don't know where they came from, what their purpose was. so still much to be learned i think in the b days ahead as the teams work to recover the debris from these objects. >> host: the first one was described as as a chinese spy balloon. these last three a little bit different. are we certain even yet that these three are from china or is that just the expectation? >> guest: we are still not sure where they came from. officials of an careful not quite to assign china responsibility for these. certainly it is possible that that may have in that being the case but john kirby, who is the white house spokesperson on national security issues, was talking on monday about how the reality is that it made in the end turn out to be there's nothing nefarious about these objects, acknowledging that research institutions, private companies send up weather balloons and other objects for whatever reason. so it's possible that it may not be nefarious in the end that

certainly given after the chinese spy balloon -- >> we believe this program here. you can continue watching it if you go to our website c-span.org. the u.s. senate returning for a couple couple more votes on judicial nominations this afternoon including one on the confirmation of lindsay jenkins to be a u.s. district court judge for northern illinois. live now to the floor of the senate here on c-span2.

vote:

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the presiding officer: the yeas are 59, the nays are 40678 the nominee is confirmed. the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture kilo -- cloture motion: we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of executive calendar number 12, matthew l. garcia of

new mexico to be united states district judge for the district of new mexico, signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of matthew l. garcia of new mexico to be united states district judge for the district of new mexico shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

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the presiding officer: on this the yeas are 54. the nays are 45. the motion is agreed to. under the previous order, with respect to the jenkins nomination, reconsideration is considered made and laid upon the table and the president will be immediately notified of the senate's action. the clerk will report the garcia

nomination. the clerk: nomination, the judiciary, matthew l. garcia of new mexico to be united states district judge for the district of new mexico.

mr. merkley: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. merkley: i ask the quorum call being lifted. the presiding officer: the senate is not in a quorum call. mr. merkley: thank you. i ask that at 4:30 p.m. today, all postcloture time with respect to the garcia nomination be expired and the senate vote on confirmation of the nomination. officer h. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. merkley: i have four requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. the presiding officer: duly noted. mr. merkley: mr. president, i

come to the floor today to recognize and bid farewell to a valued member of my team, our legislative director alvia montoya. years ago our office had brought her on as a legislative correspondent working on issues of education, equal rights and health care. these are incredibly important issues and she did such an incredible job working on them that it wasn't long at all before she was promoted to handle them as our legislative assistant. and time and time again, year after year, no matter what new task she took on or what challenge was thrown at her, she succeeded and thrived. every oregonian, every american across this nation is better off today thanks to her tireless efforts. 72,000 children in our state, for instance, who normally get

free, reduced-priced lunches, continue to get lunches through the summer months. they have her to thank for that because she is the one who included language in the f.y. fiscal year 20 further consolidated appropriations act to reinstate the program. thousands of nurses are on the job today saving lives because we invested in the training and workforce development that are key to the future of this critical profession through the nursing workforce reauthorization act of 2019. alvia wrote that bill and helped get it passed as part of the cares act and, thank goodness, she did or the nursing shortage today would be much worse than it is. and elvia, always three steps ahead in the lead-up to the covid-19 pandemic, in january of 2020, over two months before life as we knew it shut down and people were only vagilia wear a new virus coming out of china,

she saw right away that this had the potential to upend life around the globe. by the end of that month, she had persuaded is me to lead a letter calling on the world health organization to declare a public health emergency of international concern. by the end of february, our office had a resource page for oregonians who were starting to hear about this new, dangerous virus and were growing nervous. this was phenomenal timing because oregon had its first confirmed case on friday, february 28, 2020. the announcement came well after working hours, but even late on a friday evening, she was on the ball alerting me and other senior staff and started to prepare for the long battle ahead. and she led our team in that battle for the next year plus. she kept tabs on the virus day in and day out, leading briefings for our team and

providing daily updates on the spread and impact of the virus. and she led my team's efforts to help enact the covid relief bills as we took up and passed them here on the senate floor. from the coronavirus preparedness and response supplemental appropriations act to the families first coronavirus response act, the cares act, to the paycheck protection and health care enforcement act. and she wasn't just invested in policy. she was also invested in the logistical challenges we faced under covid. one night when a truck was supposed to be delivering splice of personal protective equipment, or pp, as would call it, delivering it from the stockpile to the main resource where it would be distributed to hospitals and clinics and other places, things went awry. the security guards at the facility hadn't received the

right paperwork when the tractor-trailer pulled up so they turned the truck away. now, at that time we were in such short supply of ppe and our health care practitioners were risking their lives because of that have shortage, so this was incredibly important that we get these supplies delivered. doctors and nurses, other first responders on the front lines of the pandemic were counting on that delivery of supplies. it was now headed in the wrong direction. so elvia jumped into action. she started calling folks at hhs and other federal and state agencies. she woke people up. she tracked down cell phone numbers, including the numbers of the guards who were on duty. eventually, she got that truck turned around and those supplies were delivered. she was able to do this because she had worked for months and months to build connections and relationships with folks working at every level on responding to

the pandemic. thus, when incidents like this occurred, she knew thousand make sure the bureaucratic red tape didn't stop people frommest going the help and resource they needed. and so it was when our previous legislative director left to go to the state department in january of 2021 it was clear that elvia's tenacity, humor, warmth, professionalism would make her the perfect choice to ably step up and fill that role. almost overnight she went from focusing exclusively on health care and education to overseeing an entire pan theian of our team's legislative activities with all the added responsibilities like staffing vote-a-ramas that came aalong with the role. as legislative director, she has personally taken point on our efforts to protect american democracy and ensure every

american's right to vote. she quickly, deeply immersed herself into the intricacies of voter suppression, of dark money, of gerrymandering that we sought to address in the people's act. on top of that, elvai got familiar with the history and arcane procedures of this body that are so much in need of reform today, helping to craft workable options to restore the senate to being a better legislative body. that our founding fathers intended it to be. even now she has continued to take the lead on my mysteries of the senate project where every week we prepare a memo for the caucus explaining another aspect of the senate's arcane history and procedures. this is valuable -- i hope -- because i believe we cannot begin to improve the way we

function unless members understand better the senate's history and the web of rules and precedents that guide how we operate. it would be an understatement to say that elvia has excelled at every task and every issue she has taken on over these last five years. it's been a pleasure for me to work with her. it's been a pleasure for the entire team to work with her. and she has contributed greatly to the future of our team, nurturing and bringing along new staffers making sure they're not only up to speed on the issues but fully integrated participants in our collective effort to improve policies to benefit oregonians and to benefit americans. elvia, all of us on the team, all of us on team merkley thank you deeply for your dedication. we wish you all the best in --

we wish you all the best in your next chapter as you take your talents back home to oregon. i think all of us are a bit jealous of that opportunity to be fully back home, and we know that wherever you are, you will never stop fighting to build a better world. thank you. thank you, mr. president. and i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

>> no more to be installed on the fcc than she was back in 2021 or 2022. the federal communications commission is a important and sensitive regulatory body and charged with regulate a huge amount of communication withs each other as american citizens, radio and television, our cable

and satellite, our broad band, internet,. there's unelected people we normouse power with areas that -- enormous power with the intersecting rights to free speech and free expression. the country needs our fcc commissioners to be thoughtful, sober, nonpartisan referees and not activists and ideologue that want to bend our air waves to their agenda. this woman has spent her entire career proving she's totally, totally unsuited to this sensitive job. she's a hard core liberal activist that said the fcc should consider revoking the broadcast licenses of news stations that she disagreed with, that is completely

disqualifying and then some. this is america. we don't pull journalists and broadcasters off the air because unelected bureaucrats disagree with they felt this only scratches the surface. she has a record to decide with criminals over law enforcement. she has a deep long standing ties to radical organization that opposes law enforcement's local access today tafanely and information. organization connected to other people and the leaker, liar, and fugitive and the nomination with agents of white supremacy. the same people who wanted to defund the police who opposed laws against them, they want this woman in this position of power and they want it badly.

fraternal order of police and senator cruz and cap well to explain their putting her on the fcc would be a disaster for law and order. they said confirming in person would show a complete disregard for the hard working men and women of law enforcement and un-related views and this is also strong and serious ethical questions. seven years ago, advising a path for the fcc and closing in on a bipartisan deal she thought was tomorrow. so she's leaked nonpublic information to drum up outrage from the radical left and stir the commissioners and stop croix miami she was a -- compromise. she stone walled content and illegally put it online.

every american who watches sports on tv knows that you can't rebroadcast television programs without express written consent. will this nominee helped with an organization with a very mission, very mission was violating copyright law and it gets even worse. this is going for the broadcasters over $30 million and she was nominated by the president to regulate and oversee this that just so happened to fund by 98%. $32 million to a few hundred thousand dollars. just like that. when senators have asked for more details about these questionable settlements, she's listen less than forthcoming. the fact it makes one wonder if

she thought she could cash in favors from the people she's supposed to regulate before she got the job. oh, and by the way, this nominee made personal cash contributions to the campaign of multiple current sitting senators while her own nomination was pending before them. sent money to four democratic senators as a pending nominee, a pending nominee before the senate. the latest reappearance of this nomination is a case study and president biden's refusal to pivot, moderate or find common ground. tripping double figures on extremism that -- tripping down on ex-treatment that even a democratic senate has rejected twice. i urge our colleagues on the commerce committee to push for answers, the senate must say no to a radical activist controlling our wareways and the american people should -- airways and the person meme should ask why. why to the biden administration

this dieses pratt to control what the -- desperate to control what the citizens can see, hear, and time" thinking >> conversation on u.s. energy policy, our guest is frank, a senior vice president and american petroleum institute and he first reminder viewers what's your mission and what do you do? >> thanks for having me on. it's the leading trade association for oil and natural gas try in the united states and represent all aspects of the standing organization and addition to the advocacy organization and we set the standards for the oil and gas industry. we represent industry's interest before government here in washington dc as well as at the state level.

>> does that mean lobbying? okay funding for them paying dues.ti >> that's right. across the industry for member companies who participate in the association and our mission -- o celebrate love, but far too many american families these days have haunting memories and unfathomable pain. they are the families of americans killed by gun violence. last night, the family of three michigan state university students joined the heartbroken ranks. five additional victims were wounded. it was the 67th mass shooting in the united states of america in this calendars year. february 14, the 67th mass shooting. more than one mass shooting every day this year. what is a mass shooting?

when four people or more are injured or killed. no other nation on earth accepts this wholesale slaughter that we have now become so inured to in the united states. we shouldn't be. americans have seen too much carnage from guns. i'm sick of it. this nation is sick of it. five years ago today, a 19-year-old gunman murdered 17 people and wounded 17 more at marjory stoneman douglas high school in parkland, florida. the fifth anniversary of that, and we are observing the madness and slaughter that took place in michigan. the gunman fired indiscriminately at parkland, at students and teachers, and used a smith & wesson ar-15 assault rifle. the dead included 14 students, three staff members who died trying to protect them.

the parkland shooting horrified our nation. it cut especially deep at northern illinois university in dekalb, illinois, 65 miles outside of chicago. exactly ten years ago, on valentine's day 2008, a gunman armed with a shotgun and three semiautomatic pistols kicked open the door of an auditorium-style classroom at northern illinois, walked up and down the aisles, shooting people indiscriminately. the shooting lasted just under six minutes. when it ended, five students had died at northern, more than 20 injured. six weeks into the year 2023, already this year, at least, 5,127 americans have died from gun violence, according to the gun violence archive. they died in homicides, suicides, and accidental shootings. last year, congress passed and president biden signed the most

sweeping gun safety law in 30 years, the bipartisan safer communities act. among other things, it toughened background checks for gun purchases under the age of 21, and cracked down on the trafficking and straw purchase of firearms. it also included funding to help states implement red flag laws to keep guns out of the hands of people who pose a daiptioner to themselves or -- a danger do themselves or others. today, my home state of illinois was awarded $9.5 million in funding under the new law to help carry out illinois' red flag law. that's progress. but the majority of americans support even stronger gun safety laws, including closing the gaps in the background check system for gun purchases. i believe that congress should also restore the ban on assault weapons, including ar-15 style rifles, increasingly the weapon of choice for mass shooters. these military-style weapons have no place in schools,

neighborhoods, or college campuses. one month after parkland school massacre, student survivors of that slaughter organized a rally called march for our lives. hundreds of thousands of people attended the march in washington. one of the most powerful speakers that day was a young woman named emma gonzalez, a survivor of parkland. she warned americans that day, quote, fight for your lives because it's someone else's job. in america today, gun violence can strike any family, anywhere, anytime. today on this grim anniversary, we must recommit ourselves to a better america. to do more, to protect our kids, our schools, our communities, and our country from the scourge of gun violence. mr. president, i ask consent that the remarks i'm about to be making be placed in a separate part of the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. durbin: mr. president, last month a 3rd circuit court of appeals rejected an attempt by

the venerable corporation johnson & johnson, which sought to make a mockery of our system of justice and bankruptcy laws. in this case, johnson & johnson tried to use a legal scheme known as the texas two-step. it's an accurate name, because it would have allowed johnson & johnson to dance around its obligations to the consumers it had harmed. in this, not a few people are already talking about it. this case concerns 40,000 americans who used johnson & johnson products and have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer or messo they'll i don't knowa. -- mesothelomia. let's start from the beginning. for years, johnson & johnson denied talc up powder, baby powder, contained asbestos. they indicate johnson & johnson was aware for decades that its

products contained asbestos but j&j kept those products on the market and consumers who trusted the brand kept using them. in the years that followed tens of thousands of these loyal customers were diagnosed with dl illnesses. some filed lawsuits against johnson & johnson. before most of the claims against the company could be heard, johnson & johnson closed the doors to the courtroom. it used the so-called texas two-step to transfer its legal liabilities to a shell company and then step two, had the shell company declare bankruptcy. here's the important part. when the shell company declared bankruptcy, johnson & johnson asked the court to freeze all ongoing litigation. that maneuver effectively prevented the company's victims from proceeding with their cases. instead these victims would have to get in line in bankruptcy

court along with many creditors and wait for some small payment years ahead. that was johnson & johnson's devious scheme, and it was all going according to plan until last month when the third circuit stepped in and stopped the music on johnson & johnson's text -- texas two step. it ruled johnson & johnson's shell company did not act in good faith. they were right. the third circuit's ruling is an important victory but some of the reality is that for some of johnson & johnson's victims, it was too little too late. one of the victims was kimberly nerano. she grew up surrounded by addiction and abuse, spent teenage years moving from one foster home to another. she struggled with addiction herself, but at the age of 19

she had her first child and she changed course in her life. she set her self on the path to recovery and resolved to provide her seven children the stability and love she never knew. eventually ms. nurano found her calling. she earned a degree in cowan significantly and -- counseling but then three days into her new job she felt a pain in her side. she went to the doctor who diagnosed her with mesothelioma. soon her -- after her diagnosis she determined the only way she could have been exposed to asbestos was through the so-called safe baby powder, johnson & johnson baby powered. last year the judiciary committee held a hearing on corporate use of bankruptcy. we included johnson & johnson's use of the texas two stevment we were joined by plaza nura --

joined by mrs. nurano. she said when i learned i could file a lawsuit and have it decided by a jury, i found a path forward for my family. she continued, hope was taken from me. i learned johnson & johnson filed for bankruptcy and i would not receive a court date. she died from her illness last month. weeks before turning 50 and weeks before the third circuit's ruling against johnson & johnson. she never received the justice she deserved. make no mistake, as long as the world's biggest, wealthiest companies have the ability to game our legal system and escape liability, there will be more tragic stores like mrs. nurano's, because johnson & johnson is not alone in abusing bankruptcy law in avoiding accountability and that's a fact. other very large companies are getting in on the game. one similar case is being considered by the seventh circuit court of appeals. this one concerns a familiar

name, 3-m and a subsidiary arrow technologies. like johnson & johnson, 3-m is trying to game the bankruptcy system to avoid accountability to its customers. and these are not your average consumers. in this case we're talking about 230,000 military veterans. so what happened? these veterans claim they suffered hearing loss because they wore defective ear plugs while in service to our country. these ear plugs were manufactured by 3-m, and that subsidiary i mentioned, arrow technologies. when those veterans came forward with their allegations, 3-m turned the same get out of jail card that johnson & johnson tried to use. arrow declared bankruptcy and then 3-m, which is certainly not bankrupt, promptly asked the court to use the bankruptcy stay to freeze all ongoing ear plug litigation from american veterans. so instead of facing the lawsuit that these veterans brought,

3-m is trying to use chapter 11 bankruptcy to lock the doors to the courtroom. how about that? fortunately in this case the judge refused to let 3-m get away with it. a bankruptcy court ruled against the cynical legal scheme. instead of changing course on the strayedy strategy, arrow technologies of 3-m fame appealed the case to the seventh circuit. earlier this month i let a number of my colleagues -- led a number of my colleagues in submitting an amicus brief. i hope the seventh circuit joins the third circuit in ruling against these schemes to deny americans and veterans their day in court. but the truth is these companies are trying to game a system that we in congress created.

as lawrms -- lawmakers we write the laws and rules for declaring trapt -- chapter 11 bankruptcy. we must work together to keep the doors of our justice system open to every american seeking their day in court. i believe the senate is capable of doing things. i believe we can bring america closer to our central aspiration of justice and instill more faith in this nation of laws by ending corporate abuses of bankruptcy once and for all. mr. president, i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from florida. mr. scott: mr. president, it's hard to believe that it's been five years since february 14,

2018, the tragic day that the world witnessed a senseless attack and the loss of 17 innocent lives at marjory stoneman douglas high school in parkland, florida. today i come before the senate to introduce this resolution to honor the 17 beautiful lives that were stolen from us that day. i think of them often. i talk to their families. they were sons and daughters, parents and partners, some were educators, athletes, musicians. many of them just kids with a life full of promise ahead of them. my heart breaks knowing they never got the chance to pursue their dreams and that their families will froafer -- forever have a piece of their heart missioning. while we can't bring their lives back, i will work to honor them and do everything in my power to protect our students and educators to ensure they have a safe environment to learn and succeed. mr. president, as if in legislative session, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the consideration of senate resolution 60 which is at the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk

will report. the clerk: s. res. 60 honoring the victims of the senseless attack at marjory stoneman douglas high school on february 14, 2018. mr. scott: mr. president --. the presiding officer: the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. scott: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. scott: mr. president, i yield the floor.

the presiding officer: the senator from florida. is there objection? without objection. the question occurs on the nomination. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll.

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the presiding officer: on this the yeas are 53, the nays are 46, and the nomination is confirmed. under the previous order, the leadership time is -- under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table and the president will be immediately notified of the senate's action.

the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby bring to a close debate on the nomination of executive calendar number 15, adrienne c. nelson, of oregon, to be united states are district judge for the district of oregon. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of adrienne c. nelson, of oregon, to be united states district judge for the district of oregon shall be brought to a close? the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote::

pertravich.

peratrovich. per per per trove per trove vich vote:

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the presiding officer: the yeas are 53, the noise are 44. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: nomination, the judiciary, adrienne c. nelson to be united states district judge for the district of oregon.

-- a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: mr. president, i'm back today now for the 20th time to shed a little light on the dark money scheme to capture and control our supreme court. part of what allows that scheme to flourish is the ethics-free zone around the supreme court. it's quite unique so let's look at it. the last time i gave this speech, number 19, i walked through the various problems with how the supreme court handles allegations of

misconduct by the justices. the short answer is that it doesn't. the united states supreme court is the only court in the country not covered by an ethics code, and worse than that, it's the only part of the federal government that has no process for ethics, investigation, and enforcement. none. now any meaningful ethics regime contains three things. first, a process for receiving complaints. second, a process for investigating those complaints once they're received. and third, a process for reporting the result and holding powerful people accountable should those complaints turn out to be merited.

the house and the senate, for instance, we have our ethics committees. the executive branch has inspector inspectors general and the attorney general. the federal courts, except the supreme court, have their own investigative procedures. it's just the supreme court that has none. the closest you get is probably a motion to recuse. let's start with the difficulty of raising ethics complaints with the supreme court. people who are concerned about ethics violations over at court have to get pretty creative because the court has no place to submit an ethics complaint. if you like, there's no inbox. we saw this play out when judge kavanaugh became justice

kavanaugh. multiple ethics complaints were pending against judge kavanaugh. the lower courts, like the d.c. circuit that he was sitting on, do have a process for receiving complaints and for investigating them, and pursuant to that process a special panel was appointed to review the complaints against judge kavanaugh. but as soon as judge kavanaugh squeaked on to the supreme court as justice kavanaugh, poof, the lower courts lost jurisdiction over him and the complaints had to be dismissed mid-investigation. now, the complaints could have been refiled up at the supreme court but there was no place to

file them. we saw the problem again when a man named robert shank sent chief justice roberts a letter explaining after he learned from a private donor dinner how the supreme court was going to rule in the hobby lobby decision. apparently a letter directly to the chief justice isn't a proper way to lodge a complaint because shank never heard back from the court. months later shank then went to "the new york times," which was following up on an earlier "politico" story about shank's covert lobbying campaign to have wealthy right-wing donors invite some of the justices to their meals, to their vacation homes or to private clubs. it took the press, the fourth

estate, to fill in the investigate ri gap about that $30 million wining and dining campaign. more recently a former coworker of the chief justice's spouse alleged ethics' problems with the chief's failure to disclose connections between his spouse and parties and law firms appearing before the court with no mechanism to ask the according to review whether this arrangement presented a conflict, the former coworker sent his complaint around to congressional offices in hopes that someone might take it seriously somewhere. again, the complaint made it to the fourth estate, and again, without an inbox at the court or a process, it took journalists to give the inquiries a hearing.

set aside the merits of these complaints. , the point is they never got in the door for the court's consideration. the court's refusal to receive ethics complaints is unique to the supreme court. and i submit it is not serving the institution well. so even if there were an inbox for an ethics complaint, the court still has no process to investigate it. turn back to mr. shank. after the "new york times" reported on his allegation, there was understandable public uproar. chairman hank johnson and i wrote to the court as court subcommittee chairs to ask

whether it was investigating the allegations. after months of silence, amid growing public clamor, the court did something it almost never does, it acknowledged the accusations. through a two-page letter from the court's legal counsel, which i ask unanimous consent to append as an exhibit at the conclusion of my remarks. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. whitehouse: the court said the equivalent of, justice alito says he didn't leak the decision and that's good enough for us. no mention of the lobbying campaign or private wining and dining and no description of anything of an investigation. i've been the attorney general of my state, a position that has criminal just diction across the entire state. only three attorneys general in the country has that. rhode island is one of them. i've been the united states

attorney for my state and led federal investigations. i know a little about investigations. it is investigation 101 to take statements from witnesses. that's how you make a record and that's how you deter lying by tying people to a statement so they can be held accountable if it turns out that the statement is false. no sign in the letter that that was done. same again with justice thomas regarding his refusal to recuse himself from cases implicating his wife's efforts at overturning the 2020 election. back in january 2022, justice thomas participated as the lone dissenter in a decision that allowed the house january 6 committee to access records from

the trump white house. and a couple of months later, it turns out justice thomas' wife texted with white house officials repeatedly about overturning the 2020 election. so she was clearly covered by the investigative effort by the january 6 commission. he did not recuse and indirectly it was suggested that justice thomas knew nothing at all about his wife's activities so he didn't need to recuse. okay. but that's a fact question. what did justice thomas know about his wife's activities at tt time of the case? -- at the time of the case? easy to ask him. easy to take a statement from him. but no sign that that was done so, of course, no statement and no consequences. later, after the reporting about justice thomas' wife's

activities came out in the public press and he failed to recuse himself in another case, the issue was no longer just a fact question about what justice thomas knew, he was now on notice about his wife's conduct and he still did not recuse. why not? again, no justification, no investigation, no conclusion. the court has repeatedly failed to investigate or even acknowledge this glaring problem. problem. which brings us to the third element, accountability and transparency, a report at the end. an investigation ought to be designed to get to the truth and it to report its findings so that people can be held accountable for wrongdoing and the public can have confidence in the outcome. that is a statement so obvious i find it hard it to believe i actually have to say it here about the court.

the one investigation we have seen the supreme court undertake was done in response to the alito draft opinion leak. it was marred with conflicts. my surmise is that in the heat of the court's ire about the leak, the assumption was made that some clerk or staffer was responsible. chief justice roberts directed the marshall of the court to investigate, he called it a singularly egregious breach of trust and the public servant who work here. end quote. for more than eight months they waited to find out if the investigation would live up to the chief justice's words. in the end, the court's handling of the dobbs investigation was a case study in how not to conduct

a fair and transparent investigation. the problems were numerous, not least that the marshal of the court isn't normally responsible for leading investigations. but the problem that really emerged was that some of the prime suspects for the leak were her bosses. and the investigation held the justices to a doift standard than everyone -- different standard than everyone else at the court. everyone else at the court had to sit down for formal interviews, had to turn over their private communications, had to sign affidavits under oath. but when it came to the justices, it was different. they were subject to something that the court called, and quote, iterative process. end quote. i have no idea what an iterativ

process is. i can tell you what it isn't. it isn't an investigative process. the justices even asked questions of their own. some statement. the premise seems to be that even here the justices can never be investigated. this was going to be a tough, fierce investigation as long as it looked like it was going to be clerks and staff. but once it looked like it might be justices involved in the leak, suddenly the wheels fell off. i've never seen an investigation where the investigator called in a third party to provide public assurance that they did a good job. like a little side car running next to the investigation. yeah, they're doing a good job. in this case, worse, it was a third-party with conflicts of interest with relationships with obvious suspects and with contracts with the court. so if compare all that to how misconduct investigations are handled everywhere else in the federal g., you see some --

federal government, you see some pretty big discrepancies. in the executive branch congress has established inspectors general who are surrounded by professional staff, experienced and internal investigations. ig's know how to conduct real interviews and record witness statements. congress has its an internal procedures and investigators for ethics complaints. we have our ethics committee. the house has its ethics committee. congress set up procedures for ethics investigations in the lower courts. they exist. judges are investigated and people can know where you submit your complaint and how that complaint gets investigated. the supreme court is unique across the entire federal government in being inpenetrable to investigation. from no ethics in box to no

process for reviewing a complaint to know credible report at the end of the day. the highest court in the land should not be held to the lowest standards in government. so last week congressman hank johnson and i joined by senator blumenthal and congressman nadler, quigley, and cicilline any, reintroduced our supreme court transparency act. our bill would finally require the supreme court to have not just a code of conduct but a real process to enforce that code and other federal ethics laws. our bill would also update judicial ethics laws ending the ability of judges to ignore conflicts of interest and their reclusal obligations, requiring justices of the supreme court to

disclose gifts and travel as other federal officials do, and exposing the real interests of peering at the court behind amici curiae who lobby the court under fake names. apparently there has been a half-hearted effort at the court to begin to deal with this. "the washington post" reported last week that the justices discussed for years a binding code of ethics to no result. and the effort seems to have fallen apart. so that leaves congress in the position that if they won't fix it, we will. there are many problems plaguing our supreme court. far-right dark money interests spent years stacking the court

with their hand-picked justices who in turn have delivered for those interests at every available opportunity. we need to undo the damage wrought by the court that dark money built. and by those who built it. but we can start, we can start by bringing basic standards of integrity to the supreme court, standards all other judges follow and standards that govern all high-ranking federal officials across all three bamples of government. -- branches of government. officials who are paid by taxpayers to serve the best interests of the american people. mr. president, to be continued. i yield the floor.

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. mr. tillis: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, when i look back at the eight years i've been in the senate, i can think of a lot of things i like about this job. really gotten to know a lot of the staff on both sides of the aisle, a lot of the members on both sides of the aisle and being coached more than once by elizabeth and lee on parliamentary procedure and the rules of the senate. those are all things i like about the senate. but every year on this day, there's one thing i don't like about the senate. and that's because two out of the last ten years senate business has brought me here instead of being at home with my wife on valentine's day. mr. president, my wife and i have been married for 36 years and our first two babies are -- our two babies were born in atlanta, georgia, your great state. my wife, susan has been my valentine for 36 years and i've -- i'm away from her once again. if it was a violation of the rules, mr. president, i would

pick up a sign like this that says i love my wife and wish her happy valentine's day but that's against the rules and i'm not going to do that. instead i'm going to say susan tillis, i love you and thank you for 36 years years. thank you, mr. president. the presiding officer: without objection. -- objection. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from indiana. a senator: mr. president, during the civil war, walt whitman took stock of abraham lincoln's appearance. the president had a face, the poet right, like a hoosier

michelangelo. but whitman sense thad underneath the lines and crags were wells of wisdom and tact, perfectly suited to the president. mr. young: lard earned long ago. you see, abraham lincoln is widely regarded as one of our country's greatest presidents, a visionary, an inspiring leader who appealed to the highest ideals of america and moved our nation toward a more perfect union. sunday, mr. president, marked the 214th anniversary of abraham lincoln's birth. and even today historians still wrestle with the condition how it a man of -- is a man of such charter forged? the answer i think can be found in southern indiana near the ohio river. in 1860 when asked for details

of his youth by a biographer, abraham lincoln was uncooperative. it could all, he said, be condensed into a single sentence. the short and simple annals of the poor. that's all you and anyone can make of it, lincoln insisted. but, mr. president, if you'll pardon me, i'd like to make a little more of it. now, my colleagues from kentucky will no doubt point out that lincoln's birth occurred in their commonwealth. as my colleagues from illinois likely remind you, when abraham lincoln departed for the white house, it was from their state. and i'll give them this. lincoln was indeed born in kentucky and he did make his name in illinois. but abraham lincoln was a hoosier. it was there i grew up, he recalled of southern indiana. it was there in spencer county.

i grew to my present enormous height, he once joked. true there's little left that abraham lincoln would recognize in our state today. just reminders of a once unbroken forest among the low hills, the soil in it, the graves of loved ones and a great river separating north from south. in what does remain, though, we can still see where his character was formed. what prepared him for the trials to come. the lincolns arrived the same year indiana became a state. it was still the frontier line. the woods were full of bears and the night air alive with the roar of mountain lions. it was a hard and heartbreaking life, uncertain and often short. those years of abraham lincoln's life were characterized by loss.

first loss is his mother, nancy, and later his sister sarah and by constant labor which he grew to so dislike. schooling was scarce. opportunities for self-improvement were few. and by his own account, he had no more than a year of formal education. decades later when abraham lincoln recalled his life in indiana, he wrote, my childhood home i see again and saddened with the view. but he also wrote that among the memories there was pleasure in it, too. there were happy days in the little pigeon creek community, captivating friends with homespun stories, and there was the love of a stepmother who nurtured his curiosity. the sparse schooling he had taught him to read and to write.

in fact, he poured over what few books he could find. the bible, a tattered biography of george washington borrowed from a neighbor, and later a collection of indiana laws containing the declaration of independence and the constitution of the united states. and there was the ohio river. that river was a gateway of possibilities, a point of departure to the outside world. lincoln earned his first half dollar ferrying passengers on the river. he first saw the horror of slavery traveling down it. by the time abe lincoln and his family left the little pigeon creek community in 1830, lincoln had spent a quarter of his life in indiana. he crossed the wabash river into

illinois. he was kind, generous, and strong and could spin a yarn like no other, whose intellect far outpaced his meager education. and of course he carried with him a great reverence for our founding's promise of freedom and a burning desire to rise in life. though lincoln was loathe to speak of it as he grew older, those 14 years in spencer county, indiana, the sad and the joyous, shaped him. the qualities that saved the union in the time of its greatest peril, they were forged in the indiana wilderness. in march of 1865, only a few weeks before lincoln's death, he addressed the 140th indiana regiment. the soldiers had recently captured a confederate flag in north carolina which the

president gave to indiana governor oliver morton. lincoln reminded these hoosiers assembled that he was raised in their state, and he praised their hoosier valor but he was ever mindful of the union. he said that day, i would not wish to compliment i don't know above other states. well, mr. president, for whatever it's worth, i do. because lincoln belongs to all americans, but hoosiers can claim a special connection with abraham lincoln. so on the occasion of his birg, -- birth, we once again celebrate the life and legacy of this remarkable hoosier. he represents the best of us. he was one of us. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor.

i note the absence of a quorum. quorum call: quorum call:

military help. have outlined their approach to each of the four objects. what i can say after our briefings and the intelligence agencies are focused like a laser i gathering every piece of information that we can about these objects appeared to figure out exactly what is happening. but we saw over the weekend is that if they see anything that is a threat to america, or the american people they will take appropriate action for they make clear americans are on the physical harm on the ground from any of these objects. the military intelligence agencies are working around the clock to come up with a comprehensive picture of what is happening. and as they recover more evidence of the picture will be filled in and a careful,

thoughtful but decisive way. the administration is carefully evaluating as i said each of the four objects as they happen too. and i believe they've taken the right approach on each of the four objects. we still have questions about many issues but they are making every real effort and we have a good deal -- the american people should have a good deal of confidence in the military intelligence to handle our security. now on judges, today the senate reaches a major milestone as we confirm the 100th judicial nominee in the biden administration. that is 100 judges that will bring balance and excellence to the federal bench. one hundred judges have expanded diversity of the judiciary. one hundred judges who embody the best of our justice system experience, fair mindedness and fidelity of the constitution. today's nominee is remarkable in

her own right. judge mendez has district judge for the district of puerto rico would make history as a first openly lgbtq member of that cord too. that is something to celebrate, something to be proud of, something that shows america can, little by little live up to its promise of opportunity for all regardless of his or her background. justice is already deeply respected member of the court of appeals and i'm confident should make an excellent district court judge. mr. president, whenever we reach a milestone like today's it is as good an opportunity as any to pause and evaluate everything we have accomplished and what it means for our country. today because the work done by the majority the judiciary's farmer balance, far more diverse, far more experience than the one we had just two years ago. something every american can be proud of. this senate has confirmed more

judges by this point in the president's term than any of the previous two administrations for the 100 judges 76 women, 76. today only about one third of active federal judges are women. this is a sorely needed step in the right direction. redressing what has been an imbalance. a 60 of these judges are people of color. thirty-three black judges 21 from hispanic backgrounds. we confirmed the first muslim american judgment in u.s. history and of course, of course we confirm the first black woman ever to sit on the united states supreme court. and diversity can take many forms. justice jackson for instance is the first public defender to ever bear the title justice. it is no small feat to conduct the first ever justice who knows firsthand what it's like to defend the rights of the

accused. and perhaps more than any point in history are brought bench has more public defenders, civil rights lawyers, election lawyers. people who have understood average folks as they walked in their lives. for voting rights and elections to holly thomas d.o.j. civil rights division to nina the former senior litigator of the innocence projects. these judges of the heavy hitters that until not really made it to the federal bench. we are very proud he changing that. thought diversity on its own that matters here. twenty-first century to hear to the equal justice under law for the more judges vibrancy and diversity the more effective they will be.

in administering equal justice for the more americans look at our courts and see people who look like them and come from their backgrounds and share similar experiences. better off our justice in our judicial system will be. that does not change the obligation of judges who have to apply the law fairlyg impartialy equally. on the contrary mr. perez i believe diversity enhances the court's ability to rule. objection. mr. brown: thank you, mr. president. i rise today to honor trudy perkins, my communications director and the former acting chief of staff in my office, as she moves ton a new well-deserved chapter -- retirement. trudy's career has been unparalleled to say the least. she spent 20 years working in congress. her service has made a difference for her colleagues and for so many americans. she grew up in buffalo. if you take route 90 just about 150 miles west -- about 200

miles west. you have cleveland. you drive about 110 miles west, you hit my wife's hometown of ashtabula, ohio. it is fitting that her role in the senate brought her back to a city on i-90. she is a proud member of i cap -- i self-qappa. she spent her early years working in albany. then in baltimore. in 2002 or, she started is on capitol hill with one of the real superstars in the house, now the late representative elijah cummings. where she worked her way to up to communications director. she served as an invaluable advisor to representative cummings. he treated her -- he trusted her with anything and everything. he often gave her phone number out to constituents and told them, why don't you call trudy,

because things always got done. you know how members of congress don't always get them done, but people like trudy perkins do. no matter what the task was, trudy would do it with a smile and positive attitude. it was easy for anyone to see her dedication to public service and always, a always, always to the constituents she served. she was dependable. she is hardworking, she was an integral member of their team and of the cummings office family. and trudy has been an integral and trusted member of my office. we were lucky to inherit her after the death of representative cummings. in january 2020, she joined my staff as communications director. at the time she was the only black communications director serving in a senate office. she had a talent of communications and press and the experience to prove it. that was clear to me before we ever spoke. ace got to know history, i listened how much she cared about the issues that i care

about and that senator wyden does and senator warnock and the presiding officer does. i learned how much she cared about these issues that matter most -- civil rights, labor rights. she understood, mr. president, from doctor king's writings about dr. king's speeches, when dr. king spent a lot of time talking to labor unions. dr. king in his last weeks of life went to memphis because of a labor strike with sanitation workers. she understood, as i do, how dr. king, as john lewis did, how dr. king wove women's rights and worker's rights and human rights all together. trudy gets that. from day one she proved to be an asset in our office, stepping in, lead ago robust communications team during some of the most hum multiwith us years in the senate i've ever seen. her first month we faced domestic and foreign crises that she navigated with a steady hand. during her second hand, the covid-19 pandemic broke out. it was an uncertain time.

we all know that. we'd never seen anything like it. trudy stepped up and delivered for ohioans and for her team in our office. she transitioned our press shop from an in-person operation to a virtual one, a transition nobody had ever tried before, that brought challenges and technical difficulties but also new opportunities to connect with ohioans and with ohio media. at every turn she led with grace. she made -- she made a difference for so many in our office and our state. her impact can't be measured just by her ability to meet challenge after challenge head on. her leadership also extended far beyond the technical aspects of a difficult job. she was a compassionate resource for everyone on her staff. she took time to get to know the team, understand how they operated, as a unit, who they are as individuals. she listened. she truly cared. for the communications team,

trudy perkins was a rock, a smiling face on zoom called. she organized virtual game nights, made a difficult time a little easier as our office and world settle food a new normal. a couple years later, when our chief of staff took a temporary leave from the office, it wasn't even a close call. we knew trudy was the right choice to lead the entire office in the interim. big job to take on. she stepped up. the transition was seamless. she led the office through an historic year that brought so many wins for ohioans -- the chips act, pact act, inflation reduction act. she led our shift back to an in-person work. to say the least, it's opinion an eventful three years. through it all, trudy has been a dedicated member of this office. she's been a leader. this office wouldn't be the place it is today without her. as a communications director, she always had her team's back. she went to back for them, she supported them, in and out of the office, attending events on her personal time, like choir

concerts to cheer them on. as a manager, she gave junior staff the room they needed to grow. she listened. she recognized potential. she invested in every member of our team. she made sure everyone was set up for success so they would move forward, even after she would leave. she's a trusted adviser, a talented brainstormer, she's an advocate for women, especially for women of color across the senate. she makes colleagues feel appreciated and seen. most of all, trudy believes in this office and this institution, and the good that each of us can do for ohioans and americans. every member of our staff, from the interns to the senior staff, have learned from trudy perkins. whether it's her communications expertise or how to stay calm in stressful situations, or even just to show kindness and smile after a long day. we've picked upsation along the way, like nom, pam, and -- like no, ma'am, pam, and hot diggity dog. she doesn't always talk that

way, but sometimes. we'll miss her sense of humor and laugh, which you can here from any corner of the office. if the microphone picked it up, you heard it then. at the beginning of this congress, i asked each member of my staff to share a meaningful memory from interested 117th congress. this is where the presiding officer comes in. trudy reminded me of the letter from a birmingham jail reading she organized after former senator jones asked me to continue the tradition. we chose three republicans and three democrats to read dr. king's immortal words. trudy asked that senator warnock read the final section, as raphael is the first black senator from georgia and serves as senior pastor of ebenezer baptist church in atlanta, where dr. king attended and his father was the pastor. it was a moment of immense symbolism and joy as he read his predecessor's words on the senate floor. that letter also includes

perhaps my favorite dr. king quote, human progress never roles rolls in on the wheels of inevitability. progress, progress rolls in because we make it so. it rolls in because we organize, we push, we work every angle for as long as it takes. progress rolls in because people like trudy perkins, who dedicate their lives to fighting to make a difference in this world. our country is a better place because of her service, because of her leadership. trudy will be spending more time with her mother in maryland, her dedication to her family has always been unwavering. trudy, you will be missed more than you know. we will continue to fight for the values that you hold dear and make a difference in the lives of all ohioans. on behalf of everyone in our office, the staff of the banking and housing committee, some of my colleagues that know trudy, all those who have had the honor of working with her, we congratulate trudy perkins on her career, we wish her well in

retirement, we thank her from the bottom of our hearts for her terrific service to our nation. mr. wyden: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. wyden: before he leaves the floored, i just want my colleagues to know, what you just heard from senator brown is why every single day he gives public service a good name. he shows up and he works for people, and it's thrilling to see that, as always, he recognizes that he can't do it by himself. he's got staff, and so appropriate to hear him and his gracious remarks about his colleague who's moving on. mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the following members of my team be granted floor privileges for the remainder of the team, erica fountain, aaron evans, aaron tyler menser, allison sira,

nicole farria, elena d.garmo and aaron parzakowski. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. wyden: mr. president, great to see you. those not familiar, those of us on the senate finance committee have been so proud to work with our colleague, senator warnock, particularly his championship of affordable medicine and affordable insulin, where he has been the leader for all of us on this side of the aisle. had he had his way, all americans, not just those who depend on medicare, would already have the benefits of more affordable medicine. now, mr. president, i want to use my time to offer my unwavering support for the confirmation of associate justice adrienne c. nelson to the u.s. district court of oregon. through a powerful combination of legal knowledge and a commitment to justice for all,

justice adrienne c. nelson has amassed an extraordinary record, earning her a well-deserved seat on the oregon supreme court, the first black woman ever to serve there. now, before she was the first black woman oregon supreme court justice, before law school, before her impressive legal career, which includes her 12 years of experience on the multnomah county circuit court, in private practice as a public defender, even before she could vote, judge nelson was number one in her class at an arkansas high school that wouldn't recognize her as valedictorian because of the color of had erskine. the lawsuit -- because of the color of her skin. the lawsuit that followed in her name ensured no student could be denied any accomplishment based on their race, and that victory

activated a lifelong legal mind and civil rights champion. around my state, justice nelson is lauded for her prodigious work ethic, her integrity, her humility. support for her nomination comes from her fellow justices on the oregon supreme court, nonprofit and business leaders, law enforcement officials from urban and rural communities, and that includes district attorneys, the sheriff of our largest county, and a former u.s. attorney who served under both democratic and republican administrations. there's so much to like, senator warnock, about judge nelson, but what i like most is she's a role model for young people. young people in my state really look up to judge nelson. in fact, there is an adrienne c.

nelson high school in happy valley, oregon. i think everybody reports that the students there just adoor her -- just adore her. now, in addition to these impressive accomplishments, and the praise and her service as a role model, she's never lost sight of that valedictorian fighting tooth and nail within the american legal system to make ours a better and even stronger country for everybody. i'm certain she's going to bring this dedication and commitment to justice for all to every single case that crosses her desk. so there is no question that with justice nelson's topnotch qualifications she is going to make a superb federal judge. so it's all these reasons

together that causes me tonight, mr. president, to urge our colleagues, it will happen shortly, later in the week, to vote for this supremely qualified candidate to the united states district court. we are all, in oregon, so proud of judge adrienne c. nelson, and i believe all americans will be when she is in service on the court. mr. president, i yield the floor, i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the consideration of s. res. 61, submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk

will report. the clerk: s. res. 61, designating march 3, 2023 as national speech and debate education day. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the consideration of s. res. 62, submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. res. 62, recognizing the little sisters of the poor of indianapolis on its 150th anniversary. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the consideration of s. res. 63 submitted earlier

today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. res. 63, celebrating black history month. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed. mr. schumer: i know of no further debate on the resolution. the presiding officer: is there further debate? if not, all those in favor say aye. all those no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the resolution is agreed to. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of s. res. 64 which was submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. res. 64 to authorize testimony and representation in united states v. goss jankowsky. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed. mr. schumer: i further ask the rowtion be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening

action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i understand there's a bill at the desk. i ask for its first reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the title of the bill for the first time. the clerk: s. 424, a bill to protect the seniors of the united states and for other purposes. mr. schumer: i now ask for its second reading and in order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule 14, i object to my own request. the presiding officer: the objection is heard. the bill will be read for the second time on the next legislative day. mr. schumer: and finally, mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it stand -- bless you -- it stand adjourned until 10:00 a.m. on wednesday, february 15, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed. further, that following the conclusion of morning business, the senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the nelson nomination.

postcloture. and at 1 1-b 30 a.m. the senate vote on the confirmation of the nelson nomination. if cloture is invoked on the reyes nomination, the comen fir nation vote occur at 4:30. the senate vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the calabretta nomination. if cloture is invoked, all postcloture time be considered expired and the -- expired upon the disposition of the reyes nomination. further, that if any nominations are confirmed during wednesday's session, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: and for the information of the senate, there will be two roll call votes at 11 be 30. one roll call vote at 1:50 and up to three roll call votes at 4:30 p.m. if there's no further business to come before the senate, i ask that it stand adjourned until the previous order -- under the previous order. the presiding officer: the senate stands adjourned until senate stands adjourned until

>> and today senate confirmed gina mendez as a judge in the u.s. district court or in puerto rico. she's the 100th judge corn firmed to a lifetime -- confirmed to a lifetime appointment since the start of the biden administration. senators also confirmed lindsay jenkins in northern illinois. as always, live coverage of the senate here on c-span2. >> preorder your copy of the congressional directory for the 118th congress. st the your access to the federal government with bio and contact information for every house and senate member, important information on congressional committees, the president's cabinet, federal agencies and state governors. scan the code at the right to preorder your copy today for early spring delivery. it's $29.95 plus shipping and handling, and every purchase helps support our nonprofit operations at c-spanshop.org:

♪ ♪ >> since 1979 in partnership with the cable industry, c-span has provided complete coverage of the halls of congress from the house and senate floors to congressional hearings, party briefings and committee meetings. c-span gives you a front row seat to the how issues are debated and decidedded with no comment air the, no interruptions -- commentary, no interruptions and completely unfiltered. c-span, your unfiltered view of government. ♪ ♪ >> on wednesday defense secretary lloyd austin speaks to the press from brussels, belgium, where he's been meeting with foreign allies to cuts the war in ukraine am a full year since russia began its invasion is. live coverage givens at 8:30 a.m. eastern on c-span2. you can also watch on our free mobile video app, c-span now, or online at c-span.org.