franken which requires that only u.s.-made manufactured goods be used to build the pipeline. the senate not expected to finish that bill today lawmakers will be gaveling out and then reconvening at 8:30 eastern time to proceed to the house chamber for president obama's state of the union address. a preview of that address at 8:00 eastern and the president's speech at 9 on our companion network, c-span.

the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. mr. menendez: [inaudible] -- and after having had the benefit of having a hearing on the pipeline i've decided to oppose this bill for four basic reasons. first, on the bill i am deeply concerned that if approved, this pipe lynn will be the first of many pipelines opening one of the largest sources of carbon on earth to exploitation. second contrary to what many believe, i'm convinced this pipeline will simply not enhance, help, or in any positive way improve our energy profile. third, in my view, it is completely absurd for congress to take the role of permitting pipelines. it is a role we have never

assumed and should not assume now. and, fourth, i believe it's ridiculous that our republican colleagues insist on language banning eminent domain for national parks legislation but oppose it when it comes to foreign or private projects like keystone. furthermore, mr. president we cannot underestimate the environmental impacts of this pipeline. the facts are clear. the resource in alberta is enormous. tar sands formations the size of iowa. the tar sands is 17% more greenhouse gas intensive than other forms of oil because it takes an enormous industrial process to extract it. it's been estimated that if this resource were fully exploited it would release more carbon dioxide in the air than the united states has emitted in its

entire history. as james hansen, one of the foremost climate scientists in the world has said, building the keystone pipeline would be -- quote -- "game over for the planet." there are also more local risks. over the weekend landowners are seeing the pipeline spill in the yellowyellowstone river in montana. it is happening right now and landowners are wondering if their family farm will be the victim of a similar spill wondering if property that has been in their family for generations can still be farmed and passed on to the next generation. and while some jobs will be created by the pipeline, the fact is, after two years of construction, it will create only 35 permanent jobs -- 35. that's not a lot of jobs. if we want to create millions of permanent infrastructure jobs, i

urge the supporters of the pipeline to support our efforts to increase transportation funding. i urge them to continue incentives for clean energy. i ask them to do all they can to help local governments rebuild water infrastructure systems. that's how we create permanent jobs that build our economy and help us keep our competitive advantage. by comparison, the number of jobs created by keystone is hardly an argument for passage of this legislation p. as you all know, we also have the issue of eminent domain, the power of any governmental entity to take private property and convert it to public use subject to reasonable compensation. now, many, including some of my most conservative friends on the other side, were outraged by the idea that eminent domain proceedings could be used to seize private property for

private gain. now, i've been working very closely with senator cantwell on an amendment and we agree with our conservative colleagues that using eminent domain proceedings for private gain is priet -- is pretty outrageous. here on the issue of keystone, a foreign-owned company is using eminent domain to seize private property so it can better export canadian oil a foreign-owned company using eminent domain to seize private property so it can better export canadian oil. the project is not in the public interest but clearly in the private interest. senator cantwell and i feel this amendment should be a no-brainer an easy amendment that every senator can support. now, in recent years republicans have insisted on similar language prohibiting the use of eminent domain when we

establish national parks. well if eminent domain cannot be used to establish a national park in the public interest to conserve our national treasures and preserve america's beauty for future generations then surely -- surely -- it should not be used to benefit private interests in in this case in the interests of a foreign-owned oil company seeking to ship its product around the world. which brings me to the amendment of the senator from massachusetts. we know that oil that will flow through this pipeline will flow threl todirectly to foreign markets. that's why i support the amendment from the senator of massachusetts. foreign oil is not subject to america's crude oil export ban you but whether it is shipped as crude or refined here and then exported we all know that this oil is not going to help the

american consumer. the intent of the markey amendment can be summed up very simple clie, using an old adage that president reagan was very fond of: "trust by verify." for months now supporters of the keystone x.l. pipeline have been telling us that the tar sands that will travel through the united states will help enhance our energy security. they have been telling us that the pipeline will bring a reliable source of fuel from a close ally understand that it will reduce prices at the pump helping u.s. consumers and businesses. the markey amendment does nothing more than confirm the promises made time and time again by supporters of the pipeline. it would require the tar sand that travel through the united states stay in the united states. it says that if americans are to accept all the down sides of the pipeline if you as property owners are to have their lands

takenway for trans-canada's benefit, if americans are forced to live with the risk of an oil spill of dirty tar sands that we don't even know how to clean up properly then the very least we can do is get a guarantee in law, that the united states will reap the benefits that come with all of these risks. so all this amendment did is put into writing promises we've heard over and over again from supporters of the pipeline. it codifies in law what we previously had to take in faith. i thank my colleague from massachusetts for offering the amendment, and i would note that he has a long history of working to improve america's energy security. he and i have worked closely since he came to the senate to protect the longstanding requirement that u.s.-produced crude oil stay here at home to benefit the u.s. consumer rather than being shipped across the globe. this amendment is another commonsense protection to make sure that our nation's energy policy is aimed at helping consumers rather than helping

oil companies' bottom line, and i encourage my colleagues to support it. i've introduced the american oil for american families act a bill to ensure that oil or petroleum products that originating within america's public land or waters are not exported as crude oil. that bill will increase our energy supply at home, lowering prices for consumers and businesses and i intend to reintroduce that legislation in this congress. mr. president, for these reasons, i urge my colleagues to support the markey amendment. i intend to vote against the bill which in in my view is nothing but an earmark for big oil. it will not significantly help the american economy. it will not benefit american consumers, and it will needlessly harm landowners for generations. with that, mr. president i yield the floor. mr. cornyn: mr. president?

the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cornyn: mr. president tonight the president of the united states will address the nation on the state of our union and talk a little bit about his priorities for the coming year. i'm not sure how much more there is for the president to say than has already been leaked in the press in the drip, drip, drip of social media and other stories but i'm concerned that he simply did not get the message that was delivered loud and clear on november the 4th by the american voters. just a couple of months ago they sent a message that was loud and it was clear. they're fed up with the way things operate here in washington d.c. they're fed up with the dysfunction, and they're fed up with the lack of real leadership that focuses on their concerns, not washington's concerns. concerns like more money in

their pocket. i was amused to listen to our good friend, our colleague from new jersey, complaining about additional exports of oil -- or, actually gasoline and other fuel. it's actually the supply, the glut of gasoline onto the global markets that's cause add pay raise for most hardworking middle-class families because the price of gasoline has plummeted because of the glut of supply. but we ought to be focused like a laser on how do we put more money into the pocketbook of hardworking american taxpayers after years of stagnant jobs and stagnant wages. stagnant number of jobs for the record number of americans who've been looking for them. after sending a message loud and clear on november the 4th what is the president's response response? well he says, more of more of the

same. he's set to announce a $320 billion tax hike and hundreds of billions of dollars in more spending. yes, hundreds of billions of dollars more in taxes and hundreds of billions of dollars in more federal spending. sadly, the president has doubled down on the same agenda which in his own words was on the ballot this last fall and was soundly rejected. but this agenda and these policies are not only wrong for america today they're certainly wrong for the america of our future. future generations deserve a country that provides them more opportunity than our parents had or than we had. that's called the american dream. but hundreds of billions of dollars in new spending and new taxes when we already face an $18 trillion debt, well, that makes the american promise one

unlikely to be fulfilled. the cause of this problem is pretty clear. the president remains focused on the priorities here in washington d.c., and not on the priorities of hardworking american taxpayers working from paycheck to paycheck, dealing with rising costs of living when it comes to food and other commodities and who are sorely in need of additional money in their pocket. things clearly need to change and that to me is what the voters said on november the 4th. i think i speak for many americans and many texans when i say, mr. president enough is enough. the american people expect better and more importantly they deserve better. sure we know there are always going to be big challenges, and they're not easy to deal with by any stretch of the imagination. but, surely -- surely -- we can come up with better solutions

than more taxes and more spending. i mean, this is really doubling down over the last six years. you would think that the president, giving the state of the union now in his seventh year in office, could come up with something different particularly after his own party lost nine senate seats on november the 4th. the great news -- and there are good news -- is we really don't have to start from scratch. we need to look no further than some of the laboratories of democracy -- that's what louis brandeis called the state the lab darieslaboratories of democracy -- to see what actually works. we can learn a lot from states like arizona where the presiding officer is from, and my home state of texas. we're not perfect but i think we've learn add few important lessons we could teach to the policy-makers here in the white house. many policy-makers in washington

seem to have forgotten the secret sauce the formula the recipe by which strong, sustainable economic growth that lifts up the middle class in texas and in so many other states across the country why that's alive and well and why those policies actually work. this last friday, i had the opportunity to visit southeast texas. i was in beaumont, texas actually where the existing gulf coast leg of the keystone pipeline is already operating. i think many of my colleagues would be amazed to know we are already transporting canadian crude from canada across the country by and large on rail cars to refineries on the gulf coast. and all this keystone x.l. pipeline that we'll be voting on will do is increase the supply, increase the supply, which means more product which means hopefully downward pressure on prices for hardworking american taxpayers.

while the president stood in the way of the building of this completed pipelines and the tens of thousands of jobs it would support, down in texas the gulf coast leg of the keystone is already booming but they're hungry for more crude feed stock so they can produce even more, and more jobs can be created. it's been good for local communities. i talked to the mayor of beaumont and other local communities. i talked to the county judge. this is taxes that are provided by investment like the keystone x.l. pipeline. those not only create good jobs but the tax base necessary to educate our kids in k-12 education. they provide the products and services from local businesses who sell those. in other words it's really a force multiplier, projects like the keystone x.l. pipeline when it comes to our economy and economic growth and opportunity and of course it's been good for thousands of construction

workers that built the pipeline. now, i have heard our colleagues on the other side of the aisle try to denigrate these construction jobs. they say oh, they are just temporary jobs. well mr. president you and i have a temporary job. we are elected to a term of office and if we're not re-elected, that was a temporary job, and every job is in effect a temporary job but to denigrate these good high-paying construction jobs, including those performed by welders who in texas properly train and can make in the order of $140,000, $150,000 a year, those are good, well-paying jobs that we ought to respect and we ought to encourage more of. so that's just one example of things that some of the folks at the white house who looked down their nose at these construction jobs and try to denigrate the economic contribution of things like the keystone x.l. pipeline, what they could learn from it. in my state, we have reduced taxes, we have cut red tape in favor of sensible regulations

and we have encouraged businesses to come to texas to grow and create jobs. if i've heard the story one time i've heard it a hundred where governor perry has contacted people in california, said come on down, come to texas where you're welcome where the cost of doing business is lower where your cost of living is cheaper, where you can actually buy a home for your family that's affordable and people have voted with their feet and they have come where the opportunity is. add it all up and over the last six years two-thirds of all new net jobs created in the united states of america came from just one state and that's my home. and another thing washington could learn from texas we actually balance our budget every year. i mentioned earlier that the president seems to be proud of the fact that the deficit has actually gone down. the presiding officer knows that's the annual difference between what we take in and what

we spend. well what he doesn't tell you is that we are actually adding to the debt every year because we're still spending more money than what we're bringing in, and it's now gone up about $8 trillion during his administration now to an unprecedented $18 trillion national debt. so we need to roll up our sleeves, and we invite the president to join us and to take on the priorities of hardworking american taxpayers in every state across the country. we know this isn't going to be easy but that's what we volunteered for and i know that there are colleagues here in the united states senate, republicans and democrats alike who are eager to increase the challenges that confront our country, whether they are economic national security or you name it. these are things that need to get done. so at the end of the day it doesn't really matter what i

think the state of our union is or even for that matter what the president thinks the state of our union is. what matters is whether the teacher in cady, texas believes his students will have the opportunities he did growing up or whether the single mom waiting tables in fort worth can find enough work to feed her family. our nation is truly strong when its people believe it to be, and i hope the president understands that and tries something new rather than the same old failed policies of the past. mr. president, i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from minnesota. mr. franken: i thank the president. i rise to urge my colleagues to oppose any motion to table my amendment. my amendment is about making sure that if we do build the

ceent -- keystone pipeline, that it's built with american steel that it's built with american iron and steel. those are jobs. i -- i believe that we should not short circuit the approval process here, but i don't -- i'm sorry. i don't need anything. i don't want to short circuit the process here, but if the pipeline is built it should be built with american steel. the presiding officer's state produces a lot of american steel. very often, we have iron ore from my state. these are american jobs. right now trans-canada says that 50% of the iron and steel would be outsourced from -- or

sourced from other countries, of the pipes would be outsourced to the other countries. some of the other pipes some of the iron and steel could come from other countries. they also say they could use that pipe in other projects and projects in canada. i agree with senator cornyn those jobs, those construction jobs building the pipeline would be real jobs. just because they aren't permanent jobs doesn't mean that they are not real jobs. but so would providing the iron and steel and other manufactured products for this, and we do this entirely and consistent in the language of the bill with our trade obligations. so i would -- i would ask my colleagues not to vote to table this because a vote to table

this is a vote against american jobs. it's a vote against jobs in ohio. it's a vote against jobs in minnesota. it's against the shippers who ship our iron ore over the great lakes or by rail or over the mississippi to where she used to make steel. we have done buy america in legislation '04. we have done it in 2013 on the weir -- wrta bill. i ask my colleagues not to vote against american jobs. thank you mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: mr. president i want to take just a couple of minutes as we wrap up before proceeding to votes to speak to to -- to the franken amendment.

i think all of us want to buy american buy local whenever, wherever we can. we strongly support that, and it does mean jobs. whether we're talking about a pipeline or otherwise. but i think the bigger question here and what we have in front of us with the keystone x.l. and what this amendment would do is this amendment would mandate specific materials for the keystone x.l. pipeline, and i think it -- it needs to be -- we need to put this in context. this pipeline is a private project. this is not a federally funded infrastructure project. this would be the first time, the first time that congress has directed or forced private parties to purchase domestic goods and materials.

we actually asked the congressional research service to look into this, to see if there was any other instance where here at the federal level we had told private parties that you must purchase 100% domestic goods and materials and so far the answer to that inquiry has been that they can find no instance. so i think we need to be careful about this as a precedent because if we're going to direct that this particular project this keystone x.l. will have this requirement on it, where do we go next? what's the next energy project that we're going to require? is it going to be the next pipeline, is it going to be the next renewable energy project? where does this slippery slope lead to? and i do think that it is fair to note that -- that trans-canada has committed that

75% of the pipe for this project will come from north america and fully half of that, more than 3,332 tons of steel will come from the state of arkansas. i want to make sure we get as many jobs as we absolutely, positively can make sure that they are good-paying jobs, whether it is in steel making or widget making. welders. this is about jobs. this is what we want to do to encourage it. but, again i think we need to be very, very cognizant that what this particular amendment would do would be for the first time ever to direct a -- a private entity that they must utilize all american-made products throughout the process of the construction. i do think that it's important to note that the american iron and steel institute has been a strong supporter of keystone

x.l. pipeline. we have all received a letter. they called it a steelgram from the american iron and steel institute, letting us know very, very clearly in no uncertain terms that they support keystone x.l. in fact, the words they used are it is essential that congress act to assure the approval of the keystone x.l. pipeline without further delay. so again i would agree. we need to get -- we need to get moving on it. we need to do it without delay. now, i do think it is -- it is interesting to note that the amendment does allow for the president to waive the requirements for american materials based on certain findings that it can make, and i appreciate that that is in there. i think that that's good. but think about where we are. it's been 2,300-some odd days now where we have been waiting

for the president to act to make a decision on -- on the keystone x.l. pipeline itself, so i don't have any real confidence that he would move to act equally quick on any kind of a waiver requirement. so i wanted to just put that out there before we moved to take up the amendments that we have pending before us this afternoon and note that we will be doing that just here in a few very short minutes. mr. franken: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from minnesota. mr. franken: thank you. i, of course, have tremendous respect for the senator from alaska. i'd just like to say a couple of things about this being a private company. their private company is asking us to do extraordinary things. we're debating this on the floor because they are asking us to circumvent the environmental and

safety process here, and possibly exposing the united states and the path of this pipeline to tremendous environmental damage. so this is very different than any -- the senator asks why won't this extend to every private enterprise? this is something that we're here debating and voting on. that should say something about the nature of this. and the steelworkers, the united steelworkers have -- have endorsed my amendment. this is about american jobs. so the question here is whether -- if we do -- if we do

build this pipeline, should it be built with american steel or should it be built with steel from other countries? and again in the bill, we make sure that this is compliant with our trade obligations. there is nothing to stop us from doing this. this is a private company that is asking -- a foreign company that's asking us to circumvent our normal processes. because of that, i feel that we have right to say that this should be made with american steel. and jobs in the state of ohio, jobs in the state of minnesota american jobs. if this is about american jobs let's make it about american jobs. again, this is a company that's asking us to circumvent our normal processes.

so all i would say is they have said trans-canada has said that the piping that's been made -- the pipes that have been made for this can be used in other projects in canada. let's -- let's make this about american jobs if we're going to build this thing. thank you. ms. murkowski: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: mr. president, at this time, i would ask unanimous consent that the portman amendment number 3 be modified with the changes that are at the desk. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, so ordered. ms. murkowski: thank you mr. president. and now at this time i call for the regular order with respect to the markey amendment number 13. the presiding officer: the amendment is now pending. ms. murkowski: mr. president, i move to table the markey

amendment and ask for the yeas and nays. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? a senator: mr. president? mr. markey: mr. president? the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? the presiding officer: there's a sufficient second. the clerk will call the roll. mr. markey: mr. president? mr. president? mr. president, i ask unanimous consent to be recognized for one minute. the presiding officer: is there

objection? there's a unanimous consent request. is there objection? ms. murkowski: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: inquiry here, is the question from the senator from massachusetts to speak to this amendment for one minute? what is the inquiry? the presiding officer: the senator is requesting unanimous consent to speak for one minute. ms. murkowski: without objection. the presiding officer: without objection, the senator from massachusetts is recognized. mr. markey: thank you mr. president, very much. this is a motion to table the markey amendment which is an amendment to have every member of the senate be put on record

on whether or not the oil coming through the keystone pipeline is then exported out of the united states. and each member of the senate should be recorded on that issue. we import 5 million barrels of oil per day into the united states. we should not be allow the canadians to use the united states as a straw to be able to then go down to the gulf of mexico and send that oil out of our country. we export young men and women over to the middle east in order to protect oil coming in from saudi arabia and kuwait. this is a chance to keep oil in america so that we don't have to export it. i do not believe the appropriate vote for members is to support a tabling of that amendment so that we don't actually reach the heart of this substantive issue which is that we should have energy independence in america. when we're importing 5 million barrels of oil a day including from russia, saudi arabia and kuwait. we are no -- in no way

independent. i thank the president for the opportunity to be able to speak. the presiding officer: the yeas and nays have previously been ordered. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators wishing to vote or change their vote? are there any other senators wishing to vote or change their vote? if not the ayes are 57. the nays are 42. the motion to table has been agreed to. ms. murkowski: move to reconsider. a senator: move to table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. murkowski: mr. president i now move to table the franken amendment number 17. i ask for the yeas and nays. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second?

there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:into

vote:

the presiding officer: any senator wishing to vote or change their vote? if not -- the presiding officer: if not the ayes are 353 the nays are 46. the motion is agreed to. ms. murkowski: move to reconsider. a senator: lay it on the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. murkowski: mr. president? mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: may we have order please mr. president. the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. ms. murkowski: mr. president, i would ask that the senate be in order and i would ask unanimous consent that senator shah hee be

recognized to -- shaheen be recognized to speak for one minute and senator portman be recognized to speak for one minute. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mrs. shaheen: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from new hampshire. the mrs. shaheen: mr. president i join my colleague senator portman from ohio, in a bipartisan amendment around energy efficiency. this is a very short version that passed the house last year. mrs. shaheen: it is -- doesn't pick favorites in terms of fuel sources. it is good for every region of the country. this is something that we ought to all be able to get behind and i'm really pleased and hope we can get a very strong vote out of here. i'm pleased to support this amendment and thank my colleague from ohio, senator portman, for his leadership. mr. portman: mr. presidents? the presiding officer: the senator from ohio. mr. portman: mr. president, i think the senator from new hampshire said it well. this is three we will actively

simple provisions, one regarding water heaters. it's already passed the house of the it shouldn't be controversial over there either. we're hopeful to be able to bring the larger legislation to the floor in the future but this is a good amendment. ms. murkowski:ms. murkowski: i have of no further debate on the amendment. a senator: yeas and nays. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second on the yeas and nays. there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not the ayes are 94, the nays are 5. the amendment is agreed to. -- assed to mid. as modified.

ms. murkowski: move to reconsider. the presiding officer: without objection. the senator from eafnlgt. ms. murkowski: thank you mr. president. we have now disposed of three pending amendments before us. as we mentioned earlier we're looking forward to members coming down to the floor to offer their amendments. we have agreed to a process here this afternoon. today is a somewhat truncated day here on the senate floor because of the state of the union, but it's our hope that we will be able to get three amendments pending on our side, three amendments pending on the democrat side. the senator from nebraska, senator fischer is prepared to speak to her amendment. then we will move to the other side of the aisle. after that, i will be calling up an amendment from senator lee. we will then go over to the democrat side and coming back here for the third round. so just to give members an idea of what we will have in front of

us, we will not be having votes on these amendments today but i do think it should be clear to members that we will be looking forward tomorrow to doing a similar series of votes. so we would encourage folks to come to the floor talk to us, and let's get this process moving. with that, mr. president, i would yield to the senator from nebraska. mrs. fischer: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from nebraska. mrs. fischer: i call up my amendment, number 18. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: the senator from nebraska mrs. fisher proposes an amendment numbered 18 to number 2. at the end of the bill, added following: section, limitation on designation of new federally protected land. (a) definition of federally protected -- mrs. fischer: mr. president i ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without

objection. mrs. fischer: mr. president this amendment would create limitations for new federal land designations to ensure responsible management of our natural resources. these limitations are modeled on those in the national marine sanctuaries act which authorizes the protection of national marine sanctuaries. under the act the commerce secretary cannot designate new sanctuary unless the secretary publishes a finding that, one the addition of a new sanctuary will not have a negative impact on the overall system, and two sufficient resources were available in the fiscal year in which the finding is made to effectively implement management plans for each sanctuary in the system. these are commonsense limitations that ensure that the administration will not add more land to the federal system without considering the impacts to the overall system and without sufficient funds to manage those resources

effectively. at a time when the national park system has a $13 billion maintenance bag bag backlog, we could to consider whether there are sufficient resources to efficiently manage additional land holdings. in the context of energy policy, we should also consider our stewardship choices. american energy production on private and state-owned lands has increased significantly in recent years while decreasing on federal lands. through leasing restrictions and permitting delays, the obama administration has tied energy production on federal lands up in red tape. since 2009, oil production on federal lands is down by 6%, and natural gas production on federal lands it's down 28%. meanwhile, oil production on nonfederal land has risen by 61%, and national gas production

on nonfederal land is up by 33%. by limiting federal land designations more land should continue to be held privately or managed by states and local governments, increasing the opportunity for productive and beneficial use. thank you mr. president. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from washington. ms. cantwell: mr. president as my colleague from alaska said we're going to go back and forth on offering amendments. i'd like to turn to the senator from i hawaii for him to offer his amendment. mr. schatz: i thank the senator from washington. i ask unanimous consent to set aside the pending amendment in order to call up amendment 58. ferraro is there objection? without objection. the clerk will report the amendment ofamendment. the clerk: mr. schatz proposes amendment number 52 to amendment

number 2. mr. schatz: i ask to dispense with the reading of the amendment. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schatz: mr. president climate change is real and human activity significantly contributes to climate change. it also states that a warmer planet causes large-scale changes including higher sea levels changes in precipitation, an altered weather patterns such as increases in more extreme weather events. this amendment cites for its evidence the findings of national and international scientific institutions, including the ipcc, the national research council and the united states global change research program. all of these organizations are cited and quoted in the state department's final supplemental environmental impact statement on keystone x.l. pipeline. this is the same environmental review document that plays a prominent role in the text of the underlying bill, senate bill 1, and the substitute amendment. the purpose of this amendment is

simply to acknowledge and restate a set of facts. it is not intended to place a value judgment on those facts or to suggest a specific course of action in response to those facts. it's just a set of facts de-friefd decades of careful study of owrd land, our air and our water. i urge my colleagues to support this amendment. and i yield the floor. ms. murkowski: mr. president i would at this time unanimous consent to set aside the pending amendments to call up senator lee's amendment number 33. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: the senator from alaska ms. murkowski for mr. lee, proposes an amendment numbered 33. at the appropriate place insert

the following: ms. murkowski: mr. president i ask that reading of the amendment be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. murkowski: mr. president just very, very briefly here on senator lee's amendment -- and he will be down here to speak to it -- this is a measure that would ensure that the rate of legal fees that are paid in e.s.a. cases -- endanger the species act cases -- that lack any cap or guideline would be consistent with those cases that are eligible for lawyer-fee imengs compensation. right now there is no cap on the amount lawyers can be brought regarding violations under the e.s.a. this would standardize the award of attorneys' fees to parties prevailing against the federal government by applying the

$125-per-hour rate cap under the equal access for justice act requirements. this applies to small business-related claims among other things. and this applies that same standard to e.s.a. cases. this is something again that senator lee will be to the floor to speak to further but i just thought i would give a little preview of that. ms. cantwell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from washington. ms. cantwell: i'd like to call on the senator from illinois to offer his amendment. mr. durbin: mr. president i ask to set aside the pending amendment and call up amendment number 69. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: the senator from illinois mr. durbin, proposes amendment number 69. mr. durbin: i ask consent to dispense with reading of the amendment. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. durbin: mr. president, it was about a year ago and i was invited to go to the southeast part of the city of chicago. it is an area that used to be populated by steel mills and now is a lot of struggling families.

the manufacturing jobs weren't replaced. these are wrorking people -- hardworking people, many of them mexican american people and they sustained what you might expect, great parishes and churches and a great spirit among them, but they are in a constant struggle. they live in that part of chicago that has seen better days. they're doing their darnedest for their families and they invited me to see something. what they wanted me to come see is what they were living next door to. i went down to that part of the city of chicago within the boundaries of the city of chicago, and i couldn't believe what i saw. you see they live in little houses like these that you see along the way and across from them is this mountainous gathering of something called pet coke. what is pet coke? if you take the canadian tar sands that are going to move through the keystone x.l. pipeline to a refinery and put them through a process where you can end up with a viable product -- gasoline, jet fuel,

diesel fuel, whatever it happens to be -- you have to clean out all of this pet coke that creates this sands tar sands composition that they're dealing with. and when it's all over if the process has been successful, there is a lot of waste. in fact, let me make sure i get this correct correctly. 61 pounds of pet coke for every barrel of oil keeping in mind as the senator has told us who is sponsoring the underlying legislation, we're dealing with moving hundreds of thousands of barrels a day through this pipeline. now take every one of those barrels and have 61 pounds of pet coke left over as a result of the refining process. well, what happens to it? this is what happened to it in chicago. it was dumped in the neighborhood. and the people invite immediate to come to their homes and i did -- invieted me to come to their homes and i d. i walked into this woman's home and she said i sealed the windows

because this black sooty pet coke blows through my windows night and day. i can't stop it. is it something to worry about? it turns thought pet coke that we're talking about is not a benign material. we're not talking about dust in the air. we're talking about a composition here that includes, according to those who have taken a close look at it, heavy metals. would you want your baby in your home or my home or my grandchildren breathing in this filthy pet coke infested dust night and day? and they aren't making it up because they showed me the windowsills, and you can see it, this black sooty pet coke. let me tell you the details on the story here. the environmental review for the project of keystone x.l. notes that communities throughout the midwest have noticed large piles of petroleum coke, or pet coke building up as more and mortar sands are processed.

this picture tells a story. this is near a body of water which is carrying this pet coke as well on the water. these poor folks deal with it as it blows through the air. this type of crude oil carried by the keystone x.l. pipeline, a pipeline which the republican majority has decided is their number-one priority in the united states senate, senate bill number 1 under the new republican majority. this pipeline, on behalf of a canadian company trans-canada, is the debate topic that we're facing here. and we just had a vote incidentally and unfortunately could not prevail with the notion that at least the oil that comes out of that pipeline ought to be for the benefit of american consumers. we love that. i think the vote was 57-42. we lost that vote. it was tabled. let's talk about the actual process itself. according to the e.p.a., as i

mentioned, or environmental impact statement, every barrel of tar sands contains 61 pounds of pet coke. that means the keystone x.l. pipeline alone will produce 15,400 metric tons of pet coke every day. 15,400 metric tons of pet coke every day. would you like to live next door to that? that's what's happening in the city of chicago. but it's not the only one. this pet coke comes from the b.p., british petroleum refinery in whiting indiana. it is on the very southern tip of lake michigan. it is located -- we can see it from the city of chicago. they went through a $4 billion upgrade, put in new equipment so they could start processing these canadian tar sands which is going to come through the

keystone x.l. pipeline. soon after they started this processing with $4 billion of new equipment the people living in this part of chicago looked out their window to see these massive piles of pet coke building up. as a consequence, they got worried. they're worried for their children. on windy days -- it is the windy city, in fact -- in chicago black clouds of this dust blow from piles into this working-class neighborhood. it always seems to be the case, doesn't it? somebody tried to put this on the north shore of chicago they'd scream bloody murder. but the company that owns this pet coke put it outside a poor neighborhood, a working-class neighborhood in chicago. the dust, pet coke dust settles on windowsills and porches and i met the kids running outside. they're producing 6,000 tons of pet coke every single day at the british petroleum refinery in

whiting, indiana. 6,000 tons a day. at that rate the plant has only room to store a few days' worth of production on site, so they ended up selling the pet coke to a company kcbx. it is a subsidiary company owned by the koch brothers. yes, those koch brothers. connect the dots here. the highest priority of the republican majority in the senate was to call a bill for a canadian company to transport oil across the united states -- tar sands across the united states with no promise that the american consumers would ever be able to access it, and the process of refining the canadian tar sands ends up inuring to the benefit of many companies

british petroleum and the koch brothers who are vying for political players in our political campaigns. this means the people in southeast chicago are forced to breathe this dirty air that members of the national nurses united say causes severe health threats. pet coke contains high levels of heavy metals like nickel and dust particles get trapped in residents' lungs triggering asthma and exacerbating heart and lung conditions. mr. president, i make a point when i go to a school to ask a very basic question. every school, rural and urban. anybody in this classroom any student here know anyone with asthma? half the hands are up in every classroom. our pages are starting to raise their hands. of course. so here you have a national problem, respiratory problem which is made dramatically worse by the by-product from the

keystone x.l. pipeline, of pet coke. that's a fact. what i've argued to you now so far is indisputable. the community and members of the task force i visited with in chicago are fighting back with the help of the national resources defense council. they work with mayor emanuel and chicago officials to put standards in place for pet coke storage sites that protect public and environmental health. they've come up with a radical notion. if you want to store this dangerous pet coke, then for goodness sakes put it inside a building so it doesn't blow all over the neighborhood. they are suing kcbx for the damages after the the environmental agency sent a notice to the industry. the people who hate the e.p.a. like the devil hates holy water don't want them to come in and look at something as outrageous as this and tell you the

obvious. this is a public health danger. pet coke from canadian tar sands, part of the keystone x.l. pipeline, is a public health hazard. unfortunately, pet coke just isn't an issue in chicago or illinois. my colleague from michigan, senator gary peters told me a story earlier. they can tell you what happened in detroit when another koch brothers owned company decided to store pet coke on the detroit river. if you look online you can still find the youtube video of black clouds blowing off the piles of the koch brothers pet coke into the river. in fact, senator peters says at one point this black cloud was so dense it obscured the ambassador bridge between the united states and canada. you couldn't see it. it took years of complaints and lawsuits from local communities to get shipping ports in california to require piles of the pet coke being stored there to be kept in enclosed facilities and covered at all time. other communities continue to

fight, including my city of chicago, which i'm proud to represent. as the u.s. refines more and mortar sands -- and this is what this bill is all about refining more and more canadian tar sands producing tons every single day of this pet coke with no end in sight and no way of protecting the people who live around that area from the damage it's going to cause to the lungs of children and other vulnerable people. elderly people with respiratory challenges. residents in houston texas and the state of ohio have complained about how these pet coke piles stored in their neighborhoods are damaging their homes and health but many americans affect bid pet coke don't have the money or power to take on big companies. so it's up to congress, it's up to us to ensure that every person in america rich or poor, whether they live in a good neighborhood or a struggling neighborhood has the protection against public health hazards. here's what my amendment does.

there's a current exemption of pet coke from environmental laws. when you think of all the things blowing in the air how in the world did pet coke end up being treated like fairy dust? it's exempt from laws relating to basic things like super fund. it's exempt from laws relating to hazardous waste and materials. boy, they must have friends in high places to make sure that this miserable source of respiratory problems would be exempt from federal law. my amendment would change that. it would end this exemption so that they will be held to environmental and public health standards when it comes to this miserable by-product of canadian tar sands and the keystone x.l. pipeline. the amendment goes on to require the e.p.a. and department of transportation to implement rules for pet coke storage and transportation to protect the

public health and environment. is there anyone here that will tell you that the folks trans-canada or those who are refining this, should not have that responsibility? i wouldn't want to see this anywhere. i wouldn't want to see it in alaska. i wouldn't want to see it in oklahoma. i sure don't want to see it in the city of chicago. but to think it goes unregulated, absolutely unregulated, is amazing. that is what my amendment addresses. the u.s. already produces millions of tons of pet coke each year. building this pipeline is just going to add dramatically to that amount. and by fixing the legal status of pet coke and making it subject to the same laws as all other dangerous materials we can help ensure that clean air and clean water is something everyone enjoys, whether they're rich or poor, whatever state they happen to live in. i hope the senate will have a chance to vote on my amendment to close this loophole for pet coke and establish reasonable guidelines for handling the material. it is time we put the health and

well-being of americans ahead of profits of any industry involved in the processing of canadian tar sands because no community especially not the southeast side of chicago, should be considered a dumping ground for companies to make money off the lungs and health of vulnerable children elderly and poor people. no family should be forced to live next door to a three-story high pile of pet coke. and that's what was going on. no kid should have to move from a ball field to play inside so they aren't exposed to hazardous chemicals. noi what's going to -- i know what's going to happen here. somebody is going to make a motion to table this amendment but you can run but you can't hide just like you can run but you can't hide from blowing pet coke. if you won't allow a vote on this amendment to classify this as material that should be regulated for the safety of the environment and public health, you'll be on record if you vote to table this amendment. i urge my colleagues even if you just dearly love the keystone

x.l. pipeline, even if you can't wait to bring in canadian tar sands, think about it if it was your hometown, your neighborhood, if you lived in a house like this and looked across the road at that miserable pile, three stories high of pet coke blowing in for your children and your grandchildren to breathe every day. i yield the floor. ms. murkowski: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: mr. president at this time i ask unanimous consent to set aside the pending amendments to call up senator toomey's amendment number 41. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, so ordered. the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: the senator from alaska ms. murkowski for mr. toomey proposes an amendment numbered 41 to amendment numbered 2. at the appropriate place -- ms. murkowski: i ask consent the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. murkowski: mr. president obviously, senator toomey will be to the floor to speak to his

amendment, but to follow on the senator from illinois' comments, he was referring to pet coke. senator toomey, in his amendment here is attempting to deal with a situation in specific parts of the country that are impacted by coal refuse, and coal refuse as it is defined in his legislation, effectively comes about from some centuries-old 19th century mining operations that left behind this coal refuse in certain parts of the coal-mining regions around the country, and they remain a legacy problem that is acknowledged a legacy problem that creates environmental issues including contamination

of local streams with heavy metals acid, mine drainage, again something i think we all recognize there is a responsibility to address and i think the good news is that there is a solution for cleaning up this problem. coal refuse power plants take this coal in these waste piles and they turn them into energy and heat for consumers for businesses. they follow e.p.a. regulations. this is not a situation where you are -- you are bypassing e.p.a. regs when it comes to the admissions issues. but by remediating these mine sites, by removing these waste piles and at the same time generating electricity with the coal and applying basic ash from the process reclaims the land at a lower cost, so you're able to do things -- you're able to do several things at the same time. you're dealing with an

environmental issue that has been in place for far too long. you are generating electricity that can be used to the benefit of consumers and businesses. and -- and you're also able to reclaim the land. so it is -- it is viewed clearly as a win here. it also creates some jobs, it improves the environment it boosts economic growth. burning these coal waste piles is basically a carbon-neutral process because the carbon in these piles is currently being emitted into the atmosphere through the slow chemical process that is at play there and you also have fires that burn within these piles so just sitting there is not an answer to a better environment and reduced emissions. the plants that burn this waste

coal cannot economically be as clean as plants using higher quality coal, but the side benefits of removing these waste piles, again from the perspective of dealing with -- with emissions generating electricity and reclaiming the land the benefits do compensate for the differences that are out there. historically environmental regulators have recognized these benefits. they have carved out the plants from regulatory standards that would cause them to shut down. there has been -- there have been e.p.a. regs recently that have failed to sustain this approach and thus the amendment by the senator from pennsylvania that would allow these coal waste plants to run i would encourage my colleagues to look at this amendment in front of us and consider the merits as senator toomey has laid out.

the presiding officer: the senator from washington. ms. cantwell: we're running against a time clock here, getting ready for the state of the union tonight. i appreciate my colleague from alaska going back and forth on these amendments and allowing both sides of the aisle to get some pending amendments. i will just say on that toomey amendment, it asks for an exemption of the clean air act which obviously i wouldn't support, and i'm sure we'll have the chance later on to have that discussion. our colleague from nebraska came down and offered an amendment that would make it incredibly difficult without first proving there was negative management of federal land to get any more national monuments which national monuments have been big economic driver in a lot of communities and preserved some very unique parts of our country, so we'll have a chance to talk about that a little bit later. but i want to make sure that we get our colleague recognized here so he can offer his amendment, and then i think we'll probably, as my colleague

from alaska said, probably be done for this afternoon as it relates to offering amendments back and forth. but i'd like to recognize senator -- the senator from rhode island for his amendment. mr. whitehouse: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: i ask unanimous consent we lay aside the pending amendment so i may call up my amendment numbered 29. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, so ordered. the clerk will call the amendment. the clerk: the senator from rhode island, mr. whitehouse, proposes an amendment numbered 29 to amendment numbered 2. on page 3, between lines 19 and 20 insert the following -- section, sense of the senate regarding climate change. it is the sense of the senate that climate change is real and not a hoax. mr. whitehouse: mr. president i first would like to thank the distinguished chairman of the energy committee and her ranking member for allowing this process to go forward to the point where i'm able to call up this

amendment. it is a convention here when amendments are called up to ask unanimous consent that the reading be dispensed with, but in this, the effective language is only eight words -- climate change is real and not a hoax. so i went ahead and allowed the clerical staff to read the whole operative text of this amendment. it is an extremely simple amendment. we are here in this remarkable body in which so much history has taken place and in which so many great achievements have been thought through many of them with powerful interests and strong arguments on opposite sides, and through that conflict here in this body, we have been able to generate some of the great compromises and some of the great resolutions that have defined the course of the history of this country.

so what a wonderful place this is to have the opportunity to serve, and now in this great deliberative body, called by many the greatest deliberative body, we have a great issue before us perhaps as many say the issue of our time, and that is what our carbon pollution the excess carbon that we burn when we burn fossil fuels is doing to our atmosphere and what it is doing to our oceans. there is no factual debate about what it is doing to our atmosphere and oceans. it is crystal clear. and the consequences are crystal clear as well. and if you don't believe me, fine. go ask the united states military. ask admiral locklear. ask the secretary of navy. ask the joint chiefs of staff. if you don't want to believe in the military, ask our religious leaders. ask the united states conference

of catholic bishops. if you only believe what corporations tell you ask some of our biggest and most successful american corporations. ask walmart. ask coca-cola. ask nike. ask apple. ask google. go on through the corporate haroldary and virtually every american corporation that is not actively involved in the fossil fuel industry will tell you that this is a real and serious problem. and many of them are dedicating an enormous amount of internal effort to try to solve it within their corporate boundaries. and again walmart and coca-cola come right to the head of the list. and of course you don't have to ask our scientists very far any longer. they -- they are pretty clear. they use words like unequivocal undeniable. and every single scientific society, every single scientific society that represents the major elements of the profession

in this country every single one has made this a priority. and if you just want to go out to farmers and foresters and fishermen, they're already seeing the changes around them. so here we are in this great deliberative body with this extraordinarily important issue that we have to face, and what do we see? silence. virtually dead silence because one side of this body won't even discuss the question. many refuse to believe that climate change even exists, and for those that do, the political perils of using that phrase have now become so great that there is no serious conversation back and forth about climate change. in the first week that we debated the keystone pipeline, which the environmental statement will have a dramatic effect on climate change. the addition of 6 million cars

on our highways for 50 years not to mention the pet coke and the byproducts, just the carbon effect of it, no mention. the only time it was mentioned was when our distinguished energy committee chairman mentioned the testimony of a witness in her committee and she was good enough to make sure that climate change was raised in her committee and she mentioned that there had been a witness who in turn mentioned climate change. but there was no direct mention in all of the debate that we heard in that week, about climate change. it is the word that cannot be said. that is wrong. we cannot ignore this problem. it is too real for my fishermen in rhode island. it is too real for the people who are living near coasts and are seeing beaches that they used to be able to play on eaten away. it is too real for the people whose homes have fallen into the sea. it is too real for us not to

discuss it. now, it's not going to be easy, and we have to start somewhere. so this is a start. and i'm going to ask my colleagues to vote on such a simple question -- is climate change real or is it a hoax? both points of view have been expressed in this body. where do we come down? let's actually find out. and if there are people on the republican side of the aisle who are willing to say you know what, climate change is real. my moose up in new hampshire you could say are suffering unprecedented infestations of ticks because there's no snow for them to fall on and die so the moose are getting overwhelmed. you could say that in the university of oklahoma, the leading dean is an ipcc member and led to the establishment of

climate central. you could go to the carolina coasts and hear from the coastal agencies about sea level rise. you can go to arizona and hear about the des earth and the drought. you could go all over and find these things that they are real. we have to have this conversation. it has to begin with as simple a proposition as this, and i hope that if we can build off this, if we can find a few republican senators who will say publicly that climate change is real, we can then go on to okay, if it's real let's have a conversation about what we do about it. because recklessly continuing to dump megatons of carbon into the atmosphere every year is not a solution. and i don't want to be part of a generation that our kids and our grandchildren look back on and

ask where were they? why could they not address this question? there they were in this great deliberative body, there they were with this great issue of our time. why would they not even discuss it? so i hope this amendment gets the conversation under way. it is one i look forward to, and i think there are very sensible ways to solve this problem including ways that have been supported by everything from republican secretaries of the treasury to the lead economist for ronald reagan, the famous mr. laffer. there are ways we can make these adjustments, but we have to have the conversation, and i hope this begins it. with that, i yield the floor. and again i thank the distinguished chairman of the energy committee for her courtesy in allowing us to proceed. ms. murkowski: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: mr. president i

thank my colleague. and i do think that discussions that we have had just in the past hour here since we've had the vote, the various amendments that we now have pending before us. this is a good conversation. this is a good discussion and debate for us to be having. as a body. we haven't had energy-related issues brought before this floor in -- in some years now. we had a very limited debate on keystone back in december but i'm hopeful that -- that with the opportunity for amendments amendments -- and again not just some amendments that we here on our side have hand picked and then decided what the democrats might be able to move on their side -- an opportunity for some real issues to be brought forward and to be

debated here on this floor. the senator from rhode island is very very passionate on the issue of climate change. i think it's fair to say that he has single-handedly raised the awareness not only in this body but for those loyal followers on c-span. when it comes to th issue of climate change, you come up once a week with your chart in a series of speeches that suspect meant to educate colleagues. i don't agree with all of it. that's i think a fair statement to say. but i think what is also equally fair is that there is a care and a concern for not only our country and our country's environment. truly, the -- the public safety

of our people, the care for our land the stewardship that we -- that we have as americans. but it goes, as we know, well beyond our borders to that of our entire globe our entire planet, and how we care for planet earth and how we move forward responsibly. one aspect of the energy debate that i continue to advance is that we -- we must ensure that if we are to make advances when it comes to -- to care for our environment and truly for the whole issue of global climate we have to be a nation that is economically secure in the sense that the technologies that we will have to help us be cleaner in all that we do do not come

without cost. and here in this country, we have been -- we have been the leaders, we have been the innovators when it comes to clean energy technologies and we should challenge ourselves every day to do more in that regard. to build out to push out that r&d so that we're making, whether it is making clean coal truly clean whether it is advancing those clean energy technologies. i, for one coming from a fossil fuel producing state am a huge proponent of nuclear power generation in this country because i believe very strong willing that -- very strongly that it is "the" cleanest energy source that we have at this point in time. so what are we doing in this country to make sure that our energy is abundant, affordable, clean, diverse and secure? and these are the challenges that i put out to my colleagues.

i clearly appreciate the need that we have in this body and in this country to be moving forward with technologies that allow us for -- to have reduced emissions, to have a cleaner environment. but i also want to make sure that we do so in a way that doesn't cripple our economy. and so how we lead in this way which i believe we must keeping our economy where it must be -- in the front and moving forward all the time -- is our great challenge. so again i look forward to the debate that we will have. i'm pleased that we were able to process the amendments that we had before us today. i look forward to advancing those that we have pending in front of us now and for good continued, robust discussion on this floor. with that, i know the majority leader is here and i yield the floor.

mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to immediate consideration of s. res. 29, submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 29, condemning the terrorist attacks in paris and so forth. themr. mcconnell: i further ask that the resolution be agreed to -- the presiding officer: is there an objection to proceeding to the motion? without objection, so ordered. mr. mcconnell: i ask the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid on the table with no intervening action

or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: so, madam president, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to consideration of s. res. 30, which was submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 30, designating the week of january 25-january 31, 2015, as national school choice week. the presiding officer: is there an objection to proceeding to the measure? mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: so, madam president, i ask unanimous consent the senate recess until until:-- until 8:25 p.m. tonight and upon reconvening proceed as a body to the hall of the house of representatives for the joint session of congress provided under the provisions of h.ly con. res. 7. and that upon the disillusion of the joint senate, the senate

stand adjourned until 9:30 a.m. wednesday, january 21. i ask the morning hour be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved and the time be reserved for their use later in the day. i ask the senate then be in a period of morning business for up to one hour with senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each, with the republicans controlling the first half and the democrats controlling the final half and that following morning business, the senate then resume consideration of s. 1. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. mr. mcconnell: so we were able to process several amendments to the keystone bill today. there are now six more in the queue and pending. i would encourage all senators had who have amendments to file them and to work with chairman murkowski and senator cantwell to get them pending. senators should expect votes related to amendments to the bill throughout the day tomorrow

tomorrow. if there's no further business to come before the senate i ask that it stand in recess under the previous order. the presiding officer: the senate stands in recess until 8:25 p.m. tonight. calendar.

mr. mcconnell: now mr. president, we'll welcome president obama to the capitol. we look forward to hearing what he has to say. we're looking forward to senator ernst's address as well. joni ernst understands the concerns of hardworking families in a way much of washington hasn't. that's why the people of her state sent her here, to fight for them. she'll explain the commitment of this new congress to work for policies aimed at the good jobs and better wages that americans deserve. tonight is a big moment for the president and for our country. the tone he strikes and the issues he highlights will tell us a lot about what to expect in his presidency's final act. there's a lot riding on it, and we'll be listening closely. one option is the path he's been

on for so many years. i sincerely hope he makes a different choice. the american people just spoke in clear terms about this direction. they called for a new one. we should work together to make washington focus on their concerns. working with the new congress for positive change, that's the second option for president obama. it's the one struggling families and serious policy-makers urge him to choose. the new congress has already started to take up smart bipartisan ideas focused on jobs and reform. but when we've asked the white house for constructive engagement what we've seen at least so far has been pretty discouraging. we need to change this dynamic. we need to turn the page. the state of the union offers that opportunity. the american people aren't demanding talking point

proposals designed to excite the base but not designed to pass. what they said they're hungry for is substance and accomplishment. they want washington to get back to work and focus on the serious jobs and reform agenda. they said they're ready to see more constructive cooperation especially on bipartisan jobs initiatives. bipartisan jobs initiatives like the keystone infrastructure bill. keystone has support in both parties. it's an important piece of infrastructure for our country. and according to what the obama's own state department has said previously, constructing the pipeline would support literally thousands of jobs. it's already passed the house. we're currently working to pass it through the senate. it will be on the pre

>> it will be on the president's desk before long. we see no reason for him to veto these jobs. but whatever he decides, we're going to keep working for positive middle class jobs ideas here in congress. as i've said before, we're not here to protect the president from a good idea, and if the president's willing to work with us there's much we can get accomplished for the american people. we've already identified several areas of potential cooperation like tearing down trade barriers in places like europe and building jobs with comprehensive, pro-growth tax simplification. and working to prevent cyber attacks. on each of these issues the president has previously sent some positive signals. now we need his constructive engagement. we'll be looking for signs of that in the speech he delivers tonight. what i hope is that he presents

some positive bipartisan ideas of his own that can pass the congress americans just voted for. give us new ideas to prevent iran there becoming a country with nuclear weapons or to con front the threats -- confront the threats posed by terrorism or to remove regulations that hurt struggling coal families. challenge us with truly serious, realistic reforms that focus on growth and raising middle class incomes, reforms that don't just spend more money we don't have. and if the president's ready for a new beginning beyond canceled health plans and partisan executive overreach, work with us to pursue an achievement that history will actually remember. reach across the aisle to allow us to save and strengthen

medicare. cooperate with both parties to save social security. tell america your plan for responsible reforms that aim to balance the budget not just more tired tax hikes. achieving important reforms like these would represent a win for hard working families. it would deliver the kind of common sense progress american es deserve. so we welcome the president tonight. we look to his address with interest. and if the president's ready to play offense, then we urge him to join the new congress this playing offense on behalf of the american people. >> mr. president? >> the senator from illinois. >> mr. president, tonight president obama will deliver a state of the union address and outline his plan to make life better for middle income families and those struggling in our strengthening economy. i've heard from both sides democrats and republicans, the lament that even though many hard working families are doing

their best and businesses are more profitable because our workers are more productive a lot of families don't see it in their paychecks. they struggle from paycheck to paycheck to pay for the basics in life. and so we have to ask ourselves what will we do about this? will we do anything? i worry that the comments just made by the majority leader suggest that he is relying on faith alone faith in our free market system faith in the belief that if we have an expanding economy -- which we do -- if we have profitability in corporations which we do, that it will translate into a better standard of living for working families. well, it may be an article of faith, but it's one that can be challenged because that's exactly what's been happening in america for years. you see the economy has been growing. we've seen an increase this jobs 58 straight months. but at the same time, we've noted that the families, the

working families across america don't see any change in their lives. they don't see any income change. and then we look at the reality and the reality shows that the gap between the rich and poor in america just grows larger and larger. we could talk separately about the compensation for ceos and corporations. it's reaching record levels, far beyond the excesses of previous moments in american economic history. what we're finding is that people at the very top of the corporate ladder are taking out more money from the economy than the workers who are generating the profits that they're gleaning. that's not right. the president is going to challenge us to get beyond faith in our free market system to good works by congress. and he's going to talk about specifics, things that the average family can understand and appreciate. the earned income tax credit. here's an effort to say if you are working, we will make sure

that your tax burden gives you a break. so that you have additional money for your family to pay for daycare for your kids, to make certain that you can pay for the utility bills and the basics of life. i've joined with senator sherrod brown of ohio. we want to try to make the earned income tax credit available to more and more working americans so that we can supplement their income as they struggle to get by paycheck to paycheck. that's one of the first things we can do. the second thing the president will address is college affordability. i mow there are plenty of critics -- i know there are plenty of critics of the president's plan but i think he's put his finger on reality. we can no longer be satisfied by saying it is the responsibility of our society to provide education from kindergarten through the 12th grade. that doesn't reflect the reality of work today. in just a few year, more than a third of the jobs across america

will require a college degree. what are we doing to prepare that work force in america for the 21st century requirements when it comes to education? now, we know what's happening. more and more students are getting deeper and deeper in debt, and many are dropping out because of it. those who finish and earn a diploma are saddled with the debt which changes their lives. president obama has said let us start moving forward to make two years of community college a commitment in america for those students who are in need number one, and number two are willing to meet the standards. and can the standards are graduation within three years. i look at some of the comments that have been made in criticism of this, and they overlook the second part of the president's proposal. that part which demands that those students perform in order to receive assistance from our government in paying for community college. we have to look at a new model in america in arkansas in illinois and across america that

is a k-14 model. that's reality. certainly, we have to improve the k-12 performance. when two-thirds of community college students in many states including my own come to community colleges not performing at the 12th grade level, there's work to be done in the lower grades. but let's assume the obvious; if you want a good paying job in the future you need additional training. the affordable place to go is a community college, and we ought to make that a pathway that is affordable for every dedicated, hard working student and their family. that isn't all. the president also acknowledges and will acknowledge tonight the reality of the housing market. since 2009 our housing market in america has been recovering from recession. home building has more than doubled. a lot of jobs for construction workers. home prices are going back up. millions of families whose home

value was less than what they owed on their mortgage are now turning the corner. for many americans buying a home is still out of reach. the president plans to reduce the fha mortgage insurance premiums which is going to help responsible americans to afford a home. faith in our free market, but good works by congress when it comes to these essentials. and the president's also going to propose a healthy families act. here is something that gets to the reality of life for working americans. it would provide businesses with 15 or more employees up to seven paid sick days each year. you might say to yourself well what is a business going to do with people taking seven days off in sick leave? what we found is if the employer will stand behind the employees when it comes to the basics like sick leave they'll get more loyalty and more performance from those employees. that is a fair trade.

and it's one the president is going to propose this evening. so i would say to the majority leader and those who share his position faith in the free market is a good thing but not enough. we need to step in and make sure we have faith in working familieses, faith in the belief that if they can improve their lot in life, if their struggle paycheck to paycheck is somehow lessened, we're all going to be better off for it. i support the president's message this evening and look forward to hearing it delivered. mr. president, on a separate topic, late last night i returned from havana, cuba with senator patrick leahy, senator stabenow senator whitehouse, it was a whirl wind trip. in a matter of two days, we had a number of visits with a variety of different people in havana. they included government officials, bruno rodriguez, had

a lengthy meeting with him yesterday. we had a meeting with about ten different ambassadors from foreign countries to cuba. we met as well with about a dozen reformers or dissidents opponents of the current castro regime in cuba and had individual meetings with ministries. this was a productive and important delegation trip. important because starting tomorrow we are going to have face-to-face negotiations in havana between the united states and cuba. pursuant to president obama's december 17th announcement, we are setting out to change the foreign policy of the united states cause it regards -- as it regards cuba. it's time for a change. for over 50 years, we have been committed to a policy of exclusion, believing that if we had embargoes and blockades, we could force internal change in cuba. the policy failed. the castro brothers still reign and life in cuba is not what we want to see. what the president has said

let's engage them at a different level, a constructive level where we try to find ways to open up the cuban economy and cuban society. that to me, is the best course. and it isn't just a theory that it's the best course it's been proven. when the soviet empire came to an end, what happened to the warsaw pact nations allied with the soviet union? they opened their doors to the west, they saw what they couldn't anticipate to be part of their life in the future, and they made the conscious choice to move toward democracy. to move toward free market economy. i think the same can happen in cuba. one young man came to speak to us. he'd gotten in trouble because he'd challenged the cuban government. they put him back on a pig farm to work, but he was still determined to aspire to a better place in cuba in the future. he said to us what president obama's announcement has done is to pull the blanket off the

caged bird in cuba. those of us who live in cuba are still in the cage of communism but we can see out now about opportunities in the future. that, i believe is part of what the president's new policy is all about. when we're discussing the current blockade with cuba with their leadership, we learned that powdered milk comes to cuban citizens from new zealand. halfway around the world. when there's ample supply here in the united states. what we are trying to do is to not only open up the cuban economy to powdered milk, but to the power of ideas. the exchange of values. the belief that if the cuban people see a better model for their future that they will gravitate toward that model. this negotiation, which opens this week, is the beginning of this conversation. the president is moving in areas of trade and travel as we hope

he will do to expand these opportunities, but we have to do our part in congress. and as contentious and spirited as the debate may be about changing our policy in cuba, it wasn't that long ago that we stood on the floor of the united states senate and considered establishing diplomatic relations with vietnam. and there were some with memories of all that we had lost over 40,000 american lives in vietnam who said we shouldn't have a normal relationship with what is a repressive regime in a country that we just concluded a war with. others with cooler minds prevailed, and we established diplomatic relations and i think to the were thement of -- to the betterment of both nations. let us move forward, not forsaking our principles, not turning our back on the belief that the cuban society should be more open fair and legitimized by the voters at the polls but

believing that we can work with this country as we have with others around the world even when we disagree with their form of government and their practices to try to strive to reach democratic ideal. mr. president, the haas point i would like to -- the last point i would like to make relates to a motion made this morning by the majority leader for the department of homeland security. why are we bringing up this appropriation bill at this moment? because when we agreed last december to fund our government, the republicans in the house insisted that we carve out the department of homeland security and not give it its regular budget. instead, give it emergency spending, a continuing resolution. this is not the way to run any department of government. certainly not the department of homeland security. why is it important to fund this department? you need only look to what's happened in the last few days in paris to understand that the threat of terrorism to the world is still very real.

our first, one of our first lines of defense when it comes to terrorism is our department of homeland security. there is no excuse for us to be dealing with this continuing resolution to fund this department. they should have the resources they need to keep america safe but, instead what has happened is this: the house of representatives last week said we will only agree to fund this department properly if we can provide certain riders and changes in the law as part of it. i would tell you that the change that has been proposed by the house of representatives is unacceptable. the president has said he's going to veto it if it's sent to his desk and i totally support his position. here's what they have come up in the house of representatives. if you're familiar with the dream act -- which i introduced in congress 14 years ago -- it says if a young person is brought to the united states at

an early age, parents making the decision to come to this country, and that young person grows up in the united states, finishes high school no serious criminal problems handgun to go forward to the -- willing to go forward to higher education or to the military, we'll give them a chance of becoming legal this america. that's the dream act. it's been considered and passed on the floor of the senate, considered and passed on the floor of the house but never in the same session. and so it's not the law of the land. president obama a little over two years ago came out with a program, executive order program nope as dhaka. dhaka -- daca said if you'll come forward and register with our government, if you will pay the filing fee, if you'll allow us to do the background check, we'll allow you to stay, go to school and work in america and not be deported. 600,000 young people have come forward. we estimate there are some two

million eligible 600,000 have come forward 30,000 in my state of illinois. who are these young people? let me introduce you to one of them. oscar vazquez. oscar vazquez grew up in phoenix, arizona. his mother and father brought him to that city from mexico, and he was undocumented. he attended carl hayden high school in phoenix. he was a member of the junior rotc. his goal was to serve in the united states army. when he went to the recruiter to sign up the recruiter said i need your birth certificate, and oscar said, come on we're fighting a war, can't you look the other way and just let me join? he said, no, young man, you don't have the proper documents, you can't enlist in the united states army. well, he was despondent because that was his goal. he went home, and he got engaged in another project which is the subject of a new movie called "spa parts" which george -- spare parts which george lopez

has produced, directed and starred in that i saw last week. i can tell you this oscar vazquez and three other students at carl hayden high school entered into an underwater robotic competition. they competed with colleges like mit, and they won. their high school team won the underwater robotics competition. talented young man oscar said i'm going to arizona state university without any government assistance, graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering. and after he got his degree and a wife and a baby he said now i've got to get right with america. i've got to resolve this issue of being undocumented. that means oscar decided to move back to mexico. he was living in mexico, the law required him to stay there for ten years -- that's how the law are's written -- >> petitioning the united states for a chance to come back in. eventually, he was given a

waiver. he came back to the united states, and i'll tell you what he did. oscar vazquez came back became a citizen of the united states of america, and the first thing he did was enlist in the united states army. he went into combat in afghanistan and came home after having served our nation honorably and now is working for major railroad in the state of montana with his wife and children. that's the story of one dreamer, one dreamer who given a chance has made a difference in america. he not only served in our military but he had a degree this mechanical engineering. he is going to be a job creator a job builder himself. so what do the house republicans want to do to people like oscar vazquez? deport them. deport them. mr. president that's exactly what they called for. they're dream killers and that isn't right. we ought to give oscar, young men and women just like him the

chance to succeed and the chance to make america better. well, mr. president, i've stood on this floor over 50 times with color photographs like this one by my side and told the stories of dreamers. this last weekend i was in chicago, and six of them came forward and told their stories. each and every one of them a compelling reason for us to defeat this mean-spirited amendment that came out of the house of representatives. the president will veto it if it get withs to his desk -- gets the his desk but i hope we will do better in the senate. i hope, i hope that there are enough senators on both sides of the aisle 60 plus who will stand up for the dreamers of america. this is a test. it's a test as to whether or not we believe in fairness and justice and the value that immigrants like oscar vazquez bring to the future of america. the house of representatives just doesn't see it.

they are blinded by their hatred for these immigrants, and they continue to pass these mean-spirited amendments. we can do better, we must do better as a nation. let us stand up for the dreamers, and let us all be dedicated to passing comprehensive immigration reform. our immigration laws are broken, our system is broken and it's time for us to accept our responsibility and repair it. we passed a bill a year and a half ago on the floor of the senate. 68. 14 republicans and democrats voted, sent it over to the house of representatives and it languished for a year and a half. they refused to call it or consider it. well our immigration system's still broken. threatening with these riders that are dream killers for so many young people in america that's unacceptable. i will stand on this floor as long as it takes to defend this dream act and people like oscar

vazquez who contributed to america and make it a better nation. i hope that we will have a bipartisan support for defeating the house of representatives' riders that have been branded by the president as unacceptable and he will veto. mr. president, i yield the floor. >> tonight, president obama delivers his state of the union address. live coverage begins at 8 p.m. eastern including the president's speech the gop response delivered by newly-elected iowa senator joni ernst and your reaction through open phones live on c-span and c-span radio. on c-span2 watch the president's speech and congressional reaction from statuary hall in the u.s. capitol. the state of the union address live on c-span, c-span2 c-span radio and c-span.org. >> we've been taking your comments throughout the day on tonight's state of the union address, and you can weigh in on our facebook question, does it matter? juan says: it does matter. the president's state of the

union address provides transparency and a level of accountability to us voters. and diane writes: more of telling people what they want to hear without making any promises at all. same old same old. you can leave your opinions at facebook.com/c-span. and ahead of the state of the union tonight, c-span's been covering state of the state address including in georgia where governor nathan deal proposed a constitutional amendment to rescue failing schools and students. he also urged lawmakers to support investments. he gave a half hour speech at the state capitol in atlanta. this comes to us courtesy of georgia public broadcasting. [applause] >> lieutenant governor caig l speaker roll lausanne president pro tem baker, speaker pro tem jones, members of the general

assembly, constitutional officers members of the consulate corps and my fellow georgians, today marks the fifth year that i have reported to you, the people's representatives, on the state of our state. this is our annual which can-up exam on the body politic where we measure our vitals celebrate our areas of good health and seek cures for the things that ail us. and each succeeding year we've seen the green shoots of our economy grow a little taller. each year we've seen more georgians return to work or get their job for the first time. each year we've seen hundreds of more businesses open or relocate here. each year steady revenue growth has allowed us to slowly mend

the ravages wrought by the great recession. now our economy is seeing positive growth with thousands of new jobs added every month. we're seeing the telltale signs of cranes and bulldozers hunting on newly-cleared land. we're seeing home values recover and georgia families begin to rebuild their savings. and georgia has been named the number one place in the nation in which to do business by several major rating agencies and has repeated that designation by one of them already. many -- in short i'm here to report to you that the state of our state is strong and growing stronger every day. [applause] but for every milestone we

reach, for every victory we attain for every improvement we achieve, new challenges await. certainly, there are those who focus only on the negative zeroed in on areas where we should do better. they downplay any progress as not good enough. to them i say, celebrating our progress puts our challenges in perspective and reminds us that together we can achieve greatness. our shortcomings don't go unacknowledged, they are simply what we're going to address next. when focused only on the negative, the job before us can seem overwhelming. those feelings are not new to our generation. atop president kennedy's desk sat a fisherman's prayer which says this: o god, thy sea is so

great, and my boat is so small. when confronting the challenges of ten million people, challenges that can appear insurmountable it's easy to feel that the tools that we have been given aren't up to the task. when it comes to our constituents' needs in education, health care, transportation and public safety, the sea seems so great, and our boat so small. we may have ten million challenges but remember we also have ten million oars. in the turbulent waters of the recession and recovery, we have rode steadily forward. the synchronized beat of unified oars has set the rhythm for our economy. georgians have spoken clearly that the conservative principles

which have guided our decisions the very ones that have brought us out of the recession must continue to guide our future growth. these include keeping our government small, prioritizing and balancing our budget and emphasizing a strong business climate. state government cannot address the legitimate needs of our citizens however, without adequate revenue. last year we based our budget on an anticipated revenue growth of 3.4%. that was in keeping with our pattern of conservative budgeting. so when fiscal year 2014 ended our actual revenue was 4.8%. that differential between what we spent and what we collected is deposited into our rain think day fund. every budget cycle since i have

been governor we have added to that fund so that it has increased by some 643% since i took office. [applause] annual revenue growth coupled with conservative spending and a growing rainy day fund are positive evidence that georgia is better today than it was this time last year. since i took office over 319,000 new private sector jobs have been created in georgia with nearly 93,000 of those coming in the past 12 months. the announcement last week that mercedes benz usa is moving its north american headquarters to georgia is further evidence that our state will continue to be a leader in job creation. [applause]

but with job creation comes population growth. georgia is now the eighth most populace state in the nation moving from the number ten position in just four short years. you know, people don't move to a state unless it provides them with opportunities. the mercedes benz slogan is the best or nothing. the company that accepts nothing but the best chose georgia. [applause] i'll take that. [applause] and in the near future porsche north america open their headquarters near the atlanta airport. but let's not forget our first major automotive manufacturer in modern times kia, which employs

some 3000 georgians and whose supplier base continues to expand in our state. kia's example told the world that we have the quality work force and the business environment needed to thrive in the automotive industry. finish kia officials remind me often that their west point, georgia, plant produces the highest quality vehicle in their worldwide chain. [applause] furthermore, home prices are up in the past year and up significantly since 2011, an example of the resurgence of this sector and the confidence in the market. construction manufacturing and other key georgia industries continue to rebound. and as georgians experience growth in their incomes this

leaves more money for the types of things our fellow citizens want to be doing rather than just the essentials. virtually every reliable indicator points to one thing; a growing economy. and to those of you who have been paying attention you will notice that the unemployment rate, the prodigal son of indicators is even falling back in line. [applause] for those who were too long unemployed or underemployed for their relatives who watched them struggle to get hired and for the georgians who understand that a working economy is an economy in which people work, we are making a difference. the ocean of need is vast, but

it's shrinking, and we will continue to close the distance between where we are and where we wish to be. still, need does exist. ..

the most appropriate ways to modernize. older than every student in our classrooms and some of their parents just as most of us would now address our children and parachute pants and jelly shoes and would not were not teach them about computers; 64. neither should reeducate them under a 1980s funding formula. [applause] our students are now using ipads and androids. why tithe into tie them to a desk when technology can take them to the moon and back? this undertaking will require detailed work. work. my vision is to create a formula driven by student need that provides local

schools and district leaders with real control and flexibility. it is our hope that funding changes based on the commission's recommendations will go into effect as early as the 20162017 school year. while school year. while we must certainly address the outdated funding formula, education still remains a top priority in our budgets. this. this year's budget coupled with my proposal for next year's budget represents an infusion of over 1 billion additional dollars for k 12 education. [applause] working together we have devoted the largest percentage of the state budget to k-12 education of any governor and general assembly in the last 50 years.

[applause] now the focus is on turning those dollars into academic progress. i look forward to working with all of you as we accomplish that goal. however no matter how well we fund education the fact of the matter is that far too many students are failed in a -- for students students are trapped in a failing georgia school. roughly 23% of schools have received either a d or f which constitutes a failing grade for the past three consecutive years. when the system fails our children have little chance of succeeding. new options can enrich lives, but in futures and

rekindle hope. three years ago ago the legislators are called for and the voters of the state overwhelmingly approved the charter school amendment. this year i am asking you to continue the trend of restoring hope and opportunity to areas of our state that could use a helping hand. i am proposing a constitutional amendment to establish an opportunity school district which would authorize the state to step in and help rejuvenate failing public schools and rescue children languishing in them. this model has already been successfully used in other states. my office has been in contact with a student from new orleans who tells us that he could not read and told was 12 years old. now because of the recovery school district in new orleans troy simon is going

to barred college in new york where he intends turn a degree in american literature. his life has changed. there is no sweeter irony that i am man who could not read it all may one day teach others to read and read well. let's -- [applause] let's stop making excuses. if we want to break the cycle of poverty let's educate those children so that they have the skills to escape poverty. if we want to interrupt -- [applause] if we want to interrupt the cycle of dysfunctional families let's educate the children of those homes so that their families of the future we will return to normalcy. if we want our young people

to have hope, let's give them the greatest beacon of hope we can confer upon them quality education that leads to a a good job stable family, and the stairway to the future. [applause] there will be those who we will argue that the problem of failing schools can be solved by spending more money. they ignore the fact that many of our failing schools already spend far more money per child than the state average. the problem is not money. more money without fundamental changes in the delivery system will not alter the results. it will it will only make the state and local taxpayers greater enablers of chronic failure. [applause]

if we take this step more students will be able to gain employment go to college when they graduate more employers will be satisfied with our state workforce and more of their colleagues might just decide to locate in georgia. above all students and parents will relinquish the burden of having nowhere to go to get a proper education something no family should have to experience in the 1st place. now,. now liberals cannot defend leaving a child trapped in a failing school that sentences them to a life of poverty. conservatives like me cannot argue that each child in georgia already has the same opportunity to 6 feet and compete on his or her own merits. we have a moral duty to help these children who cannot

help themselves. [applause] the sea is great and the boat is small. but the boat must not have 1st and 2nd class seating. [applause] i am calling upon you to do your part in this session to get this referendum on the ballot so that georgians can assure a child's hope of success is not determined by his or her zip code. our places of learning should be places where a child learns triumph not defeat. we have experienced tryouts in our criminal justice system where we have tamed some rough seas working with

those of you and here and those throughout our state enhanced safety and nurtured 2nd chances, combined taxpayer savings with personal salvation. in return power reforms are closing that revolving door that has led to many georgians back into our prison system. crime may not pay but stopping it does. [applause] i have already shared with you just last month and in the inaugural address the promising results of some of our efforts. my budget this year will reflect our commitment to these important reforms. the next step we are taking to improve our delivery of justice will further make georgia a leader in this area.

one troubled family or neighborhood will deal with the multiple agencies from pardon and parole to defect to the department of juvenile justice to the department of corrections, under current policy these agencies often do not coordinate effectively on these cases. this fails to bring a holistic approach to the needs of hand and does not deliver services efficiently for this reason i am proposing to create the department of community supervision to eliminate redundancy and enhance communication between these related groups. this new agency we will pull from the relevant existing portions of corrections, juvenile justice, and pardons and parole while the division of family and children services will not contribute to the agency itself we we will be including the director on

the board of community supervision to facilitate the transfer of appropriate information. recently we have seen tremendous growth in the number of child welfare investigations due, in part to our 24 hour call center. this is why we we will continue to fund additional resources to meet this unfortunate need including support for 278 additional 278 additional caseworkers. in addition the child welfare reform counsel which i created in 2014 has has released its review on the division of family and children services. to to address some of the recommendations i am proposing in my budget this year that we fund several upgrades which we will include a mentor program for supervisors providing for greater career and salary growth for personnel promoting the safety and resources available to caseworkers and enhancing recruitment and training of

foster parents. by caring for our caseworkers and are foster parents we can better care for our children in need. [applause] i am happy to say that the council will continue its work into the upcoming year. one of one of our most vulnerable populations is our children who are suffering from seizures. last year i set in motion trials at our state medical school to test the possibility of using cannabis oil to treat severe seizures of your people in a safe and non- intoxicatingly those trials involving

georgia children have already begun and will continue to expand. this year i hope to sign legislation to de-criminalize de- criminalize canada's whirling georgia so that families are needed and to obtain illegally will not be prosecuted for possessing it. let me be clear i do not support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes. we purposes. we are focused narrowly on oil that contains fractional amounts of thc, the chemical and marijuana that intoxicate the user. we we want to find the pathway to bring our children home from colorado without becoming colorado. [applause] we still face the significant and more complicated issue of access. that is why in addition to decriminalization i am

proposing is that he committed to research a proper role for the state of georgia in the ongoing debates about the types of medical conditions that can benefit from this product and how we can best address this in a logical and controlled manner. i know for many families time is of the essence. i want us to answer the question of access as quickly as possibly can while going through the to the proper steps to ensure safety and compliance with federal laws. there is broad agreement that we must do something and we can do something. let us also agree that we must do it right. [applause] even a small boat conquering the sea must dock every once

in a while. we must therefore, it sure our network of bridges, roads, and other vital infrastructure are well-maintained and the increasing transportation needs of our population are met. let me present to you our options. since since only three regions in the state invested in plan a original 1 percent sales tax for designated infrastructure projects we acted to implement plan b which includes reprioritizing funding and a focus on the most essential projects that would target our most congested areas. for example, we are constructing new capacity express lanes along wall stretches of 575 and 575 and extending the managed lanes on i 85. over the next four years we

will open to traffic more than one $.1 billion worth of new reliable interstate lanes and metro atlanta the largest interstate expansion since the 1980s. [applause] we are making further progress in the form of ri 285 georgia 400 interchange which we will ease congestion. but let us not forget those things that have already accomplished including the removal of tolls the opening of the i 85 connector ramps which

new standards would again double meaning the amount of excise tax collected will continue to shrink every year and that does not even count for inflation. in $2,014 we collected approximately 17 percent less in state motor fuel funds per capita than we did a quarter of a century ago in part because of greater fuel efficiency. at the same time we now have millions of more people traveling on our roads. simply maintaining what we currently have requires a minimum of hundreds of millions of dollars in new revenue each year.

some industry experts suggested is more than a billion. over the years we have added more highway to monitor patrol and repair. in addition in addition our state has seen significantly more freight on our roadways with more and more goods and raw materials entering through the port of solana. already already the 2nd busiest container port on the east coast and getting busier. it is estimated that truck traffic out of the port we will increase by 50% in 50 percent in less than 5510 years. we have to be ready to meet that need. without this proposed plans be -- plan c a knew strategy for transportation investment, we would be forced to go to plan b which is to do nothing. if that is our plan that our

roads will slip into disrepair the safety of our citizens will be jeopardized, and our economy will be stagnated by increased congestion. for me that is unacceptable. we are operating at a rate a rate that requires over 50 years to resurface every state road. so if you road is paved for when you graduate from high school by the time it is paved again you we will be eligible for social security. we must increase the percentage of roads being resurfaced annually. with only current funding levels new capital projects will have to wait as we tend to our existing transportation network. if we do nothing we we will continue to have to depend on the federal government's transportation funds are also dwindling.

if we should choose not to maintain and improve our infrastructure economic development would stall companies would be unable to conduct business efficiently, commuters would waste time and gas sitting in traffic, and no one will be satisfied. for those who believe as i do that their are certain powers left to the state and citizens, citizens principles set forth in our nation's 10th amendment, here is one way that we can put our beliefs into practice. if we become less dependent upon federal revenue for transportation projects in georgia we will avoid some of the regulations and extra costs associated with federal involvement get more of our money on knew roads, and it we will be one of the best signals that the state of georgia is willing

to spend our money to solve our problems. [applause] four years ago we decided our state needed to develop its own reservoirs. maybe it is time we apply that same logic to transportation. we must improve and maintain roads and bridges bridges provide congestion relief and prepare for more freight and businesses. we can debate how much it we will cost to do something but let us not forget how much it we will cost to do nothing. i i do not believe that we we will choose to do nothing we know the problems.

let's resolve to agree on the solutions. that is the outlook we must embrace as we tackle all of the challenges that i have discussed with you today. the sea is indeed, indeed, fast, but our 10 million or zero onward. let us as the leaders of the state demonstrate that we can road together so that our are both will move forward on a chartered course of progress with the shoreline of promise and prosperity on the horizon. i pray for wisdom for all of us so that we can give georgians a state that is even better tomorrow than it yesterday. may god bless you and may god continue to bless our great state of georgia. [applause] [applause]

>> tonight, president obama delivers his state of the union address at 8:00 o'clock eastern including the president's speech, the gop response and your reaction through open phones live. watch the president's speech and congressional reaction from statuary hall the state of the union address live. him. >> tomorrow on washington journal a review of the state of the union address with three members of congress.

>> ahead of the state of the union tonight more of the continuing coverage of our nation's "state of the state" addresses. next to washington where governor "state of the state" speaks. this comes to us courtesy of washington public affairs network.

[applause] [applause] >> mr. president mr. speaker, mr. majority leader mme. chief justice, distinguished distinguished justices of the court, art officials, members of the legislature tribal leaders, members of the core and my fellow washingtonians good afternoon. the wonderful four-part harmony for the school choir

the 13 members of the legislature who stepped up to the plate to server state and the people and the communities of washington that over the past 125 years have given us the great state that we do celebrate today. i also want. i also want to mention a number of our legislative families. roger was proud to represent his community. most of all, he was the proud father to his two children in the devoted husband to his wife son. all of the thoughts are with them today. the new representative from the 30th district is carol gregory. thank you. * country's northwest corner

facing both the pacific ocean and the future the most innovative most resourceful most endemic state and our nation but because of our ever present entrepreneurial zeal, social progress in our technological genius washington state has remained evergreen throughout its 1st hundred 25 years because in every moment of crisis and every year of challenge, and every decade of change their chosen the path that takes us forward. we invest in our self. we invest in a legacy worthy of our children and our grandchildren. we have done this time and time again with the firm

conviction that our people communities joined economy will go and prosper if we summon the confidence to make these investments. today our state stands at another crossroads. one path leads to an economy that works for all washingtonians and preserves a healthy environment. the other path leads to a slow erosion of our shared prosperity, widening gap of income inequality and any deterioration. the choice is ours. if we rise to this challenge we we will choose the best path for washington. as you know, from day one i have focused on job creation in our state. the issues we we will talk about today all work

together to build an economy that works for everyone. it should please us all to no our economy continues. that growth has not been shared equally geographically or across the economic spectrum. the right path is an economy that provides opportunity for all. and i believe -- [applause] we know that expanding educational opportunities lodging and transportation construction program will put us on the right course. our most fundamental commitment needs to be to

the youngest washingtonians. we know the greatest untapped asset in the state is the potential of a three or four -year-old. the latest neuroscience research shows that at this age children's minds have a tremendous capacity for learning. early learning is the best investment that we can make in our future in the state of washington. [applause] so that is where we start but our success will require a continuum of education from early learning through higher education. that is why my proposal makes a $2.3 billion investment in the children's future including --

including the largest investment in early state learning. attending high-quality preschools. providing all day kindergarten across the state. the 1st cost-of-living. the cost of higher education boosting financial aid so that 17,000 more students can give scholarships. these investments are not based on wishful thinking. they are based on rocksolid foundations of proven strategies established reforms, and demonstrable student performance. we know what works. we know what it takes. i visited a lot of classrooms in the past two

years and have been continually impressed by the great teaching and innovative learning i have seen. and now these opportunities must be available for all our children and all our schools because we have smart kids ready for takeoff. [applause] but the future demands a higher level of achievement investing in workforce training pays off attracting the most innovative companies on the planet. today we can celebrate the announcement that they plan to open and engineering center in washington with the potential to hire hundreds of people. we know that a child -- [applause] we know that a child spends

an average of six hours a day in a school building. we we also no what children need and those other 18 hours. every morning they need to start the day with nutritious food and ability way to get to school safely a coat to protect them from the elements as we get to and from school and at night of warm, a warm, safe, stable place to sleep with the roof over their heads. [applause] the budget we agree upon should nurture all our students in and out of the classroom because we no how hard it is to educate a homeless, hungry sick child

our families and our communities also need the vital services that allow them to function, function, nurses, mental health facilities, police officers and firefighters, the full range of services that help make washington a great place to live and raise a family. we have been cutting these services to balance our budget and it is no longer working. we have cut by $12 billion. make no mistake, we have found savings and efficiencies as well. we are saving an average of $1.6 million annually. the department of social and health services saves three and a half million and saving 2 million long distance charges through a knew service. we must continue this work

but have reached the place where multiple courts have said we cut too much, neglect to fund adequately and have ordered us to do a better job. some some people say they have not noticed but i will tell you this the fellow handcuffed to a gurney in an emergency room he notices. the woman who was a a victim of domestic violence and cannot get emergency housing , she notices the college students whose tuition went up 50 percent they sure notice. what can seem invisible to some of us is painfully real to others. [applause]

in the prosperous future we all want we cannot leave so many people behind. some see the road ahead paved only with cuts to services. some consider only revenue as options. both both camps will ultimately realize that neither is the definitive answer. we are going to approach our work with a bold spirit of speaking solutions rather than finding excuses. with a can-do attitude of kicking aside our differences instead of kicking the can down the road. the same is true with transportation. without action and transportation the session there we will be a 52 percent cut in the maintenance budget prostate

71 bridges will become structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. without action commute times will continue to rise robbing us of time with our families. our ability to move goods efficiently will be diminished. the tragic and catastrophic landslide reminds us that entire communities are cut off from the rest of the state when we lose transportation infrastructure. now imagine a transportation system that moves the entire state forward improving reliability and safety addressing congestion and maintenance and offers more choices. as you know, i have been working for a balance multimodal transportation package since is my 1st in office. in december i proposed a

plan that builds on the bipartisan spirit of past efforts by offering a good state compromise to spark action the session keeping us safe by fixing bridges patching roads, cleaning air and water and embraces efficiency, saves time and money and drives results that the public can trust real reform. finally it is a plan that delivers a transportation system that truly works as a system a system that transcends our old divide and rivalries. now i really do welcome your suggestions for improvement but the state cannot accept a continued failure to move on transportation. let's transportation. let's get this done. let's get this done. [applause]

there is another thing my transportation plan does. it institutes a carbon pollution charge that would have our largest polluters pay rather than raising the gas tax on everyone. the polluters will pay. we face many challenges but it is the growing threat of carbon pollution that can permanently change the nature of washington as we no it. it is already increasing the acidity of our states water increasing wildfires and increasing asthma rates in our children, children particularly in low income communities and communities of color. we have a moral obligation to act a moral duty to

protect the birthright. future washingtonians deserve a healthy washington i believe -- [applause] this is not unique to our generation. every generation has this duty to pass on healthy air and water to the next. and when we do we we will no that although we are a small part of the world where 7 million washingtonians strong to stand for preserving the grandeur that is our state. if we don't stand up to the health of our state who will? the people who are less than 1 percent of the world today are leading the world in aerospace leading the world in software command now we

can lead the world and energy because that is who we are in the state of washington. [applause] i believe this because what we lack in numbers way more than make up for in our innovative spirit command we are not acting alone. countries countries and states that are responsible for half the world: pollution will have instituted limits on these emissions and when we act together with other states and nations we can do something even bigger by locking arms with oregon and california and british columbia through the pacific coast collaborative we become a legion of 5300 people providing the world's fifth-largest economy. great when the west coast

leads while washington dc is stymied by gridlock. [applause] i am pleased that there is a growing consensus that it is time to act. we must meet the carbon pollution limits that were enacted by this body and 2,008. i proposed a comprehensive solution that's carbon emissions, creates incentives for clean technology and transportation, invest in energy efficiency and makes government operations more efficient. for all we do here together in the next few months months, for all our fiscal woes, our short-term demands we no that the most enduring legacy we can lead is the healthy clean,

beautiful, evergreen state. i will not end in the deepest part of my heart i hope you we will not allow this threat to stand. we also no the challenge of carbon pollution brings great economic opportunities to our state. companies moving full speed ahead to seize these opportunities and create jobs. not only one of our state's largest solar panel manufacturers that produces the most powerful solar panels in the industry. groundbreaking batteries leading the way in the field of storage technology for global energy and mcdonald miller which is not only producing the carbon footprint of commercial buildings but last year they added 300 jobs in our state.