vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: on this vote the yeas are 50, the nays are 44, and the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: the judiciary, maria

araujo kahn, of connecticut, to be united states circuit judge for the second circuit of connecticut. mrs. fischer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from nesh nebraska -- from nebraska. mrs. fischer: in april border patrol agents encountered a 2-year-old boy the a the southern border of texas. let me read you what the release said, the boy, a who are hondurl

was traveling with a group of 38 individuals. agents questioned the group to obtain any information on the boy, however, no one claimed to know the child, unquote. in 2022, cpb arrested at least six dozen convicted violent sex offenders, many of them child sex abusers according to media releases, vulnerable, unaccompanied children, as well as young women traveling alone, draw criminals to our country. they want to take advantage of the chaos overwhelming our border. our border has become a hotbed of criminal activity, especially of trafficking helpless women and children. mr. president, last month, i came before you to address the

deadly effects of drug trafficking across our border on american citizens. but the out of control situation at our border puts migrants in danger too. the effect of these numbers on children is just heartbreaking. 2022 beat the record for the number of unaccompanied migrant children encountered by border patrol, an overwhelming 152,057. and the state department reported this year that child sex tourism is expanding in the border cities of mexico. the biden administration claims that its la usa border policiese

stemmed from valuing immigrants, but it has worsened continues for those trying to migrate to the united states. president biden ended the national deck declaration of the border, halted construction on the border wall. the next month the press canceled the trump administration's asylum poadures, a move that aggravated the rush at the border. president biden reinstated wide wide-scale catch and release practices, requiring border officials to release unprocessed migrants into our country where they await court hearings. since president biden's inauguration, 4.5 million people have arrived at our border. last week, the president of the

national border patrol council told me he estimates that seven million more migrants will arrive by the time biden's term ends. folks, that would mean a total of 11 million migrant encounters during the biden administration. that number is larger than the population of 43 of the states in our union. despite the damage that the president's done at the border, well, he dedicated a total of one minute out of last week's 75-minute state of the union speech to discussing immigration. one minute. president biden didn't even present any substantive solutions to our border problems.

this administration is unable to manage the surges of immigrants that it's welcomed to our border. so the president has cut corners left and right. biden officials have weakened vital safety measures, including waiverring certain background check requirements for the adult sponsors of unaccompanied migrant children. people entrusted with the care of unaccompanied children no longer have to undergo public record and sex offender rental industry checks all in the interest of moving migrants into our country and out of federal custody more quickly. the department of health and human services also has no way to track these children or

ensure their well-being after they are placed with sponsors. the president's indifference to border safety and security means that abusers and traffickers have easy access to helpless kids. from the very beginning president biden's campaign promises to loosen border security rallied waves of migrants to make that treacherous trip north. biden promised hope, but let's be clear. the reality is that this journey is one of suffering, whether it's forced labor, sex trafficking, or death. it's encouraged more criminals to take advantage of that frenzy. the biden administration has yet

top resecure the border and it has yet to form a serious plan to remedy the problems it's created. it's taken two full years for the administration to produce what i think is a silly smartphone app fund bid your taxpayer dollars to help migrants schedule their crossing times. that is barely a band aid for the massive gash that is our southern border. but while the president ignores this humanitarian crisis, my colleagues and i want to fix it. we can address the disaster at the border by providing our dedicated border patrol agents with more resources and more time to process migrants, equipping them to do their jobs thoroughly. we need to put up barriers

against sex trafficking and drug trafficking by ending catch and release and imposing penalties on those who skip out of their immigration hearings. president biden called us as a nation last week to embrace stability over chaos. he should take his own advice and help us to stabilize the chaos at the border. the administration must finally open its eyes to this border crisis, and the senate must implement real, lasting solutions for the sake of migrants, for the sake of legal immigrants, and for the sake of american citizens. as i said before we are a nation of immigrant, but we are also a

nation of laws. failure to enforce them doesn't help anyone. well, it doesn't help anyone except predators looking for a chance to manipulate the chaos. security will benefit those on both sides of our border. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor.

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. mr. tillis: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, some of my colleagues may know, we recently lost kiya, a very special service dog that was a frequent visitor to the senate. kiya's life was devoted to helping veterans with ptsd and she quickly became an ambassador for veterans and service dogs everywhere. a few years ago i ran into her and her owner. i was walking down a street at a

street corner where we first met each other. as a dog lover myself, i stopped to say hello. after i learned about cole's service history, i invited them to my office. in that meeting i learned something very important. that the department of veterans affairs does not cover the cost of service animals for veterans with post-traumatic distress which can cost upwards of tens of thousands of dollars. from that moment that i meant kiya, i knew she was special. she was not just a service dog, she was the model of a service dog. she had a gentle nation, kind eyes and a wagging tail but i could say that about my two dogs, mitch and theo. i'm proud of the obedience training i've given them but kaya is different. she knew the commands my dogs know but she also know how to be there for cole without even a single command.

like so many other veterans. you see, these service dwogs are not just taught to sit and stay and fetch, they're taught to actually say what the veterans are experiencing. they know when to go by that veteran's side just to give them a source of calmness. they actually know how to wake up a veteran who may be in the middle of a nightmare. they know when a veteran and a servicemember who is disabled needs something, they can point to it and they'll retrieve it. these are extraordinary dogs so you can understand why it may be expensive to get them up to that level and so few dogs are like kaya. but she was a special one. cole and i when we met discussed approaches that we could use to try and get funding for service dogs in the v.a. it's one of the reasons why it culminated in what we call the paws act for veterans therapy.

i later introduced that bill in the senate. the legislation established a pilot program to provide canine training to eligible veterans diagnosed with ptsd. in addition to kaya's unwavering devotion, the both comfort and support dogs like her, countless veterans, she also educated congress in this country about the role dogs can play in helping veterans that are struggling with the invisible wounds of war. because of kaya's effort and i guess a little bit from cole, we were able to pass the paws for veterans therapy act and it was signed into law in 2021. now, thanks to kaya, cole and organizations like canines for warriors, veterans across the country are beginning to benefit from service dog programs that have a track record of reducing symptoms associated with ptsd. but i also have to say we've got a lot of work to do.

the paws act was only the beginning of several steps that we need to take to make these incredible animals available to more veterans because for everyone that's being served today, there are dozens who are not. the nearly 17 veteran suicides this country experienced each and every day makes clear that the paws act is only the beginning and it's not the end, and this is a step on a very long journey. we must work to ensure the department of veterans affairs is implementing the paws act as we intended by partnering with service dog organizations to connect as many veterans as possible with canine training to improve well-being and help veterans thrive. i've made this a top priority to do everything possible to combat veteran suicide. and this legislation is another tool in the toolbox for our men and women who have served.

the passing of kaya is a true loss. she was sick. and cole mad to make the appropriate but heartbreaking decision to release her from her misery. cole, thank you for sharing kaya with us. kaya, thank you for bringing comfort, hope, and healing. thank you, mr. president.

mr. durbin: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority whip. mr. durbin: are would new england a quorum call? the presiding officer: we are not. mr. durbin: thank you. i have two separate statements here, the first i'd like to put on the record. just over a week ago, a devastating earthquake rocked parts of turkey and syria. the devastation has been heartbreaking. i'm glad that the biden administration immediately offered american assistance and our help to rescue and discover the victims and survivors. that is what powerful and confident nations do in times of need. the turkish people are resilient and we will help them rebuild from this tragedy. now, mr. president, i'd like permission for this second statement to be placed in a separate part of the record.

the presiding officer: without objection. mr. durbin: mr. president, on february 25, one year ago, award-winning chicago self-tony pirola woke up early to work out on his elliptical machine. he couldn't believe what he was seeing on tv. bombs, gunfire. russia's war on ukraine had begun. he thought of a young ukrainian woman who worked in one of his restaurants. he started wondering whether she and her family were safe a he asked himself what can i do? then he had an idea. he contacted the illinois restaurant association and 30 of his closest self-friends in the area and said, let's use our talents to feed people and to feed the people of ukraine who've been forced from their homes by this terrible war. less than three weeks later, chefs representing 70

restaurants around chicago dished out meals to a crowd of 2,000 people at an event called chicago chefs cook for ukraine. they sold out a rather large venue known as navy pier in chicago. they raised $650,000 in that one night and another $200,000 after. they donated all of it to the world central kitchen, the nonprofit organization founded by self-and noted humanitarian jose andres. i had a chance to meet self-andres just a few weeks before the start of the war in ukraine. i love that man. he's always so full of ideas and hope and determination. the chef came to america from spain when he was 21 years old with nothing but a set of knives and $50. he is now an american citizen with an empire of award-winning restaurants. through his work with world central kitchen, which he founded in 2010 is jose andres also has earned a reputation as

first responder for food. wherever disaster strikes, it seems the world central kitchen is there to feed hungry and displaced people, usually within 24 hours. for chef tony pirola in chicago, it wasn't enough to simply raise money for the world central kitchen, as noble that is every is. after the success of chicago cooks for ukraine, tony tracked down his former employee on instadramatic and asked, are you okay? she replied, not really. my mom and dog and i are hiding in the subway in ukraine. so tony decided he had to to go to ukraine himself personally and help. two other star chefs from chicago decided to join him. when one of tony's regular customers heard that the chefs were paying for the trip out of their pocket, he said i have 5 million frequent flyer

miles. i'll buy your tickets. they volunteered cooking from early morning to late at night, feeding hot meals to at many as 30,000 people a day at a polish refugee camp. helping others was not new to tony. he's known for his support of charity, including meals on wheels in chicago, st. jude's hospital and the cystic fibrosis foundation. what he saw in that refugee camp near the polish-ukrainian border broke his mart. an elderly couple left everything they had known behind, now dependent on the kindness of strangers. terrified women and children who had been forced to flee their homes carrying only what they could fit in suitcases and shopping bags. often tony said, i had to lookway to hide the tears. for his humanitarian work to aid ukrainians displaced by war and his many other charitable endeavors, chef priolo was

recently honored was a chicagoan of the year, a well-deserved tribute. around the same time that chef priolo was watching the horrors unfold, senator chris coons and i sat in a dark, nearlily empty departure lounge in lithuania one morning. we were there to express support for lithuania, that small nato member who has a a a long history of russian tyranny. then while we sector the unthinkable occurred in modern europe. news broke that vladimir putin had launched a massive military invasion of ukraine. it was an ill-fated throwback to theater a when aggressor nations tried to seize their neighbor's territory by force, all in a blind pursuit of some warped soviet no, sir stahlia trip. putin was willing to sacrifice the lives of thousands of ukrainians and even russians, the reputation of his country,

and the international order established after the horror of world war ii. perhaps having listened to too many years of his own country's brainwashing propaganda, putin also thought that ukraine would just fall into his lap in a matter of days or hours. he thought the tran atlantic alliance and community of democracies was a thing of the past and wouldn't dare respond. well, he was wrong on every single front. the ukrainian people repelled putin's invasion. they heroically clawed back seized territory. they withstood brutal attacks on civilians and critical infrastructure, war crimes by any standard. they're united in their resistance to russia and their desire to be free to choose their own path in the future. the united states and its allies around the world have stood together in support of ukraine and against russia, and nato is on the cusp of adding two new

formidable members. president biden deserves great prays for leading this global effort and prays, too, to the american people for recognizing courageous effort against tyranny and standing on the right side of history. we should not lose sight of the crimes committed by putin and the war, crimes for which he and his enablers must and will be held accountable. entire villages have been destroyed, from bucha to izium, there is evidence of who are risk mass killing,er to tour, sexual violence against innocent people. dead and mutilated bodies litter the streets. babies have been found in mass graves. these are the acts of a war criminal. that is why congress recently strengthened our nation's tools for cooperator cooperation with the international criminal court when it comes to ukraine. why we recently enacted a bill i introduced entitled justice for victims of war crimes. and it's why congress provided $45 billion in aid to ukraine in

the most recent spending bill, a measure, thank goodness, with broad bipartisan support. just like the nuremberg trials and more recently the international criminal tribunal for the former yugoslavia, the world will hold putin and the russians accountable for unleashing war crimes and crimes against humanity in ukraine. as president biden said in his state of the union address, the fight against tyranny in ukraine is, quote, a test for the ages, a test for america, and a test for the world. we cannot fail." i agree with the president. we must continue to stand loyally by ukraine. i will ecclesiastes with a member -- i'll close with a memory i'll never forget. it was the near the 2014, nine years ago. i was walking through kyiv's maidon square. john mccain stood by their side when others wouldn't.

they loved him for it. and we started to walk into maidon square together. all around us were makeshift shrines dedicated to those involved in peaceful protests. it isest then and reflective of what we have dean during the last year in ukraine the unshakable determination of the ukrainian people to be free, to be able to democratically choose their own future just as we do in the united states. senator mccain understood it and i stood by his side. it is long overdue that president putin understands it as well. until then we will stand together with the ukrainian people in that journey towards democracy. mr. president, i yield the floor.

endless escalating tactics and their scornful disregard for american sovereignty is unacceptable. i want to thank senator tester above all. he's been the leader in this whole country on this issue, and i appreciate senator collins working with him, and i appreciate both of their good work putting this resolution together with strong bipartisan unity. mr. president, this resolution condemning china is precisely the kind of bipartisanship americans expect at a time like this. instead each party attacking each other, we are united in this resolution in condemning china, exactly as we should be. and last night resolution is just one step. senator tester is also taking the lead on a bipartisan effort to get to the bottom of why we didn't learn about these balloons sooner.

this is a very important question the american people deserve answers to and i am fully, fully supportive of this effort. again, this is the kind of bipartisanship the country expects when china is pushing the boundaries. made of what democrats and republicans pointing fingers at each other. they don't want any premature attacks. they want us to come together to respond to the threats posed by ccp, and that's just what we did last night. now yesterdays resolution was not the only way the senate was focused on standing firm against the ccp. we also yesterday had a a brig from the department of defense on our ongoing competition with china. i want to thank the briefing team for their hard ongoing work. while all the details are classified, i want to make a few points. ..

second, china's angle with respect to the u.s. is to displace us. their main goal with respect to the u.s. is to displace us. displace our allies as world leaders in the military and geopolitical side and driving innovations of tomorrow many of which affect our national security. a.i., quantum computing, 5g and other advanced communications, bio manufacturing, generation of

semiconductors. china wants to be ahead of us on everything because if they do, they will be the ones writing the rules of the road on these technologies. hypocrisy writing these rules, autocracy technologies to impress its people and spying on them, that would have dangerous consequences for the world democratic nations. changing those rules with china in the lead would make the world a safe haven, unfortunately or autocracy. finally, the chinese communist party is not constraining itself in pursuit of these goals. they are all in, they will do whatever it takes to beat us and if we do not respond in kind, we won't be able to keep up. yesterday's briefing, a couple of things exceedingly clear for the house.

most importantly, yesterday's briefing on our competition with china reaffirmed the need for congress to work together and pass a clean debt limit without hostagetaking. do you think we hand the world over to the chinese communist party more than a first ever default by the united states? defaulting would send a loud and clear message to the world that america cannot be trusted, swallowing democracies incapable of governing and the best days of our country are squarely behind us. to prevent china from overtaking us, we must raise the debt ceiling on a bipartisan basis as soon as we can. no default. yesterday's briefing also made clear the market republicans are pushing would be a disaster

staying ahead on china. china would love to see the maga we their public and party is pushing. it would guarantee it would overtake us across the board on defense and military preparedness, innovation, american manufacturing, science and workforce and so much more. let me say it again, tied up more than to see the kinds of cuts across the board moderate republicans are pushing. the kind of rocks we are talking about are dangerous. instead congress must the appropriations passage and we have in the last two years. china's beating us, they will do whatever it takes in the chinese communist party drives their country forward, the worst thing we can do is put america and it would be malpractice given

what's at stake. we've done good important work in the last two years in the democratic senate, chips and science, ira and last year's bill we shouldn't stop there, we need to ensure bipartisan efforts are funded, we need to double our efforts in keep pushing ahead. there is no doubt u.s. and allies and partners remain world leaders for innovation but if that continues, united states must be all in, all in on out competing china and make it clear to president xi jinping you will not succeed. another important issue i think important things to talk about today including the bill passed last year in the briefing on

what we should do in terms of debt ceiling and our budget, yesterday i joined with a few of my colleagues to shine light on how radical out of touch maga republicans in the house are. in the house budget they are putting pen to paper on proposals that would devastate american families to programs that millions of people rely on. these are not abstract issues, they would cause immense pain to countless americans. republicans will be scrambling over the fact to try to convince american people they won't touch medicare even social security even though we have millions of statements showing many of them believed the opposite. another critical question remains unanswered and must be addressed. the publicans going to target medicaid? were the most important programs

in the country, one in four americans rely on medicaid to cover their healthcare needs. let me say that again -- one in four americans rely on medicaid to cover healthcare needs. it's not just low income as important as it is but it's also for middle-class families putting the pens in nursing homes. a couple in their mid- 40s who have parents in nursing homes or assisted living of a huge burden on them if medicaid was rushed. these families work hard cutting medicaid with a huge economic burden on them as they struggle and work to stay in middle-class. medicaid helps others, people with disabilities, pregnant women, children and so many more. let me say again, medicaid is a middle-class issue in addition

to low income americans. we are going to help those. are republicans going to strip away coverage for one in four americans? we really don't know because republicans won't show us their plan. americans are right to be worried about medicaid benefits because these proposals are coming at their expense. we must work to protect and strengthen things like medicaid, not put them on the chopping block. finally, esg. reports are out republicans will introduce a major targeting a new rule for the department of labor that allows, repeat, allows, not requires, allows fiduciaries to consider the impact of climate change and other issues when making investment decisions. across the country, hard right state legislatures are up in arms trying to stop date

investment from working with money managers who commit the heinous offense of looking at the big picture when making investments including climate change and other issues and prevent financial risks. i just want to say the obvious -- nothing in this rule imposes any requirement on anyone. let me say that again, and the role they seek to repeal, imposes any requirement on anyone and he goes out of its way to make sure decision-making remains solely in the hands of the fiduciary. republicans love to talk about small government and letting the private sector do the work but their obsession with eliminating esg would do just the opposite many companies realize if we move to clean energy, the path to profitability depends on those changes. hard right maga her publicans, climate deniers they are trying

to straitjacket those companies with ideological obsessions and prevent them from adapting to the future for their own good and the good of the country. i yield before. >> american citizens across the political spectrum say tackling crime must be top priority. it's no mystery why they feel that way. one neighborhood endured 30 burglaries in 30 days. last year washington d.c. solved 203 homicides. the victims conclude 18 children, huge inquiries over the prior year. off to a worse start 2023 is. carjackings are already ahead crime wave see.

elevator of her own apartment building right here in the district. the attacker had been arrested and convicted no fewer than 12 times before. most recently for assaulting metropolitan police officer. this career criminal is out roaming the streets. we have to get these repeated offenders off the streets. you're darn right we do. unfortunately the radical local government here is doing the opposite. the d.c. council responded to the crime wave, there's a new bill to make it even softer on crime rate and lowers violent crimes and create new ways to shorten sentences of

incarcerated felons. the good news is the constitution gives the united states final say over issues in our nation's capitol. when the soft on crime local government has become completely incompetent, members in congress can go about their daily lives without being attacked and families cannot come to visit our capitol in safety. it's about time the federal government provides adult supervision. republicans led by tennessee bill hagerty are leading the efforts to use the rightful authority of congress to address this emergency. last week the republican past their will as well. -- from alaska. mr. sullivan: mr. president, thank you very much for that enthusiastic introduction.

i'm here, once again it's the end of the week -- at least in the senate it's the end of the week, not for america. when we end up here for our work on thursday afternoon, i usually try to do a story about what i refer to as the alaskan of the week. hopefully everybody can see this photo. we've included our alaskan's of the week's picture here. this is a really good one if you're watching anywhere in alaska, across america. the reporters usually like this speech because it signals the end of their week. normally we have a proud of press in the gallery. maybe not so much today. so it's about somebody who's done something good for their community, for their state, or maybe for their country. mr. president, this alaskan of the week, it's actually someone who did something for the world. the world. saved the world. stay tuned. no exaggeration. i always live -- like to give

an update on what's happening back home. we're getting covered in snow, tons and tons of snow. the sun is starting to come back, had a very cold and snowy winter. iditarod is around the corner, last great race. senator murkowski and i will talk about that soon. it's a beautiful time of the year, if you love the outdoors skiing, snow machining. come visit alaska. that's what i always do, make the pitch. people know this, mr. president, but alaska is also an incredibly diverse state. in fact, anchorage, my hometown, the state's largest city, is home to the country's three most diverse census tracks, racially, in terms of nationalities. by the way, the fourth most diverse is queens, new york.

more diverse than queens, new york, in terms of race, ethnicities, nationalities, so we're very proud of our diversity. more than 100 languages spoken in our schools. a lots of those are native languages, other languages, foreign languages. we're diverse. we're very prospective. in fact, alaska is home to more veterans per capita than any state in the country -- white, black, asian american, alaska native, all different races make up that key part of alaska's heritage, military service. by the way, if you're watching the news, you know there's a lot going on over alaska right now. i want to say a word about our military, active duty and national guard and reserve forces. think about what our guys and women have done the last two weeks. tracked, intercepted this big russian spy balloon. tracked, inteps at least two --

intercepted at least two of these smaller unidentified objects, shot two of them down, the one over alaska, the one in canada. those were shot down by alaskan forces, into canada. then, mr. president, in the last four nights, these same forces have intercepted two different russian bear bombers and fighters, russian fighters, who were trying to get into our air space. this is two weeks. these are not easy missions. they're very difficult, challenging missions. you know what else wasn't an easy miss? storming the beaches of normandy. mr. president, storming the beachg of norman -- the beaches of normandy. i have a picture here. that's why i want to get to our alaskan of the week. a very special, very patriotic alaskan. world war ii veteran, mr. r.c. roberts. i can think of no better way to

cap off black history month than to recognize mr. roberts, his service to our country, and help him and his family celebrate his 100th birthday! how about a round of applause, america, for mr. roberts' 100th birthday? a normandy, d-day, omaha beach veteran. he celebrated that tuesday, valentine's day, 100 years old. who is mr. roberts? let's hear a little bit about the life he's lived in full. like i said, mr. president, that's him. that's him, our alaskan of the week, on the poster board, handsome young man, saving the world, literally. originally born in garrison, texas, in 1923. imagine that, 100 years ago.

according to letters written by friends, he worked on a family farm, left school early in life, and joined the army when he was just 18, shortly after the start of world war ii. he wanted to go fight for his country, and he did fight. mr. president, many americans have seen the movies about d-day, again, there's a photo. our brave soldiers hitting the beaches at normandy, facing unbelievable heavy fire, having to navigate mined obstacles on the beach, mines on the bluffs, germans dug in with machine guns. you've seen the beginning, i'm sure many of you, of "saving private ryan." okay? seawalls to climb. that's what he did. that's what he did for america, for freedom. the largest, most complex combined airborne amphibious military invasion in world history.

mr. roberts, our alaskan of the week, was there on omaha beach in 1944. he eventually marched all the way into germany with the u.s. army, all the way across europe. mr. president, he was part of the heroic mission that saved the world! that is not an exaggeration. mr. roberts served three years, was awarded the european campaign medal with three bronze stars, representing three difficult battles across europe that he fought in. and here's the thing, mr. president, got to remember this, it's 1944. our military was fully segregated, and black soldiers were discriminated against. in fact, it took until 1948 for president harry truman to order the armed forces to be integrated. 16 years before the passage of the civil rights act.

but this patriot, despite the discrimination, was fighting for america. how did mr. roberts make it through these order he'lls -- ordeals, incredible ordeals of fire? prayer, he said. quote, every day i prayed. when i got home, i was so grateful to be back in the united states. mr. president, when he got out of the military, made his way backs to texas, then to california, he had a friend who was in alaska, told him his skills were needed up in the great state of alaska, and it was 1964. our state had just been devastated by the largest earthquake ever recorded in north america, second largest earthquake ever recorded in the history of the world, 9.2 on the richter scale. our good friday earthquake, 1964. tsunamis crushed buildings,

unfortunately killed a lot of people. there was a lottery building, so mr. roberts, who was a cement mason, made his way north, north to alaska, north to the future. he worked all across the state, helping rebuild it, fairbanks, keen eye, valdez, the elutian island chain. he helped build ted stevens international airport. he bought a house outside of anchorage, met and married the love of his life, joan, in 1970, in anchorage. they joined the eagle river missionary baptist church, where they remain, and he remains, an active member, at the tender age of 100. together for more than 40 years before joan passed, they raised four generations of children and had a wonderful life together.

like i said, mr. president, tuesday, valentine's day, february 14, was mr. roberts' 100th birthday. i had the honor of calling him, wishing him a happy birthday, talking a little bit about his heroic service, thanking him for his heroic service. the day after his birthday, he got caught up with his friend darrell little. mr. roberts and mr. little have been friends, best friends, more than 40 years. darrell was visiting mr. roberts, making him his favorite meal for his birthday, a beef tongue sandwich. sounds pretty good. darrell described mr. roberts as a loyal citizen who served his country bravely, with honor and distinction. that is what being alaskan of the week is all about. darrell asked mr. roberts what he wanted to say about his extraordinary life, and here's

what mr. roberts said -- just two days ago -- he loves alaska, he wouldn't trade his time in the state for anything else in the world, even with all the snow we're having this winter. he also said it was such a great honor to serve his country, and he thanked god for blessing him. sounds like an amazing guy. he is an amazing guy. i just spoke to him. so mr. roberts, thank you for your service. thank you for helping rebuild alaska. thank you for living and leading such an exemplary life, 100 years! thank you as we move into black history month for showing an example -- young man, patriotic, despite systemic discrimination against him fought the evil nazi regime heroically, valiantly,

part of the greatest generation, who literally saved the world. so mr. roberts, happy birthday, and i know you are also happy about one of the most prestigious awards you can ever get, alaskan of the week. we wish you well, sir. mr. president, i ask that my following comments be recorded in a different section of the "congressional record." the presiding officer: without objection. mr. sullivan: thank you, mr. president. now, mr. president, you've seen this speech a couple times, and i'm going to keep talking about

it. senator murkowski is going to keep talking about it. congresswoman peltolo on the house side will keep talking about it. this is the bipartisan priority we have for alaska and america. it's called the willow project. the willow project. people across alaska are speaking unified, in one voice about the importance of this very big, very environmentally safe energy project in our state. republicans, democrats, independents, and our state legislature i believe are getting ready to pass a resolution to the biden white house and the biden department of interior saying finally make this happen. what is this? it's a very large project -- $9 billion investment, 2,500

construction jobs, 75% of which will be the building trades, unions. peak production of 200,000 barrels a day into the transatlantic pipeline. not much infrastructure needed. highest environmental standards in the world, lowest greenhouse gas emissions of any major project this size. enormous support from unions, building trades, alaska natives. mr. president, i've been ot floor talking about -- i've been on the floor talking about this a lot. last week, we were frustrated. i made the point that our friends in the national media never talk about who actually really supports the project. they quote lower 48 radical environmental groups, who don't live in alaska, by the way, who are all opposed. we know that. they don't want anything built in america. heck, you can't build a bridge here without groups like this opposing it. what i said is listen to the native people. listen to the indigenous people

of alaska, mr. president. they want this. i've gone through all these groups, every major alaska native group, every major union, every major economic group in our state, across the country supports this. so, i do want to thank some of the reporters who joined me, senator murkowski and so many of our alaska native leaders on a press conference a couple days ago. guess what -- they did start reporting on the broader support in the indigenous community in my state. because prior to that, they were canceling the indigenous voices. the native people, the vast majority want this project. so mr. president, i want to spend a few minutes on process. the process for this project is what we're in right now, all big

projects on federal lands go through this. it's what you get when you have the federal agencies review a project. it's called an environmental impact statement, an eis. after the eis is issued, there's something called a record of decision. usually 30 days after that. so, when that project -- when that goes smoothly, you get permission to start working on it. we are in the final throes of that process. now, it sounds a little bit morgue, mr. president, but -- it sounds a little bit boring, mr. president, but i want to explain what has happened. it's really important to note this project has been reviewed by different administrations, starting with the obama administration, then the trump administration, and now the biden administration. and every single time, the

career scientists in our federal agencies, the career professionals in the department of interior, corps of engineers and epa, every time they've done the studies on the environmental impacts, to review this project, they've passed it with flying colors. that has happened here in the willow project. let me give you a little background, mr. president. first, this is an area of alaska called the national petroleum set aside by congress over 70 years ago. for what? for oil and gas development. it used to be called the naval petroleum reserve. this is set aside, it makes sense, that's where all the oil is, our country needs oil. so the leases in this area were first acquired, believe it or

not, from -- during the clinton administration in 1999, the company, conocophillips, all in paid a total of $120 million with rental requirements. so the company is paying the feds. it's a contract, and the feds say, we'll take your money and we're going to help you develop it. that's the deal. a lot of people forget that. that's the deal, right? so film preliminary work went ie producer filed for federal permits to produce in 2018, received final approval -- this is after many years of exploration, and it went into the environmental impact statement process and reached a record of decision at the end of the trump administration. okay. sounds good. that was the professional scientists said you can do this

in an environmentally sensitive way. unfortunately, all things get litigated in the great state of alaska. the department of interior said, well, we're going to to do anotr environmental analysis. to they did another environmental analysis and two more years and we finally got the final environmental a analysis impact statement two weeks ago, and here's what this environmental impact statement from the professional staff of the biden administration said, similar to what the trump administration, professional staff said. that after the environmental analysis, the biden administration, eis, found this project would not have a detrimental impact on climate, wildlife, people, places, things. like i said before, it passed

the environmental review. here's a quote on the impact of climate. on the access from willow, energy's produced from the project's oil would be replaced by other places like venezuela where they're much dirtier in terms of their processes and greenhouse gas. the environmental impact analysis acknowledges it. these are our scientists from our federal government who wrote the cis. no political appointees, they're career. two weeks ago, that's what you would think, we're going to get approval. not so fast, mr. president. there's 30 days left -- 30 days left, and guess what. every radical environmental group in america is coming out and knocking on the door of joe biden's white house and knocking on the door of joe podesta's office and saying, stop this.

we don't care about the science. kill it. i thought the democratic party is the party of science. the science is in. the project is good to go. so, mr. president, you can tell me are worried. senator murkowski and i are giving a lot of speeches on this. if they kill this, it won't be based on science, it will be based on raw, political power. let me repeat that. if the biden administration, in the next 30 days, decides to kill this project, it won't be based on scientists. their scientists have already spoken. their scientists said, good to go. by the way the trungs scientists said -- trump administration scientists said good to go. they're career scientist employees. if it gets killed, we're watching, the environmentalists are the only one who don't think we need an additional 200 million barrels a day.

so keep a close eye on this, america. the biden administration kills it, it will be the result of environmental -- radical environmental muscle, going to the white house saying, kill it. let's not let that happen. if you are watching and care about american energy security, vlm.gov, tell them. approve the willow project. come on. don't politicize this. you guys are supposed to be the party of science. the science is in. prove it. mr. president, i want to make one final point here. you know, it might concern some people, but i'm going to make it any waist. the department -- anyways. the department approved this and then the department of interior, without any really acknowledge of who said it said that the department still has substantial concerns about the willow project, including direct and

indirect greenhouse gas emissions, not sure what that means, and impacts on wildlife alaska native subsistence. now, mr. president, that's not what the career scientists said. read the eis. why would the department of interior put that out? deb who will inns, the department -- hollins, the department of interior. why would they put that out? they know their scientists said this is good to go. some of them are nervous if they're trying to set up the killing of the project. it's really frustrating, mr. president, i said this before. they mentioned they're worried about native subsistence, last week we had all of the leaders and the biggest experts in alaska who live on the north slope who know about natives subsistence, rights and hunting better than any group in the world. what is really maddening, mr. president, is if the

secretary of interior wants to know about native subsistence rights, which her department says she does, why wouldn't she meet with these great alaskans? five different times this group has flied from the top of the world to come and meet with her and she won't meet with them. five different times. dozens of my constituents, who are the experts in the world on native subsistence, but she won't meet with them. well, that's because they support the project and they're experts on the issues that interior's raising. so, i find that interesting. i find that disappointing. let me make one other comment. and you know what? some of my colleagues say, hey, don't say this, dan, you're going to rile up the secretary. but i'm going to say it anyways. here's something else that's frustrating. my view, even scandal -- in my

view even scandalus. our media won't ever report on this. but i'm going to try again. so the secretary of interior is from new mexico. okay. that's interesting. guess which state -- my state can't get barely a lease. we beg, we make speeches, we fly dozens of people into d.c. to get leases on the federal lands in my state to move forward. guess which state has gotten in the first two years of the biden administration more than half of all federal permits to drill on federal lands. you think it's alaska? no. is it texas? my friend from texas is here. it's not texas. it's not north dakota. it's not any of these places. guess what it is, mr. president. oh, my goodness. it's new mexico.

new mexico. isn't that an interesting story for somebody. the secretary of interior is from new mexico, the senior senator from new mexico is from new mexico obviously, and they're getting all the leases. they're getting all the leases. and here's the thing, mr. president. new mexico is on a tear in terms of producing oil. now, look, i have nothing against that. the country needs it. the country needs it. but look at these numbers, mr. president, these are millions of barrels. red is new mexico. gray is alaska. we're kind of steady. we need more oil. new mexico, red, look at that. holy cow. through the roof. through the roof. and guess what's coming with all that production. greenhouse gas emissions through the roof in new mexico.

where's the reporting on that topic? you know sometimes the media like to talk about a climate bomb in the country. ii don't really like the phrase. i think it's silly. if there's a climate bomb from production of oil in america, it's right there. now, again, i think it's fine that this -- this state's doing well. it's good for the country. it's good for workers in new mexico, but what i don't like, mr. president, is the rank hypocrisy. the reada's always -- media's always focusing on alaska, on our production, and look at this, 9,366 applications for permits to drill approved during the first two years of the biden administration in new mexico. that's right, over 9,000. my state can barely get one. 52% of all permits to drill in

the country, new mexico. the secretary's from new mexico. where is that story? where's that story? the secretary of interior has been shutting down alaska energy production while approving massive drilling activity in her own state and the media won't touch that story with a 10,000 10,000-foot pole. new mexico has increased production by 700,000 barrels a day since 2019. they're at 1.7 million barrels a day. my state's at about 500,000. we're trying to increase. where's that story, mr. president? you know the senator from new mexico is always trying to shut down any -- the senior senator -- any oil development in alaska. i've talked about it on the floor. i'm not going to go into it a lot here, but he's gone to extreme measures like writing banks and insurance companies to

say don't invest in alaska. but it's drill, baby, drill in new mexico. no one writes that story and i think it's hypocritical too because the greenhouse gas emissions this in that state are going through the roof. so there's a lot of hypocrisy going on, mr. president. my state, my constituents, the native people, the working people, they just want the most environmentally sensitive project in the world, which is the willow project, to keep our economy going and help our country. that's all we want. and i think given what the secretary of interior is doing for her own state, like i said, drill, baby, drill. climate bomb in new mexico, it's time to finalize the willow project according to the scientists and the final eis that was granted by the biden administration two weeks ago and

not use political muscle and political power to kill a project in my state when this blue state is drilling like crazy and producing like crazy. i yield the floor.

the presiding officer: the republican whip. the senior senator from texas. mr. cornyn: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, in january, monthly border crossings dropped below 200,000,000 for the first time, more than 160,000 border crossings have been logged. this is the busiest january, yet somehow the biden administration is trying to claim victory for this temporary dip in illegal border crossings. if you ask me, the president's popping the cork a little early. for starters, these numbers are artificially reduced thanks to the administration's new parole program. parole is not a commonly used word, but what the parole does

in this context is it allows up to 30,000 people from specific countries per month into the united states. basically they're waved on through. if migrants enter the country on a legal basis, which is exactly what this program creates, they'll never be tallied as part of the illegal migration's statistics. so how better to make something illegal legal than to simply wave your magic wand and create a new category in which migrants are admitted to the united states. in short, this new policy has allowed the administration to roll out the welcome mat to hundreds of thousands of migrants and pretending the public safety crisis at the border is abating. it's not abating. second, january is an

historically slow month formation x-rating. they've logged about an average of 43,000 illegal border crossings since january. as a reminder, last month we encountered 156,000. 43,000 during the previous administration. this administration, 156,000 in january. now, as we head into spring, those numbers are sure to climb again. warming temperatures and seasonal work always leads to increased migration, and i don't expect this year to be an exception. the numbers may have dropped temporarily last month, but there's no reason for the president to spike the football or to claim victory. every single day, thousands of migrants cross the united states-mexico border. the overwhelming majority arrive here with only what they can carry on their backs.

when they reach the united states, they need food, shelter, clothing, medical care, transportation, and the like. since president biden took office, the pace of illegal border crossings has made this already-tough job of caring for migrants increasingly more challenging just by the sheer volume of humanity coming across the border. so law enforcement, nonprofits, folks in my state who live and work on the border have begged the biden administration to take action. it's not even fair to say that they were met with a shrug. rather, they were just ignored. in order to ease the burden on border communities in texas, governor greg abbott began transporting migrants to other states and cities last year. if the biden administration is going to give them a piece of paper and say, show up for an immigration court hearing at some indefinite date in the

future, perhaps years in the future, then governor abbott's theory was rather than having them wait there in the border communities, give them a bus ticket and let them go to the place where they have told the u.s. government they intended to relocate pending their court hearing. at the moment, the challenge has spread from these small border towns in texas to enclaves in the northeast. the outrage machine fired up big time. president biden didn't care about the border crisis when it affected the leo grand gentleladily or el paso. but the moment it reached manhattan or chicago, it was somehow a crisis and of course we know who the president blamed. he blamed republicans. forget the fact that nonprofits have a long-standing practice of using federal funds to transport

migrants all over the country to await their future court hearing. once the state of texas or the state of arizona or the state of florida began offering transportation to these same migrants, the president and our democratic colleagues had an absolute meltdown. our colleague from illinois, senator durbin, called the practice cruel and inhumane. the white house press secretary said it was shameful and reckless. and vice president kamala harris went so far as to call this the height of irresponsibility and a dereliction of duty. so when it hurts my constituents, my border communities, the people i represent here in the senate, they're simply ignored. but once that problem begins to show up on the doorstep of the vice president or mayor bowser or mayor adams or the mayor of

-- mayor of chicago, you'd think the roof was calling in. -- was falling in. well, i don't think vice president harris recognized the many layers of irony in the statement that somehow this was a dereliction of duty and the height of irresponsibility. what it shows is simply how little she understands the nature of the problem, much less any way to try to fix it. now it's not just the nonprofits and the republican governors who are transporting migrants; it's the democratic mayor of new york city. eric adams is the mayor of the largest city in the united states. new york city is home to roughly 8.5 million people, and it's annual budget exceeds $100 billion. that's higher but all -- higher than all but a handful of states. mayor adams quickly realized

what border mayors have been saying all along -- that this is a big problem. after welcoming a few thousand migrants, mayor adams said his city was near the breaking point. again, this was the reaction when a few thousand migrants arrived in a major city with a $100 million annual budget. can you imagine what it's been like in small towns like del rio, texas, of 35,000 people where they had 15,000 haitians under a bridge in that small city and frankly without the resources to deal with them? so, frankly, i'm not all that sympathetic of mayor adams' quandary because proliferate what my constituents have been living with for the entirety of the biden administration. new york city has vast resources and a long list of folks willing

to help. and still it was struggling to care for the migrants arriving on its doorstep. meanwhile, communities across texas -- small in comparison to new york -- were absorbing thousands of migrants in a single day with only a fraction of the resources. over the last several months, the number of migrants arriving in new york city has grown dramatically. it's received more than 40,000 migrants, and the challenges have only grown. i'm not surprised by that, but this is a taste of what we've been experiencing for years, thanks to the biden administration's dereliction of duty. mayor adams started doing what republican governors of texas and the democratic mayor of el paso had already done. he offered these migrants free transportation elsewhere. so they come to new york, mayor adams said, this is terrible, and what does he do? but he then offers the migrants a free bus ticket to go

somewhere else. new york city has purchased bus tickets for migrants heading in all directions around the country. migrants were offered a free ride and many willingly accepted. this is exactly what's happened in border states like texas, but the reaction has been completely different. i haven't heard vice president harris, for example, call this the height of irresponsibility or dereliction of duty. certainly our democratic colleagues haven't repeated their claims that this is somehow cruel and inhumane, no matter how erroneous they were in the first place. when migrants receive free bus tickets from conservative states like texas, it's framed as a human rights abuse. but when it happens in manhattan, it's viewed as an act of charity or kindness. the hypocrisy is simply breathtaking. now, to be clear, i don't fault mayor adams for helping migrants reach other parts of the

country. i sure -- i'm sure he's trying to manage with this new phenomenon, but i would hope that he would recognize that this is something we've been having to cope with as a result of the failure of the federal government to deal with this humanitarian and public safety crisis. the influx of tens of thousands of migrants can certainly place a strain on local health systems and emergency response services. it can put a dent in a city's budget. it can overwhelm the nonprofits and hurt the vulnerable locals who already rely on those services. but that is exactly what we've been seeing in states like mine for years, but to no avail. it's unfair to expect any city, any state to carry the burden of this crisis because it is the federal government's responsibility. we now learn that every community in america is now a

border community. this morning during a finance committee hearing, the chairman of the finance committee, the senator from oregon, senator wyden, and the ranking member from idaho, senator crapo, both were recounting about the influx of fentanyl and synthetic opioids into their states and the impact it's having on crime and overdose deaths of their -- of the people they represent and care so much about. but last year alone, 108,000 americans died of drug overdoses. 71,000 of those from synthetic opioids, virtually all of that 108,000 -- those 108,000 deaths were caused by drugs that came across the southern border. so it's not just economic migrants looking for a job and a better way of life. it's people with criminal records, sex offenders, it's people smuggling drugs into the

united states, it's the criminal gangs that distribute those drugs in major cities all across the country, including in new jersey, who are responsible for much of the violence, particularly the gun violence, as they fight for market share and territory. so every community in the country now is a border community and a border state. well, this is not what successful immigration or border security policy looks like. the number of border crossings may have temporarily dipped, but communities across the country are still being crushed by the weight of president biden's border crisis. the one silver lining in all of this is it appears the president is finally -- finally -- acknowledging the crisis at the border. with the possible reelection for president just around the

corner, it looks like he's finally giving at least lip service to this major political liability. in his state of the union address last week, president biden urged members of congress to -- i quote -- he said, if you won't pass my comprehensive immigration reform bill, at least pass my plan to provide the equipment and officers to secure the border. close quote. well, i was wondering, what plan the president was referring to -- well, i was wondering what plan the president was referring to. none of us have seen it to my knowledge. i have asked many of my senate colleagues, and they don't know what the president is even talking about, because none of them have seen his plan to secure the border. he hasn't shown a serious interest in using the existing authorities to stop the flow of illegal immigration, but if the president's views have changed and now he's serious about dealing with this crisis, he will find a lot of allies here

in congress. and i would be one of them. senators on this side of the aisle want to reform the processes by which migrants are handled to quickly remove unlawful migrants who have invalid asylum almost claims and assure that the cartels are not able to overwhelm the border patrol by directing migrants to key strategic locations while the drug cartels move illegal drugs into the country that takes the lives of innocent americans. the experts i listen to, the border patrol mainly, have advocated for a combination of personnel, technologies, and infrastructure to ensure that the border patrol is capable of stopping dangerous criminals and contraband at the border, and we need to fix the broken asylum system along with its character istic catch and release, because if there are no consequences for people coming

into the country even though they don't qualify for asylum, they're going to continue to come, and that's been the case during the entirety of the biden administration. so if the president is serious now at long last, i encourage him to pick up the phone. communities across texas and across the country are suffering because the biden administration -- because of the biden administration's failure to simply do the job of the federal government. as mayor adams said while visiting el paso last month, he said, our cities are being undermined, and we don't deserve this. migrants don't deserve this. and the people who live in the cities don't deserve this. i agree with mayor adams, and i hope president biden has finally learned that lesson as well. mr. president, i yield the floor. and i would note the absence of

a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: quorum call:

ms. murkowski: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senior senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: thank you, mr. president. i request proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. murkowski: thank you mr. president. mr. president, i've come to the floor for a few moments this afternoon to recognize a woman of great distinction, a woman of valor, a woman by the name of elizabeth peratrovich who championed civil rights for all alaskaans. february 16 in alaska is a significant day. it is a day that the state of

alaska recognizes and observes elizabeth peratrovich day. we have designated this day as early as 1988, but it is a time for us as alaskans to reflect on the contributions of a pretty extraordinary native woman, a tlingit woman. and so i think it is important. i've had an opportunity over the years to speak about elizabeth peratrovich. senator sullivan and i add advanced a resolution recognizing elizabeth peratrovich's contributions when it comes to civil rights. i think it's always important and timely to pay attention, to reflect on the legacies of those who have really worked to advance a more inclusive society and a more representative democracy. elizabeth peratrovich, she

carried the tlingit name -- i'm attempting to do that well, but certainly with respect to honor her name, she was of the luka kuti clan. she was born on independence day. i think that's pretty fitting. born on independence day in petersburg, alaska, in 1911. it was just right after that, right after the period that elizabeth was born in petersburg that a group of native people from across southeast alaska formed an organization called the alaska native brotherhood, anb. two years later the alaska native sisterhood was formed. as these are considered the oldest indigenous civil rights organizations in the world, coming out of southeastern alaska, anb and ans sought to

advance equal opportunities for education, for employment, housing, and they fought to secure native civil rights. elizabeth peratrovich and her husband roy became active in anb and ans in the 1940's. they niewfd to juneau, our state's capital, in 1941. their personal accounts of the discrimination that they encountered in juneau as alaska natives, you read the accounts, you read the stories, and it truly parallels the jim crow practices of the south. but rather than be diminished, rather than be deterred, elizabeth and roy peratrovich were advocates, advocates against the adversity that they saw in their own communities.

and it was through their work with anb and ans that they began advocating for an antidiscrimination bill in the territorial legislature. and they pointed out the simple fact that alaska natives were paying taxes for a public school system, the same public school system that excluded their very own children. they pointed out that alaska native men were fighting in world war ii, and then when they returned from the war, those alaska native veterans were denied rights that others enjoyed. these very real, very immediate confrontations with discrimination drove their pursuit of equal rights for people all across the state of alaska. so they worked on this antidiscrimination bill that was

advancing through the legislature. it took a period of time. it was reintroduced in 1945. and in 1945, the measure passed the alaska statehouse, moved on to the state senate, and the debate on the senate floor was apparently quite animated and vocal throughout. but there was a territorial senator who denounced the efforts to desegregate, and he argued, and the words that he quoted are ones that as alaskans, we see the story told a lot. he said who are these people, barely out of savagery, who want to associate with us whites with 5,000 years of recorded civilization behind us? that's what he said on the senate floor.

at the end of the floor debate, at that time it was not unusual to open up for comments from those who might be part of the public. i served in the alaska state legislature, and we have galleries that sit directly behind the chambers that are open to the chambers. and elizabeth peratrovich was sitting in the gallery listening to this extended and very offensive debate, quite honestly. but she rose and she said, quote, i would not have expected that i, whom barely out of savagery, would have to remind gentlemen with 5,000 years of recorded civilization behind them of our bill of rights. she stood gracefully, she stood

firmly. she refuted clearly. and when asked if she thought that the bill would eliminate discrimination, so again pretty interesting exchange between members of the senate and a member of the public in the gallery, and not just a member of the public and the gallery, but a native woman speaking up and challenging forcefully and calmly but with a determination and a resolve. and when she was asked if she thought the bill would eliminate discrimination, she replied, do your laws against larceny and even murder prevent those crimes? no laws will eliminate crimes, but at least you as legislators can assert to the world that you recognize the evil of the present situation and you speak your intent to help us overcome

discrimination. pretty powerful reminder. and there was a long period of silence after her remarks, and then a wave of applause went through the gallery and through the senate floor, including from some who had previously opened -- opposed the bill. alaska's governor at the time, ernest greening, was the one to sign the antidiscrimination law, the nation's first antidiscrimination law, signed it into law on february 16, 1945. this was almost two decades before the landmark civil rights act of 1964. it's pretty significant when you think about the contributions that this woman, elizabeth peratrovich, her husband roy peratrovich, other alaska native leaders, at a time when

discrimination was rampant throughout our country. but they had the courage and the strength and the determination to stand up for what is right. she is an inspiration because she set the example that when you see injustice, you speak out, you take action. and she also provided a great example for why we need to listen to the perspective of all voices, especially, especially those who have been left out or left behind. elizabeth peratrovich is, as i mentioned, recognized in alaska on this day. she has also been recognized nationally. in 2020, the u.s. mint released these $1 coins commemorating

elizabeth peratrovich. 2020 was the 75th anniversary of when the antidiscrimination law for 1945 became law in our state. so on the one side of the coin, it features the portrait of elizabeth, the name of the legislation that she advocated for, and the symbol of the tlingit raven moiti of which she was a member. so it is indeed a significant reminder to each of us, alaskan and nonalaskan. i think elizabeth peratrovich day is also a timely reminder for those of us in the senate. it may not be easy to take on those complicated issues, especially when partisanship is pulling members back to their corners. but we know we can make good progress. we've done it. we certainly did it with the violence against women reauthorization.

we need do follow a process that allows us to get something done as opposed to sending mention. at alaska celebrates elizabeth peratrovich day, i hope the senate will look to her legacy, her example as an inspiration as we seek unity, as we follow her example of treating fellow citizens with respect. mr. president, thank you, and i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: thank you mr. president, i rise today to talk about black history month which has its roots with carter g. woodson as early as 1915 and has been officially recognized since 1976. black history month is an opportunity for celebration and discovery. it's time to share the successes and contributions of black

americans that are woven deeply into the fabric of american history. over the last year we marylanders made exciting history as wes moore became our state's 63rd governor, the first person of color to hold that office and the only currently serving black governor in the nation. we also elected anthony brown, former member of the house of representatives and a former lieutenant governor of maryland, to be attorney general. he too is the first black to hold this position in our state. they join adrian jones, the first black and first woman to serve as speaker of the maryland house of delegates who has held that post since 2019. nationally the senate made history by confirming justice jackson as the first black woman to serve as associate justice on the supreme court of the united states. mr. president, we are making progress. representation matters. when young girls and young boys of color see women and men who

look like them holding positions of power, it makes a real important difference in the expectations and aspirations they set for themselves. as berniece king, the youngest daughter of the late reverend dr. martin luther king jr. and chief executive officer of the martin lieu ter king -- luther king center for nonviolent change said if you don't think representation matters, you're probably well represented. representation matters in history as well. throughout our country's history, we have seen blatant attacks on teaching of african history as well as gapping omissions. today unfortunately we continue to see these tactics playing out across our nation. let me share a little of that history with you. the first -- african americans arrived in the 16th and 17th

century, during the first voyage to navigate the world. the first recorded group of enslaved africans arrived in virginia in 1619, the first of hundreds of thousands brought here against their will forced into servitude in north america. in 1641mathias des ousa was the first person to hold elected office in british north america. by 1776 at the time of the american revolutionary war, estimates are that about 20% of the population of the british colonies was of african -- african american descent. the founding fathers thought it appropriate that each of these men, women, and children were counted and three fifths of a person. after the civil war,

reconstruction meant opportunities for african americans in the south and the north, including the right to vote and be elected to office, to own land and to participate in business. in 1870, mississippi elected the first african american u.s. senator, a one-time minister and school principal in baltimore. he was followed by blanch k. bruce. african americans were regularly elected to congress until 1901. from there it would be 28 years until another black man served in the congress. the years between were turbulent and regressive. the summer of 1919 was dubbed red summer, as white an black violence exploded in dozens of cities across the country and continued thereafter. on may 21, 2021, -- 1921,

greenwood, a prosperous black neighborhood in tulsa, oklahoma, known as black wall street, was the site of an attack. the tulsa race massacre of 1921, a white mob killed an estimated 2,100 people and thousands were left homeless. despite the severity and destructiveness, however, the tulsa race massacre was barely mentioned in the history books until the late 1990's, when the state formed the commission to document the incident. tulsa is but one example. regrettably there are many more instances of white mob violence that also never made it into the history books. black history is it american history and attempts to whitewash or ignore the role african americans made to this nation even before its founding is an immense disservice,

segregation and racism is ugly and due humanizing, but they are part of america's history. for too long our history lessons failed to acknowledge the african american experience and the role that african americans have played in american history. we should all learn about the inventors like george washington carver, who popularized crop rotation, henry blair, the second african american in u.s. history to be issued a patent. his farm machinery revolutionized planting. gart morgan patented the first traffic safety signal and developed the first gas mask. madam c.j. walker whose hair care made her the first female millionaire in the united states. robert johnson he could funded black entertainment television.

we should all learn about scientists like maryland's own benjamin banocar, a mathematician, as astro physicist, further our knowledge of star and galaxy formation and evolution has done so much to popular science, especially as astronomy. all of this should take place in our history books, along with harriet tubman, frederick douglass and martin luther king, in florida, we saw an ablazen tack with the college's rejection of the new college placement african american studies scores. forcollege board officials since

denied they capitulated, on the first day of black history month, they deleted certain topics that related to black history. it was clear they were eager to keep selling their program. last saturday they issued a statement saying we deeply regret not demanding the department of florida's education slander, along with the statement that african american studies failed to have value and those who have long toiled to build this remarkable field. mr. president, florida's not acting alone. according to the brookings institution, nearly 20 states have introduced legislation to ban any discussion about conscienc or your honor conscientious bias discrimination or oppression. nine have succeeded in passing such legislation. these efforts are aimed at

showing the truths about our past an even our present. they eliminate responsibility for the collective work that we all must do not only to acknowledge the centuries of harm done to black communities, but also remedy the lasting effects of these harms. the continued suppression of history happens in many more places than schools alone and we are all poorer for it. so much of what we have learned from generations about history, culture and more have diminished or extinguished the role of african american creators and others. we must teach our children and learn for ourselves the full breadth of the american story, the good, the bad, and the ugly. if we truly aspire to form a more perfect union. philip graham, the former publisher of "the washington post" is credit card with saying, journalism is the first rough draft of history.

this is especially true in regards to black history. for decades white newspapers barely acknowledged the african american communities and their readership, except when they were negative stories to tell. brent staples, an editor for "the new york times," said that news newspapers that champion newspapers, paved the way for lynching by declaring african americans nonpersons, they embraced the language once used at slave auctions by denying them with mr. or mrs. one year ago, the baltimore sun declared we are deeply and profoundly sorry for decades -- the baltimore sun promoted policies that oppressed black marylanders. we are working to make amends.

the founder was a southern sympathizer who supported slavery and segregation. the editorial said, instead of using the platforms to question and strike down racism, the baltimore sun employed request prejudice, it fed the fears and anxieties of white readers with stereotypes that reinforced their beliefs about black americans, through which news coverage, the sun furthered the structural racism that seg gates black maryland -- seg radical environmental -- segregates americans. freedom's journal was the first black owned and operated newspaper founded on march 16, 1827, in new york city. the it declared, we wish to

plead our own cause too long others have spoken for us. the maryland-based afro-american newspaper began publishing in 1892. as the firm that owned the paper that fell into bankruptcy, john h. murphy senior, borrowed $200 from his wife and purchased its equipment in 1827. it was the third largest black-owned newspaper in in this the east coast behind the sig defender and the negro world. this is now the oldest black business in maryland and the longest-running african american-owned newspaper in the united states. john's great grand during grands the current publisher. withi joined with her and others

to -- alongside of my colleague, senator chris van hollen, these funds will be used to preserve the archives of the african american and develop a permanent home and research center for these materials, the largest collection of this -- of its kind in our country. the afro-american has been published for more than 130 years. i have seen a small fraction of these archives and i can tell thank you that there's so much history that needs to be preserved for the community, the state of maryland and the nation. the project will be digitized -- there's approximately three million forced, several thousand letters, audio recordings of thorough marshall and dr. king. the black press has played a critical role in the struggle for freedom for african americans, by

highlighting issues that mainstream media ignored. if there is no black press would america address its story honorably in pa way that bends however slowly towards justice? we think not. the black press is america's -- plays a critical role shaping and preserving our community's history from the perspective of people and advocating for a better, brighter day. today so many black journalists continue to walk boldly in this tradition, uncovering the stories of our time with an eye towards justice and civil right. at the forefront is the association of black journalists hawrtd at the university of maryland college park. this organization was founded in 1975. it is a nonprofit association with more than 4,000 members in the united states and worldwide. the organization advocates for

diversity in newsrooms, works to create strong ties among black journalists. the organization provides scholarships and works with high school students to encourage black stants students to pursue journalism careers. black history is america's history. black journalism is essential to telling the american story. on march 31, 1968, dr. king gave his last sunday sermon. thisthis was at the national cathedral. he said, we shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is wrong, but it bends towards justice. the objects kals we -- obstacles we face are harmful and hurtful, but they are temporary stump manying marks -- stumbling marks. our legislation will create a

12-person national council on african american history and culture to provide for the national endowment of humanities. it will strengthen teaching and learning in schools to ensure black history is recognized and provide critical resources dedicated to preserving black history. i was proud to invite governor moore at the state of the union, seated behind president biden was vice president harris. the senate curator removed the bust of former chief justice roger p.tawney from the old supreme court chamber in the senate wing of the capitol building. we are making progress. the removal was in accord accore with legislation i introduced with steny hoyer.

-- african americans could not be considered u.s. citizens and congress are no authority to prohibit slavery in the u.s. territories. our legislation directs the joint joint committee to -- for a -- e justice sought to prolong slave, the other, the first african american to sit on the nation's highest court helped to advance civil rights in this nation due to his successful supreme court argument in brown v. board of education, which held the doctrine of separate but equal has no place in american society. removing the tawny bust is making the right decision about whom we choose to honor. across the nation monuments to enslavers are coming down.

william falker in ner wrote thet is not dead. black history month is so important because it forces us to face who we are and who we are and where we're going. in doing so, it helps us respect and ultimately aspire to be a more perfect union. with that, mr. president, i would ask unanimous consent that in a separate place comments that i make concerning national children's dental health month be included in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: with that, mr. president, i would suggests the absence of a conform. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: quorum call:

mr. cardin: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: i ask consent that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that all postcloture time on the kahn nomination be considered expired and the vote on confair nation be -- at a time to be determined by the majority leader in consultation with the minority leader. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate consider the following nomination, calendar number 44, jill e. steinberg to be united states attorney for the southern district of georgia, that the vote on the nomination without

intervening action or debate, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and that the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: objection. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: department of justice, jill e. steinberg of georgia to be united states states attorney for the southern district of georgia. the presiding officer: the question is on the nomination. all in favor say aye. all opposed no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the nomination is confirmed. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i have nine requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have been approved by the majority and minority leader. the presiding officer: duly noted. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the appointment at the desk appear

separately in the record as if made by the chair. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to consideration of s. res. 77 submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. res. 77 designating february 16, 2023, as national elizabeth peratrovich day. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the consideration of s. res. 78 submitted earlier today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. res. 78 authorizing the sergeant at arms and door keeper of the senate to conduct quarterly blood donation

drives. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask as if in executive session, i ask unanimous consent that the senate consider the following nominations, all nominations on the secretary's desk in the air force, army, marine corps, navy, that the nominations be considered en bloc, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate, and that no further motions be in order to any of the nominations that the president be immediately notified of the senate's actions. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it stands adjourned to convene for pro forma sessions

with no business being conducted on the following dates and times. friday, february 17 at 10:00 a.m. tuesday, february 21 at 11:00 a.m. thursday, february 23 at 9:30 a.m. further, that when the senate adjourns on thursday, february 23, it next convene at 3:00 p.m. on monday, february 27, 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 the senate -- senator lankford be recognized to deliver washington's farewell address as provided under the previous order. following his remarks morning business be closed and the senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the walker nomination, and that the cloture motion filed during today's session ripen at 5:30 p.m. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president --

mr. cardin: mr. president, if there's no further business to come before the senate, i ask that the senate stands adjourn under the previous order following the remarks of senator murphy. the presiding officer: without objection.

the presiding officer: the senator from connecticut is recognized. mr. murphy: thank you, mr. president, i offer to offer some words in support of ukraine as we approach the one-year anniversary of russia's full-scale invasion. although the united states

government made public warnings about this premeditated attack for months in advance, it is still frankly shocking in retrospect when you think about what has occurred over the last 12 months. russia trying to expand its borders through invasion. and maybe we were naive to think that this practice went by the wayside after world war ii. it was common practice for powers for centuries beforehand. but the world has seen a level of brutality and devastation that is hard to contemplate. how unthinkable it was that in 2022, a major power would launch a land war, a war of aggression, in the middle of europe. pundits and analysts, they said that kyiv would fall in a matter of days. that was the expectation.

but the ukrainian people had different plans. they fought back bravely and we watched in awe. we still watch in awe as president zelenskyy stayed in kyiv, rallied his country in defiance of russia's attempt to recool nice ukraine -- recolonize ukraine. the world responded practically overnight thanks to president biden who saw this coming, who rallied the world to ukraine's defense, getting them the aid that they needed, especially in those early days and treating russia like a global pariah. it was clear from the beginning that russians -- russia's a-- aggression wasn't going to be on he owe the american people got this then and they still get it now. across the political spectrum in this country, progressives, moderate, conservatives

understand how much is at stake in ukraine. both morally and strategically. because what have we seen? we've seen russia launch this unprovoked, barbaric war of conquest against its democratic neighbor. we watched how they deliberately target apartment buildings, hospitals, churches, electricity grids to try to bring the maximum amount of misery to ukrainian families. how the russian military uses murder, rape, and torture as systemic tools against the civilian ukrainian population and how they boast of kidnapping ukrainian children and threaten to wipe out the ukrainian language and culture. there are 40 camps with upwards of 6,000 children that have literally been kidnapped out of ukraine and brought to russia. the scale of this barbarity is

hard to explain. the images that we've seen from bucha and mayor open pa -- mariupol, they are seared into our conscience. americans, they understand the strategic consequences that would come to america if russia was just allowed to crush ukraine, if we hadn't stood in their way along with the ukrainian people. what would have happened is putin would have been emboldened, given him the green light to march on other nato allies, potentially dragging the united states into a longer, far more costly war and putting american troops in harm's way. that's what i believe and that's what most americans believe. but this is important stuff, right? this is war and peace. we're talking about tens of billions of american taxpayers that are being sent to ukraine for the defense of ukraine. of course those of us who

support ukraine should welcome a debate over the united states should be involved in this war. but i'm just going to tell you that the growing chorus of opposition to supporting ukraine from republicans, mostly radical republicans in the house of representatives, does not feel to me like on-the-level criticism of u.s. support for the war. listen, i'm going to be honest with my colleagues. i think democrats probably got too wound up in trying to figure out if donald trump was involved in some hidden conspiracy with vladimir putin. all of this focused on intrigue kind of made us blind to what was right in front of our face. donald trump had this huge crush on vladimir putin and his authoritarian rule of russia and he still does.

donald trump wanted to turn himself into a quasi dictator here in the united states. that's what january 6 was about. that's why the floor of the senate was occupied by his supporters. and trump was jealous when he watched how easy it was for putin to stay in power permanently and what a hassle it was for donald trump to have to go through these pesky free elections. now, trump's admiration for putin, it's turned into a collective right-wing obsession. turn on tucker carlson virtually any night and you're going to hear him lionizing putin and pushing often line for line russian disinformation. elon musk uncritically blasts out russia propaganda about -- to his 100 million-plus followers. and another says he's the leader of the -- he's relentlessly

making fun of zelenskyy online. q aflon say the war is righteous because it's the next front in the war of these global traffickers that are operating out of pizza parlors in northwest d.c. and ukraine. can i go on and on and you get it. putin, he gets it, too. he's counting on the right-wing to advance russian propaganda and exploit our internal divisions. it's not surprising or shocking. the hot new thinkers on the right, they aren't really for democracy any longer. the new right, the all right, whatever you want to call it, they think democracy has outlived its usefulness. and needs to be destroyed, replaced by something else, like a quasi monarchy or a ceo style

of government. the conservative movement today is awash with proponents of doing away with participatory democracy and so it's really no secret that there is a growing affection for the most prominent dictator in the world. now, i want to be careful about how i talk about this because often opponents of a war are accused of being anti-american or unpatriotic or parroting our enemies' talking points. but in this case there's literally a wing of the republican party that is lifting up putin as an example to follow. it's claiming that he's involved in a righteous fight. that same element of the republican party is trying to destroy american democracy. they're not hiding that fact.

they're being transparent about it. some of the most influential thinkers on the right today are literally mon nra communists -- nonarchists. i guess a defense of the anti-ukraine strain of republican thinking today would be their opposition to ukraine is part of the a coherent world view. i might not agree with that world view, but it would be a defense. but the same republicans who are trying to defund ukraine are often the loudest voices clamoring for a confrontational and reckless approach to china. many of them criticized president biden mercilessly when he withdrew from afghanistan. if their opposition to ukraine was part of a broader theory of nonintervention, maybe it would look more on the level. but that's not what's happening here. ukraine is being singled out, and all signs point to this

right-wing republican affection for vladimir putin as one of the primary reasons. but here's the good news. the good news is in spite of this turn inside the republican party against ukraine, support for ukraine remains popular amongst the american people. nearly two-thirds of americans support the united states continuing to send aid to ukraine. 70% of americans just supported the recent decision to send m-1 abrams tanks to ukraine. and less than 10% of americans, a bigger number of the republican party, but less than 10% of the americans have a favorable view of putin, showing how deeply out of step trump and these extreme maga republicans are. and while there are more republican senators questioning whether we should stick with ukraine today than there might have been six months ago, it is still true that most republicans in this body, in the united states senate, still support

ukraine. a year ago nobody was predicting that ukraine would still be standing today, beating back russian forces out of kiev, kharkiv, kherson. it's equally difficult to predict what's going to happen in the year ahead, and we should all admit that. but i will say this, we should be clear eyed about the likelihood that either side is going to achieve all its political objectives on the battlefield. like most of my constituents in connecticut, i'd like nothing more for this war to end and for diplomacy to secure a free ukraine, but ukraine can't negotiate a peace settlement with itself. and right now vladimir putin is not interested in negotiations or a peaceful settlement. for those people telling

zelenskyy he should sit down with putin today, any agreement they write wouldn't be worth the paper it's written on. the day may come when putin judges that continued aggression no longer serves his personal interests and our job as the collective west is to convince him of that by demonstrating the limits of his power. and that's essentially what i believe that you have to show putin, demonstrate for him the limits of his power. and i just suspect that there is still some way to go before we reach that point. the new contemplated russian offensive tells us that much. so while there will come a time for diplomacy, right now ukraine must fight for its existence, and right now

despite what these pro-putin republicans say, it is in our interest to continue to support ukraine. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senate will stand adjourned until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow. >> pennsylvania democrat john fetterman checked himself into walter reed medical center for clinical depression and his sauce aid while in part john experienced depression on and off throughout his life and only became severe in recent weeks. monday john w evaluated by t

attending physician of the united states congress who recommended in-patient care at walter reed. theoctors at walter reed told john is getting the care he needs and will soon be back to himself. and senator fetterman's wife tweeted this today, this is a difficult time for our family so please respect our privacy. for us, the kids come first. take care of yourself and hold your loved ones close. you are not alone.

>> from the house and senate floors to congressional hearings, party briefing ands committee meetings. preorder your copy for the 118th congress and 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 and federal agencies and the government.

>> comcast is partnering with a thousand community acceptabilitiers to create wifi enabled lists so students from low-income families can get this. comcast supports cspan as a public service and oth television providers giving you a front row seat to democracy. >> illinois gover jb pritzker gave state of the state address from the capitol in springfield and topics included education, economic investments and small businesses and crime prevention. this is about 5