Congressional Record, Volume 170 Issue 51 (Friday, March 22, 2024)

[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 51 (Friday, March 22, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2578-S2586]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

LEGISLATIVE SESSION

______

UDALL FOUNDATION REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2023--Continued

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.

Order of Procedure

Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the only
motions and amendments in order to the House message to accompany H.R.
2882 be the following: Paul motion to refer, which is at the desk;
motion to concur with Cruz No. 1804; motion to concur with Tuberville
No. 1781; motion to concur with Lee No. 1722; motion to concur with
Schmitt No. 1795; motion to concur with Johnson No. 1706; motion to
concur with Lankford No. 1713; motion to concur with Lankford No. 1718;
Blackburn motion to refer, which is at the desk; further, that the
Senate vote in relation to the above motions and amendments in the
order listed; that upon the disposition of the Blackburn motion to
refer, Senator Budd be recognized to make a motion to table the motion
to refer with amendment No. 1794, and if that motion is not agreed to,
Senator Hagerty be recognized to make a motion to table amendment No.
1793, and that if that motion is not agreed to, Senator Budd be
recognized to make a motion to table the motion to refer with amendment
No. 1792; further, that if the tabling motions are not agreed to, the
cloture motion with respect to the House message be withdrawn, the
pending amendments and motions be withdrawn, and the Senate vote on the
motion to concur in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R.
2882, with 60 affirmative votes required for adoption of the motion to
concur, without further intervening action or debate, and with 2
minutes for debate, equally divided, prior to each vote; further, that
S. 4072, introduced earlier today, be placed on the calendar and,
notwithstanding rule XXII, at a time to be determined by the majority
leader in consultation with the Republican leader but no later than
Friday, April 19, 2024, the Senate proceed to the consideration of S.
4072, Crapo tailpipe emissions; that there be up to 2 hours for debate,
equally divided, and upon the use or yielding back of time, the bill be
considered read a third time, and the Senate vote on passage of the
bill with 60 affirmative votes required for passage, without
intervening action or debate, and if passed, the motion to reconsider
be considered made and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I am going to be brief because we want
to move quickly on to votes.
It has been a very long and difficult day, but we have just reached
an agreement to complete the job of funding the government. It is good
for the country that we have reached this bipartisan deal. It wasn't
easy, but tonight our persistence has been worth it.
I want to thank the great leadership of Chair Murray and Vice Chair
Collins for making this agreement possible.
Again, it is good for the American people that we have reached a
bipartisan agreement to complete the job of funding the government
tonight.
I am going to put us into a short quorum call as we wait for the
first person of the first amendment to arrive. He is on his way. I will
ask everyone to stay in their seats so we can get this done very
quickly. Some people have very important places to go, and we want to
get her there.

Unanimous Consent Agreement

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that all of the votes after
the first vote be 10 minutes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. SCHUMER. Again, I would ask Members respectfully but with
strength to sit in their chairs, please, so we can get this done.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

Order of Business

Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to modify the
previous order so that the Lee motion to concur be first in the order.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from Utah.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1722

Mr. LEE. Madam President, I move to concur in the House amendment to
the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with further amendment No. 1722.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Utah [Mr. Lee] moves to concur in the
House amendment to the Senate amendment with further
amendment numbered 1722.

The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To prohibit Federal funding for the use of the CBP One
application to facilitate the entry of aliens into the United States)

At the appropriate place in Division C, insert the
following:
Sec.__. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made
available by this division may be made available to utilize
the U.S. Customs and Border Protection CBP One application,
or any successor application, to facilitate the entry of any
alien into the United States.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is now 2 minutes of debate equally
divided.
Mr. LEE. Madam President, when the rest of us board an airplane, we
always

[[Page S2579]]

have to show a photo ID to prove who we are, that we are who we claim
to be. Not so if you are an illegal immigrant.
If you are an illegal immigrant under the Biden administration, all
you have to do is pull out the CBP One app. It is an app that they
created. It doesn't prove who they are. It just says you can board the
airplane. That is not OK, and that is not fair. In fact, just between
January and September of last year, 221,000 illegal aliens entered the
United States this way, and they were allowed to fly around the country
without having ID.
This has had tragic consequences. An example of the danger presented
by this is reflected in the fact that Haitian immigrant Cory Alvarez,
whose entry into the United States was facilitated by the CBP One app,
raped a 15-year-old, mentally impaired girl in the United States. He
has, thankfully, since been arrested for this horrific crime. It should
never have had to come to this. This would stop that from happening.
I urge my colleagues to support this amendment and end this
lawlessness.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, the CBP One app is a downloadable app
to schedule appointments with CBP at a land port of entry. Under our
existing asylum laws, noncitizens may apply for asylum at our Nation's
ports of entry.
Using this app improves security because it provides the CBP with
advanced notice of who is arriving and of those individuals who have
already passed security checks. About 1,400 appointments a day occur
through the app. By providing people with advanced travel
authorization, it allows them to avoid human traffickers and drug
cartels and other criminal organizations.
Accepting this amendment will lead to more encounters at the border,
pulling our agents from other work and responsibilities, like stopping
drug cartels from getting fentanyl through our border, and it will
create long lines at ports of entry as individuals travel to the border
to apply for asylum, and it will all but guarantee a shutdown for no
sensible reason.
I strongly urge my colleagues to vote no.

Vote on Motion to Concur

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
Mr. LEE. Madam President, I call for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: The Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Marshall), the
Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), and the Senator from Florida (Mr.
Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``yea''.
The result was announced--yeas 45, nays 51, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 105 Leg.]

YEAS--45

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
McConnell
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NAYS--51

Baldwin
Bennet
Blumenthal
Booker
Brown
Butler
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Coons
Cortez Masto
Duckworth
Durbin
Fetterman
Gillibrand
Hassan
Heinrich
Hickenlooper
Hirono
Kaine
Kelly
King
Klobuchar
Lujan
Manchin
Markey
Menendez
Merkley
Murphy
Murray
Ossoff
Padilla
Peters
Reed
Rosen
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Sinema
Smith
Stabenow
Tester
Van Hollen
Warner
Warnock
Warren
Welch
Whitehouse
Wyden

NOT VOTING--4

Braun
Marshall
Rubio
Scott (FL)
The motion was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. King). The Senator from Kentucky.

Unanimous Consent Request

Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the next four
amendments be considered simultaneously and individually; that each
individual amendment be listed at the table by number; that over the
next 15 minutes we will vote on all four. Each person who is for the
amendment can speak a minute for it, and each person who is against it
can speak a minute against it, as we have been doing. But four
amendments will be considered over the next 15 minutes, individually,
at the desk. Each Senator will come forward and vote on all four
amendments one at a time, but we will be done with four amendments in
15 minutes. I ask unanimous consent.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
The majority leader.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I object. Let me just say to my
colleagues, accuracy is very important. We must make sure the vote
count is accurate. But if we all sit in our seats and do 10-minute
votes, we can get this done as quickly as possible.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kentucky.

Motion to Refer

Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, I move to refer the message to accompany
H.R. 2882 to the Committee on Appropriations with instructions.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the motion.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Kentucky [Mr. Paul] moves to refer the
message with respect to H.R. 2882 to the Committee on
Appropriations of the Senate with instructions to report the
same back to the Senate in 1 day, not counting any day on
which the Senate is not in session, with changes that reduce
the total amount made available under the message by 5
percent, which shall not include the reduction of any amount
made available to the Department of Defense or the reduction
of any amount made available for securing the international
border of the United States.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. There will be 2 minutes of debate, equally
divided.
The Senator from Kentucky.
Mr. PAUL. I yield back my time.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, in that case, I will also yield back my
time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time has been yielded back.

Vote on Motion to Refer

The question is on agreeing to the motion.
Mr. PAUL. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), and the
Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``yea''.
The result was announced--yeas 34, nays 63, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 106 Leg.]

YEAS--34

Barrasso
Blackburn
Britt
Budd
Cassidy
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
Mullin
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Rounds
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tuberville

NAYS--63

Baldwin
Bennet
Blumenthal
Booker
Boozman
Brown
Butler
Cantwell
Capito
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Collins
Coons
Cortez Masto
Duckworth
Durbin
Fetterman
Gillibrand
Graham
Hassan
Heinrich
Hickenlooper
Hirono
Kaine
Kelly
King
Klobuchar
Lujan
Manchin
Markey
McConnell
Menendez
Merkley
Moran
Murkowski
Murphy
Murray
Ossoff
Padilla
Peters
Reed
Romney
Rosen
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Sinema
Smith
Stabenow
Tester
Tillis
Van Hollen
Vance
Warner
Warnock
Warren
Welch
Whitehouse
Wicker
Wyden
Young

NOT VOTING--3

Braun
Rubio
Scott (FL)
The motion was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.

=========================== NOTE ===========================

On page S2579, March 22, 2024, second column, the following
appears: NOT VOTING--3 Braun Rubio Scott (FL) The PRESIDING
OFFICER: The majority leader.

The online Record has been corrected to read: NOT VOTING--3
Braun Rubio Scott (FL) The motion was rejected. The PRESIDING
OFFICER. The majority leader.

========================= END NOTE =========================

[[Page S2580]]

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, we
are going to try to skip the recap. That will save a lot of time. But
that means everyone has to be in his or her seat. Don't go to the front
and answer. Just be in your seat and answer yes or no when called.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1804

Mr. CRUZ. Mr. President, I move to concur in the House amendment to
the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882, with further amendment No. 1804.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Texas [Mr. Cruz] moves to concur in the
House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882, with
further amendment numbered 1804.

The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To prohibit the use of funds to waive certain sanctions with
respect to Iran)

At the appropriate place, insert the following:
Sec. __. None of the funds appropriated by this Act may be
obligated or expended to make a determination or issue a
waiver pursuant to--
(1) section 1245(d)(5) of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (22 U.S.C.
8513a(d)(5)); or
(2) section 1244(i) or 1247(f) of the Iran Freedom and
Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8803(i) and
8806(f)).
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There will be 2 minutes of debate on this
motion, equally divided.
The Senator from Texas.
Mr. CRUZ. Mr. President, right now, Israel is facing the worst war in
the Middle East in 50 years. On October 7, more than 1,200 Israelis
were murdered by Hamas terrorists; more than 30 Americans were murdered
by Hamas terrorists.
Hamas was funded by Iran. Hezbollah is funded by Iran. In the last 3
years, the Biden administration has flowed more than $100 billion to
Iran, has sent the money that paid for the Hamas terrorists that
committed those act of atrocities.
This amendment is very simple: It prohibits the Biden administration
from sending billions of dollars to Iran. The ayatollah pledges death
to America and death to Israel.
The question is: Does the United States of America want to be
responsible for funding the genocidal, theocratic lunatic who leads
Iran, who is funding Hamas, who is waging war against Israel?
The Democrats are going to move to table. And so a vote for yes is a
vote to fund Iran. A vote for no is to say: Not one more penny should
go to the lunatics in Iran.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired.
The Senator from Maryland.
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I rise in opposition to this motion. It
does not do what the Senator from Texas says.
Our sanctions are critical national security tools. The U.S. Iranian
sanctions are the strongest economic sanctions in the world. The Cruz
amendment would eliminate the waiver that is available for national
security interests.
This provision would effectively limit the use of the waiver in any
instances of which has met the significant threshold; for example, use
for accommodating humanitarian or basic human needs, including food and
medicine and to pay for vetted third-party, non-Iranian vendors. It
would also impair our ability to maintain the international coalition
and support of our sanctions against Iran.

Motion to Table

And for all those reasons, I move to table the motion to concur with
the Cruz amendment No. 1804 and ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion to
table.
Is there a sufficient second?
There is a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun), and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``NAY''.
The result was announced--yeas 51, nays 47, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 107 Leg.]

YEAS--51

Baldwin
Bennet
Blumenthal
Booker
Brown
Butler
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Coons
Cortez Masto
Duckworth
Durbin
Fetterman
Gillibrand
Hassan
Heinrich
Hickenlooper
Hirono
Kaine
Kelly
King
Klobuchar
Lujan
Manchin
Markey
Merkley
Murphy
Murray
Ossoff
Padilla
Paul
Peters
Reed
Rosen
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Sinema
Smith
Stabenow
Tester
Van Hollen
Warner
Warnock
Warren
Welch
Whitehouse
Wyden

NAYS--47

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
McConnell
Menendez
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)

The motion to table was agreed to.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1781

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alabama.
Mr. TUBERVILLE. I move to concur in the House amendment to the Senate
amendment to H.R. 2882 with a further amendment No. 1781.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Alabama [Mr. Tuberville] moves to concur
in the House amendment to the Senate amendment with a further
amendment numbered 1781.

The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To prohibit funding for entities that permit certain students
to participate in girls' or women's athletics)

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

SEC. __. PROHIBITION ON FUNDING ENTITIES THAT PERMIT CERTAIN
STUDENTS TO PARTICIPATE IN GIRLS' OR WOMEN'S
ATHLETICS.

(a) In General.--None of the funds appropriated under any
division of this Act may be used by a State, local
educational agency, or institution of higher education, that
permits any student whose biological sex (recognized based
solely on a person's reproductive biology at birth) is male
to participate in an athletic program or activity designated
for girls or women.
(b) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the
term in section 101 or 102 of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001, 1002).
(2) Local educational agency, state.--The terms ``local
educational agency'' and ``State'' have the meanings given
the terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There will be 2 minutes of debate on this
motion, equally divided.
The Senator from Alabama.
Mr. TUBERVILLE. Mr. President, I still can't believe we are having
serious conversations about men competing in women's sports. We have
lost our minds. I know many of you have daughters, nieces, and
granddaughters who play sports. My amendment would protect the
integrity of women and girls in sports and protect them and sports
itself, because women and girls are being discriminated against.
I am here to fight for the future of women's and girls' sports, for
the safety of their locker rooms and showers. The Biden Department of
Education is doing exactly the opposite.
My amendment is simple. A school should protect women in sports and
ensure that only biological women can compete against each other. An
educational institution should not be able to use Federal funds to
implement a radical agenda and facilitate biological males competing in
women sports.
It is time to draw the line in the sand. Women are being attacked,
not just on the court, in the pool, but in the dressing room. It is
time to show what side you are on. So when you vote, I hope you take a
look in the camera and smile, and go home and explain your vote to the
daughters and granddaughters and young women in your families.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired.
The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, this amendment would create an outright
blanket ban on trans kids in K-12

[[Page S2581]]

schools participating in any sport activity consistent with their
gender identity in every single State.
Let me just say this loud and clear: This amendment is as bigoted and
dangerous as it is unnecessary. Of all the challenges facing our
Nation, I am stunned this is how any Senator would ask this institution
to spend its time.
Trans kids deserve to be kids. They deserve to play sports, go to
school, be with their friends. They should not have to worry about
hateful rhetoric and laws that attack their very existence, and they
definitely shouldn't live in fear of a Congress that is going to
stipulate that their school won't get any Federal funding if their
coach just simply lets them play sports with their friends.
That is nothing to say that passing any amendment on this bill will
guarantee a government shutdown.
I urge my colleagues--
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time expired.
Mrs. MURRAY.--to vote yes on the motion to table.

Motion to Table

Mrs. MURRAY. I move to table the motion to concur with the Tuberville
amendment No. 1781.
I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun) and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``NAY.''
The result was announced--yeas 51, nays 47, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 108 Leg.]

YEAS--51

NAYS--47

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
McConnell
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)

The motion to table was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Missouri.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1795

Mr. SCHMITT. Mr. President, I move to concur in the House amendment
to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with further amendment No. 1795.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Missouri [Mr. Schmitt] moves to concur in
the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with
further amendment numbered 1795.

The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To prohibit the use of funds to label speech as
disinformation or misinformation or to coerce online platforms to
alter, remove, restrict, or suppress speech)

At the appropriate place, insert the following:
Sec. ___. (a) None of the funds made available by this Act
may be used--
(1) by an employee acting under the official authority of
the Federal Government to create a list or database with the
purpose of gathering and labeling any speech of a United
States citizen as disinformation or misinformation;
(2) to provide or transmit a list or database described in
paragraph (1) or a single item of speech to any provider or
operator of a covered platform in order to alter, remove,
restrict, or suppress speech of a United States citizen that
is shared on the covered platform based on a determination,
by an employee acting under the official authority of the
Federal Government, that the views of the speech in the list,
database, or item are disinformation or misinformation; or
(3) to create, or provide funding to a foreign government,
quasi-governmental organization, or nonprofit organization
for the research, development, or maintenance of, any
disinformation or misinformation list or ranking system
relating to news content, regardless of medium.
(b) For purposes of this section, the term ``covered
platform'' means an interactive computer service, as that
term is defined in section 230 of the Communications Act of
1934 (47 U.S.C. 230).

The PRESIDING OFFICER. There will be 2 minutes of debate on this
motion, equally divided.
The Senator from Missouri.
Mr. SCHMITT. Mr. President, Jefferson Smith, the newly minted Senator
in Frank Capra's ``Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,'' opined:

``Liberty's too precious a thing to be buried in books. Men
should hold it up in front of them every single day of their
lives and say: I'm free to think and to speak. My ancestors
couldn't, I can, and my children will.''

My amendment tackles a fundamental issue that should bring us
together as a Senate: protecting Americans' First Amendment rights in
the virtual town square.
The First Amendment is the beating heart of our Constitution. It
protects fundamental human expression, and the government shouldn't be
deciding what we can read or what we can hear or what we can say.
Earlier this week, Murphy v. Murray was heard in the U.S. Supreme
Court. I filed that case when I was attorney general of Missouri. At
issue in that case is what is at the heart of the issue here in this
amendment, which is pretty simple: Should the Federal Government and
its leviathan of Agencies be allowed to coerce and collude with social
media companies to censor speech online? The answer for every American
should be a resounding no. Unfortunately, that is what top officials in
the Biden administration were doing and why this amendment is so
important.
What is more, censorship isn't limited to just conservative-leaning
speech.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time is expired.
Mr. SCHMITT. This affects everyone, all ideologies. This should bring
us together. This would protect Americans' free speech. I urge this
body to support it.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Illinois.
Mr. DURBIN. When we are giving speeches about our concern of the
impact of disinformation and misinformation on America, this is exactly
the wrong amendment.
We know the Russians, the Chinese, and God knows who else are using
information and twisting information and delivering it to our neighbors
as the truth, and how are they supposed to know any better? This
amendment will basically remove the authority of the U.S. Government to
speak up about misinformation and disinformation.
If you want our citizenry to be more vulnerable, vote yes on this
amendment. If you want to make sure we are doing everything in our
power to stop Vladimir Putin and others from infiltrating America, vote
no on this amendment.

Vote on Motion to Concur

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
Mr. SCHMITT. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There is a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun), and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``yea''.
The result was announced--yeas 47, nays 51, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 109 Leg.]

YEAS--47

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley

[[Page S2582]]

Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
McConnell
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NAYS--51

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)

The motion was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wisconsin.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1706

Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I move to concur in the House amendment
to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with further amendment No. 1706.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Wisconsin [Mr. Johnson] moves to concur in
the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with
further amendment numbered 1706.

The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To prohibit the disbursement of certain Federal funding to
local jurisdictions that refuse to provide advance notice to the
Department of Homeland Security regarding the release of illegal aliens
from local custody)

At the appropriate place in division D, insert the
following:
Sec. __. None of the funds made available by this division
may be used to provide Federal funds to a local jurisdiction
that refuses to comply with a request from the Department of
Homeland Security to provide advance notice of the scheduled
date and time a particular illegal alien is scheduled to be
released from local custody.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There are two minutes equally divided.
The Senator from Wisconsin.
Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, in the last 4 months, we have seen a
string of horrific crimes in which the suspects are illegal immigrants.
In December, a 16-year-old cheerleader was stabbed to death in Edna,
TX. In my State, a 20-year-old nurse was run down by a drunk driver. In
January, again in my State, a Special Olympian was struck by a drunk
driver. In Campbell County, VA, a 14-year-old girl was sexually
assaulted. In January, a 2-year-old was caught in the crossfire of
gangs and murdered. In Kenner, LA, a 14-year-old girl was raped by
another individual and stabbed by an illegal suspect. On February 22,
Laken Riley was beaten to death while jogging in Athens, GA. Just last
week, a 15-year-old mentally impaired girl was raped in Massachusetts.
This must stop.
My amendment is simple. It prohibits Labor, HHS, and Education
funding from going to sanctuary cities that do not comply with requests
from DHS to provide advance notice of date and time illegal aliens are
scheduled to be released from local custody.
We can stop these crimes. We must secure our border. Please vote yes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
Mr. MURPHY. Mr. President, this is a perfect example of an amendment
that does not deserve to be debated without real work and real
bipartisan commitment.
This is a legitimate issue, making sure that we have notice when you
have an individual in State or local custody, but this version of the
amendment doesn't work. It likely violates the 10th Amendment. It
likely violates the Fourth Amendment. It fundamentally misunderstands
the statute it implicates--8 USC 1373.
There is a better way to do this in a bipartisan manner. In fact, a
number of us just recently introduced legislation that would allow ICE
to obtain a legal warrant when you have an individual in State or local
custody to make sure that they end up being put into removal
proceedings.
So let's continue to work on this very important issue. This is just
the wrong way to do it, likely deeply unconstitutional.

Motion to Table

For that reason, I would move to table the motion to concur with
Johnson amendment No. 1706.
I would ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion to
table.
Is there a sufficient second?
There is a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun) and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``NAY.''
The result was announced--yeas 51, nays 47, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 110 Leg.]

YEAS--51

NAYS--- 47

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
McConnell
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)

The motion to table was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1713

Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I move to concur in the House amendment
to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with further amendment No. 1713.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Oklahoma [Mr. Lankford] moves to concur in
the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with
further amendment No. 1713.

The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To prohibit the use of funds for the Women and Infants
Hospital, Rhode Island)

At the appropriate place, insert the following:
Sec. __. Notwithstanding any other provision of any
division of this consolidated Act, including the explanatory
statement described in section 4 of the matter preceding
division A of this Act and any Community Project Funding/
Congressionally Directed Spending table, no amounts shall be
made available under division D of this Act for the Women and
Infants Hospital, Rhode Island, for facilities and equipment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. We have 2 minutes of debate equally divided.
Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I rise today to ask my colleagues to
support my amendment that would strike earmark funding for a hospital
that performs chemical and surgical abortions, including well into the
fifth month of pregnancy. In fact, this hospital, on their website,
they brag that they routinely provide abortions up to 22 weeks. Five
and a half months into a pregnancy is a late-term abortion. This is
beyond even the Roe standard of viability.
At 22 weeks--that is 5\1/2\ months--a baby at that point can
certainly feel pain. A baby can smile. They have formed tear ducts.
They can recognize their mom's voice. They are sensitive to loud
voices. They even have their taste buds already formed at that point.
Portugal restricts abortions after 10 weeks. Austria, Denmark,
Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Switzerland, and
Ukraine all restrict abortion after 12 weeks. Belgium, Luxemburg, and
Spain restrict after 14.
This is a hospital bragging they do abortions at 22 weeks. We may
disagree

[[Page S2583]]

on when life begins, but we should not provide Federal dollars for a
facility that advertises it performs late-term abortions routinely. We
should strike this earmark.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island.
Mr. REED. Mr. President, this amendment would strike funding to help
Women & Infants Hospital, in Providence, RI, build a new midwifery unit
in order to help ensure babies can safely enter the world and that
their moms can have a safe and positive childbirth experience.
Some Members are insinuating that this is about abortion. No funds
will be used for abortions. In fact, these funds will truly have a
clear and direct benefit for arriving babies and moms.
And I would urge defeat of the amendment.
I yield my remaining time to Senator Whitehouse.
Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, the actual text of the application for
this earmark says it is to develop a nationally accredited in-hospital
birth center, a midwifery unit; to provide healthy birthing individuals
the choice to give birth in protected, dedicated space for normal
physiologic birth; reduce the risks and costs of instrumental births
and surgical delivery; and reduce hospital length of stay, thereby
reducing healthcare costs--also training midwives. It is one thing to
be anti-abortion.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired.
Mr. WHITEHOUSE. We are not anti-midwifery, and I urge that we oppose
the Senator's amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
The motion is not agreed to.
The motion was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 1718

Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I move to concur in the House amendment
to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2882 with further amendment No. 1718.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Oklahoma [Mr. Lankford] moves to concur in
the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2822 with
further amendment No. 1718.

The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To prohibit funding for the release of special interest
aliens from Federal custody during such aliens' proceedings under the
Immigration and Nationality Act)

At the appropriate place in division C, insert the
following:
Sec. ___. No funds appropriated by this Act may be used to
release from physical custody any alien whom the Secretary of
Homeland Security or the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and
Border Protection has determined potentially poses a national
security risk to the United States or its interests (commonly
referred to as a ``special interest alien'') during the
pendency of proceedings for such alien under the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.), including any
related appeals.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. We have 2 minutes of debate equally divided.
The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, yesterday, 5,770 people illegally
crossed our southern border. Some of them were identified as special
interest aliens.
Now let me give the definition for ``special interest aliens'' from
the Department of Homeland Security. This is a non-U.S. person who,
based on analysis of travel patterns, potentially poses a national
security risk to the United States or its interests. Often, such
individuals or groups are employing travel patterns known or evaluated
to possibly have a nexus to terrorism. That is what these individuals
are. They have been identified by this administration's DHS as a
potential national security risk and a possible nexus to terrorism.
The problem is most of them are released into the United States after
a very quick screening at the border. Those individuals that have been
labeled a national security risk are not being detained at our border.
This amendment would simply say: If an individual has been identified
by this administration as a national security risk, they have to be
detained--
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time is expired.
Mr. LANKFORD.--throughout the time they are evaluated until they are
adjudicated.
I would ask for a ``yes'' vote.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
Mr. MURPHY. Mr. President, it has been deeply uncomfortable to be in
such regular agreement with Senator Lankford on immigration policy. So
it feels good to be back disagreeing with him.
This amendment is a bad idea for three reasons. One, it shuts down
the government if it passes. Second, it is overly broad. What this
really amounts to is a ban on individuals from certain country--
countries that tend to be Muslim countries--coming to the United
States. But third and most important, it is unnecessary. It is
duplicative. The Department of Homeland Security already has the power
to deny entry to the country to anyone who is a public safety threat or
a national security concern.
And so for those three reasons, I would urge my colleagues to oppose
the bill.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
The motion is not agreed to.
The motion was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee.

Motion to Refer

Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. President, I move to refer the message to
accompany H.R. 2882 to the Committee on the Judiciary with
instructions.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Tennessee [Mrs. Blackburn] moves to refer
the message with respect to H.R. 2882 to the Committee on the
Judiciary of the Senate with instructions to report the same
back to the Senate in 1 day, not counting any day on which
the Senate is not in session, with an amendment consisting of
the text of S. 3881, as introduced in the Senate on March 6,
2024.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. You have 2 minutes of debate equally divided.
The Senator from Tennessee.
Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. President, let me tell you why my colleagues are
going to vote no when we voice vote this in a few minutes. This is a
concept that has been around for a while, and it is in legislation
called the CLEAR Act. What this would simply do is say that our local
and State law enforcement, when they apprehend a criminal illegal alien
in this country, that they can detain that individual and require ICE
to, within 48 hours, come to them to deport that individual.
They also would be required to reimburse that entity for the
expenses, and then they would also prohibit funds going to cities that
do not comply with Federal immigration law.
The fact that we have Americans losing their lives--Pierce Corcoran
from Tennessee, Laken Riley, whom we have all talked about--
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired.
Mrs. BLACKBURN.--because of criminal illegal aliens is the reason to
vote yes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired.
The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, this motion would impose exactly the sort
of poison pill rider we all worked very hard to keep out of this
important bipartisan package, and it is worth stating once more that
there was a bipartisan proposal on border policy changes just a few
weeks ago. Republicans walked away from that issue just as soon as
Donald Trump told them to.
And, now, here we are tonight, facing a serious, prolonged shutdown.
Some are pressing for measures like this even when they know full well
they are putting forward partisan policies we worked very hard to keep
out of this bill. And there is no way to support this motion now
without forcing a pointless government shutdown--none.
If Republicans want to show that they are serious, they can work with
us on comprehensive immigration reform and real solutions to the
challenges we are facing at the border.
I urge my colleagues to oppose this motion.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
The motion is not agreed to.
The motion was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.

Motion to Table Amendment No. 1794

Mr. BUDD. Mr. President, I move to table Senate amendment 1794 for
the

[[Page S2584]]

purpose of offering my amendment No. 1807.
I would like 2 minutes of debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is 2 minutes of debate equally divided.
The Senator from North Carolina.
Mr. BUDD. Mr. President, we are in the middle of the worst border
crisis in American history as a direct result of the failed policies of
President Biden.
My amendments are meant to address these failed policies. The
amendment I am offering prevents illegal aliens who commit the crime of
assaulting a law enforcement officer from ever obtaining legal status
or citizenship.
This is particularly relevant to my home State of North Carolina in
light of the murder of Lake County Deputy Sheriff Ned Byrd by an
illegal alien in 2022.
Any Senator who claims to support the police should have no problem
supporting this amendment. So before you shut down this amendment, just
ask yourself: Do you believe that someone who beats up a cop and is
here illegally should be allowed to legally remain in our country? I
don't think so, and I hope that all of my colleagues would agree.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, we have a bipartisan, bicameral package
of funding bills before us, and right now our job is to pass this as
soon as possible. We cannot delay a moment further, and that is what
this motion would do--needlessly drag this out even longer for
absolutely no good reason at all.
It is already well past midnight. Let us finish this job, pass our
bills. I urge my colleagues to vote no.

Vote on Motion to Table

The question is on agreeing to the motion to table amendment No.
1794.
Mr. BUDD. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun) and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``yea.''
The result was announced--yeas 47, nays 51, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 111 Leg.]

YEAS--47

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
McConnell
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NAYS--51

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)

The motion to table was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee.

Motion to Table Amendment No. 1793

Mr. HAGERTY. Mr. President, in order to consider my very simple and
reasonable amendment, it is vital that the Senate must move the
Democratic leader's blocking amendment out of the way in order to move
forward with mine.
Let me cut through the procedural language here. I am bringing
forward a vote on a very simple question: Do you support American
taxpayer dollars being used to fly illegal immigrants from countries
like Venezuela and Haiti into America to be settled in cities and towns
near you?
If so, then vote against it. Vote no to preserve this practice of
using taxpayer dollars to charter planes that move and import thousands
of illegal aliens into your States.
Make no mistake here, President Biden has been secretly flying
hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens from foreign countries into
blue city airports. Just last year alone, in 2023, it was reported that
some 320,000 illegal aliens had been flown in using this method.
Americans are shocked that this is happening.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Senator, your time has expired.
Does the Senator have a motion?
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Exactly like the previous vote, this is a procedural
vote that will cause a shutdown. I urge a ``no'' vote.
Mr. HAGERTY. Mr. President.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee.

Vote on Motion to Table

Mr. HAGERTY. I move to table Senate amendment No. 1793 for the
purpose of offering my amendment No. 1808, and I ask for the yeas and
nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun) and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``yea.''
The result was announced--yeas 47, nays 51, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 112 Leg.]

YEAS--47

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
McConnell
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NAYS--51

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)

The motion to table was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.

Motion to Table

Mr. BUDD. Mr. President, let me be clear. The amendment I am offering
prevents illegal aliens who commit the crime of burglary, theft, or
shoplifting from being granted legal status or citizenship.
This is particularly relevant in the case of Laken Riley, where the
illegal alien who murdered her had previously been arrested for those
crimes.
The American people need to know who stands on the side of preventing
tragedies and who will enable them. Now, I know my Democratic
colleagues are fearful, perhaps squeamish, to prevent immigration
issues from being voted on tonight. We have even gone into past
midnight and into a brief government shutdown to avoid it.
I might be a freshman in this Chamber, but I have been here long
enough to know that deadlines are powerful motivators but so should be
common sense and common decency.
Look, we have seen the cost of not dealing with this issue in the
tragic death of Laken Riley, and I hope each and every one of my
colleagues would agree it is time to act and support my amendment.

[[Page S2585]]

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Like the previous votes, this is procedural vote that
will cause a shutdown. I urge a ``no'' vote.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.

Vote on Motion to Table

Mr. BUDD. I move to table Senate amendment No. 1792 for the purpose
of offering my amendment No. 1740, and I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun) and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``yea''.
The result was announced--yeas 47, nays 51, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 113 Leg.]

YEAS--47

Barrasso
Blackburn
Boozman
Britt
Budd
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Cornyn
Cotton
Cramer
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Ernst
Fischer
Graham
Grassley
Hagerty
Hawley
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
McConnell
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Romney
Rounds
Rubio
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Tuberville
Vance
Wicker
Young

NAYS--51

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)

The motion to the table was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, could everyone please stay in their seats
until we complete this vote? That way, we can get it done most quickly.
Thank you. This is the final passage.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, it has been a long road, but we are about
to vote on a bipartisan funding bill that the House passed
overwhelmingly, and we are finally ready to close the book on fiscal
year 2024.
This is not the legislation the Democrats and Republicans would have
written on our own. It is the result of tough negotiations. It is a
bipartisan package that invests in families and our country's future.
I want to thank Vice Chair Collins and so many others for working
with us to get this done.
This was not easy, but we all know how important the investments are
that this bill makes in our country. It matters. So I hope all of our
colleagues will join us now in voting to send these bipartisan bills to
the President's desk. We don't have a minute to spare.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The senior Senator from Maine.
Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, it has been a long night and a long
process, but we are on the verge of clearing the final six
appropriations bills for this fiscal year, and that is an important
milestone.
I want to thank Chair Murray, the members of the Appropriations
Committee, and everyone who worked so constructively tonight, and I
would be remiss if I did not thank our hard-working staff.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, it has been a long day, a long week, and
a very long few months, but, tonight, we have funded the government
with significant investments for parents and kids, small businesses and
healthcare workers, military families and so much more. It is no small
feat to get a package like this done in divided government. These past
few months have shown yet again that when bipartisanship has room to
work, we can get the job done.
A deep and sincere thank you to all of my colleagues on both sides of
the aisle for their good work. I thank Chair Murray, Vice Chair
Collins, and all on Appropriations and their staffs. Thank you to my
incredible staff too.
This was not easy, but our efforts have paid off with a strong
funding bill that now goes to the President.

Remembering Patricia Collins

Finally, Mr. President, many of us have signed a condolence book to
Senator Collins on the loss of her mother. It was even more difficult
for her to get this bill done given the circumstances, but she showed
her usual strength, courage, and tenacity.
So I would like to just ask for a couple of seconds of silence for
Susan's mother, and I will present this book to her.
(Moment of silence.)

Vote on Motion to Concur

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the cloture motion
is withdrawn, and the motion to refer and the motion to concur with
amendment No. 1790 and the amendments pending thereto are withdrawn.
The question is on agreeing to the motion to concur.
Mr. SCHUMER. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The yeas and nays have been requested.
Is there a sufficient second?
There is a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Indiana (Mr. Braun) and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott).
Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott)
would have voted ``nay''.
The result was announced--yeas 74, nays 24, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 114 Leg.]

YEAS--74

Baldwin
Blumenthal
Booker
Boozman
Britt
Brown
Butler
Cantwell
Capito
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Cassidy
Collins
Coons
Cornyn
Cortez Masto
Cotton
Cramer
Duckworth
Durbin
Ernst
Fetterman
Fischer
Gillibrand
Graham
Grassley
Hassan
Heinrich
Hickenlooper
Hirono
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Kaine
Kelly
King
Klobuchar
Lujan
Manchin
Markey
McConnell
Menendez
Merkley
Moran
Mullin
Murkowski
Murphy
Murray
Ossoff
Padilla
Peters
Reed
Romney
Rosen
Rounds
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Sinema
Smith
Stabenow
Sullivan
Tester
Thune
Tillis
Van Hollen
Warner
Warnock
Warren
Welch
Whitehouse
Wicker
Wyden
Young

NAYS--24

Barrasso
Bennet
Blackburn
Budd
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Hagerty
Hawley
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
Paul
Ricketts
Risch
Rubio
Sanders
Schmitt
Scott (SC)
Tuberville
Vance

NOT VOTING--2

Braun
Scott (FL)
The PRESIDING OFFICER. On this vote, the yeas are 74, the nays are
24.
Under the previous order requiring 60 votes for the adoption of this
motion, the motion is agreed to.
The motion was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, there were a lot of naysayers who didn't
believe that this divided Congress could pass full-year appropriations
bills. Tonight, we proved them wrong. We have finally passed all 12
bills to fund the government, and I am proud to be sending a $1 billion
increase in funding to childcare and pre-K to the President's desk.
As chair of the Appropriations Committee, you have a responsibility:
You help decide in a big way how to set the Nation's spending
priorities. I wanted to write our bills to put working people--the
parents I talk to all around my State who can't afford or find
childcare--first.
I remember when I drove 100 miles to Olympia, our State capital, with
my two young kids to try and save their preschool program, and a State
lawmaker told me I couldn't make a difference; I was just a mom in
tennis

[[Page S2586]]

shoes. Well, this mom in tennis shoes is now the Senate Appropriations
chair. I think it makes a difference when you have a former preschool
teacher and someone who lived what it means to be a working mom with
young kids holding the pen in our Nation's spending bills. So I decided
childcare had to be at the top of our country's priorities, and this
time it was not going to get knocked off.
I am so glad we are making this investment in our kids, in our
families, and in our economy. But this bill delivers a lot more.
President Biden will be signing a bipartisan bill that delivers on the
investments that matter most in people's daily lives--on everything
from Pell grants to community health centers--this funding, free of the
devastating cuts and extreme riders that was pushed by the House
Republicans that would have sent our country back decades.
From day one of this process, I said there would be no extreme far-
right riders to restrict women's reproductive freedoms in these funding
bills--not small, not big; none. And there are none.
Democrats stood firm to protect a woman's right to choose in these
negotiations, beating back countless far-right policies from House
Republicans to ban abortion and attack reproductive freedom in every
way possible.
These bills came about after some tough negotiations, but they will
move our country forward.
I have to, once again, thank my vice chair Susan Collins for her
partnership. We passed 12 bills with overwhelming bipartisan support
last summer, and that was important. I think that bipartisanship and
shared commitment to doing what was right for the country served us
well in negotiating these final spending bills.
I hope my House Republican colleagues now understand that
bipartisanship is the only path forward in a divided government. I hope
they understand that when you strike a deal, you have to stick to it.
It has to mean something. And I hope my House Republican colleagues
will now continue to work with us, not against us, to deliver for the
American people.
As Appropriations chair, I am so glad to finally close the book on
this year's government funding. I am ready as ever to work with all of
my colleagues as we determine what investments our country will make.
Let's keep working to help people and solve problems.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.

____________________