helper, conference report conference report to the military can action, veterans and zika virus though. a boat to advance at 11:00 a.m. eastern time. tomorrow the senate is likely to return for the restructuring puerto rico is dad. a boat as possible in one day. live now to the u.s. senate. the president pro tempore: the senate will come to order. the chaplain dr. barry black will lead the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray. eternal god, the center of our joy, we lift our eyes to you. in a world with change and decay, you are changeless. your presence makes us glad and

your peace guards our hearts. lord, today keep the eyes of our lawmakers focused on you. may they look to you in their going out and coming in and in their rising up and lying down. may they see you in their labor and leisure and in their pleasure and sorrow. guide them in life's morning and evening, for the kingdom, power and the glory belong to you. give them the wisdom to seize this day, working creatively to

keep america strong. we pray in your majestic name. amen. the president pro tempore: please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to our flag. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i understand there is a bill at the desk that is due a second reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the title of the bill for the second time. the clerk: s. 3100, a bill to

ensure that state and local law enforcement may cooperate with federal officials to protect our communities from violent criminals and suspected terrorists who are illegally present in the united states. mr. mcconnell: on the calendar under the provisions of rule 15, i would object to further proceedings. the presiding officer: objection is heard. the bill will be placed on the calendar. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, we have all heard democrats warn that -- quote -- we cannot delay any longer on zika control funding. we've heard them warn that -- quote -- every day we wait is increasing the risks that we will have problems with zika. we even heard them warn that, and i quote, the mosquitoes are not going to be on recess. but now as we are about to vote on a bicameral compromise which reflects the $1.1 billion funding level that democrats already unanimously supported here in the senate, they are threatening to block the

zika-controlled money. the democratic leader yesterday went so far as to say his members -- quote -- have no choice but to oppose it. he and our friends across the aisle can try to come up with a line of excuses as to why they are blocking funding to address the zika crisis and blocking support for our nation's veterans, but here's what it all boils down to. this is partisan politics. they might like to pretend this zika control measure is woefully inadequate, but senate democrats are all on record supporting this level of funding and the c.d.c. director has testified that his $1.1 billion funding level is sufficient -- this is the head of the c.d.c. -- is sufficient to do the things we need to do in the immediate term. that's the head of the c.d.c. they might like to pretend this zika control measure walks back clean water protections, but that's false, too. it actually contains a temporary

targeted compromise to promote mosquito control as long-term solutions like a vaccine are being developed. they might like to dust off the war on women playbook, too, but this zika control measure actually provides more, i repeat, more resources for women's health services through community health centers, public health departments and hospitals. it's really puzzling to hear democrats claim to be advocates for women health measures when they are the ones trying to block the zika legislation and its critical resources to protect women's health. the zika virus infection during pregnancy, the c.d.c. has said can cause a serious defect called microen cephaly as well as other severe fetal brain defects, so today democrats have a choice. continue pushing thinly veiled

partisan arguments and block the zika control funding or join with us to advance a serious solution and send critical funding to the president's desk right now. remember, this legislation is the last chance we have to get a zika-control funding to the president's desk for weeks. we should pass it to protect those especially at risk like pregnant women and babies. we should pass it to help prevent the spread of zika and other mosquito-borne illnesses. we should pass it to help keep americans safer from public -- from this public health concern in the midst of the mosquito season. we know that blocking this bill would mean preventing critical anti-zika funds from moving one step closer to becoming law. but here's what else it would mean. blocking critical funding for our veterans, our service members and their families.

these men and women voluntarily serve in our armed forces in order to protect our country and our freedom. they don't ask for much, but we ask so much of them. that's why we must meet our commitment to them by passing this veterans and military construction funding measure as soon as possible. this bill will increase critical resources to help ensure veterans receive health care and the health benefits they rely on. it will improve quality of life on military bases for soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and their families. and it will support critical national security projects like missile defense. it's a bipartisan measure that earns the support of both democrats blainsd when it passed the -- democrats and republicans when it passed the senate. so let's work together today and pass it again.

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the democratic leader. mr. reid: i don't know what planet my friend, the republican leader, is living on. this conference report is the most irresponsible legislation i have ever seen in my 34 years in congress. that says a lot. i can't think of anything that's close. this zika threat is real. it's serious. every day more and more americans are being infected. according to the centers for disease control, right now today 2,900 americans have already contracted zika. 700 just last week alone added to that. it was 2,200. now it's 2,900 in one week.

481 pregnant women have been tested positive for the virus in the united states. eight pregnancies in the u.s. have resulted in severe birth defects because of zika. when we talk about severe birth defects, we mean it. little shrunken heads. their skulls caved in. mosquitoes have caused problems forever, but never welcome birth defects. but in spite of all the evidence, the zika is harming the american people, republicans pushing of a conference report is nothing more than a goody bag for the fringes of the republican party. in april, very recently, the republican leader told reporters, and i quote what he told them -- "we're all very much aware that this is a serious crisis. we'll be working with the administration, with the democrats." close quote.

that simply hasn't proven to be true. on the conference committee, the democrats were locked out of negotiations. then they jammed through this bill -- when i say in the middle of the night, it was in the middle of the night. it was during the time when they had the sit-in on the house floor. chaos was there. there was no debate, no discussion. it was just ruled there by the presiding officer. it shortchanged the republicans' request by $800 million. it took another $100 million from the ebola funds which are badly needed. all you have to talk to anyone at n.i.h., the centers for disease control, they'll tell you. ebola is not gone. then they proceeded to -- i don't know if they sat in a room and said let's do everything we can just to hit every constituency group the american

people like and let's just do that, and that's what they did. how about women's health? how anti-women's health can they make it? i tell you what, we're dealing here with pregnant women, women who want some type of birth control. the republican conference report restricts funding for birth control provided by planned parenthood. my friend says they can go someplace else for it. in america today, a huge segment of the american people, this is the only place they can go for help. women need planned parenthood, and what do republicans do? because of their fixation on doing everything they can to hurt planned parenthood, they do these phony television interviews. they have fake cameras. the courts have decided it was wrong what they did. they have been sued. but that's okay.

anything we can do to whack planned parenthood, we're going to do it, and they tried it here. how about anti-obamacare? trying to revoke it almost 70 times. didn't work. so what they did, they just rescind $543 million, stick it in this conference report. i guess that was just to get the president's attention. of course he's going to veto this, but maybe they wanted to make sure that he would have something really substantive to do it with. how about anti-environment? remember, what we're trying to do, in addition to all the things we have talked about, we want to make sure there is a way of getting rid of these pests, these mosquitoes. how do we do that? the only way we found that was really, really effective was with spraying. kill these little varmints, these insects. well, so what they do, the republicans, they exempt pesticide spraying from the clean water act. why? just because they don't like the e.p.a., they don't like the

clean water act that's been around for 60 years. they just don't like it. how about -- we know democrats have a big constituency with veterans. why not whack them? okay. let's do that. what we'll do is we'll take $500 million from veterans' health. that should get the democrats' attention. they couldn't stop themselves from coming up with every idea. i guess they were waiting around while that chaos was going on on the senate floor, can we think of anything else that would just be really good to do? oh, i got it. why don't we rescind the order that's in effect saying you can't fly the confederate flag on military cemeteries. great idea. okay. i'm glad you came up with that. we're going to stick that in there, too. under this legislation, the republicans stuck in this to prohibit the legislation that says you can't fly a confederate flag on a military cemetery. under their legislation, you can go ahead and do it.

this conference report is disgraceful, it's shameful to use a real-life public health crisis to push the radical republican agenda. now, it's radical. i have told you what they're doing. there is a point of order against the bill also. we could raise that. republicans were eager to inject politics in this legislation. they even rescinded funds for the affordable care act, making the bill rescindable. for these and other reasons, we're going to vote against cloture. but it's not just democrats saying this bill is a disaster. no, don't leave it to us. i ask consent to be able to put in the record a letter from 40 health care groups, public health groups. some of these radical organizations like the march of dimes, american academy of pediatrics, american college of obstetricians and gynecologists. how about easter seals, the american public health

association, and 35 more. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: these organizations are blasting this republican conference. they're doing it because they want real legislation to fund zika. they call on congress to pass a bill that i quote, "provides appropriate funding levels for all aspects of d.c. response, including contraception for women who wish to avoid pregnancy and prevent the sexual transmission of zika." they want to build -- does not draw funds from other important public health problems like ebola. they want to build a foundation for 2016 funding that could be built upon responsibly in subsequent years since zika will

be a long-term challenge and is capable of garnering bipartisan support. the letter goes on to say and i continue the quote, "the fact that it is almost july and congress has failed to act would seem to reflect on an appalling indifference to the lives of infants and their lives." this is not democrats saying these. these are these public health organizations. they're aghast at what the republicans are doing. but instead of accepting the bill, it's a failure that's going nowhere. republicans are making these threats. yesterday the assistant republican leader came here and said republicans are going to ban the zika funding negotiations after this vote. that republicans are on pace to work fewest days that the senate has worked in more than 60 years. 60 years ago the country was much, much smaller, a lot less people here, a lot less business, but even with that, we're working less than they did

60 years ago. in two weeks the senate plans to leave washington for seven weeks which is the longest summer recess since we can remember. is it too much to ask republicans to work until we have done our job and giving states and territories the resources they need to fight zika and protect women? public health organizations don't think so and we don't either. republicans need to get serious about sending president obama the full $1.9 billion that doctors, researchers, nurses, public health experts say is needed to fight zika. every moment republicans delay, there are other cases of zika on innocent women which affects their children more than one can imagine. mr. president, i would ask that you announce what we're going to do the rest of the morning. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration

of the conference report to accompany h.r. 2577 which the clerk will report. the clerk: conference report to accompany h.r. 2577 an act making appropriations for the departments of transportation, housing and urban development and related agencies for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2016, and for other purposes. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: under the previous order, the time until the vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the conference report will be equally divided between the two leaders or their designees. the senator from new york. mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. i rise today because i want to share a few words on the zika component of the conference report on the milcon v.a. appropriations bill which will be on the floor shortly. unfortunately but maybe not surprisingly, my friends on the other side of the aisle have bowed down to their friends on the hard right and whittled this bill on zika with poison pill provisions. mr. president, if there was ever a bill designed to fail, it's

what the republicans have put together on zika today. this bill is not only going to fail, it was designed to fail from the very beginning. democrats have pushed for over four months for legislation on zika. ever since the c.d.c. and the administration requested $1.9 billion in emergency funding to deal with the threat, we tried to work with our friends on the other side of the aisle. but after we compromised at $1.1 billion, after we reached the supposed agreement and passed it in this body 89 -- with 89 votes, the overwhelming majority from both parties, republicans turned around without any consultation of democrats in the house and senate and rammed through a wish list of poison pill riders that defeat the very purpose of the effort. rather than working with democrats to produce something both parties can support,

republicans abandoned compromise in favor of an extreme right wing bill. these changes reflected in the conference report have poisoned the bill. it now cuts ebola funding by $107 billion. it cuts funding for the affordable care act by $543 million. it sets a precedent that emergencies have to be funded when in the past they have not been. and worst of all, it restricts funding for family planning services provided by health centers and providers like planned parenthood. we know zika can be sexually transmitted. we know that it poses the biggest danger to pregnant women and their unborn children, many of whom rely on health centers and planned parenthood as their primary health care provider, but republicans can't miss a chance to whack planned

parenthood, even if their services are exactly what can help prevent the spread of this debilitating virus. i look -- never passed his lips as he talked about the bill. planned parenthood. why? because he knows that not saying don't fund planned parenthood is a poison pill if there ever was one. he knows that it was a poison pill last year when we were negotiating a short-term budget agreement and there would be no budget if it was in there. our republican leaders are engaged in a cynical game. they have to assure the hard right that they're not funding anything, even something as important as zika, but they know the american people demand funding. and so they put in these poison pills. cynical, cynical game and it shall not stand. my prediction, republicans will

come back after this amendment as they knew, as this proposal as they know will be defeated. they knew it. and they'll come back after a few weeks with their tail between their legs saying let's pass something. we know we have to do something on zika. why they don't avoid that embarrassment is beyond me. it say that the zika legislation is a daylight and a dollar short would be a drastic understatement. it's four months late and $800 billion short. and now to boot, it cannibalizes funding from other important health priority itself. and then -- priorities. and then after all of this, the distinguished majority leader came to the floor yesterday to accuse democrats of playing politics with the bill because we were concerned with these changes. what a cynical and hypocritical thing to do. all democrats have ever asked for on zika was to give the

c.d.c. and the other agencies to protect the american people. pregnant mothers and their babies from this dangerous virus. it wasn't democrats who said let's give c.d.c. only about half the money they said they need. no, republicans did that. it wasn't democrats who tried to jam through poison pill amendments to the bill in the dead of night with no debate. no. republicans did that. it wasn't democrats who dithered for months on end until mosquito season was already upon us to bring a bill forward. no. republicans did that. and it wasn't democrats who loaded up the bill with partisan plums and say unless the other side passes this bill, they're playing politics. oh, no, it was republicans who did that. moreover, these tactics mean one thing. our republican colleagues and particularly the republican leadership in both the house and senate are not taking the zika

threat seriously. it's no way to handle an urgent public health crisis and we'll shortly hear from my friend from florida who can document what is happening in his state and what will happen in many other states as the warmer season, summer season moves on. mr. president, 2,600 americans have been diagnosed with the virus, including over 400 pregnant women. six pregnancies have been deemed to have birth defects as a result of zika. americans in puerto rico are especially impacted with 1800 locally acquired cases. it's a tragedy and we should be doing something in a bipartisan way. democrats and republicans together working to solve an emergency but, no, we get a bill riddled with poison pills done by one party designed to fail in obeisance to the right wing which doesn't want to spend any

money. look, mr. president, i hope my republican colleagues will stop this partisan gambit. our public health and our safety is at risk and come around to working with us on the issue in a serious bipartisan way. we are willing to compromise as the great leadership of the senator from washington showed when she came to compromise with the senator from tennessee on a proposal that didn't do everything we wanted but we voted for it. i hope that can happen again. if saner heads are going to prevail, it has to be in this body, and i would hope that leader mcconnell would rethink the strategy of going along with the cynical house bill so that we can negotiate something that will do good for america. mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from west virginia. mrs. capito: thank you, mr. president. wow, i come to the floor of the

senate to really talk about a real emergency that has just occurred in my state of west virginia. i know many of you across the country have witnessed and seen the terrible destruction for the sudden flash flood that ravaged west virginia on thursday late afternoon and evening. but, you know, i come here with such a heavy heart, and when i hear the debate going on again about who's more cynical and who's got poison pills, all i can think about is the little boy i saw at the volunteer fire department in clendenan on friday. his dad is a fire chief and he had been going to the fire department ever since he was born. he's about 10 years old now. and i asked him. we're standing in mud, 6 inches of mud and destruction everywhere in his town. and i ask him, you know, i introduced myself to him. i said, you know, i'm shelly.

i'm your senator. how are you doing? and he just melted. he just melted into tears because he was sostrawt at what he -- so distraught at what he saw, the place he loved, a fire station ripped apart. people he knows kicked out of their homes trying to figure out how to rebuild. to me that's a real emergency. that's a real -- something that we here in the senate and those in the state and those local responders are responding to now. i think about our state and all the nicknames of the state of west virginia. the ones i like the most is almost heaven. almost heaven. it wasn't almost heaven last thursday and wild and wonderful. it was wild all right but not so wonderful. but the one that's come to epitomize our west virginians arour people is west virginia strong. i saw the national guard, the west virginia department of

transportation, public elected officials, emergency services personnel, e.m.t.'s up all night doing very dangerous boat rescues to get people from the roofs of their homes, from the roofs of their cars. it came so fast. i visited the shelter at capital high school yesterday and a man was telling me it was he and his -- the woman that he was living with -- he lives with and their dog. and they just ran out with nothing. it started at his arrangeles and five -- ankles and five minutes later it was at his waist. that's how fast it was. yet he still had that west virginia strong attitude. we're going to be okay. we're going to find a way. he lost his car, his four wheeler, all of his belongings are gone. he has nothing. and now he has a place to sleep at a high school gym. but you know what? he's got the american red cross right there with 400 volunteers

from across the country so that he has a warm place to sleep or a cool place to sleep in the hot sun, meals, the availability of cleaning supplies and a really generous community that's come together to try to help him. that's west virginia strong. and that's what fortifies me today. when i think of the stories of bravery and rescue, when you look at the 23 west virginians who lost their lives, just so suddenly, a little 4-year-old boy edward mcmillan from ravenswood, west virginia swept away in the rushing water. we have -- we just have story after story of people that didn't know what was going to happen to them, that didn't know how to get out, that found a w way, that braved through this awful, awful thing. and then the stories of the communities coming together. when we were traveling through

can that would -- kanwha county, people from martinsburg, it's five hours away. they just packed up their trucks and put water and food in and came to the aid of their fellow west virginians. a lot of faith communities, a lot of churches, the mountain mission, all kinds of volunteers have come to help to be west virginia strong, to be west virginians helping west virginians. the private sector has really stepped up. at&t, sprint, frontier, our telecommunications people have really gone the extra mile to make sure that people have service, that people could find out and charge their phones. when you leave the house, you might have had your phone in your pocket, but you sure didn't have your phone charger. while that may sound like a

little thing, that's a big thing because that's your link to your family, to help, to calling for resources. we also have walmart, procter and gamble, dow chemical, anheuser busch brought a bunch of water in to help. stories of companies that have opened up their corporate supplies to help west virginia get back on its feet. so i'm here basically to say thank you. some of the communities, white sulfur springs, rupert, rainell. i actually thought, in a sort of rainell's name is rainell, and boy did they get rained on. they are probably regretting the name. they lost a lot of people in rainell. it's a small community that has been crushed. fema has been phenomenal. the declaration from the president came immediately for three counties, for which we're very grateful. we're hoping to get other counties, webster county, roane county, clay county, pocahontas,

fayette county included in these declarations. in webster springs, 55 homes totally wiped out. it's a town of 350. i mean, we all know west virginia mountains, we love our west virginia mountains and they're beautiful, but the valleys, when they fill, they fill rapidly and disastrously. and so fema is on the ground. they have opened up their disaster recovery centers in white sulfur springs and also in greenburg. other places in greenburg county, they are going to be all over the place. i will tell people what i have learned from this, you have to get registered for individual assistance immediately. go to the phone number, go to the web site, go to the disaster recovery center because that starts the process, and help is there. the small business administration is there as well to try to help. the various health departments are giving -- not giving out but are providing tetanus shots free

of charge, because as we know sitting water in 90 degrees is not a good -- not a good scenario, and it's a scenario for disease. what i was astounded by was the mud. you think about water in your home and water in your business, but the mud is just so destructively horrifying to look at and just so difficult to clean. so there is all kinds of things that west virginians need help for all around the nation. we have just been inundated with people wanting to help, people wanting to come and lift up another american and lift up another family. and so i say thank you for that, but this is going to be a long-term project. when you have the kind of destruction that we suffered, it goes on for a long time, and it's almost -- the first week you get a lot of help. it's the weeks after that when people try to rebuild, try to

get temporary transitional housing. these are the kinds of things that families need. just to give you a perspective of what the weather -- the national weather service said the rainfall was historic. it was 10-12 inches in eight hours. it was a thousand-year event in terms of the rising waters. the elk river, which flows -- i live a half mile from the elk river. it crested at 33.37 feet on friday morning. it rose 27 feet overnight and hit the record for 125 years. so this was a record-breaking event and very, very tragic for many of us. so i want to -- i want to thank fema for all the representation that they have brought forward. i want to thank all of the faith community that has just been phenomenal, the nonprofits, the united way, the red cross. i have such admiration and gratitude in my heart for what i

saw firsthand and will see as the days move on. and i will just close with this. the way i started. you know, west virginia people are just phenomenal. to be able to pick themselves up, still have a glimmer of hope in their eyes that they're going to be okay, that they're going to be able to rebuild when they have lost everything. i was in a meeting yesterday and the guy leading the charge from the united way said everybody close your eyes and think about the last time you lost everything, and you know what? i don't think a person in that room had ever lost everything. so thank you for all the thoughts and prayers that you have kept in your heart for us. we feel them, we need them, we appreciate them. it's a long road to recovery, but we're on our way, and with your help and god's help, we'll get there. thank you.

i yield. mrs. murray: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from washington. mrs. murray: mr. president, i want to start off by saying how disappointed i was in the comments i heard from senate republican leaders last night on zika. it seems that after months and months of them delaying, after they rejected our bipartisan plan, kicked democrats out of the negotiating room and passed a partisan bill in the middle of the night, republicans are now scrambling to blame anyone but themselves for their own inaction on zika. it is absurd, it is irresponsible and people across the country are not going to buy it. republicans control congress. they blocked action for months and months. they fought us at every step, and now that they finally

realize that the american people aren't going to stand for inaction, they are desperately searching for excuses instead of honestly, honestly looking for solutions. but women and families aren't looking for republicans to point fingers. they are looking for a serious response to zika. we all know very well democrats and republicans don't always see eye to eye, but one thing we should be able to agree on is that when there is a serious national and global public health threat, we should put our differences aside and work together, work together to protect women and families and communities. but unfortunately when it comes to the zika virus, republicans now are doing the exact opposite. four months now since president obama first put forward a strong emergency funding proposal, and even though we're in the midst of mosquito season, last week the house republicans chose to

double down on a partisan pandering bill when it comes to this frightening virus. instead of working with democrats on a serious response to zika, they voted to end the conference, pass an extremely partisan report in the middle of the night and leave town. now, there's a lot to be concerned about in this legislation, mr. president, but critically this proposal would impose politically motivated restrictions that limit women's access to contraception and health care at providers that they rely on. now, it should go without saying, but in the midst of a public health emergency that impacts women and families, the last thing republicans should be doing is playing politics now with women's health and making it harder, making it harder for them to get care when and where they need it. it is truly frustrating,

especially since just weeks ago senate democrats and republicans agreed on a bipartisan down payment on the president's proposal. and by now that bipartisan legislation would have already passed the house and senate, could have gotten signed into law by the president and started helping women and families in need. so today, ahead of the senate's vote on this partisan political proposal that came out of the house in the middle of the night last week, we have got a clear message for republicans. enough is enough. enough with the partisanship, enough with the poison pills and enough with using women's health to pander to the tea party. we have a narrow window now to get an effective response, an effective response to this virus under way, and every infection that we prevent now is a potential tragedy averted for a

family and the communities that we serve. democrats are ready to work together just like we have been for months, so i urge republicans to come back to the negotiating table, work with us on a real response to a truly serious public health threat. women and families are expecting us to act, and they have already waited long enough. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. mr. nelson: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from in a. mr. nelson: it was my understanding that the senator from hawaii was to be next. what is the -- would the senator from south dakota let me go on

and make a comment? mr. thune: and i would follow. is that correct? the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. nelson: all right. mr. president, we have just a short time before the vote. and let me say that the president made the request for emergency funding of $1.9 billion four months ago. this is a time when the nation has an emergency, if it's an earthquake, if it's a flood, if it is a wildfire, if it is a hurricane, if it is a volcano. we have always stepped forth and if you don't believe that this zika crisis is an emergency,

well, just wait, but the telltale signs are coming now. we already have 50 confirmed cases of zika in the u.s. there are 2,600 americans that are inc iludesludes 500 pregnant women. obviously, the southern states, mine, florida is affected much more, and just yesterday there were three new cases of the virus reported in florida, usually in south florida but it brings the state's total to 223 infection cases, including 40 pregnant women. so, mr. president, these numbers

are only going to increase, and so in the middle of this, four months after the request for emergency funding, the house in the dark of the middle of the night, with no opportunity for debate, puts on an otherwise uncontroversial bill, a bill to deal with the virus. and what the house passed, as you have heard but from many, it's not serious. instead, it's another attempt to use an emergency must-pass bill to try to further extremist political agendas. it cuts money for puerto rico at a time that puerto rico can hardly stand on its own financially. it cuts money for family

planning. the c.d.c. has confirmed that zika can be sexually transmitted. what did i say? they cut money for family planning, and that there are over 480 pregnant women in the u.s. that are presently being monitored for signs of the infection. and so as we look for ways to prevent the spread of this sexually transmitted disease, the fact that this bill limits access to contraceptives that could help curb the spread of the virus, it's exactly the reverse of what makes sense. so why can't we grow up and get to the point that we don't want to play partisan politics? this is a real threat, it's a

serious threat. the c.d.c. has confirmed that zika does, in fact, cause birth defects and that four babies in this country with microcephaly have already been born. two of those died shortly after birth. you've seen the pictures. you know how horrific and tragic it is for the families involved. so we need to stop playing these political games. it's time to treat this as a real emergency and it's time to pass the appropriations bill without all of this political agenda added to it. mr. president, i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from south dakota. mr. thune: mr. president, in a few short moments, senate democrats will have a decision

to make. will they side with american families and expectant mothers dealing with the zika virus or will they side with their far left political allies? according to media reports, unfortunately that outcome is increasingly clear. senate democrats will once again side with their political allies rather than working with republicans on a solution to keep women safe from the zika virus. mr. president, democrats have apparently decided to engage in their favorite game of late, refusing to take yes for an answer. it happened last week with terrorism. democrats urged us to pass legislation to keep guns out of the hands of terrorists, but when senator cornyn offered an amendment to do just that, democrats opposed it almost unanimously. this week it's zika funding. six weeks ago democrats and republicans from the relevant committees in the senate got together and agreed on a bill to

provide $1.1 billion to fight zika. that bill then came to the floor and every democrat voted for it on the floor of the united states senate. every single democrat. last week house and senate negotiators reconciled the house and senate bills and agreed on zika funding in the amount of $1.1 billion. in other words, mr. president, the exact same amount that senate democrats unanimously supported six weeks ago, but now democrats don't want to support it. their reason? because there's a small grant program in this bill most of which is intended for puerto rico won't provide for more federal funding for planned parenthood.

mr. president, this bill provides expanded funding for community health centers, public health departments, and hospitals. it actually funds more avenues for access to women's health care than what the president requested. the bill funds research into a zika vaccine. it funds research into zika treatments. it streamlines mosquito control efforts since the best way to protect men, women, and babies from contracting the zika virus is to make sure they don't get bitten by a mosquito in the first place. the head of the centers for disease control and prevention, the lead government agency for fighting diseases has said that the republicans bill will take care of need zika funding needs and yet democrats are holding up this bill because it won't fund

a handful of planned parenthood clinics in puerto rico. seriously, mr. president? seriously? that's what this is about? democrats, mr. president, like to position themselves as having the moral high ground. again and again democrats suggested that they were fiercely committed to fighting zika while republicans were dragging their feet on a public health crisis. mr. president, here's what i see today. i see republicans ready to pass zika bill and send it to the president this minute, right now. and i see democrats who are more interested in pacifying a democrat special interest group than they are than actually doing anything about zika because that's what this is, mr. president.

a democrat special interest group has snapped its fingers and the democrats have all come running. forget all the urgency about getting zika funding passed. forget the scientists who are waiting for vaccine funding and forget about mosquito control efforts. apparently none of that matters anymore. mr. president, republicans are ready to pass zika funding, the same amount, i will repeat the same amount of funding that be did, already voted for in the united states senate and we're ready to pass it right now, right now, this minute, and send it to the president. we're just waiting for democrats to agree. mr. president, i hope they won't keep the american people waiting. i yield the floor.

a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from hawaii. ms. hirono: mr. president, yesterday i joined millions of americans in celebrating the supreme court's decision that reaffirms a woman's right to access reproductive health this was the most supreme court decision in decades to protect a woman's access to reproductive health care. now, i listened to my colleague just now, and, yes, the amount of the bill is the same but this is not the same bill. this bill contains poison pills that pays for the funding for zika on the backs of the people of puerto rico and funding for planned parenthood. so today in spite of yesterday's celebration of the supreme court's decision, it is clear we are reminded once again the fight to protect a woman's reproductive rights is not over. i was dismayed last week when house republicans chose to play

politics with a national public health emergency to continue their crusade against planned parenthood. the package we'll be voting on this morning is profoundly irresponsible. senators from both parties worked hard to forge a compromise zika funding measure that would have provided the tools we need to prevent an outbreak. instead we will shortly be voting on an underfunded measure riddled with poison pills. this package is not equal to the crisis before us. it fails to recognize the real threat facing american women from zika this summer. zika is not just a mosquito borne disease. it can also be sexually transmitted. that's why attacking planned parenthood in this bill is so foolish. limiting access to family planning services now would put millions more women at risk from contracting zika and giving birth to a child with microcephaly. the united states is fortunate to not have a widespread

outbreak of zika yet, but in hawaii we are already feeling the impact of this virus. so far there have been ten confirmed cases of zika in hawaii. one child has been born with microcephaly. to meet the challenge, i have convened key leaders on zika in hawaii, including governor ege, health care providers and dr. elliot parks who is developing a zika vaccine on ohau. they all shared one message, that federal funding right now is critical to get ahead of a widespread zika outbreak. dr. parks has been using private funding to develop his vaccine which could turn around our fight against zika and an infusion of federal funds now could push him across the finish line. this summer is a critical moment in the fight against the zika virus. in hawaii we already saw the impact of disease.

we need the same national commitment and investment to fight d.c. that we provided to fight ebola. but we must act now. months have already passed since the president sent down his emergency funding request for d.c. by passing a clean supplemental spending bill with no harmful riders to women. zika is a public health crisis in the making. and i completely disagree with my colleagues who continue to say that we should support this bill because it is what we already agreed to. it is not. it is a profoundly different bill that continues attacks against women's reproductive rights. mr. president, i yield back the floor.

a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from florida. mr. nelson: mr. president, do i understand that we're in the

parliamentary procedure that the vote is already called for 11: 11:00? the presiding officer: that is correct. mr. nelson: mr. president, may i be recognized for two minutes. the presiding officer: the senator has no time. that will take consent. mr. nelson: say again. the presiding officer: the presiding officer: that will take consent of the senate. there is no time remaining for the minority. mr. nelson: well, i ask for unanimous consent to speak for two minutes until the vote at is 1:00 -- at 11:00 in order to bring the senate up to date on what's happened to the community of orlando. the presiding officer: is there objection? a senator: reserving the right to object. we're trying to wrap up conversation about a conference

report and i wonder would it be inconvenient for the senator to defer? mr. nelson: i can certainly. i didn't see anything on the floor. a senator: we were just passing through to see what the order was. there is no standing order right now. we're going to wind up we hope just a few minutes of conversation. mr. nelson: mr. president, i can speak later in the day. a senator: i thank the senator.

the presiding officer: the senator from miss miss. mr. cochran: mr. president, we come to a point where it's timely that we urge the senate to approve the military construction and veterans affairs conference report. this conference agreement increases funding for veterans programs by nearly 9%, including a 4.1% increase in discretionary funding for the department of veterans' affairs. the agreement provides funding for veterans health care, benefit claims processing and medical research. the agreement funds housing for military personnel and their families and enhances the capabilities of u.s. military forces. the conference agreement also

includes $1.1 billion in emergency supplemental funding to fight the zika virus. this is the same amount previously approved by the senate. these funds will be used for mosquito control, vaccine development and health services. the conference agreement also enhances mosquito control efforts by eliminating duplicative permitting requirements or approved pesticides. this provision is specific to combating the zika virus, and it expires after 180 days. the conference agreement carries rescissions of previously appropriated funds that are not needed for their original purpose. the fact that rescissions are included is not novel or unique.

for example, the appropriations bill that provided funding to fight the ebola virus included nearly $5 billion in discretionary rescissions and $2.5 billion in mandatory rescissions. this conference agreement is the result of extensive bipartisan negotiations. it is a good bill and should be sent to the president without delay. i urge the adoption of the conference report. the presiding officer: all time has expired. the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion. we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the conference report to accompany

h.r. 2577, an act making appropriations for the departments of transportation and housing and urban development and related agencies for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2016, and for other purposes, signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the conference report to accompany h.r. 2577, an act making appropriations for the departments of transportation and housing and urban development and related agencies for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2016, and for other purposes shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not, on this vote, the yeas are r5 2, the nays are 48. three-fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn in the vog voted in the affirmative, the motion is not agreed to. mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: i enter a motion to reconsider the vote. the presiding officer: the motion is entered.

mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the senate recess from 12:30 until 2:15 to allow for the weekly conference meetings. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. mcconnell: now, mr. president, here's where we are. here's where we are. could we have order in the senate. the presiding officer: there will be order in the senate. the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: here's where we are, mr. president. we have a public health crisis descending on our country. we've been talking about this for three months. the administration, the c.d.c. r-- all involved said we need to get this zika funding bill done before the 4th of july. before the 4th of july.

this conference report, which was just prevented from passage, has exactly the same funding level that every single democrat voted for when it left the senate -- exactly the same funding level. we know that if we don't get this job done, we won't have a vaccine within a year and a half, and in the short term, we've been told that the single most effective thing we can do is kill as many mosquitoes as possible as fast as possible right here in the united states in the southern part of our country. and so here we are in an utterly absurd position, playing political games, as this public health crisis mounts here in our country. pregnant women all across america are looking at this with

dismay, utter dismay. as we sit here in a partisan gridlock manufactured by the other side over issues that it's pretty hard for the general public to understand, refusing to pass the funds needed to address this public health concern. if that were not bad enough, we've also stopped the passage of the milcon veterans administration appropriations conference report -- funding for our veterans, funding for construction at military bases. so here we are going into the 4th of july, we've impeded the passage of funding to deal with an impending public health crisis, and in the same vote managed to vote against veterans

as well. so i say to my colleagues on the other side, that's where we'll be when we come back here after this brief break for the 4th of july. i've moved to reconsider -- i changed my vote and moved to reconsider, and you'd like -- and i'd like to call on my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to think about this, to think about where they have left this issue for the american people. i've been approached in my state, and you know others have as well, from young women concerned about whether we're going to address this issue now -- not sometime in the future. and so when we get back after we've had time to think about it all, we'll address this matter again and hopefully respond, as our constituents all across

america are asking us to respond, to this pending health care crisis. -- that we all understand. there's been plenty of discussion about this for months. this republican majority has met the deadline, but we can't pass it by ourselves in the senate. i hope that our democratic friends upon reflection over the course of the few days we'll be away to come back with a different attitude and i hope that we can address this crisis and address it now. mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the democratic leader. mr. reid: as i said this morning, and i will repeat it, i don't know what universe my friend is living in. what does he think we'r -- whate think: we're all stupid, the

american people are dumb? they're not. they understand what's going on here. we have been trying for months -- months. the president asked more than four months ago that we would get money to fight zika. he had already had to take $500 million from ebola because the republicans had done nothing, and he said more than four months ago, we need money. the c.d.c. needs money, n.i.h. needs money. we have a crisis on our hand. so we've been on top of this. we've worked hard. the republicans have objected five times to moving legislation that's meaningful. april 28, the senior senator from texas objected to my request. may 18, he objected to my consent again and to murray's request, all in the same day. on may 24, he objected to senator murray's request again

to funding zika. and on may 24, same day, enzi objected to senator nelson's u.c. request, unanimous consent request. he said, we need to reflect. come on, mr. president, listen to this. listen to this. if republicans were sitting around, as i assume they were, in the house, as we were all watching the takeover of the senate floor by house democrats -- there wasn't anything going on the house floor. so i assume -- i assume -- they were sitting around. what can we do to fake a u.c. -- to fake that we're 23u7bdz -- to fake that we're funding zika? what can we do? well, maybe what we can do is say that we have money for zika and then we can do everything that we can to irritate them.

so what they did is they said, -- they realized that this was a serious issue. but, you know, these pregnant women are the ones they're concerned about. so why don't we stop them from going to have birth control? why don't we -- again, we hate planned parenthood. so we'll just stop them from going to planned parenthood. these desperate women who need birth control, they need some advice about their situation, a significant amount of american withers especially young women, go -- a significant a american women, especially young women, go to planned parenthood. on the bill that was just turned down today, the republicans said you can't do that. we're not going to allow that. it reinstructs funding for birth control at planned parenthood. how about that one? but if are that weren't enough, they cut veterans' funding by $5 million. and then i guess -- well maybe we can do something we know we hate the environment. we don't like all those people

-- these greenies. so why don't we do this: we know that it's important that we control mosquitoes. if we're going to do anything regarding the mosquitoes, let's kill a lot of those mosquitoes. well, here's what we'll do: we'll exempt the clean water act from the provisions of spraying pesticides against every environmental advice that we could get. they go ahead and do it anyway. they cut ebola funding by another $107 million. they rescind obamacare by $543 million. after they've already failed seven times to -- 70 times to repeal it. but, mr. president, if that weren't enough, here is -- listen to this one. how about this one: i guess they say, what else could we do to realistic it in their eye? now, there is a prohibition now in the law that says that you can't fly the confederate flag

on our military cemeteries. let's take that away. we want to be able to fly confederate flags on military cemeteries. so they put that in there, too. what do they think this is? when we passed here by almost 90 votes a bill that gave -- not as much money as we wanted but $1.1 billion. it was treated as an emergency, as an emergency should be treated. no different than a flood or a fire. -- an earthquake. we passed it here. we sent it to the house. the night they were there on the house floor, there was chaos. one of the presiding officers came out and in a matter of a minute said we're going to pass the conference report funding zika, funding zika. but it makes it so that you can't go to planned parenthood for birth control, taken $500 million from veterans, we're going to affect how you spray

pesticides, we're going to cut ebola funding, we're going to cut obamacare, and we're going to just for good measure, i think what we will do -- just for good measure -- we'll throw in the confederate flag thing. mr. president, i was here a week ago. 2,200 women at that time were infected with zika. here it is one week later and it is $2,900. about -- and it is 2,900. about 100 women a day are being infected with zika. there's been 500 of them now that are pregnant, that have been infected with zika. we don't know how many of those women are going to give birth to these children that are tremendously handicapped. shrunken brains, their skulls caved in sometimes. as we sit here dithering because of this foolishness on planned parenthood, clean water act, obamacare, ebola funding, confederate flag, each day more

women are prevented from getting the attention they need for birth control. it is unbelievable that someone would have the audacity to come to the floor and say, well, it's the democrats' fault. the democrats' fault. we think you should get some money for zika funding. it should be offset -- it wouldn't be truly an emergency funding. in the process, go ahead, and let's whack obamacare, ebola money, veterans, planned parenthood, confederate flag -- i mean, i can't imagine -- i can't imagine how anyone would have the audacity to come to the floor and talk about what a great piece of legislation this is. we know what's in the bill. we know what's in the bill. we've had a woman that has worked so hard on this, who's one of the premier senators ever

to serve in this body, mikulski from florida -- i mean, mikulski from maryland. of course, bill nelson cares about this. i got "florida" because his state is being hit more than any other staivment but senator mikulski has worked hard on appropriations bills. we know how much she wanted it passed. but she doesn't want it with this awful stuff that they've tried to do with planned parenthood, the clean water act, veterans funding, all of this other craziness, including the confederate flag. it is hard to describe. i said here this morning when the senate was opened, i've been here a long time. i don't ever remember anything as outrageous, as shameful as this piece of legislation. and, believe me, in the last seven and a half years, the republicans have come up with a lot. but this is the worst. the presiding officer: the republican whip.

mr. cornyn: mr. president, i'll tell you what shameful is. that's allowing more women of child-bearing age to contract the zika virus so their babies can end up looking like this. t. that's shameful. make no mistake about it. our colleagues across the aisle have filibustered on a partisan basis a bipartisan bill that funded our anti-zika efforts. and also included measures to support our veterans. so we need to be absolutely clear. i heard the democratic leader basically saying that because his party is a sore loser in a

conference report that they don't love, that they're going to block funding to prevent more babies from contracting the birth defect that is suffered by this baby. microcephaly basically is a shrunken skull. this baby's prognosis is not good. women of child-bearing age are scared to death that their baby will end up like this baby. yet, their concerns have fallen on deaf ears among those in this chamber, largely democrats who voted against advancing this legislation. we're getting closer to mosquito season. the warmer weather means that we're going to see more mosquitoes, and we need to get this on the president's desk as soon as possible. the president's h-pl asked for $1.9 billion in funding, calling this a public health emergency.

but our democratic friends block it because they're sore losers in a conference negotiation report that they don't like. we know that this virus can affect an entire generation. this birth defect is heartbreaking and life-altering. and we know it's taken a tremendous toll in much of latin america. fortunately so far the only cases of the zika virus in the united states, according to the center for disease control, are those contracted from people who traveled to south america and central america and contracted the virus there and come home. so far the mosquitoes that carry this disease are not spreading it in the united states, but we know that that will change soon. that's why we heard the senator from florida, the senators from texas and others talk about its

potential impact in the united states, and particularly in our warmer states. according to the center for disease control and prevention, severe microcephaly, like this is associated with seizures, intellectual disability, hearing and vision problems and developmental delays, and that's assuming this child survives into adulthood which most, unfortunately, do not. so how are friends across the aisle who voted against this conference report which provides zika funding could look the mother of this baby in the eye and say we had plenty of good reasons to deny help for more children like yours, we know this impacts not only children and these babies, it also impacts whole families. it means mothers and fathers

anxious about the welfare of their baby regularly going to the doctor to gauge progress and check development, and it means finding speech, occupational, physical therapists to help the child live as normal a life as they possibly can. one neurologist quoted in "the new york times" says there is no way to fix the problem, just therapies to deal with the downstream consequences. so once a baby like this contracts the zika virus, there is no way to fix the problem. the only defense is to prevent children like this from getting the zika virus by getting the fund that democrats just voted down to the medical authorities so they can look for a vaccine, so we can do mosquito eradication and the other things we know we need to do from a public health perspective to prevent more pwaeubts like this one -- more babies like this one

from developing these devastating birth defects. as i said, there's no cure. once a baby has it, she or he has it for life. and that means that the family will have to live with the great uncertainty about the health or well-being of their child as they consider the life long implications of caring for a child with this kind of disability. but we know we don't have to accept this as the outcome. we know there's a way to fight it. and that's by preventing the zika virus from spreading to the united states. but unfortunately senate democrats just voted against that. as i said, there are already hundreds of travel-related cases of the virus scattered throughout the country, and i hope the administration does more to underscore the real health threats that exist when people travel to areas where zika is at its worst. that's why i join with one of

our house colleagues who is a medical doctor, michael burgess, congressman michael burgess, in asking secretary of state kerry and the centers for disease control prevention director dr. free dan how they are coordinating travel warnings to areas where zika has run rampant. texas and all americans need to understand the risk associated with travel to those areas and they need realtime accurate information so they can determine whether they should alter their travel plans. but over the past few months the mosquitoes that carry this virus have been inching their way north and today locally transmitted cases have been reported in puerto rico and throughout the caribbean. in other words, this virus, along with its devastating effect, is at our doorstep. i've had a chance to visit with experts in my state at the university of texas medical branch at galveston and the

texas medical center. and they agree this is a major public health concern, and we need to act and act soon. that's why we've got to prepare for the arrival of the mosquitoes that carry this virus in the united states, something that our democratic colleagues have just prevented. fortunately, counties and cities throughout texas have already been working hard to counter the spread of the virus. when i was in houston recently, public health officials back in april told me that they were -- told me about measures they were implementing to track and manage the spread of zika throughout the houston area, one of the most populous urban areas in the country and the efforts to eradicate the breeding grounds that transmit the virus. the governor there is making sure we are prepared as possible, but we can't do it alone. and unfortunately, the sort of

help that's needed by states like mine for mothers and fathers who could have children like this has just been blocked. governor abbott invited the centers for disease control to sraoufr the state's -- review the state's plan to combat the virus and invited the task force to make a plan. in other words, states like mine, communities like houston are doing their part, but senate democrats refuse to do their part. so it should go without saying that now on the front lines of this major public health concern we need to respond at the federal level. that's why it's shocking and shameful to see so many senate democrats oppose this bipartisan effort to guard against the

virus, particularly because they have repeatedly called for an expedited resolution of this appropriation request. over a month ago the minority leader made clear that he viewed zika funding a major priority, and he demanded action. this is what he said. this is senator reid, the democratic leader, on may 23, 2016. he said "instead of gambling with the health and safety of millions of americans, republicans should give our nation the money it needs to fight zika. and they should do it now. not next month, not in the fall -- now." of course senator reid was advocating bypassing the normal legislative process, and it was really inappropriate for him to demand a $1.9 billion spending appropriation that is, adds to

the deficit and debt without letting congress do its job. but now the house and the senate have both passed legislation and agreed to a conference report which senate democrats have now just voted down. senator reid said for us to fail to meet this crisis would be irresponsible, and yet he just advocated failing to meet that responsibility and address the crisis. we -p can't gamble with the health and well-being of women and children in this country just to serve partisan political needs. and most of the things that the democratic leader raised in terms of objections to this conference report are just figments of his imagination. there is no mention of planned parenthood in this conference report. i would challenge anybody to find planned parenthood mentioned once. and as the democratic leader

knows, planned parenthood is a medicaid provider, and so medicaid-eligible individuals can still seek whatever services they want through medicaid at planned parenthood. and then there is the senator from washington, the top ranking democrat on the appropriations subcommittee, that actually crafted the bipartisan zika response. and then walked away from it and voted against it. she said on may 26, 2016, she said "families and communities are expecting us to act. parents are wondering if their babies will be born safe and healthy. in congress, we should do everything we can to tackle the virus without any further delay." well, i agree, and i frankly do not understand how senate democrats, having taken this position previously can come in here and engage in a partisan

filibuster to stop funding for this impending public health crisis. and then just last week the senior senator from new york said "every day we wait, every day is increasing the risk that we will have problems with zika." well today we had the chance to send a bill to the president's desk that would meet the demands of senator reid, senator murray, senator schumer, but they blocked it for fanciful and imagined reasons. one of the arguments that senate democrats make against the bill is more money is needed. yet, this is funded at the very level that the senate agreed to, $1.1 billion. president obama and our

democratic colleagues repeatedly make the argument that throwing money at the problem will fix everything. well, throwing no money at the problem will fix nothing, which is what they voted for today. less than 7%, just 40 million of the $589 million transferred from the ebola fund to fight zika has been obligated as of earlier -- early june. that translates to more than $500 million the president can use to fight this cause in addition to the $1.1 billion included in this bill. referred from our colleagues on the other side of the aisle about this great need to prepare this country about this coming health crisis and we've heard how it is to quickly get the resources for those studying the virus and perhaps discovering a vaccine. but when given the chance to do

that, democrats shut it down. they filibustered the bipartisan bill themselves. they themselves have been asking the senate to pass, which is absolutely disgraceful. so i hope our colleagues on the other side of the aisle will reconsider their misguided efforts and follow through with what they have been saying we need all along, the funding to fight a real public health threat. it's a public health priorities that demands our attention and must be addressed now and not later. mr. president, i wonder what the senators who voted against this bipartisan zika funding bill would tell the mother of this child, or perhaps another woman pregnant wondering whether her

child will end up with this virus and this terrible birth defect. could they possible look that woman in the eye and justify the reasons they have voted against funding so that other children can avoid and families avoid this terrible, devastating birth defect? i bet none of them could look that prospective mother in the eye and say, well, we voted against protecting your baby and your family for good and sufficient reasons, because, as i said earlier, many of the reasons stated by the democratic leader are imagined and not real, like this idea that somehow planned parenthood has been targeted, which is not even mentioned in the legislation.

i can't imagine a more disgraceful vote than what some of our colleagues across the aisle have cast to deny funding for this impending public health crisis. i hope they'll reconsider. i hope the families who worry about the health of their children will call their office and say, why did you vote against funding the money necessary to eradicate the mosquitoes that carry this disease? why did you vote against further scientific research to learn how to combat it? and why did you vote against our developing a vaccine that can prevent the spread of this disease, not only here in the united states but around the world? i bet none ever them could look that mother in the eye, because what our democratic colleagues just did today by voting down

this funding was absolutely hypocritical, it was cynical, and it was shameful. mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i would have found the previous comments more interesting if it wasn't for the fact that people have been asking me, why is it -- i wonder if i -- i don't want to interfere with the conversations on the floor, but ... mr. president, i just wonder on this if we had had a real conference where things were discussed, which is impossible because the republican leadership took the house of

representatives out for a multi-week vacation last week. had they stayed and done their work, as we are, i'm sure we could have worked something out. but that, of course srk their decision. -- but that, of course, is there decision. mr. president, on another matter, this week marks an historic moment in vermont. this coming friday, july 1, vermont's act 120, the first in the nation, labeling law for genetically engineered, so-called g.e., foods will take effect. but, unfortunately, for consumers, everywhere, it should be a short-lived celebration. late last week a so-called deal was reached on the national mandatory labeling law. during the weekend i had the chance to review this proposal closely. vermonters reviewed it closely. i can say this: it falls short.

this is an extremely complex issue. from how we define genetically engineered foods to how we treat animal products, the impact on the organics industry, to how small businesses respond. it's actually not something you just talk about, but the details matter. that's why the vermont legislature, republicans and democrats together, spent two years debating it. they had 50 committee hearings featuring testimony from more than 130 representatives on all sides of the issue. the united states senate has not held a single hearing on labeling. they've had only one hearing on the issue of biotechnology. they've had none on the issue of labeling food as seeds. now, i would note that the proposal unveiled late last week

that we were able to review this weekend is that improvement over the legislation that the senate wisely rejected in march, that that bill -- the one we rejected -- would continue the current status quo. it proposed a meaningless voluntarily-only approach, had a thinly veiled attempt to block vermont's labeling law, and keep any other state from acting. the current proposal at least acknowledges states like vermont have ablghte -- have acted in this area. it's why i stayed here on the floor and blocked that first bill, and i thank those senators who joined with me. now, we heard from the organic industry, who expressed reservations about how they might be treated under a federal g.e. labeling program. some of those concerns have been

addressed. the proposal reinforces that the usda organic seal remains the gold standard. the proposal follows what vermont's act 120 does with respect to animal products and addresses the gap in vermont law for processed food inspected by usda. now, reinforcing the usda organic seal goes, the gold standard -- as the gold standard ... i watched that closely as the author of the bill that recipient the original organ -- that set up the original organic standards. i've been saying for the past year in many rural parts of this country, including most of vermont, we have significant technological challenges that make it nearly impossible for consumers to access the

electronic or digital disclosure methods allowed in this bill. i do hope, however, that proponents of this proposal will not try to put the burden on our retail establishments to install costly digital scanners. proponents of this deal were sent back to the drawing board after we derailed them on march 16. as i said, i was very proud to be the vermonter leading that effort. now, while this proposal makes some positive, though modest, improvements, i remain deeply concerned that it's not going to offer transparency for consumers. transparency is something that many companies have already opted to provide. look at these products. i bet most americans can go to their cupboards and find them. campbell's, general mills,

fritos -- all of them are already putting on their lawbles that they're partially produced with genetic engineering. it's easy. it's printed on. print it on there. in the same way that -- let me put this first one back up there. the same way when you have a child or a grandchild with a peanut allergy or requires gluten-free, you can go look for a label so you know what you're feeding them. now, thanks to the citizen-led efforts in vermont, we're seeing more information easily accessible to shoppers. no scanning some code, no calling an 800 number. you don't pick up a product and say, gee, i've got to scan a code in here or i have a got to call an 800 number. no, they just pick up the

product, skank down, find out what's -- scan down, find out what it's ghot there, everything from corn and cottonseed and genetic engineering. we've seen countless pictures sent in by shoppers finding these labels. label something not a comprehensive or cost-prohibitive in packaging. to make matters worse, the bill before us has no enforcement mechanism. the negotiators of this proposal seem to think public pressure will be enough to force these multimillion-dollar corporations to comply. what they are saying -- you know, what they are saying is, you guys -- you guys be the cop on the beat.

you be the ones to tell them what to do. wcialtion it makes a difference -- well, it makes a difference to us. public pressure is not enough. you can't ask consumers to go around and try to figure out every can they buy and then bring pressure. that's what you have legislatures for, so the deal does not go far enough to give consumers what they're asking for, a simple on-package symbol or label. this bill does more than just block states from enacting g.e. food labeling laws. it also blocks a long-standing seed labeling law in vermont, one that vermont's organic farmers appreciate, as a do conventional farmers. and even backyard hobby guarders in, people from all over the country write in and buy these seeds because they know -- they

know the labeling law. it's a law that's been on the books since 2004. it ensures clear, meaningful information for farmers to know exactly what they're buying, and that's why they buy it. now, perhaps in a state like kansas, where the last organic survey in 2014 counted only 83 organic farms, or michigan, a state which is ten times the size of vermont, they said they have 332 organic farms. maybe in those states that don't have organic farms, having access to that information is not considered useful or important. but in a state like vermont with only 600,000 people but we now have over 600 organic farms, our seed labeling law is important. the dry has complied -- the

industry has complied with it for the last five years. but with no deal, no debate, no deal would block vermont's seed willaw and block any other state from enacting one. i was proud when i was chairman of the senate agriculture committee, i wrote the law that set national organize antic -- organic standards and labeling program. i was proud of that. i started out following a discussion across the kitchen table with organic farmers in vermont. it is now a merely $40 -- a nearly $40 billion industry nationwide. so i continue to closely monitor and work to protect the high standards for the organic -- they've given consumers confidence in the organic label. they've given organic providers a strong, clear, and meaningful standards that they have demanded. they work hard to follow these

standards. but they want to know what the standards are so that those who work hard and follow the rules are not going to have somebody come in and say, well, we followed the rules with no proof that they did. labeling of genetically engineered products is an outgrowth of the organic movement, and as a watch dog of that program, i simply cannot support this proposal. i don't support -- we're not saying you can't have these genetically engineered foods. it's just let consumers know. they can decide whether to buy it or not. just as a parent where a child may require gluten-free diet, knows when they come in whether a product is gluten-free or not. it doesn't say you outlaw products with gluten in it, but it says, give people the choice; the same for those that have a

peanut allergy. now, vermonters have a long tradition of leading the national debate on issues crossing the spectrum. vermonters stand for transparency and a consumer's right to noavment vermonters want to make informed decisions for their families and with their limited grocery budget. now, i acknowledge, we vermonters acknowledge powerful interests are allied gunshot vermont's law -- are allied against vermont's law and against the nation's consumers. that's been the fact from the beginning. the proposal released last week does not respect the work that vermont has painstakingly done in the space. this vermonter reflects the feelings of my constituents. i will not and cannot support it. vermonters deserve better. so do all americans. mr. president, i ask consent that my full statement be placed in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy:man, i see my --

mr. president, i see my good friend from oregon, senator merkley, on the floor. he knows how important vermont's work has been in this national public debate. i've been proud to cosponsor his legislation. he recognizes and respects vermont's law and i yield to my good friend from oregon. mr. merkley: mr. president?. the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. merkley: i appreciate the comments of my friend from vermont and the work he's done to take on this very important issue and i'd like to amplify somewhat on the remarks or add to the remarks that he has made. first i'd like to ask unanimous consent that my intern andrew dunn be given full privilege of the floor for the balance of the day. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. merkley: and that my staff member mike mcguieren be allowed on the floor until his paperwork is processed. the presiding officer: without

objection. mr. merkley: this debate is about one simple process. that is a simple mandatory labor that is consumer friendly to inform consumers whether or not a product has been produced with g.m.o. ingredients. that's it. it's the consumer right to know, and nothing else. and there is quite an interesting journey we've been on to this point. we've had the dark act, the deny americans' right to know about the g.m.o. status of the foods they consume. now we have the dark act 2.0 coming to this floor in a deceptive strategy to persuade americans that we're doing something important in order to justify the preemption of our state legislators from taking on this issue state by state.

unfortunately, however, the bill that comes before us is an echo of what we have seen before. so let's ask the simple question, does it meet the one-second test for consumers knowing what is in their food? that is, by the way, information that 89% of americans want to know. now this is an issue that if you pull democrats, republicans, independents, if you poll them, essentially all say the same thing. nine out of ten americans say we want this tph-fpgs on -- information on the package. it's relevant to us. we think consumers should have the right to know. now it's unusual to have an issue that nine out of ten democrats and nine out of ten independents and nine out of ten republicans all agree on.

but here we are at this moment with this senate about to consider a bill written by and for the most powerful agricultural groups in america to deny americans the right to know. let's take a closer look at what is wrong with this bill that is coming before us, the roberts bill. first of all, it does not require that simple consumer-friendly label. instead it says that could be an option. a company could do that if it would like to. you know what? they can do that right now, without the permission of our federal government. or it says it could be an option for a company to put a symbol on a package. that option is there for a group right now. they can put a symbol on a package if they want to. so we've granted nothing. but then it says in lieu of putting actual information on

the package, they can put a computer code on the package. and let's pull up the computer code chart. a computer code is a square like this, or it could be a barcode. you put that on a package and people will go those are on the packages already. why is it there? well, this bill does have a little information in it. it says if you put this quick response code or computer code on package, you have to say that that's for additional ingredient information. no reference to biotechnology, no reference to g.m.o. ingredients. it could be, well, exactly what version of peanuts is in this product? what version of corn? where was it raised? these are all questions that a consumer might possibly want to

know, and all it says is for more information on the ingredients. you look to the ingredients if the ingredients say tomato puree and high fructose corn syrup, you get a little more information about these ingredients. that's what is it is suggesting even on this bill that says for more information about ingredients, nothing about the fact that this product was or wasn't produced with bioengineering, nothing about the fact that this product does or does not contain genetically modified ingredients. so this is really a sham because it doesn't give that consumer-friendly information. and it's easy to give that consumer-friendly information. let's take a look, for example, of what's happening right now on m&m's. here it is. the mars corporation has said we want to have integrity with our

consumers, and so we're just going to tell them partially produced with genetic engineering. simple phrase. it meets the one-second test. you can grab that candy bar or that bag of m&m's, you can turn it over, boom, there it is. that is what states want to do with their nine out of ten citizens who desire simple information on the package. but let's turn back. what does this bill do? this bill says companies can put on a barcode with no reference, no reference to the fact there are g.m.o. ingredients. this is a completely different thing. the bill also says it can put on an 800 number. we've been through this territory before too. you put an 800 number on. well, that certainly is not consumer-friendly. you have to call up, talk to somebody on the phone, wait for 20 minutes to go through a phone

tree and talk to somebody on the phone. maybe you're talking to somebody in the philippines. maybe they know the answer, maybe they don't. are you kidding me that a shopper is going to go down the aisle at the grocery store and say i want to know the status of these different options before me, and i'm going to do a call for each one of them standing here for 30 minutes when it could have been answered in one second? no, of course not. and the authors of this bill know that this is a sham. well, this is disturbing that we're seeing dark act 2.0 coming back again. and if you ever do get to that person on the phone line or you ever do get to that computer web site, there is a provision in this bill that says that the information on the web site has to be on the first page, has to be presented clearly. but it's being done by the

company itself. so how big is that first page going to be? how is it going to incorporate other information about the ingredients? it's not something being produced in a standard fashion, easy to use. let's realize this. in order to use the 800 number, you have to have a phone in your pocket. in order to utilize the barcode you have to have a smartphone in your pocket. you have to use up your digital plan, your monthly digital plan, you have to spend your money to find out this information. and furthermore, some of your information is captured by the web site when you go there. you have to give up your privacy. so again we're seeing the sham and the scam brought forward in a new version. and that's not all. this bill has a definition that excludes the food derived from major g.m.o. crops. i have here the bill in front of me, and right up front it says

what is covered. it says food that contains genetic material, that contains genetic material. why is that important? well, when you process food into the ingredients that go into -- when you process crops into the ingredients that go into our food, you basically strip out, in many cases, genetic material. therefore the things that are commonly thought of as g.m.o. ingredients wouldn't be g.m.o. ingredients under this bill. i have here a commentary from the food and drug administration. here is what it says. it says the phrase -- quote -- "that contains genetic material" means that many foods from g.e. sources will not be subject to this bill." and it gives the example of genetically engineered soy, oil

made from that that goes into all kinds of products that everyone thinks of as a g.m.o. ingredient wouldn't be covered. what about high fructose corn syrup? what about oil derived from corn? what about sugar derived from g.m.o. beets? in the very start of this bill it excludes the three major crops or major component of the three major crops that are g.m.o. in america: soy beans and corn and sugar. that is disturbing. but if that wasn't disturbing enough, another loophole has been put into this bill. let's turn back to what the bill actually says. it says not only must it contain genetic material, thereby, bypassing the soy, oil and the corn oil and the sugar from the three major g.m.o. crops, but you also have to prove that the

ingredient could not otherwise -- quote -- "could not otherwise be obtained through conventional breeding or found in nature." so all a person has to do is assert it's possible, it could be, and then you have another massive loophole." to what point? we know it's a g.m.o. ingredient. it's in the food. you say yeah, but you could have possibly developed the same thing from a non-g.m.o. process, and you assert that so you don't put it on your can. you don't put it on your label. so two major loopholes -p undermining this bill showing that there is no serious intent to do a consumer-friendly label that justifies state preemption. and i would like to say that's all, but then there is the fact -- this was pointed to by the senator from vermont -- there is no enforcement in this

bill. there is no authority for the usda, u.s. department of agriculture to do a recall of products improperly labeled. there is no enforcement power to exercise a fine on companies that fail to use some option under this bill. and so we can see here the basic facts. this does not give a consumer-friendly label. and instead it sends people off through a maze, through a rat hole of telephone calls and web sites, not in any way practical to a shopper in a store. second, it has a definition that excludes major products from the major sources of g.m.o. crops in america. third, it has a huge loophole expressing a theory that if you can assert something could have been derived from a conventional

breeding program, you don't have to label. and then, fourth, no enforcement. this is completely different than the power that vermont has under their existing bill. they have a simple one-second test label. they have a definition that does not exclude the major crops. they do not have a loophole about some theory that you can possibly reach the same thing through conventional breeding. and they have enforcement. so this represents not even a shadow of what vermont is doing. i have supported the idea that you could have a strong case to have a single federal standard. it makes sense in the production of food in the country not to have different label standards in different states. the food runs through warehouses. it is spread out between different locations. fair enough. but if you're going to take away

a consumer-friendly label, the power to do that from a state, if you're going to preempt that, then we need to replace it with a credible mandatory consumer friendly label at the federal level. this bill fails the test in every major way. and that is why we should not strip states of their power. that is why we should reject this bill and encourage my colleagues to do so. a consumer's right to know about the food that they put in their bodies is a powerful, powerful right. and we're taking it away if we pass this bill. let us not do that. thank you, mr. president, and i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from georgia. mr. isakson: mr. president, is

the senator from from connecticut due to speak next? mr. blumenthal: i would happily yield to the senator from georgia as long as i be permitted to follow him for up to ten minutes. mr. isakson: i ask unanimous consent to be recognized for up to five minutes to be followed by the senator from connecticut, mr. blumenthal, for up to ten minutes. the presiding officer: is there objection? there objection? j. majority and minority leaders birthday and i move they be approved. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. isakson: mr. president, i find it unbelievable that today the united states senate said no to pregnant moms and veterans. the vote earlier to deny cloture on the v.a. milcon legislation and the zika virus is to say to pregnant moms in america we don't think the case of the zika virus is that important. you're going to have to run the risk yourself. and say to our van