[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 14 (Thursday, January 25, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S262-S266]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CLOTURE MOTION
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Pursuant to rule XXII, the Chair lays before
the Senate the pending cloture motion, which the clerk will state.
The assistant bill 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. 459, Joshua Paul Kolar, of Indiana,
to be United States Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit.
Charles E. Schumer, Richard J. Durbin, Angus S. King,
Jr., Margaret Wood Hassan, Peter Welch, Mazie K.
Hirono, Alex Padilla, Jeanne Shaheen, Jack Reed, Robert
P. Casey, Jr., Chris Van Hollen, Richard Blumenthal,
Gary C. Peters, Raphael G. Warnock, Christopher A.
Coons, Jeff Merkley, Christopher Murphy.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum
call has been waived.
The question is, Is it the sense of the Senate that debate on the
nomination of Joshua Paul Kolar, of Indiana, to be United States
Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit, shall be brought to a close?
The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule.
The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant executive clerk called the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Wisconsin (Ms. Baldwin),
the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. Klobuchar), and the Senator from
Minnesota (Ms. Smith) are necessarily absent.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Wyoming (Mr. Barrasso) and the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Marshall).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Kansas (Mr.
Marshall) would have voted ``nay.''
The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 66, nays 29, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 24 Ex.]
YEAS--66
Bennet
Blumenthal
Booker
Braun
Brown
Butler
Cantwell
Capito
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Cassidy
Collins
Coons
Cornyn
Cortez Masto
Cramer
Duckworth
Durbin
Ernst
Fetterman
Gillibrand
Graham
Grassley
Hassan
Heinrich
Hickenlooper
Hirono
Kaine
Kelly
Kennedy
King
Lujan
Manchin
Markey
Menendez
Merkley
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Murphy
Murray
Ossoff
Padilla
Peters
Reed
Romney
Rosen
Rounds
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Sinema
Stabenow
Tester
Thune
Tillis
Van Hollen
Warner
Warnock
Warren
Welch
Whitehouse
Wyden
Young
NAYS--29
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Cotton
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Fischer
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
McConnell
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (FL)
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
NOT VOTING--5
Baldwin
Barrasso
Klobuchar
Marshall
Smith
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Butler). On this vote, the yeas are 66,
the nays are 29.
The motion is agreed to.
The Senator from Maryland.
Ukraine
Mr. CARDIN. Madam President, as the chair of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, I come to the floor to advise our colleagues about
the urgency for us to take up and pass the supplemental appropriations
bill that contains many important provisions, but I am going to start
with the most urgent, and that is providing assistance to Ukraine to
defend itself from the brutal attack by the Russian Federation.
Vladimir Putin could change the equation in Ukraine in a matter of
weeks. His tanks could be rolling through Ukraine. His forces could be
arresting Zelenskyy and his Cabinet. The Russian flag could be flying
over Ukraine's capital. This could happen in a matter of weeks if the
United States does not act.
A few days ago, I was in the White House for a meeting about this.
President Biden could not have been clearer: We are out of money to
support Ukraine in this fight. Think about how that sounds to the
Ukrainians fighting on the frontlines.
One Ukrainian soldier said:
The guys are tired, very tired. They are still motivated,
many people understand that they have no other choice. But
you can't win a war only on motivation.
Ukrainian soldiers have had to ration artillery shells. One unit had
to go from firing as many as 90 shells a day to just 10 to 20 shells a
day.
Mr. Putin has made it clear. He is investing in a long war. The New
York Times reported:
Nearly a third of the country's spending next year--roughly
$109 billion--will be devoted to ``national defense,''
according to a budget he signed into law.
Russian TV commentators are celebrating our gridlock. As one European
Ambassador reportedly said, he can ``hear those champagne bottle corks
popping in Moscow.''
President Putin knows that if Congress does not act, he will be able
to break Ukraine. If he succeeds, he will be signaling to the world
that he can invade his neighbors whenever he wants to, erase the nation
of Ukraine and our allies in Europe, in the Middle East, in Africa, and
in Asia, and we are ourselves, the United States, will be in greater
danger.
A group of NATO parliamentarians was in Washington last week,
concerned about Congress's inability to pass the supplemental funding.
One of my counterparts, the chair of the Lithuanian Foreign Affairs
Committee, asked:
Who is next? Balkans, Taiwan, Korea, the Baltics. . . . It
takes years to wake up Washington, so please guys, wake up.
He is right. We need to wake up.
If Putin wins in Ukraine, he will not stop there. That is why this
isn't a choice between sending funding to Ukraine or not sending
funding to Ukraine. The choice is between sending American dollars to
fight Putin now or sending American soldiers to fight him later.
If we want to preserve America's credibility with our allies, it is
up to us. If we want to show our partners we will be there to help when
times are tough, it is up to us. If we want to make sure the United
States stands on the right side of history, it is up to us.
Russia is one of our most dangerous adversaries and an enemy of
democracy everywhere. This is money that will strengthen the United
States' security.
Ukraine needs money for air defenses, money for drones, money for
arming the brave Ukrainians on the frontlines and, of course, direct
budgetary support and humanitarian assistance.
People around the world are depending on the United States for the
humanitarian assistance in the supplemental funding request. Without
money for food, children and mothers, from Africa to the Middle East to
Eastern Europe, will go hungry.
It is up to us. It is up to us.
Finally, I want to underline that there is strong bipartisan
agreement on the need to support Ukraine.
We must not let this be the end of Ukraine. We must not give in to
Russian aggression. We must not stand idly by as this dictator does
what he likes to his neighbors. We must vote
[[Page S263]]
for the supplemental funding that supports Ukrainians' struggle for
freedom. Time is running out. We need to act now.
With that, 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. SULLIVAN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Tribute to Maria Downey
Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, it is Thursday afternoon, and, as you
know from presiding at this time frequently, it is my favorite time of
the week because I get to come down to the Senate floor and talk about
our Alaskan of the Week. This is somebody who is doing something great
for our local communities, our State, maybe the country, maybe the
world.
I have been doing this for several years now, and it really helps
highlight what makes Alaska, in my view, the greatest State in the
greatest country in the world.
I would like to talk about, at the beginning of this speech, a little
about what is going on in Alaska. We have seen all the snowstorms
across the country this week. Trust me, that is just another day in our
State. I think by Christmas Eve this year in Anchorage, my hometown, we
had close to 100 inches already of snow, so no worry about a white
Christmas back home.
It is actually a really beautiful time of the year--great to get
outdoors. I have done some skiing already. People are out snow
machining. If you are watching on TV or in the Gallery, come up to
Alaska any time of the year. In winter, you can see the northern
lights. In summer, you will have a great time fishing, hunting--
whatever you want to do. It is truly an incredible State. Year-round,
we want people to visit--our great fellow Americans to come up. You
will have a fantastic time.
Now, it is not always the easiest place to live. It is far from the
lower 48 here. The weather can be extreme. It can be pretty harsh. As a
result, the people in the communities bond a lot. They have to. They
work together, particularly in some of our most remote communities.
Every community in Alaska--in America--needs to be able to share
reliable, credible information. Local journalism across this great
Nation of ours is vital--more vital, probably, in Alaska than any other
State, I would say. It isn't talked about nearly enough how vital that
local journalism is. We all benefit all across the country from
thousands of local reporters who are working on stories day in and day
out. That is certainly the case in Alaska. I believe that we should be
saluting these frontline journalists--local journalists--for doing this
important work a lot more here.
What we are trying to do is do that today for one of the alltime
best. Our local reporters in Alaska are so important. So what I would
like to do today is introduce to the U.S. Senate and the American
people a great Alaskan of the Week, Maria Downey--longtime Anchorage
journalist, news anchor--who for more than 40 years has brought
Alaska's news directly to our homes and kept us informed about our
State, our communities, our country--with professionalism, sincerity,
kindness, and grace.
Let's talk about Maria Downey--Alaskan of the Week, Maria Downey. She
moved to Alaska from Florida with her husband Ron in 1981. In 1981, a
lot was going on in Alaska.The Trans-Alaska Pipeline--which, by the
way, this body approved--was flowing.
=========================== NOTE ===========================
On page S263, January 25, 2024, in the second column, the
following language appears: The Trans-Atlantic Pipeline--which, by
the way, this body approved--was flowing.
The online Record has been corrected to read: The Trans-Alaska
Pipeline--which, by the way, this body approved--was flowing.
========================= END NOTE =========================
Our country needed energy. We just had the Arab oil embargo. So Alaska
was booming. Almost 2 million barrels a day was flowing through taps,
as we call it in Alaska. That is unbelievable. It is great for Alaska,
great for America. We need energy.Maria said about 1981:
It was a great time to be a reporter because it was the
boom period. CNN or NBC, whatever the affiliates were at the
time, would not hesitate to spend the money to send you
places [during that time].
Now, for a little context. Journalism in Alaska looks a little bit
different than other parts of the country. There are a lot of things in
Alaska that look different from the lower 48. A reporter, for example,
may have to take a charter plane hundreds of miles--several hundreds of
miles--just to reach some of our State's most rural communities. Of
course, they are usually faced with weather challenges. They are
getting into the nitty-gritty of small-town politics. You might
encounter some hungry wildlife even.
But because of these challenges, some of the best reporters arise
from Alaska. An example of some of the National Public Radio's most
famous reporters nationally who have gotten their start in our great
State: Peter Kenyon, Elizabeth Arnold, and many others. And the
Anchorage Daily News, which has won Pulitzer prizes, had the late,
great Howard Weaver. These are big names in reporting.
But I am digressing because the biggest name, in my view, in
journalism in Alaska is our Alaskan of the Week, Maria Downey--even
bigger than some of the other names I just mentioned.
It is this kind of intrepid reporter that makes Alaska so special in
terms of news broadcasts and makes our Alaskan of the Week so special.
Maria started, as I mentioned, her journalistic career in 1981 on
Channel 13 before moving to Channel 2 in 1985. At Channel 2, Maria
quickly climbed the reporter ranks, going from co-anchoring to a full
anchor in just 6 weeks. That is a shooting star in terms of journalism.
As an anchor, Maria realized how vital the role local news reporting
played in reporting Statewide news:
When we go to a village in rural Alaska, there's people
meeting us at the airstrip [when we get off the plane]. So
when you go there, and you feel that connection [with your
fellow Alaskans throughout the whole State].
While the national media can get a lot of negative attention--some
earned, maybe some not earned--local media, especially in Alaska, is
often the crucial link to rural communities who need that reporting for
information, who need that reporting throughout the State, who need
that reporting to bring us all together, especially in a State as big
as Alaska.
Maria said:
It's our community [the whole State]. We're invested in it.
It would be a disservice to do anything that's not honest and
fair to our community.
What a great principle, by the way, for a journalist.
People see that we're out and about [working with them] and
this is our home.
If you need evidence for how invested Maria truly has been and was in
her job--you won't believe this story--in 1986, while on the air live
on Channel 2, she went into labor. She stayed on the air the whole
time. Yes, that is a true story. Her longtime coworker, news director
John Tracy, said:
She was cool as a cucumber. You'd never know what was
happening [that she was in labor]. I timed her contractions
in between commercials.
It is amazing. Maria closed out her segment in labor by telling her
husband on the air: ``Ron, meet me at the hospital.''
There you go. If that is not dedication to Alaska journalism, I don't
know what is. So along with her own two children, Alaskans across the
State have seen and viewed Maria as our ``TV mom.'' Again, that is the
kind of personality that she brings to her job, the professionalism and
the fact that people love her.
As the Facebook congratulatory posts have flowed in the past week
when Maria announced her retirement after more than 40 years, one post
in particular stood out, from a child from rural Alaska who every night
would pray for all his family members and then say, ``God bless Maria
Downey.''
Children across Alaska associate Maria with the close of the day--the
Channel 2 evening news theme signaling dinnertime every night in
thousands and thousands of homes across our great State. Channel 2 is
the biggest station. It reaches pretty much the whole State.
Madam President, as you are probably gathering here, Maria is about
as close to a local celebrity as you can get, and her popularity is
really, really well-earned. Her coworkers, some of whom have worked
with Maria more than 20 years, never fail to describe her as kind,
intrepid, and good-humored. Tracy Sinclare--by the way, another
intrepid journalist and producer herself who I know well at Channel 2--
remembers Maria bringing her meals when
[[Page S264]]
Tracy was fighting breast cancer. She will tell you--and this is a
quote from Tracy:
Maria is absolutely the person you see on TV [the best].
News director John Tracy said:
She could have done many other things for more money. But
she just loved what she did. She earned every accolade.
And the accolades are now pouring in.
Maria is eager to pass her reporting expertise on to the next
generation of Alaska's journalists--by the way, a true sign of a
leader, developing the next generation to take over after you are
completing your professional career.
So, of course, Maria is Channel 2's internship coordinator, where she
has mentored young journalists, many of whom now hold full-time
positions in the newsroom and continue to work alongside their mentor,
Maria Downey.
Outside of the newsroom, Maria has devoted herself to serving the
community that she reports on. No surprise there. For more than 25
years, Maria has led Channel 2's Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor
Day telethon, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars every year for
MDA for Alaska.
She was part of the committee that started what we call in Alaska the
Pick, Click, and Give. It is an initiative and a program that lets
Alaskans easily donate to the charities of their choice when they are
applying for their Permanent Fund Dividend. This is a great initiative,
and Maria has been critical to that success.
For her journalistic career, Maria, as I mentioned, has been
rightfully honored with awards throughout the years, throughout the
decades, celebrating her exceptional reporting for Alaska. She is a
Silver Circle inductee with the Northwest Chapter of the National
Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, an honor recognizing
individuals with 25 years or more in the industry for exceptional
contributions to broadcast and media in the Pacific Northwest. She has
also been recognized by Alaska's ATHENA Society, by the YWCA's Women of
Achievement Awards, and was inducted into the Alaska Broadcasters Hall
of Fame.
When asked how she wants to be remembered from her 40-plus years in
journalism, Maria said working to make sure her community is a better
place is what she focused on:
Looking at ways to help, donating time, talent, treasure.
The old stewardship motto. Hopefully what we've done, and
what I have done throughout the years, has helped push people
towards doing what's right for their community.
What a great legacy. She is not done. She is retiring, but,
fortunately, Maria is going to stay in Anchorage. That is great news
for all of us in Alaska. She is going to be spending more time with her
husband and their two children. Even though we won't be seeing her in
our homes every night and letting us know what is happening in our
community, in our State, in our country, we all hopefully will be
seeing her around town. I am sure we will.
So on January 26, after 38 years of Channel 2, Maria will anchor the
Channel 2 News for the last time. So all Alaskans make sure you tune
in. Americans, you want to watch one of the greatest newscasters in the
country--the whole country should tune in.
So, Maria, thank you for your exceptional service to Alaska, for
being that woman behind the news all these many years. Thank you for
keeping our communities connected, people informed about what is going
on in Alaska, in America, in our communities, and congratulations on
maybe one of the biggest awards you have ever received up until this
moment, being our Alaskan of The Week.
Great job, Maria. Have a great retirement.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Booker). The Senator from Hawaii.
Abortion
Mr. SCHATZ. Mr. President, this week is the anniversary of the Roe v.
Wade decision. Because of the current rightwing Supreme Court's
decision almost 2 years ago to dismantle reproductive freedom, women in
many parts of the United States today have less control over their
bodies than they did 50 years ago--50 years ago.
The Dobbs decision was the crowning achievement of the hard right's
decades-long war on a woman's right to choose, but it wasn't the end.
They want to go even further. These very same people are now going
State by State, trying to pass extreme laws to all but ban abortion
access, and it is working. Over half of the women of reproductive age
live in States that are hostile to abortion rights, and more than
64,000 women and girls have become pregnant because of rape in States
that have implemented abortion bans after Roe was overturned--64,000
women and girls pregnant in States where abortion access is limited or
not available at all.
The stories they share about the pain and trauma inflicted by this
extremist cruelty will break your heart. A woman in Ohio had 1 day--1
single day--to decide whether or not to keep her child because she was
right on the verge of the State's ban at 6 weeks. A Florida woman was
forced to carry her baby to term even though doctors found fatal
abnormalities in an ultrasound at 23 weeks and knew that it had at most
a few hours to live after birth. Another woman, whose baby would have
been born without a skull--without a skull--traveled 1,400 miles from
Baton Rouge to New York City to get an abortion because local doctors
were afraid they would lose their license--they would lose their
license--or be thrown in prison for providing abortion services.
Horrific as these stories are, they haven't stopped Republicans from
trying to destroy every last bit of bodily autonomy and freedom.
Republicans here in Congress are explicit: They are pushing for a
national abortion ban. So some of the things you say about what is
happening sound like they are partisan talking points, but that is what
is happening. They actually do want an abortion ban in Federal
statutory law.
The rightwing Supreme Court may well deliver another hammer blow to
abortion rights in the coming months if it reverses Federal rules
governing access to medication abortion--rules that were shaped in part
by a Federal lawsuit where a Hawaii doctor argued correctly that women
should be able to access abortion pills, which are safe and effective,
when and where they need them. For Hawaii and so many other places
around the country that rely on telehealth and medication by mail for
access to care, this is vital, but they may not last much longer.
If there is a glimmer of hope in all of this, it is that a majority
of Americans reject this extremism on abortion. They see it for what it
is: plainly unjust and needlessly cruel--needlessly cruel. They believe
in a woman's right to choose, and they support enshrining reproductive
rights nationally once and for all.
We live in a democracy, after all, and Senate Democrats will continue
to fight until a woman's right to control her own body is the law of
the land again.
Supplemental Funding
Mr. President, the war in Gaza, the war in Ukraine, looming threats
in the Indo-Pacific--finding bipartisan consensus about what to do on
any one of these issues is very, very hard. To do them all together is
extraordinarily difficult. But time is running out, and it is essential
that we act--No. 1, because we have a very real security interest in
each of these areas, and No. 2, because our allies and partners are
counting on our help as they encounter the alarming march of fascism
around the globe.
It has been almost a month since the last U.S. arms shipment left for
Ukraine. Funding for assistance has run out completely. Let me just
repeat that. This is not something we are arguing about in terms of the
facts on the ground; it is a fact that Ukraine is slowly but surely
running out of ammunition.
Ukraine will have to fight for its survival with a weapons supply
that is dwindling by the day. Putin, on the other hand, is intensifying
his assault with the help of missiles and artillery rounds provided by
North Korea and Iran. That is who Ukraine is up against--Russia, North
Korea, and Iran--a band of autocrats that have no respect for democracy
or even a passing interest in peace.
Beyond its own survival, Ukraine's fight is for the fate of the free
world and nothing less. So we don't have time to play partisan politics
here as Putin continues to pummel Ukraine day by day. Time is running
out, and they desperately need help.
[[Page S265]]
I understand people say what is useful to them as an argument to get
their legislation through, so I don't want you to think this is some
sort of overstatement. They are literally running out of ammunition. If
you ask anybody in a classified session, in a nonclassified session; if
you ask any expert--left, right, and center--the determining factor for
Ukraine's future and therefore the future of Europe and the future of
the free world is, what do we do about the supplemental appropriations
bill? They are running out of ammunition, and Putin is banking on a war
of attrition that Ukraine will not be able to win.
Meanwhile, the war between Israel and Hamas since Hamas's barbaric
attacks on October 7 continues to devastate millions in the region.
Hamas still holds 130 hostages captive, including Americans and even a
year-old infant.
As the United States made clear in the immediate aftermath of the
Hamas attacks, Israel has an entirely legitimate right and an
obligation to defend itself and to rescue the hostages. It should not
be lost on anyone that Israel continues to lose scores of young men and
women in battle trying to protect their nation in the wake of this
unprecedented terror attack.
But just as the United States has a responsibility to Israel, as its
closest ally, to help it defend itself, we also have a responsibility
as the leader of the free world to call on Israel to wage this war
smartly and justly--to prosecute Hamas, not the Palestinian people.
More than 25,000 Palestinians have been killed in the last 3 months,
most of them women and children. This is in no one's interest
strategically or morally.
We also have a responsibility to make sure that humanitarian
assistance is allowed to flow to the millions of innocent civilians
suffering the horrific conditions under the constant barrage of
crossfire.
Even in the face of heightened passions and justifiable anger, we
have to make a distinction between people and their governments. These
are two peoples suffering agonizing losses, two peoples who want to
live their lives just like the rest of us--outside of the constant
shadow of violence and bloodshed. They just want to go to school or
teach at a school or be a garbage collector or bake bread or eat bread
or drink coffee or make coffee or fix roads or drive on a road.
Everybody has basic human needs. Everybody has basic human needs. And
the idea that we can't see beyond our geopolitical disagreements to
understand that this is causing immense suffering for everyone is one
of our fundamental challenges.
I talk a lot with the Presiding Officer from New Jersey about this.
You know, it is at least partly the internet. It is at least partly the
fact that if you say something about the suffering of Palestinians, the
first thing out of everyone's mouth in your replies is ``What about
October 7?'' If you say ``Hamas is terrible,'' people say ``What
about''--the truth is, there really is suffering on both sides, and I
am not trying to make equivalent a terrorist attack with a reaction to
that terrorist attack. I am not. But, do you know what, that is all
written in the wind. Everyone is suffering. Everyone is suffering.
Whenever and however this war ends, there has to be a path to a just
and a lasting peace. It has been the longstanding policy of the U.S.
Government on a bipartisan basis to support a two-state solution
because a two-state solution is the only way to guarantee distinct,
inalienable, and mutually recognized homes for both peoples and empower
each to chart their own future.
As we consider a major aid package for the region, it is not
insignificant to at the same time reaffirm our commitment to that
vision. The amendment I plan to file, along with 48 of my colleagues,
should a supplemental aid package come to the floor is about making the
American position clear.
Inherent to achieving a two-state future is leadership on both sides
that is actually interested in peace and both sides feeling secure
enough to pursue it. Israel must feel that Hamas and other militant
groups have been degraded so they no longer pose a threat to the people
of Israel or the country of Israel, and Palestinians must feel that
they have a real seat at the table.
There can't be extremists in the Israeli Government who jump at every
chance to inflame and incite divisions, and there can't be a
Palestinian Authority rank with corruption and nepotism, deteriorating
into a kleptocracy. Palestinians want and need a representative and an
effective government, and the PA in its current form is falling short.
So, as we press for diplomacy, we also need to be clear that it will
take a reformed P.A. that can deliver on the aspirations of the
Palestinian people, in addition to a cooperative, forward-looking
Israeli Government, in order for these negotiations to work. Changing a
longstanding and deeply broken status quo is hard, but it is incumbent
on the United States of America, as a global leader, to do everything
that we can to foster the conditions for an enduring peace.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Schatz). The Senator from New Jersey.
Tribute to the Pages
Mr. BOOKER. Mr. President, I appreciate the Presiding Officer, my
dear friend, and I think he and I are very aware of this. If you ask
the average person who knows about their Federal Government how many
people are in the U.S. Senate, their answer is going to be 100, and
they would be wrong. There are 100 Senators, but as the Presiding
Officer and I both know, there are thousands of people who work in the
U.S. Capitol for the U.S. Senate. This is a larger body of people who
are critical to keeping this institution running.
There are amazing folks who work here in the U.S. Senate. If you take
the time to talk to them, you will hear stories that make you feel
proud to be an American--from literally the people who are keeping the
pipes under this place functional, who keep this place and its history
and its heritage preserved. There are people on staffs who make sure
the floor runs smoothly so Senators can present bills and ideas. This
is an extraordinary collection of Americans who takes part in what is a
hallowed and civic institution.
But, perhaps, when people look at the floor, there are two Senators
here, but there are probably 30 or so people on the floor right now,
not to mention those working in the cloakrooms. But often, when people
turn on their TVs and happen to catch it on C-SPAN--hi, Mom, who
watches a lot--the folks they probably most overlook are the people I
think bring an energy, an excitement, and an enthusiasm to this place,
and those are the pages.
Now, I can't even get my mind around, when I meet these young people,
taking a year--or, excuse me, a semester--off of your normal track--all
your extracurricular activities, from all of your friends--traveling
from all over the country and coming here, not just to work a full-time
job amidst these hallowed halls, but also to hold a full-time schedule
of classes.
I look at these teenagers, and I feel this utter sense of just
sympathy for them because they are grinding in ways that a lot of
Senators don't do. Think about this. They work on the floor of the
Senate, which is a demanding job, doing critical work. Then they go
home and study. Then they wake up sometimes at 5 o'clock in the morning
to take classes in things that I am not sure if every Senator can still
pass--calculus, for crying out loud. They do their academic work, and
they do their service for their country. So it takes a special breed to
do something so irrational with their teenage years.
I get a chance every time--all of us Senators get a chance--to engage
with them and meet them, and I just want to take this moment, on the
last day that they are here, to just say some things particularly about
this class.
Mr. President, this class is the most awful group of joke tellers I
have ever met.
(Laughter.)
I mean, their jokes are so particularly bad that I have never used it
to describe such a page class. They are not just bad; they are
painfully pathetic. Their jokes are pugilistic and pugnacious. Their
jokes are pukeworthy. Yes, this is the first time in American history
that word has ever been used on the Senate floor--``pukeworthy.'' The
truth of the matter is they have a gene in their bodies that prevents
them from having good senses of humor, and I make that clear: They need
to work on this, or they may not make it in life.
[[Page S266]]
But I will say something about this class that I think that the
Presiding Officer may have noticed and definitely a lot of the staff
who serves on the floor. I was literally struck, when I came in on the
first day and started engaging with them, as I often do, that there was
something special about this class, because it is the value I most
admire in anybody that I meet. In this class, whether they are pages
who serve on that side of the aisle or on this side of the aisle, I
found them immediately to have this important superpower for coping in
life, and that is that this page class is kind. They really are good
people. I have to say that that is how I will remember this class. I
will try desperately to forget their bad jokes. I will always, though,
remember their kindness.
I want to tell this page class that you brought something special to
this floor; that you all contributed more than you probably realize;
that you, in your humility, probably underestimate the impact you bring
to this place. I know you are going to have special memories here. In
fact, it is amazing, as I feel sometimes just as a Senator, that we all
had a chance in our service together in the Senate to be on the
frontlines of history, to witness some of the greatest debates of
humanity right now. You heard one from the Presiding Officer, who just
spoke, and who spoke to issues that go to the heart of what this
country is about, what this country stands for, what this country will
do. That was a privilege that you were a part of.
But, to me, what I think is important about the role that you have
played in the short period of time that you have been here is the fact
that I think you remind a lot of us who are two and three and four
times your age that, when you still come in here, despite how tired you
are, and still have that look of wonder about this place, you help us
to remember what a privilege it is to be here.
So I just want this class to know that it has been my privilege, as
one Senator, who, I believe, probably speaks for most--that it was a
privilege to serve with you in the United States of America.
I hope you remember that the highest calling of citizenship is
service; that this is not your last time that you answer that call
whether it is in your communities, your neighborhoods, whether it is to
your States or to this Nation. I hope that you always aspire to show
your patriotism not by what you say but by what you do.
And, dear God, don't let a harsh world--a world that can be mean--
ever stop you from being as kind as you were on the day that I first
met you.
I love that story about the man who goes up to a young person and
says: What do you want to be when you grow up?
And the confident young person looked at them and simply said: I want
to be kind.
I think you guys already have achieved one of the greatest callings
for people, which is to be good to one another. In fact, I look at our
political climate in America, and it is often not a good demonstration
of that high human virtue. So I want to thank you for your kindness. I
forgive you for your bad jokes, but most of all, I hope that you will
not change that spirit that resides in your hearts.
Thank you for your service here to the U.S. Senate. What an honor it
has been to be with you.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Booker). The majority leader.
Supplemental Funding
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, for months, I have said that the only way
we are going to pass a national security supplemental is if both sides
are serious about an agreement.
Democrats are resolute on getting something done. We are committed to
keeping our promise to helping our friends in Ukraine in their fight
against Putin. We know that if Putin prevails in Ukraine, the
consequences for Western democracy and for the American people will be
severe and haunt us for years.
Democrats are also resolute on reaching an agreement on securing the
southern border. We know how important this is. We are negotiating in
good faith and want to get this done in a bipartisan way.
And Democrats are resolute to send more aid to Israel, provide more
humanitarian aid for innocent civilians in Gaza, and hold the line
against the Chinese Communist Party in the Indo-Pacific.
As we have seen over the past day, getting a bipartisan agreement on
the supplemental is very difficult. But I am glad that now negotiations
are continuing to move forward. Of course, there are still issues that
must be settled, but negotiators will work all weekend in an effort to
get this done.
____________________