this morning along with a few votes on republican amendments. also on the agenda in the senate a few votes on executive nominations. live coverage of the u.s. senate here on c-span2. the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. the chaplain, dr. barry black, will lead the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray.

eternal god, who directs the movements of the stars, we look to you for help to sustain us during life's challenging seasons. lord, we rejoice because repeatedly in our history you have saved us from trouble. you have sent angels to guard and defend us. we continue to remember the many times you have blessed us beyond what we deserve. today, guide our lawmakers. fill them with reverential awe, as they remember that those who trust you will lack no good thing. though they may face many troubles, you will continue to

rescue them. thank you for never forsaking us. we pray in your loving name, amen. the president pro tempore: the presiding officer: please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to the flag. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the presiding officer: the clerk will read a communication to the senate. the clerk: washington, d.c., september 30, 2021. to the senate: under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby

appoint the honorable gary c. peters, a senator from the state of michigan, to perform the duties of the chair. signed: patrick j. leahy, president pro tempore. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved.

the presiding officer: under the previous order, morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will proceed to the consideration of h.r. 5305, which the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 137, h.r. 5305, an act making continuing appropriations for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2022, and so forth and for

other purposes.

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the presiding officer: the minority leader. mr. mcconnell: today the senate will consider and pass a government funding bill and do our part to avoid a shutdown. the continuing resolution contains a number of key items that republicans called for. that includes supplemental funds to help resettle vetted afghan refugees and hurricane recovery aid for louisiana. it is seriously disappointing that the democratic side would

not let us include funding for israel's iron dome in the base text. it honestly baffles me that defensive aid to our ally israel has become a thorny subject for the political left. but overall, this is an encouraging progress. the democratic majority has begun to realize that the way forward on basic governing duties matches the road map that republicans have been laying out for months. on government funding, what republicans laid out all along was a clean continuing resolution without the poison pill of a debt limit increase. that's exactly what we'll pass today. earlier this week the democratic leader tried to muscle through something different through a partisan jam, but it failed. now the government will be funded as we laid out. that's step one.

next will come step two, the debt ceiling. we clearly laid out the lay forward there as well. as i've explained since last july -- last july -- democrats need to begin the fast-track process for handling this issue through reconciliation. clumsy attempts at partisan jams by the majority will not change that reality. it didn't work on government funding, and it won't work on the debt limit. they will just be wasting valuable time. i think this reality is hopefully starting to dawn on our colleagues. multiple leading house democrats acknowledged just this week that their unified democratic government is fully capable, fully capable of fast-tracking a debt limit increase on their own. nonpartisan experts have

confirmed they have plenty of time to get this done before late october. at the same time that the senate democratic leader says incorrectly that he doesn't have enough time, he has spent weeks of the senate's time processing midlevel nominations. today the majority is spending multiple hours to confirm a bureau of land management nominee who literally collaborated with terrorists, fiddling away day after day after day while they pretend they lack the time to do their most basic job. senate republicans have been totally transparent. we've given democrats a step-by-step guide to governing in this environment and months of advance notice to get it done. the conclusion to draw from this week is very clear. clumsy efforts at partisan jams do not work. what works is when the majority

accepts the reality of the situation. we are able to fund the government today because the majority accepted reality. the same thing will need to happen on the debt limit next week. now, madam president, on an entirely different matter, few public servants know western kentucky and its people as well as my good friend sue thorpe. sue has served since 1985. she is retiring this month after nearly four decades of uninterrupted service to the commonwealth. sue holds the record for being the longest continually serving employee for my entire career in public service. she's been with me since day one of my senate service.

so today i'd like to honor this one-of-a-kind kentuckian whose study leadership in western kentucky has been integral to my office's mission to serve the bluegrass and the people who call it home. now when you ask sue's colleagues to describe their coworker, you hear one word again and again and again -- dedicated. in 36 years, sue has scarcely missed a day in the office. she tackles each constituent problem with her quick wit and her smile. her knowledge of western kentucky is like an encyclopedia. and sue has played a key part in training every other staffer on our team sharing hard-won wisdom with the next generation of public servants. when i think of sue's service to

kentucky, two images comes to mind. the first is sue winning over even the most impassioned callers to my office, whether the call started out friendly or not, sue will listen carefully, record their concerns, and do all she can to help. but then she also invariably ends up discussing other favorite topics such as quilting. sue is an avid volunteer at the national quilt museum in paducah. so when the conversation wraps up, sue will be smiling, and you know the person who just hung up on the other end is smiling too. the second image comes from an event called fancy farm, which is an annual picnic in grays county. it's the crown jewel of western kentucky's heritage. sue is one of the event's most enthusiastic attendees. she often travels down early to per r ruse many antique stores.

she loves attending the church barbecue, taking in the speeches and cheering with the crowd. any politician who steps up to that podium is guaranteed to notice sue amidst the throng. sue's day job has been public service for more than three decades, but even that hasn't soaked up all of her love and service for her community. she's also an enthusiastic volunteer, a frequent participant in paducah's ambassador program and one of the city's all-around biggest boosters. if you sample a paducah boat tour or roll into town for a ribbon cutting, it might well be sue tharp welcoming you to town decked out in the ambassador's characteristic red jacket. visit the quilt museum and it will be sue handing you a brochure. vacation in one of western kentucky's beautiful parks, and sue tharp will be waving to you from the door of her r.v.

sue's dedication to western kentucky and its people is boundless. for all these years she understood that while my staff report to me, all of us report to the people of kentucky. in fact, at one point i believe sue even directly lived -- lived directly across the street from our paducah office. so while sue is departing our team, i'm positive she isn't finished serving kentucky. this is just the next chapter. more time to volunteer, more time to be generous to her friends and her neighbors, and more time with her husband dan and son benjamin. so, sue, i couldn't be more grateful. thank you for your decades of hard work and for your lasting impact on the commonwealth.

now, madam president, on one final matter, pressing matters i discussed at the beginning of my remarks suggest i could not find a more appropriate time to honor the sterling staff expert who has advised me on budget issues and appropriations for over five years. but in another sense it pains me to say there couldn't be -- because the occasion for this tribute is jan lee is soon taking leave of the senate and taking the next step in her career. jan arrived in my office with a big job to do, but the perfect skill set to do it. she studied at a couple of schools called stanford and columbia. she worked in the private sector, risen through the ranks at o.m.b. during the bush 43 administration, worked for a house budget chairman named paul ryan, and held leading roles

with senate appropriations and republican whip john cornyn. her resume was impeccable, references unimpeachable. she was already a force of nature on capitol hill, so my expectations, as you can imagine, were high from the start. but for about five and a half years day in and day 0 out, through a never-ending catalog of serious challenges, jane kept raising the bar higher and higher. jane's colleagues throughout the senate admire her determination and her dogged focus. she is methodical and meticulous. she grasps both the big political picture and the finest policy details much more capably than most people could hope to grasp either. when you handle budget talks and funding negotiations for a leadership office, you are kind of a hybrid player-coach to

offices and committees all across the senate. jane is a skilled leader. she can get a diverse team driving toward a goal with warmth and good humor, but also tenacity and total professionalism. her countless major bipartisan, bicameral, compromise bills over the past five years, jane has been one of the very last staff experts on either side holding the pen. she's a principled fighter, but once negotiations concluded everyone on both sides trusted jane to be an honorable and honest broker. that speaks volumes. earlier this week one of jane's colleagues remarked simply, i don't think i've ever worked with someone like jane. she turns out to be a universal -- this turns out to be a universal consensus of everyone. her knowledge and her instincts

spill outside her portfolio and make everyone look better. the high standards to which she holds herself are infectious. she marshals the knowledge and the relationships that come with many years of government service, but also inexhaustible earnestness, energy and enthusiasm. so jane is exactly the kind of person you would hope to find in the government. just the kind of worker senate offices are lucky to find, and just the sort of public servant the country deserves. i don't think anyone would be terribly surprised if one day the senate finds itself refamiliarizing ourselves with jane's qualifications in a formal capacity. i have to note that jane would hasten to redirect all this praise towards her parents, michael and jean as well as her grandmother. she is a proud daughter of first-generation americans and small business entrepreneurs whose love of country and commitment to hard work shaped

their daughter's life at every step. at clutch moments, these qualities have benefit not just me, not just our conference, but our entire country. today one such time especially stands out in my memory. it was a year and a half ago covid thrust our country into a health crisis and an economic crisis at the very same time. during the bipartisan scramble that built the historic cares act, jane, our swiss army knife, wound up as my liaison to the small business committee. she poured heard self into helping senators set up, preserve, and protect the landmark paycheck protection program that saved a huge, huge number of jobs and countless small businesses exactly like the ones she grew up watching her papers manage.

but jane's commitment to her work has been peerless, her commitment to her family is greater still. her beloved husband, tom, and her son, mitchell, and papers and grandmother need to see more her than her bottomless senate portfolio has often permit. so while the whole institution will sorely miss her, we also join in celebrating the new adventures to come. so, madam president, to our incredibly competent budget expert, our cherished colleague, and one of the senate's most talented jazz and rock 'n' roll singers, we say not just farewell and good luck but bravo on a simply outstanding performance.

mr. schumer: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: are we in pa quorum? madam president, i begin this morning with some good news. today the senate will pass a continuing resolution that will eliminate the possibility of a government shutdown tonight. the c.r. we're voting on will keep the government funded until december 3, provide funding to help and -- to help process and resettle afghan refugees and finally deliver on critical

disaster aid for americans battered by the storms and wildfires this summer. as part of today's agreement, we'll hold a vote series starting at 10:30 this morning on three amendments offered by senators cotton, marshall and brown. we would hold a vote on final passage laterally thereafter. i am confident the house will hold a vote passing this later this i do not have noon and send it to the president before funding runs out. this is a good outcome, one i am happy we are getting done. with so many things happening here in washington, the last thing the american people need is for the government to grind to a halt. but, of course, we have more work to do. just as our republican colleagues realize that a government shutdown would be catastrophic, they should realize that a default on the national debt would be even worse. i will have more to say on this later. now on nominations.

now, despite a week marked by republican obstruction, the senate is making great progress from our responsibility to confirm president biden's nominees to his administration. last week a handful of members made a scene here on the senate floor in a doomed effort to stymie a number of nominees critical to our national defense. i'm glad to say that over the course of the week, we've successfully confirmed these individuals, despite the theatrics from that handful of republican senators. this chamber will not allow anyone to hijack the confirmation process to score political points and to prevent these nominations from being approved. it will not happen. we will move forward. it'll take a little more time, but we will get it done. today the senate will keep going. after passing the c.r., we will turn to the nomination of rohit chopra to serve as the director of the consumer financial protection bureau. mr. chopra is the right man to

lead this agency, tasked with protecting americans from predatory financial institutions. he is a veteran of the cystic -e is a veteran of the cfpb. under president trump, who didn't give a hoot about the average person, the cfpb spent more time protecting the likes of payday lenders for-profit colleges than american consumers. with mr. chopra's confirmation, the c.fpb will turn to fighting on the side of the american worker instead of big financial institutions. i look forward to his confirmation today. after that, we'll turn to the nomination of tracy stone-manning to lead the bureau of land management. few agencies are as important for protecting and promoting america's public lands, and in the years to come, the b.l.m.

will play an even greater strategic role in our government's effort to fight climate change. ms. stone manning is a familiar face here in the senate. she served as a staffer for senator tester before moving to montana to work for then-governor bullock. she earned a reputation not only as a skilled policymaker but also an honest broker, one who demanded the respect of conservationists and ranchers alike. you'd never guess that by listening to some of the histrionics coming from the other side. unable to disqualify ms. stone-manning on the parities, which is so obvious to just about everyone, some of our republican colleagues have launched cheap, out-of-context attacks. thankfully no one is taking these attacks seriously. because of her exceptional qualifications, she has broad support of the democratic caucus to lead the b.l.m. and i expect

her nomination to be approved later today. finally, i am also pleased that today president biden is announcing the nomination of another outstanding judge from my home state, dale ho, to serve as district judge for the southern district of new york. mike so many of president biden's judicial nominees, mr. ho is a prominent civil rights lawyer and voting rights expert. a graduate of yale and princeton, a veteran of the naacp and the aclu, mr. ho would i about an impressive resume to the judiciary and i am thrilled president biden has taken my advice to nominate mr. ho, and i look forward to working on his confirmation. and a more general note on this issue. i'm proud that the senate is not only increasing the demographic diversity on the bench -- more women, more people of color, more immigrants -- but also its occupational diversity as well

-- voting rights experts, civil rights lawyers, public defenders and more. this is how to work to strengthen not only the diversity but the trust that it represents all americans. finally on the debt limit, once again just as our republican colleagues realize that a shutdown would be catastrophic, they should realize that a default on the national debt would be even worse. throughout american history, the federal government has consistently paid its debt on time. the unbroken promise is -- this unbroken program is what's made the united states the leading economy in the world for so lopping. benefiting -- for so long. benefiting countless american families. all week long senate democrats presented our republican colleagues with reasonable proposals to prevent a default from happening. we offered to hold a simple majority vote so democrats could fix the debt ceiling ourselves.

they rejected that offer. we're not even asking republicans to vote yes, even though we know they shouldment, but instead just to get out of the way and let us keep america's faith and credit -- and let us keep the faith and credit in america's finances intact. unfortunately, republicans spent the week solidifying themselves as the party of default, the party that says america doesn't pay its bills, the party that would send our economy into unknown and dangerous territory. on monday, republicans unanimously blocked a matter by wednesday it was clear that republicans were committed not only to voting in favor of default but even preventing democrats from solving this

crisis on our own. every day that republicans continue their cynical obstruction, they risk causing irreparable harm to the economy. the last time republicans played games with the full faith and credit of the united states, our sovereign debt was downgraded. this time around the consequences for american families could be far worse. so despite republican intransigence, the facts have not changed. we must raise the debt ceiling. we cannot allow america to default. yesterday the house approved legislation providing for a clean debt limit extension until the end of 2022. at the appropriate time, i'll move to proceed to its consideration, which could come as early as next week. by now, we are not asking republicans to vote with us to solve the debt limit crisis they've created. if they want to oppose this measure and bring us closer to

financial disaster, they can write their names in the history books as the senator that would let the country default for the first time ever, but republicans need to get out of the way so senate democrats can address the issue i can quickly and without needlessly endangering the stability of our economy. we cannot afford the risk of a drawn-out, unpredictable process sought by the minority leader which could very well actually cause a default. no, the way we resolve this crisis is much, much simpler. the republicans snap out of their insane position and work with democrats or they get out of the way while we solve the problem ourselves. madam president, i ask unanimous consent that the previously scheduled votes begin at 11:05 and that all provisions of the previous order remain in effect. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: madam president, i yield the floor to the

distinguished -- no. i yield -- well, i yield the floor. mr. leahy: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: madam president, we will have before us a substitute amendment identical to h.r. 5035, which we will be voting on

today. h.r. 5035 is the house-passed continuing resolution except that the provision for raising the debt ceiling has been removed because republicans continue to block raising the debt ceiling. but the stopgap measure will keep the government funded through december 3 and provide $28 billion to help states that have been ravaged by hurricanes and wildfires. it provides critical assistance to afghan refugees who have fled the taliban in the wake of the u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan many of those refugees have worked with american forces and helped us. so i urge all members to vote for it. but i agree with the majority

leader that it is shameful that we can't reach agreement today to raise the debt ceiling and protect the full faith and credit of the united states. if republicans don't want to vote to protect the full faith and credit of the united states, if the republicans don't want to vote for the money that pays for the programs that they supported under donald trump, well, then stand out of the way and democrats can raise the debt ceiling. over and over, the last few days, we have heard from members on the other side of the aisle speak about the importance of passing a continuing resolution that contained disaster relief to help hurricane-ravaged states like louisiana and texas. they are pleading for help. we are about to pass a c.r. that provides that help. i have always taken the position that there is a disaster in any state, that we should all come

together to provide assistance because we're the united states of america. it's not just one state. whether it's my state of vermont or texas or any other state, we can provide the assistance. but, but we may go home and say hey, we voted to get money, disaster relief for our hurricane-ravaged state, somebody's going to say well, wait a minute, where's the money come from to help recover and rebuild if the u.s. treasury is literally out of money? in other words, they have a position where they can vote for something and be popular back home and it's kind of like the check's in the mail. we're not going to give you any money for it, but boy, we're going to speak for how important it is to help you. now, many senators here today want to provide a billion dollars to fund israel's so-called iron dome even though israel has not spent the money we have already given them.

well, we'll pass a bill that will do just that. but if there is no money in the u.s. treasury to pay the bills, it's nothing but empty promise to a close ally. we're voting our blank check. according to the treasury department, we're going to reach the debt ceiling in 18 days. now, i say that because we ought to know what we're not voting on. what we're not voting on. as the majority leader pointed out, we're not voting on the debt ceiling. we can say oh, we're helping hurricane-halfaged areas. oh, we're making others helping for things we vote for, but we're not voting for the money. and if we do raise the debt ceiling, once that happens, we run out of money to pay our men and women in uniform.

we all support our men and women in uniform. we're not just going to put out the money to pay them. you can't send out social security checks. find a senator in this place that would say they are against social security. but to put the money in for it, they're not ready to do that just, just saying. we all support our veterans. of course we do. we're just not going to put the money in to support them. and for the first time in history, the u.s. will default on its debt. the economy will take such a hit, it would take years to recover. millions of people would be out of work. bills would not be paid. watch the stock market go down faster than we have ever seen. and millions of americans' lifetime savings are going to be at risk. we're for all those.

just you're on your own. now, the republican party is playing political games with the u.s. economy and with people's livelihoods, and it's shameful. senator mcconnell said he would not provide a single republican vote to raise the debt ceiling. interesting because most of this debt was incurred under a republican president and a republican-controlled senate, but as irresponsible as it is for the republican leader to say we won't vote to pay for the debt that we incur, we on the democratic side are prepared to show what leadership looks like and do it all on their own. we are willing to pass this with democratic votes. but the republicans continue to filibuster. so if we don't resolve the debt issue in the coming days, make no mistake where the blame lies. squarely at the feet of the senate republicans. so we go back and see all these

wonderful things we have done for you in the continuing resolution, but we're not going to pay for it. we need to pass the c.r. today of course to avert a government shutdown tomorrow. a government shutdown as we know from those in the last administration waste billions, accomplishes nothing. but it's also essential not only to pass the continuing resolution but to unite and pass a debt limit extension. there is not going to be any money in the treasury. no money to pay for the funding of this bill for american families, for the elderly, for our troops. now, with final passage, prior to final passage, we're going to have a series of three amendment votes. with only 13 hours before the government is set to shut down -- 13 hours, 13 hours and a few minutes -- any money of

these amendments could imperil the continuing resolution. they are controversial. it could complicate house passage. so i would urge a no vote on all three amendments, an aye vote on final passage. any one of the things in those three amendments, bring them up as legislation somewhere else, but don't shut down the government because you didn't get your political amendment through. and with that, madam president, i will yield the floor and before i do, i will call up amendment 3830. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the amendment by number. the clerk: the senator from vermont, mr. leahy, proposes an amendment numbered 3830. mr. leahy: and, madam president,

i ask to call up all remaining amendments in the order with respect to h.r. 5305 en bloc and ask they be reported by number. the presiding officer: without objection. the clerk will report the amendments by number en bloc. the clerk: the senator from vermont, mr. leahy, for mr. cotton and others proposes an amendment numbered 3833 to amendment numbered 3830. the senator from vermont, mr. leahy, for mr. marshall and others proposes an amendment numbered 3831 to amendment numbered 3830. the senator from vermont, mr. leahy, for mr. braun, proposes an amendment numbered 3832 to amendment numbered 3830. mr. leahy: we obviously have these amendments, madam president, so that we will have the minority say they can

be voted on. we called them up to have them all before us. i can assure you that the three amendments that have been referred to, that i will strongly oppose them because were they to pass, we would not be able to get the continuing resolution done, the government would close, billions of dollars would go out the window, and we would not have done our job. madam president, i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the presiding officer: the republican whip. mr. thune: madam president, i would ask unanimous consent that

the quorum call be suspended. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. thune: madam president, yesterday i came down to the floor to talk about president biden's mishandling of afghanistan. today i want to talk about another situation the situation has mishandled or perhaps more accurately failed to handle, and that is the crisis at the southern border. i say failed to handle because by and large the primtion has refused to take any meaningful action in response to this crisis. sure they make halfhearted stabs at the problem, usually when the media starts noticing things like thousands of migrants and their children residing in a squalid refugee camp under a bridge in del rio, texas, but mostly they seem content to ignore it. more than six months into this crisis, there is still no sign that the president plans to travel to the border to get a look at the problem firsthand. in fact, it's not clear whether president biden has ever visited the border at any point during his political career. the president seems to have adopted, and if i pretend the problem doesn't exist it will go

away attitude. it's kind of like earlier this year when the biden administration officials refuse to call the situation a crisis. despite overwhelming evidence at the border influx has reached crisis proportions. it's like they pleased that if they didn't use the word, they could somehow avoid the reality. unfortunately for the administration, madam president, there is no way to avoid the fact that we are facing a border crisis. last month, the u.s. customs and border protection encountered 208,887 people attempting to cross our southern border illegally. a 318% increase from august of 2020. madam president, just let me repeat that. in august, customs and border protection encountered 208,887 people attempting to cross our southern border, a 318% increase from the prior august.

for context, that number is bigger than the population of sue falls, south dakota, the largest city in my home state. in a single month, in a single month. at this point, the situation at the border is beyond a crisis and completely out of control. and the situation may soon deteriorate further with one outlet reporting yesterday that tens of thousands of additional haitian migrants are set to head toward our southern border. madam president, illegal immigration across the southern border tends to slow down during the heat of summer. not under the biden administration. under the biden administration, the numbers this summer just got worse. encounters along the southern border in july were up 420% from july of 2020. 420%. and of course these numbers only reflect individuals' customs and border protection has been able to apprehend. there are undoubtedly individuals who are successfully

evading apprehension and illegally taking up residence in our country. then there are the individuals being detained and then released into the country with orders to appear at an immigration court. this so-called catch-and-release approach is notorious because the individuals released into the country often never show up at an immigration court as directed. in spite of this the administration is using this strategy and apparently is employing it to deal with the surge of migrants from haiti. despite having committed to deporting these individuals, the administration is releasing thousands of haitian immigrants into the united states. mr. president, the situation at the border is a crisis. it's a security crisis, it's a logistics crisis, and it is a humanitarian crisis. attempting to cross the border illegally is a dangerous enterprise. migrants face the risk of death, injury, heat exhaustion

and disease, to say nothing of the risk of exploitation from smugglers and traffickers who are profiting to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars by conveying people across the border illegally. by failing to stem the flow of illegal immigration, the president is perpetuating this humanitarian disaster. democrats in congress are helping him. my colleagues across the aisle have been trying to add amnesty for illegal immigrants into the tax and spending spree they are considering. that's a policy pretty much guaranteed to further individuals to make the dangerous and illegal journey across our southern border. madam president, most people are familiar with the expression, fiddling while rome burns. it's an expression i'm forcibly reminded of when i consider the actions of my democrat colleagues in the biden administration on the crisis at the border. our country is, as i've

discussed, facing a massive security and humanitarian crisis at our southern border. on top of that, we just completed a disastrous afghanistan withdrawal that has put our country at greater risk from terrorists, damaged our standing among our allies and condemned the afghan people to taliban tyranny. meanwhile, the economic front, we're facing a serious inflation problem. it doesn't look like it's going to go away any time soon. americans are seeing their purchasing power shrimping as they face higher -- power shrink as they face higher prices on everything from groceries to gas, and the democratic response essentially sticking their fingers in their ears and humming or checking their watches to see if the unpleasantness is over yet. if you were just going by democrats' legislative priorities, you'd be forgiven for thinking that none of these problems i discussed even exist. rather than addressing our border crisis or our inflation

problem, democrats are right now attempting to tee up massive, massive reckless tax-and-spending sprees to vastly expend the reach into americans' lives. our border is in crisis, our country is at risk. american families are struggling with inflation, and democrats' top priority is advancing socialism. and not only does that bill fail to address any of the major challenges i've outlined, it's pretty much guaranteed to make them worse. dumping trillions of additional government dollars into an economy already struggling with inflation is pretty much guaranteed to send our already high inflation rate even higher. and as i mentioned, democrats are frantically working to circumvent senate rules and insert some type of amnesty into their spending bill which will only aggravate the crisis at the

border, although at this point, madam president, i'm wondering if democrats will be able to pass their tax-and-spending spree. the democrat party is in disarray, and the story changes so often i think reporters are starting to get whiplash. one minute the democratic leaders are united. the national minute the senate -- the next minute the senate leader doesn't know what the speaker is doing. one minute the house is going to consider the tax and spending spree and infrastructure bill together, the next separately. democrats announce an agreement for the framework on the tax and spending free. the rank and file members report they have never seen it. the spending spree is going to cost $3.5 trillion -- no, wait. it's going to cost zero. democrat progressives and democrat moderates are at each other 0's throats. the house speaker is chewing out centrist democrats and democrats

can't agree on a host of issues from iron dome funding to prescription drug measures to infrastructure. the democrat party is unraveling fast. madam president, it's deeply unfortunate that democrats can't seem to rise to the challenges of governance. president biden's administration was supposedly going to usher in an era of international respect. the professionals, we were told, were back in charge. well, instead it looks like democrats and the president are going to leave our country a lot worse off than they found it, burdened by tax hikes and government spending, that is if they can ever manage to agree on a bill, and greater danger from terrorism, and with a never-ending crisis at our southern border. madam president, if democrats don't change their focus and get their act together, a weakened country is likely to be their legacy. i yield the floor.

i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

mr. durbin: madam president. the presiding officer: the majority whip. mr. durbin: i ask consent the quorum call be suspended. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. durbin: madam president, yesterday afternoon the senate parliamentarian ruled that long-overdue immigration reform could not be included in the budget reconciliation process. i respect the parliamentarian very much, but i respectfully disagree. a pathway to citizenship has a

substantial and direct budgetary impact which makes it appropriate to be included in a reconciliation bill. the last measure which we put before the parliamentarian literally was a date change. that was the sum and substance of the amendment -- a date change that had budgetary impact in it. we were not creating new categories of immigration. we were not creating any new laws other than the date change. i want to say to all of the dreamers and immigrants and all of the mixed status families who are desperately following the situation, we're not giving up, and you shouldn't give up either. america needs you, and i'll keep my promise to keep working on this as long as it's my honor to serve in the senate. on another matter, madam president, i can remember when certainty was the republican refrain on tax cuts and the economy. they used to say businesses and families need certainty. that's what republicans used to say when they wanted to pass more tax cuts for wealthy

people. american businesses can't invest or hire new workers, and american families couldn't play fon their -- couldn't plan for their future without certainty. we heard that repeatedly on the republican side of the aisle. now it's a radically different message. instead of preaching the gospel of certainty as they used to, senator mcconnell and today's republicans are threatening to deliberately, cynically, recklessly push america toward an economic cat -- cataclysm. we are less than three weeks ago from a default on our national debt, 14 hours away from a government shutdown. later today this senate is expected to vote on a clean continuing resolution. if it passes, we can keep the federal government functioning until december 3, and we obviously should do that in the midst of a pandemic with all the things that are threatening america. we expect that the c.r. will also include emergency funding, as it should, to assist with

recovery from hurricane ida in louisiana and the gulf coast. and wildfires in western states, and to help afghans who aided us in the longest war in our history, resettle in america. even the threat of a government shutdown costs taxpayers money, it damages the economy and it undermines confidence in america's future. if reason and responsibility prevail, the continuing resolution will pass and the threat of a government shutdown will be off the table for now. but that c.r. will do nothing to resolve the far greater threat to our economy -- the looming potential default on the national debt. madam president, the democratic leader of the senate, chuck schumer of new york, came to the floor the day before yesterday i believe it was, and said to the republican leader, if you don't want to cast any republican votes to establish and recognize the debt ceiling, the democrats will vote for it. step out of the way. let us take the responsibility

for doing the right thing. senator mcconnell objected. he wants it to happen. he wants the threat to be there, but it creates the uncertainty which they used to decry in their republican leadership days. this is a manufactured crisis ginned up by republicans to score political points. the harm to the u.s. and global economies would be cataclysmic. here in the united states respected economists warn us the results would trigger a painful recession, the opposite of what we need at this moment in history. the loss of more than six million american jobs, how can that be good for the nation? and 9% unemployment. we would likely see a broad sell-off in the markets which takes a big hit on americans' retirement savings. interest rates could spike. not only does that affect american consumers, businesses, but it affects our government. we'll be paying higher interest rates so taxes won't be spent on

highways. they'll be given to banks and countries that are buying our debt. for working families, higher interest rates would mean bigger monthly payments on your mortgage, car loans, credit cards. for the federal government, higher interest rates would result in larger deficits and even a larger national debt. think about that. republicans are threatening to default on america's national debt because they say they're worried about deficits and debt, and defaulting on our national debt will make both worse. because we've never been through a default, it's hard to know exactly what payments the government will have to stop immediately and which payments might continue for awhile. i don't want to sow the seeds of fear across america or panic, but we've got to be honest and realistic. if we don't establish and recognize the national debt of this country, it will be the first time in history. some of the payments that are at risk in my state of illinois and my nearby state of kentucky are

obvious. more than 1.3 million families in illinois and more than 500,000 families in kentucky could see their child tax credits delayed. nearly 600,000 veterans in illinois and nearly 300,000 veterans in kentucky could see their benefits delayed. that includes disability payments, v.a. pensions, education benefits, loan guarantees and other benefits that veterans have earned with their service and sacrifice. seniors would be hurt. almost 2.8 million seniors in illinois and more than a million in kentucky would see their social security checks threatened. defaulting on our national debt could trigger a global financial crisis. it would squander one of our nation's most valuable economic assets, trust that america pays its bills would be at risk. the u.s. dollar could lose its valuable place as the world's p primary currency. that would be a gift to our competitors in china. american families and businesses are still struggling from

financial devastation caused by the coronavirus. the crisis threatening america today is being manufactured right here in the senate by politicians who believe cynically that we, that it will help them politically to default on america's debt. haven't the institutions of this great nation suffered enough? ten months ago, an enraged man after losing an election, tried to overturn a presidential election. now that former president's party is refusing to do its part to avoid a default on our national debt. let's be clear about why congress needs to address the debt limit. addressing this debt limit allows congress to continue to borrow money to pay for expenses that have already been incurred. this measure that we are talking about, the acknowledgment of our debt ceiling, is to pay the debts of the trump administration.

the national debt of of america increased by 36% under president trump in one four-year period of time. we are taking recognition of the fact that that money was spent and has to be paid for. 97% of the total federal debt occurred before joe biden became president. this is debt that was built up under presidents and majorities in both parties. it was built up with the support of president trump. now senator mcconnell and his republican colleagues are playing a verbal shell game claiming falsely that we need to address the limit limit to the pay for future spending. that is not true and they know it. if this congress had not spent a penny since joe biden took office, we would still have to pay for the bills that trump left behind. democrats have offered proposals twice this week. on monday, senator schumer

offered a proposal that dealt with the debt limit. it included a c.r. for the government shutdown and provided emergency aid for the victims of hurricane ida, wildfires and resettlement of the afghan refugees. the republicans used the filibuster to stop it. on tuesday, a proposal to address the debt limit with just a majority vote. senator mcconnell objected. not only are republicans refusing to help pay the debt incurred under presidents of both parties, they're making it asive as possible for democrats to address the debt limit in a responsible way. defaulting on this debt would be ultimate dine and dash. it would be grave, self-inflicted wound that would harm innocent americans for decades. our republican colleagues used to preach the gospel of economic certainty. the only thing certain will defaulting on our national debt is that it would be ruinous to our economy and it's a responsibility both parties should want to avoid. mr. president, i yield the floor.

the presiding officer: under the previous order, there will now be two minutes of debate equally divided prior to a vote in relation to the cotton amendment, number 3833. the senator from ohio. mr. portman: i rise in support of this amendment. i think it is important that we pass it and i hope my completion on both sides support it. as a result of the rushed and chaotic evacuation from afghanistan, people are left

hyped, including some american citizens and a lot of afghans who had helped us. because of the chaos, we also evacuated many afghans who have no record of assisting us or our allies. the majority of evac would he is in the united states, called parolees, are neither green cardholders or s.i.v. applicants who had helped us. this is a commonsense amendment to make sure they are properly vetted like any other group of parolees or refugees would be. part of that vetting of course comes from individuals applying for what's known as the real i.d., a system designed to make identity documents more consistent and secure. remember, the real i.d. law came out of the 9/11 commission can a key recommendation of that commission. we supported it hereto. our amendment does not stop afghan parolees frommest going drivers' licenses or qualifying for real i.d. cards after appropriate screening. it simply requires them to follow the same processes that

other parolees must follow to be eligible. the contract r. before us makes an exception to that normal, commonsense security process. the presiding officer: the senator's time has expired. the senator from new hampshire. mrs. shaheen: i think the senator from ohio is mistaken. in fact, this would -- the afghan refugees who are coming here are going to be properly vet. in a september 2 letter led by senator cotton, he said that, and i quote, our immediate priority is the safety and well-being of american citizens, permanent residents and allies who were left behind in afghanistan. but it seems that that ken for our allies only extends so far for senator cotton and this amendment as our afghan lice are being brought into the united states, he wants to limit their ability to resettle into a new life. we need to vote no on this amendment.

mr. leahy: i also agree with what the senator from the new hampshire just stated. the presiding officer: the senator from from vermont, without objection. all time has expired. the question is on the amendment 3833. is there a a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: the yeas are 50. the nays are 50. the amendment is not agreed to. under the previous order, there will now be two minutes of debate equally divided prior to a vote in relation to marshall amendment 3831.

a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator is recognized. mr. marshall: thank you, mr. president. i rise in support of our amendment to prohibit funds in this legislation to be used to promulgate, fund, or enforce president biden's unconstitutional vaccine mandate on private employers. as a physician i'm confident the vaccine has saved lives. my wife and i got the vaccine. my parents got the vaccine and they're waiting to get their booster. but whether to receive it is a personal choice between individuals and their doctor, not mandated via unconstitutional executive actions that the administration recently acknowledged they didn't have authority to put in place. no president exists in american history for punishing private employers who don't enforce government vaccination ed deducts.

astanishingly, house democrats included fines up to $700,000 on businesses that have unvaccinated employees as they -- as a way to pay for their out of krol spending -- control spending. this is not about public health or science. if it were, we'd recognize natural immunity. we'd recognize natural immunity as a highly effective way to combat the virus. the presiding officer: the senator's time has expired. the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: families across the country are frustrated. so am i. people are doing everything they can to end this pandemic. highly contagious virus that's killed 685,000 people of drive down the mall and look at flags by the washington monument. that number is going to keep going up if people don't get vaccinated. why should we pass an amendment that weakens one our strongest tools to get people safely through this crisis? i hope those who want this virus

to end, those who want to keep americans safe will vote against this amendment and i ask my full statement be placed in the record. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the question is on the amendment. i'd like to ask for the yeas and nays. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: on this vote the yeas are 50, the nays are 50. under the previous order, requiring 60 votes for the adoption of this amendment, the amendment is not agreed to. under the previous order, there will now be two minutes of debate equally divided prior to a vote in relation to the braun amendment numbered 3832. mr. braun: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from indiana. mr. braun: i left my business to run for senate because i was fed

up with business in d.c. as usual. americans are fed up as well. i think the place is broken when it comes to our budgeting process. we don't do them anymore. we're debating a funding bill for the fiscal year that ends today. that's how you end up $28 trillion in debt. congress can agree on basically one thing, budgets, deficits, debt don't matter anymore. well, they do. every business, every state and local government have to do them. congress should as well. no budget, no pay is simple. if we do not fund the government by october 1, we don't get a paycheck until we get it done. it's a popular bill because it works. in 2013, the only time we've done one on time in 20 years, it was in place. many here voted for it, including the majority leader. americans are watching.

they are tired of the job we're doing. they demand accountability. vote for this amendment. it makes sense. our pay is in the 94% of income to boot. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: this amendment has no business whatsoever on a c.r. which has to be enacted by midnight tonight. it may make a good sound bite or political ad but it's not good policy. it's not a thoughtful solution for the many complicated reasons we fail to pass by october 1. we often have policy disagreements that lead to inaction or delay. we must debate those policies. threatening to withhold pay or whatever has absolutely nothing to do with the structural is

issues. it would do one thing. it would make sure we had only multimillion fairs in the house and -- multimillionaires in the house and senate. it's a dangerous precedent, potentially corrosive influence of public policy. let's stop the political posturing. you want this? do it as a free-standing bill in regular order by the hopeland security and governmental affairs -- homeland security and governmental affairs committee. i urge a no vote. mr. braun: i ask for the yeas and nays. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: on this vote, the yeas are 53, a the nays are 47. under the previous order requiring 60 votes for the adoption of this amendment, the amendment is not agreed to. under the previous order, there will be two minutes of debate equally divided prior to a vote in relation to the leahy substitute amendment number 3830. the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president -- the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i thank the senators who stayed

with us to make sure we could get a good continuing resolution passed, which we're about to do. and i just want to thank everybody and urge a -- it will be a voice vote, but shout yes on this next one. thank you. i yield the floor. and i yield back the time on both sides. the presiding officer: without objection. the question is on amendment 3830. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the amendment is adopted. the majority leader. under the previous order, the bill is considered read a third time. there will now be two minutes of debate equally divided prior to

a vote on passage of the bill, as amended. mr. schumer: mr. president, thank you. first let me thank senator leahy on the appropriations committee, as well as senator shelby and all of those who worked diligently and hard to put this continuing resolution together. this vote says we are keeping the government open. at this time, at any time, it is a very, very bad thing to let the government shut down. but at this time in particular where there is so much going on in this country, and it does -- it is a glimmer of hope as we go through many, many other activities. and i would say this, just as the c.r. is so important and requires bipartisan cooperation, i wish my colleagues on the other side of the aisle saw the debt ceiling as equally important and equally requiring bipartisan cooperation. they don't, and we are willing to move forward on debt ceiling ourselves. but for this moment, this is one of the larger -- one of the

biggest problems that that has d us in the last while, making sure the government can say open. now we know it will. i thank all my colleagues to worked so hard on this and yield back my time. the presiding officer: without objection. the question is on passage of the bill, as amended. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote: