 
if we can send something to the President's desk today, that will be 
great.
  Once we put the threat of a shutdown behind us, I hope we continue 
seeing even more bipartisanship as appropriators complete the very 
important task of fully funding the government in the coming weeks.
  I thank my Senate colleagues for working together to ensure the 
government stays open. Avoiding a shutdown is very good news for the 
country, for our veterans, for parents and children, and for farmers 
and small businesses--all of whom would have felt the sting had the 
government shut down.
  And this is what the American people want to see: both sides working 
together and governing responsibly--no chaos, no spectacle, no 
shutdown.
  But, amazingly, not everyone in Congress feels that way. As we speak, 
there is still a loud contingent of hard-right rabble-rousers who 
amazingly believe that causing a shutdown is somehow a good thing if it 
gets them what they want. The MAGA hard right thinks it is perfectly 
fine to have VA

[[Page S176]]

offices close or to endanger nutrition programs that help 7 million 
moms or kids, or to suspend disaster aid for farmers. In the twisted 
logic of the hard right, the theory is, if enough people feel the pain 
of a shutdown, the hard right can bully the rest of Congress into 
enacting their deeply unpopular agenda. Bullying, intimidation, chaos--
this is MAGA extremism in a nutshell.
  But here is the thing: The fact that we are passing a CR today shows, 
yet again, that this kind of bullying almost never works. The hard 
right's bullying didn't work when we avoided default, it didn't work 
when we avoided shutdown last year, and it didn't work today either.
  I thank my colleagues for their good work, and I expect a strong, 
bipartisan vote later this afternoon.


                          Supplemental Funding

  Now, on the supplemental, Senate and White House negotiators are 
getting closer to reaching a bipartisan agreement on a national 
security supplemental. For the first time, I believe the odds are a 
little better than 50 percent that we can get something done. But, 
certainly, it is not a done deal yet.
  We have a number of disagreements we are still working through. On 
issues as complex as immigration and national security, what matters is 
not just what we do but how we do it. The smallest details matter 
immensely, and it takes time to work through those details.
  Nevertheless, talks are trending in the right direction, and I remain 
optimistic we will get it done soon here in the Senate.
  And the good news is that once Congress avoids a shutdown, it is my 
goal for the Senate to move forward to the national security 
supplemental as soon as possible.
  Now, yesterday, I joined with congressional colleagues for a meeting 
with President Biden at the White House to talk about the latest on 
supplemental negotiations. It was a respectful, positive, and 
constructive meeting, and everyone walked out with a sense that we need 
to get something done.
  While both parties have plenty of disagreements, all sides did agree 
on a couple of important points. First, congressional leaders 
understood that we need to pass additional emergency aid for Ukraine. 
Again, both sides might disagree on a lot of things, but, on Ukraine, 
everyone agreed that we must act.
  I made it very clear in the room that right now the war in Ukraine is 
beginning to turn against Ukrainians. While Ukrainian fighters have no 
shortage of courage and resolve, they will soon face a shortage of 
supplies, of ammunition, and of armaments that America provided to a 
large extent.
  If we don't pass another round of aid, then a mere month from now the 
situation could become dire for Ukraine, and, a year from now, America 
and NATO will be on our back foot, paying a far higher cost to ensure 
Putin does not sink his tentacles deeper into the European continent.
  Second, everyone agreed that we need to do something to fix the 
situation at the border. The President said over and over again that he 
is willing to work with Republicans on the border, but it has to be 
bipartisan, as Republican leadership knows.
  You cannot--cannot--do things with one party in a divided Congress. 
Anyone who says ``it is my way or the highway'' on border is not 
serious about reaching an agreement. It must be bipartisan.
  So we feel good and remain hopeful about the direction of the talks, 
but I caution my colleagues that nothing has been finalized yet. There 
is still more work to do, but we are going to stay the course. Our 
national security demands nothing less. Our friends in Ukraine demand 
nothing less. The future of Western democracy demands nothing less.


                            Judiciary Markup

  Mr. President, now, on the Judiciary Committee markup, today, off the 
floor, the Senate continues its work on considering more of President 
Biden's outstanding nominees to the Federal bench. This morning, the 
Senate Judiciary Committee will be holding its first markup of the year 
on over a dozen highly qualified individuals for seats on both the 
district and circuit-level courts. Once they are reported out of 
Committee, we will look for the best opportunities to bring them to the 
floor.
  The nominees being marked up today will continue adding to the 
courts' diversity--more women, more people of color, more individuals 
from unique backgrounds. I hope our Republican colleagues will work 
with us to move many of these nominees through, and I thank the 
Judiciary Committee and Chairman Durbin for their good and hard work.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The 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 ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.


                           Order of Business

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
from yesterday be modified so that the only remaining amendments to 
H.R. 2872 be the following: Paul No. 1384, Marshall motion to commit; 
further, that there be up to 6 minutes equally divided prior to each 
vote; and that upon disposition of the Marshall motion to commit, the 
Murray substitute amendment No. 1381, as amended, if amended, be agreed 
to, and all remaining provisions remain in effect.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. SCHUMER. As a result of this agreement, Senators should expect 
three rollcall votes beginning at 12:30 p.m. on the Paul and Marshall 
amendments and passage of the CR.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.


                   Recognition of the Minority Leader

  The Republican leader is recognized.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, yesterday, the Biden administration 
added the Houthis to the government's terrorist list in light of the 
group's sustained terrorist violence against U.S. military and 
commercial ships in the Red Sea. It might seem like the sensible 
response of a clear-eyed Commander in Chief, except that Iran-backed 
Houthi terror isn't new. For years, this group has made no secret of 
its aims. Here is their motto:

       God is great. Death to America. Death to Israel. Curse on 
     the Jews. Victory for Islam.

  Why on Earth did President Biden remove the Houthis from the Terror 
Watchlist in the first place? And why did it take so long to admit that 
denying a reality of Iran-backed Houthi terror was a mistake?
  It is good that the President finally mustered the fortitude to 
authorize strikes against the terrorists who threaten America. But just 
like its response to Putin's war against Ukraine, the Biden 
administration's response to Iran-backed terrorism has been hesitant, 
half-measured, and openly conflicted over the risk of escalation.
  It is Iran that should fear the cost of escalation, not the United 
States and our allies. Iran must fear that terror against America's 
interests will result in military responses against its interests; that 
its complicity in Houthi attacks on global shipping will produce 
devastating economic pressure from all across the free world; that 
continued terrorism, whether by proxies or by Iranian personnel 
themselves, will be met with swift and costly retribution.

  It is all well and good for President Biden to authorize yet another 
round of strikes against Houthi missiles, but having to do so multiple 
times in the span of a week is a pretty good indication that his 
initial effort did not exactly send the desired message to Tehran or 
its proxies. The world's most active state sponsor of terrorism is 
actually stepping up its violence against U.S. personnel in the Middle 
East precisely because it doesn't believe we have the resolve to 
respond with strength and impose serious costs.

[[Page S177]]

  And the chronic, compulsive effort to tie our hands only validates 
this assumption. It only encourages our adversaries to lash out with 
impunity.
  We know exactly what an undeterred Iran looks like. After 3 years of 
the Biden administration's desperate policy of conciliation, it is what 
we are experiencing right now.
  Regardless of which corners of our politics are willing to 
acknowledge it, America cannot hope to deter aggression with weakness. 
We need to start investing seriously in the capabilities and capacity 
to meet the tasks at hand. We are facing an axis of connected threats 
that stretch from Moscow to Beijing and Tehran to Pyongyang. Our 
adversaries speak the language of strength. Americans can't afford not 
to be fluent.


                           Economic Recovery

  Now on another matter, this year, like last year, President Biden is 
still taking to the road trying to sell the American people on the 
wonders of Bidenomics, but working families still see right through 
him. On average they are spending more than $11,000 more than they were 
when the President took office, just to maintain the same standard of 
living.
  Less take-home pay means less spending, and small businesses are 
feeling the pinch. Out in Iowa, the owner of a one-of-a-kind 
manufacturing operation is closing its doors after 125 years in 
business, and the owner says lower discretionary spending is to blame.
  A mother of three in Arizona recently lamented to reporters:

       It has probably been one of the worst years. It's been very 
     difficult for us . . . It's been difficult just buying 
     groceries and paying bills.

  And across the country, working families sympathize. One poll last 
month found that just 14 percent of Americans thought that Biden's 
economic policies were actually--actually--helping them.
  So the President can moonlight as a traveling salesman all he wants, 
but pretty soon he will have to face facts: Bidenomics is a dud.


                      Nomination of Adeel A. Mangi

  Mr. President, on one final matter: Today, the Senate Judiciary 
Committee will decide whether to recommend a lifetime appointment for 
Adeel Mangi on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Mangi's 
nomination is just the latest example of the Biden administration's 
practice of rewarding bad behavior in the personnel business.
  As I explained last month, this nominee served on the board of a law 
school organization with an international reputation for amplifying the 
voices of anti-Semites and terrorist sympathizers.
  As a letter from the Coalition for Jewish Values recently noted, Mr. 
Mangi's affiliation ``raises genuine concerns about his judgment and 
his commitment to American principles.'' Unfortunately, the nominee's 
testimony before the Judiciary Committee last month did nothing to 
assuage these concerns. In fact, even after claiming ignorance of this 
disgusting and well-documented history of the organization with which 
he chose to affiliate, he declined repeatedly--repeatedly--to disavow 
it.
  It would be hard to sum up Mr. Mangi's record more succinctly than 
the joint statement of several other American Jewish organizations:

       [He] ``repeatedly donated to [an] extreme anti-Semitic, 
     anti-Israel, anti-American terrorist-affiliated organization; 
     evaded vital questions; made improbable claims of ignorance; 
     [and] has no judicial record.''

  At some point, the Senate has to decide that this is unbecoming of a 
nominee to a lifetime tenure on the Federal Bench. I would urge my 
colleagues on the Judiciary Committee to reject this nomination.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.


                Amendment No. 1384 to Amendment No. 1381

  Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, I call up my amendment No. 1384, and I ask 
that it be reported by number.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will report the 
amendment.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       The Senator from Kentucky [Mr. Paul] proposes an amendment 
     numbered 1384 to amendment No. 1381.

  The amendment is as follows:

 (Purpose: To limit foreign assistance to the Palestinian Authority or 
   any other Palestinian governing entity in the West Bank and Gaza)

        At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. PROHIBITION ON FOREIGN ASSISTANCE TO THE PALESTINIAN 
                   AUTHORITY OR ANY OTHER PALESTINIAN GOVERNING 
                   ENTITY IN THE WEST BANK AND GAZA.

       (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) On October 7, 2023, the terrorist organization Hamas 
     conducted a brutal attack against Israel, killing some 1,200 
     innocent men, women, and children, and taking approximately 
     250 people hostage.
       (2) At least 33 United States citizens lost their lives in 
     the October 7, 2023, attack.
       (3) At least 6 United States citizens remain unaccounted 
     for and presumed taken captive by Hamas.
       (4) Hamas continues to fire rockets indiscriminately toward 
     Israel.
       (5) Hamas was designated as a foreign terrorist 
     organization by the United States in October 1997.
       (6) On November 26, 2023, a spokesperson for the Israel 
     Defense Forces said that 770 ``terrorism events'' were 
     carried out by Palestinians in the West Bank since October 7, 
     2023, including shootings and hurling stones and Molotov 
     cocktails.
       (7) The United States provided more than $7,600,000,000 in 
     bilateral assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank and 
     Gaza since 1993.
       (8) The United States obligated more than $280,000,000 to 
     the West Bank and Gaza in 2023.
       (9) The Department of State's West Bank and Gaza 2022 Human 
     Rights Report identified significant human rights issues with 
     respect to the Palestinian Authority, including credible 
     reports of unlawful or arbitrary killings by Palestinian 
     Authority officials, torture or cruel, inhumane, or degrading 
     treatment or punishments by Palestinian Authority officials, 
     arbitrary arrest or detention of political prisoners and 
     detainees, and significant problems with the independence of 
     the judiciary.
       (10) The report identified the Palestinian Authority 
     committing arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; 
     serious restrictions on freedom of expression and media, 
     including violence, threats of violence, unjustified 
     detentions and prosecutions of journalists, and censorship; 
     and serious restrictions on internet freedom.
       (11) The report identified the Palestinian Authority 
     committing substantial interference with the freedom of 
     peaceful assembly and freedom of association, including 
     harassment of nongovernmental organizations, serious and 
     unreasonable restrictions on political participation, 
     including no national elections since 2006, and serious 
     government corruption.
       (12) The report found that the Palestinian Authority did 
     not adequately investigate or hold accountable gender-based 
     violence, and crimes, violence, and threats of violence 
     motivated by anti-Semitism.
       (b) Prohibition on Assistance to Palestinian Authority and 
     Other Governing Entities in the West Bank and Gaza.--
       (1) In general.--Except as provided under paragraph (2) and 
     notwithstanding any other provision of law, no amounts may be 
     obligated or expended to provide any direct United States 
     assistance, loan guarantee, or debt relief to the Palestinian 
     Authority or any other Palestinian governing entity in the 
     West Bank and Gaza.
       (2) Exception.--The prohibition under paragraph (1) shall 
     have no effect for a fiscal year if the President certifies 
     to Congress during that fiscal year that--
       (A) the Palestinian Authority, or other Palestinian 
     governing entity in the West Bank and Gaza, has--
       (i) formally recognized the right of Israel to exist as a 
     Jewish state;
       (ii) publicly recognized the state of Israel;
       (iii) renounced terrorism;
       (iv) purged all individuals with terrorist ties from 
     security services;
       (v) terminated funding of anti-American and anti-Israel 
     incitement;
       (vi) publicly renounced Hamas and the October 7, 2023, 
     attacks perpetrated by Hamas on Israel; and
       (vii) honored previous diplomatic agreements; and
       (B) all hostages abducted on October 7, 2023, and held in 
     territory governed by the Palestinian Authority or other 
     Palestinian governing authority have been released.
       (c) Request for Information on Human Rights Practices by 
     the Palestinian Authority or Any Other Palestinian Governing 
     Entity in the West Bank and Gaza.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the date of 
     the adoption of this resolution, the Secretary of State, in 
     collaboration with the Assistant Secretary of State for 
     Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor and the Office of the 
     Legal Adviser, shall submit to the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
     of the House of Representatives a report on the human rights 
     practices of the

[[Page S178]]

     Palestinian Authority, or any other Palestinian governing 
     entity in the West Bank and Gaza.
       (2) Elements.--The report required under paragraph (1) 
     shall include--
       (A) all available credible information concerning alleged 
     violations of internationally recognized human rights by the 
     Palestinian Authority or any other Palestinian governing 
     entity in the West Bank and Gaza, including--
       (i) the denial of the right to life to Israeli citizens, 
     Jewish individuals, women and girls, or any other minority 
     group; and
       (ii) the use of torture or cruel, inhumane, or degrading 
     treatment or punishment, prolonged detention without charges 
     and trial, causing the disappearance of persons by the 
     abduction and clandestine detention of those persons, and 
     other flagrant denial of the right to life, liberty, or the 
     security of person;
       (B) a description of the steps that the United States 
     Government has taken to--
       (i) promote respect for and observance of human rights as 
     part of the activities of the Palestinian Authority or any 
     other Palestinian governing entity in the West Bank and Gaza;
       (ii) discourage any practices that are inimical to 
     internationally recognized human rights; and
       (iii) publicly or privately call attention to, and 
     disassociate the United States and any foreign assistance 
     provided for the Palestinian Authority or any other 
     Palestinian governing entity in the West Bank and Gaza from, 
     any practices described in clause (ii);
       (C) a description of the intended uses of all foreign 
     assistance provided by the United States to the Palestinian 
     Authority or any other Palestinian governing entity in the 
     West Bank and Gaza; and
       (D) a list of international organizations that--
       (i) accept financial contributions from the United States 
     Government; and
       (ii) provide assistance of any kind to the Palestinian 
     Authority or any other Palestinian governing entity in the 
     West Bank and Gaza.

  Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, today, we are gathered once again to kick 
the can down the road. We are gathered to continue spending money, not 
individually in appropriations bills and not with any real 
accountability for the money that is being spent but just to keep 
spending. But at the rate we are spending the money, we have 
accumulated a $34 trillion debt. We are accumulating debt at about $1 
trillion every 3 months.
  If you look at how we spend the money, about two-thirds of the money 
is spent on mandatory programs, and there are no votes on mandatory 
programs. They are on autopilot, growing at about 5 to 6 percent a 
year, but they consume two-thirds of the spending. So when we come 
before you and they say, ``We are going to vote on a budget; we are 
going to vote on spending,'' we are actually voting on only about 28 
percent of the budget. That is called discretionary spending. About 
half of that is military, and half of it is nonmilitary.
  Amongst that, they have this great agreement they came to. In the 
military, they decided we are going to increase the military by 3 
percent. So this big chunk over here that is mandatory--we are not 
going to vote on it--is going up about 5 or 6 percent. Then we are 
going to vote on discretionary, but half of that is going up at 3 
percent.
  So, really, we are looking at about 14 percent of the budget and 
saying: Oh, we are going to try to do something.
  You can eliminate the 14 percent of the budget, and it doesn't do 
anything to the debt. In fact, the debt equals the entire discretionary 
spending.
  So when we vote on whether it is $1.5 trillion or $1.6 trillion or 
$1.7 trillion, it is all borrowed. The taxes that you pay essentially 
pay only for the entitlement programs. Everything else is borrowed. Why 
is that a big deal? Why does it make a big difference to the average 
American? Because that is why your grocery prices go up. That is why 
your gas goes up. It is why people can't afford houses and why interest 
rates are high. Why? Because the Federal Reserve buys your debt, prints 
money, and your dollars become worth less and less. That is what 
inflation is.
  We are just days into the new year, and the Treasury Department has 
announced that the debt has surpassed $34 trillion. The situation is 
only getting worse. We are spending money and borrowing at about $1 
trillion every 90 days. You know, I can remember before, you know, back 
in the eighties, when we were in the hundreds of billions of dollars. 
Now we are adding $1 trillion in 90 days. If that pace continues, that 
will amount to a mind-boggling $4 trillion added to the debt every 
single year. We are spending ourselves into oblivion.
  Since last fall, the United States has been borrowing over $5 billion 
every day, over $220 million an hour, nearly $4 million every minute, 
and over $62,000 a second. This is literally out of control. We are 
destroying the dollar. We are creating inflation in borrowing $62,000 a 
second. Your family's share of the cost of that borrowing amounts to 
about $15,000 a year.

  Our Nation's greatest threat comes not from abroad but from the Halls 
of Congress, which at every opportunity look for ways to ignore our 
spending problem and expedite our economic decline. The nonpartisan 
Congressional Budget Office predicts that we will add an average of $2 
trillion a year in debt every year for the next decade. That is another 
$20 trillion in debt. Do you see the debt climbing? Thirty-three? 
Thirty-four? We are going to be up in the fifties in 10 years. Within a 
decade, we are going to go from $34 trillion to $50-some-odd trillion. 
It is literally out of control.
  The real-world consequences are that home prices are doubling, 
interest rates are rising, grocery prices are rising, and gas prices 
are rising. It is not a mystery. Prices don't rise; the value of the 
dollar declines. The value of the dollar declines because the Federal 
Reserve prints up the money to buy the debt.
  This isn't rocket science, but you will often watch the evening news, 
and they will go ``Oh my goodness, the mystery of inflation'' or ``It 
is going to be transitory.'' Nobody is addressing the root cause. The 
root cause is Congress. Congress creates the inflation by running 
massive deficits.
  This reckless level of borrowing and spending is unsustainable. The 
ever-increasing heights of our debt mean a weak economy, high 
inflation, and confiscatory tax rates. In other words, today's spending 
threatens tomorrow's prosperity.
  It should come as no surprise that our financial institutions are 
beginning to sound the alarm. JPMorgan described our $34 trillion debt 
as a ``boiling frog'' phenomenon for the economy and expects a debt-
related recession in the next year or two. Moody's recently slashed its 
rating outlook on the United States' sovereign debt. There will come a 
time when other countries will refuse to buy our debt. There will come 
a time when the Federal Reserve buys all of the debt, and the 
destruction of the currency will become pervasive.
  It seems that the whole world can see this coming, the warning signs. 
Everyone can see it except for those Members of Congress who are so 
deluded by always giving everybody everything they want--free money for 
all. It is only a matter of time before the world wakes up and refuses 
to buy our debt.
  We are approaching the most predictable economic crisis the United 
States has ever faced. That is why I am back on the floor today and 
drawing attention to our out-of-control spending. Americans are starved 
for a voice of fiscal sanity. Americans understand better than our 
Nation's elite that time is running out. Americans will pay dearly for 
Congress's inability to say no to every cause, every line item, and 
every pinstriped lobbyist. We will pay more to Uncle Sam in the form of 
taxes. We will pay more for our groceries. We will pay more for our 
homes. We will suffer higher interest rates. And we will find a 
generation of kids who won't be able to leave their parents' homes 
because businesses can't afford to hire them.
  But it doesn't have to be this way. America can once again be a 
rising nation. We can take that first step to a bright future today. I 
filed an amendment to this bill that would make across-the-board 
spending reductions, not just rightwing spending reductions or leftwing 
spending reductions--everything.
  You know, if we were to spend money at about 95 percent of what we 
spent last year, we could balance the budget within 5 years. It would 
still take 5 years. You would tell people at home that that is what we 
ought to do--just spend 95 percent of what we spent before. Even if it 
is for good causes, we just can't do it forever. Most people would say: 
Well, yes, that sounds reasonable. We are not going to eliminate 
government; we are just going to spend 95 percent of what we spent last 
year.

[[Page S179]]

  My amendment would cut spending. My amendment would put us on the 
right course toward balancing our budget.
  Some critics will say: But where could we cut? Where could we 
possibly cut spending?
  Well, every year, we celebrate Festivus in our office. We have an 
airing of grievances, and we talk about waste. Last year, right before 
Christmas, we presented $900 billion worth of waste, and I will give 
you a couple of the highlights.
  This is from USAID. This is State Department spending, foreign aid 
spending. We spent $6 million to boost tourism in Egypt. Does anybody 
think we don't have enough problems here at home that we should spend 
$6 million in Egypt in promoting their tourism?
  I am sure a lot of people will think this one is really worthwhile. 
The Defense Department spent $8,000 in acquiring a lobster tank. I 
guess some general needed a lobster tank for his office. I have no idea 
why they would be spending $8,000 on a lobster tank.
  During COVID, we passed out money like there was no tomorrow. They 
couldn't print it fast enough for the government to send it out during 
COVID. There was $200 billion that was found to have been sent to the 
wrong people or to have been illegally gained through the COVID money.
  One of our favorites was a guy showing up, printing out his ID, and 
the ID was actually a Barbie doll face. He took a picture of a toy, put 
it on an ID, digitalized it, sent it in for his money, and he got some.
  One of the other ones that really, I think, gets my gall, gets me up, 
is we gave money to a thousand dead people. We gave $1 billion to a 
thousand dead people. When I came to the floor to complain about it, 
there was opposition. We wanted to unanimously pass a bill allowing the 
COVID money-givers to look at the Social Security death notices, to 
cross-match with Social Security death notices to make sure we didn't 
send checks to dead people. There was an objection. A Senator hurried 
to the floor, and his objection was that it would violate the privacy 
of the dead people.
  I kind of think the dead people's privacy is pretty much over at that 
point. I also think it is a terrible government policy and makes 
government look ludicrous at all levels to send a thousand dead people 
$1 billion.
  I tried to get it fixed in legislation. There was opposition. Nancy 
Pelosi pulled it out of a bill that passed that I had it in. They 
finally did pass something. They said: Well, we can't go backward. We 
can't get the money back from the dead people. But we will try to do 
better in the future, not giving money to dead people. And what did we 
discover in the last year? There was still $38 million--not quite a 
billion, but there was still $38 million handed out to dead people.
  Throughout all of this COVID waste, both parties got going. They were 
giving money to everybody. Every restaurant, every arena, every movie 
theater was getting money. The money would run out so fast that 
sometimes they would put up like $45 billion, and in 2 days the money 
would be gone: Oh, no, it is gone. We want to extend it. We need to 
give them another $45 billion.
  Guess what. If you give people free money, they will take it. Even 
people who say they are conservative and say the government is having 
problems, free money will be accepted.
  But it is not free. The free money that was given out--the supposedly 
free money--caused the inflation. It is still causing the inflation. 
Nothing in life is really free. The Fed bought it; the Fed created 
money to do it; and that is where your inflation comes from. And it is 
not over because we bought so much stuff. We gave away trillions of 
dollars.
  Throughout my time in the Senate, I have tried, time and again, to 
offer budget plans that would stem the tide, that would balance our 
budget. This amendment won't get a vote today, but we will have a vote 
on whether to continue things, whether or not to kick the can down the 
road and just keep spending money. But realize for those who vote to 
keep spending money at this level, they are voting for about a $1.5 to 
$1.6 trillion debt, which may well be approaching $2 trillion as this 
goes on. It is unsustainable, and those who vote to continue government 
spending at this level are responsible for the consequences, 
responsible for the inflation, responsible for the high home prices, 
and responsible for the high interest rates.
  I will, today, offer an amendment to have more scrutiny on foreign 
aid.
  Earlier this week, there was a vote to have scrutiny on the aid given 
to one of our allies, and I voted for that because I believe friend or 
foe, whoever is getting American money, there always should be 
conditions; there always should be catches. We should always ask: What 
are you doing with our money? We should ask that it is being used 
honestly.
  I have harangued for over 2 years now that the money sent to Ukraine 
ought to have an inspector general looking just at that money.
  In Afghanistan, we had a special inspector general. I have tried 
several times on the floor, and we haven't been able to get a special 
inspector general for Ukraine, one of the most corrupt countries in the 
world.
  It is often said, though, that American foreign aid is to project 
American power and values. Unfortunately, year after year, decade after 
decade, the only thing consistent about American foreign aid is that 
the money continues to flow regardless of the behavior of the 
recipients.
  In 2023 alone, the U.S. Government took over $43 billion of American 
tax money and gave it away, sent it as welfare to other nations. Did 
the government send that money to our friends? Sometimes. But sometimes 
your tax dollars go to countries better described as frenemies. And 
often, U.S. foreign aid actually goes to countries best described as 
authoritarian dictatorships.
  The idea that we are actually looking to see if our values are being 
embedded or allowed or exemplified or made to show up in the countries 
that receive this just doesn't exist.
  In 2022, the United States sent $1\1/2\ billion to Egypt, but Egypt 
is a tyrannical nightmare. The State Department acknowledges that 
President Elsisi--and I use the word ``President'' loosely because he 
took over in a military coup--that he effectively has turned the 
country into a prison where security forces routinely engage in 
extrajudicial killings, torture, as well as harsh crackdowns on anyone 
who wishes to practice the right to freedom of speech.
  This is a regime that detains journalists for the crime of reporting, 
has tortured 14-year-olds for the crime of participating in public 
demonstration. Is this what America stands for? Are these the American 
values that we are pushing out on the world by sending over $1 billion 
to Egypt?
  Over the last 30 years, I think we have sent close to $60 billion to 
Egypt. It is just a coincidence maybe, but the Mubarak family who ran 
Egypt for more than 15 years ended up being worth personally somewhere 
between $15 and $20 billion. That is called the big skim. Your tax 
dollars are sent to foreign countries. They are sent to dictatorships. 
And guess what, the tin-pot dictator takes their skim off the top. It 
always happens--I could give you a thousand examples--and we never 
change.

  People freak out and say: Are you going to put conditions on foreign 
aid? They would have to behave or have elections or not persecute their 
people or not hoist up a 14-year-old by his arms and electrocute him.
  That is the kind of stuff that is happening in Egypt. Yet our money 
goes on and on. If I propose that there are conditions--oh, we can't 
have conditions. America just must be generous. We don't care what they 
do with the money. And if we don't do it, somebody else will. The 
Russians will or the Chinese will. We have to give away our money or 
somebody else will give them money.
  Our values be damned. We don't care. We look the other way, and the 
majority here--not me but the majority here--votes to continue foreign 
aid everywhere all the time without conditions.
  Today, I offer an amendment where there will be conditions. Today's 
amendment will have conditions on aid to the Palestinians.
  You would think with the massacre and everything else, why would we 
be giving any money to the Palestinians? But it will be interesting 
because I think probably the vast majority here will invoke today to 
continue to give

[[Page S180]]

money to the Palestinians. But really shouldn't they have to do 
something to earn the money? Shouldn't they have to at least say we 
believe Israel has a right to exist or that the massacre on October 7 
was a bad thing? If they can't say that, should they get any of our 
money?
  We need to know what America stands for. Why should we reward 
governments that have terrible human rights records?
  If foreign aid is to project American values, then we should write 
those values into the law. Let's say you only get the foreign aid if 
you actually are exemplifying American values.
  We have made such attempts in the past. For example, we have laws on 
the books named after Senator Patrick Leahy that prohibit U.S. 
assistance to countries where there is credible information that gross 
violations of human rights have been committed.
  But if our government strictly adhered to the Leahy law, it would 
insist that recipients abandon their despotic ways before they can 
receive American money. If our government actually enforced the Leahy 
law, which is well-intended and I support, foreign aid to Egypt would 
have ended years ago.
  There is always a loophole. There is always a Presidential waiver, 
and they always use it. The only thing for certain that never changes 
is your money will be sent to these foreign countries; there will be no 
accountability; the deficit will rise; but, by golly, the money gets 
shoveled out the door every year. There doesn't seem to be a concern 
for what it is doing to Americans, what it is doing to our dollar and 
to our economy.
  Unfortunately, the government always has a way around the rules. They 
are incredibly effective at circumventing the Leahy laws, and so your 
money still flows around the globe regardless of the behavior of the 
recipients.
  It may surprise many Americans to learn that we have provided 
hundreds of millions of dollars to the Palestinian Authority over the 
years. In 2023 alone, we spent over $280 million in the West Bank and 
Gaza. Since 1993, the United States has provided more than $7.6 billion 
in assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. I say not one 
penny more--not one penny more--of foreign aid to countries unwilling 
to renounce violence.
  All American aid should be conditioned on recipients' practice of 
protecting basic human rights. I voted this way recently for one of our 
best allies, Israel. Their aid should be conditioned as well, not 
because I dislike Israel but because all foreign aid should be 
conditioned on how it is spent. It is our money. It should be 
conditioned on human rights.
  It should not be too much to ask that the recipients of American aid 
renounce terrorism and cease trying to destroy Israel. Is that too much 
to ask? Are you willing to keep giving money to the Palestinian 
Authority that will not and has not renounced and condemned the 
massacre of October 7?
  After these attacks, this principle is even more relevant. The 
atrocities committed just over 100 days ago resulted in the killing of 
over 1,200 innocent men, women, and children, 250 people taken hostage. 
At least 33 Americans were killed, and at least 6 remain unaccounted 
for and are presumed taken captive by Hamas. That kind of barbarism 
cannot and should not be rewarded with American dollars.
  How can we continue to allow the flow of money to groups that call 
for the destruction of Israel? How can we continue to allow taxpayer 
dollars to go to the very entities that lob rockets toward civilians in 
Israel? How can we reward the slaughter of innocent people?
  The old ways of doing business have not brought peace to the region. 
We have not bought peace. We don't buy off and somehow create peace, 
and there is, all of a sudden, peace because of the $7.6 billion we 
have given to the Palestinians.
  They won't recognize Israel. They won't condemn the violence. They 
won't even condemn the massacre where 1,200 were killed October 7.
  The time has come for the United States to mean what it says in the 
defense of human rights. This is why I offer an amendment to the 
spending bill today. That should be something every Senator can 
support.
  The amendment would end American aid to governing entities in Gaza 
and the West Bank unless they, among other things, recognize Israel's 
right to exist, pledge to renounce terrorism and the October 7 
massacre, terminate funding to anti-American and anti-Israeli 
enticement, as well as release all of the hostages abducted on October 
7.
  Additionally, my amendment requires that the Secretary of State 
report on Hamas and the Palestinian Authority's compliance with U.S. 
foreign assistance laws and any use of funds received from the United 
States that could have been involved with committing these atrocities.
  American resources should always promote American security interests 
and values, and any recipient of our tax dollars should be more than 
willing to adopt the principles that recognize the liberty and dignity 
of the individual. But we cannot expect the recipient of aid to change 
their behavior if America does not demand it.
  We speak of human rights but reward those who violate them. We can no 
longer afford empty rhetoric. It makes no sense to borrow money from 
China and turn around and give that money away to foreign countries. It 
is fiscally irresponsible, and it is weakening our national security.
  America must demand a change, a change in behavior from those who do 
not accept Israel's right to exist, from those who actively seek the 
destruction of the State of Israel and murder innocent Israelis. To 
that end, I ask for a ``yes'' vote on my amendment that will end aid to 
Palestinian Authority.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. King). The majority leader.

                          ____________________