will lose jobs and be forced to rely on government support. i hope this is not the underlying plan of my democratic colleagues. let me be clear. for those who are willing to pay for reckless spending by punishing america's farmers and ranchers and everyone who relies on them, you will be doing far more than just that. you will be running off our next generation of farmers. you will be making it easier for large corporations owned by foreign adversaries such as china to buy up available farmland. and you will be ensuring that every american pays more for the food they eat and the clothes they wear. the list goes on. mr. president, i know there is a deep desire on the other side of the aisle to enact a reckless tax and spending spree that makes americans more dependent on the federal government, but

family farms cannot be caught up in the administration's punitive dragnet to find ways to pay for it. any changes to the federal tax code should be geared towards supporting economic growth and helping the next generation keep these family-owned operations alive. i hope that we can all come to our senses on this. thank you, mr. president, and i yield the floor. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the question occurs on the jenkins nomination. is there a second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote:

vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: have all senators voted? does any senator wish to change his or her vote? if not, the yeas are 52, the nays are 48, and the nomination is confirmed. under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table, and the president will be immediately notified of the senate's action. the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion. we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to

bring to a close debate on the motion to proceed to calendar number 100, h.r. 3684, an act to authorize funds for federal-aid highways, highway safety programs and transit programs, and for other purposes, signed by 18 senators. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the motion to proceed to h.r. 3684, an act to authorize funds for federal aid highways, highway safety programs, and transit programs, and for other purposes, shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: have all senators voted? does any senator wish to change his or her vote? on this vote, the yeas are 49, the nays are 51. three-fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn not having voted in the affirmative, the motion is not agreed to. mr. schumer: madam president? the presiding officer: the

majority leader. mr. schumer: [inaudible] the presiding officer: the motion is entered s. mr. schumer: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: at the end of the vote -- sorry. madam president, i just want to explain what happened on the floor very briefly. at the end of the vote, i changed my response to a no so that i may move to reconsider this vote at a future time. i yield the floor. mr. leahy: madam president? the presiding officer: the senior senator from vermontment. mr. leahy: madam president, i ask -- i have nine requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority leader and lean leader. the presiding officer: duly noted. mr. leahy: i thank the chair. madam president -- i don't want

to interrupt their conversation. madam president, i rise on the floor today to honor the legacy of one of the country's most cherished heroes, a very dear and close friend of mine, john lewis. this past saturday marked one year since we said goodbye to congressman lewis. the pain of his loss is still very fresh for both my wife marcelle and me as it is for millions of americans. he wasn't just a moral giant and a guiding light for the world, he was, as he always told me, my brother. and i still have such a sense of emotion when i think of the times he introduced me as his

brother. for more than six decades, john lewis served the united states with an unyielding belief that we could be better, that we have a responsibility to each other and the world to live up to our founding ideals. john didn't spend his life fighting for democrats or republicans, he fought for the rights of all americans. the dignity of all human beings. john's principles were so much bigger than party and politics. when he saw suffering, he tried to end it. whenever he saw injustice, he tried to correct it. and wherever good trouble was needed, he delivered it. and i knew john as more than just a generational leader. i knew him as a friend. and i can tell you that his dedication to justice was matched only by his fundamental decency as a person.

john and i served in congress for more than 30 years. in those years i witnessed the tremendous humility and empathy that defined his lifetime in public service. every day john embodied the ideals he fought for through his unfailing generosity and dignity. so i consider john lewis a brother, and it was an honor of a lifetime to have him consider me one, too. it's -- i think when we walk down the street in vermont, i just felt suddenly so much a person because i was walking

beside john lewis. people have seen where he's walked. many americans know the stories of john's bravery and he faced brutality. he was beaten bloody, his bones broken in the effort for the ballot box for millions of americans. john wasn't just on the front lines of our nation's civil rights movement, he was the front line. john was there when the freedom riders were dragged off their buses and beaten and arrested. john was there to lead the march from -- for freedom from selma to montgomery, alabama. and john was there when millions of americans gathered in washington to proclaim to the country that the time for justice and equality was now. john lewis put his body and soul on the line for the mighty

movement that changed the world. what fewer americans may know is is that john was beloved and respected by members of both parties. it's because he believed in his heart that our nation's greatest challenges must be faced together, regardless of party. where he stood there beside lyndon johnson as in the landmark voting rights act of 1965, he was flanked by democrats and republicans. in that moment, he absorbed the lessons that reaching across the aisle wasn't just a political necessity; it's the way that you change -- everlastingly change society. and throughout his career in congress, john embraced bipartisanship. he built friendships with members of both parties.

for years john led bipartisan groups and members of congress down to the edmund pettus bridge in selma a he wanted to commemorate bloody sunday you the american struggle for equal rights. i'll never forget the iconic photo of john. he's flanked on either side by presidents obama and george w. bush. the three of them heads bowed in silent reflection, arms and hands linked on the edmund pettus bridge for bloody sunday anniversary. john lewis didn't just cross bridges, he built bridges -- bringing people together. he helped us forge a more

perfect union. so it's in john's spirit today that i fervently urge my republican friends to join me in restoring and reauthorizing the voting rights act. i'd remind everyone in this body that reauthorizing the v.r.a., the voting rights act, on a bipartisan basis, that's the way we've always done it. when i say always done it, the core provisions of the v.r.a. have been reauthorized five times, and every single time with bipartisan, overwhelming bipartisan support in congress. and look at the presidents who signed it -- president nixon, president reagan, george w. bush. they all signed the voting rights act reauthorizes -- reauthorizations into law

because they spoke of the profound importance of the landmark law for our democracy. i was here in 2006, the most recent v.r.a. reauthorization. mr. president, you know what the vote was nblg body in 2006? 98-0 in the senate. in fact, many of the republican senators still serving today voted yes. 98-0. you can't do much better than that. so let's honor john lewis' legacy the way he'd want to be honored, with solid, justified action. i'm committed to working with my republican friends to find a bipartisan compromise around my john lewis voting rights advancement act. i proudly renamed it in his

honor last congress. for those who knew john lewis and for those who did not, i can say john would want us to come together and find a path forward to addressing the many threats facing americans' foundational right to vote. i tell you what he wouldn't accept. he wouldn't accept inaction. so let's put in our hard work. let's try to live up to the memory of john lewis, our hero and our colleague. let us remember the person who took me by the arm and walked me on to the floor of the other body one day and said, everybody action -- everybody, i'm here with my brother.

every one of us thought john was our brother, and we were proud of that. let's be proud of our brother. let's be proud of his memory. let's be proud of america. let's be proud of the right to vote. let's pass the john lewis -- reauthorize the john lewis voting rights act. and i yield the floor. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

mr. padilla: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from california. mr. padilla: i request that the roll call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. padilla: mr. president, one year ago this week our nation lost a giant, a man with the righteous purpose and a remarkable legacy -- john robert lewis, who dedicated his life to the cause of justice. from troy, alabama, to a

bridge in selma, to the halls of this very congress, he put his body on the line for every american's sacred right to vote. john lewis never stopped fighting because he understood that democracy is a commitment we have to make again and again and again. as he wrote in the last days of his life, the vote is the most powerful, nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society. you must use it because it is not guaranteed. you can lose it. john lewis understood the power and the fragility of our multiracial democracy because he did so much to build it in his

lifetime. at the age of 25, he led peaceful protesters on a march through alabama to demand the right to vote. and as the world witnessed, they were attacked, gassed, and beaten by police officers. they were attacked because the right to vote is power, and white supremacists feared the power of people of color exercising that right. but out of the pain and outrage over this bloody sunday came one of our country's greatest monuments to freedom -- the voting rights act of 1965. for nearly 50 years the voting rights act stood as a guardian of our multiracial democracy. it outlawed literacy tests. it prohibited voting procedures

that would deny or abridge the right to vote on account of race or of color. it gave the united states department of justice the power to review any new voting rules in places with a history of voter suppression and to block rules with discriminatory effects. and critically, the voting rights act recognized the important role of the federal government in protecting the right to vote. it helped guarantee communities of color their rightful voice in our democracy. over time the voting rights act was reauthorized four times, including most recently in 2006, when representative lewis and a nearly unanimous congress voted to affirm the continued

need for its protections. that's right, passage of the voting rights act and every reauthorization of the act was always on a bipartisan basis. but in 2013, five conservative justices of the supreme court overwrote the bipartisan consensus of congress. in spite of the voluminous record assembled by the congress and the reality of the country around them, these five justices effectively ended preclearance and gutted a key protection of the voting rights act. as justice ginsburg, the late justice ginsburg wrote in her dissent, it was like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you're not getting wet.

well, the storm of voter suppression is most certainly pouring over us now. mr. president, in 2020, in the midst of an ongoing global health pandemic, our nation held one of the most successful and secure elections in our history. voters of color made their voices heard in record numbers and confirmed again that our democracy is strongest when all eligible americans are able to participate. but instead of celebrating this remarkable achievement, republican legislative leaders in statehouses around the country, this year have proposed and passed bill after bill after bill restricting the right to vote and restricting access to the ballot. they're doing this on the basis of lies about voter fraud and

rooted firmly in the legacy of white supremacy. they continue to do so as we speak. the supreme court's most recent antidemocracy decision in the byrne -- brnovich case which eviscerated a key protection of the voting rights act will only embolden these attacks. but so far in this senate, our republican colleagues have turned a blind eye, choosing to be complicit in the outright assault on our democracy. senate republicans have refused to even open a debate on voting rights legislation. instead they prefer to abuse the filibuster to enable republican

legislative leaders across the country to continue their assault. mr. president, our democracy is on the line. the unfinished work of john lewis remains. we must summon the courage to act. that's why i'm committed to passing the john lewis voting rights advancement act which will protect the right to vote for all people. i can think of no more fitting way to honor the memory of a man who chose our democracy as the struggle of his lifetime. mr. president, when i was first elected california secretary of state to serve as the chief elections officer for the state of california, i sought out the counsel of john lewis.

for more than 45 minutes during our first meeting, and time and again after that john guided me with his wisdom, taught me by his example, and inspired me through his courage. he was always gracious with his time, warm with his spirit, and true in his conviction. and he reminded me, as he reminded so many of us, that our struggle is a struggle of a lifetime. as he said, we cannot be afraid to make some noise and get into good trouble, necessary trouble, along the way. in fact, given the circumstances, it's exactly what we need to do today.

as a bipartisan senate, if we can, or as the elected democratic majority if we must, it is imperative that we pass legislation to preserve our democracy. we must carry the torch that john lewis carried for us for so long and build for all americans a democracy that is as free, as fair, as accessible, and as inclusive as we can possibly make it. and we must remain hopeful in this pursuit. you see, despite the scars that he bore and the hatred that he faced down, john lewis was fundamentally a hopeful man, a man who never abandoned the youthful spirit that carried him

across that bridge in selma and he always looked to the next generation of o -- for leadersh, and energy and inspiration to carry the cause forward. it is now on us to take up his work. there's no better way for us to honor the legacy of john lewis. thank you, mr. president. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from minnesota. ms. klobuchar: mr. president, i join in the wonderful words of my colleague from california, a true leader, someone who served, the election official, the secretary of state for the biggest state in our nation. knows how important it is to count the votes and to make sure we allow everyone to vote. and i come to the floor today to

join him, to join senator leahy and other of our colleagues to honor the legacy of congressman john lewis and to continue his fight to make sure that every american can make their voice heard at the ballot box. as my colleagues have mentioned, it's been just over a year since john lewis passed. i have always been in awe of him. this past week i had the opportunity to reflect on his monumental contributions to our nation when the senate rules committee held a field hearing on voting rights in his home state of georgia at the national center for civil and human rights, a place that commemorates the civil rights movement. and today as we celebrate his legacy, i'm reminded of his persistence, his resilience, and his faith that this country could be better if only we put in the work. it was his faith in our country that led him to selma, alabama,

where he helped lead 600 marches across the pettis bridge that became known as bloody sunday. several times, including the last year that he came to that bridge before he died i was able to stand with him on the bridge in awe of everything he had done. the horrific events of that day shocked the nation with marchers attacked with clubs and tear gas. congressman lewis' skull was fractured. he bore the scars until the very end of his life. soon after president lyndon johnson came to the capitol and as he said, with the outrage of selma still fresh, urged congress to guarantee the freedom to vote. months later with the help of former minnesota senator and vice president hubert humphrey, the voting rights act was signed into law.

one of the times i visited was in fact the 48th year anniversary of that march. that weekend after 48 years, the police chief of montgomery handed his badge to congressman lewis and apologized for not protecting him and the other freedom marchers. 48 years is a long time and it only happened because congressman lewis never quit fighting for progress, for civil rights, for economic justice, and to defend the voting rights of every american. but now more than five decades since that day in selma and since the voting rights act became the law of the land, so much of the progress that americans have fought and even died for is at stake. throughout our country's 245-year history, we've had to course correct and take action to ensure that our democracy for the people, by the people,

actually lives up to its ideals. we all had that moment that night after the insurrection when this chamber of which we're standing in was taken over by those who did not believe in our election processes, in our democracy. and we not only came back, we not only came back to this chamber that night but two weeks later we stood under a beautiful blue sky and declared, democrats or republicans or independents, that we stood with our democracy. and as i said that day, that was the day where our democracy stood up, brushed itself off, and that we went forward as one nation under god with life,

liberty for all. that's why earlier this week believing that the job is not done, especial will i when over 400 bills have been introduced across this country in nearly every state, with 28 of them already signed into law, including an egregious example in georgia, that is why for the first time in two decades we took the senate rules committee on the road and held a field hearing in atlanta to shine a spotlight on what is happening in georgia and in states across the country to undermine the freedom to vote. we heard from state legislatures, a former election official who had lost her job after a change in law, meant that local election officials were taken away from their posts. and we heard from a voter, a veteran who had stood in line for hours and hours just to cast his vote. and when i asked him when he

signed up for the air force was there a waiting line, he said no. well, there shouldn't be a waiting line to vote in the united states of america. and that is why it is so critical that congress pass basic federal standards -- that's the for the people act -- to ensure that all americans can cast a ballot in a way that works best for them, that's safe for them, whether it is early voting, whether it is vote by mail which so many americans in red states and blue used across the country during the pandemic. and as we know the history of that, in states like the presiding officer's state of colorado, or states like utah known as the red state, or states like oregon, that has been the way they've been doing business safely for a long time. and many of us for the first time voted in that way. but there are other ways as well with drop-off ballot boxes. some people have not registered

way early because maybe they moved to a state as we know happens in the united states. or maybe they are a young person at college. or maybe they forgot to register and they have to catch up and do it. none of those reasons, those simple reasons that can happen to anyone in their everyday life should be reasons to ban people from voting. and that's why these basic federal standards are so important. when we were in georgia we heard from helen butler who i mentioned, a former local election official from rural morgan county who pointed out it was only after black voters increased their vote by mail numbers in the 2020 election that the georgia legislature imposed new restrictions on mail-in ballots after all those years. georgia state senator sally harrell also testified about how the bill was rushed through this restrictive voting bill through the georgia legislature without

meaningful debate. we heard about the provisions of the bill that basically say that nonpartisan -- that's already required and that's correct -- nonpartisan volunteers can't even give voters water when they stand in line despite the fact that there were voters that we heard from the day before that, with senator merkley and stacy abrams, that those voters stood in line for three hours, for four hours, for seven hours. we heard from the runoff changes, the runoff used to be nine weeks in georgia. it was reduced to 28 days. and during the runoff period, you can't vote under the new law on saturdays and sundays. you can vote that way during the general election. all of this, all of this is done in the words of north carolina, one of their judges many years ago in a decision who said this

law discriminates with surgical precision. literally going through ways that people voted. literally noticing that 70,000 new voters registered during the runoff and then banning that because you have to register now 29 days ahead when the time for the runoff is 28 days. how obvious can you get. where you live and what your zip code is should not dictate whether or not you can vote for president or u.s. senate or congress or governor or any election. we owe it to the people of this country and to those across the country who stood in lines for hours in order to cast a ballot, to take action, and protect the fundamental right to vote. i no he a little bit about this -- i know a little bit about this because my state, minnesota, nearly every single election has the highest voter turnout in the country.

and guess what? we have elected republican governors with those rules that allow for more people to vote and the highest voter turnout. we have elected democratic governors. and we have elected jesse ventura. what i have noticed is not who wins given that we're one of the only state in the country that has one statehouse that's republican, one statehouse that's democratic, given that a congressional delegation in the house is split evenly, changed over time. it's not really who wins. it's how people feel about elections. they are part of the franchise we call democracy. so they will come up to me and say, you know i didn't vote for you but whatever. you're doing okay. or i have this concern. but they feel like they're part of the action. that's what our goals should be, to have all americans feel like they're part of the action.

we must meet this moment. as president biden said in philadelphia last week, this is the test of our time. so what do we do? well, first we must pass the for the people act which senator schumer and merkley and i introduced along with many others to ensure that all americans can cast their ballot. it's nothing radical. you know why it's not radical? it is firmly based in the constitution. the basic voting rights, the constitution literally says that congress can make or alter the rules in the manner in which federal elections occur. that's never been questioned. it's been affirmed time and time again. the other bill, the bill we're focused on today, congressman

lewis' bill, and that is the voting rights act. and you restore the rights act after a supreme court decision struck down part of that bill. i didn't agree with it. i agreed with then-justice ruth bader ginsburg's dissent, but you fix it with the john lewis voting rights investment act. it is now congress' responsibility, the decision, the supreme court decision made that clear, to restore and modernize the voting rights act and provide the federal government with the necessary tools to combat the assault on americans' right to vote. we must recommit to the original goal of the voting rights act to end discrimination in voting in america. we know this is something historically until recent years that brought everyone together. the senate reauthorized the voting rights act in 1982 by a vote of 85-8, including 43

republicans. in 1992 by vote of 75-20, including 25 republicans. and in 2006, 2006 with a unanimous 98-0 vote including 51 republicans. and i don't think anyone with a straight face can say well, the reason we don't need to do this anymore is that we don't have any discriminatory laws being enacted on the state basis or there aren't any laws being enacted that limit voting. truly maybe you should read some of the court decisions if you think that. i would say there is a stronger argument to do this, both sides of the aisle. john lewis bill, so important. and it isn't a substitute for passing the for the people bill. but we must do that as well as include election infrastructure

funding in the reconciliation bill which i believe will be coming our way soon. i'll end with this. last sunday i had the privilege of attending services at the ebenezer baptist church in atlanta where i got to hear reverend warnock. there was a guest preacher but for me it was like he was also preaching. and i got to hear him say something i will never forget. he said this -- a vote is a prayer. a vote is a prayer. it's a prayer for a better world. it's a prayer for your kid's education. a prayer that you're finally going to be able to do something about the world's environment. so during the last election, we saw an unprecedented number of people go to the polls to do just that. not every one of their candidates won, but they believed enough in our democracy

in the middle of a public health crisis that they went and cast their vote. in congressman john lewis' words, the right to vote is precious and almost sacred, and one of the most important blessings of our democracy. today we must be vigilant in protecting that blessing. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from indiana. mr. braun: i rise here today to give emphasis to something i think is very important. it's been done basically annually, and that's talking about our pledge of allegiance. it's an expression of patriotism and commitment to our great nation. the united states is a symbol of freedom around the world.

it is a beacon for the land of opportunity. today, let's reaffirm our allegiance to the united states. i urge my colleagues to pass this annual resolution that simply expresses support for our pledge of allegiance. this resolution was first raised by senator tom daschle back in 2002 and passed without objection. now nearly 20 years later, this resolution is probably more important than ever. we've seen countless attacks on our flag and the values it represents. the american flag is a symbol of hope and perseverance across the world. whether in cuba, hong kong, venezuela, those suffering under tyrannical regimes proudly wave the american flag in protest.

the u.s. senate must stand in support of the pledge of allegiance, one of our most powerful expressions of national unity. mr. president, as if in legislative session, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the consideration of senate resolution 309 submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will record. the clerk: expressing support for the pledge of allegiance. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed. mr. braun: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: is there objection?

without objection. mr. braun: i yield the floor..

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cruz: are we in a quorum call? the presiding officer: we are not. mr. cruz: mr. president, i rise today to discuss facts and fiction. recently fox news reporter peter ducey asked white house press secretary jen psaki about a biden administration's official's claim that republicans have defunded the police by not voting to pass biden's wasteful $1.9 trillion stimulus bill.

ms. psaki doubled down on the idea that it is republicans and not democrats who want to defund the police. whena white house press secretay gives a press briefing, you expect some spin. you expect son-in-law verbal bobbing and -- you expect some verbal bobbing and weaving. but when jen psaki tried to blame republicans for defunding the police, it wasn't spin. it was horse manure. it was gaslighting. for over a year democrats and left-wing activists have been calling over and over and over again to defund the police, and many democrat-led city councils and democrat mayors have done so, cutting and even slashing

police budgets. as a result of those reckless policies, we are seeing a deeply concerning wave of violent crime in american cities across the country. the chief white house spokesperson claiming -- blaming republicans for defunding the police is like an arsonist showing up at the fire and blaming the firemen. it's like the chinese communist party blaming america for the wuhan virus. it's like o.j. saying he's going to help find the real killer. it's absurd, it's ridiculous, and democrats know it. let's look at the facts. democrats have called explicitly to defund the police for over a year and have been successful in

doing it. new york mayor bill de blasio, a democrat, last summer pledged to cut the nypd budget by $1 billion, and then he did so. new york city passed a budget that did indeed cut $1 billion from the police department. just a couple of months ago de blasio was forced to backtrack. he realized what a terrible decision it had been, because now he's working to reverse it. a.o.c., the darling of the extreme left wing, has said, quote, defunding the police means defunding the police. and, quote, the fight to defund the police continues. there's not a lot of ambiguity in what a.o.c. is saying.

and she's not alone. how about representative rashida tlaib. she has called for, quote, no more policing. think about that for a minute. this is an elected democratic member of congress whose policy objective is no more policing. those are her own words. how about representative ilhan omar. she has said, quote, you can't really reform a department that is rotten to the root. an elected democratic member of congress describing police departments as rotten to the root. again, those are her words. and then there's representative ayanna pressley, who has introduced legislation to defund police officers in public schools. and she has said that, quote,

defunding the police is about, quote, true reparations. well, maybe this is just a few fringe democrats of the house of representatives. maybe it's not a broader policy of the democratic party. what about joe biden? uncle joe can't possibly support defunding the police, right? well, if you thought so, you'd be wrong, because joe biden nominated two of the leading advocates of abolishing the police -- vanita gupta and kristen clarke, two senior positions at the u.s. department of justice. one of them is the number three official at the department of justice. the other is the head of civil rights at the department of justice. both had written as recently as last year explicit calls for defunding the police, and they got rewarded with helping run

the department of justice. but surely you might say even if joe biden gave in to the act visitors and nominated these folks, there are democrats in this chamber that would say defunding the police is too much, let's not go that far. well, if you would say that, you would be wrong because both of those nominees, two of the leading advocates for defunding the police, were confirmed when every single democrat in this chamber voted to confirm them. 100%. the next time you see a democrat describing themselves as moderate, reasonable, not one of those crazies, saying things like defund the police, maybe you should ask them why they voted to confirm two of the leading advocates for defunding the police to senior positions at the department of justice.

democrat-led city councils all over the country are following the same game plan, and they have voted over and over and over again to defund the police. last year los angeles city council cut the police budget by $150 million. portland cut $15 million from its police budget. minneapolis cut $18 million from its police budget. seattle cut its police budget by 18%. now, what do these cities have in common? they are run by democrats. it is democrat politicians who are slashing police budgets. and what have the results been? well, sadly these democrat-led cities are reaping what they sowed. crime rates are skyrocketing.

"the new york times," hardly a right-wing outfit -- "the new york times" has reported that homicides in los angeles increased 36%. that homicides have increased in portland more than 82%, and that homicides in minneapolis increased nearly 72% last year. and by all appearances these homicide spikes will continue throughout this year. just a few weeks ago democrats demonstrating that they couldn't learn from the tragic failure of other cities that had slashed the police and seen homicides skyrocket, what did they do in oakland, california? the city council voted to cut

over $18 million from the police department. and oakland has already seen a 90% increase in homicides over last year. "the new york times" has also reported data showing that in 2020 homicide rates increased more than 30% in big cities. and so far they are increasing again this year. according to the guardian some preliminary data show that there were 4,000 more murders in 2020 than there were in 2019. 4,000 men, women, and children that would be living, breathing, living their lives, raising their kids, contributing to the diverse tappest ri of our nation if it were not for the radicals slashing police budgets because

of extreme ideological commitments and unleashing these crime waves. now, democrats know that the politics and the policy of defunding the police aren't working for them, which is why they are desperately trying to backtrack and blame and gaslight republicans. yeah, yeah, it's the republicans that are doing this. sure, sure, that's the ticket. not only did some democrats blame calls to defund the police for the close races that they lost in november, and for the razor-thin majority in the u.s. senate, they also know it isn't popular with the american people. a recent u.s.a. today poll found that only 18% of americans support defunding the police. and a large majority of african americans don't support defunding the police.

the same is true for democratic voters. a large majority of democratic voters don't support defunding the police. but in defiance of the interest of their constituents, democrats continue to go down that road. the facts are that democrats have repeatedly called to defund the police and they've done so -- this isn't a theory, they have done so in many cities. crime is rising and radical democrat policies have had deadly consequences. not only have homicides risen but there were more law enforcement officer fatalities in 2020 than there had been in 46 years. in 2020, 264 law enforcement officers tragically died in the line of duty. some from covid-19 as a result

of being first responders and others from getting shot while on duty. after jen psaki blamed republicans for defunding the police, she was asked who was against the massive spending plan that had nothing to do with the police, it had to do with shoveling money to liberal special interest. it was giving money to states and local governments, so the white house argument was some of the money going to state and local governments could have theoretically gone to police so therefore if you don't vote for the massive trillion dollars of spending, you want to defund the police. not surprisingly psaki couldn't name a single republican who wanted to defund the police or

who gave defunding the police for not voting for biden's $1.9 trillion pork-filled spending bill. the fact of the matter is republicans are proud to support the police to stand with the men and women in blue while democrats are demonizing and vilifying the brave men and women of law enforcement. i want to say thank you to every law enforcement officer in this country from the federal level, on the state and local level, thank you for answering the call each day, putting on the uniform, wearing the badge and risking your life to keep us safe. this morning all across the country, law enforcement officers kissed their spouse good-bye and they went out to defend our country and did so not knowing if they would come

home that night. we are proud to stand with the men and women of our police departments. and when it comes to facts and fiction, it is a cynical and calculated lie from the biden white house that it is anybody other than democrats who are leading the foolhardy charge to abolish and defund the police. its dangerous crime rates are skyrocketing and it's an exceptionally bad idea. i yield the floor. mr. cardin: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: thank you, madam president. i take this time to talk about the work of the u.s. helsinki commission. in a recent opportunity we had to participate in the osce parliamentary assembly. i'm joined on the floor by senator wicker, who is the republican chair of the helsinki

commission. the two of us have worked together in a nonpartisan-bipartisan manner in regards to the work of the helsinki commission and i just want to spend a few minutes and i want to yield the floor and allow senator wicker to -- to give his comments. the osce, as the chair is fully aware as a member of the comish, -- commission, represents the u.s. participation for the security and cooperation in europe. 57 states, which includes all of europe, all of the former republic of the soviet union and canada, united states. the commission works on the principle of three buckets. one for political affairs and security, another for economic and environmental progress, and the third on democracy and human rights. but it recognizes, and i think this has been the hallmark of the helsinki commission, is that you can't have advancements on political affairs or security or

economic or environmental progress unless you make progress on democracy and human rights, that they are inner woven and the helsinki commission, the osce is best known for the vestments in human rights. the advancements we've had in the helsinki commission and how we led the global response to dealing with trafficking, i think about the efforts we made in regards to tolerance, dealing with anti-semitism and how we made progress throughout the entire osce region. i think about what we did with sanctions against human rights violators, all of that came out of the work of the helsinki commission. so one of the major arms of our work is the osce parliamentary assembly, which is the group of

parliamentarians who have meetings every year to exchange views and carry out the principles of the helsinki final act. we haven't had any opportunity to meet in person in the past couple of years and it required us to meet by internet, and we have, but we had a unique opportunity during the last recess period to actually travel and meet with fellow parliamentarians, we had an osce parliamentary annual meeting in vienna, and we had a chance to do this in a hybrid manner. we were able to travel 12 strong for the united states congress to be at that meeting and we were joined by five others here in the united states, including our presiding officer, to participate in the parliamentary assembly and we were able to advance a lot of very important issues. but i must tell you we were noticed at this meeting. the u.s. presence was critically

important in dealing with some very timely issues. and i know that senator wicker will talk about this. he is one of the great leaders of the parliamentary assembly. he's the vice president of the parliamentary assembly and his election was in vienna to be the vice president of the parliamentary assembly and we have multiple candidates and several are elected to vice presidents, but senator wicker led the ballot with the largest number of votes which speaks to his well thought of respect among the osce parliamentarians. we wanted to make sure this was a substantive meeting. quite frankly, the leadership at the parliamentary assembly said let's get it over with and not bring up anything controversial, but that's not the way we operate. we have to take up the issue of tolerance. i sponsored a resolution that

ultimately passed by unanimous vote that speaks to anti-semitism and the growth of hate in the osce region, but we also made sure we considered the recent elections in belarus and how unfair those elections were and how they have been acting to the way of the human rights of the people that live there and the election results there do not reflect the about will of the -- the will of the people and we made sure to take up the issues concerning ukraine and once again there was a lot of controversy about why we should bring that up during the meeting. we made it clear that russia's aggression and occupation of crimea and interference in eastern ukraine would not be recognized by the united states or the parliamentary assembly because we responded in all of those areas. we're also pleased to tell you that we supported margareta

cedefeld who is the president of the osce in sweden and look forward to her visit in the united states. richard hudson, representative hudson with be the chair of the first committee so we will have active participation in the parl -- parliamentary. if i might, madam president, i will yield the floor and give my good friend and the leader of our delegation trip an opportunity to expand on some of the thiks we were able to do -- things we were able to do in the osce parliamentary assembly. with that, i yield the floor. mr. wicker: madam president, i thank my colleague from maryland who has been such a leader in the area of human rights and international recognition of the challenges that our world faces

today. and i do appreciate his leadership and his partnership. we have worked shoulder to shoulder on so many issues and, yes, i proudly rise with him this afternoon to talk about a very valuable series of meetings that our 12-member delegation had in four countries in europe in recent days. this was republicans and democrats from the house and senate, a truly bipartisan and bicameral delegation, a very large delegation, which i think my colleague will agree made a strong statement on behalf of the united states of america and on behalf of the united states house and senate about the way we view european engagement and our partnership and friendship with the 50-plus member

countries of the osce and their parliamentary assembly. we visited vienna, austria for the osce parliamentary assembly and there, as senator cardin mentioned, we met with great success. yes, i was reelected to the position of vice president and i appreciate the support of democrats and republicans in the house and senate in helping me get those votes to receive another three-year term there. d hudson, our colleague from the house of representatives has been very active as chairman of committee number one and the parliamentary assembly. is highly regarded. he was reelected without opposition. two bits of success there. and then the great piece of work actually was with regard to senator cardin's initiative on the rising hate and intolerance that we are seeing all around the world, particularly in --

among member countries of the oargization -- organization for security and cooperation in europe. senator cardin actually took the lead in challenging the leadership of the parliamentary assembly in saying that issues should be discussed, even though they weren't in an immediate like three-week crisis mode. they deserved to be brought forward and senator cardin was able to get his resolution considered and passed overwhelmingly, and we made a strong statement on behalf of countering the rising hate and intolerance and countering the use of these things to buttress authoritarianism and to stoke conflict around the world. we also passed a very important

resolution about the tragedy, the outrage that's gone on in belarus. and i can tell you the opposition party leader from belarus was in this capitol building just yesterday talking about the importance of support from places like the united states congress. i can tell you, madam president, that senator shaheen and i are about to send a letter to our colleagues asking any and all of us to join a freedom caucus for the belarusian people, the belarus freedom caucus. we asked the opposition leader to tell us whether that would be helpful. and she said the formation of this caucus to support the freedom movement in belarus would be a strong signal, would be well received, and effective

on behalf of the opposition leadership there in belarus. and then again we reiterated our opposition to what russia has done in ukraine and particularly to the recent russian military buildup and ongoing aggression in ukraine. so we did a lot there with the parliamentary assembly. went on to estonia. met with leadership there, a former president, the current prime minister, other leaders, and also we had a chance to travel to the very eastern most part of estonia. and actually travel on the narva river and look on to russia and the security guards there understanding what our estonia allies are up against with

putin's russia staring right across the river at their freedom and democracy. from there we joined the three c's conference in bulgaria, and i can tell you, this is a group of eastern european former soviet block countries who are striving to be in charge of their own infrastructure and rely less on the chinese road initiative. i think the fact that 12 americans showed up, participated, met with heads of state at that conference made a very strong statement of american support for freedom and for looking westwardly in trying to get their problems solved and their infrastructure needs met. and we also had a very meaningful visit to norway where

we saw some american-noor wedgian -- norwegian defense initiatives. i'm just -- i'm very proud of the partnership that this helsinki commission, our organ of the american osce pa and the way that we've joined together to express our support for freedom, for democracy, for the rule of law, for opposing corruption both at the petty local level and also at the larger state-sponsored level. one other thing before i yield back and let my friend close. particularly in bulgaria but also all during our trip, we

were met with hearty thanks for the united states leadership in the global magnitsky act. this began as an initiative with senator cardin, senator lieberman, senator mccain, and me several years ago. directed during the obama administration, directed toward individual russians who had violated human rights and individual liberty in a very outrageous and gross way, allowing us to sanction individuals rather than causing harm to the people of a certain -- of russia in that case. this has been expanded now to the global level and other countries are adopting this. but i can tell you when we arrived in bulgaria, we were met with great thanks from people

who are trying to combat lawlessness and corruption at the top level of government. and i just have to say -- and of course ben cardin has been the premier leader in this worldwide effort. and it was gratifying to know and to learn firsthand on the ground there in sofia, bulgaria, that an initiative that been right here in this united states senate years ago and continues to this day is having a beneficial effect on the people all across europe and particularly in some of the countries that we visited. i'll yield back to my friend from maryland. mr. cardin: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: madam president, let me again thank senator wicker and thank you for your leadership on so many issues, but when this congressional delegation -- for those that are

not familiar, it's not easy to put together the type of opportunities to advance american values. and senator wicker took the responsibility as the leader of our delegation to make sure that we had the opportunities to advance american values. i thank him for all the effort he put into it. it was certainly extremely successful. i just want to emphasize a few things before closing. one in vienna, we did have an opportunity to meet with raphael grossy who is the director general of the iaea, the international atomic energy agency, which has the responsibility of monitoring the nuclear programs throughout the world. obviously it has played a bigger role in regards to the program in iran. it was monitoring exactly what was happening in iran under the

jcpoa. they don't now have the same access. and we had a chance to talk with the director general as to the challenges with the iranian program. and i think it was helpful for all of us to understand exactly the role that the iaea can play in regards to getting us information about what's happening on the ground in iran. senator wicker talked about our visit to estonia, a strong ally partner, nato partner. we showed our support by going to narva on the russian border. it is a town that has russian speaking astonians. we can see very clearly the russian patrol boats. we know and heard firsthand of the concern of the astone ya --

estonians. the same thing can happen in estonia with russian aggression. our presence to reinforce the nato commitment i think was an extremely important message we gave to the estonian people. mr. wicker: would the gentleman yield on that point? mr. cardin: i would be glad to yield the floor. mr. wicker: if i might add, people in narva, estonia and people in the city across the river have access to each other across the bridge there. and it is clear to the people on the russian side that their cousins and friends in narva, estonia live a better life and have a better standard of living in this free country, this native ally called estonia than

the russian cousins and friends have on the other side. i just thought i would add that to the discourse before senator cardin moves on to discussing norway and bulgaria. thank you. mr. cardin: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: let me move on to bulgaria just very briefly. senator wicker did cover bulgaria. the three c's initiative, i wasn't that familiar with it before traveling to bulgaria. it's an initiative by 12 states that are basically part of the eastern european coalition, states that are developing democratic institutions and democratic economies after the fall of the soviet union. and they need to build up their resilience as a collective entity in energy, transportation, and digital

infrastructure. the three c's initiative is to attract investment to connect the 12 countries together on infrastructure needs. it's for many reasons. it's for its own economic strength and growth but also for resiliency against the efforts of china on its belton road initiative which is trying to infiltrate these countries and convert their way -- economy to more of the chinese system. and the three c's initiative is an effort to have their own independent way of attracting capital. the united states is participating in the three c's. we're not a member but we are participating and providing resources for the fund that's being developed that would be leveraged for these type of investments. but while we were in bulgaria, we had a chance to have bilateral meetings. there were 12 heads of state there. so we had bilateral meetings with poll lad, the president of poland, bulgaria, lafia, and

romania. we had discussions about what is happening in their country. we raised helsinki issues with all of these countries. senator wicker already talked about how we were welcomed by the bulgarian leadership in regards to the imposition of magnitsky sanctions. we were heroes. they feel like they now have a second chance to try to develop the type of antiruption mechanisms that they desperately need. our visit to narva on the black sea was educational to see how russia is trying to dominate the black sea area and one of the reasons why they're so aggressive in ukraine and crimea. i think that was extremely helpful to us to understand the security risks and how we have to work with our native partners to protect the black sea area, particularly from the potential aggression -- not potential, from the aggression of russia. and also in bulgaria, we had a chance to visit a village. it's not my first visit.

i visited them over the years. it is a real tragic situation. the roma population had been in europe for literally centuries. they lived in communities for hundreds of years and yet they do not have property rights. they have lived in their homes and yet they do not have the opportunity to have their homes registered and at any time the government can come in and take away their property without compensation. they rarely have reliable utilities. the village we visited did not have -- did not have water systems so they had to use outhouses, et cetera, and had limited available of fresh water. the utility service is not reliable. and they go to segregated schools. they don't have the same employment opportunities. we once again will raise the rights of the roma population as part of our commitment under the helsinki commission and we're following up with the local

officials to try to help in that regard. and then lastly on our way back, we visited norway and i learned a lot because i did not know about the prepositioning program. i no he my friend senator wicker already knew about this from his armed services service but it's where we preposition equipment so that we can respond rapidly to a circumstance anywhere in the world. the senator way preposition something used to help us in regards to the middle east and our needs in the middle east. so it was an extremely, extremely, i think, productive visit to these countries. i think we did carry out our commitment under the helsinki commission, and we advanced american values, and i think we represented our country well, and we were very well noticed. with that, i'll yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from mississippi. mr. wicker: if i might be

recognized, madam president, one other thing that our colleagues might not understand about the osce is their role in election observation. as we were leaving sofia on the morning of july 11, we crossed paths with some other representatives of the osce from european countries to observe the parliamentary elections in bulgaria that very day. also that same day, moll dovia was having parliamentary elections. we have every hope that the result of these elections will be a further resolve in those two nation members to counter the corruption at the highest

level. and we want to congratulate both of those member states a of the osce -- states of the osce for a free and fair election in europe. with that, i thank my colleague, and i yield the floor. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from wyoming. mr. barrasso: thank you, madam president. i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be a vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. barrasso: thank you, madam president. i come to the floor today to talk about the need for integrity in our elections. now, on monday, democrats in the rules committee, they took a field trip. democrats went to georgia. they continue their efforts there to start a panic about election laws. and i'm sure they'll take more field trips in the months ahead, taking over state election laws seems to be the democrats'

number-one priority. it was their number-one bill in the house, h.r. 1. it was the number-one bill in the senate, s. 1. and democrats claim that they are only responding to reforms passed in the states. and they say it's just reforms passed in the states this year. yet the election takeover bills that the democrats have introduced were first drafted years ago. it's not response to anything. don't let the democrats kid you. it's an attack on states' rights. and an attack -- and an attempt to stack the deck. after democrats took over in washington, they rushed this takeover bill right through the house of representatives with nancy pelosi at the helm. then they tried to rush a similar bill through the senate,

and they failed. senator schumer continues to say the democrats will try again. at the state level, most recently texas, democrats are obstructing the democratic process in order to block election reforms from becoming law. rather than allow an election reform bill to pass, texas democrats fled the state. they took private jets to washington, d.c. they hobnobbed with the vice president, hobnobbed with the speaker of the house, and with many democrat senators. they sent out a lot of fund-raising e-mails in the process, and they did a lot of television interviews. they took a lot of pictures of themselves, published them on social media, and they told everyone they were making a heroic effort.

they said it was a sacrifice. well, six of the democrats became infected with coronavirus. then they spread the virus. it wasn't enough they infected each other. they spread the virus to staffers at the white house and here on capitol hill. it was a political stunt, and it turned into a coronavirus super-spreader event. and i'm sure they still consider themselves heroes. the hypocrisy, madam president, is astonishing. in the name of the democratic process, they actually blocked the democratic process, disregarded the will of the voters, and they shut down the function of state government they took a joy ride on a private jet and endangered the health of many others.

they believe in winning at any cost, and they put democracy in second place. this whole stunt is not about voter rights, it's about power. democrats are going to keep trying to keep the panic alive. president biden went to philadelphia last week, and he spread even more falsehoods about the law. now, i can understand why president biden is doing everything he can to change the subject from the failures of his current administration. we have an open southern border that americans are very disturbed about. we have surging violence in democratic cities in the streets. and we have rising inflation that's hitting every family in america. of course president biden doesn't want to talk about his one failure after another after another. so instead he throws rhetorical

grain canadians at -- grenades at republicans and he tells stories. democrats' scare tactics on state voting laws are not going to work. their claims are false, and they have been repeatedly disproven. the american people are finding out what's in the democrats' election bills, and they do not like it. it's not pretty. it's ballot harvesting which people reject. it's taxpayer funding of political activities and campaigns which americans reject. it's giving the vote to felons on parole, which americans reject. it's 800 pages of mandates, which americans hate. and it's banning voter i.d. laws nation wide at a time when voters across the country from both parties, all political

persuasions, think voter i.d. laws are critical to ballot integrity and security. the more the american people find out what's in these bills, the more they oppose them. you know, it's never been easier to vote in the united states. you take a look at the statistics from this past election year. never been easier. the american people know it. the american people support commonsense laws which make it easier to vote and harder to cheat. but they do not support the democrats' radical election takeover. thank you, madam president. i yield the floor.

a senator: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from louisiana. mr. cassidy: madam president, i ask unanimous consent that ashley roberts, an intern in my office, be granted floor privileges for the remainder of the day. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cassidy: madam president, we are seeing record numbers of people coming to the u.s.-mexican border. i am told 63 different countries

have folks that have arrived at our border, and the latest numbers released by the u.s. customs and border protection, c.b.p., they encountered almost 190,000 people coming to the united states illegally coming through the southern border last month, the highest monthly count by c.b.p. in two decades. this is where we are now. that number is up 471% from june 2020. across the board, every category of c.b.p. encounters at the southwest land border, single adults, unaccompanied children, individuals and a family member, and a family unit, they are surging in 2021, including in the hot summer months when it has traditionally been that's when it falls. it's important because these people coming across in the hot

summer months are at increased risk for death from dehydration and heat exhaustion. june tallies surpassed one million for the fiscal year. in context, the last fiscal year had 460,000 encounters. fiscal year 2019, 980,000. that year was labeled a humanitarian catastrophe. that was for the entire year. now we're speaking of a million, and we have three months left to go in this fiscal year. on monday, texas and the national media broadcast videos of migrants trying to force their way pass texas border guards. eight federal agents and police officers pushed back on the gate to prevent a rush of about 300 people just breaking through coming across the border from mexico. by any definition, this is a crisis.

for the individual who is at risk of dying of dehydration in the desert, for our country which cannot control the border crisis, for the infection of the covid and coronavirus situation in our country, because obviously coronavirus could be ram upon the among these folks. the biden-harris administration could not be doing worse if they intentionally set out to mismanage the situation. this past weekend it became clear that it's not just the situation on the border, but it's also the situation in louisiana. on friday ktps, a shreveport news outlet reported that u.s. immigration and customs enforcement, i.c.e., dropped off haitian immigrants with little to no warning to local government and law enforcement officials. again, this is multiple levels. i presume that these folks are dropped off because we're out of capacity, but let's think about the individual being dropped off.

a source told ktbs that the men had money but some of the women had little or no money. no contacts, no money. they don't speak the language, dropped off in a strange city. multiple louisiana outlets are reporting approximately 400 immigrants from 42 countries have been dropped off by i.c.e. in shreveport since the end of march, but this is the first we hear of it. in baton rouge, wbrc, the abc affiliate, had photos and video of a similar dropoff in baton rouge on friday, july 16. monroe, louisiana, a similar situation. natchez, mississippi, similarly as well. we called i.c.e. over the weekend, and yesterday we actually spoke to the acting director. he told me the dropoffs are not our common practice. i would argue that releasing migrants without notifying local officials, at least the n.g.o.'s that can give them help, particularly when there

isn't, when some of them have no money, no contacts, no place to go, is not good. and he acknowledges that. in fairness, he acknowledged that that was a mistake and that the number of 70 was too large a number. he denied it was a problem of capacity, but frankly when we see what's happening at the southern border and then we see a whole group of 70 being dropped off without the organization required to make sure there is seamless entry into our society, that tells me there probably is a capacity problem. again, you cannot imagine a worst immigration policy and execution of what we've seen in the first six months of this administration. it is incoherence, it is dysfunction. it appears that washington told i.c.e., just send them someplace with, again, little or no notice to state and local officials. we have to ask do the president, do the vice

president care about controlling the border? do they care about communities? do they care about these immigrants? it's almost as if they are wishing that the issue be swept under the rug. unfortunately, the crisis continues to worsen. i don't know if there's a plan. i say that because if there is a plan, we've not yet seen it executed. what we have seen is that record numbers of people are now coming into our country. it's more as if hands are being thrown up in the air. i will also say there was a lot of criticism of what president trump did, but it's my observation whatever the last president -- whatever the last thing the last president did was the first thing that worked. because it's not as if they tried the immediate solution first off. it's like they worked through some things that didn't work, and they finally got to where they were able to stem the tide. so if it's the era of let's do the opposite of what president trump did, even if it's the only thing that's ever worked, we're in trouble.

i do think it's time for the biden administration to admit they were wrong and to begin going back to that which appeared to work. i want to thank the people of shreveport. they have been kinder than the federal government in terms of helping people out. the churches, the n.g.o.'s that came out to help folks, as one of them said, the scripture teaches us to help those who are aliens in our land. they have been willing to handle the situation when the administration failed. but the charity of the american people is not a substitute for a coherent policy, and this is an issue for the executive branch, specifically, president biden and vice president harris who is personally put in charge. we need to get it right. we need answers. we need accountability. we need sound immigration and border policies. and it starts with securing our southern border and enforcing our laws. again, the current situation is unfair to everyone -- the migrants, the community, our country. the situation in shreveport,

monroe, and baton rouge shows the failure of the policies. i don't think they are the only communities dealing with this. and we will continue to deal with it even more so until we have a controlled border. with that, i yield the floor. and i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from minnesota. ms. smith: i ask that we vitiate the quorum call. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed

to the immediate consideration of calendar number 83, s. 89. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 83, s. 89, a bill to require the secretary of veterans affairs to secure medical opinions for veterans with service-connected disabilities who die from covid-19 and so forth and for other purposes. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the measure. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar number 84, s. 189. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 84, s. 189, a bill to amend title 38, united states code to

provide for annual cost-of-living adjustments to be made automatically each year for disability and compensation for veterans and so forth and for other purposes. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the measure. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time and passed, the committee-reported amendment to the title amendment be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar number 85, s. 894. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 85, s. 894, a bill to identify and refer members of the armed forces with a health care occupation who are separating from the armed forces for potential employment with the department of veterans' affairs, and for other purposes. the presiding officer: without

objection, the senate will proceed to the measure. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendment be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the committee on veterans' affairs be discharged and the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of s. 1910. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. 1910, a bill to authorize major medical facility projects of the department of veterans' affairs for fiscal year 2021. the presiding officer: without objection, the committee is discharged and the senate will proceed to the measure. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: mr. president i ask unanimous consent that the judiciary committee be discharged from further consideration and the senate now

proceed to senate resolution 139. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 139, recognizing the importance of the blue berry industry to the united states and recognizing july 2021 as national blueberry month. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the measure. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the committee on judiciary be discharged from further consideration and the senate now proceed to senate resolution 274. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 274, designating july 24, 2021, as national day of the american cowboy. the presiding officer: without objection, the committee is discharged and the senate will proceed to the measure.

ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate now proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following senate resolutions, which were submitted earlier today. senate resolution 311, 312, and 313. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the regulations en bloc. ms. smith: i ask unanimous consent that the resolutions be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10:30 a.m., tuesday, july 22, that following -- thursday -- mr. president, thursday, july 22, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning

hour be deemed expired and the journal of proceedings be approved to date and the time for the two leaders -- the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the senate be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein up to ten minutes each. further, that at 1:30 p.m., the senate proceed to executive session to consider executive calendar number 162, july hruby and the senate vote on the nomination. if the nomination is confirmed, the nomination be confirmed and laid upon the table and the president is notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. smith: if there is no further business to come before the senate, i ask that it stand

adjourned under the previous order. order.

robert novak's nickname was the prince of darkness named up by many of his friends and washington-based journalist in 2007, two years before he died at age 78, his autobiography was published about his 50 years as a reporter, television chris jolly author and conservative political commentator.

he appeared on booknotes at that time about his book the prince of darkness. >> they are for a move to questions i would like to call the house of over 60 years -- which took place in the 10th of, 1964. on that day the speaker at the time was an impostor who