in charleston had been barred, as he should have been because he was ineligible, rather than having the opportunity to purchase a weapon as a result of the 72-hour rule of law loophole -- it might have made a difference there. we can't say for certain. we know there's no panacea, no magic solution. but the families of sandy hook, charleston and san bernardino ask us to make a difference here. honor with action is what we should do. inaction is complicity. we owe the american people better. we need to keep faith with its values and keep faith with america. thank you, madam president. i yield the floor. a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. grassley: madam president,

i'd like to recognize the iowa governor terry branstad on a very significant historical milestone. on december 14, this year, governor branstad will become the longest serving governor in the nation's history. he happens to break a record set by a governor clinton of new york in the early parts of our country, even before our country's constitution was established. between the articles of confederation into the early years of new york as a state in the united states of america. that's a pretty large feather in the cap of a farm kid from the town of leland, population 289 in winnebago county, northern iowa. in many ways, a small town farm

background prepared terry branstad for his success as a state house member, lieutenant governor and then governor on two separate occasions, adding up to if he finishes this term, and he will, 24 years as governor. the farm crisis of the 1980's hit every farm state hard in iowa at the heart of the nation's bread basket suffered deeply. all of us who lived in iowa at that time saw friends and neighbors lose their family farms and struggle with what to do next for a living. the state needed men and women with vision and ambition to pull the economy out of the doldrums. it needed people who could see the potential for farmers to add value to their operations and for iowa to diversify its

economy, which it has now done. of all the people out there, terry branstad was governor and he stood out as one of those people. he was at the forefront of creating a new environment to do business. he welcomed and actively encouraged innovation that would capitalize on iowa's bedrock work ethic and our strong schools. as a result, agriculture was and continues to be a mainstream of iowa's economy, but agriculture more than ever is an engine for many other employment sectors, renewable energy, manufacturing, crop research, insurance and financial services and of course as we iowans know much more. as governor from 1983-1999,

terry branstad took the helm during some of the state's worst economic turmoil in decades and steered the ship towards impressive economic growth. the unemployment rate went from 8.5% to a record low of 2.5%. the governor could have rested on those laurels and continued to work outside of state government after he retired after those first 16 years, but he again answered the call when the state needed him again in 2010. he put the state of iowa's interests ahead of his own and went to work for iowans the second time, bringing his valuable leadership to the governor's office for another round. that in a nutshell tells you everything you need to know

about terry branstad. the state of iowa comes first for him. iowans are well acquainted with terry branstad's accomplishments and work ethic. it's gratifying to see those attributes get written on a national scale and in the history books. he's earned his place in history of course, first lady christine branstad ought to be complimented, too. we thank her for her public service and most importantly for sharing her family with all iowans. we're lucky to have had governor terry branstad for these years as chief executive in iowa and of course i'm lucky to call him a friend. i yield the floor.

a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: madam president, it's my understanding now that some of our colleagues want to talk about our visit to paris, so -- but i understand senator hatch intends to be on the floor at approximately 2:45 and we're recessing at 3:00. so i would ask consent that the following members be recognized for up to five minutes -- senator cardin, senator schatz, senator udall, senator shaheen, senator merkley, senator markey, senator coons. it may not be in that order, but between now and 2:45. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. cardin: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i had the opportunity of heading a delegation this past weekend of ten senators that went to paris for the cop-21 talks. that's the climate change talks that are taking place in paris. i was very proud of our

delegation consisting of senator whitehouse, senator franken, senator markey, senator merkley, senator udall, senator shaheen, senator booker and senator schatz. all of us participated in the meetings that took place in paris. we were impressed that 150 leaders of the world at one time were in paris and showed their support for a successful outcome on climate change and to express their urgency for dealing with this issue. it was i think a strong follow-up to the challenge pope francis gave all of us as to the moral challenge of our time to protect our planet for future generations. we recognize that our global health is at stake with the meetings in paris. whether we're talking about in our own individual states and i could talk about the people in smith island as they see their island disappearing or the

health of the chesapeake bay, my colleagues in the western part of this country could talk about the wildfires, what's happening there. in asia, we see climate, migrants as a result of climate change. in greenland, we see the glaciers disappearing. every nation is at risk as a result of global climate change, and that's why 150 leaders came to paris. the objective here is clear. you had a chance to talk to the secretary-general of the united nations ban kim moon. he made it clear that our goal should be at a minimum to increase the warming by two degrees celsius. that's doable. the scientists tell us that we can do it. and if we do, we'll have a healthier planet, we'll create more jobs and not only america but the world will be more secure. it was clear that u.s. leadership was critically important to that moment in

paris. president obama in getting china and other countries to submit action plans encouraged now over 180 countries that are participating in the paris talks to submit their own action plans to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. that represents 97% of the world emitters. as i have mentioned, we met with the secretary-general of the united nations ban kim moon. we also met with former vice president al gore. i think we all were inspired by his lifelong dedication to this issue. we had a chance to meet with the u.s. lead negotiator todd stern who updated us on what was happening. we were particularly impressed with senator minez, our secretary of energy. he had an nirl announced with other world leaders an innovation initiative, showing how we can use u.s. technology to make it easier for the world

to meet their goals in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and at the same time create more jobs here in america. it was an impressive display. we had a chance to meet with local leaders. mayor bloomberg convened a summit of mayors. i was proud that my mayor from baltimore city, stephanie rawlings blake was there. my colleagues participated in bilateral meetings with other countries to encourage them to be aggressive in submitting their obligations and how we can follow up and make sure we achieve our goals. it was clear that paris is heading towards a successful agreement, and it will have the u.s. support. we mentioned our commitment to carry out not just our individual commitment but to be part of the global agreements in paris. we pointed out that in 1992,

united nations framework convention on climate change was ratified by the united states senate. this is the legal basis for moving forward. he also pointed out that our obligations to comply with our own commitments are controlled by the clean air act which is the law of our country. we pointed out the actions taken by the obama administration, and we also pointed out that 69% of americans agree that we should have a multilateral commitment to reduce our carbon emissions. it was clear to us that working together that we can have a healthier planet for our children and our grandchildren. at this time, mr. president, i would yield the floor, if i could, to senator udall. senator udall is one of the great leaders on our environment and is a very active member of our delegation. the presiding officer: the senator from new mexico.

mr. udall: mr. president, let me first say to senator cardin who led our delegation, senator cardin's the ranking member on the foreign relations committee. foreign relations has a lot to do with this issue. he showed great leadership, and i believe he's passionate about this issue in finding solutions. and so we were somewhat disappointed that ten of us that went, all democrats. we were disappointed that republicans didn't join us. this is an issue that really needs bipartisanship. we need to join republicans and democrats to an issue that threatens our national security, threatens our economy, threatens our environment. it is an issue that is looming out there and needs attention. and so we look forward to work with our friends on the other

side of the aisle to move forward on this issue. as i looked over there and saw what was happening, i remember many of the briefings we've had and everyone that has looked at this challenge of global warming, of climate change says that we need to do two things. one is we need to drive capital to new energy, to new energy sources, to clean energy sources. we need to innovate is what they're talking about. if you get the capital there and you get the private sector working, you can come up with the solutions. and secondly, we need to put a signal in the marketplace to invest in clean energy and renewable energy. and i was so proud of what had happened over there in terms of the world joining together. more than 184 countries came together and we're going to see

the conclusion of it -- of their action this week, but they have stepped forward and said we are going to have targets, we're going to have goals, we're going to be transparent, we're going to let people -- we're going to move -- we're going to let people know we're moving in the direction, moving in the direction of solutions and doing something about this immense problem. so it was -- it was a major step forward to see those 184 countries step up and decide to do something. in addition, bill gates led a group of entrepreneurs over to paris to announce and to challenge the world about energy research and development. we had, as everyone knows -- bill gates is one of our great entrepreneurs. he and his wife are also philanthropists. he stepped up with 27 other

billionaires to say we're going to put billions into research and into development, and we're going to put it into innovation, and they call this project mission innovation. and they challenged other countries around the world to do the same thing. double their energy research and budgets. and so seeing those two things together, first of all, seeing 184 countries step up to the plate and say we're going to do this, and i think we're going to see those announcements in the next couple of days, and seeing these entrepreneurs step forward , i think was a signal and a bold signal to the marketplace that we're changing and moving in a new direction and that we're going to get this done. now, my state of new mexico, i'm very proud of my state because we have all sources of energy. we have uranium, we have coal,

we have oil, we have gas, and we have many renewable sources: wind, biomass, solar, geothermal. but we've taken a strong step in new mexico to push for renewable resources. in our statutes in the state, we push for renewable electricity standard by 10% in 20%. we met that early and so we put in another standard in place of 20% by 2020. we're reeling in the bull's eye in terms of climate change in new mexico because what we see and what we know is that what happens in the southwest, the temperatures are twice as high. and we've seen it, those temperatures increase over the last 50 years. so we know there's a crisis. we know there's an issue. we know we need to do something about this. and we are very, very willing to step forward. and i see my colleagues have

joined me on the floor: senator schatz, senator had a sheen, con here. cory booker. i would yield to senator schatz and say by introduction, i am so impressed with his state, why he is going to be a renewable state in 2040. a lot of that is due to his leadership and his legislature and his governor stepping up to the plate. with that, senator schatz. mr. schatz: thank you, mr. president. i thank the senior senator from new mexico for his long time leadership on climate and conservation issues. i've been working on this for a long time as many of us on the floor have been working on this for a long time, and i have not been so hopeful in a very, very long time. i'm reminded of the essential elements of success when it comes to an international agreement, and that is american

leadership. we still remain the indispensable nation, and we finally reasserted ourselves and reclaimed the moral high ground and the political high ground that put us in a position to stitch together an international agreement. and so one of the observations i'll offer from the paris climate talks is how positive the response was. i think we anticipated that we were going to have to do perhaps more trouble shooting, more allaying of concerns about america's commitment to climate action than we ended up having to do, and that is because people understand that the president is commitmented. people understand that the clean power plan is going forward. and we're making progress and there's no turning back. i'd like to offer seven observations about the paris climate talks. i yield the floor.

mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the senate now proceed to calendar number 116, h.r. 2250. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 116, h.r. 2250, aaron act making appropriations for the legislative branch for the fiscal year ending 2016 and for other purposes. the presiding officer: is there objection to proceeding to the measure? without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent the committee-reported amendment be withdrawn and the mcconnell substitute amendment which is the text of h.j. res. 75, be agreed to, that the bill as amended be read a third time and the senate vote on passage of the bill with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection.

the clerk will read the title of the bill for the third time. the clerk: calendar number 116, h.r. 2250, an act making appropriations for the legislative branch for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2016, and for other purposes. the presiding officer: the question is on passage of the bill as amended. all those in favor signify by saying aye. those opposed say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the bill as amended is passed. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the title amendment at the desk be agreed to. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. schatz: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from hawaii.

mr. schatz: thank you, mr. president. to continue, i'd like to offer seven very quick observations about the paris climate talks and the first is this, it's already a success. if you had told any knowledgeable observer that they were going to get 185 countries representing 97% of countries, 98% of emissions and 150 heads of state in the same place at the same time, the most in history, if you had said that two years ago, that would have sounded wildly optimistic. we really are making progress. the second thing is that this is not going to require senate approval. there have been more than 18,000 such agreements that our presidents in the past have entered into over time, not requiring senate approval. the third thing, and this is important but it shouldn't be overstated, it's not enough. if we want to hit the two-degree celsius target, this only gets

us about 40% there. but 40% there is 40% there. we were at zero three weeks ago. so getting 40% there i think is really important. i think the other thing that we've learned from other states, other counties and other countries and even in the private sector is that once you unleash the power of clean energy on the private sector, there's no turning back. and so we anticipate being able to ratchet up these agreements every three to five years on an international basis. number four, it is way more than expected and way more than ever before. number five, i think we need to know that there are some pretty good accountability and transparency mechanisms in there. this was a key element of the negotiations that secretary kerry and the president himself have insisted upon. we need to know the united states has a robust reporting mechanism. we know at the public utilities

commission level, at the regional level, we know exactly what our energy portfolio is. that's a little bit more of a challenge in the developing world, and so we had to develop a matrix so that we know that countries aren't cheating or they're not getting their own data wrong. and i feel satisfied that it's likely to hit those marks. number six, it's wildly popular in the united states. two-thirds of americans support an international climate agreement, a bare majority of republicans, a decisive majority of young republicans and decisive majority of democrats and independents support international climate action. and number seven is this, people are going to try to undo this. they're going to do it through the congressional review act. they're going to try to do it through the appropriations process, they're going to try to do it through the electoral process and that is the democratic process, and that's okay. but there is no turning back

either legislatively, politically or in terms of the momentum that we have in the private sector. and i'd like to introduce someone who has come at climate from a different perspective, as he always does, who's become a leader on these issues, who is an incredible asset during the weekend where we were in paris, and that is the junior senator from new jersey, mr. cory booker. the presiding officer: the senator from new jersey. mr. booker: mr. president, i'm grateful to have just a brief moment. first and foremost, i want to thank the group of senators that went over to paris on the codel. it was very important that the united states of america was well represented there, that this body was well represented there. i want to especially thank senator cardin for leading that codel. his leadership was critical, as a person who is a ranking member of foreign relations, to have him lead and understand that this is a critical issue not

just with regard to the climate in general, but also to our national defense, to our strength as a nation, to our economy, it is good to have him leading, understanding the breadth of these issues. i have to say when i was over there, i was moved to see virtually all of the globe represented by leaders, heads of state, members of parliament, n.g.o.'s, corporations, major global dominant corporations, everyone was there. it was an array of the planet coming together focused on this issue of the impacts of climate change. conversations ranged from focusing on us being innovative in how we were dealing with renewable technology so that technology can be a great pathway towards sustainability of the future all the way to resiliency and making sure that we are doing the things to protect populations from the effect of climate change, especially when it comes to poor populations who are disproportionately affected. i had the chance, the honor

while i was there leading a bilateral conversation with bangladesh, talking to peer leaders, united states sitting down at the table, across the table, we had ministers and parliamentary members from bangladesh. by many estimates, bangladesh is the most vulnerable country on the globe to climate change, the most vulnerable large country to climate change. it's about the size of iowa. it's facing serious challenges with the melting off the himalayas as well as rising sea levels. due to climate change, bangladesh right now is losing 1% of its airable land each year and is projected over the next decade or so leading into 2030 to lose a large percentage of their land, including displacing millions and millions of bangladeshi, literally creating climate refugees. and the sea levels rising really predicted to inundate about 15% of the land area and creating

these refugees makes it a reality for them that is so urgent that they came there with a large degree of mission to join with other global actors. i was proud to be able to sit with them and talk to them about new jersey, not only a state that has 75,000 people who are bangladeshis, but also a state that knows that our economy, our strength as a state will be affected by climate change as well. we're already seeing what's happening with the warming of our oceans, the acidification of our oceans, how it's affecting the many jobs related to our fishing industry. we're already seeing the challenges with our climate in terms of increased weather activity and severe storms. this is an issue that affects america, that we cannot solve without joining with the rest of the globe. we know that the injustices that are happening to our nation in terms of increased fires, in

terms of our seas, the challenges being faced with weather activity internally in our country, we know these yeeshes -- issues can only be solved globally. that is why i'm grateful for those who understand that american leadership is needed. i'm proud to stand here with colleagues of mine and continue to send a strong message to the rest of the globe that we are here in the united states strongly supporting the ambitious commitments of president obama, the ones that he is making that we will defend those communities that are facing this crisis in the immediate and long term we will be leaders. and with that, i just want to say one of my colleagues and someone who i've come to respect quite a bit was an incredibly strong voice in paris, someone who is committed to these issues not only in her home state, but as an american across our country, i would like to now, mr. president, be able to engage

and acknowledge senator jeanne shaheen. the presiding officer: the senator from new hampshire. mrs. shaheen: thank you, senator booker. i am pleased to be here on the floor with my colleagues. those of us who went to paris, led by senator cardin, for this climate summit. at the conference in paris, more than 180 countries, accounting for over 90% of global emissions were there, and they've all submitted their plans for how they're going to reduce emissions with the goal of keeping global warming below two degrees centigrade by the end of this century. now, one of the things that i was impressed with in paris was that the countries who were there represented everybody from china to the marshal islands, and all of them understood that climate change is real, it's a threat to our planet and we've got to do something about it. and they understand that because they've seen it. they've seen it in their home countries. they've seen rising sea levels,

extreme weather events, environmental changes all linked to global warming. and here in the united states we see it too. according to a recent pew poll, two-thirds of all americans recognize that climate change is real and that action must be taken to address it. we see it in my home state of new hampshire, where we're seeing a change in our wildlife population, a change in our snowpack that affects our ski season, our foliage season is affected. it has an economic impact on our state. but the exciting thing is -- and we saw this very clearly in paris -- is that at the local level, mayors, governors, local leaders around the world understand that we've got to take action to address it, and they were there in paris urging the negotiators to come to some sort of an agreement. now, in new hampshire, we've taken action. we have been part with nine

other northeastern states of a regional cap-and-trade program called the regional greenhouse gas initiative, and as the result of that and other actions that we've taken, we are going to meet the goals of the clean power plan ten years early. the regional greenhouse gas initiative has generated $1.6 billion in net economic value. it's created more than 16,000 jobs across the region, and that's one of the benefits of the action that we can take to address climate change. but as we all know here, it doesn't matter what we do in new hampshire, it doesn't matter what we do in this country. unless we get a global agreement in paris so that we're all going to move forward together to address the harmful impacts of climate change, we're going to see the continued sea level rise, the continued extreme weather events, all of the continued negative impacts of

that global warming. so finally, i just want to say that for me one of the most exciting things about meeting with people when we were in paris was hearing that they were cautiously optimistic that we will get an agreement, that we will take action and we will be able to make a difference for our planet and for future generations. so i was pleased to have senator chris coons from delaware with us on this trip, and i know that he's going to talk about what he observed when we were in paris. the presiding officer: the senator from delaware. mr. coons: thank you, mr. president. i'd like to express my gratitude to senator gardner for leading this great delegation of ten senators to the paris conference of parties, the cop-21, the global climate change conference in paris, and to senator shaheen in new hampshire for her tireless leadership on energy efficiency, the least expensive, most powerful way that we can reduce our energy consumption is

by investing in new technologies and new approaches that helps create jobs in manufacturing in the united states and reduce our total energy consumption and footprint. i think the paris conference has already been a success from the outset. as we heard directly from the head of the punks ban ki-moon, 150 heads of state gathered at the very outset of that conference and 184 countries made voluntary national commitments to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions, to reducing their carbon footprint and to working together to find sustainable solutions to this very real challenge. the other thing i found most encouraging about the many conversations we had with governmental leaders, with advocates, with nonprofit leaders was a commitment to bring together both developed countries like the united states, european, asian allies of ours and the developing world, the very large countries such as india, china which have become major emitters of greenhouse gases to bring them all together into one common agreement. one other comment i'd make that

comes out of what we saw going through innovation fair that was hosted by secretary ernie muniz of our department of energy was that governments alone can't solve climate change. global conferences such as the one we attended are important, they are critical for making real and sustained impact on fighting climate change is also going to require new and innovative approaches, and that requires investment, by the private sector and by the federal government in clean energy and energy efficiency research and development. so commitments made in paris like the announced new mission innovation and the breakthrough energy coalition which are public-private partnerships to ramp up and accelerate our investment in research and development i think are more important than ever. we also had a chance to attend a meeting of sub national leaders, of mayors, counties executive, of governors and folks who lead regions and provinces around the world where remarkable progress has been made. at the same time that we're moving forward through this global conference as a group of nations, it's also important to

recognize what sub national groups have done. senator shaheen referenced the regional greenhouse gas initiative which new hampshire and my home state of delaware participated in. it's been a remarkable and effective way for a whole group of mid-atlantic and northeastern states to work together. the nine participating states have reduced our emissions by nearly 20% while also seeing stronger economic growth than the rest of the country. i think suggesting it's possible for us to both reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and continue to grow a strong economy. in fact, my home state of delaware has reduced its g.h.g. emissions more than any other country in the last six years. that's partly due to the great leadership of my governor and it's partly due to the deployment of a lot of new solar systems and a lot of investment in energy efficiency. let me if i might mention one important piece of bipartisan legislation that i think is part of solving this challenge of how do we achieve an all of the above energy future that has sustained long-term investments in clean energy and energy

efficiency research and deployment, and that's the master limited partnership parity act. this is a very bipartisan bill that's long had the support of republican senators murkowski, moran, collins and gardner. even congressman ted poe of houston, texas, who represents a great deal of oil and gas in his district are advocates for this bill. i have been leading it along with senator stabenow and bennet and king and others here in this chamber. it's an important way that we can allow master limited partnerships long available to the oil and gas industry to be opened up to all forms of energy to really make it a level playing field and to provide opportunities going forward to finance renewable energy products and energy efficiency projects. this small tweak to our tax tax code could really -- make a big difference. let me renew that government alone can't solve climate change but has a central role to play in bringing together the people who can. let's pass this act.

let's make long-term sustained investments in federal r&d, and let's bring together public, private and nonprofit leaders because there is no limit to what we can accomplish when our brightest scientific minds, business leaders and our diplomats working for us in paris come together to lay out a positive, sustained goal. now i'd like to yield the floor to my colleague, the junior senator from the state of rhode island who has been a tremendous and tireless champion for conservation and in particular for our oceans, which are such a vital part of our climate future. mr. president, i yield the floor to senator whitehouse of rhode island. the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: mr. president, one of the features of our trip to paris was the presence of america's corporate leaders there urging us on, and we not only met with significant corporate leaders like people from citigroup and pg & e and others, but they were cheering us on publicly and advertisements like this one taken out by the food and beverage industry calling on a strong paris climate agreement.

and the companies who signed this include mars. if you like m & m's, you like mars. general mills, coca-cola and pepsico, hershey and nestle, kellogg, unileaver and others. the food and beverage industry was joined by an advertisement from some of america's apparel leaders, v.f. corporation based in north carolina which produces northface and timberland and a whole variety of other very, very well-known and popular drandz. adidas, the shoe manufacturer. levi's. if you know jeans, you know levi's. gap which has stores all over the country and others from the apparel industry. perhaps the biggest advertisement that the american business community took out was this one, companies like not only johnson and johnson, the band-aid people, but johnson controls, colgate palmolive,

owens-corning, procter and gamble, dupont and utilities like national grid and pg&e. so corporate america made a really strong statement in support of a strong paris climate deal. and the last one i'll show is this one which was taken out by america's financial leaders. bank of america, citi, goldman sachs, j.p. morgan chase, morgan stanley and wells fargo. so there was a strong, powerful message from america's corporate leadership that i very much hope our colleagues on the other side will begin to listen to that paris is a good thing and a strong agreement is a good thing and we need to make progress together. with that, i'll turn the floor to my terrific colleague, senator merkley, from oregon. the presiding officer: the senator from oregon.

mr. merkley: huge thanks to my colleagues who have been presenting so many important dimensions of this battle against a major threat to the health of our planet. indeed, henry david thoreau said what use is a home if you don't have a tolerable planet to put it on? well, that's an excellent question decades ago, but an even more important one today when we have a significant threat that endangers our forests, our farming, our fishing, human civilization on this planet, and this is the challenge of our generation to bring human civilization together to address carbon pollution and its impacts. while in paris, something very exciting is going on. 150 world leaders came together to kick off final negotiations. that is unprecedented in human

history. and why were so many leaders there? they were there because they are seeing the impacts in their own individual nations that's coming from the rising temperatures. and they came together not just with their voice but with their pledges. in fact, more than 180 countries put forward pledges about how they were going to reduce the trajectory of their carbon pollution footprints. they know what is at stake. and we certainly know in oregon what is at stake. we see the pine beetle devastate ing forests, creating a red zone of dying trees. we see the longer forest fire season having a big impact with more intense places and more of them over more months. we see the impact of the loss of snow pack in the cascades, impacting our streams and impacting the water supply for

structure. in the klamath basin along with california are locked into a deep, deep drought along with devastateing consequences, and we see it over on our coast where the more acidic pacific ocean is creating problems for our shellfish industry because the baby oysters have trouble making their shells. and how is this connected? because the carbon pollution in the air is absorbed into the ocean via waves, creates carbonic acid and that more acidic water is eroding the ability of our shellfish to operate as they have for millennium in making shells. well, we know this is not just something in oregon and not just something in maryland and not just something in this state or that state but worldwide where 2014 was the warmest year on record, and in fact 14 of the 15 warmest years on record have happened in this century, and now we see 2015 on the trajectory and it's going to be

warmer than 2014. so there is nothing -- there is nothing disputable about the facts. rising carbon dioxide and methane pollution, rising consequences for our states across america, rising consequences for the world. and scientists tell us it will just get worse. we have only had a .9-degree centigrade increase. if we get to two degrees, it's catastrophic. it's pretty bad now. it gets catastrophic. so we must come together as an international community and address that. and so in paris, we know that we need to have a more ambitious agenda than the one that we have laid out even with these wonderful pledges, and we need to come back every five years and keep driving the process forward. we know that we have to lower the costs for renewable energy so that we can come back together and increase the pace at which we pivot from a fossil fuel energy economy to a

renewable energy economy. we know we need to invest in solar deployment and there is the international solar initiative that india is going to host and work to deploy trillion dollar solar panels. and we know that innovation matters and mission innovation with the united states and other nations, doubling their investment over the next five years to do a lot more to lower costs, increase the efficiency of technologies and clean power and clean power storage. it is a big challenge, and i am so delighted to be able to be part of the community of legislators, and one of those legislators who has led on this in the house for decades, brought his expertise to the senate, is my colleague from massachusetts, senator markey. the presiding officer: the senator from massachusetts. mr. markey: i thank the president. i thank the gentleman from oregon for his leadership bringing the message of the harm being done to our natural world,

and i thank you for your leadership and i thank senator cardin for taking this delegation of ten members to paris, and i thank -- i thank you for having this session out here on the floor. i'm just going to speak briefly. it is to say this: we are at an inflection point. we're at a point where the danger to the planet is clear. 2014 was the warmest year ever recorded. this past november is the longest -- is the warmest november ever recorded. october was the warmest october ever recorded. there is now a warming of our planet that is intensifying dangerously, and we have to act in order to avoid the most catastrophic consequences. that is what's happening in paris right now. the united states is leading. the rest of the world has come together, and we have a chance

to have a very good agreement. and we are going to have the president's back because the 1992 treaty under which he is negotiating was ratified by this body. the clean air act that he's operating under was passed by this body. the clean power rules, the increase in fuel economy standards, they're all part of why -- the presiding officer: the senator's time has expired. mr. markey: may i ask for an adid i recall one minute to speak? the presiding officer: is there 0 snk -- is there objecti? without objection. mr. markey: i thank you. and yet this afternoon and i think for the continuation of the next week, the republicans and the american petroleum industry are going to try to lift the ban on the exportation of american oil that could lead to more drilling for millions of barrels of oil on our soil, while at the same time not giving a simultaneous equal extension of wind and solar tax

breaks so that we can continue this revolution that we are bragging about in paris right now to the rest of the world. and these two things do not go together. you cannot simultaneously drill for more oil that is not drilled for today and then have an ending of the wind and solar tax breaks as they're kicking in. you cannot teac preach temperane from a barstool. you cannot preach temperance as you're putting up new oil rigs while simultaneously saying the wind and solar tax breaks are going to end. we have to have both, if there is going to be a deal. right now that's in question in this chamber in this body. it is important for the american people to know that answer because in paris they're waiting for this answer. there are 190 nations that want to know, are we actually going to do that we say we're going to do in this agreement that we are trying to reach, the most

important agreement for this century in terms of the well-being of the planet? i thank the president for allowing me that courtesy, and i thank the senator from utah for his forebearance, and i yield back the balance of my time. hch hcmr. hatch: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from utah. mr. hatch: i ask unanimous consent that i be permitted to finish these remarks. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. hatch: today i complete the series on religious freedom. chart aging a path forward requs taking stock of where we are right now anding where we've been. the story of religious freedom shows that we must choose between two starkly different paths. the story begins with religious freedom itself and why it is uniquely important and requires special protection. as i said in september, quote,

"no decision is more fundamental to human significance than the decision we make regarding our relationship to the divine. no act of government can be more intrusive and invaif of individual autonomy and free will than the act of compel ago person to violate his or her sincerely chosen religious beliefs." unquote. the story continues with the central place of religious freedom in america's identity. at no time in world history has religious freedom been such an integral part of a nation's origin and character. the seeds were planted centuries before the actual founding of this country with one religious community after another coming to these shores to freely practice their faith. when congress unanimously enacted the international religious freedom act less thafn two decades ago, we thraird tha- declared that religious freedom "undergirds the very origin and existence of the united states." the story of religious freedom in americ includes understandinh

its status and substance. in october i explained how the status of religious freedom can be summarized as both inalienable and preeminent. religious freedom is inalienable because as the declaration of independence asserts, it comes from god, no the from government. -- not from government. and because it is endowed, that is part of our very humanity. and religious freedom is preeminent -- or as james madison put it -- quote -- "precedent in regards civil vote. i also explained that the substance of religious freedom can be understood in terms of its depth or what it includes and its breadth or to whom it applies. religious freedom includes much more thank religious belief or speech. in fact, protecting in law both religious belief and the exercise of that belief preceded the first amendment by 150 years. madison again gives us guidance

defining the exercise of religion as the freely chosen manner of discharge the duty an individual beliefs he or she owes to god. this includes both belief and behavior in public and in private, individually and collectively. the substance of religious freedom also includes its breadth of application to all human beings. the first amendment protects not certain exercise of religion or the exercise of religion by certain persons but the free exercise of religion itself. as i mentioned, congress unanimously enacted the international religious freedom act. the vote in this body was 98-0. and 21 senators serving today, 12 republicans and 9 democrats, voted for this legislation. so did vice president joe biden and secretary of state john kerry, who were serving here. that law declares our religious freedom to be a universal human right, a pillar of our nation and a fundamental freedom.

this is the path of religious freedom on which we traveled for three industries before a very different path emrnled. in november i outlined how the course had begun -- courts had begun to distort the first amendment's protection for religious freedom. america's founders included a narrow prohibition on governme government, establishment of religion as a support for the broad individual freedom to exercise religion. since the mid-20th century, however, courts have instead expanded the establishment clause into a virtual ban on religion in public life and narrowed the free exercise clause so that government may more easily restrict the practice of religion itself. i also examined how the courts, the obama administration, and the state legislatures are contributing to attacks on religious freedom. right here in america, the common theme in these attacks is that far from being special, religious freedom must yield to

other values or political objectives. even worse, some wil are arguing that religious freedom is something negative that should be limited or even suppressed. these attacks not only target particular exercises of religion but undermine religious freedom tssments rather than inalienable, these attacks would turn religious freedom into something restricted by government at its whim. instead of preeminent, these attacks would reduce religious freedom to something optional and subservient. remember than something deep and broad, these attacks would turn religious freedom into something shallow and narrow. state courts, for example, have imposed heavy fines on business owners-to-who decline, based on their religious beliefs to provide services such as photography, flowers, or catering for same-sex weddings. the decision by these business owners to not prevent anyone from get being married or from having the wedding they chose.

other photographers, florists and bakers gladly step up to do business. the only real effect of these fines was to punish these individuals for exercising their religious beliefs. by punishing the exercise of religion itself, these courts are saying that religious freedom must necessarily yield to other political priorities. obamacare made the same two-part attack on religious freedom but on a much larger scale. first, far from trying to accommodate religious freedom in developing obamacare or its implementing regulations, neither congress nor the obama administration gave religious freedom any consideration whatsoever. this is appalling in several different ways. national only does it reflect a callous attitude towards this fundamental right but it ignores the religious freedom

restoration act command that federal law properly accommodate religious freedom. the only way true void that requirement -- to avoid that requirement is for congress to explicitly exempt a statute from rfra's standard. congress did not do so but consider this. on january 15, 2010, president obama issued his first religious freedom day proke ma'amation. he reaffirmed our nation's enduring commitment to the universal human right of religious freedom." just two months later he signed into law the statute that so blatantly ignored and would be used to undermine that very universal human right. the second way that obamacare undermines religious freedom is by imposing significant burdens on the actual exercise of religion. the department of health and human services, for example, tried to force business owners to provide insurance coverage for methods of birth control that violate their religious beliefs.

thankfully, the supreme court last year said that the obama administration should have more properly accommodated religious freedom. another co-pays is now before the supreme court in which the obama administration is demanding that a religious organization be forced to participate in providing insurance coverage for practices that violate their religious beliefs. the obama administration with its army of smart lawyers and deep well of taxpayer dollars is fighting tooth and nail to make sure that it's political objectives quash religious freedom. last week i outlined the benefits that religion and religious freedom provide. it is essential to forming and securing our basic rights. religion was the engine driving great social movements such as abolition and civil rights. it motivates significantly greater contributions by individuals to charities of all kinds and inspires many of the largest charitable organizations

in the country. but religion is not simply beneficial to society. it is an indispensable feature of any free government. without religion and the moral structure it provides, freedom falters and democracy all too easily dissolves -- dissolved into tyrant. in the 18th century, the massachusetts constitution of 1780 declared that -- quote -- "the happiness of a people and the good order and preservation of civil government essentially depend upon piety, religion, and moral rattle." and in the 21st century, a harvard professor marian glenn deny argued that religious freedom reduces societal violence and correlates with democratic longevity." mr. president, the story of religious freedom that i have offered over the last few months

presents a choice that we must make as we consider the way forward. on one path, religious freedom is an inalienable and preeminent right of all people. on the other path, it is uncertain and optional -- it is an uncertain and optional possibility for some people. on one path the government must accommodate religious freedom. on the other path, religious freedom must accommodate the government. one path is consistent with our history, founding, character, commitments, and example to the rest of the world. the other path rejects that history, turns its back on our commitments, and abandons human rights in favor of shifting political agendas. here is how i put it in one of my speeches last month. "subjugating religious beliefs to government decrees is not the price of citizenship. to the contrary, respecting and

honoring the fundamental rights of all americans is the price our government pays to enjoy the continued consent of the american people." we must decide whether we still believe what our nation, people, and leaders have done. james ma madison wrote that religious freedom is an inalienable right that takes precedence over the claims of civil society. thomas jefferson said that religious freedom is "the most inalienabled and sacred of all human rights." franklin roosevelt said that religious freedom is a fundamental and essential human freedom. the united states voted for the universal declaration of human rights in 1948, signed the helsinki accords in 1975, and ratified the international covenant and civil and political rights in 1992. each of these identifies religious freedom as a

fundamental human right that includes both belief and behavior in public and in private, individually and collectively. congress enacted the religious freedom restoration act almost unanimously in 1994. irknow, i know. i was the principal advocate for it. it sets tough standard and offers this protection for all exercise of religion by all people. democrats and republicans, liberals and conservatives adherence of different phase, everyone joined hands on these basic principles and i might add hatch and kennedy joined hands as well. in his 2013 religious freedom day proclamation, president obama said that religious freedom is an essential part of human dignity. this is the path on which america began, the path america's founders embraced, the path that all three branches of government have healt recognizeh that we have reaffirmed countless times. thur