[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 15254-15255]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       THE CONTINUING RESOLUTION

  Mr. McCONNELL. On a different matter, today the Senate will consider

[[Page 15255]]

House legislation to fund the government and address the threats of 
Ebola and ISIL.
  These are important issues. Many Members on both sides plan to 
support this legislation. I know others have some concerns too. I 
understand those concerns. I share some of them, but while no bill is 
perfect, I believe this legislation is worth supporting.
  I would like to thank my fellow Kentuckian, Representative Hal 
Rogers, for his leadership and work on this bill because it does a lot 
of important things and all without raising discretionary spending. It 
would reauthorize important counternarcotics operations that help keep 
our children and communities safe and it would extend the Internet Tax 
Freedom Act until December, giving us a chance to secure a permanent 
extension.
  It would block some of the administration's discretionary policies 
against Kentucky coal and help address the administration's veterans 
crisis by providing more resources to address the backlog and 
investigations into potential wrongdoing that is a positive step toward 
the more comprehensive reforms Republicans would like to see.
  Critically, the legislation would provide authorization to train and 
equip a moderate Syrian opposition ground force, a key component of the 
President's efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat ISIL.
  While I am concerned about the ability of the coalition to generate 
sufficient combat power to defeat ISIL within Syria, I do support the 
President's proposal to begin the program. The authorization is of 
limited duration and it now contains important reporting requirements 
that will allow Congress to assess and oversee this program to measure 
whether the mission is actually being accomplished.
  The Ebola crisis is another area where the President deserves 
congressional support. As you know, he recently announced several 
messages to contain the spread of the disease in Africa and prevent it 
from reaching our shores.
  Accordingly, the bill contains additional resources to support 
research and bolster our Nation's effort in assisting Africa to manage 
this growing crisis.
  In summary, this isn't perfect legislation, but it begins to address 
many of our constituents' top concerns without raising discretionary 
spending. It positions us for better solutions in the months to come.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Dakota.
  Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 35 
minutes for the purposes of engaging in a colloquy with my colleagues 
on the issue of the Keystone XL Pipeline.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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