nothing. that's why i come to the floor today. this has to come to an end. we have to do the right and just thing for these young people. we have to make those who are eligible for the dream act, those that are eligible to be part of our future, we have to give them a chance. and that's why i come and ask for help today. i can tell you we're losing about a thousand of these young dreamers each week. their protection under daca expires. what does it mean? it means that at any moment of any day a knock on the door could mean that they would be deported and many types other members of their family with them. their lives in the united states would come to an end and many of them would be deported to countries they have never ever known. they might have been there as infants, perhaps it was mexico, maybe it was korea. they knew it not personally but only through family stories and they would be sent to these

countries, many times with no family, no connections, sometimes with no knowledge of the language that's spoken there. they believe they were americans. i think they should have a chance to become americans in the full sense of the law.. i've come to the floor over the years after introducing the dream act and urged my colleagues to do something. i'm not alone. it's interesting the coalition that's come together behind this issue. over 75% of the american people think of congress, of democrats and republicans, should come together and pass the dream act. 75% of americans believe that. 60% of the people who voted for president trump believe that. we have governors of both political parties urging us to do something urgently to help. 11 of them democrats and republicans sent a letter to congress calling on us to pass the daca legislation. democratic governors from minnesota, montana, pennsylvania and north carolina. republican governors from

nevada, massachusetts, vermont and utah and alaska's independent governor, they have all asked us to act and do something about it. poll after poll shows bipartisan support for the dreamers. even fox news -- that's right, fox news -- found 79% of americans support a path to citizenship for dreamers. as i mentioned earlier, 63% of those who voted for president trump. i've told this story so many times on the floor, but it really doesn't have the impact of telling the real-life story of those affected by this conversation and would be impacted by this law. this is zarna pattell. she is the 106th dreamer whose story i've told on the senate floor. when she was three years old, her family came to the united states from india. she grew up in north carolina and corral springs, florida. she was a brilliant student.

in high school, she received the a.p. scholar with distinction, award from college board and the math scholars award from her school's math department. she was president of her high school environmental club. she started a recycling program at the school, led the school beautification project, beach cleanups and environmental competition. she was a member of the national honor society, the treasurer of the science national honor society, a member of the spanish national honor society, and a member of the rho kappa history national honor society. some student. she still found time to volunteer as a teacher for disadvantaged kids and as a youth leader for the south florida hindu temple. she was brought to this country as a baby. she was the only undocumented person in her family. she of course didn't know it at age three when she was brought here. but she didn't let her immigration status stop her at

all. she began college in florida. keep in mind, if you're one of these undocumented dreamers, you don't qualify for any federal assistance to go to school. you want to go to college, get a job. save the money. pay the tuition. she did it. in florida she was on the dean's list. she graduated cum laude from the university's honor program with a bachelor of science in nutrition and a minor in an throw poll skwreu. in college she volunteered as a student leader for community health clinics helping uninsured and underserved patients -fpls she was a leader for the friends for life pediatric cancer student group and volunteered at a hospital pediatric i.c.u. spending time with patients there every single week. she volunteered with the sports program for children with physical or mental disabilities and was a volunteer camp counselor for weekend and summer camp for kids with diabetes. she was a summer volunteer for a

community-based effort to reduce health care disparities in her county. zarna says that she threw herself into these sreufrbts -- activities to prepare hearse for her life -- to prepare herself for her life's dream to go to medical school. she knew she didn't have a chance. she did all these things in america but legally she wasn't recognized in america. her immigration status was going to kill her dream. despite being brought here as a baby, she did the very best with her life that she could possibly do. then in 2012, president barack obama established a daca program. she heard about it and realized that miracle of miracles, she had a chance. she was now able to step out of the shadows, submit her name for a criminal background check, pay a $500 filing fee, wait in line, and hope that she would be allowed to stay in america

protected by daca. and it worked. something else happened at the same time. a university in my home state of illinois that i'm very proud of, loyola university decided to do something no other university in america would do. they decided to open up the competition for medical school to daca-protected young people across america. they didn't give them special slots or quotas. no. threw them into the pool. if you're good enough to compete with the best students in america, guess what? these daca students turned out to be some of the best students in america. they have 28 students at loyola university school of medicine studying to be doctors today who are under the daca program that was eliminated by president trump. you say to yourself, lucky they got in under the wire. there's a problem. the problem is on march 5 the daca program is eliminated by president trump. by march 5, students like zarna

will lose their protection under the law. and as they lose their protection under the law, they are subject to deportation, which means a knock on the door and you can be gone. and they are not allowed to legally work in america. what difference does it make if a medical student can legally work? well, i've come to learn it makes a big difference. because, you see, to be a successful medical student you need a residency. a residency is a job in a hospital. it's a tough job. it isn't 9 to 5 job during the course of the week. it's many, many hours of hard work. you don't get paid a lot of money. you learn what it means to be a doctor, to treat people as they come into the hospital. so if you want to go to medical school and you want to graduate with a residency and specialty, you need to be allowed to legally work in america. because of president trump's decision to eliminate daca,

zarna pattell and hundreds just like her cannot seek a residency out of medical school. that's the end of medical school. they are stopped despite all the success in their academic lives. they're stopped from going forward. zarna is a second year student. if she's given a chance, she wants to be a doctor. in my state, we help pay for her education. here's the deal, though. zarna pattell, you want to go to medical school and don't have the money, my state of illinois will loan you the money to go to medical school on one condition. you have to give us one year of service as a doctor once you become a certified doctor in our state of illinois for the money we loaned to you. you can serve in the city of chicago. you might serve in the rural community downstate. and she signed up for it. she said i'll do it. a year of my life for each year of medical school if you'll give me a chance to be a doctor.

does this young woman sound like the kind of person that we need in this country in its future? does she sound like the kind of person who would be the kind of doctor you would like to have? well, sign me up. i'm one of those who believes in her. i know her. i met her. there are 28 other students at loyal spa*l medical school -- at loyala medical school like her. their future hinges on what happens in this chamber, whether in the next two weeks senators on both sides of the aisle, republicans and democrats will come together and solve this problem. i want to thank the presiding officer for being a positive part of this conversation. you have been. it means a lot to me and it means a lot to her and a lot of people who are counting on us to do our job as senators. we haven't worked out a perfect solution to this yet. we need tpo give and take, compromise, agree to some things maybe i don't want to agree to, maybe the other side does the same, but to do our work to pass

the law. isn't that why we were elected to solve these problems rather than sit here and give speeches about the problems? i want the day to come when these poor staff people breathe a sigh of relief and say the dream act finally passed and maybe durbin will stop giving these speeches on the floor about these magnificent young students. i'd like that day to come and come soon, certainly before january 19. zarna wrote me a letter. she said as i got older i began to understand just how complicated u.s. immigration laws were and how stacked the odds were against me. here i was in a country i love, that i rooted for, that i thought to be the greatest country in the world, and my family paid taxes for services that i would never be eligible for. there i was serving a country that didn't even value me as a human being all because i didn't have a piece of paper. and yet, after all that i've been through, after all that this country has said about me, i still call it my heart, my passion, and my home.

close to 70 dreamers are enrolled in medical schools. i mentioned loyola. there are others. i thank them all for giving these young people a chance. if daca goes away and isn't replaced by congress, they can't become doctors. they'll be deported back to their countries in many situations, where they haven't lived since they were babies. will we be a better country if zarna pattell is asked to leave? will we be a stronger nation? will chicago, will springfield be better? a report says the nation's doctor shortage is going to get worse because a lot of boomers and others are getting older and need help. we need more doctors and we need good ones, good ones like zarna pattell promises to be. the a.m.a. and association of medical colleges warned that ending daca will make this physician shortage in america worse, and they've urged

congress to do something about it. here's what the american medical association says, and i quote, estimates have shown that daca initiative could help introduce over 5,000 previously ineligible doctors into the u.s. health care system in the coming decades to help address our shortages. removing those with daca status will particularly create shortages in rural and underserved areas. without these physicians, the a.m.a. is concerned that the quality of care in american communities will be negatively impacted. when we introduced the dream act, senator lindsey graham, republican of south carolina, said, and i quote, the moment of reckoning is coming. mr. president, it's coming soon. it's coming in a matter of days. by january 19 we have to do something. we've run out of time. we've run out of excuses. we've run out of the opportunity to help zarna pattell and a lot of people like her be part of america's future. now is the time to act.

mr. president, i yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: i ask unanimous consent that the pending quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. whitehouse: thank you, mr. president, and happy new year to you. for my 191st time to wake up speech, i want to take the change of years to reflect on what 2017 meant for our carbon pollution of the earth climate and what 2018 may bring.

our human use of fossil fuels continued to pour carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in 2017. the concentration of co2 in the atmosphere now stands at almost 407 parts per million. the highest in human history. more than 100 parts per million above the safe range in which human development for millennia has flourished. each year brings a new record concentration of co2 in our atmosphere, and that will continue to worsen until the world weans itself off fossil fuels. and, of course, the contamination of our earth and atmosphere by carbon pollution

is matched by the contamination of our politics by unlimited and often hidden fossil fuel industry money, threats, and promises. when the accounting comes for what they have done to the government of the united states, there will be a lot to answer for. we're in a heck of a cold snap now as the boundaries of normal weather get blown out in all directions by climate change, but the underlying steady warming trespassed through all these new extremes of hot and cold and wet and dry is obvious. here in the u.s., everyone in the lower 48 except for a few pockets up in the northwest where things stayed fairly steady have seen hotter than

average temperatures. this represents hot. this helps cold. as you can see, most of the map matches the hot end. mean temperature departures from average, january to november, 2017. residents of the desert southwest of coastal texas and louisiana and of much of the southeast lived through their hottest year ever in 2017. record warming is this color, so you see it all through these areas. record warmest temperature. up in the arctic, where temperatures are rising twice as fast as the rest of the globe, 2017 was the second hottest year ever. in barrow, alaska, the temperature rose so rapidly that

computer algorithms kicked in and flagged the underlying data as suspect. the computer felt something must have gone wrong with the equipment and flagged the data as suspect. in fact, the readings were extraordinary, but they were real. that was the temperature. we also saw a punishing onslaught of extreme weather in 2017, making it the most expensive disaster year in u.s. history, costing nearly $400 billion in damages. the united states has averaged fewer than six, fewer than six billion-dollar weather-related disasters a year. between january and late october, 2017, we experienced 16, which killed 282 people. and final estimates of the

devastation during 2017 aren't complete. it may prove that a thousand lost lives are attributable to hurricane maria and its aftermath in puerto rico. the 2017 atlantic hurricane season brought 17 named storms. 10 hurricanes, and six major hurricanes, those with average wind speeds exceeding 115 miles per hour. in august, hurricane harvey roared ashore with winds over 130 miles per hour, dropping more than 60 inches of rain over the houston and port arthur areas, areas that aren't even on the flood maps found themselves flooded. scientists agree that the unprecedented texas deluge was only made possible by a warming

atmosphere. september also brought hurricanes irma and maria, which ravaged the caribbean, including the u.s. virgin islands, puerto rico, and the bahamas, as well as florida. much of puerto rico is still without power months after the storm. abnormally warm waters in the tropical atlantic fueled this punishing succession of storms. out west, 2017's high temperatures and low rainfall created conditions ripe for wildfire. as of november, more than 6.4 million acres had burned, an area roughly the size of the commonwealth of massachusetts. making 2017 the third most active fire year in history. in october, fast-moving wildfires laid waste to the california wine country,

destroying almost 9,000 structures and killing more than 40 people. they were the costliest fires in u.s. history, bringing $9 billion in damage at $85 billion in economic loss. in december, the thomas fire exploded across coastal california, burning over 280,00o becoming the largest wildfire in california history. notably, fire season should have been over by then in california, extinguished by december's customary winter rains. not in 2017. southern california had near-record low rainfall this winter, leaving vegetation desiccated and ready to ignite. the evidence continued to pile up in 2017 of the connection

between climate change and this extreme weather. the american meteorological society released a report showing a majority of extreme weather and climatic events since 2016 were influenced by human-caused climate change. indeed, the report found the record average global temperatures in 2016, the record warm waters in the north pacific, and the record temperatures in asia simply would not have occurred without human-caused climate change. and we should not, as we too often do, overlook the oceans. the added carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that has run up the concentration to 407 parts per million alters the ocean's very

chemistry. the added heat trapped by that carbon dioxide in the atmosphere gets picked up by the oceans, and it raises ocean temperatures. warmer, more acidic seas destroy coral reefs, displace fisheries, and rise along populous shores. we measure all this already. so with all these alarm bells ringing, how did the united states respond in 2017 to the climate crisis? our newly inaugurated president donald trump pointedly ignored the global, political, and scientific consensus that climate change poses a grave risk to our way of life. a prediction shared by our state

universities, our national laboratories, our major scientific associations, even our military. but president trump nominated fossil fuel stooge scott pruitt to run the environmental protection agency. for energy secretary, trump nominated rick perry who uses his office to promote fossil fuel, even announcing a plan to subsidize the coal industry after private meetings with big trump coal company donors. and then there is ryan zinke, trump's secretary of the interior, who has decided to reopen public lands to coal mining and wants to roll back the rule limiting methane emissions from oil and gas drilling on our american public lands. it is literally the three

stooges. in may, president trump announced america's withdrawal from the paris climate agreement, leaving the united states the only country on earth to reject this landmark pact. this is not leadership. this is its corrupted opposite. this administration is in hock to the fossil fuel industry like no other. trump and his pals haven't drained the swamp. they have jumped right in with the biggest monsters of all. the u.s. chamber of commerce paid for a police study claiming the paris agreement would cost jobs and economic growth. the american petroleum institute complains about rules eliminating emissions. they tried to roll them back. the oil alliance complained

about fuel efficiency standards the oil companies agreed to for american cars. pruitt starts a project to water them down. trump takes money by the shovel full from fossil fuel donors and pence dances on koch brothers' strings. and yet, and yet, 2017 offered reasons to remain optimistic. first as the explosion in renewable energy. in 2017, renewables provided nearly 20% of electricity generation in the united states, as wind and solar costs fell, utilities across the country even in red states invested heavily in wind and solar. the renewable energy industry hit 3.3 million jobs, more than all fossil fuel jobs combined.

more good news. the leadership void left by the corrupted trump administration was filled by thousands of state and local governments, businesses, academic institutions, and faith organizations who pledged to honor the paris agreement and reduce their carbon emissions. the states of california, connecticut, hawaii, new york, north carolina, oregon, virginia, washington, and i'm proud to say rhode island, have all declared that they are still in. alaska announced it would meet its goals. what's more, california and washington joined with canada, colombia, chile, costa rica, and mexico to put a price -- to rein

in emissions. leading asset manager blackrock helped break the back of exxon's opposition to shareholder's resolutions requiring them to report their climate risk to their shareholders, multinational insurance firm axa announced it would divest from the tar sands holdings. and credit rating agency moody's announced it will consider climate risk in rating coastal communities municipal bonds. companies like microsoft and unilever have their own baked-in internal carbon price to help them reduce the carbon intensity of their operations. then there are the court battles. in 2017, multiple california

municipalities fueled companies to seek help with the huge adaptation costs they face as sea-level rises and extreme weather becomes more common. there h exxonmobil to disrupt the fraud investigation into whether the company has been covering up what it knew about the risks posed by fossil fuels. by the way, at the very end of last year, we discovered that there were reports to the american petroleum institute of the dangers of climate change from renowned scientists, including edward teller, going back to 1959. that's how long this coverup may have been going on. so these various things among businesses, among states, among

leaders, among other countries, among state attorneys generals give me hope for 2018. the renewable energy revolution will continue. it is unstoppable as prices drive the market their way. forward-thinking business leaders will realize they must fight for good climate policy, not just within their own companies but also here in washington. they need to start showing up. the courts -- america's courts will provide a forum for truth and disclosure, two things very scarce in climate denial, which fossil fuel companies, for that reason, have for years fiercely fought to avoid. but judges will insist on answers, plaintiffs are entitled

to discovery, and lying in court gets you punished. world and state and local leaders have picked up the mantle abandoned by washington republicans. and who knows. there's always hope. republicans and democrats in congress just might reflect on 2017 of the hurricanes, wildfires and all the changes already taking place in our home states may reflect on what all our home state universities are telling us. it may look at where young and independent voters are on this issue, may heed the longstanding warnings of our u.s. military, and maybe, just maybe, step out

from under the bullying shadow of the fossil fuel industry and come together to solve our climate crisis. here are my 2018 resolutions. let's put a price on carbon emissions so that their release into the atmosphere reflects the true cost as market theory says it should. this market-based solution is endorsed by leading thinkers and analysts on the left and the right. and let's also launch carbon capture and storage, including direct air capture, let's launch carbon free advanced nuclear technologies. let's help america lead the world in the fight to stave off

irreversible climate catastrophe with new technologies that we're the world's best of developing. finally, for coastal states like my home state of rhode island which faced the irrevocable upward march of warming seas on a warming planet, let's make sure coastal communities have the resources they need to predict and prevent or prepare for the future that looms. we owe this to our children and to our children's children. to all future generations who will look back at us, mr. president, and say when it was so obvious, how is it possible that the government of the united states, how is it possible that this city on a hill could do nothing but the bidding of the most conflicted

industry on the planet? in 2018 let's get this right. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

mr. inhofe: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: i ask unanimous consent to be recognized as if

in are morning business -- if in morning business. the presiding officer: the senator is recognized. mr. inhofe: i ask to be recognized for such time as i may consume as if in morning business. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. inhofe: now, i sense another senator -- are you wanting to be recognized? because i don't want to -- ms. warren: whenever the senator is through i wanted to speak. mr. inhofe: very good. thank you, mr. president. well, i want to begin with wishing everyone a happy new year, and oil i'm -- and i'm hoping everyone had a great christmas. we did. i want to make three observations consistent with 2018. first, here in washington we're experiencing really frigid temperatures this week. and let me tell you in oklahoma it was colder there than it was here, which is unusual, but it was. we had record breaking bitter

cold weather, but there were great, warm people and it was a wonderful christmas and it was good. many parts of the country saw 2017 with the record breaking cold weather and meteorologists are predicting more record cold for the rest of the week. i bring this up to highlight the fact that president trump joked last week on a twitter. he said, quote, we could use a little bit of that good-old global warming. i say it a little bit differently. i say, where is global warming when we need? we sure needed it this last week. the alarmists went crazy. let me explain an alarmist. an alarmist thinks that there is global warming from the gases and they went crazy and for not

understanding the difference between weather and climate. we keep saying the same thing. every time we go through one of these periods that we experience, then, again, we -- we have the same thing that comes up and we talk about it. climate is always changing. we understand that. we actually had a unanimous vote on the floor of the senate. yeah, climate changes. it always changed. historically, scripturally, it has always changed. we understand that. but, anyway, i remember i've been criticized by the same thing. you might remember that i brought a snowball here a couple of februaries ago so show that we're not experiencing climate change when it snows in february after we've been told for decades that soon we won't have any snow again. that was really a kind of fun thing. i lined up some of the pages and said which one of you guys is the most athletic of all of

them. it happened that the guy that raised his hand. they all pointed to him and he was from oklahoma. i take a snowball, i throw it up there at the residing officer. if you intercept it, it's going to be a mess. he intercepted. nevertheless, quit being so serious about all of this stuff and realize there are things happening that people need to talk about. you might remember al gore named some outrageus claims. enough years have gone by. he said that global warming was going to cause all the of -- of the snow to melt from mount kill man czaro -- killenangaro and by 2016 the arctic would be completely melted and he talked

about all the polar bears would be gone and extinct. the only thing that happened according to an article in "the new york times" al gore has now become the first environmental billionaire out there. so some things like that are happening. anyway, the critics were quick to jump on my case and i had to remind them there is a difference between weather and climate. but those same critics also were quick to jump on weather events when it supports their cause. whenever there is a particularly bad tornado in oklahoma and we've -- and we have bad tornadoes. i've never seen a good tornado. there have been people to witness them. and i'm immediately asked if this will cause me to change my mind about global warming or climate change. i said why? alarmists have been insisting for a long period of time that the -- their idea is the world

is coming to an end. it's coming to an end because of global warming. after this past hurricane season, i was repeatedly asked if i thought climate change was to blame for the tragic natural disasters and again i responded you alarmists have been insisting that weather isn't climate so why change your position now. i'm not surprised we have hurricanes during hurricane season. we have tornadoes during tornado season, and we have cold and snow during the winter. that's not just unique to my state of oklahoma. that's all over the country, all over the world. and we hear constantly that natural disasters are getting worse yet when you look at the data, there's no support for that conclusion. when category 4 hurricane harvey hit texas and other gulf states, it was the first major hurricane to make landfall in the continental united states for 12 years. now, the next largest gap between major hurricanes actually lasted only eight years, and that was in the

1860's. tornado activity has also been down in recent years with the latest data of 2016 showing a continued low number of tornadoes across the united states. i might say that is also true for my state of oklahoma. since we're experiencing record breaking cold last week and this week and much of the country, we're once again reminded that weather is not climate. so what is happening on the climate front? if you listen to the alarmists -- keep in mind who the alarmists are. they're the ones that are saying the world is coming to an end because of global warming. but they'll say that we all will be burned to death and temperatures are skyrocketing over the last couple of years we've been told it was the hottest year on record. we've been scolded by the jet-setting hollywood celebrities about our carbon footprint. but again, if you actually look at the data, there isn't support for all this hysteria.

2014, 2015, and 2016 were touted by the obama administration as the hottest years on record, but the increases are well within the margin of error. in 2016 noaa -- that's n-o-a-a -- said the earth warmed by 0.04 degrees celsius and the british government pegged it at 0.01 celsius. however, the margin of error is 0.1 degree, not 0.01. so it's all well within statistically just meaningless. it's below the doom and gloom temperature predictions from all the various models, from consensus scientists. now, steven coonan, he was -- he was in the obama administration. he was under secretary for science at the department of energy. so that was -- he was an

appointee by president obama. he said -- and this is a quote -- he said the obama administration relentlessly politicized science and aggressively pushed a campaign about that politicized science. in other words, he's using that to make a case that is not true. this comes out of his own administration. in september 2017, the university of alabama huntsville, their climate scientist, john and richard published a study showing no acceleration in global warming for the last 23 years. their research shows that if you remote -- remove the climate effects of two volcanic eruptions and the el nino and la nino systems that occurred over the last 38 years, there has been no change since the early 1990's to the rate of warming and that model predictions from

the ipcc are overstated by about double. keep in mind who the ipcc is. that's intergovernmental panel on climate change. that's the united nations. they're the ones who started all this stuff about 40 years ago. they're the ones whose scientists have been completely discredited. i will always remember when that took place. it was in copenhagen. they had one of their big annual united nation parties over there. they -- i remember back before leaving to go over there, the -- jackson was the obama director of the e.p.a. she knew i was going to go over there and tell the truth to all these people. i asked her the question. this is on public record. i said, now tell me, in the event that i leave town and if you're going to start regulating

global warming, you have to first declare that there is an urgency to this thing and you have to use a scientific declaration. what science will you use? she said we're going to use the ipcc, intergovernmental panel on climate change. that's the united nations. as luck would have it, just a matter of days after that the ipcc was totally rejected. i mean, you remember -- everyone remembers that, how the -- how they -- they had been caught rigging the information in terms of weather. it was really quite a mess. the eruptions cooled. the earth -- going back now to the christy explanation that came out the other day, the volcanic eruptions cooled the earth when ash, soot, and debris entered the atmosphere and sunlight was reflected away. the eruptions happened relatively early in our study period which pushed down temperatures in the first part

to the data set which caused overall records to show exaggerated warming trends. anyway, we have two respected climate scientists using -- to discredit the consensus scientists. there are hundreds of scientists are out there. one is an m.i.t., one of the most climate scientists, a guy named richard linzer. he's been outspoken about this. every time you hear people say there's a consensus of science, i think we know better. i remember the media does not share the studies. quite often the media doesn't say anything about the -- some of the failed practices that are being used to draw us to these conclusions. i'm thankful that we have a president and an administration that refuses to handcuff our economy with policies that are based on overblown headlines. so while we continue to have tornadoes in may, hurricanes in the fall, and bitterly cold

temperatures in the winter, we must remember that the climate has been stable over the last few decades and we shouldn't give in to our -- the fearmongerrers who are out there. we should focus on actual threats to american families like the regime in iran that calls for death to america or death to israel. the men and women of iran began protesting in the streets, and what began as people were speaking out against the sluggish economy and the economic growth that does not exist in iran, the people are fed up with it. keep in mind, the country of iran is still recognized as the financial backbone of terrorism throughout the world. so the media in iran has reported that over 20 individuals have died in these protests. they're protesting for their own freedom.

450 have been arrested since the regime's violent crackdown against the protesters. now, these protesters -- keep in mind what they're protesting for. they just want some of the freedoms that they know other countries have. right now they are in a state where they don't see any other way to make this happen. an act that defies transparency and democratic principles, the regime has shut down social media and messaging sites limiting the flow of information about the protests. in other words, they're not letting the outside world know what's going on there. iran clearly thinks they can get away with this, the disregard of human rights and why shouldn't they. under the obama administration, iran was able to violently crackdown on democratic protesters in 2009, also continuing the ballistic missile tests in violation of u.n.

resolutions and financing terrorist organizations within the region without international condemnation or repercussions. remember, iran is still the financial backbone of terrorism in that part of the world. well, just last month we learned how the obama administration under the law enforcement efforts against hezbollah drug trafficking operations, hezbollah is a well known -- well known to be a proxy of iran. everybody knows that. and it's a terrorist organization. but rather go after the financial backing of a known terrorist organization, obama swept under the rug. his focus was on creating and then protecting the flawed iran nuclear deal, the deal that he promised, obama promised would end iran's aggressive behavior in the region and promote reforms in iran through economic opportunity. well, the actual results of the

deal never have been more clear. the ruling elite of tehran continues their aggressive behavior by putting their nation's resources towards supporting assad's regime in syria, testing ballistic missiles and committing human rights abuses against women and religious minorities. it's no wonder that freedom-loving men and women in iran seek meaningful change. fortunately, president trump has already been clear that the united states stands behind the right of iranian citizens for peaceful protest. maybe the ayatollah didn't recall -- or didn't get the message from president trump when he was sworn in last year. under president trump, america is the leader of the free world again standing up for common human dignity and democratic values. he's backed up his support with action, weighing additional sanctions against the regime and having u.n. ambassador niki

haley who is doing a great job, by the way, call for emergency u.n. meetings to address the human rights concerns. i support his efforts and look forward to working with the president and his administration to enact any needed sanctions against iran in order to advance freedom and democracy. now, mr. president, i mentioned there are three things that i wanted to address for this new year. the third is tax reform. you know, we've approached -- we're approaching one year under the -- under president trump's administration and we've already seen the benefits of the tax reform and cutting of harmful regulations. the comprehensive tax reform legislation passed by congress last month will allow american families to keep more of their hard earned money. we've been talking about this for a long time and make it easier for businesses to grow

and hire more hardworking people. already businesses across the country like the american airlines, southwest airlines, boeing, comcast, wells fargo, at&t, and in my state of oklahoma the express employment professionals headquartered in oklahoma city have announced investments in their employees and businesses as a result of the tax bill. now, clearly the tax reform will compound the economic growlt that we've already -- growth that we've already seen, a result from president trump's consistent efforts to cut regulations his first year. following the severe economic recession of 2008 and uncertainty in the future, many companies have chosen not to invest their business in their employees, now, under the obama administration, federal bureaucrats unleashed hundreds of regulations that increased the cost of doing business, stifling job creation. and the result is obvious.

according to a report by the heritage foundation, by 2015, obama's regulations were costing the taxpayers over a hundred billion dollars a year. with these limitations on job creators, it is no surprise that the average g.d.p. growth under president obama was just about a little over 1.5%, no matter the previous history of the united states is actually consistently about 3%. in less than one year by directing federal agencies to delay, withdraw, or invalidate 1,600 planned regulatory actions, president trump has done what president obama was unable to do in eight years, and that is restore the confidence of the american business community. now, he did this by reversing the obama regulations. i have one. in fact, i've taken the time to list these regulations that were putting people out of business.

i ask unanimous consent that this be inserted in the record at this -- at the conclusions of my remarks today. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. inhofe: there are two ways you get rid of regulations. one is, you can do it through executive actions. i think everyone knows what that is. but the more difficult thing is to do it through congressional review act resolutions. that is c.r.a. i was very proud, the first c.r.a. we were able to get passed was one i introduced. it was one that was very popular. it was a rule put in during the obama administration that said that we were -- that we were in competition with the domestic oil or gas company with china or some other company, that we had to give to them all of how we put together our playbook which put the united states companies at a disadvantage. we went ahead and did a c.r.a. on that and i was very proud to

do that. i think people should look at these and realize with the great results that we had as a result of doing away with the overregulations. i have the list here and this is something people are not really aware of. on january 1, "the new york times" even recognized the positive effects of the president's deregulatory agenda. this doesn't very often happen. it happened with the "new york times," that they reported on a new wave of optimism in american business. listen to this. the trump effect -- this is what the "new york times" are calling it, very appropriately i might add, or rightfully calling it -- is beginning to translate into investment in new plants, equipment and facility upgrades that bolster economic growth. this is "the new york times." this is -- they continue by saying, quote, the lowest, with the lowest unemployment rate in 17 years, we're also seeing the trump effect -- again, that's

their term -- on wages as businesses invest their workforce by raising wages to keep attracting skilled employees. this week "the wall street journal" reported how cities like minneapolis have seen a 4% wage growth in the last year, the highest growth in six years. i'm confident we're going to hear more success stories around the country. the proof is in the numbers. for the first two quarters of the trump administration, the first two full quarters starting with the second quarter of 2017, the ones that he would have control over, we have increased the growth, the g.d.p. growth to over 3%. that's pretty amazing. over 3%. this is from the average of 1.5%. for each 1% increase of economic visitor -- activity in g.d.p. that translates into additional

revenue coming into the government of about $3 trillion over a ten-year period. that's why back in 1981 and the 1981 tax cut under reagan, they started out the year with the total revenue coming in to be $469 billion. but then as a result of the tax reductions, the increase activity and economic activity increased it to $270 billion. we increased our revenue by decreasing the individual rate. so finally, the made in america economy is running at full speed again, and we have three huge success stories of the trump administration. number one, eliminating the obama overregulations to free up businesses. the second one, reestablishing america as a leader in the free world by reversing the obama policy of appeasement. no man survives from freedom

fails. the best men rot and fail in jail and those that cry and try to appease are hanged by those they try to please. the first tax reform if three decades. with that, i want to say happy new year. 2018 is going to be great. and i yield the floor. ms. warren: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from massachusetts. ms. warren: thank you, mr. president. i rise to discuss the nomination of john root for the position of undersecretary of defense for policy. i am concerned about the influence of different industries on key positions in government. today the specific problem under discussion is the influence of the defense industry over the pentagon. the defense industry in america is powerful and profitable. the big five defense contractors together represented more than $100 billion in government contracts in 2016 alone. think about that. five corporations, $100 billion

in taxpayer money in one year. the defense industry in america is powerful and president trump stopped the pentagon with an unprecedented number of nominees directly from the defense industry. these nominees will oversee all the government contracts. they will influence which companies get billions in taxpayer dollars and what exactly those companies have to do to collect their checks. without strict ethics rules and oversight, these nominees have the power to significantly influence the profitability of their former employees, the same companies that may, once again, be the nominees' future employers after they have finished their government service. now, mr. root may be a decent man but he is the latest

skpaepbl of this trend -- example of this trend. he will come from the defense department from lockheed martin international where he was most recently a senior vice president. lockheed is the biggest of the big five defense contractors. in 2016 the u.s. government awarded the company over $40 billion in one year. according to his bios, it included developing strategies to grow lockheed martin's international business and, quote, managing marketing and government relations activities overseas. in other words, he was responsible for selling lockheed's products to other countries. lockheed made over $12 billion, more than a quarter of net sales

from international customers in 2016. here's why that matters. according to lockheed's most recent annual statement the international sreufgs -- division mr. root managed made about 66% of sales to foreign customers through the pentagon's foreign military sales program. this is a program that allows for the sale of u.s. defense products overseas. in that same report, lockheed acknowledges that its foreign sales are, quote, highly sensitive to changes in regulations and, quote, affected by u.s. foreign policy. in other words, government officials influence whether lockheed's foreign military sales barely break even or whether sales shoot through the roof and bring in billions of dollars for lockheed. if confirmed as under secretary of policy, mr. root will play a significant role in setting u.s.

defense policy and overseeing the regulation of foreign military sales of those very same products to those very same countries. if he is given this job with no constraints, mr. root could implement policies that increase lockheed's profitability whether that's in the interest of the american people or not. now, chairman mccain and i questioned mr. root about this conflict of interest during his confirmation hearing. i asked him a simple yes or no question. would he commit not to seek a waiver from his obligation to recuse himself from lockheed martin business, as required by his ethics agreement. that's all i asked. he hemmed, he hawed, and finally made it clear that, well, no, he would not make that commitment. so i asked him another simple question. would he at least recuse himself

from policy discussions about the sale of lockheed martin products through the ford military sales practice. the answer was again clear. no, he would not make that commitment either. i followed up with additional written questions. i asked, mr. rood, will you commit not to seek or accept a waiver from your recusal obligations under your ethics agreement? and here is his response. i am concerned that a commitment never to seek or accept a waiver could unnecessarily restrict my ability if confirmed to take an action that is important to u.s. national security and defense interests should a circumstance arise that is currently unforeseen. in other words, no. he would not commit to abide by his own ethics agreement. just think for a minute about what that means. president trump has nominated an

industry executive to one of our most senior national security positions, and that individual is unwilling to steer clear of the conflicts of interest involved in doing that job. i think the standard here should be pretty simple. if a nominee cannot do the job to which he's been nominated without seeking a waiver from his ethical obligations, then he should not have that job. mr. rood is not the only trump e with that problem. the president nominated many other executives from industry to the most it senior positions to the department of defense. the deputy secretary of defense was previously a senior vice president at boeing. he now runs the pentagon's budget process, including making the final call on which defense programs get funding and which do not. the secretary of the army was a senior lobbyist for raytheon, and even ran raytheon's political action committee.

the secretary of the under secretary of the army, the number two position, was also a vice president at lockheed. the deputy chief management officer previously ran exor aerospace now a bankrupt developer of rocket engines and space launch systems. the undersecretary of defense for acquisition technology and logistics spent her career at an aerospace and defense contractor. i could go on with this list, and i don't doubt that many of these individuals are service minded. i know that many have also served honorably in government both in and out of uniform. i also believe that a strong partnership between government and industry is important to our national defense. industry experience in and of itself does not disqualify someone from public service. but there must be balance. when too many top government jobs are filled by industry

insiders, we risk corporate capture of the whole policy making process. the overrepresentation of defense industry officials at the highest levels of the department of defense has real consequences. it suggests to the american people that only one viewpoint or one experience will dominate our policymaking decisions. no outsiders, no one with a competing point of view need apply. and the revolving door between industry and government raises questions about who our government serves. no taxpayer should have to wonder whether the top policy-makers at the pentagon are pushing defense products and foreign military sales for any reason other than the protection of the united states of america. no american should have to wonder whether the defense department is acting to protect the national interests of our nation or the financial

interests of the five giant defense contractors. and no man or woman in uniform should have to wonder whether their civilian leaders are putting the private financial interests of themselves and their friends ahead of the safety and the interests of our military service members. the american people have a right to know who their government works for, and the senior leadership of the department of defense is putting our national security first. everyone has a right to know that. the readiness and safety of our men and women in uniform is too important for any of us to have to ask those questions. so as a member of the senate armed services committee, i will not vote to confirm any nominee from industry who does not agree to fully recuse himself or herself from matters involving their former employer for the duration required by their

ethics agreement, without waiver and without exception. i think we owe our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines at least that much. and because he will not make the commitment to abide by his own ethics agreement without waiver or exception, i will be voting against mr. rood as undersecretary of defense, and i urge other senators to do the same. thank you, mr. president. i yield back and i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from colorado. mr. gardner: is the senate in a quorum call? the presiding officer: we are. mr. gardner: i ask the quorum call be vitiated. i rise to speak about a horrible tragedy that took place in colorado in the early morning hours in douglas county, colorado, december 31 as most coloradans were waking up on december 31 preparing for a celebration that evening to bring in the new year. hours later, a gunman would open fire on douglas county sheriff's deputies in what has been described by law enforcement as an ambush-style attack. the gunman injured two citizens as well as sheriff's deputies michael doyle, jeff pelly, carol

davis, castle rock police officer thomas o'donnell. a fifth officer, deputy zackari parrish heroicically gave his life in an attempt to save the lives of others. deputy parrish was 29 years old, survived by his wife gracie and their two young daughters. zack's lifelong dream was to become a police officer. he attended the police academy part time while working part time at a bank so he could make these dreams come true. following graduation, zack serves for two years as an officer at the castle rock police department, spent several months as a douglas county sheriff's deputy. his selfless nature and devotion to his family and friends was a testament to his timeless drive to protect his community. he was what every officer strives to be -- dedicated to the job, persistent, and detail

oriented. at a vigil honoring zack earlier this week, his fellow deputy shared zack's knack for finding things other cops missed. they spoke of how he always wanted to chase the bad guys, and even when it was time to go home, zack would stay late to make sure he had time to do that one last patrol. his family and friends spoke of how zack was known for his bear-sized love and even more so for his bear-sized hugs. these are the qualities of those who righteously wear the blue uniform. these are the qualities that keep the rest of us safe and sound. these are the qualities of a hero. zack, like all law enforcement officers, went to work each and every day prepared to walk that thin blue line. colleagues at the vigil also spoke about how zack was not only dedicated to the difficult parts of the job but also spoke about his dedication to lift the spirits of fellow officers. according to his fellow

deputies, zack was known as the guy that would hunt for the best christmas lights. it's that kind of passion, good nature, and of course love for community that zack will be remembered for. as we saw on new year's eve, while the rest of us spent time with our family and friends, our brave law enforcement officers are protecting our communities. their sacrifice is why we are able to celebrate with our loved ones. we owe so much to zack and to law enforcement officers across colorado and across the country for their service. when a tragic event like this unfolds, i'm often reminded of the words that lieutenant colonel dave grossman who wrote that american law enforcement is the loyal and brave sheep dog, always standing watch for the wolf that lurks in the dark. regardless of their personal safety, our law enforcement officers run toward the danger. they are there to help others, always there to serve our communities, and often through the worst of times, they provide hope and safety to our families,

including mine, including yours. i will continue to pray and let all of us continue to pray for the four officers and two citizens who were injured in the attack, and we must continue to honor zack's memory and support his brothers in blue as they continue his work and his dearly loved family as they begin a new year in a way that they never could have imagined. we honor his legacy and those who serve. mr. president, i yield the floor.

the presiding officer: morning business is closed. the senate will proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination, which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, department of defense, john c. rood of arizona to be under secretary of defense for policy. the presiding officer: there are 30 minutes equally divided for debate on this nomination. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from colorado. mr. gardner: i ask unanimous consent the time be yielded back. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. the question is on the nomination.

is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote: