session, friday, january 8th at 10 a.m. tuesday, january 12th, 12:30 p.m. friday january the 15th at 10 a.m., and further ask when the senate adjourns on friday, january 15th, it next convene at 12 noon on tuesday, january 19. further, that following the prayer and pledge the morning hour deemed expired and approved to date. time for the two leaders to be reserved later in the day and following the leader remarks morning business with senators committed to speak their round up to 10 minutes each. >> without objection. >> congress met in a joint session wednesday to count the electoral votes. two states elector's were objected to and each body met whether to accept the electors. 93-6 accepting arizona's lectors. and 92-7 to accept pennsylvania's electors. later congress certified joe

biden as the winner of the presidential election. >> the senate will come to order. the vice-president as president of the senate would like to give a brief statement with the indulgence of the senators. >> today was a dark day in the history of the united states capitol. but thanks to the swift efforts of u.s. capitol police, federal, state, and local law enforcement, the violence was quelled. the capitol is secured and the people's work continues. we condemn the violence that took place here in the strongest possible terms. we grieve the loss of life in these hallowed halls, as well as the injuries suffered by those who defended our capitol today. and we will always be grateful

to the men and women who stayed at their posts to defend this historic place. to those who wreaked havoc in our capitol today, you did not win. violence never wins. freedom wins. and this is still the people's house. as we reconvene in this chamber, the world will again witness the resilience and strength of our democracy even in the wake of unprecedented violence and vandalism at this capitol, the elected representatives of the people of the united states have assembled again on the very same day to support and defend the constitution of the united states. so may god bless the loss, the

injured, and the heroes forged on this day. may god bless all who serve here and those who protect this place, and may god bless the united states of america. let's get back to work. [applaus [applause] >> mr. president. >> the majority leader. >> i ask unanimous consent the majority leader and the democratic leader be allowed to speak and that the time not count against two hours of debate in relation to the objection raised on the state of arizona. >> is there objection? without objection, so ordered.

>> want to say to the american people, the united states senate will not be intimidated. we will not be kept out of this chamber by thugs, mobs, or threats. we will not bow to lawlessness or intimidation. we are back at our posts. we will discharge our duty under the constitution and for our nation. and we're going to do it tonight. this afternoon congress began the process of honoring the will of the american people and counting the electoral college votes. we ha we fulfill this solemn duty every four years for two centuries, whether our nation at been at war or at peace,

under all manner of threats, even during an ongoing armed rebellion and the civil war, the clockwork of our democracy has carried on. the united states and the united states congress have faced down much greater threats than the unhinged crowd we saw today. we've never been deterred before and will be not deterred today. they tried to disrupt our democracy. they failed. they failed. they failed to attempt to obstruct the congress. this failed insurrection only underscores how crucial the task before us is for our republic. our nation was founded precisely so that the free choice of the american people

is what shapes our self-government and determines the destiny of our nation. not fear, not force, but the peaceful expression of the popular will. now, we assemble this afternoon to count our citizen's votes and to formalize their choice of the next president. now we're going to finish exactly what we started. we'll complete the process the right way, by the book. we'll follow our precedence, our laws and our constitution to the letter. and we will certify the winner of the 2020 presidential election. criminal behavior will never dominate the united states

congress. this institution is resilient. our democratic republic is strong. the american people deserve nothing less. >> democratic leader. >> mr. president, mr. president, it is very, very difficult to put into words what has transpired today. i have never lived through or even imagined the experience like the one we have just witnessed in this capitol. president franklin roosevelt set aside december 7th, 1941 as a day that will live in infamy. unfortunately, we can now add january 6th, 2021 to that very short list of dates in american

history that will live forever in infamy. this temple to democracy was desecrated. its windows smashed, our offices vandalized. the world saw america's elected officials hurriedly ushered out because they were in harm's way. the house and senate floors were places of shelter until the evacuation was ordered, leaving rioters to stalk these hallowed halls. lawmakers and our staffs, average citizens who love their country, serve it every day, feared for their lives. i understand that one woman was shot and tragically lost her life. we mourn her and feel for her friends and family. she is images were projected to the world. foreign embassied cabled their

home capitals to report the harrowing scenes at the very heart of our democracy. this will be a stain on our country, not so easily washed away. the final terrible indelible legacy of the 45th president of the united states undoubtedly our worst. i want to be very clear. those who performed these reprehensible act cannot be called protesters. no, these were rioters and insurrectionists, goons and thugs, domestic terrorists. they do not represent america. they were a few thousand violent extremists who tried to take over the capitol building and attack our democracy. they must and should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. hopefully by this

administration, if not, certainly by the next. they should be provided no leniency. i want to thank the many of the capitol hill police and secret service and local police who kept us safe today and work to clear the capitol and return it to its rightful owners and its rightful purpose. i want to thank the leaders, democrat and republican, house and senate, it was speaker pelosi, leader mcconnell, leader mccarthy and myself who came together and decided these thugs would not succeed, that we would finish the work that our constitution requires us to complete in the very legislative chambers of the house and senate that were desecrated, but we know always belong to the people and do again tonight. but make no mistake, make no mistake, my friends, today's

events did know the happen spontaneously. the president who promoted conspiracy theories that motivated these thugs, the president who exhorted them to come to our nation's capitol, egged them on, he hardly ever discourage violence and more often encourages it, this president bears a great deal of the blame. this mob was in good part president trump's doing. incited by his words, his lies. this violence, in good part, his responsibility, his everlasting shame. today's events certainly, certainly would not have happened without him. now, january 6th will go down as one of the darkest days in recent american history.

a final warning to our nation about the consequences of a demagogic president, the people who enable him, the captive media that parrots his lies and the people who follow him as he attempts to push america to the brink of ruin. as we reconvene tonight, let us remember in the end, all this mob has really accomplished is to delay our work by a few hours. we will resume our responsibilities now and we will finish our tasks tonight. the house and senate chambers will be restored good as new and ready for legislating in short order. the counting of the electoral votes is our sacred duty. democracy's roots in this nation are deep. they're strong, and they will not be undone ever by a group

of thugs. democracy will triumph as it has for century. so to my fellow americans who were shocked and appalled by the images on their televisions today and who are worried about the future of this country, let me speak to you directly. the divisions in our country clearly run deep, but we are a resilient, forward-looking and optimistic people and we will begin the hard work of repairing this nation tonight because here in america, we do hard things. in america, we always overcome our channels. yield the floor. >> mr. president. >> majority leader. >> i yield two minutes to the senator from oklahoma, senator lankford. >> senator from oklahoma. >> mr. vice-president, you said

things more like we saw it in oklahoma. in oklahoma we'd say why in god's name would someone think attacking law enforcement and occupying the united states capitol is the best way to show that you're right? why would you do that? rioters and thugs don't run the capitol, we're the united states of america. we disagree on a lot of things and we have a lot of spirited debate in this room, but we talk it out and we honor each other. even in our disagreements. that person, that person, that person is not my enemy, that's my fellow american. and while we disagree on things, and disagree strongly at times, we do not encourage what happened today. ever. and i want to join my fellow

senators in saying thank you to the capitol hill police, law enforcement, national guard and secret service i stood in harm's way, and pushing back. and i was interrupted speaking mid sentence here because we were unaware of what was happening outside of this room because of their faithfulness and because of what they have done. and i want to thank them. ronald reagan once said, peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means. the peaceful people in my state in oklahoma want their questions answered about you they don't want this, what happened today. they want to do the right thing. and they also want to do it the right way. they want to honor the constitutional process, but debate about election security

because they want to make sure it's right, which is why it's an important issue that still needs to be resolved. transparency in government just doesn't seem like a bad idea. obviously, the commission that we've asked for is not going to happen at this point and i understand that and we're headed towards tonight, towards the certification of joe biden to be the president of the united states. and we will work together in this body to be able to set a peaceful example in the days ahead. i yield the floor. >> democratic leader. >> the senator from nevada, senator cortez-masto. the senator from nevada. >> mr. vice-president, i know that this room is full of leaders of both parties who love this country and many believe that for america to

succeed, our politics must find common ground, and that has never been clearer than today when armed rioters stormed the u.s. capitol, emboldened by president trump's false and inflammatory rhetoric about the 2020 election. i believe that we in this chamber have a special duty as leaders to work together to lower the temperature of our politics. and i hope that my colleagues with questions the legitimacy of this election of arizona and other states now see the dire and dangerous consequences sowing doubt and uncertainty and we take the oath we swear to support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic. at this moment in history, i can think of nothing more

patriotic than renewing our faith in the charters of freedom that our founding fathers crafted for our republic. starting with the declaration of independence that governments derived their just powers from the consent of the government. the people have spoken in this election and our only job here today is to do what they ask. it is not to argue election security. that's not the place for what we are doing today. our constitution specifically reserves to the people, the right to meet in their respective states and vote for the president and the vice-president. as a result, individual states oversee and implement the election process, not the federal government. to guard against fraud or irregularities in the voting process, the states are required to have robust election security measures,

likewise. state legislatures have the opportunity to examine evidence voter fraud about of they certified their electoral college votes and our courts, from district courts to the united states supreme court adjudicate legal challenges and election disputes. all of those things happened after the 2020 election. state houses and courts across the country took allegations of voter fraud seriously and followed the constitutional process to hear challenges to this year's election. no state found any evident of any widespread voter fraud and neither did any court ask to review the state's findings. in arizona, republican governor doug doocy, katie haus, attorney general, and state supreme court chief justice all certify the results of the elections on november 30th.

and we know, we've heard arizonians have been voting by mail for almost 30 years and governor doocy has expressed confidence in the state's process numerous times. he said we do elections here in arizona and he said we have some of the strongest election laws in the country. laws that prioritize accountability for canvassing, conducting and even contesting the results and they are right. arizona has one of the most transparent election processes in the country with built-in accountability starting with internal auditing. we have heard unfounded allegations that voting machines in arizona and elsewhere somehow changed vote tallies or somehow improperly rejected ballots while claiming to accept them. these allegations all ignore

the fact that arizona counties conducted ballot audits by hand to double-check the machine counts and these audits found no widespread fraud or irregularity. maricopa county, a county more than 60% of the state's population resides, conducted a post-election hand count audit in the week after the election which showed perfect, 100% accuracy in the machine tabulations. so why would we need, my colleagues, to call for a 10-day emergency audit to be conducted by a legislative commission when it's already been done by the state of arizona? what happened to state's rights? the audit involves checking ballots for the president's elections, but ballots for state legislative elections. the audit report shows every

precinct's machine totals, and for every race and every precinct, the difference between the hand count and the machine count was zero. maricopa's audit report stated no discrepancies were found by the hand count's audit board. seeking to find any reason to contest these results, some of the state republicans then tried to claim that maricopa county failed to follow state law by selecting voter center locations instead of voting precincts. this was wrong. and this, too, went to a court and in rejecting this claim state court in arizona found the county followed the properly issued guidance on hand audit procedures from the arizona secretary of state. and the court found that maricopa county officials could not lawfully conduct the audit the way that the plaintiffs would have wanted it done, if

they would have done so, they would have done so unlawfully. >> the senator's five minutes are up. >> i would close-- certify their votes tonight. thank you. >> majority leader. >> i would yield five minutes to the senator from utah, senator lee. >> senator lee. >> when i prepared my remarks, seems like a lifetime ago and things have changed and i'm going to deliver remarks and a different feel than it would have a few hours ago. my thoughts and prayers go out to the family members of those who have been injured or killed today. my heartfelt gratitude goes out to the capitol hill police who valiantly defended our building

and our lives. while it's true that legitimate concerns have been raised with regard to how some of the key battle ground states conducted their presidential elections, this is not the end of the story. we each have to remember that we've sworn an oath to uphold, protect and defend this document, written nearly two and a half centuries ago by wise men raised up by god to that very purpose. that document makes clear what our rule is and what it isn't. it makes clear who does what when it comes to deciding presidential elections. you see, because in our system of government, presidents are not directly elected, they're chosen by presidential electors and the constitution makes clear article 2, section 1 that the states shall appoint presidential electors according

to procedures that their legislatures development and then comes the 12th amendment and explains what we're doing here today. it explains that the president of the senate, the vice-president. united states, shall open the ballots and the votes shall then be counted. it's those words that confine, define and con strain every scrap of authority we have in this process. our job is to open and then count, open then count. that's it. that's all there is. now, there are of course, rare instances, instances in which multiple slates of electors can be submitted by the same state. that doesn't happen very often. it happened in 1960. it happened in 1876. let's hope it doesn't ever happen again. in those rare moments, congress has to make a choice, decide which of the electoral votes which will be counted and which

will not, that did not happen here, thank heavens, and let's hope it never does. now, many of my colleagues have raised objections or had previously stated their intent to raise objections with regard to these. i've spent an enormous time on this issue over the last few weeks. i've met with lawyers on both sides of the issue. i've met with lawyers representing the trump campaign. reading everything i could find about the constitutional provisions in question and spent a lot of time on the phone with legislators and other leaders from the contested states. i didn't initially declare my position because i didn't yet have one. i wanted to get the facts first and i wanted to understand what was happening. i wanted to give the people serving in government, in the contested states, the opportunity to do whatever they felt they needed to do to make sure that their election was properly reflected.

i spent an enormous amount of time reaching out to state government officials in those states, but in none of the contested states, no, not even one, did i discover any indication that there was any chance that any state legislature or secretary of state or governor or lt. governor had any intention to alter the slate of electors. that being the case, our job is a very simple one. this simply isn't how our federal system is supposed to work. that is to say, if you have concerns with the way that an election in the presidential race was handled in your state, the appropriate response is to approach your state legislature, first and foremost. these protests from-- hearing from those who have raised concerns, they should have been focused on their

state capitols, not their nation's capitols because our role is narrow, our role is defined. our role is limited. yes, we are the election judges when it comes to members elected to our own body and yes, the house of representatives, they're the judges of their own races there. we also have the authority to prescribe, as a congress, rules governing the time, place and manner of elections for senators and representatives. there is no corresponding authority with respect to presidential elections. none whatsoever. it doesn't exist. our job is to convene, open the ballots and count them. that's it. thank you, mr. president, i yield the floor. >> democratic leader. >> mr. bennett. >> senator from colorado. >> thank you, mr. vice-president. thank you. mr. president, colleagues, it's been a terrible day for everybody here and i -- and for

our country. one of the things i was thinking about today is something i often think about when i'm on this floor which is that the founders of this country, the people that wrote our constitution actually knew our history better than we know of our history. and i was thinking about that history today as we saw the mob riots in washington d.c., thinking about what the founders were thinking about when they wrote our constitution, which was what happened to the roman republic when armed gangs doing the work for politicians, prevented rolls from casting their ballots for counsel, for prater, for senator. these were the offices in rome and these armed gangs ran through the streets of rome keeping elections from being started, keeping elections from ever being called and in the end, because of that, the roman

republic fell and a dictator took its place. and that was the end of the roman republic or any republic for that matter until this beautiful constitution was written in the united states of america. so, it is my fervent hope that the way that we respond to this today, my dear colleagues, is that we give the biggest bipartisan vote we can in support of our democracy and in support of our constitution, and in rejection for what we saw today and what the roman republic saw in its own time. there's a tendency around this place, i think, to always believe that we're the first people to confront something when that is seldom the case. and to under appreciate what the effect of our actions will be. we need to deeply appreciate in

this moment our obligation to the constitution, our obligation to the democracy, our obligation to the republic. there are people in this chamber that have twisted the words, twisted the words of a statute written in the 19th century that was meant to actually settle our electoral disputes, to leave them with the states, as the senator from utah was saying, to give us a ministerial role except in certain circumstances, that's what the law is about that the senator of texas was talking about today. and that's the law that's leading us to be asked to overturn the judgments of 60 courts in america? many of the courts in arizona? some of whom have the

president's lawyers out of the courtroom because there's no evident of fraud. 37% or 39% of americans think there's no evidence of fraud or they think there's evidence of fraud does not mean that there is fraud. if you turn a blind eye to a conspiracy theory, you can't now come to the floor of the senate and say, you're ignoring the people who believe that the election was stolen. go out there and tell them the truth. which is that every single member of this senate knows this election wasn't stolen. and that we, just as in the roman republic, have a responsibility to protect the independence of the judiciary from politicians who will stop at nothing to hold onto power. there's nothing new about that either. that's been true since the

first republic was found. so now we found ourselves in a position just days after many senators here swore an oath to uphold and defend the constitution, every single member of the house of representatives swore the same oath as well and i think we've got a solemn obligation and responsibility here to prove once again that this country is a nation of laws and not of men. and the only result that we can reach together is one that rejects the claim of the senator from texas and the other members of the house and senate who seek to overturn the decisions that are made by the state, by the voters in the state and by the courts. if we follow what they have proposed, we will be the ones

that will have disenfranchised every single person who cast a vote in this election whether they voted for the president or they didn't. i urge you to reject this and i deeply appreciate the opportunity to serve with every single one of you. thank you, mr. president. >> majority leader. >> i yield up to five minutes to the senator from georgia, senator loeffler. >> the senator from georgia. >> mr. president, when i arrived in washington this morning, i fully intended to object to the certification of the electoral votes. however, the events that have transpired today forced me to reconsider and i cannot in good conscience object to the certification of the electors. the violence and lawlessness and siege of the halls of

congress are abhorrent and stand as attack of the constitution my objection was intend today protect the sanctity of the democratic process and i thank law enforcement for keeping us safe. i believe that there were last minute changes to the november 2020 election process and serious irregularities that resulted in too many americans losing confidence not only in the integrity of our election, but in the power of the ballot as a tool of democracy. too many americans are frustrated at what they see as an unfair system nevertheless there is no excuse for the events that took place in these chambers today and i pray that america never suffers such a dark day again. though the fate of this vote is clear, the future of the american people's faith in the core institution of this democracy remains uncertainty. we must focus on protecting the integrity of our elections and restoring every american's faith that their voice and

their vote matters. america's a divided country with serious differences, but it is still the greatest country on earth. there can be no disagreement that upholding democracy is the only path to preserving our republic. i yield the floor. >>. [applause] >> democratic leader. >> to senator booker and two and a half minutes to senator kaine. in reverse order. >> mr. president-- >> senator from virginia. >> i applaud the comments of my colleague from georgia, deeply. my first job after school was in macon, georgia, working for a federal judge, lanier anderson and i learned a lot about integrity and a lot about

law from him. i also learned some sad lessons that in the history of georgia and indeed virginia and many states, so many people, especially people of color, have been disenfranchised over the course of our history. our late friend, john lewis, congressman from georgia, was savagely beaten on bloody sunday, just for marching for voting rights. that act of violence inspired this body, the u.s. senate, to come together in march of 1965 and work to pass in a bipartisan fashion the voting rights act. we should be coming together today after acts of violence, as a united states senate to affirm the votes of all who cast ballots in november, instead we're contemplating an unprecedented objection that would be a massive

disenfranchisement of american voters. the georgia result was very clear. 12,000 vote margin. two certifications by republican officials, four separate recounts and canvasses, seven lawsuits, as in the other states. if we object to results like this, the message is so clear. we are saying to states, no matter how secure and accurate your elections are, we'll gladly overthrow them if we don't like who you voted for. but more importantly, what we'll be saying, really what we'll be doing, is as a body that acted together to guarantee americans the right to vote, we will become the agent of one of the most massive disenfranchisements in the history of this country. so i urge all of my colleagues,

please oppose these objections. thank you, and i yield to my colleague from new jersey. >> the senator from new jersey. >> mr. vice-president. i can only think of two times in american history that individuals laid siege to our capitol, stormed our sacred civic spaces, and tried to up-end and overrun this government. one was in the war of 1812. and the other one was today. what's interesting about the parallel between the two is, they both were waving flags to a sole sovereign, to an individual, surrendering democratic principles to the call to personality. one was a monarch in england

and the other was a flag i saw over our capital, including in the hallways and in this room to a single person named donald trump. the sad difference between these two times, one was yet another nation of a history in our country that tried to challenge the united states of america. but this time, we brought this hell upon ourselves. my colleague from texas said that this was a moment where there were unprecedented allegations of voter fraud. yes, that is true. they were unprecedented when the president before the election even happened said if i lose this election, then the election was rigged. that's unprecedented. it's unprecedented before the night of the voting even--

the counting of the vote was even done that he called it rigged. and it's unprecedented that he's fanning the flames of conspiracy theory to create a smoke screen in this nation to cover what he is trying to do, which is undermine our democratic principles, but it's not just that, the shame of this day is that he aided and abetted good americans who are falling prey, who are choosing trump over truth, who are surrendering to the passion of lies as opposed to standing up and speaking truth to power, who are trying to fund raise off of the shame of conspiracy theories as opposed to doing the incalcuably valuable patriotic thing, to speak truth to our nation.

our democracy is wounded and i saw it when i saw pictures of yet another insurgency of a flag of another group of americans who tried to challenge our nation. i saw the flag of the confederacy there. what will we do? how will we confront this shame? how will we confront this dark second time in american history? i pray that we remember a georgian, his words, all i can say is we must join together like those georgians on a bridge called the edmund pettus and join hands, who recall threats to our democracy, who were called outrageous epithets when they sought to expand our democracy to save it and heal it and joined arm and arm and said we should commit ourselves to that ideal that together we

shall overcome. >> majority leader. >> mr. senator, i yield up to five minutes to senator from nebraska senator sasse. >> mr. vice-president, thank you, and thank you for the way you will fulfilled your constitutional duties and your oath of office today and obviously, it hasn't been easy. colleagues, today has been ugly. and when i came to the floor this morning, i planned to talk about the lesson of 1801 because i'm kind of a history nerd and i wanted to celebrate the glories of the peaceful transition of power across our nation's history. it feels a little naive now to talk about way that american civics might be something to unite us and, 1801 blew everybody's mind all over the world by the way. john adams loses to thomas

jefferson and adams willingly leaves the executive mansion and moves back to massachusetts and jefferson peacefully moves into power and everybody all over europe, there's no way any executive would willingly lay down power and adams in defeat did something glorious to give us a gift. i wanted to celebrate that and it feels a little bit harder now. this building has been desecrated, blood has been spilled in the hallways. i was with octogenarian members of this chamber that needed to have troops and police to stabilize them down the stairs, and a lot of our staffs were under their desks panicking not knowing what's going to happen to them. it was ugly today. and when something is ugly talking about beauty isn't permissible? i think about beauty is

obligatory. why we would talk about beauty after today? our kids need to know this isn't what america is. what happened today isn't what america is. they've been given a glorious inheritance this is at 59th presidential election, the vice-president wasn't the chair and president of the pro tem was, and i would have made a joke that chuck grassley voted in those elections. he's laughing. it's got a laugh. i don't think we want to tell the americans that come after this that this republic is broken, that this is a banana republic, that our institutions can't be trusted. we don't want that in this body or our home townes. i don't think we want to tell our kids that america's best days are behind us. that's not true. america isn't hatfields and

mccoys, blood feuds forever. america is a union. there's a lot that's broken in this country, but not anything that's so big that the american people can't rebuild it. that freedom and community, and entrepreneurial effort, and that neighborhoods can't rebuild. nothing that's broken is so big that we can't fix it. generations of our forefathers and our foremothers, find a word, and our ancestors have spilled blood to defend the flurri glories of this republic. why would they do that? because america is the most exceptional country in the world and the constitution is it the greatest document ever written. most governments in the past have said might makes right and we saw some of that hooligan nuttery today. might makes right, no, it doesn't. god gives us rights by nature and governor is our shared project to secure those rights. america has always been about

what we choose know do together. the way we reaffirm our constitutional system. we've got some governmental tasks and we all in this body could do better at the governmental tasks. the heart of the government is not government, the center of america is not washington d.c. it's the neighborhood where 300 million americans are raising tlar kids and putting food on the table and those center of america. we're supposed to have a frame work of ordered liblt so there's a structure so back home where they live they can get from the silver frame of structure and order, to the golden frame of the center where places-- they coach little league, synagogue or church. and sometimes the things we're doing is governmental, kicking hitler's ass and going to the moon. but the heart of america is places where moms and dads are

raising kids, we're supposed serve people by maintaining order and not violence. you can't do big things together as americans if unger 0 americans are the enemy. look, there's a lot of uncertainty about the future, i get it. there's a lot that does need to be rebuilt. but if you're angry, i want to beg you, don't let the screamers who monetize hate have the final word. don't let kneelist be your dealer. don't let them be your prophets. instead, organize, persuade. but most importantly, love your neighbor. visit the widower down the street, doesn't tell anybody his wife died. shovel a neighbor's driveway. you can't hate somebody who just shoveled your driveway. the heart about community is

neighborhood and we are supposed to be servant leaders. the constitutional system is the greatest order for any government ever and it's our job to steward it and protect it, let's remember that today when we vote. >> democratic leader. >> senator durbin. senator from illinois. >> thank you. in march of 1861, a lawyer caught a train to washington, his name was abraham lincoln. it wasn't his first trip here. he'd served as congressman 15 years before and he returned and in the beginning of the civil war to serve as president. it was a different place than he knew in his congressman and 15 years had changed a lot. the boarding house across the street now the library of congress was gone. and this building was changing. big changes. they were building a dome on the capitol.

but they were also, in the earliest days of the war and president lincoln was counseled, stop building the dome. it costs too much money and we can't spend any more time on it and he said, no, we're going to build that dome and we're going to finish it. that dome and this building will be a symbol of this country that will survive the civil war and come back strong. so they built the dome, they won the war, and since those days, that dome and this building have been a symbol to this country, a symbol of unity and of hope. tourists come through here by covid by the tens of thousands and if you've ever noticed their tours, they're often shushed, people are saying, show some respect for this building. we know this building in the rotunda the place where some of

the greatest american heroes of both political parties lie in state and we go there to honor them. we know this building because we work here, we enact laws here that change america, we gather for state of union messages from presidents and honor the people in the gallery. this is a special place. this is a sacred place. but this sacred place was desecrated by a mob today on our watch. this temple to democracy was defiled by thugs who roamed the halls and sat in that chair, mr. vice-president, the one that you vacated at 2:15 this afternoon, sat and posed for pictures, those who were roaming around this chamber. what brought this on. did this mob spring spontaneously from america? no.

this mob was invited to come to washington on this day by this president for one reason, because he knew the electoral college vote was going to be counted this day. he wanted this mob to disrupt the constitutional process which we're a part of. this mob was inspired by a president who cannot accept defeat. if you wonder whether i'm going too far in what i say, just read the transcript with the secretary of state from georgia. and listen to this president's wild conspiracy theories, one after the other, swatted down by republican elected officials and his attorney as having no basis in fact. this president begs, he coaxes, he even threatens that secretary of state to find the votes he needs in other venue

that would be a simple, obvious crime. the lengths he'll go to are obvious. the texas senator says to us, well, many people still agree with him, you know, when it gets down to the bottom line. many people have fallen for this presidential position that it must have been a rigged election if i lost. well, i would say that after we've lost count, 57 lawsuits, 62 lawsuits, i've heard so many numbers, after 90 different judges, after this president took his case, the best he could put together to the highest court in the land across the street where he had personally chosen three justices on the supreme court, i say to the senator from texas, you know much more about that court than i do. i don't believe they let that paper that he sent up there even hit the desk before they laughed it out of the court. and that's the best he had to offer. no evidence whatsoever of this

rigged election and this fraud lens. the senator from texas says we just want to create a little commission, 10 days, we are going to audit all the states, particularly the ones in contention here, and find out what actually occurred. and it really draws its parallel to 1876, hayes and tilldon. don't forget what that commission, that so-called political compromised achieved. it was not just some ordinary governmental commission, it was a commission that killed reconstruction that established jim crow, that even after a civil war which tore this nation apart reenslaved african-americans and invited voter suppression we're still fighting today in america. ... the vote we're going to have here is a clear choice of whether we are going to feed the beast of ignorance or we are

going to tell the truth to the american people. we saw that beast today roaming the halls. let's not invite it back. the vice president: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, mr. mcconnell: mr. president, >> majority leader. >> i yield up to s five minuteso the senator from kansas, senator marshall. >> senator from kansas. >> thank you, mr. president. freedom of speech and the freedom to protest are provided in our constitution. and while i i share the same frustrations many americans have over the presidential election, the violence and mob rule which occurred at the u.s. capitol today and across the country are unacceptable and i condemn them at the highest level. like all of us in the chamber i'm thankful for the heroic law enforcement officers who worked feverishly to restore orders so we can get back to the electoral certification process. during my 29 year career as an

obstetrician and gynecologist, too often i do sit down with patience and give them a very bad diagnoses. it might've been a young mother of three whoho i delivered all three of her babies, now with metastatic breast cancer or perhaps another woman with advanced cervical or ovarian cancer, all with a very challenging prognosis. but before i sat down with each one of those patients are carefully reviewed all their labs, the x-rays and the pathology to make sure i had the facts straight. at end of the day my final recommendation was always going to be a recommendation from my heart. i want my fellow kansans and all americans to know that i've given as much consideration and thoughts surrounding issue objecting to a state electoral college votes as i did considering the treatment plan for serious health concern and today's decision once again is from my heart. mr. president, i rise today to restore integrity to our republic. and i i rise to join the being f our colleagues are all concerned for current and future

generations. we must restore faith and confidence in one of our republics most hallowed, patriotic duties, voting. there is no question our u.s. constitution empowers state legislatures to execute free legal and fair elections. fortunately in several states the clear authority of those ofe legislatures to determine the rules for voting were usurped by governors, secretaries of states and activist of course. our laws and constitutions should always be followed especially in a time of crisis. i don't rise of improving the integrity of the bout. rather i rise in hopes of improving the integrity the ballot to all states accountable to the time proven constitutional system of the electoral college. this is wyers formation of electoral commission to give constructiveon instruction and recommendations to make our elections once again safe, free and fair after a year of jarring

irregularities. we must and will have a peaceful transition to power. to all my fellow americans i have no doubt that a republican go after it grow stronger through this difficult day. god y bless this great republic. republic. thank you, mr. president. i yield back. >> democratic leader. >> the senator from illinois. >> mr. president, in 2004 i packed up my rucksack, laced up my boots and deployed to iraq, ready to sacrifice whatever was asked a of me, because i love ts nation. willing to sacrifice my life if needed. because i believe in the sanctity of our electoral system which has declared george w. bush my commander-in-chief. i earned my women's come from the fight in the work i did not support, on the orders of a president i did not vote for. because i believed in, and i

still do believe in, the values of our nation. because i believe in the government of, , by, and for the people where voters, voters choose who leads them, not the other way around. i've spent my entire adult life defending our democracy but bui never, never thought it would be necessary to defend it from an attempted violent overthrow in our nation's own capital building. well, i refused refuse to let e intent on instigating chaos or inciting violence deter me from carrying out my constitutional duties. you know, when my army buddies and i raised our right hand,, when the 45,000 troops in arizona raise their right hand and swore to protect and defend the constitution, we did not qualify our oath by saying that we would follow orders only when

the commander-in-chief with someone whose election we were happy with. just like when every senator in this chamber was sworn into office, we didn't mutter under our breath that we would discharge of duties only when it served our political interest or helped us to avoid the wrath of it had become insecure, want to be tinpot dictator on the precipice of losing power and relevance. no. there is no ambiguity here. joe biden won the election with a record number of votes. republican officials n nationwie confirmed those results, includingn in arizona, as has judge after trump appointed judge or even trump attorney general admitted that the united states department of justice have not found widespread fraud that would have affected the outcome. yet still many of my republican colleagues are asking us to ignore all of that. with no evidence of their own,

they are asking us to ignore court rulings, ignore republican election officials, and even worse, ignore the will of the people across this vast great overturn this election they are placing more trust in red conspiracy theories over the constitution, proving that appeasing trump is more important to them than protecting the most basic tenet of our republic, the adherence to free and fair elections. there's one thingin i know is tt my troops didn't sign up to defend our democracy in war zones thousands of miles away only to watch it crumble in these hallowed halls here at home. yet that is what this effort amounts to, and attemptcy to subvert our democracy and in the process it is threatening what makes america american. because in this country, in this

country the power of the people has always mattered more than the people in power. that is the f ideal that this nation was founded upon. that is why a few patriots through some key in boston harbor, onen washington crossed the delaware, why suffragists were arrested a century ago and why my friend john lewis cross that bridge in selma in 1965. it is m why millions spent tuesy november standing in line braving a pandemic to make their voices heard here listen, this administration has always had an adverse relationship with the truth. trump always cries conspiracy, always foments w chaos whenever something doesn't go his way. t but today we hear in this chamber have the opportunity to prove that here in this country truth matters, that right matters, that the will of the people matters more than the

whims of any single powerful individual. i have no teeth key to throw in harbor tonight, and i regret that i have no rucksack to pack for my country, no to pilot -- no-- all in asking of you is to reflect on the oath that you have sworn on the damage done to our union today, and on the sacrifices made by those who have given so much to this nation. from the servicemembers at fort huachuca and marine corps station to the marchers a bit america's moral arc a bit towards justice come every

breach of a crossed, then ask yourself whether the democracy they were willing to bleed for, the country for to each of us n this chamber has sworn to defend is worth damaging in order to protect the ego of a decreased the constitution as this will more than just the little yellow piece of paper. i think we all know the right answer. >> the majority leader -- [applause] >> mr. president, a yield up to five minutes to the senator from kentucky, senator paul. >> senator from kentucky. >> i wrote the speech for today. i was planning to say that i fear the chaos of establishing a precedent that congress can overturn elections. boy, was i right chaos, anarchy, the violence today was wrong and un-american. the vote we are about to cast is incredibly important. now more than ever the question is, should congress override the

certified results from the states and nullify the states' rights to conduct elections. the vote today is not a protest. the vote today is literally to overturn elections but we've been told this is a protest, this is about an electoral commission. no, it's not. it's about whether to seat the electors that a been certified by the state. it's not aboutco an electoral commission. it's not about a protest. you can goto outside if you want to protest. this is about overturning a state certified election. if you vote to overturn these elections, wouldn't it be the opposite of what states' rights republicans e have always advocated for? this would do the electoral college forever. it was never intended by our founders the congress have the power to overturn state certified elections. my oath to the constitution doesn't lobby to disobey the law. i can't vote to overturn the verdict of states. such a vote would be to overturn

everything held dear by those of us who support the rights of states in this great system of federalism, those bequeathed to us by our founders. the electoral college was created to devolve the power of selecting presidential electors to the states. the electoral college is without question and inseparable friend to those who believe that every american across our vast country deserves to be heard. if congress were to give the power tobl overturn the states election, what terrible chaos would ensue every four years? imagine the furor against the electoral college if congress becomes a forum to overturn states electoral college slates. it's one thing to be angry. it's another to focus one's anger in constructive ways. that hasn't happened today, , to say the least. we simply cannot destroy the

constitution, our laws, and the electoral college in the process. i hope as the nation's anger cools we can channel that energy into a century electoral reforms at the state level. america is admired around the world for our free elections. we must, we absolutely must fix this mess andre restore confidee and integrity to our elections. we must. >> democratic leader. >> senator from virginia, senator warner. >> the senator from virginia. >> mr. president, i think like most of us i'm still pretty revealing from what happened today -- reeling. what i was going to talk about was the work, the work i most out of since i'd been it with my good friend richard burr and all the members of intelligence

community about a multi-you report we did in foreign interference in our elections. probably our top recommendation of the five volume, bipartisan report, was that the official or candidate could use restraint and caution when questioning results of our elections. because when you do so, you often carry out the goals of our foreign adversaries. use caution because whether knowingly or unknowingly, and whether that adversary is in russia or china or iran, their goals are pretty simple. they want to make it appear to americans come to folks around the world, , to the own people that there's nothing special about american democracy. i was going to try in a feeble way to maybe reach some of the

rhetorical heights of ben sasse and they knew he couldn't do that. sons instead, no, i am filing te rules are, today is a day for violating the rules. this is a photo that appears to one of the most prominent german newspapers. you don't need to draw a. you can drop of photos from a newspaper or any television feed anywhere across the world. what does this photo of? its of thugs, thugs in the halls of this capital. diminishing everything we say, we believe in, in this democracy. and when you look at those images you realize those images are priceless for our adversaries. god willing, tonight, in an

overwhelming way we will take a small step in in a bipartisan y to start restoring trust of our people and hopefully the billions of people around the world who believe in the notion of american democracy. remember, these images will endure. i yieldil back. >> geordie leader. >> mr. president, i yield up to five minutes to the senator from missouri, senator hawley. from missouri. >> mr. president, thank you. i want to begin this evening by saying thank you to the men and women of the capitol police, the national guardsmen, metropolitan police and others who came to this capital to put l their livs on the line to protect everyone here working inside of it. i want to thank law enforcement all across this country, in my home state of missouri and of urls to do that day in and day out.

and i just want to acknowledge that what comes to violence this has been a terrible year in america, this last year. we seen a lot of violence against law enforcement and today we saw it here in the capital of the united states. and in this country, and the of america we cannot say emphatically enough, violence is not how you achieve change. violence is not how you achieve something better. our constitution was built and put into place so that the would be in the words of abraham lincoln, no apo from ballots to bullets -- no appeal -- which is what we saw attempted tonight. there is no place for that in the united states of america. and that's why i submit to my colleagues at what we are doing here tonight is actually very important. because for thosee who have concerns about the integrity of our elections, those who have concerns about what happened in november, this is thepr appropriate means. this is the lawful place where

those objections and concerns should be heard. this is at the forum that the law provides for, our laws those concerns to be registered, not through violence, not by a peeling from ballots to bullets that here in this awful lawful process. so to those who say this is just a formality today, an antique ceremony that we've engaged in for a couple hundred years. i can't say that i agree, can't say our precedent suggest that. i think it's very vital what we do, the opportunity to be heard teresa objections is very vital because this is the place where those objections are to be heard and dealt with, debated and finally resolved. in this lawful means, , peacefully, without violence, without attacks, without bullets. and so, mr. president, let me just say that briefly speaking about it later, a word about pennsylvania, which is a state that i've been focused on,

objected to as an example of why people are concerned, millions of americans are concerned about our election integrity, say that pennsylvania am quite apart from allegations of any fraud, he of the state constitution that has been interpreted for over a century to say that there is no mail in balloting permitted except for a very narrow circumstances that's also provided for in the law. and yet last year pennsylvania elected officials passed a whole new law that allows universal mail in balloting and dated it regardless of what the pennsylvania constitution said. and then when pennsylvania citizens tried to go and be heard on the subject before the pennsylvania supreme court, they were dismissed on grounds of procedure, timeliness, in violation of the supreme court's own precedent. so the merit of the case had never been hurt. the constitution of the statute actually has never been defended. defended. i'm not aware of any court or anybody has defended the

constitutionality and this was a statute that governed this last election which was over 2.5 mail in ballots in pennsylvania. this is my point, that this is for him, pennsylvania supreme court hasn't heard the case, there's no of the court to go to cure the case in the state, so this is the appropriate place for these concerns to be raised which is why i had raced in here today. i hope that b this body will not miss the opportunity to take affirmative action to address the concerns of so many millions of americans, to say to millions of americans tonight that violence is never warranted, that violence will notho be tolerated, that those who engage in it will be prosecuted, but that this body will act to address the concerns of all americans across the country. we do need an investigation into irregularities, fraud we do need a way forward together. we need election security reforms. d i bet my friends and i decided disagree. we need to find a way to report

on that together so that the america people from both parties all walks ofon life can have confidence in their elections and that we can arrange ourselves under the rule of law that we shared together. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. >> the democratic leader. >> the senator from pennsylvania, mr.an kasich. >> senator from pennsylvania. >> thank you, mr. president. i rise tonight to defend the people of thewe commonwealth of pennsylvania come to defend the more than 6.9 million voters who voted in this election and to condemn in the strongest possible terms this attempt to disenfranchise voters the pennsylvania based upon a lie, a falsehood. that same lie sowed the seeds of today's violence and today's lawlessness here in the capital.

constituents, susan, from the lehighf valley, the community of our state were senator toomey lives, recently wrote to my office andd, perhaps that is best.uo she said and i quote, we cannot allow anybody to overturn the legal votes of the citizens of pennsylvania. this would be the ultimate destruction of our democracy, unquote. susan had it right. we cannot allow anybody, and she put that word in all caps, to overturn the legal votes of the people of our state. let me address the allegation regarding the pennsylvania constitution and the general assembly. somehow that the general assembly didn't have the authority to enact no excuse mail-in voting, that process for the people of our state. first, the law in question, act

77,01 was passed in 2019 2019 s implemented without any serious question as to its constitutionality. the law was passed by a republican-controlled general assembly, house and senate it was only after the 2020s election when it became clear that president-elect joe biden won pennsylvania by a little more than 80,000 votes, that some republican politicians in our state the side to challenge the constitutionality of the law. second, act 77 is constitutional. my constitutional. my colleagues allege the state constitution requires a in-person voting except under limited circumstances this is not true. while pennsylvania place at specific situations in which absentee voting is required, there is no in person requirement in our states constitution. the c constitution set a floor t

a ceiling for this type of voting. second, apart from the argument made by my colleague, there is bipartisan agreement across our state at the local, state, and federal level our election was fair, secure, and lawful. on monday my colleague from pennsylvania, senator toomey, wrote in an op-ed, and encoding, the evidence ist overwhelming that joe bidenth won this election, unquote. there's simply no evidence to justify the outrageous claims of widespread voter fraud or election irregularities suggesting, to justify those seeking to overturn the election. 60 cases, court after court, all throughout our state and throughout the country including the supreme court, dealing with this bizarre argument that we know is based upon that lie.

in one court the united states court of appeals for the third circuit judge bevis appointed by president trump, he said, quote, the campaigns claims have no merit, unquote. the united states, he said, has free and fair elections which are the lifeblood of our democracy. charges required specific allegations and then proof. we have neither here, unquote. so said judge bevis. finally, mr. president, a word about those election officials who did such work. these election officials all across our state, republicans and democrats, from red counties in blue counties, they did their jobs if they are patriots, and these objections are an attack on these pennsylvania public servants. give you one example. republican commissioner al schmitt of philadelphia, who wrote and i will quote as follows, quote, there really

should not be a disagreement regardless of party affiliation when we are talking about counting votes by eligible voters. it's not a very controversial thing or at least it shouldn't be, unquote. after election day commissioner al schmitt, sam and his colleagues were subjected to death threats simply because he was trying to do his job with integrity. it calls to mind, mr. president, that great line from america the beautiful, old beautiful for patriot dream that sees the on the years. these election officials like some of our patriots, we heard from senator duckworth tonight,, a real patriot, these patriots did their job. let's support these patriots. vote against this objection. i yieldad the floor. >> majority leader. >> i yield five minutes to the senator from utah, senator romney. >> senator from utah.

>> mr. president, today was heartbreaking and i was shaken to the core as i thought about the people i met in china and russia and afghanistan and iraq and other places who yearn for freedom and a look to this building and these shores as a place of hope. and i saw the images being rod cast around the world, and it breaks my heart. i have 25 grandchildren, many of of them are watching tv thinking about this building, whether their grandpa was okay. i knew i was okay. i must tell you as well, i was proud to serve with these men and women. this is an extraordinary group of people. i am proud to be a member of the united states senate, and be with people of integrity as we do here today. now, we gather due to a selfish man's injured pride, and the outrage of supporters who has

the liberally misinformed for the past two months and stir to action this very morning. what happened today was an insurrection inside by the president of the united states. those who choose to continue to support this dangerous gambit by objecting to result of a legitimate democratic election will forever be seen as being complicit in an unprecedented attack against ouroc democracy. fairly or not, they will be remembered for their role in this shameful episode in american history. that will be their legacy. i salute senator lankford and loeffler and brawns in dank and i'm sure others who in the light of today's outrage have withdrawn their objection. for any who remain insistent on an audit in order to satisfy the many people believe that election was stolen, i would offer this perspective. no congressional audit is ever

going to convince these voters, particularly when the president will continue to say that the election was stolen. the best way we could show respect for the voters who were upset is by telling them the truth. [applause] >> that's the burden. that's the duty of leadership. the truth is the president-elect biden won the election. president trump lost. that experience myself.xperience it's no fun. scores of course, the president's own attorneys general come state election

officials both republican and democrat have reached that unequivocal decision. and in light of today's sad circumstances i asked myco colleagues, do we weigh way oun political fortunes for heavily than we way the strength of our republic, the strength of our democracy and the cause of freedom? once the weight of personal acclaim compared to the weight of conscience? leader mcconnell said that the voteor today is the most importt in his 36 36 years of public service. think of that. authorizing two wars, voting in two impeachments. he said that not because the vote reveal something about the election. it's because this vote reveals something about u us. i urge my colleagues to move forward with completing the electoral count, to refrain from further objections, and unanimously affirmed the legitimacy of the presidential election. thank you, mr. president. [applause] >> the democratic leader. >> the senator from new

hampshire, senator shaheen. >> senator from new hampshire. >> mr. president, on january 3 i along with 31 of my colleagues stood in this chamber and swore an oath to support and defend the constitution of the united states. if both ironic and deeply disappointing that only three days after swearing these posts, some of my colleagues -- oce -- willfully coming close to breaking this promise. since 1797, each u.s. president has peacefully handed over power to the next, and that will happen again.ar on january 20 when donald trump, despite the protesters today, the violencenc today, when donad trump leaves the white house at noon and joe biden becomes president. and we have heard tonight from

both democrats and republicans about the importance of the voters speaking and the election. and about the fact that there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud, but this is not just an issue for us here in the united states. this is an issue for nascent democracies around the world who, as senator romneyok said, look to the united states as an example. we are the shining city on the hill. we give those struggling under oppression hope for a better future. now, like so many of us in this chamber, i have traveled to developing democracies around the world, toni afghanistan and iraq, to the western balkans, to africa, to the country of georgia. i went there with my colleague,

senator risch, in 2012 who went to georgia to observe officially on behalf of the senate the election between outgoing president and his united national movement party, and the challenge by george in a dream which was a newly formed a party supported and funded by a billionaire oligarch. it was a battle for parliament but also for control of the government. senator risch and and i visited multiple polling placese on election day, and we agreed with the international assessment, and fair and that george in a dream where the winners. but there was real concern in the country that the billionaire was going to refuse to give up power, that that would lead to

violence, it would end the nascent democratic reforms happening in the former soviet republic. and so senator risch and i the day after the election went to visit the president to try and talk them out of staying in power, and i remember very clearly going tos his home and e sat and within and we pointed out that theha hallmark of a democracy, what it worked so hard for in his eight years as president of georgia, the of that was to turn over power in a peaceful election to the person that the voters chose. well, he listenedsi to us and he did leave office peacefully. but it's important that future

generations recognize that america, like democracies everywhere, depends on a peaceful transition of power on believing what the voters say, and ensuring that happens. unfortunately, w we have heard from some senators today who have been enabling president trump's disregard for the votes of our citizenry, even as they speak out against foreign leaders who ignore their own people. they will fail and history will remember them. and i hope that future generations will be the actions of some of those folks today, if little more than an unfortunate anomaly. future opportunities may use this ill-fated effort to seek short-term political gain over the long-term stability of our republic. but for the sake of our great country and america's standing,

in the world, i asked my colleagues today to fully endorse the results of the free and fair election, and set aside this partisan attempt to subvert the will of the people. we should be venerating the peaceful transition of power, own preferred win.date didn't that is, after all, who we are in the united states of america. thank you, mr. president. >> majority leader. >> mr. president, i yield up to five minutes to the sender from ohio, senator portman. >> senator from ohio. >> after vice president, you have fulfilled your duties as president of the senate tonight with distinction, and we all appreciate it. [applause]

i thought about changing my mind about speaking tonight given the lateness of the hour i do know my colleagues would appreciate that greatly what i felt it was necessary to speak because i want the american people, particularly my constituents in ohio, to see that we will not be intimidated, that we will not be disrupted from our work, that here in the citadel of democracy we will continue to do the work of the people. mob rule is not going to prevail here. now, let's face . it, we did not reclaim this chamber tonight. rape and selfless law enforcement officers stood in the breach and assured that the citadel of democracy would be protected and that we would be defended, and we are deeply grateful for that, as is the nation.en

i listen carefully to the comments of my colleagues, and i've listened over the past couple of weeks as this issue has been discussed, and i tell it's not a hard decision. i stand with the constitution. i stand with what the constitution makes clear, the people and the states hold the power here, not us. my oath to the constitution and by reverence for our democratic principles make it easy for me to confirm these state certifications. by the way, i oppose this process some 15ar years ago when some democrats chose to object to the electors from my home state of ohio. after the 2004 elections. i opposed it then and i oppose it now. i said at the time congress must not thwart the will of the people. that's what we would be doing.

let's assume for a moment that those who object to the certifications are right, thatif the constitution intended that a majority of members of congress that circumvent the state that a chosen to certify the popular votes of their own state citizens. i ask the objectors to think about the president that would be set if we were to do that -- precedent. what if the majority of house and senate were of the other party, with presidential candidate ofou our party came ta close presidential election. would you want a congress controlled by the democrats to play the role you now intend for us?s it is asking congress to substitute its judgment for the judgment of the voters, and its judgment for the judgment of the state that certified the results. and even forgetting the dangerous precedent that would be set, what would be the basis

for objecting in this election? look, i voted for president trump. i supported him because i believe the trump administration's policies are better for ohio and for the country, and i supported the trump campaigns right to pursue recounts. they have every right to do it. and legal challenges. i agree that there were instances of fraud and irregularity in the 2020 elections. i think we all do. and by the way, there is fraud and irregularities in every presidential election. but it is also true that after two months of recounts and legal challenges, not a single state recount change the result. and of the dozens of lawsuits filed, not one found evidence of fraud or irregularities, widespread enough, to change the result of the election. this was the finding of numerous republican appointed judges and

the trump administration's own department of justice. every state has now weighed in and chosen to certify its electoral slate based on the popular vote as set out in the constitution. i understand that many americans who would never store this capital don't trust the integrity of the 2020 election. don't think that states should a certified come don't think we should have accepted the results from the states, and are insisting on more transparency and accountability. in the 2016 elections, lest we forget, many democrats objected to the results and this trust the election. i challenge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to listen, but also to do our part to try to restore faith in our elections.

mr. president, we should all work to improve the integrity of the electoral system and the confidence of the american people in this bedrock of our great democratic republic. today ior will do my constant dy and post these efforts reject the state certified results, and tomorrow in the wake of this attack on the capital, the sentiment that engulfs us and other national challenges, let's work together for the people. i yield back. >> the democratic leader. >> mr. president, i believe we have eight minutes left so i would like to divide or mac to senator king and four to senator van hollen. >> that's v correct. >> mr. president,. >> senator from maine. >> mr. president, winston churchill once said he could do a two-hour speech extemporaneously, but a ten minute speech turkomans preparation. i don't know what you would said

about a four minute speech. we are a 240 year anomaly in world history. we think that what we have here in this country is the way it's always been. it is a very unusual form of government. the normal form of government throughout world history is dictators, games, czars, pharaohs, warlords, tyrants, and we fought 20 years ago the march ofow history was towards democracy, but it isn't really -- in retreat in hungary and turkey. goodness knows in russia. democracy as we are practiced it is fragile. it's fragile and rests upon trust. it rests upon trust in facts it rests upon trust in court, in

public officials, and yes in elections. i don't sympathize or justify or in any way, in any way support vessel malcolm desperately mildly come what happened today. but i understand it. i understand because i saw those people interviewed today and they said, we are here because this election has been stolen, and the reason they said that is that their leader has been telling them that every day for two months. we cannot afford to pull bricks out from the foundation of trust that underlies our entire system. and i agree with governor romney

that the answer to this problem is to tell people the truth, is to tell them what happened. it's easy to confront your opponents. it's hard to confront your friends. it's hard to tell your supporters something they don't want to hear. but that's our obligation. that's why the word leader is applied to people in jobs like ours. it's not supposed to be easy. it's supposed to be something that we take on as a sacred obligation, and if peopleel believe something that isn't true, it's our obligation to tell them no, i'm sorry, it isn't. just as senator portman just said, as mike lee just said. i'm sorry, we can't do this here. we don't want to do this here. this is a power reserved to the

states, not to the congress. and i agree with the majority leader. i think this is one of the most important votes in of us will ever take. on december 1, 1862, abraham lincoln came to this building. he came to this building in the darkestry days of the civil war. he was trying to awaken the congress, to w the crisis that e were facing. and he didn't feel that they were fully and effectively engaged. and he ended his speech that day with the words that i think have an eerie relevance tonight. here's what abraham lincoln said. fellow americans, we cannot escape history. we of this congress and this administration will be remembered in spite of

ourselves. no personal significance or insignificance can spare one or another of us. and here's his final words. the fiery trial through which we pass will light us down in honor or dishonor to the latest generation. the fiery trial through which we pass will bite us down in honor or dishonor to the latest generation. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. >> mr. president? >> senator from maryland. >> thank you, mr. president. the mob violence and attack we saw on our capital today should be a wake-up call to each and

every one of us, of what happens when we fail to come together, not as democrats and republicans, but each of us as americans, to stand upto a president who time and again has shown contempt for our democracy, contempt for our constitution. today here on the capital we witnessed people taking down an american flag and putting up a troll flag. that is not democracy in the united states of america. as every senator has spoken as mentioned, we have for hundreds of years had a peaceful transfer of power. nobody likes to lose, and supporters of the losing candidate are always disappointed.

what's different this time? we all know what's different this time. we had a president who as the senator from new jersey said, even before a vote was cast, that if he didn't win the election, it was goingng to be a fraud. and every day since then has perpetrated that lie. we have a president who, just today, criticized very loyal vice president who is presiding right now, urging him to disregard his responsibilities under the constitution of the united states in order to reinstall donald trump as president. the same person who got on the phone to the secretary of state in georgia and threatened him to change the results of the election. mr. president, i read something this week i never thought i would read in a in a newspaperd the united states of america. it was an op-ed by all the

living former sectors of defense, including secretaries rumsfeld, cheney and mattis, warning, warning the country about our tradition of peaceful transfer of power and it would be inappropriate for the military to take sides. in the united states of america. we have talked to the world about how we want to promote democracy, our values, and right here at home to many are undermining u those values. and, mr. president, donald trump could not do this alone. he can only do it if he is aided and abetted by individuals who are willing toat perpetrate thoe lies and those conspiracies. and that is what it is so important that we as democrats and republicans and senators stand up together, standup together and tell the truth.

you know, when you go into a a court of law like those 60 cases, you are testifying under penalty of perjury. that's very different than from here in the house and the senate. and in all those 60 cases under penalty of perjury, there was no evidence of widespread fraud. so it should be easy for us, all together come to tell the truth. on january 20, joe biden will be sworn in as the next president of the united states. he has said he wants to bring the country together. he has said he wants to bring democrats and republicans together to do some of the pressing business of this country, to defeat this pandemic, to get the economy going again, to face challenging issues of racial and social justice. i hope we will learn from what happened today, the mob attack on this capitol, the price we

pay when we don't stand up for the truth and for democracy. james mchenry, marilyn's delegate to the constitutional convention, wrote about a famous exchange in his diaries between elizabeth powell and benjamin franklin. wrote a lady asked dr. franklin, well, doctor, what have we got? republic or a monarchy? i republic, replied dr. franklin, if you can keep it. my colleagues, this is a test of whether be are united to keep our republic. i hope we will pass the test together. thank you, mr. president. >> majority leader. >> mr. president, i yield up to fiveen minutes to the senator fm south carolina, senator graham. >> senator from south carolina. >> many times my state has been the problem. i love it. it's where i want to die, but no

time soon. tim and i have a good relationship. i love tim scott 1876, south carolina, louisiana and florida sent two slate of electors. they had two governors by the way and we didn't know what to do. why did south carolina, florida and louisiana do it? to hold the country hostage to end reconstruction. it worked. the commission was eight-seven. it didn't work. nobody accepted it. the way it ended is when hayes did a deal with these three states. you give me the electors, i'll kick the union army out. the rest is history. it led to jim crow. if you're looking for historical guidance, this is not the one to

pick. [laughing] if you're looking for a way to convince people there was no fraud, having a commission chosen by nancy pelosi, mitch mcconnell and john roberts is not going to get you to where you want to go. it ain't going to work source likened to do any good. it's going to delay, and he gives credibility to a dark chapter of ourat history. that's why i am not with you, but i will fight to my death for you. of the people have objected to i think it's a uniquely bad idea to delay this election. trump and i come we've we had l of a journey. iil hate it being this way. oh, my god i hate it. my point ofy view he's been a consequential president, but today, first thing you will see. all i can say is count me out, enough is enough.

i have tried to be helpful, but when the wisconsin supreme court ruled four-three that they the t violate the constitution of wisconsin, i agreed with the three but i accept the four. if al gore can accept five-4, he's the president, i can, i can accept wisconsin four-three. it went to the court. they said no, you're wrong. i accept the pennsylvania second circuit that trumps lawsuit wasn't right. george complicit the secretary of state took the law, change this election lawsaw unlawful. i accept the federal judge you and i don't agree with it. fraud, they see their 66,000 people in georgia under 18 voted. how many people believe that? i asked, give me ten. they sent 8000 felons felons in prison in arizona voted.

giveri me ten. haven't gotten one. does that say there's problems in every election. i don't buy this. enough is enough. we have to end it. vice president pence, what they are asking you to do you won't do because you can't. you talk about interesting times. i associate myself with rand paul. how many times will you hear that? [laughing] the mob has done something nobody else could do, to get me and rand paul to agree. he is right. if you're conservative this is the most offensive concept in the world that a single person could disenfranchise 155 million people. the president says xiao open all certificate and the vote shall then be counted. the t person having the greatest number of votes for president shall be president. where in the does it say might

consider i don't like the results, want to send them back to the states, i believe there was fraud to the conservatives who believe in the constitution, now is your chance to stand up and be counted. originalism, count me in. it means what it says. so mike, mr. vice president, just hang in- there. they said we count on mic, all of us count on the vice president. you're going to do the right thing, the constitutionalht thi. you have a son who flies f-35 you have a son in law who flies f-18s. they are out there flight so we get it right here. there aregh people dying, to my good friend from illinois, to make sure we have a chance to argue among ourselves, and when it is over, it is over. it is over. the final thing. joe biden, i've traveled the world with joe. i hope he lost. i prayed he would lose picky one. he's a legitimate president of

the united states. i cannot convince people, certain groups, by my words, but i will tell you by my actions that may be i among, above all others in this body need to say this. joe biden and, harris are lawfully elected and will become the president and the vice president of the united states on january 20. [applause] >> majority leader. >> mr. president, i yield back the balance of our time. >> congress met in a joint session wednesday to count the electoral votes. two states elected objected to in each body met to debate whether to accept the electors. senators voted 93-six excepting arizona's electors and 92-seven

to accept pennsylvania electors. they certify joe biden as the winner of the presidential election. >> today that carnegie endowment for international peace holds a virtual discussion on defeating the coronavirus pandemic. like coverts begin at 11 a.m. eastern on c-span2 come online at c-span.org or listen live on the free c-span radio app. >> following yesterday's attack on u.s. capitol, house speaker nancy pelosi holds her weekly news briefing this afternoon. that will be live at 1 p.m. eastern on c-span. president-elect joe biden was certified by congress as the 46 president early this morning. this afternoon he's expected to announce his pick for a number of justice department position. watch live coverage at 1:30 p.m. eastern on c-span, online at c-span.org or listen c-span.org or listen with the free c-span radio app.

>> booktv on c-span2 has top nonfiction books and authors of the weekend. coming up this weekend saturday at 7 p.m. eastern investigate journalist on her new book slanted, how the news media taught us to love censorship and hate journalism. then at 9 p.m. eastern whole foods market ceo john mackey in his book conscious leadership on his approach to leadership and business. .. watch booktv on c-span 2 this weekend. >> up next we hear from medical division on defeating the coronavirus pandemic. this is live coverage on c-span2.