2015 that showed billions of dollars in taxable income leaving high-tax states for low-tax states due to taxpayer migration. the last time i checked, there was no salt cap between 2012 and 2015. while there is some anecdotal evidence that taxpayer migration might be starting to increase due to the cap, it's not entirely clear at this point. mr. president, i ask unanimous consent to insert into the record a bloomberg article from may of this year entitled "blue states warned of salt apocalypse , it hasn't happened." that's the name of the article. the presiding officer: without

objection. mr. grassley: the ratings agency mode's also release add report in april saying that there was no 0 discernible signs of individuals who were fleeing high-tax states as a result of the salt cap. however, even if taxpayer migration were to occur as a result of the cap, the answer to the problem isn't repealing the salt tax -- or salt cap. it's for the states to look in their own back yard at their own tax and spend policy. the truth is these state politicians aren't concerned about their own taxpayers. what they're really worried about is their continued ability to gouge those taxpayers with ever-increasing state and local taxes, which used to be -- which used to be subsidized by

taxpayers from other states through the federal tax code because there was no salt cap. in closing, i want to turn back to this very chart. the same one i discussed earlier. for democrats still on the fence as to whether to repeal the i.r.s. regulations on the salt work-arounds, you ought to study this chart very closely. so i ask a question to the other side -- could you with a straight face argue that a vote to protect these worker-arounds is not a vote to provide a massive tax cut for the weert? because this chart shows it's helping the wealthy. for democrats who intend to vote for this tax scam anyway, i don't want to hear any more long-winded speeches about how the tax bill of 2017 benefited

the wealthy. the fact is after tax reform, the wealthy now shoulder a larger share of federal tax burden than they did under the prior law. this was made possible by reforms to the regressive tax expenders such as our capping of the salt deduction. what's more, these reforms allow us to target more tax relief to lower and middle-income taxpayers. state work-arounds to the salt cap are nothing more than state-sanctioned tax shelters. by voting to undermine that cap, democrats are voting to enrich the wealthy taxpayers who they persistently have vilified as not paying enough.

moreover, they put the tax relief provided to middle-class into jeopardy. i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. wyden: mr. president, i want to make sure that the senate and the country understands what this debate is all about. senate republicans have been writing letters to the department of treasury saying that the treasury salt rule hurts their state charity, yet they have been unwilling, at least based on what i'm told, to

be part of an effort to fix this and to support those charities, and that's what we would be doing in our efforts today to overturn the treasury department's flawed, deeply flawed salt regulations. my view is these regulations illustrate essentially what was wrong with the republicans' 2017 tax law. this was the law that was half-baked, rushed to shovel hundreds of billions of dollars to those at the top of the economic pyramid in our country. then $1.5 trillion was borrowed so that donald trump and his republican allies could find a

way to cover this tax cut for cronies and donors. and then because they still needed revenue, republicans deliberately targeted middle-class homeowners in states like new jersey, new york, maryland, and oregon for tax increases. for some communities in ore, it's not uncommon for property tax bills alone for middle-class folks to exceed $10,000. but when our republican colleagues took this flawed approach, they didn't want on the salt issue to listen to experts. and so the trump treasury department stepped in and

without any clear authority to do so, the treasury department reversed a long-standing i.r.s. provision that it allowed taxpayers a full deduction for charitable contributions to state tax credit programs. in essence, the treasury department created a new rule that extended the $10,000 cap of state and local tax deductions to also include charitable contributions to state tax credit programs. to make matters worse because republican senators began to see what an absurd approach this was, secretary mnuchin put together another carveout for republican interests, trying to figure out how to manage this flawed regulation. so in effect private school voucher programs would be exempt

from the regulations. middle-class families pay more, businesses pay less. that is the republican way. my view is the treasury department shouldn't be putting its thumb on the scale on behalf of republicans, and it certainly shouldn't be using what amounts to a phony regulatory justification to fix this extraordinarily poorly drafted law. while donald trump certainly intended for these regulations to hurt middle-class families in some parts of the country, some parts of the country, democratic states, you can protect republican interests. the bad news for my republican colleagues -- and this is why so many republican senators are writing the treasury department, talking about why their state

charities are getting hammered. the regulations produced by the treasury department are overall broad, and they hurt the majority of states by effectively eliminating the benefit of those states' charitable tax credit programs. these include credits that support priorities like conservation, child care, charitable giving, and access to higher education. now, this is particularly striking given that the trump tax law was already estimated to slash overall charitable giving by as much as $20 billion a year. now, on top of that, the regulations that i oppose and still feel strongly about coming from the treasury department threaten more than 100 charitable state tax credit programs in 33 states.

my republican colleague constituents will be hurt by these regulations, just like my constituents at home. we're talking about child care centers in colorado and missouri, foster care organizations in arizona, historic preservation groups in kansas, charities in iowa, kentucky, and mississippi, conservation groups in arkansas, iowa, florida, north carolina, south carolina, and tennessee. rural hospitals in the home of the president of the senate, in georgia. universities in indiana, idaho, montana, and north dakota. volunteer responders in nebraska. now, as today's debate proceeds, you are going to hear about the comments against these regulations that were submitted to the trump administration. there is a rural hospital in georgia that was able to upgrade its heart monitors, a child care center in colorado that helped parents remain in the work force, a conservation group that

preserved more than 10,000 acres of land in florida's gulf coast. i have just been wrapping up and would hope my republican colleagues would put their constituents first by shielding them from the unintended consequences of losing their charitable tax credit and support this resolution offered by the leader, senator schumer, myself, and other colleagues. so senate republicans have a choice. they can keep writing letters to the treasury department, complaining about their regulations that hammer their state charities, or they could join us in voting to reverse this policy. i just hope that senators move to this vote. they take the option that i think is the only one you can explain to folks at home in a town hall meeting. i have had more than 950 of

them. i'm going to have some more very shortly. folks have a chance to really see what your priorities are. so the question really here is are your priorities folks at home with these state charities that i have emphasized in everything from conservation to health care to children, are you going to support those states' charities doing that important work, or are you going to continue to support the department of treasury with their incredibly flawed regulations that hammer these state charities? i hope senators of all sides, from the 33 states that i just ticked off will vote to protect those charities and join myself, senator schumer, a host of other colleagues in voting to get rid

of these treasury department rules and stand up on the c.r.a. with that, mr. president, i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. ms. ernst: mr. president, i come to the floor frustrated. frustrated by the fact that it has been 327 days since president trump signed the usmca, and the house has done nothing to take it up. it's not because the house hasn't had time. they have found time to do a lot of things, like continue on their partisan expedition toward

impeaching the president. they passed a bill without a pay raise for our troops, spent a lot of energy on the green new deal, and one member of the house took the time to show the world she was frightened by her garbage disposal. so the question is, folks, what's preventing congress from getting the usmca done? from humboldt county all the way to hamburg, iowa, at my town hall meetings or during a visit to small business or manufacturing plants and everywhere in between, i have been hearing one thing consistently and across the board. iowans want the usmca now. these hardworking folks know the impacts the usmca will have on iowa's economy and the u.s.

economy as a whole. there is no reason iowans should be waiting in limbo for this agreement to be ratified. mr. president, this trade agreement is a win for the american people, plain and simple. mexico has already ratified the deal, and canada is well on their way. our trade partners are ready. the united states-mexico-canada agreement is about modernizing a trade deal with two of our closest allies that will grow more than 175,000 jobs across this country. nafta was ratified in 1994. 1994. that is three years before wi-fi became available to the public,

five years before u.s.b. drives were invented, 12 years before the launch of facebook and twitter, and 16 years before computer tablets were on sale. none of us are living with 1994 technology, so why should we be living with 1994 trade policy? president trump understands the need to modernize trade with two of our closest allies, and that's why he negotiated a great trade deal with mexico and canada, the usmca. patsing the usmca will allow us to compete in today's 21st century economy. it will provide folks back home in iowa with some certainty, certainty in a time where prices have been low and markets have

been eroded from other trade wars. iowans want and need usmca. canada and mexico are our state's top two trading partners. in 2018 alone we exported $6.6 billion worth of products to our neighbors to the north and to the south. trade with canada and mexico directly increases the value of iowan exports like beef, adding $70 in value to each head that comes from the state. and in case you didn't know it, mexico is the number-one consumer of iowa corn. i was up in northwest iowa a couple weeks ago visiting with one iowa corn former, and he said that if we were able to get the usmca deal done, it would

have a direct impact -- positive -- on his farm. and it's not just our farmers who will benefit from the usmca. it's also our businesses and our manufacturers. i was visiting with some business leaders at a roundtable in des moines, and time and again they told me how important it is that we get this trade deal done and in place. all of this leaves me scratching my head, wondering when the house is going to do what americans are demanding. when will they stop obstructing the good work done by our president to get a deal in place? house democrats need to do their job so that iowa farmers, manufacturers, and business owners can do theirs. now is time to pass the usmca.

that you -- thank you, mr. pres, and i yield the floor. ms. mcsally: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from arizona. ms. mcsally: i come to the floor today to speak in spowrpt of usmca -- in support of usmca and i appreciate my colleagues that are speaking out as well.

almost a year passed since president trump signed the u.s.-mexico-canada agreement. legislation to implement agreement must be approved first in the u.s. house of representatives and then the united states senate where it will pass with a strong bipartisan vote, including mine. this modernization of nafta matters for arizona businesses, hardworking citizens, and families. mexico has already ratified usmca and canada is in the process of doing so. now congress needs to pass usmca without any further delay. simply put, usmca is a win for arizona. trade with mexico and canada is key to arizona jobs and opportunities. almost 50% of all arizona exports go to mexico and canada, and more than 228,000 arizona jobs rely on this trade. in 2018, arizona and mexico

engaged in $16.6 billion worth of cross-border commerce. exports to canada and mexico support arizona jobs across a broad variety of industries. in 2018, arizona companies exported $2.3 billion worth of computer and electrical products, $1.4 billion in appliances, $928 in transportation equipment and $796 million in machinery to canada and mexico. arizona miners exported $1 billion in minerals and ores and arizona farmers exported almost $600 million in agricultural goods. one out of five arizona manufacturers export to canada and mexico and most of those are small and medium-size businesses. it's not too hard to see how much arizona communities, ranchers, farmers and business owners stand to gain from congress finalizing the usmca. a few weeks ago i was honored to

host vice president pence in the grand canyon state. one of our stops took us to caterpillar's proving grounds in green valley, arizona, where the company tests their impressive machinery and trains operators on new equipment. with roughly 660 full-time employees in our state, caterpillar knows what a critical role cross-border commerce is and the passage of usmca for arizona. caterpillar recycles 150 million tons of scraps a year to create new products. this kind of innovation should be promoted, not penalized. usmca encourages this kind of innovation by specifically prohibiting restrictions on remanufactured goods. in turn, companies like caterpillar are not penalized but encouraged to be thoughtful in their environmental footprint. i made many other visits to local businesses this year and heard straight from arizonans about why we need to get this

deal passed and now. the usmca opens doors for arizona to continue leading in the aerospace, financial services, film and digital media and bioscience sectors. it enhances intellectual property protections and will benefit arizona's emerging automotive sector by requiring at least 75% of a car to be built within north america parts in order to be sold duty-free. arizona's farmers and ranchers will have new opportunities to export dairy, eggs, wheat, chicken and turkey products to canada. earlier this month speaker pelosi said about usmca that her democratic caucus in the house was, quote, on a path to yes. well, with less than two dozen legislative days remaining in 2019, i sure hope that's true, and i would encourage them to get to yes now. the usmca is good for our country, and too much time has passed without any house action.

during these divided times, this is a proposal that should bring both sides of the aisle together. it is good for america and it is good for arizona. usmca is a clear win for my constituents in arizona. arizonans in every corner of our great state need to contact their representatives in the house and tell them to encourage speaker pelosi to bring this bill to the floor immediately. let's pass usmca now. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. mrs. blackburn: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from tennessee. mrs. blackburn: thank you, mr. president. as our colleagues can hear, we are on the floor talking about the usmca and the need to get this agreement passed. and it really is frustrating. you know, i feel as if we've come to the floor time and again to encourage our friends in the

house -- and i guess we are all but begging them, take a pause from their political agenda and take one vote, just one vote that is going to make a tremendous amount of difference in the lives of businesses, of our auto manufacturers, our farmers, our chemical producers, and workers. you know, our friends across the aisle like to say they're all for the workers. well, if you're all for the workers, let me tell you something, there are 12 million2 million workers who are directly impacted by the benefits that would come from the usmca. and this is across every single industrial sector. as i've been about tennessee, what i have heard from so many

is a simple question. when are you going to pass this? how long is it going to take? we've heard that you've got people in logistics, people that are in farming, people that are in every single part of the economy who are saying why can't you get this done? we all know there is support that we hear about, bipartisan support. why bipartisan support? in the other chamber, and indeed why bipartisan support here in the senate? but for some reason they just can't seem to find the time to schedule the bill and call the vote. so america is waiting on them to take this vote.

there are 120,000 small and mid-sized american businesses that will be able to continue exporting their goods to customers in canada and mexico. and, mr. president, you know it is significant, these businesses, small and mid-sized businesses, they're located in every single one of our states. the updated customs and trade rules are certainly going to make sure that even start-ups are able to participate in this cross-border economy. i have talked to so many new start businesses that are coming through our universities and our entrepreneur centers, and they say, you know, we want to make certain that we have access to markets around the globe. isn't this great? they're not just thinking locally or regionally.

some of these talented young americans, what are they doing? they're thinking globally. they are planning ahead for decades of productivity. this is going to ease regulations for our dairy and beef and pork farmers that are in tennessee. and indeed i was out in the past couple of weeks and talked with a farmer who is a cattle farmer. he came to one of our meetings, and i got around to questions and answers. very first question -- when is this going to be done? when is it going to be done? why is it taking so long? there was agreement between mexico, canada, and the u.s. months ago. why can't this get a vote? these are real problems for real people who are working real jobs and are very dedicated, and

they're working diligently. the intellectual property provisions that are in this bill, they're so significant for our singerrers, our songwriters, our musicians that call nashville home, and they want to see this take place. and i've got to tell you, i know that all of these issues i've discussed might not matter to those that are always interested in the 24-hour news cycle and winning the shiny object debate of the day. but i will tell you this, this matters to tennesseans because tennesseans exported $13.7 billion worth of transportation equipment, electronics, machinery, chemicals, fabricated metal, appliances, paper, plastics, rubber, and other goods to canada and mexico

in 2017. a $13.7 billion export community to our neighbors to the north and south. tennessee businesses and workers have waited long enough, and they want to see the house take action and the vote be completed and the u.s. usmca become a reality. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from ohio. mr. portman: i appreciate the comments from my colleague from tennessee about the importance of this agreement to her state. it's also important to a state a little farther north called ohio. our number-one trading partner by far is canada. number two is mexico. and we want this agreement. i hear about it all the time. i'm out talking to our farmers, they're concerned about the weather, they're concerned

about what's going on with the china market, they're concerned about low prices, and they see this as an opportunity. this see this as the light at the end of the tunnel. if we can get usmca done, that expands markets for us and increases our prices and gives us a chance. the same with a lot of small manufacturers. it's amazing how many depend on mexico and canada. this is a big deal for ohio and the country. i'm here to urge the house of representatives to move on this and then to urge the senate to take it up right away. the trump administration negotiated a good agreement. it deserves a vote. i'm a former trade lawyer, a recovering one, i'm also a former member of the u.s. ways committee, and i guess the bottom line is in all those years of working with trade, it's a complicated area. it's a politically difficult area, but the bottom line is that we are about 5% of the world's population in america.

and yet we've got about 25% of the economy. and the way we do well is to sell more of our stuff to the 95% of the people outside of our borders. it should be fair. we should have a level playing field. that's the context i look at the i ask unanimous consent. does it meet the criteria where we're able to sell more of our stuff and have a more level playingfield? yes, it does. it's a good agreement, and it deserves to have a vote and if it has a vote, it will pass because logic, i think will prevail. as crazy as this town is and as partisan as things are, the logic is inescapable, you have the usmca, which is a good agreement, and then the status quo, which is nafta. if you vote no on usmca, you will voting yes on the status quo. i think it will pass.

canada and mexico make up the most important foreign markets for the u.s. products. it's not just ohio. the recent data we've got one-third of all american exports of 2019 this year have already gone to mexico or canada. well ahead of any other foreign market. trade with mexico and canada is now 12 million jobs nationally. every single state represented here has jobs related to this. in ohio, number and one two, canada and mexico, 39% of exports go to canada alone that is twice the national average. we are particularly focused on canada and mexico. $28 billion in trade totally. again, that's what i'm hearing from the farmers, manufacturers, and service providers. this is just really important for us. we have to be sure that this is built on a solid foundation, the nafta agreement, which is what is built on now is 25 years old. this means that it's outdated. this means that it has not kept up with the times. that it has to be improved. that's what usmca does.

it says, okay, we're in the 21st century, we have to make changes to this agreement. it doesn't have the things in nafta that you would expect. so much of our economy operates over the internet and yet there's nothing in the current agreement, the nafta, that protects this trade like our modern agreements do. the other is labor and environmental standards which are weak and not enforceable in the nafta agreement and in the usmca they are. that's a big change in and of itself. this is not just a name change. this is a fundamental change in the way in which we relate to our neighbors to the south it on the north. i'm going to show you a handy dandy chart i put together here that shows you some of the differences between the two agreements. the first one has to do with what's the economic impact. the international trade commission has done a study on this. they are required to do it by law. you know what they say? they say that the new usmca will create 176,000 new jobs. that's right here, that's the

green check, that's usmca. nafta, none. so that's a big difference right there. if you want to create more jobs, 176,000 new jobs, 20,000 of those jobs is in the auto industry, something that is important to our country and particularly important to states like mine. second, businesses in ohio and around the country rely on the internet sales that we talked about earlier. rules for the internet are unchanged in nafta and, frankly, there is no chapter in nafta that deals with commerce over the internet. it's unbelievable. well, it turns out that usmca does. and it's really important that it does because those small businesses that rely on access to canada and mexico through internet sales are going to have an easing of our customs version of the small value of the products, they will have data localization protections and prohibition of mexico and canada requiring localization of those companies and this prohibits tariffs on data.

we don't have that now. these are really important to keep the economy moving many check for usmca, nafta doesn't have it. let's talk a little about the enforceable labor and environmental standards. in the agreement that we have now, the nafta agreement there are no environmental standards or labor standards that are enforceable. none. whereas in the new usmca you have standards that are enforceable. there are consequences if they don't abide by them. this is part of leveling the playing field. if you think about it, particularly with regard to mexico, one of the advantages is the labor costs, the ability to organize and so on. this changes that and says you've got the labor standards. mexico made changes to the labor laws because of agreement that we already had with them under usmca, which, by the way, was negotiated with these two countries and submitted back on september 30 of last year. it's been over a year. so about time to move it. so, again, usmca, yes,

enforceable labor standards, enforceable environmental standards. nafta, no. there are other interesting standards that lead to why in is good for the economy. by the way, the i.t.c. says this will increase the g.d.p. of our country, the economic growth of our country significantly. in fact, more than the trans-pacific partnership did. that was an agreement that a lot of democrats have spoken very favorably of because of the impact on the economy. this increases the economy more than the trans-pacific partnership would have. so, another issue that is unusual but is in this agreement and it's very helpful to our manufacturing in ohio and around the country is that 70% of the steel in vehicles made have to be made in the united states, canada, or mexico. this is a new standard. it's not in the existing nafta at all. it's in this one. what does it mean? more steel jobs in america, more heavy manufacturing jobs in this

country. again, check on usmca, yes, 70% of the steel, nafta, nothing with regard to how much steel that's to come from north america. it also says that with regard to the wages in mexico canada and the united states, that there actually would be a minimum wage of $16 per hour, $16 per hour for about 40% to 45% of this manufacturing that we're talking about. so any vehicle made in mexico or anywhere else in north america has to be produced by workers making $16 an hour or more. this is again about leveling the playing field. this is the kind of provision that you might see in an agreement that would be negotiated by a democrat, democratic administration, not a republican administration. to mill democratic colleges who have been calling for this, take a look at this. it will result in more jobs coming to the united states of america where we have not just higher labor standards, but higher wages. 40 to 45 are% of vehicles must

be made by workers making $16 an hour, yes in usmca, no in nafta. this is another example of where this agreement is one that, frankly, addresses a lot of the concerns that democrats have raised over the years. when i was u.s. trade representative, we talked a lot about these issues. we talked a lot about them in the finance committee. they are in this agreement. so my hope would be that speaker pelosi and the democrats in the house would take this into account and at least allow this agreement to be voted on by the full house. if that happens, i can't believe that logic wouldn't prevail, that the status quo of nafta, versus usmca wouldn't result in us passing usmca. all of these things are going to help. the one that i think has gotten the most attention in farm country is the fact that the dairy protections in canada has been changed so we have a chance to send our dairy from ohio and other states like us. it is much more than that. it's about commodities, wheat, soybeans and corn, poultry,

beef, pork. this will really help our farmers. that's why 1,000 farm groups around the country have supported the agreement. with what's going on with china, with the smaller market there, with the difficult weather we've had, with the fact that low prices for commodity crops is a problem, this is a godsend. it's really needed for our farmers. a lot of democrats tell me, this is just like the nafta agreement in so many respects. it really is not. it's no. it's a different agreement. the truth of the matter is that this agreement is going to catch us up to the 2 #st -- 21st century with regard to our trade relationship with our neighbors from the north and south. it is about a level playing field with our workers and farmers. it is being able to get a fair shake. put these two side by side, this is a much-needed upgrade. it has to get the vote and if it does, i think it will pass.

with all the improvements we talked about today, this is not just an exercise in rebranding nafta. this is about an agreement. are you for this agreement that is better in every respect or for the status quo, which is naflt. my hope is that the house will take it to the floor, if they do, it will pass. and if it comes to the senate, it will pass on a bipartisan basis. what i'm most confident of is then american workers, american farmers, american service providers are going to have the opportunity to improve their economic opportunities because this agreement is going to be good for all of them. there's a lot of politics right now, and i get that. but, folks, this is not even an election year. so let's finish it up this year before we get into the 2020 election year. let's be sure before thanksgiving we have this agreement passed in the house and sent to the senate.

it's too important, we need to put the american people first, put politics second bd and -- and get the work of the american people done. the presiding officer: the senator from mississippi. mr. wicker: we have been talking about usmca and the senator from ohio crammed in quite a bit of facts. i -- we have limited time. i will abbreviate my remarks. the senator from ohio told me something that is an undisputed fact. we sell twice as many goods to countries that we have with trade agreements as to countries where we don't. this is an opportunity to expand on an already great success story in terms of our trade with canada. what do we see now in trade with canada and mexico? we see 12 million american jobs, more than $50 billion worth of exports -- $500 billion worth of

exports and usmca would enhance that and improve that. it is good for large manufacturing, it's good for small manufacturing, it's good for small business. the tech industry benefits from usmca as the senator of tennessee pointed out, the creative industry, those people in nashville and in hollywood will benefit also in terms of hour ability to protect our intellectual property, farmers, ranchers, agra business all -- agri business all benefit and we strengthen our position with china. this is not an agreement with china, but we'll be in a stronger position to compete with china because of this. and i certainly -- i urge the speaker of the house of representatives to bring this to a vote and the -- in the other body. there's one person on the face of the earth, mr. president, who can bring this bill up, and that's the speaker of the house of representatives. she needs to do that, and if she

does, we'll see a rare opportunity for bipartisanship in the u.s. congress. the house, controlled by democrats, will pass usmca because they know it's good for jobs and they know it's good for families and working people. the senate will pass it on an overwhelming bipartisan basis, and that ought to be refreshing. i'm going to do something that i seld om do -- seldom do. i will quote "the washington post." i don't get a chance to do that often. "the washington post" has strongly supported the usmca. the editorial board wrote, the usmca would be a real improvement over the status quo and it went on to urge democrats, including many who already said they support the agreement, to bring usmca up without delay. this is an opportunity for us to move this economy forward. this is an opportunity for us to

join with canada and mexico, who have already indicated their support for this treaty, and an opportunity for bipartisanship which needs to break out more in this building. so i join my colleagues. i'm glad to rise with them in support of urging the speaker to bring this bill to the floor and urging quick adoption in the house and the senate. i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from mississippi. ms. hyde-smith: mr. president, the american people elected president trump based in part on his promise to negotiate better trade deals with foreign nations, first among them, our largest trading partners, canada and mexico. the president and his administration wasted no time in

working with these two neighbors to rewrite the north american free trade agreement to reflect today's economic realities. those talks produced the usmca agreement or usmca -- united states-mexico-canada agreement or the usmca which the president unveiled more than a year ago. when nafta was written, more than a quarter of a century ago, the internet was in its infancy and few could have foreseen the increasingly globalized and digital economy we have today. usmca takes us into the 21st century updating antiquated rules to prohibit the theft of trade secrets, reward american innovators, and improve cross-border e commerce while also providing increased market access for american businesses and benefits for american workers and more traditional sectors like agriculture and manufacturing. market access is very important

to agriculture and to our nation's economy in general. 95% of the world's population lives outside these united states. without good trade agreements that gives us free access to the world's marketplace, we cannot prosper an agriculture or any other business that depends on exports. the usmca will result in a fairer deal for u.s. businessmen and consumers. today the american people should ask why it has taken more than a year for the house and senate to take up debate and pass an agreement that will boost the american economy and job creation. manufacturers, farmers, and other businesses in my state of mississippi certainly want to know why we have not done that. the truth of the matter is that house democrats have delayed taking action because they want,

first, to deny president trump a win for as long as possible and secondly, to secure last-minute favors for big labor. it is ironic that these same democrats and big labor groups now oppose usmca because of environmental protections or labor rights. the truth is they're largely responsible for the original nafta which they now claim incentivized a mass exodus of u.s. companies to mexico and decimated our manufacturing sector. unfortunately democrats' inexcusable foot dragging is just hurting american consumers and businesses. for years mississippi has worked aggressively to increase the market penetration of its manufactured goods and agricultural products in foreign markets. my state exported $11.8 billion in goods in 2018, a 61% increase

over the past decade. foreign trade accounts for almost 10% of mississippi's g.d.p. more than 50,000 workers and large manufacturers, medium and small businesses and farms played a role in producing these goods for use around the world but primarily to canada and mexico for my state's largest trade partners. bottom line the usmca represents an important new tool for mississippi to expand its ability to sell more of what we produce to consumers abroad. there is no good reason for the house to have held up this 21st century trade agreement, and it is time to finally take a vote, send it to the senate, and get it done. we all are benefiting from the strongest u.s. economy and lowest jobless rate in decades.

congress needs to do its job to help maintain and strengthen this economic growth, usmca will create more certainty for businesses and increase business confidence improves the state of the world's economy. let's pass the united states-mexico-canada agreement and spend more time on accomplishing as much as we can on issues that will actually make a difference in the lives of the american people. thank you, mr. president, and i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from north dakota. a senator: thank you, mr. president, i rise to support the usmca, the united states-mexico-canada agreement along with my colleagues and you heard a number of them already and you'll hear more. it's compelling. it's time to act. we're ready to go. mr. hoeven: this legislation has to start in the house.

we need the house to move forward and there is a he no question the bipartisan sup -- there's no question the bipartisan support is there, in the senate and the bipartisan support is there in the house as well. it's just a matter of bringing the legislation to the floor and getting it passed. the benefits of this agreement are very clear. it will increase exports, expand consumer choice, raise wages and boost innovation throughout north america, especially here in the united states. as analyst -- analysis, excuse me, by the international trade commission found usmca will raise g.d.p. by nearly $63 billion and create 176,000 jobs in the united states. so it's clear. you know, we need to move forward. the agreement will secure and expand market access for our ag products for an ag state like mine. it will grow our manufacturing base for manufacturing states like ohio. the good senator here to my

right. it will provide important modernizations for our technology sector, for states like the presiding officer's state, certainly a high-tech state. and it will solidify the united states as the global energy leader. we are now the -- as you know, exporting energy in a bigger way than we ever have before. and this just builds on that momentum. these are all significant wins for our states individually and for this country as a whole. in the ag which of course, as i say, certainly a big issue for us in north dakota. the usmca really makes it an important difference and a helpful difference for us in agriculture. the last 50 years our country has had an ag trade surplus and we are -- and our farmers and ranchers can now compete with anyone in the world. they produce the highest

quality, lowest-cost food supply in the world and we have a positive balance of trade in ag. and we need these type of trade agreements in place to continue that positive balance in our ag trade. my state, for example, we ship $4.5 billion worth of ag products around the globe. in 2017, making us the ninth largest exporter of ag goods among the 50 states. and our farmers and ranchers depend on being able to do that. of course, what we're seeing right now are low commodity prices in our country which is having a -- making it very difficult for our farmers and ranchers. and the best way to work out of that is with trade agreements that allow us to sell more globally. according to the -- the fully implemented usmca will increase exports to mexico and canada by $2.2 billion. this agreement secures existing market access, makes ag trade fair, increases access to the

canadian market, supports innovation in agriculture and more which is why it is so critical that we pass this legislation as soon as we can. by maintaining all zero tariff provisions on ag products, usmca will secure crucial markets, crucial market access in canada and mexico for our farmers and ranchers. canada and mexico are critical markets for u.s. ag products. some examples, mexico, number one buyer of u.s. corn and d.d.g.'s, dis tiller dried grains with solubles. canada is the number two buyer of u.s. ethanol. additionally, excompany is the number two buyer of u.s. soybean meal, oil, whole beans. canada is the number four buyer of soybean meal and the number seven buyer of soybean oil. so again, you know, you're talking about two very, very large markets for our ag product, for our manufacturing

products, for technology, two incredibly important trading partners. i can go on again. i want to be respectful of my colleagues here on the floor. i -- this is one of those cases where it's clear. this is absolutely beneficial to our country and the point is, it's a bipartisan issue. i think whether you talk to members of the senate here or the members of the house, they'll tell you this is a bipartisan issue. this is a trade agreement that's good for our country and good for two very strong allies and neighbors, obviously canada and mexico, to very large trading partners. so with that again, we've been down here on the floor before asking for the house to advance this legislation. if we could start the legislation here, we would. we'd pass it right now and we'd pass it with a bipartisan vote.

but it requires the house to get started and i hope that all of our colleagues will visit with their counterparts from their respective states in the house and urge that this bill be brought to the floor, passed in the house, delivered to the senate so that we can pass it for the president to sign and put it into effect for americans across this great country. with that, thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from missouri. mr. blunt: mr. president, this is a classic example of everything has been said but not everybody has said it yet. one of the great traditions of the senate is to be sure that everybody says it. and we're going to say it now. we're going to continue to say it until the house finally has that vote. it's been pointed out that this agreement was signed well over a year ago. it's been pointed out that our two biggest trading partners are mexico and canada in that order. been pointed out lots of focus on agriculture, every state,

every state is an agriculture state. every state has that as a significant part of their economy. nobody in the world does that part of the economy more efficiently, more effectively than we do. and so that's important. it's important to realize that lots of other things are in trade as well. but agriculture is going to be mentioned a lot until we get this done. whether i was -- i was at the in ms. state fair in august or the round table meetings in my state in october constantly comes up. $88 billion is the agricultural economy in missouri, about the same amount i think senator hoeven just said that his state was in the top ten. ours is, too. we export about $4 billion worth of ag products but we also export pickup trucks and airplanes and lots of technology from our state. export our fair share of beer cans and other things that go all over the world.

and we're going to continue to make that happen. but opening markets makes a big difference. it also makes a big difference in how you look at the world. if you have strong trading relationships, you're pretty careful about how you deal with all those other relationships. and we need to do that. we need to have this vote. the votes are in the house. the votes are in the senate. it's up to the speaker to bring this up. i think the u.s. trade representative is working as hard with democrats in the house as he could possibly be expected to do to maybe look at those last few things that might make this a better deal but senator portman did a great job talking about why the choice here is do you want to continue to have nafta which has been great for all three partners, canada, mexico, and us, or do you want to have the usmca which in area after area after area has the 20-year update that needs to be had. so we need to get on with this, mr. president.

we need to get on with the activities of the day. i'm going to start that off by just saying one of the things we're going to do today is accept the official portrait of ted stevens, president pro tempore of the senate, the highest office that the senate can possibly give to anybody. the highest office in the senate, the chairman at one time of the commerce committee, the chairman of the appropriating committee, a guy who in world war ii flew those tough planes in the toughest areas in world war ii, a person who always did his best to try to figure out the senate and then be sure that the senate worked for america and the senate worked for alaska. and when it came to both of those things, it was hard to beat ted stevens' best. he knew how to make this place work. he'd be disappointed in the dysfunction we see right now, but he'd be optimistic that in the greatest country in the world, we will figure this out.

all of us who had a chance to serve with him, i had a great relationship with him when i was a house member. i learned a lot. i think of him often. i miss the way he represented his state and our country so uniquely and so die familiarically and so effectively -- so dynamically and so effectively. i look forward to the recognition on the floor he will receive but the permanent recognition he'll receive as we today hang his portrait in the united states capitol. and i yield back. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: mr. president, as the senator -- as the senator from missouri has stated, this is a significant day. this is a very special day here in the congress. as later this afternoon we're going to gather to pay tribute to a truly great senator, the late senator ted stevens of

alaska. his official portrait is unveiled or will be unveiled shortly by the u.s. senate commission on art. so his portrait will be part of the senate leadership portrait collection, which honors past presidents pro tems and past leaders. like all of the families and friends and colleagues who have gathered nor formal occasion, i am so very pleased that he will be memorialized here forever in the united states capitol watching over all of us. now, there's only 38 members currently in the senate who had served with ted, but i think it's important that all of us -- and really every american -- should know who he was and why he so clearly deserves this honor.

ted was a public servant. he was the ultimate public servant. he dedicated his life to public service. he spent more than six decades fighting for our state and the country that he loved. his service began during world war ii when he flew as a pilot in the army air corps. he flew missions behind enemy lines in china in support of flying tigers. the stories that we've heard over the years are truly legendary of his efforts there in war. after the military, ted helped alaska achieve its dream of statehood. he was secretary seton's -- he was basically the point man of the administration during the eisenhower administration t so you think of what that means to have the opportunity to shape statehood for your state and then go on to serve your state at this level, as he did for

some 40 years. he went on to become one of the longest-serving republican senators of all times, representing alaska in this chamber with great dignity, with great distinction over the course of 40 exceptional years. so this is truly a public servant. really from the very beginning ted was -- he was one of those special kind of guys. after being appointed to the senate in 1968, he established himself really as a leader among leaders. over the course of his time here in the senate, he chaired the ethics committee, rules, governmental affairs, commerce, as well as the appropriations committees. from 1977 to 1985, his colleagues chose him to be the assistant republican leader. he held the senate arms control observer group for 15 years. and he served as the president

pro tempore, the senior member of the senate majority party from 2003 to 2007. so leadership across all levels. and as one might expect, ted was a force to be reckoned with. he made sure -- he made sure that alaska's voice was heard and heard in every debate. and, as such, he secured an incredible number of legislative victories that shaped both the state of alaska and our nation. he helped settle most of alaska native land claims, returning 44 million acres of land to first alaskans and establishing a new model that empowered our native peoples to create new economic opportunities. ted was instrumental in securing passage of a bill that enabled the construction of our 800 manufacture mile trans-alaska oil pipeline, which to this day

remains the backbone of our state's economy, a critical part of our nation's energy security supply. ted was a guy that the -- he worked very, very harks but he also loved to -- hard, but he also loved to fish. he loved to be outside. his focus of fishing led him to be very concerned about what he saw as the overfishing by foreign fleets, which was taking place just miles off of alaska's shores. so he worked across the aisle with senator warren mag any sun to protect and sustain our fisheries into the ruche future and that landmark law, the magnuson-stevens law has been repeated to this day, it still bears their names. it real lay is impossible to overstate the beneficial impact that ted had on alaska. now, keep in mind, he came to the senate in 1968, less than a decade after alaska had become a state.

so he knew as well as anyone how tough those early years of statehood had been. and he knew probably as well as anyone how difficult life was for so many alaskans, particularly in the rural parts of our state. and more than anyone else, he helped to change that. so ted was an appropriator for a long time, legendary in that role, but he once convinced the entire committee -- the entire appropriations committee -- to come to alaska -- but not just to come to alaska, come to alaska for two weeks to see alaska's needs firsthand. the federal funding that he secured year after year allowed many alaskans to gain access to very basic infrastructure. we're talking water and sewer, things that most americans would take for granted. but he also worked to help

develop alaska so that we have a telemedicine network that works. he helped facility bypass mail, essential air service for our rural communities, programs and benefits that continue to this day. and there is absolutely no doubt -- no doubt -- that the people of alaska are better off because of ted stevens. many around this state still lovingly refer to ted as uncle ted. we are happier, we are clearly healthier, we are a safer and a more prosperous state because of his contributions. but the same is true for every american because ted's accomplishments did not end with the state of alaska. he was a patriot. he was firmly committed to our national defense and the security of our country. he had great, great admiration for those who answered the call

to serve in uniform, as he had. he traveled the world to visit with our troops, to hear directly from them. he was a long, longtime leader on the defense appropriations subcommittee. he and dan inouye would kind of share the chairmanship, one between the other practically. but throughout his senate tenure, he fought tirelessly to mike sure that our military had the best equipment, better pay, had the needed care that they sought. he was a defender for those who defended us. ted was an avid surfer when he was young. he recognized the importance of sports in our daily lives. i can remember the stories -- it's gone around for so many years. but he would tell the story of having to put his eldest daughter sue soon a boys' soft ball league. so he championed title 9 of the

educational amendments act which provides equal opportunity for women to participate in sports. he also authored the amateur sports act, which created the u.s. olympics committee, and worked to ensure funding for physical education programs, programs again that had that is fingerprint from ted stevens from so many years prior. i can go on and on about ted's accomplishments, his legislative accomplishments are just considerable and far too many to speak here today. things like his work to bandaging high-seas driftnets, to the funding that he secured to advance aids and breast cancer research. he was involved in so much. but instead, in he can aring that other colleagues wish to -- but, instead, in recognizing that other colleagues wish to speak to senator steevessens as

well as, i want to talk about what made him so beloved, because he was beloved. maybe feared little bit but beloved. the first thing to understand is that ted had a pretty simple motto. it wasn't very complicated. he said, to hell with politics. just do what's right for alaska. and he lived by that every day that he served here. he would work with anyone -- anyone who was willing to do right by the state of alaska, no matter who you were, where you came from, what side of the aisle you were on. i mentioned senator inouye and the relationship that ted had with him on the defense appropriations and on the appropriations committee. but they formed a very, very close relationship. they had a lot in common. obviously they were both veterans, both from young offshore states. but they looked out for one another. they had one another's backs.

and on committees, as i mentioned, they would -- they would be chairman and vice chairman, trading off, but working with one another. in later years it wasn't uncommon to find them both smoking cigars out on the balcony in the early evenings talking about what had happened that day or what was going to happen the next day. another thing that folks should know about ted was that he was -- he was definitely a fighter. i'm told that "newsweek" described him has a scrapper when he first arrived in the senate, and that certainly proved to be an apt description throughout his tenure. ted was clear. if alaska's interests were at stake, out there to defend it. and there were times he would put on his incredible hulk tie and he would channel the big guy's persona. but when that happened, when

that happened, everyone knew, look out ... because ted was going to the mat for alaska that day. and, look out. some suggested that ted had a bit of a temper. i happen to think -- you're chuckling back there. i hear that. i think ted knew that a little bit of a temper could actually serve him pretty well. and he liked to say -- and he'd usually have a cute little gleam in his eye. but he'd say, i don't lose my temper. i know exactly where i left it. but ted was one of those guys. he was great to his people. but when something needed to be said, when it needed to be direct and to the point, he was not guy to shy away from it. and that was another part of what really made him a legend around here. i think those who are listening and those who know me know that i have great, immense affection

for ted. and on this day and the recognition that he is receiving has great personal meaning. i had the extraordinary fortune to know ted stevens for almost my entire life. at one point he was my boss. i was a high school intern, and that was my first opportunity to really be out of alaska on my own when i was an intern here for senator ted. he was later, of course, my colleague here in the senate, where he mentored me and partnered with me to help serve alaska. but, above all that, he was a true friend, truly a friend. and i miss him dearly. and i'm reminded of him all the time. i have his old office in the hart building. i have pictures and mementos that remind me of ted. every time i go back home to the

state, i think of him. and it's not just because of when i land it says ted stevens international airport. but also when i go out to the communities, when i see a road or a bridge or a community that is no longer utilizing a honey bucket system, because of the work that ted did. because when you go home, when you visit in alaska, you see firsthand the impact that he had. you see it everywhere. i often say that ted built alaska and that ted was alaska. so you can see why we named him the alaskan of the 20th century, why we remain so grateful for all that he has done for us. so i'm happy that there is now going to be a place here in the capitol where i can visit ted, talk to him, think about what he might have said and the counsel he might have provided for our

state and our nation. but i do hope that this portrait will be a reminder to those of us who serve here that we can work together, even on the hardest of days, and that if we do, we can achieve great things for the american people and that sometimes that might just require us to say, to hell with politics; just do what is right. so, mr. president, i'm honored, i'm privileged to be here today with so many alaskans, including ted's wife, katherine, many of his children and grandchildren. i know that they are overwhelmed by the number of friends and colleagues and staff who are here to celebrate ted's life and his legacy. and i, i think -- channeling here -- i think ted is looking down on all of this and he's thinking, enough already.

this is too much. y'all have to get back to work. because after all, we have appropriations bills on the floor. so with that, mr. president, i yield to the fine senator from mississippi. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from mississippi. a senator: mr. president, i will speak for only a few moments and then the distinguished junior senator from alaska will close this part of the debate. mr. wicker: the senior senator from alaska mentioned that only 38 of us have actually served with senator ted stevens. of that group, i am the junior most in rank. and i know that because i was the junior most member of this body more than a decade ago when

i rose on this floor to pay tribute to this great senator from alaska, ted stevens, on his last day in office. i did not speak from my desk. as you can imagine, i didn't have a very prominent desk at the time, mr. president. i chose instead to stand as close as i could directly behind senator stevens. i suppose i wanted to have his back at least figuratively for one last time, and i wanted to make sure i could see his wife katherine in the gallery as i may have done just a few moments ago, because she meant so much and still means so much to all of us and to my wife gail and me. what we learned from ted stevens guides our work today. i was honored to serve alongside

of him for just a few years. i was anguished when he had to leave us in 2008, and together with most of us, with all of us, i mourned his death in 2010. seniority is earned when the people of our state see fit to return us time and again to washington to do their business. respect is earned when we engage in the long fight to fulfill our oaths and to support and defend the constitution. ted stevens earned both seniority and respect for 40 years. when he was elected as the third senator ever from the land of the midnight sun, he had already served his country brilliantly. as has been mentioned, as a brave pilot in world war ii for the flying tigers and as a key

leader in putting that 49th star on the american flag. the portrait being unveiled in the old senate chamber today, where so many great debates took place, is a fitting o -- homage to ted stevens. the seemingly gruff picture was a facade. he went to work every day to defend americans and to make good on the promise of the country he so deeply loved. he belongs in the place of honor where his portrait will be displayed. members who serve with ted stevens will look on that portrait and remember that. i hope our more recent colleagues who have joined since ted stevens left will come to know what a giant he was.

as chairman of the commerce committee, a committee which ted stevens once led, i went to alaska with the junior senator from alaska this summer to learn among other things from coast guardsmen keeping our nation safe in the far north. but i saw a lot in that state and there's a lot to see. despite its geographic size, alaska is in many respects a small town. like my home state of mississippi, everyone knows just about everyone else, and virtually every alaskan knew ted stevens. they knew what he did for them. they knew what he did for this country. i could see his legacy this summer. the evidence of his leadership is everywhere in so many ways. he helped turn america's last frontier into a thriving community for alaskans and

americans and a place of wonder and adventure for any of us that will visit there. and while he was at it, small acts of kindness that i will never forget and heroic acts of statesmanship almost every day in his chosen homes, this closed chamber, and that wide open state. i can't wait to see the portrait. i can't wait to tell him hello and once again to look him right in the eye. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. excuse me -- alabama. i'm sorry. we're going to go to the senator from --. a senator: i'll yield to the senator from alabama.

the presiding officer: the senator from alabama. mr. shelby: i thank the senator for yielding. we're talking about somebody today that was actually a merpt merpt -- mentor for me right here in the united states senate, ted stevens. i believe it was 33 years ago when i first met him. 33 years ago, i was in the house and i was coming to the senate. he was a power in the senate then. he was a worker. he was involved. he was involved in not only what happened in alaska where he was a champion of his own state awnd should be, but in the world. he wanted to make sure that america had a defense second to nobody, that we were powerful but we were peaceful. and i had the occasion to serve for years and years on the appropriations committee and on the subcommittee on defense with

him. and i hadn't been on the committee long, and senator byrd, he was chairman of the committee. senator hatfield had been before. senator byrd had been chairman and ranking. he was ranking. he tasked me with a lot of things that probably as a freshman, you know, second year, third year, fourth year guy here, that i probably was appalled but pleased. maybe not appalled, but pleased that he would do, put it on here. he told me one day, he said senator shelby, you're going to be chairman of this committee. and i looked around and said it will be years. i'll never be that. ted stevens was a senator's senator, mr. president. he was involved, as i said, in just about everything in the senate, the rules committees, the commerce committee, the

appropriation and defense. and i'll never forget his experience, his wise suggestions to me that probably helped me on my way. i traveled with him around the world because we had serious meetings under the defense appropriations bill. and all i can say is we're going to unveil a portrait of ted stevens here in the senate later today. it's a fitting tribute to what i think is a great senator, a great senator representing the state of alaska, but a united states senator representing us all, ted stevens. ted, i'll never forget you. we miss you. you left an indelible imprint in the u.s. senate. i'm glad i got to meet you and

work with you. thank you. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. mr. sullivan: mr. president, thank you very much, and i want to add my voice to recognizing what an important day it is here. i want to thank the senator from alabama and mississippi, of course my good friend senator murkowski, and many or senatorsm california, iowa, all came down to the floor already today to talk about this great american, this great alaskan. mr. president, i try to come down to the floor about once a week, and i do a speech, what i call the alaskan of the week to talk about an alaskan who's done great stuff for our state, their community, the country. but as senator murkowski just mentioned in her remarks, i'm literally able to now talk about the alaskaan of the century. that's right, mr. president, the state of alaska legislature voted that ted stevens was the

alaskan of the century for reasons that we're all talking about today. so i just want to add a few more words about this legendary u.s. senator whose portrait we are unveiling today. let me say, mr. president, it's more than fitting that we have a portrait of senator stevens in the halls of congress. it's a small tribute compared to the magnitude of his contributions to our country and to our state, and yet in so many ways it's proper and fitting. because his spirit certainly remains in this body. it's an example of leadership and public service that you hear and i hear and i know senator murkowski hears all the time how so many of my colleagues still talk about senator stevens and what he meant. just like my good friend, the senator from alabama, and so many others.

so, mr. president, i'll just give a little more color to this great man's life. he was born in indiana in 1923. when he was a young boy, the great depression hit. senator stevens supported his family by selling newspapers on the street, and after the untimely death of his father, he moved to california to live with an aunt and uncle where he learned to kind of relax and to surf. the surf board that he learned to surf on stayed with him in his office until the end. and as was already mentioned, mr. president, he was of course a part of america's greatest generation, a pilot, 14th army air corps, flying supplies to general chenault's flying tigers over the hump, india, burma, very dangerous missions. and in 1953 armed with a law

degree with harvard, he made his way to the territory of alaska where he found, in his words, quote, the passion of my career -- the alaska dream. so what was this dream of ted stevens? a dream of an alaska with promises of the 21st century springing up from the arctic, he said. an alaska where our federal government works with us, not against us, to achieve our destiny, to develop our resources and our economy for the benefit of all alaskans, but also for the benefit of all americans. an alaska that lives up to the potential the congress of the united states saw when it voted to allow alaska to become the 49th state. senator stevens worked tirelessly for these dreams, and in the last speech he gave on this floor of the united states senate, he recounted

some of his successes. he said, quote, where there was nothing but tundra and forest, today there are now airports, roads, ports, water and sewer systems, hospitals, clinics, communications networks, research labs, and much, much more. he went on to say alaska was not sue ward's folly and is no longer an impoverished territory. alaska is a great state and an essential tribute tor to our nation's -- essential contributor to our nation's energy security and national defense. in that speech he said he was proud to have a role, a role in that transformation of alaska. now, mr. president, i think we're all realizing in that speech, senator stevens was being very humble. he just didn't have a role, he played the lead role.

indeed, everywhere any alaskan goes across the state as senator murkowski has already stated, you see signs of his hard work, his dedication to the alaskan dream and the critical role he played in transforming our great state. but i think many of us, and we already heard it being talked about today, also see his hard work in the friendships, an example he set here in the united states senate. friendship is not based on party labels but on a commitment to service. as i mentioned, i have members of this body still approach me on a regular basis, like senator shelby, saying what an impact senator stevens had. his friendships were of course legendary, scoop jackson, henry magnuson, pat roberts, john warner, senator shelby, senator leahy, senator biden,

who is vice -- as vice president traveled to anchorage to speak at ted stevens' funeral and as senator murkowski mentioned his famous enduring friendship with hawaii's daniel inouye. and his famous motto -- to hell with politics; just do what's right for alaska. as a matter of fact, mr. president, i happen to be wearing a very special pair of cuff links that once belonged to ted stevens that has that very motto on these cuff links. and when we're doing important stuff, i'll wear these on the floor to remind me -- and i think all of us -- what's important not just for our states but for our country. and it was already noted, it wasn't just alaska that he focused on and achieved so many great results for. it was our nation, whether

national security, strengthening our military, taking care of our veterans through improved pay and benefits. as senator murkowski mentioned, modernizing our fishing industry , our telecommunications industry, being known as the title 5 father of that important legislation, making sure that young girls have the opportunity to play sports. if you are an american and you have daughters -- i have three -- and they're playing sports right now, guess who had so much to do with that? the late, great senator stevens. he also was in many ways the senator who cared more about the olympics and focused on them than any other senator. mr. president, one other thing about senator stevens, no matter how far he rose -- and we're hearing about the high levels in the senate he attained -- he never forgot what was most

important: serving the people of alaska. when people, our constituents, traveled thousands of miles to come to d.c., he always made time for them. thousands and thousands of alaskans have notes from him, congratulatetory letters, condolence letters, letters of appreciation. at his standing-room only funeral in anchorage, where i had the honor of serving as an honorary pall bearer, someone asked a show of hands of the audience, hundreds and hundreds of people, how many had received add letter from senator ted stevens. nearly every person at that service raised their hand. and of course he treated his staff like family. if you worked for.senate.gov stevens, like my wife julie did, you were always part of that family and you could always expect loyalty from him the rest of the your life.

mr. president, these principles -- relentless focus on alaska, fighting the feds, if you must, working across the aisle for the betterment of alaska and america, maintaining a strong military and national defense, and deep, deep reverence for our veterans and fellow alaskans -- are a key part of the stevens legacy. i am deeply honored to serve in the senate seat that senator stevens held for over 40 years and to literally sit in the same desk right here, this desk, that he used in the senate. more important, i try to live by and serve my constituents according to these principles and the example he set for alaska and america. but here's something else that's really, really so remarkable about ted stevens. i said i try to serve in that example. but you're already hearing on

the senate floor so many other senators have said that and believe that, too. and that is really, really remarkable, mr. president, and shows how much influence he still has in this body to this day. mr. president, like most senators, i try to get home every weekend. senator murkowski and i just have a little further to go than most. well, actually a lot further than most. in our state -- and our state recently dedicated a wonderful statue to ted stevens in the ted stevens international airport. it is a -- it is life-size. he is signature son a bench -- he is sitting on a bench with an inviting smile, cowboy boots on and his briefcase nearby and it is right in the middle of the airport. i often watch by, touch it and quietly say, how are we doing? it gives me inspiration and

strength and peace to do that. with the unveiling of the official portrait of ted stevens today and its placement permanently in the halls of the u.s. senate, i'll have another image of this great alaskan and great american from which to draw inspiration, but i think so many other senators will as well. so congratulations especially to the family of ted stevens. katherine, his wonderful wife, his children, ben, walter, t.e.d., jr., susan, lilly, and beth who is with us in spirit, as are so many other alaskans and others who had such deep respect for senator stevens and to his wonderful grandchildren, many of whom julie and i have known and have watched grow up with pride since they were born. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the title of the

joint resolution for the third time. the clerk: calendar number 258, s.j. res. 50, providing for congressional disaunder chapter 8 title 5 of united states code and so forth. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote: