close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call rolt. -- the roll. vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: any senators wishing to change their vote? if not, the nays are 44. the motion is agreed to 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 nomination of jeffrey vincent brown of texas to be united states district judge for the southern district of texas signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of jeffrey vincent brown of texas to be united states district judge for the southern district of texas shall be brought to a judge. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll.

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not, the yeas are 51, the nays are 37. the motion is agreed to. 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 nomination of brantly starr of texas to be united states district judge for the northern district of texas, 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 nomination of brantly starr of texas to be united states district judge for the northern district of texas shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll.

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? the yeas are 51, the nays are 37. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion. we, the 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 nomination of stephanie l. haines of pennsylvania to be united states district judge for the western district of pennsylvania, 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 nomination of stephanie l. haines of pennsylvania to be united states district judge for the western district of pennsylvania shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber who have not voted or wish to change their vote? if not, the ayes are 87. the nays are 1. the motion is agreed to. 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

nomination of ada e. brown of texas to be united states district judge for the northern district of texas 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 nomination of ada e. brown of texas to be united states district judge for the northern district of texas shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not, there are -- if not, the yeas are 79, the

nays are 9. the motion is agreed to. 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 nomination of steven d. grimberg of georgia to be united states district judge for the northern district of georgia 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 nomination of steven d. grimberg of georgia to be the united states district judge for the northern district of georgia shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not, the yeas are 72, the nays are 16. the motion is agreed to. 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

nomination of jason k. pulliam of texas to be united states district judge for the western district of texas. 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 nomination of jason k. pulliam of texas to be the united states district judge for the western district of texas shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or wishing to change their vote? if not, the ayes are 54, the nays are 34. the motion is agreed to. 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

nomination of martha maria pacold of illinois to be united states district judge for the northern district of illinois, 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 nomination of martha marie pacold of illinois to be united states district judge for the northern district of illinois shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or wishing to change their vote? if not, the yeas are 86. the nays are 2. the motion is agreed to. 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 nomination of steven c. seeger of illinois to be united states district judge for the northern district of illinois. 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 nomination of steven c. seeger ofively il-- of illinois to be the united states district judge

for the northern district of illinois shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not, the yeas are 87, the nays are 1. the motion is agreed to. 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 nomination of william shaw

stickman iv of pennsylvania to be united states district judge for the western district of pennsylvania, signed by 1 senators. -- 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 nomination of william shaw stickman iv of paver to be united states district judge for the western district of pennsylvania shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: is there anyone in the chamber wish be to vote or change their vote? if not, the ayes are 57, the nays are 31. the motion is agreed to. the senator from new jersey. mr. menendez: madam president, the senate is not in order. the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. the senate will be in order. please take your conversations off the floor.

the senator from new jersey. mr. menendez: madam president, i rise in opposition to the nomination of miss kelly craft to serve as the next u.s. ambassador to the united nations. as a firm believer in the strength and power of u.s. diplomacy, there are three main reasons i oppose ambassador craft's nomination. first and foremost, she lacks the experience necessary to stand up for american values and promote our national security on the global stage. second, during her brief diplomatic tenure in canada, she posted so many absences that i cannot describe it as anything less than a dereliction of duty. ambassador craft has also been unable or unwilling to convince the senate that she will fully separate her professional obligations from her family's business interests. we cannot have an ambassador to the united nations who risks using this incredibly influential position in ways that could benefit her own

family's finances. this position is one of the most important diplomatic posts in our government. it's a global stage, and every leader who serves in this role must always put the country first. since its founding, some of our most distinguished public servants have represented the united states at the u.n. george h.w. bush, jean kilpatrick, thomas pickering, matalin albright, john negroponte, susan rice, is a man that power. these americans brought to the table years of experience as former ambassadors, senior state department officials, national security sownl staff, and more. ambassador craft simply isn't match the foreign policy and national security expertise offered by these distinguished leaders. before serving as the u.s. ambassador to canada, she had no previous significant foreign policy experience or executive experience at all. it would seem that her most

relevant credential is that she along with her husband contributed more than a million dollars to the president's campaign. during the confirmation process, ambassador craft's performance suggested a deep lack of knowledge and applicable experience. now, i want to be clear. this is not a judgment on her character. this is merely an assessment of her ability to represent the united states of america on the world stage where she will grapple with some of the most complex and challenging foreign policy issues of our time. when asked to identify at her hearing the most pressing issues facing the u.n. and comment on how the united states could leverage the u.n. to pursue our national foreign policy priorities, craft displayed no sophisticated understanding of the many challenges confronting our country. she failed to mention north korea's aggression on nuclear proliferation. she failed to mention ongoing threats from iran. she failed to mention china's growing power and russia's

continued benign influence. when asked about the two-state solution, she could not articulate a viewpoint. when asked by senator paul whether she believed the iraq war is a mistake, she replied that she was, quote, not going to secondguess the bush administration. in response to senator cardin's question about the threat of climate change, she said that the united states does not need to be a member of the paris climate agreement in order to show leadership. all the more disturbing are her past comments on climate change like when she said, and i quote, i believe there are scientists on both sides that are accurate. taken together, these answers should alarm anyone who hopes that the united states can use our power, our influence, and our leadership position to promote our interests and answer the great challenges of our time. simply put, never in our nation's history has a president nominated such an underqualified person to this critical post for just being a donor. miss craft also lacks the

professionalism needed to be the u.n. ambassador. as our ambassador to canada, she had one job -- to represent the united states in canada. yet, during her time in ottawa, the defining characteristic of her service appears to be how little time she actually spent there. and the numbers speak for themselves. during the 608 days she served as u.s. ambassador in ottawa, she spent 357 days outside of canada. let me repeat that. during her 21 months assigned to ottawa, she spent an entire year out of canada. for my colleagues to insist she was engaged in trade negotiations, the state department's own records suggest otherwise. indeed, the record shows she only spent 40 days on travel related to usmca. she did, however, spend 210 days at her homes in kentucky and oklahoma. i repeat -- she spent seven of her 21 months as our ambassador in canada at home in the united

states. now, the last time i checked, not a single round of the usmca negotiations took place in kentucky or in oklahoma. additionally while miss craft claimed she always received approval for her travel, records show at least 11 days out of the country, she did not have state department approval. should you be confirmed -- should she be confirmed as ambassador to the u.n. i think it's fair if an international crisis erupts we might more mikely find her in kentucky than new york city. ambassador craft's absences represent a total abdication of her responsibility as the head of the u.s. embassy in canada. one of our nation's most vital allies. in one troubling instance during the month when the trump administration shut down the federal government, ambassador craft was in ottawa for only two days. rather than providing leadership to embassy personnel during uncertain times, she was at home in kentucky. perhaps she thought she was a nonessential personnel.

finally, miss craft is also displayed a lack of diligence when it comes to preventing conflicts of interest. look, i know this administration has sunk to some new lows when it comes to mixing family business with national security, but it doesn't mean it's okay. norms are only as strong as our will to stand up and defend them. that's why we must push back against self-promotion at the expense of the american people. we also know that ambassador craft's husband joe craft runs the second largest coal producer in the eastern united states and has lobbied the e.p.a. to roll back regulations against air and pollution. she insisted to the committee that her husband, quote, plays no role whatsoever in official u.s. government business but e-mail and calendar records tell a different story. when ambassador craft needed information about u.s. environmental projects, she asked her husband, not embassy employees to connect her to former e.p.a. administrator scott pruitt. when the e.p.a. sent the requested information to the ambassador, they included her

spouse on the response. in addition to official calendars, mr. craft participated in at least four meetings with u.s. or canadian government energy and environmental officials. the potential of conflict are staggering. the nomination of miss craft to this position underscores the trump administration's total lack of respect for the work of our diplomacy, our diplomats and for the united nations. taken together, ambassador craft's lack of experience, her dereliction of duty and excessive absences in ottawa and her unwillingness to address potential conflicts of interest render her unfit to serve as our ambassador to the united nations. in a world of growing challenges, the american people deserve a serious, thoughtful, proven leader to represent their interests at the united nations. they deserve a leader who can leverage the united nations to advance our national security interests and ultimately build a safer, more stable, prosperous world. and they deserve a leader who will put the interest of people

over the profits of their family. kelly knight craft is not that leader. for those reasons i will vote no on this nomination and urge my colleagues to join me. 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 nomination of kelly craft of kentucky to be the representative of the united states of america to the united nations with the rank and status of ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary and the representative of the united states of america and the security council of the united nations 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 nomination of kelly craft of kentucky to be the representative of the united states of america to the united nations with the rank and status of ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary and representative of the united states of america and the security council of the united nations shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory

under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not, the yeas are 57, the nays are 33. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: kelly craft of

kentucky to be the ambassador of the united states of america and the security council of the united nations.

mr. mcconnell: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask that the senate proceed to the consideration of the norquist nomination as under the previous order. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: department of defense, david l. norquist of virginia to be deputy secretary. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the question is on the nomination. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the nomination is confirmed. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent the motion to reconsider be made and laid upon the table and the the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent the motion to reconsider on the jordan nomination be made and laid on the table and the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes

eachment. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of s. res. 293 which was submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 293, designating september 25, 2019, as national lobster day. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. mcconnell: i further ask the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that the committee on the judiciary be discharged from further consideration of s. 929 and thed? proceed to its immediate consideration. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. 929, a bill to amend title 28, united states code, to redefine the eastern and middle judicial districts of north carolina. the presiding officer: without objection, the committee is discharge understand and the senate will proceed. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon

the table. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the committee on homeland security and government affairs be discharged from further consideration of h.r. 1250 and the senate proceed to its immediate consideration. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: h.r. 1250, an act to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 11158 highway 146 in hardin, texas, as the lucas shown memorial post office. the presiding officer: without objection, the committee is discharged sand the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following calendar bills en bloc, calendars number 85 through 89, 121-124 and calendar 162. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the measures en bloc. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous

consent the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 wednesday, july 31. further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed, and the senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the pittman nomination under the previous order. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: so if there is no further business to come before the senate, i ask it stand adjourned under the previous order. the presiding officer: the senate stands adjourned until

reagan is an intellectualntil comfortable with ibs. he understands the power of ideas and with that kind of foundation come intellectual foundation, a political leader