does matter. >> content is king. be as neutral and impartial as possible in your portrayal of both sides of an issue. >> c-span awards $100,000 in cash prizes and you have a shot at winning the grand prize, $5,000. entries received before january 20th, 2022. for tutorials, go to our website at student cam.org. >> washington unfiltered. c-span in your pocket. download c-span now today. the senate returns today to consider several executive nominations, including the federal communications commission. president biden has picked her to be chair of fcc if confirmed

to be the first woman to officially hold the position. she's currently acting chair. and voting whether to make chris magnus the next commission of u.s. customs and border. the chaplain dr. barry black will lead the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray. o lord our god, you are robed with honor and majesty. today, guide our lawmakers in their work, enabling them to be your messengers of unity and hope. lord, make them productive servants who live lives that honor you. remind them that no good is permanently lost.

lord, give them the wisdom to speak words that lead to life. guide them away from crooked roads where they might slip and fall, as you strengthen them to seize opportunities that bring peace, hope, and freedom. and lord, we continue to praise you for the life and legacy of former senator robert dole. we pray in your sovereign name. amen. 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., december 7, 2021. to the senate: under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable raphael g. warnock, a senator from the state of georgia, 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. morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the following nomination which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, federal communications commission,

jessica rosenworcel of connecticut to be a member.

mr. schumer: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader is recognized. mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. now, i want to begin today with a short update on the debt ceiling. over the past few days, we have made good progress on this issue.

and i'm optimistic that we will be able to prevent the awful prospect of the u.s. defaulting on its sovereign debt for the first time ever. nobody wants to see the u.s. default on its debts. as secretary yellen has warned, a default could eviscerate everything we've done to recover from the covid crisis. we don't want to see that and i don't believe we will see that. and i continue to thank my colleagues and all of my colleagues for cooperating in good faith to preserve the full faith and credit of the united states. now, on jessica rosenworcel. the senate will vote to confirm a remarkable, highly experienced and historic nominee. jessica rosenworcel to be the chair of the f.c.c., the federal communications commission. ms. rosenworcel has served as a commissioner at the f.c.c. for nearly a decade, the past ten months as acting chair. i believe she will receive great

bipartisan support as she becomes the first woman ever confirmed by this chamber to lead the f.c.c. ms. rosenworcel is exactly the right person for the job in 2021. she has set herself apart as one of the nation's leading champions for more affordable and accessible internet. atch the f.c.c. repealed net neutrality during the trump administration, the best thing the senate can do is confirm someone with a proven record of standing on the side of american consumers. ms. rosenworcel will also step in as chair at a time when the f.c.c. is carrying out the important task of expanding broadband to millions of americans who have long been left behind. ms. rosenworcel is keenly aware of the immense damage that the digital divide has caused our country. it has shut out rural, urban, and low-income americans, including far too many women and people of color for whom basic internet access remains unavailable or unaffordable. as it is a necessity -- even as

it is a necessity in the 21st century. ms. rosenworcel has long focused on these issues and i'm confident that under her leadership, the f.c.c. will make immense progress in addressing these challenges. americans don't want to see their internet bills go up and up and up. they don't want to have to drive long distancens at late hours just so their kids can finish homework at public libraries, and they want telemedicine to be available so they can be in the best of health. no, mr. president, every american wants and deserves fast, affordable and reliable internet access directly in their homes. already this year, as a result of the president as infrastructure bill, we've made tremendous strides at closing the digital divide. we will build on that progress by confirming ms. rosenworcel today so that americans can rest assured they'll have an f.c.c. fighting for them. on build back better,

mr. president, senate democrats continue our work to pass the president's build back better act before christmas. making progress on build back better has been no small task, but stickling to -- sticking to our deadline will be worth it for one simple reason, at its core build back better is the best shot we've had in decades to help families lower costs, to cut taxes for working and middle-class americans and create good-paying jobs while fighting the climate crisis. economists across the ideological spectrum have said it will not, will not worsen inflation. something we are seeing happening across the world, not just in the u.s. here's something just about every american can appreciate -- build back better will make it cheaper for parents to raise their kids. for that alone, it's more than worth the effort. by providing the largest investment in child care in american history, had build back better will make it so the vast majority of families will pay no more than 7% of their income on

child care for kids under 6. that single investment could save parents hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year. i think it's a pretty good deal for american families. it will also help our economy. everywhere you go, you hear about shortages of labor. one of the main reasons is inadequate child care. we rank way low on the list of the developed nations, the united states' provisions of child care come out near the very bottom. that's something that we cannot tolerate anymore. and that's just one item, child care. build back better will also provide for the first time ever free universal pre-k for millions of american families. by one measure, pre-k can cost parents up to $8,600 a year per child. under build back better, many parents will pay zero. think about that. pre-k for the first time in u.s. history, the greatest expansion of free education that the united states has seen in a

century, when we made high schools available to everyone, it made our economy the strongest in the 20th century. we've got to learn that lesson here in the 21st century with pre-k. build back better, of course, will also extend the child tax credit that democrats passed under the american rescue plan. this simple lifeline, a $300 check in the mail each months for each child, can be a game changer during the winter months and under build back better we can make sure this benefit stays in place. and none of this approaches the many other ways that build back better will save americans money. it will provide the largest investment in affordable housing ever. it could save americans hundreds, even more, by making prescription drugs like insulin cheaper. and it will take necessary and long overdue steps to fight the climate crisis, which costs our country tense of billions each other every time hurricanes, wildfires, floods wreak havoc

across the country. creating jobs, lowers costs, fighting climate change, and keeping more money in people's pockets. these are the things americans want. these are the things americans need. and it's what build back better does. we're going to continue working to get these things done before the christmas holiday. and finally, mr. president, i close with a joyful, long awaited news. not only for mets fans all over the world, but for brooklynites and those who have an cest are i in brooklyn -- ancestry in brooklyn that spread across the country. sunday night, the national baseball hall of fame announced that after decades of waiting, brooklyn's wonderful gil hodges, one of the great defensive first basemen of his era, a long time member of the brooklyn and los angeles dodgers, and a manager of the mets presiding over the miracle mets 1969 world series championship, has finally, finally earned his

place in cooperstown. some of the earliest memories i have are listening and watching the dodgers with my dad. gil was a central figure of that era. a hero of the 1955 world series, an eight-time all-star, three-time golden glove winner, i think he was the first to win the golden glove. he was such an amazing fielder at first base, as well as a great hitter. and what a nice guy he was. one of the highlights of my life each year was to go trick trick-or-treating and knock on gil hodges' door. who would give us candy? the great man himself, while a brooklyn dodger. that was a incredible situation. it shows what a nice guy he was. he's a caring guy. and as much as he was a titan of the game, he was a central part of our brooklyn family, and we all admired the fact that he lived in brooklyn, right near all of us. year after year, from one decade

to another, mets fans have waited for this hall of fame player to receive hall of fame recognition -- sorry, mets fans have waited for this great player to receive hall of fame recognition. the wait is over. gil's in that hall. i congratulate mrs. hodges and the whole hodges family for receiving this honor. and i want to congratulate, of course, all the other inductees to the hall of fame, among them many history-making, barrier-breaking athletes who made the sport what it is today. i yield the floor. i note the absence of a quorum. quorum call:

mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent that further proceeding on the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: the last time washington democrats pushed through a huge change that disrupted families' arrangements, it earned president obama the lie

lie-of-the-year award. democrats insisted that if you liked your healthcare plan, you could keep your healthcare plan. it turned out that was totally false. their reckless government takeover threw many families into chaos. this year, many of the same democrats want to write a sequel. they want to ram through a radical, reckless, multitrillion-dollar taxing and spending spree between now and christmas. and a huge part of their bill would complete upend child care and pre-k as they exist for families all across our country. if you like your child care, you can keep your child care. well, buckle up, parents. what could possibly go wrong? the democrats have written their toddler takeover in ways that

would turn families' finances literally upside down and make already expensive child care even costlier. so, let's walk through how they did it. first, their reckless taxing and spending spree would make child care dramatically more expensive through an avalanche of new mandates, regulations, and micromanagement. the usual washington, d.c. routine. state and local governments are panicking about the child care inflation this would cause. here, in the district, as one liberal analysis uncovered, local officials have formally estimated, listen to this, that the per-child day care cost for a toddler or infant would jump up $12,000 a year.

increase the cost of child care $12,000 a year. $12,000 more per child, per year. president biden's inflation is coming for day care. that's why the other half of their clumsy scheme is to dump subsidies into some families. they want to woreo -- borrow and print even more so they can throw money at the thing they have just made more expensive. but here's where the bad idea turns into a literally a terrible one. the democrats wouldn't help families directly. this isn't some simple voucher that families can use as they please. my colleagues have produced an insanely tangled scheme where the truckloads of money go from washington to state governments, to the child care centers, one

leaky bucket after another. the problems run deeper than that. democrats want states to sign up for badly underfunded mandates. that's the effect, because the entitlement programs will truly last forever, but for accounting purposes democrats are pretending the money stops after a decade. many states will not be keen to be socialist guinea pigs. then there's the fact that the assistance is told out in incredibly confusing and uneven ways. the subsidies start and stop with no rhyme or reason. listen to what a left-leaning organization, the people's policy project, has uncovered. they've found that in year one, a family that earns $1 over their state median income will be eligible for zero subsidies,

meaning they'll be on the hook for the entire unsubsidized price, which they estimate will now cost at least $13,000 per year higher than it does right now. the researcher reveals himself because it's so unbelievable. here's the question, having a family income just $1 higher than your state's median income would result in you being ineligible for child care subsidies in 2022, even as the unsubsidized price of child care skyrockets due to the wage and other mandates in the democratic proposal. this is obviously a perverse outcome, and it's not clear whether lawmakers even realize what they're about to do. this isn't just one technical glitch. it's emblematic of how ill-conceived the whole

experiment is. there are ten problems like this on every single page. i should add, mr. president, the families who even get to participate in the mess i've just laid out, they're actually the lucky ones, because democrats want big government to pick winners and losers among different families who make different choices. many american families make one set of sacrifices so that both parents can work full time. these are the people the democrats are trying to reward, although their plan fails in practice. but americans are allowed to have different aspirations. some families make different sacrifices to have a parent at home full time. others prefer flexible middle grounds that involve part-time work plus in-home child care. the democrats' toddler takeover wouldn't give any of them a dime. no diversity, no flexibility,

institutional day care or nothing. in fact, it's worse than nothing, because a family who wants a provider to come to their house part time or wants to participate in a neighborhood nanny share will now be stuck in an inflated market. they'll have to bid against the employers that democrats have blessed and subsidized. this is the essence of what the democratic plan would do. big government and big labor work together to reward some family arrangements and punish others. our all-democratic government is already botching the things that actually are government's job -- protecting strength abroad, maintaining energy independence -- but they can't even do that right. just look at the poll numbers. the last thing families need are for democrats to appoint

themselves national day-care czars and then botch that too. i haven't even touched on one of the most sinister parts of this whole proposal. for parents who do use child care outside the home, faith-based options are incredibly popular. the bipartisan policy center estimates that 53% of parents who use center-based care use ones that are linked to faith-based organizations. but the same democrats who are letting far-left propaganda trickle down from the universities into k-12 schools are now declaring war on faith-based child care. washington democrats want to unleash the woke mob on church day care. there are at least two parts of their bill that are direct attacks.

first, liberals are trying to chase faith-based providers out of the day care industry by denying funds to any facility they deem discriminatory. of course, today's radical left tosses around these kinds of accusations at any remotely traditional institution. faith-based child care centers could potentially get their subsidies ripped away if they don't hire who secular bureaucrats want them to hire, set up their facilities the way secular bureaucrats want them set up or even, listen to this, give preference to kids of their own faith. orthodox jewish day care centers could get kicked out. evangelical centers could get punished if their families who belong to the church are accommodated first. this is a joke. the left is trying to weaponize

the word discrimination to push faith-based child care out of business. another part of their bill goes out of its way to deny money for facility upgrades to i would abouting that are used for, quote, sectarian instruction or religious worship, end quote. if a faith-based center leads kids in prayer or teaches their families' faiths, they don't get the funding that everybody else gets? this is over and over from the culture warriors. they pretend they're happy to have religious groups in the public square but only if they check their beliefs at the door. now, a few years ago the supreme court had to strike down a similar policy that penalized faith-based organizations. the state had tried to deny a

church a widely available grant to fix up its playground. the court took a look at it, struck down the law 7-2. but the political left is right back at it. just look at which federal bureaucrat would oversee this giant mess. well, of course, it's none other than secretary becerra, the hard-left culture warrior that sued the little sisters of poor for being too catholic and suing crisis pregnancy centers for being pro-life. this is the person whom democrats want to give sweeping new powers over families' private choices? secretary becerra gets a giant slush fund to bring president biden's inflation into child care and discriminate against people of faith. just one more way democrats'

reckless taxing-and-spending spree would hurt working families. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

a senator: mr. president in. the presiding officer: the senator from massachusetts is recognized. mr. markey: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i rise in support of the nomination of rufus gifford. the presiding officer: the senate is in a quorum call. mr. markey: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. markey: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i rise in support of the nomination of rufus gifford to be chief of protocol with the rank of ambassador.

rufus, native son of the commonwealth of massachusetts, transitioned to a career in public service after a very successful career in the private sector. in 2013 president obama nominated rufus to be u.s. ambassador to denmark and he was unanimously confirmed by the united states senate. in copenhagen, rufus was the headliner in a reality tv show i am the ambassador. the show's innovative approach to public diplomacy give danish viewers, particularly young people, an all-access pass into the life of a u.s. ambassador and united states diplomatic presence in the country. in a country of just five million people, 200,00,000 danes tuned in to see how the united states ambassador advanced his country's core interests. one danish viewer said it is the type of show you would watch with your mother-in-law and she would say oh, he is a lovely man, that rufus gifford.

rufus' effusive personal si makes him the perfect choice for this new role as chief of protocol. in copenhagen, denmark, rufus opened the ambassador's residence to thousands of visitors. as chief of protocol, once again he will play host to foreign dignitaries at the white house and blare house. his hand will be the first outstretched to greet a primakov at a time when diplomacy is most needed. mr. president, ambassador gifford was unanimously confirmed by this body in 2013 and was unanimously reported out of the senate foreign relations committee four months ago. i ask unanimous consent that ambassador gifford once again earn -- once again earn the support of the full senate and is confirmed as chief of protocol with the rank of ambassador. i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the

consideration of the following nomination, calendar number 320, rufus gifford of massachusetts to be chief of protocol and to have the rank of ambassador during his tenure of service, that the nomination be confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate, that no further motions be in order, the nominations -- and that the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: is there objection? mr. cruz: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cruz: reserving the right to object. the senators in this chamber, including senator markey, know precisely why i have a hold on this nominee. right now as we speak, hundreds of thousands of russian troops are massed on the border of ukraine waiting to invade. mr. president, this calamitous

foreign policy disaster is joe biden's fault. this is the direct consequence of joe biden's surrender of vladimir putin on nord stream 2. what is nord stream 2? it is a pipeline being constructed from russia to germany to carry natural gas. putin is building nord stream 2. why? to go around ukraine because right now russian gas goes through ukraine. putin didn't just wake up recently and decide to invade ukraine. he's wanted to invade ukraine for years. he did so in 2014 but he stopped short of full invasion. why? because the ukrainian energy infrastructure was necessary to get the russian gas to market. nord stream 2 is all about building an alternative avenue to get the russian gas to europe

so then the russian tanks can ride into ukraine. but, mr. president, we had a bipartisan victory. indeed the senator from massachusetts supported my bipartisan legislation sanctioning the nord stream 2 pipeline. in december of 2019 and when president trump signed that bipartisan legislation into law, nord stream 2 was halted that day, not the next day, not the next week, not the next month. that day the pipeline shut down. we had won a major bipartisan foreign policy victory. we had stopped russia. we had stopped putin. and that pipeline remained dorm mandate for over a year, a hunk of metal at the bottom of the ocean until joe biden arrived at the white house. joe biden was sworn into office on january 20 of 2021. four days later, january 24,

putin began building the pipeline again. four days later. why? because the biden white house made the decision to wave -- waive the sanctions on nord stream 2 and to give vladimir putin a multibillion dollar gift for generations to come. and in doing so, to set the stage for the invasion of ukraine by russia. when biden waived sanctions on nord stream 2, ukraine and poland both said it was creating a security crisis in europe, that it was increasing dramatically the chances that russia would invade ukraine. this invasion that we are facing the very real prospect of is joe biden's fault but you know what? it is also the fault of senate democrats. for two years we had bipartisan agreement to stop nord stream 2, and we succeeded.

and when there was a republican president in office, donald trump, i and other republicans were perfectly willing to hold president trump to account to press him to stand up against nord stream 2 and he did. as soon as the democrat got in the white house, our democratic colleagues decided that partisan loyalty was more important than national security, that partisan loyalty to the democratic party was more important than standing up to russia, was more important than defending ukraine. and so suddenly we have seen the democrats in this chamber bending over backwards to avoid stopping nord stream 2. mr. president, i want to be very clear. a lot of discussion about joe biden having a phone call with putin today. well, that phone call is real nice, but it's not going to stop an invasion. i'll tell what you will stop an invasion. joe biden could stop the invasion today by simply

following the law and sanctioning nord stream 2. and this body could make a major step today to prevent war in europe, to prevent russia from invading ukraine right now by doing what democrats and republicans had agreed to, had done together until biden surrendered to russia. we can do that by passing legislation that i have pending at the desk that would sanction nord stream 2, that would stop the project which would mean russia would remain dependent on ukrainian energy infrastructure and for the same reason russia didn't continue to invade in 2014, it would stop the invasion. we can do that right now. accordingly, mr. president, as if in legislative session, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of s. 3322 which

is at the desk. i further ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: is there an objection to the modification? mr. markey: reserving the right to object. senator cruz knows that the democrats have offered the republicans, offered him a vote on nord stream 2 as part of consideration of the national defense authorization act. his own colleagues are the ones who objected to a vote being held on the nord stream 2 pipeline as part of that agreement that was generously offered by the democrats to the republicans. the problem is not on this side. the problem is on the senator from texas' side. and yet he continues to hold up dozens of state department officials, many of them career officials who should be on their

jobs around the world right now and ultimately right now the onerous lays on the republican side for not having a vote on the subject that the senator from texas has raised, the nord stream 2 pipeline. therefore, i object to the motion from the gentleman from texas. the presiding officer: the objection to the modification is heard. objection to the original request. mr. cruz: mr. president, reserving the right to object. i would note that what we just heard was democrats in this chamber objecting to sanctioning nord stream 2. it's worth understanding what that means. it means that senate democrats prioritize political loyalty to joe biden and kamala harris more than they do standing up to vladimir putin.

a month or two from now, if god forbid we see russian tanks moving into ukraine, remember this moment where senate democrats objected. said no, we won't sanction the pipeline. we won't save ukraine. we won't stand up to russia. you know, the whole country endured democrats going on and on for four years, russia, russia, russia, and someone who didn't follow politics closely could be forgiven if they actually believed the rhetoric from the democrats. but it turns out russia, russia, russia, what they really meant is we hate donald trump. because when it comes to standing up to russia, for decades democrats had shown weakness and appeasement to the soviet union. as son as donald trump was gone, we see democrats going back to weakness and appeasement to russia again. the russian troops on the ukrainian border are joe biden's fault. and they are senate democrats' fault for being unwilling to stand up to a president of their own party.

and i would note this particular nominee is a nominee to be the head of protocol at the state department. mr. president, it is really bad protocol to drive tanks into somebody else's country. you want to talk about protocol, how about the protocol of let's defend american national security interests. let's defend europe. let's defend our allies. let's stand up to a tyrannical bully named lat mile an hour putin. sadly, democrats don't want to do that. accordingly i object. the presiding officer: the objection is heard.

mr. thune: mr. president? the presiding officer: the republican whip. mr. thune: mr. president, before i begin, i want to take just a few minutes to honor two members of the greatest generation that we've lost recently. marcela labow and bob dole. marcela died on sunday, november 21. she was from my home state of south dakota and a member of the two kettle band of the cheyenne river soux who served during world war 2 treating the wounded on the battle of the bulge. she was decorated by both france and belgium for her service. after the war, she returned to

south dakota spending 31 years working for the indian health service, including as director of nursing while raising eight children. she was a powerful advocate for native americans throughout her entire life and was a member of the cheyenne river sioux tribal council for four years, and a founding member of the north american indian women's association. even in retirement, marcella continued to advocate for native americans and also found time to open a quilting shop with her granddaughter, featuring among other things the la cota star quilt used for honoring and naming ceremonies, memorials, and various life achievements. earlier in november, she traveled to oklahoma to attend the ceremony for her induction into the national native american hall of fame. mr. president, as we know, bob dole died on sunday. bob served as an officer in the 10th mountain division during world war ii. late in the war, he was seriously wounded in action

during an attempt to rescue a fellow soldier and bore the resulting injuries the rest of his life. forced to abandoned plans to be a surgeon, he quickly found another way to help fellow americans, public service. he was elected to the kansas house of representatives engineer 1950, and never looked back. in 1960, he was elected to the united states house of representatives and in 1968 he won election to the united states senate, where he served for 27 years. he was a senator's senator. a master of procedure and true legislator. whose achievements range from social security reform to veterans legislation to the americans with disabilities act. even after he ended his long career in public service, bob continued to serve. he was an important supporter of the world war ii memorial here in washington, d.c. and could often be found there visiting with his fellow veterans who had traveled on honor flights.

mr. president, marcella and bob came from different places and different backgrounds. and so far as i know, never crossed paths in this life. but they had in common that abiding commitment to service that characterized so many members of the greatest generation. both bob and marcella spent their entire lives serving their country and their fellow citizens, and even in retirement didn't slow them down. mr. president, the greatest generation was a fixture of american life for many decades, but its members are rapidly slipping away. fewer than 250,000 of the 16 million americans who served in world war ii are still with us. and that number dwindles every day. we need to make sure that the passing of the greatest generation does not mean the passing of the virtues that they modeled for us. humility, patriotism, and quiet

service. duty and perseverance. we need to remember bob dole and marcella l ebeau and the many others like them who, in war and peace, lived lives of service to our country. mr. president, my thoughts and prayers are with bob and marcella's families, with bob's wife elizabeth and his daughter robin, and with marcella's children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. mr. president, democrats continue to work on their reckless tax and spending spree. perhaps i should say their reckless tax and spending disaster. tax hikes, deficit spending, inflationary spending, it's all there in democrats' spending package. plus, of course, that tax break for wealthy americans. yeah, that's right. a tax break for millionaires. i'm talking, of course, about democrats' expansion of the

state and local tax deduction known as the salt deduction, which would overwhelmingly benefit affluent taxpayers in mainly democrat-led states and do almost nothing for middle and lower income families. mr. president, for months and months democrats have been going on about the need for the wealthy to pay their fair share of taxes, which i find is the height of irony that democrats' current bill contains a substantial tax break for wealthy americans. i'm not surprised that democrats kept that salt provision out of the ways and means committee markup in the house of representatives. after constantly talking about making the wealthy pay their fair share, it's a little walkward -- awkward to publicly debate your tax break for the wealthy. instead democrats stuffed the tax break into the reconciliation bill under the subtitle of, of all things, social safety net.

yes, that's right, social safety net. well, who benefits from this particular safety net exactly? about 94% of the tax benefit would go to the top 20% of earners. about 70% will go to the top 5% of earners. and nearly one third, one-third of this tax benefit will go to the top 1% of household in this country. the average tax savings for middle income households from raising the salt cap would be 20 bucks. $20. meanwhile, millionaires would receive an average tax cut of almost $15,000. well, i guess the priorities of wealthy democrat donors in blue states trump democrats' plans to make wealthy americans pay their fair share.

mr. president, not only does the bill contain a tax break for millionaires, this tax break is one of the most expensive parts of the bill. in fact, it's the second most expensive item in the house-passed bill over the next five years. that's right. according to the committee for responsible federal budget, only democrats' child care and pre-k programs would exceed the cost of raising the salt cap. now, given the rhetoric you would think that democrats might have chosen to forgo this tax break for the wealthy and spend the money on one of their other programs that they fund for only part of their bill's ten-year budget window. but no. this tax break is apparently so important to democrats that they are willing to shortchange some of their other priorities in order to include it. mr. president, we've also heard a lot from democrats about how

corporations need to pay their fair share, which i guess is whatever democrats determine it to be. the democrats' bill does include a corporate minimum tax. except it turns out it's not really a corporate minimum tax since some corporations won't have to pay the full tax. democrats have carved out certain exceptions to the corporate minimum tax, including clean energy tax credits. so if you're a corporation engaged in democrat-approved activities, you'll be able to avoid paying some or all of the corporate minimum tax. if you don't qualify for democrats' approved carve-outs, on the other hand, you can look forward to paying the full tax bill. mr. president, democrats' hypocrisy might be amusing if this bill weren't so dangerous. but unfortunately, there's not much to laugh about when it comes to this bill. democrats' build back better spending disaster will pour $

1.75 trillion in government money into an already overheated economy, which will likely prolong the serious inflation we're currently experiencing. democrats helped create our current inflation situation by flooding the economy with a lot of unnecessary government money earlier this year, and now democrats are going to pour another $1.75 trillion onto the inflationary fire. american families are already experiencing the worst inflation in more than 30 years. i don't even want to think about what inflation will look like if democrats succeed in passing another $1.75 trillion in government spending. now, mr. president, i say $ 1.75 trillion. but of course, democrats only arrived at that number through a series of shell games and budget gimmicks. the real, the real cost of the democrats' bill is much, much higher. an honest accounting of the bill

puts the number in the range of $4.5 trillion to nearly $5 trillion. $5 trillion. to put that number in perspective, the entire federal budget for fiscal year 2019 was $4.4 trillion. the entire federal budget. mr. president, democrats are posing a major expansion of government, and they are deceiving the american people into thinking that it can be paid for with $1.75 trillion. that is simply not true. democrats arrived at that number by putting some of their provisions from tax measures to new programs into place for as little as a year. but of course, democrats don't have the slightest intention of having those tax measures or new programs expire after a year or two, or ever. take their child allowance. democrats' legislation would have their child allowance sunset in one year. one year.

but of course, democrats fully intend for their child allowance to be made permanent. but by only funding the child allowance and other measures for a fraction of their bill's ten-year budget window, they can disguise the true cost of permanently implementing these measures and how much these measures will end up costing the american people. and make no mistake, mr. president. these programs will cost them. democrats may talk about funding their legislation with taxes on corporations and the wealthy, but ordinary americans will going to be paying for a major part of the bill. a substantial part of the democrats' tax increases on business and investment will be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices or reduced services. and those price hikes will come on top of the inflation that we're already experiencing, and the additional inflation we're likely to experience as a result of this bill.

americans are also likely to pay for this legislation with decreased economic growth and fewer economic opportunities. and they may pay in further tax hikes when democrats try to extend their programs and need to come up with money to at least partially pay for that. mr. president, i am hard-pressed to think of anything more irresponsible than democrats passing this legislation at this time. as i mentioned, inflation is currently at a 30-year high. american families are struggling with high gas prices, high grocery bills, high rent prices, the high price of used cars, and the list goes on. and yet, democrats are planning to pass a bill that is likely to worsen our inflation situation and extend our current inflation crisis even further. not to mention driving up our deficit and worseenges our

country's -- worsening our country's fiscal health. mr. president, we don't know what government money will be needed down the road. we're emerging from a pandemic that required a lot of unexpected government expenditure. and we don't know what other challenges our country will end up facing in the future. yet democrats are planning to keep spending as if there is no tomorrow, with absolutely no regard, absolutely no regard for our current inflation situation or for possible future needs. it is deeply, deeply irresponsible, mr. president. if democrats succeed in passing their spending spree, the american people will be paying a very steep price for decades to come. mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from wyoming. a senator: i come to the floor to join my friend and colleagues

from south dakota. mr. barrasso: to oppose the democrats' reckless tax and spending spree. 18 days left until christmas. so who is on the democrats' shopping list this year? well, it's the same people who are on the list every year, illegal immigrants, union bosses, professional activists, and the donor class of millionaires. democrats' reckless tax-and-spending bill, they all get big presents from the government. the rest of america gets more spending, more taxes, more debt, higher prices as they're already struggling and suffering under the largest, highest inflation in the last 30 years. democrats call the bill build back better. for most americans, it is a break your back bill. in this bill, chuck schumer's hometown will get tens of billions of dollars to bail out their public housing authority. joe biden likes to say if you

want to know somebody's values, he says look at their budget. well, let's look at the budget that the democrats are putting forth, because the second most expensive item in this bill is a tax break for millionaires and billionaires in new york, in new jersey, in california, and in chicago. the cost of that sole component? $275 billion, which will have to be paid by the hard-working men and women of this country. this is one of the bill's top expenses, because it's a top priority for democrat elites. under the democrats' bill, the bottom 60% of americans would get zero of those dollars, $ 275 billion to the richest of the rich. in 2016, nearly half of the money went to just four states:

california, new york, illinois and new jersey. rural states, like wyoming, alaska, north dakota, south dakota, west virginia received the lowest amounts. of tax relief. democrats want the people in states like wyoming and wirm to pay for these tax -- west virginia to pay for these tax cuts of the millionaires of california and new york. under this legislation, low-tax states would essentially subsidize high-tax states. it will encourage high-tax states to raise state taxes, which is probably another reason democrats support it. democrats also have lots of christmas presents in this bill for people who come to this country illegally. the parliamentarian has said that democrats can't pass amnesty. but democrats want amnesty for

illegal immigrants so badly that they're going to try all over again. let me remind you, this is a spending bill. it is not an immigration bill. democrats know that they don't have the votes to pass the immigration bill that they would like to see. frankly, they know they will never have enough votes in the senate for an amnesty bill for illegal immigrants. so they're trying to cram it into a spending bill. democrats are hoping that the american people won't notice. democrats have their way -- if democrats have their way, this spending spree would be the most consequential immigration bill in half a century. the bill would give amnesty to 6.5 million people in the country illegally. it would also give them five new entitlements. the bill includes new permanent welfare programs. there would be no work requirements, not a single one,

no citizenship requirements. this includes free child care, free preschool and even free money for college. now, this is in addition to the $300 check every month for every child democrats already send to illegal immigrants that they have avenue sent earlier this year. so it's shaping up to be a long december for american workers and taxpayers. and people know it because we've already had the most expensive thanksgiving ever. and on friday, we saw one of the most disappointing job reports in a disappointing year. the job report says we created less than half the number of jobs that the experts predicted that we would produce last month. still, almost 4 million fewer americans working than before the pandemic. at the same time, inflation is only getting worse. people in all our states are wondering if they're going to be

able to afford to have presents under the tree this year. wondering if they can even afford a tree at all because of course cost of christmas trees are up 30%. 30% more this year than last. more and more americans find they're heading to shop at the dollar store. yet many dollar stores, as you've seen in the press, aren't dollar stars anymore. dollar tree is selling more and more items for $1.25. dollar general is opening new stores with a $5-or-less business model. prices are going up everywhere you look. one of the reasons for inflation in joe biden's economy is the rising cost of energy. natural gas, seven-year high. winter is almost here. prices are umdramatically. the tries of gas at the pump at a seven-year high as well. biden and the democrats say everything is fine. it is just fascinating,

mr. president. last week the democrat headquarters sent out a tweet. it was a graph showing gas prices had dropped by two cents over a week. the caption was, thanks, joe biden. i actually thought it was a joke. it was serious. they actually said, hey, gas of price up $1.25 since he took office. but they dropped two cents last week, and let's celebrate the success of joe biden. this is just another example of democrats' bad math. it's an example also of democrat leaders who are completely out of touch. gas is up, $1.25 a gallon since joe biden took office. two-cent drop is hardly enough. so, mr. president, here is my two sents' worth. the american people -- here's my two cents' worth.

they want affordable, available, reliable american energy. joe biden said last week, i have used every tool to address price increases. on the contrary, president biden has used every tool to drive up prices. he has attacked american energy. he's driven up costs for all americans, shut down the keystone pipeline, is threatening other pipelines, blocked oil and gas leases on federal lands and threatens to raise taxes on the production of natural gas. we're now producing about two million barrels of oil a day, less than before the pandemic. and the secretary of transportation thinks he has a simple solution to the energy crisis. this is what pete buttigieg said. he said, it's easy. families who buy electric cars never have to worry about gas prices again. well, it's simply false.

think somebody as educated as the secretary of transportation would inyou don'tively say gas prices -- intuitively say gas prices affect retail prices and the price of just about everything else. look, even for the biden administration, this is really out of touch with mainstream america or people that live anywhere outside the bubble of the beltway. people who are struggling with inflation can't afford to go out and buy an electric vehicle. seniors and families just starting out aren't going to go out and buy an $80,000 electric vehicle. we know who buys these luxury vehicles. more than 80% of the federal subsidies for electric vehicles go to people making more than $100,000 a year. and unlike the rest of the

people on the roads, these drivers use the roads for free. yet democrats make sure to include electric vehicles on their shopping list this year. this bill would give $12,500 -- $12,500 -- to couples making up a half a million a year if they buy a luxury electric vehicle. this includes vans, s.u.v.'s and trucks costing up to $80,000. the bill also includes $900 payouts to people who buy electric bicycles. it's already been a long december for the american people and we're only at december 7. yet it must be an exciting time for the democrats' favorite groups. democrats have always liked to play santa claus, and this year they've got a list of who they consider america's good little boys and girls. who's on the list? as i said a few minutes ago,

it's aisle legal immigrants, professional athletes, and the millionaires who live in the penthouses of new york and the mansions of san francisco. middle-class working middle america, those are the once who are going to get stuck with the bill. thank you, mr. president. i yield. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from arizona. mr. kelly: i ask unanimous consent that i be able to complete my remarks prior to the scheduled votes. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. kelly: mr. president, today i rise to honor one of southern arizona's own. known to many here as former congressman ron barber for a long and impactful tenure in public service. ron has been a pillar of southern arizona for decades.

he's also a close friend and trusted advisor to both me and gabby. ron has deep roots in tucson. his dad was stationed at davis moffett air force base when ron was a teenager. he graduated from the university of arizona. he married his high school sweetheart, nancy, who is here today, and built his family and his home and his career in tucson, arizona. it is safe to say, ron embodies what it means to be a tucsonian. it's written everywhere, from the art that hangs in his house to the bumper stickers on his car -- and there are a lot of them. his love of tucson is something that rubs off on others in, myself included. now, i first met ron at a meeting when gabby was hiring

folks to begin launching her first campaign for congress. at the time, ron had just retired from his senior post at the division for developmental disabilities. he'd spent decades serving as an advocate for families and vulnerable populations. for almost anyone, that would be a sufficient career in public service, but not for ron barber. ron was moved by gabby's commitment to serving others. now, he may not have had any experience in politics, but he showed up ready to help send gabby to the united states congress. now, i wondered, who is this guy? but i never really had to wonder again. he believed in her, and he did it early on. and that is what makes ron who

he is. always believing, always early. and this is still true today. really, ron -- ron is literally always early to each and every event that he's a staff before. and i'm pretty sure that is the case with every person he has served is alongside. his punctuality is matched by his generosity and his knowledge of southern arizona. that's why when gabby was elected she wanted him on her team. he joined as her district director, her eyes and ears back home. on january 8 of 2011, ron was doing that job when a gunman opened fire at the congress on your corner event. he was standing next to his boss. gabby was shot in the head.

ron was shot in the face and the leg. 11 others were injured, six died. we could have lost him that day, too. those events rattled the tucson community that ron loves so much. and there was so much grief. but in the days, months, and years that followed, we found out just how strong our community was because of people like ron barber. southern arizona needed ron, and ron needed southern arizona. even through his own injury, he was there for me and gabby canned our family and countless others. as selfless as always. it's that exact selflessness that meant ron never thought of himself as the right person to run for gabby's seat after she stepped down. i remember sitting in a room

with ron and gabby during her recovery. we were discussing what was next for gabby and who would run for her seat. -- in the house of representatives. there was a long list of names that was thrown out, and at the end, gabby said that it should be ron. he was sitting right there, and i think he was probably pretty shocked. but, you know, he wasn't exactly in amotion to refuse -- in a position to refuse either. he was reluctant at first but eventually rose at the chance to continue serving the community he loved in a way that he never imagined. -- in the united states congress. and he did that job with grit and independence. ron fought to protect our military installations. he worked on lowering health care costs and to get mental health services to arizonans and

americans across the country. he was a public servant through and through. or, better yet, a citizen legislator, a term he used to describe his vision for washington lawmakers. after leaving congress, ron continued finding ways to serve. when congresswoman patrick was elected to his old seat, ron went back to work as her district director for nearly two years. because of ron, it's never about -- because for ron, it's never been ego. it's only about helping wherever he could. and then the day after my election last year, i called ron and asked him to serve on my transition team. and then i asked him to join my office as our southern arizona

director, and he signed up for that as well. once again, delaying his retirement to go back into public service one more time. i can't tell you what an asset it's been for our office and for the people of arizona in that role. we're going to miss ron. but we also know he's not really going anywhere either. ron might be retiring from his day job, but he will still volunteer at several organizations in tucson that impact his neighbors in a way that are unique to them and to him. in fact, a couple of weeks ago i saw gabby trying to sign him up for something. in our southern arizona community, we'll be better for it. on top of being an extraordinary leader, ron is a family man. a supportive and loving husband to nancy, father to jenny and

christie, and grandfather to kieren, tillly, elsa, elliott and emmy. now that he's going to have more time on his hands, i know that his family is going to be glad to see a lot more of him. so, ron, happy retirement to you, but let's make it for real this time. it's true that you've been saying i'll retire next year for well over a decade now, i think, but i think this time it's going to stick. but the fact is we all really needed you on our teams, so important and so critical. it was critical to gabby and it was critical to the success of my team, and i'm sure congresswoman ann kirkpatrick feels the same. so on behalf of the state of arizona and our nation, thank you, ron, for your lifetime of

hard work and service. and thank you, mr. president, for allowing me to dedicate a few words to my friend. and i yield the floor. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the question is on the nomination. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: the yeas are 68. the nays are 31. the nomination is confirmed. under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table. 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 bring to a close debate on 480, deadra

hamilton, to be a member of the national mediaton board. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of dear dra hamilton to be a member of the national mediaton board, shall be brought to a close? the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rules. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

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the presiding officer: the yeas are 51, the nays are 48. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: nomination, national mediation board. deidre hamilton of the district of columbia to be a member. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the senate the previous order, the senate

live to the u.s. capital were current members of generally six attack on the u.s. capital started just a couple of moments ago. >> 90% and more of antifa blm rioters had been released from jail, their charges have been dropped. we know in cities across america there have been over $2 billion in damage, here at the capitol on january 6 is approximately $1.5 million. there is a clear difference. we have a january 6 committee that nancy pelosi is leading nothing but a witch on republicans and chum supporters all across america and anyone that was at the