america needs to be universally supportive of the israelis because he atrocities that were occurred against them without provocation. i keep your eye on the big picture. the goal here is to upset the world order. if rush is to prevail in ukraine, that the course encourages the chinese in the pacific. the united states has never in its history allowed adversarial powers,o hostile powers to control europe and the pacific at the same time speeded we believe this conversation here as a u.s. senate is about the ae gavel in after their party meetings. lawmakers are expected to vote on kathleen monthly to be district judge for the middle of pennsylvania. they are also slated to vote to move forward with consideration of carly to be general counsel of the equal employment opportunity commission.. live coverage of the senate here on c-span2. ms. collins. mr. coons.

mr. cornyn. ms. cortez masto. mr. cotton. the clerk: mr. cramer. mr. crapo. mr. cruz. mr. daines. ms. duckworth. mr. durbin. ms. ernst. mr. fetterman. mrs. fischer. mrs. gillibrand.

mr. graham. mr. grassley. mr. hagerty. ms. hassan. mr. hawley. mr. heinrich. mr. hickenlooper. ms. hirono. mr. hoeven. mrs. hyde-smith. mr. johnson. mr. kaine. mr. kelly. mr. kennedy. mr. king.

ms. klobuchar. mr. lankford. mr. lee. mr. lujan. ms. lummis. mr. manchin. mr. markey. mr. marshall. mr. mcconnell. mr. menendez. mr. merkley. mr. moran. mr. mullin. ms. murkowski. mr. murphy. mrs. murray. mr. ossoff. mr. padilla. mr. paul. mr. peters. mr. reed. mr. ricketts. mr. risch.

mr. romney. ms. rosen. mr. rounds. mr. rubio. mr. sanders. mr. schatz. mr. schmitt. mr. schumer. mr. scott of florida. mr. scott of south carolina. mrs. shaheen. ms. sinema. ms. smith. ms. stabenow. mr. sullivan. mr. tester. mr. thune. mr. tillis. mr. tuberville. mr. van hollen. mr. vance.

mr. warner. mr. warnock. ms. warren. mr. welch. mr. whitehouse. mr. wicker. mr. wyden. mr. young. the clerk: senators voting in the affirmative -- kaine, lujan and sinema. sinema is voting -- senators voting in the negative -- britt, cotton, cramer,

grassley, hyde-smith, johnson, kennedy, lankford, lummis, marshall, moran, ricketts, romney, rounds, rubio, sullivan, tuberville, and fischer. mrs. fischer, no.

the clerk: mr. mullin, no.

the clerk: mr. van hollen, aye.

the clerk: mr. warner, aye.

the clerk: mr. cornyn, no.

the clerk: mr. wyden, aye. mr. murphy, aye. mr. boozman, no. mr. reed, aye. mr. casey, aye.

the clerk: ms. smith, aye. mr. tester, aye. mr. tbhent -- mr. bennet, aye. mr. cassidy, no. mr. hoeven, no. mr. hickenlooper, aye. ms. duckworth, aye. ms. stabenow, aye.

ms. warren, aye. ms. cortez masto, aye. mr. padilla, aye. ms. baldwin, aye. mr. heinrich, aye. mrs. shaheen, aye. mrs. murray, aye. mr. coons, aye. mr. sanders, aye. mr. king, aye. ms. hassan, aye. mr. collins, aye. mr. hagerty, no. ms. capito, no. mr. whitehouse, aye. mr. barasso, no. ms. ernst, no.

mr. welch, aye. mr. booker, aye. mr. daines, no.

ms. klobuchar, aye. mr. carper, aye. mr. thune, no. mr. blumenthal, aye.

the clerk: mr. markey, aye. mr.off, aye. mr. warnock, aye.

the clerk: mr. lee, no.

the clerk: mr. mcconnell, no. mr. schatz, aye.

the clerk: mr. schmitt, no.

the clerk: mrs. gillibrand, aye. the clerk: mr. fetterman, aye.

the clerk: mr. crapo, no. mr. merkley, aye. ms. cantwell, aye.

vote: the clerk: mr. peters, aye.

the clerk: mr. scott of florida, no. mrs. blackburn, no. the clerk: ms. hirono, aye.

mr. young, no.

the clerk: mr. graham, aye.

the clerk: mr. brown, aye.

the clerk: ms. murkowski, aye.

the clerk: mr. manchin, aye.

the clerk: mr. menendez, aye. mr. budd, no. mr. schumer, aye. mr. vance, no.

mr. cardin, aye. mr. kelly, aye. ms. rosen, aye. mr. hawley, no.

the clerk: mr. braun, no.

the clerk: mr. cruz, no.

the clerk: mr. scott of north carolina, no. the presiding officer: the yeas and nays are 52, nays are 45. the nomination is confirmed.

under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table, and the president will be immediately note nide of the senate's action. -- notified of the senate's action. the clerk will report the motion to up voke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion: we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of executive calendar number 53, karla ann gilbride of maryland to be general counsel of the equal employment opportunity commission, signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of karla ann gilbride of maryland to be general counsel of the equal employment

opportunity commission for a term of four years shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote: the clerk: ms. baldwin. mr. barrasso. mr. bennet. mrs. blackburn. mr. blumenthal. mr. booker. mr. boozman. mr. braun. mrs. britt. mr. brown. mr. budd. ms. butler. ms. cantwell. mrs. capito. mr. cardin. mr. carper. mr. casey. mr. cassidy. ms. collins. mr. coons. mr. cornyn. ms. cortez masto. mr. cotton. mr. cramer. mr. crapo. mr. cruz.

mr. daines. ms. duckworth. mr. durbin. ms. ernst. mr. fetterman.

mrs. fischer. mrs. gillibrand. mr. graham. mr. grassley. mr. hagerty. ms. hassan. mr. hawley. mr. heinrich.

the clerk: mr. hickenlooper. ms. hirono. mr. hoeven. mrs. hyde-smith. mr. johnson.

the clerk: mr. kaine. mr. kelly. mr. kennedy. mr. king. ms. klobuchar. mr. lankford. mr. lee. mr. lujan. ms. lummis. mr. manchin. mr. markey. mr. marshall. mr. mcconnell. mr. menendez. mr. merkley. mr. moran. mr. mullin. ms. murkowski. mr. murphy. mrs. murray.

mr. ossoff. mr. padilla. mr. paul. mr. peters. mr. reed. mr. ricketts. mr. risch. mr. romney. ms. rosen. mr. rounds. mr. rubio. mr. sanders. mr. schatz. mr. schmitt. mr. schumer. mr. scott of florida. mr. scott of south carolina. mrs. shaheen. ms. sinema. ms. smith. ms. stabenow. mr. sullivan. mr. tester. mr. thune. mr. tillis. mr. tuberville. mr. van hollen. mr. vance. mr. warner.

mr. warnock. ms. warren. mr. welch. mr. whitehouse. mr. wicker. mr. wyden. mr. young.

the clerk: senators voting in the affirmative -- cantwell, gillibrand, heinrich, hirono, lujan, manchin, menendez, murray, sinema, stabenow, warren, welch. senators voting in the negative -- barrasso, capito, crapo, cruz, grassley, hawley, hyde-smith, lee, scott of south carolina, tuberville, vance, wicker. ms. cortez masto, aye. mr. thune, no.

the clerk: mr. mullin, no. the clerk: mr. graham, no.

the clerk: mr. mcconnell, no. mr. van hollen, aye.

mr. budd, no. mr. marshall, no. mr. young, no. the clerk: mr. cramer, no.

vote:

ghts the clerk: mr. daines, no. mr. tester, aye.

the clerk: mrs. shaheen, aye. mr. rounds, no. mr. coons, aye.

mr. carper, aye.

the clerk: ms. klobuchar, aye. the clerk: mr. braun, no. mr. wyden, aye.

the clerk: ms. rosen, aye.

mr. lankford, no. the clerk: ms. ernst, no.

the clerk: mr. booker, aye.

the clerk: mr. kaine, aye.

the clerk: mr. moran, no. mr. rubio, no.

mr. ossoff, aye. mr. king, aye. mr. ricketts, no.

the clerk: mr. scott of florida, no. mr. reed, aye.

mr. cardin, aye. miss lummis, no.

the clerk: mr. blumenthal, aye.

vote: is. the clerk: mr. johnson, no. mr. schatz, aye.

mr. warnock, aye. the clerk: mr. bennet, aye. mrs. blackburn, no. mr. schmitt, no.

the clerk: mr. murphy, aye.

mr. hagerty, no. the clerk: ms. collins, aye.

the clerk: mr. peters, aye. mr. cassidy, no. mr. merkley, aye. the clerk: ms. baldwin, aye. mr. boozman, no.

the clerk: ms. duckworth, aye.

the clerk: mr. brown, aye. mr. kennedy, no.

4 the clerk: mrs. fish fischer, no. the clerk: mr. kelly, aye.

the clerk: ms. hassan, aye. the clerk: mr. fetterman, aye.

mr. romney, no.

the clerk: mr. sullivan, no.

the clerk: mr. padilla, aye. mr. warner, aye. mr. schumer, aye. mr. markey, aye.

vote:

the clerk: ms. smith, aye. mr. risch, no. mr. casey, aye.

the clerk: mr. hickenlooper, aye.

the clerk: mr. whitehouse, aye.

the clerk: mr. cornyn, no.

the clerk: mr. hoeven, no. the clerk: mr. cotton, no.

the clerk: mr. sanders, aye.

the clerk: mrs. britt, no.

the clerk: ms. murkowski, aye.

the clerk: mr. tillis, no.

the presiding officer: the yeas are 50, the nays are 47. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: nomination, equal employment opportunity commission, karla ann gilbride of maryland to be general counsel. the presiding officer: the senator from arkansas. mr. cotton: ten days ago, as israeli families celebrated the is a badge and a jewish holiday, a barbaric attack was launched

at israel killing at least 1,300 israelis and 30 americans. hamas fired thousands of rockets at israeli cities to massacre mothers, father, children, and grandparents. it was the deadliest day for the jewish people since american g.i.'s liberated the final concentration camps of the third reich. hamas terrorists raped women, paraded corpses through the street. they burned families alive and they murdered babies. in this time of horror and grief, my prayers are with the people of israel, and i know i'm not alone. upon hearing the dark news last saturday, god-fearing americans across the country knelt in prayer for the people of israel.

i believe all israel was uplifted by the prayers of our people for theirs that day. but like israelis, americans don't remain on bended knee for long. and let me remind you again that hamas also massacred 30 americans, and may hold as many as 13 hostage, making it one of the worst terror attacks against america in recent times. we have to avenge those deaths and do everything possible to bring those missing americans home. we stand squarely with israel and its objective to destroy mamas, not -- hamas not only as a terrorist group but a governing entity and social movement. hamas did not act alone and it shouldn't price alone. -- price alone. hamas won't exist at the scale and savagery that it does

without iran. iran funds hamas' political organization in gaza. iran assisted hamas in manufacturing the rockets and drones it used on the october 7 attacks. and iran trained many hast mass terrorists who organized and executed these attacks. most damning, according to "the wall street journal," iran's islamic revolutionary guard corps helped plot the attack and iran's foreign minister even attended meetings with hamas and the irgc to discuss the attacks. yet president biden could soon hand the terror regime in tehran another $6 billion in cash. joe biden has already given the ayatollahs $90 billion through his lax enforcement of oil sanctions and his unfreezing of iranian assets. tehran has predictably used this biden bonus to strengthen its

military and arm its proxies. just last year iran doubled the budget of the revolutionary guard kochs the shock troops of its terror regime, and it more than tripled its support for hamas' military brigades. worse, since president biden took office, iran and its proxies have attacked american troops more than 83 times. it has armed russia in its war in ukraine and helped orchestrate the worst terrorist attack since september 11. the last thing we should do is give iran another $6 billion in a dangerous ransom payment for american hostages. under public and congressional pressure, the biden administration purported to delay the release of this $6 billion in concert with qatar where the money is now located. but color me skeptical of a

quiet understanding between a soft on iran joe biden and a soft on qatar proficiency since they reserve the right to release the $6 billion at any time without notifying congress or the public. and even more especially since the qatari prime minister and foreign minister stood on a stage last week with the secretary of state and said in air abic that there were no changes to the agreement under which iran could access the $ $billion. that's why senator mcconnell and i have introduced a simple bill to prevent president biden from making this $6 billion payment to iran. it rescinds the sanctions waiver issued by joe biden and tony blanken, locking down those funds and preventing the regime iranian regime from withdrawing

them. like barack obama before him, president biden can't be trusted when it comes to iran. appeasement and accommodation are instinct well for them. whether it takes days, weeks, or months, joe biden will revert to form. in fact, he already seems to be doing so e this legislation would stop such a predictable reversal. i'm pleased to report that many of my democratic colleagues have joined senator mcconnell and me to call for the freezing of this $6 billion. understandably so, since is it means iran will have an extra $6 billion to support hamas, to expand the revolutionary guard corps and to salivate its nuclear -- and accelerate its nuclear program. will they allow it to pass today or are they all talk here in the senate? let's find out. mr. president, as if in legislative session, i ask

unanimous consent that the committee on banking, howmbtion and urban affairs be dprched further consideration of s. 3041 and the senate proceed to its immediate consideration. i further ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. p --. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. welch: reserving the right to object. i make a few comments. first of all, the senator from arkansas speaks for 100 members of the senate when he expresses his outrage at the horrendous killings, terrorist acts by hamas against innocent people in israel. the worst attack and suffering in israel since the holocaust.

the senator from arkansas speaks for every single one of us. second, in his characterization of iran as a maligned actor, association with hamas, hezbollah, the attacks they had on our soldiers twherp in -- when they were in iraq, i believe the senator from arkansas speaks for all 100 of us. he certainly speaks for me, and i want to salute the senator for the time that he has spent during his service in the senate, alerting america to the threat that iran faces. but i object for the following reasons -- first of all, this

president, president biden made a tough decision that presidents before him had to make, including president trump, about using the power of the office to bring back hostages who were viciously detaineed, cruelly detained, in this case by iran. he made that decision, and with the help of qatar, we were able to bring five american hostages home. that is a tough decision. but i would disagree with my colleague when he says that decision in any way indicates weakness or lack of resolve on behalf of president bushed towards what is happening and has happened to israel. there is no better friend to israel than president joe biden.

he has been an ally, supporter of israel throughout his time of service in the united states senate and as vice president and as president of the united states. and i do disagree, but this is not the time to get into a debate about the senator from arkansas' characterization of some of the intelligence about what was the role of iran and what just happened. that's a debate for a separate time. i also want to disagree with the characterization that this is more money that is going to go to iran. when this was being negotiated, there was great care given to the fact that this money had to be fenced off so that it could only be used essentially for

humanitarian purposes. and i'm talking about medicine, medical devices, food, and agricultural products. and let's keep in mind that, yes, we have an adversary in iran with the ayatollahs, with the iran revolutionary guard, but there are iranians who are suffering and who do need medicine. and our beef is not with the people. it's with that government. how are these funds limited? no bank can approve any one of of the transactions. this money is not in the hands of iran. and for any money to be released, we have the backup of qatar, where the funds are deposited. and the money cannot be approved

for any stuart to any vendor -- to any expenditure to any vendor unless it gets priewnchl from the united states government first. there is constant monitoring to make certain that the purpose, that it be for humanitarian use only, is met. so the u.s. completely controls the valves in these funds with the backup of qatar. finally, this would be somewhat insulting to the confidence we've placed in qatar and what diplomatic efforts they may be involved in now for other hostages, i don't know. but we want to express confidence in qatar that has assisted us to bring five americans home. and then finally, there's the

basic proposition. the united states made an agreement here. we got the benefit of that agreement with five americans back home with their families. mr. president, we keep our word. we keep our word. so for these reasons, i object to the unanimous consent request. the presiding officer: objection is heard. mr. cotton: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from arkansas. mr. cotton: i just want to respond briefly to my friend from vermont. it is my friend vermont. i don't mean that the way senators usually mean that when they say friends from another state and they are not actually friends. he is my friend from when we served together in the house some time ago. first i will note, as i said, that nine democratic senators have joined my call to freeze this money. those would be senator rosen,

senator manchin, senator baldwin, senator casey, senator cortez masto, senator brown, and senator tester. and will observe from that list seven of those nine are up for reelection in difficult campaigns next year. unlike my friend from vermont who just won his election in one of the most democratic states in the country. i wonder why these seven democratic senators who are at risk on the campaign trail last year weren't willing to join my bill. we offered them all the opportunity to join my bill but it was radio silence. could it be that they want to say one thing on the campaign trail and do another thing here in the senate? a few points that the senator from vermont made that this was a tough decision to free hostages and that we have to keep our word. it's always tough decisions when we face hostage situations overseas. however, paying $6 billion for

five american hostages, $1.2 billion for hostages simply encourages more hostage taking. we saw this the last time we paid ransom to iran under the obama administration. they immediately took more of the hostages that we just freed by paying ransom. just a few weeks after we paid that ransom, hamas perpetrated this attack and took over 200 hostages. maybe, maybe they took a lesson from what president bushed did with the hostages -- what president bushed did with the hostages held by iran. we can't be so naive to think we made this deal, we got the hostages back so we have to give iran the benefit of the bargain as if you can deal in good faith with a terror regime like iran. second, the senator from vermont said there's been no tbrerntd than president biden to israel over his long, long career in public office. i have to say i find it hard to

believe that israel would have no better friend than a man who has spent decades, to include 11 years as vice president and president empowering iran, the worst enemy of israel, a regime that still chants death to america and death to israel, by giving them hundreds of billions of dollars of sanction relief, by putting them on the path to get a nuclear weapon, by, for instance, not insisting that we continue to multilateral sanctions on iran's missile program that expire under the nuclear deal tomorrow. that's right, tomorrow, october 18, the eight-year anniversary of the part of the nuclear deal with iran that says multilateral sanctions on their missile and drones will expire at a time when iran is providing missiles and drones to russia to kill ukrainians. joe biden also when he came to office didn't just empower iran. he empowered the exact terror

proxies we're talking about. u.s. law prohibits the payment of aid to palestinians that engage in so-called marytr payments, the grotesque practice of paying the families of suicide bombers and murderers of jews, or paying them if they survive. congress, stop that practice, something called the taylor force law. the administration has refused to enforce that law. to my knowledge, they continue to say that they'll make aid payments to palestinian entities, which in the end inevitably free up more resources to attack israel, which gets to another point the senator from vermont made, that the $6 billion sitting in qatar and kind of escrow account, is only going to be used for humanitarian purposes -- things like food, medicine and so forth. i understand that's the argument i. get that.

of course money is fungible. iran now has $6 billion free to do other things. if a family in arkansas is struggling to pay the bill for the groceries and they don't know if they can buy christmas presents for their kids and twhent on a $5 hundred gift card to a grocery store to a booster club event, guess what? it may not pay for the christmas gifts but they now have $3500 -- they now have 500 dollars freed up to pay for the gifts. the same principle applies here. they also need some kind of social stability to maintain their grip on power. so, yes, it is a direct benefit to the terror regime in tehran that they get $6 billion for things like food and medicine that frees up their finances for other activities like supporting hamas and

supporting hezbollah and supporting the proxies in syria and aircraft -- and iraq that have attacked americans more than 83 times. the senator from vermont also mentioned the suffering iranians. they are indeed suffering, they have for more than 45 years. they have occasionally risen up in option. in 2009 during the green revolution when president obama stood by and did nothing to protect these brave iranians with joe biden sitting by his side. where was he? was he caught flat flatfooted? no. he didn't support iranian people when they were rising up against the ayatollahs in the summer of 2019 because he prioritized above all else atoning for america's sins against iran, in his mind and procuring a nuclear deal that would elevate iran to a regional power that would

balance off against our friends in israel and the arab nations so we could exit the region. and that's the exact policy that joe biden has pursued in his nearly three years in office as well. there's been uprisings in iran for over year. where has the administration been to support them? i would just say finally the point about the intelligence on whether iran had foreknowledge of these attacks, was involved at all in planning them. i think there are disputes about that. i find it very skeptical that an organization that gets more than 90% of its funding from tehran would launch an attack like this against israel without iran at least tacitly blessing it, but also say, to the point of analogy, you cannot breed pit bulls, feed them, house them, train them to attack and kill and then let them off the leash and claim no responsibility when

they maul your neighbors. that's exactly what iran has done with terror groups like hamas and hezbollah and militias in syria and iraq. so i regret that my friend from vermont drew the short straw to come down here and object on behalf of his vulnerable democratic colleagues. i'll continue to work with my colleagues, and hopefully some of those democrats who claim they want to stop the $6 billion from being released because the last thing we should be doing after these atrocious attacks on israel and on america, i remind you, is enriching the tie las any further -- enriching the eye i can't tow -- enriching the ayatollah's any further. mr. president, i yield the floor.

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from kentucky -- i'm sorry. tennessee. mr. hagerty: in the aftermath of hamas, there's been significant attention given to the united states -- in the united states to the $6 billion that the biden administration unpresident to as part of a -- unpresident to as part of -- money is fungible, the sanctions has enabled iran to spend billions of dollars

bankrolling terrorists, including hamas. this $6 billion was just the latest installment of an enormous wind fall that the iranian regime has enjoyed since joe biden took office. not enough attention has been paid to the way that congress has willingly abdicated its responsibility and allowed the executive branch to get away with appeasement to iran. according to many recent news report this year, the biden administration was negotiating an unwritten agreement with iran in which the united states would release billions of dollars of sanctions on iran in return for a mum of iranian promises. one of the artic tects -- architects as part of a broader strategy of appealing the iranians was none other than rob malley. he was placed on leave in june, he had his security clearance

suspended. the results have been catastrophic. iran has received tens of billions of dollars in revenue it would not have received it sanctions been properly enforced. iran's continued to obstruct nuclear inspection efforts and its proxies have continued to engage in terrorism across the region, most recently and tragically in israel. rewarding hostage taking by paying $6 billion for the potential release of five hostages, it only incentivizes more hostage taking of more u.s. citizens abroad by iran and other adversaries. to that point, as of now, it apps that iran-backed hamas is holding 13 american citizens hostage in gaza. i believe the biden administration's iran policies are misguided and threaten the

securities of americans and of our partners and allies in the middle east. i'm not here to debate the pros and cons of iran. the massacre in israel last week should have settled that debate. do i suspect we'll likely to have that debate in the months ahead. rather, mr. president, i'm here to argue for preserving the role of congress amid concern that the biden administration has continuously refused to enforce sanctions as part of a gradually unfolding agreement with iran and is doing so in such a manner that is designed to circumvent its legal obligation to submit an agreement to have a review of it. when president biden pursued the original iran nuclear deal, his administration disregarded its constitutional duty to submit the agreement as a treaty, requiring the advice and consent of two-thirds of the senate. in response congress passed a

law known as the iran nuclear agreement act by a vote of 99-1. it says that the if the united states and iran make any agreement related to iran's nuclear program, the white house must submit it for congressional review and potential up or down reviews in the senate and house of representatives. the nearly unanimous passage reflected the senator's bipartisan frustration that the executive branch was ignoring the constitution and trying to circumvent congress on such an important matter. since taking office, the biden administration has disregarded its legal obligations under the legislation and the u.s. congress has allowed the administration to get away with it. if the multitude of reports are accurate, the biden administration was intentionally avoiding calling its unfolding agreement with iran an official agreement. that was an effort to again sidestep congressional approval that's required under anara. in early 2021, i was concerned

this might happen, so i introduced the isrra in the 117th congressnd and re -- congress and reduced it in the 118th congress. it requires congressional review and up-or-down vote on any presidential waiver of iran sanctions whether it's labeled as an agreement or not. it overwhelming passed congress back in 2017. the cotsa profession allows for a congressional review and up or up-or-down vote on russian sanctions. my bill takes the same provision and applies it to any presidential waiver of iran sanctions. this is important. because any new agreement with iran will require the executive branch to waive iran sanctions. in light of reports that the $6 billion that the biden

administration unpresident to was part of the larger informal agreement with iran, congress would have had the opportunity to object before the money was unfrozen had my bill had the force of law. in other words, my bill protects the role of congress as the executive branch continues to ignore its legal obligations and refuses to submit a new agreement to the senate and to the house. so far, 41 senators have cosponsored the iran sanctions relief -- relief review act. this number is significant because 4 1-r senators would be more than enough to ignore the president's advice and consent if we followed the constitution and presented it to the senate as a treaty. house companion has passed through the house foreign affairs committee with bipartisan support. me -- we must protect this. mr. president, i yield the floor -- excuse me. mr. president, as if in legislative session, i ask

unanimous consent that the foreign relations committee be discharged from further consideration of s. 2210, than the senate proceed to its immediate consideration. i further ask that the bill be considered read a third too many and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: is there objection? mr. murphy: mr. president are. the presiding officer: the senator from connecticut. mr. murphy: mr. president, reserving the right to object. no one is proposing lifting sanctions on iran. this is a legislative proposal seeking to solve a problem that simply does not exist. so let's make that clear from the outset. second, the biden administration has been incredibly tough on iran. frankly, the biden administration has drawn a lot of criticism from people like me for not reengaging in the jcpoa.

instead the biden administration decided to drief -- drive a harder bargain with the iranians. the biden administration has not implemented new and additional sanctions on iran. in fact, just a month ago, the treasury department announced the 13th round of new sanctions on iran, mostly relative to the brutal suppression of the protest movement inside of that country. and so it's important to get the record straight in terms of what this administration's record has been on iran. and it's also important to for us -- important for us not to create some fantasy world in which the prior administration iran's policy was working. president trump's iran policy was an unmitigated disaster, an absolute disaster. whatever you think about the

jcpoa, there is just no question that after we withdrew from the jcpoa, a set of very bad things happened. one, iran started shooting at american troops inside iraq and inside syria. something that was not happening during the obama administration while we were in the jcpoa. second, their support for proxy groups continued to increase, including to groups like hamas. third, they restarted their nuclear research program. they are now one month away from a nuclear weapon. and, fourth, the coalition that had been assembled to organize efforts to contain and to isolate iran fell apart. and so let's not put a gloss on what was a disastrous iran policy under the previous ra she -- regime.

but as to the senator's proposal, even if we have disagreements on the jcpoa or the iran policy, this proposed can legislation is really -- this proposed legislation is really bad policy and it will make iran sanctions weaker and less effective. why is that? for iran sanctions every time you lift or waive a sanction, you have to come to congress. now, we have sanctions levied against, i would guess, thousands of iranian institutions, organizations, and individuals. and the purpose of sanctions is to change behavior, but it's not just punishment. sanctions are about delivering a consequence to an individual, organization, or a country for their bad behavior as a means of trying to get them to change that behavior, and once they change that behavior, the

saption is -- the sanction is lifted. that's why congress traditionally does not require a separate congressional review process, a separate congressional vote every time the administration lifts a sanction, you need an administration to be nimble in applying sanctions and also in lifting sanctions because if a foreign individual in iran or any other place understands that in order for a sanction to be lifted, not only does the administration have to lift it, but congress has to have a debate and vote, it is no incentive to change behavior. so i just think this is really bad policy. whether or not you like president biden's iran policy, and i do, whether minority you supported the jcpoa, tying the administration's hands on sanction policies in this way makes the sanctions less effective. i get it the republicans don't

like joe biden or his foreign policy, but this would be bad under a republican president as well. i am very glad to work with my colleague on increasing the role that congress plays on broad foreign policy decisions, but i think there are some day-to-day administrations of foreign policy, like the decision as to when to waive or lift a particular individual sanction that would become far too burdensome and contrary to national security interests if congress got involved to the degree that this legislation suggests. and so for that reason, simply because i think this is bad policy, whether this was about iran policy or venezuela policy or russia policy, i just think it makes our sanction policy much harder to effectuate and

ultimately makes our sanctions regimes weaker, not stronger. for those reasons i object. the presiding officer: objection is heard. the senator from tennessee. mr. hagerty: mr. president, i would welcome the opportunity work with my colleague, senator murphy on sanction policy, sanction policies that make sense. i would say this. if this policy is good enough for caatsa or russia, why wouldn't it be for iran? the senate has passed caatsa. if it's true that this administration is not waiving sanctions, not entering an agreement, they should have no difficulty with this level of review. i don't believe that's the case. and i'd also like to address the accusations, i should say, leveled against the policy in the last administration after the -- after the withdrawal of the jcpoa.

iran never stopped their nuclear program. israel was very -- in a very brave and courageous way proved that. they were continuing on that path. as part-my job as ambassador to japan, it was my responsibility to get japan to stop buying iranian crude. i was successful with that after many rounds of negotiation. we cut iran's fund flows down to a trickle. that started the ability for them to start proxies. it was reported in the media that hamas and hezbollah were going broke. that all changed when the policy of appeasement came back in 2021. by avoiding sanctions, but not enforcing sanctions, the estimates are as high as $80 billion of fresh oil -- illicit oil revenues that have entered iran's coffers. we know about the

payment that was offered by iraq to iran. and the $6 billion that's a received so much scrutiny in the media recently. all of this has enriched iran. all of of this has put iran in a better position to fund its proxies and fuel them. all of this is a very misguided part of appeasement. he yield the floor. -- i yield the floor. mr. menendez: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from new jersey. mr. menendez: i ask that all postcloture time on the gilbride nomination be expired at 5:15 p.m. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. menendez: mr. president, the eyes of the world are watching to see how we react to the terrorist attack israel has suffered. days after hamas launched a horrific assault, kidnapping nearly 200, killing over a

thousand, and injuring thousands more, the world is watching with bated breath. scenes of hamas' evil are seared into our collective conscience. the images are indelible. israelis slaughtered by marauding thugs. concertgoers shot in the back in broad daylight. people butchered, women raped had even infants murdered in cold blood. the barbaric atrocities are an affront to humankind itself. in the face of unspeakable evil, we must not mince words. we must not waiver in our resolve. every single one of us in this chamber has a moral responsibility to speak out unequivocally and unapologetically as we stand

shoulder to shoulder with israel and her people. now, i've been staunchly devoted to this cause for 31 years in congress. why? because the bond between our nations is sacrosanct. in 1948 the united states was the first nation to israel, a mere 11 minutes after it declared independence. our two nations intrinsically linked were founded on similar principles. among them, justice, equal rights, freedom of religion, and the respect for the rule of law. over the years, both nations have been shaped by individuals seeking refuge from tyranny and oppression. both nations have pursued truth and knowledge in an open society, unleashing innovation and creating untold prosperity for millions across the world. but beyond this common cause, the u.s.-israel relationship has

stood the test of time because of three fundamental facts -- one, the united states is strong when israel is strong. two, the jewish people deserve to live in peace and security in the indisputable land of their ancestors going back to the times of abraham and sarah. and, three, israel has the right to defend herself from the existential threats that surround her. this last point deserves special attention, especially as some seek to equate the two sides in this conflict. to me, adherence of this view could not be more mistaken. there is no moral equivalency. we cannot both sides the israeli-hamas conflict, not when one with is a sovereign

democracy that guarantees freedom of religion and the other is a designated terrorist group hellbent on killing jews and destroying the israeli people. we cannot both sides the conflict when for decades one has shouldered the heavy costs of war, terrorism, and unjustified boycotts and the other has diverted humanitarian aid towards weapons designed to kill as many as possible. we cannot both sides the conflict in light of the steps taken by israel to limit civilian casualties. no nation but israel actively takes steps to warning of impending attacks -- none. no other nation drops leaflets and makes phone calls to it alert residents that they may be in danger's way. only israel waits to begin its military offenses, even when it means losing the element of surprise and putting it at a tactical disadvantage. compare that to the barbaric

steps taken by hamas. when israel voluntarily and unilaterally withdrew from gaza in 2005, did hamas moderate its actions? did it take the opportunity to build peace and create prosperity for the palestinian people? no. instead, it instigated war and it continued to terrorize and kill israelis. it fired tens of thousands of rockets in population centers, reining terror down on families while they slept, children while they walked to school or congregants when they gathered to pray. not only did it brazenly commit these war crime, it did so while using its own residents as human shields. that's right. across the gaza strip, hamas co-opted palestinian homes, schools, and mosques to carry out attacks on their israeli

counterparts. so to those who seek moral equivalence between the two sides, i ask you -- who fires rockets out of someone's home? hamas. who uses schools and hospitals as launching sites for deadly missiles? hamas. who uses mosques as weapon depots? hamas. moreover, who denies food, water, fuel, and shelter to civilians in order to better its fighters? hamas. who denies palestinians the right to leave northern gaza, trapping them to use them as human shoulders? a mass. we must recognize of course that not all palestinians are part of hamas and that many residents in gaza are trapped in a sickling of violence that has nothing of their doing. but i'll say it again -- hamas is not a legitimate political entity t it does not have a mandate to govern the people of gaza.

it is a terrorist organization guided by religious fanatacism, full stop. in the past, when israel has opened up economic opportunities for palestinians in gaza, hamas used the good will of israel to lull israel into a false sense of security. in this way, the gazan people's thirst for freedom and prosperity has been supplanted by hamas' thirst for vengeance and destruction. after misleading israel into thinking that it cared about the economic well-being of palestinians instead of its stated mission of killing jews, hamas bought itself time to train and prepare for one of the most heinous terrorist attacks in israel's history. so make no mistake, the difference between israel and hamas is the difference between a civilized society and barbarism. if there is suffering for found in gaza, it is a direct result

of hamas' actions. hamas does not care if innocent israeli families are forced to suffer, and it does not care if palestinians go without food, shelter or electricity. it only cares about sowing chaos and fomenting violence in pursuit of its goal -- the destruct of the state of israel. but refusing to accept israel's right to exist, putting it at odds with arab countries who have joined the abraham accords and the palestinian authority for that fact on the west bank, hamas has revealed its true colors. for the sake of israel, for the sake of the palestinian people, hamas must be eradicated from the face of the earth. on october 7, it launched a brutal first salvo, an operation that clearly in my mind has iran's fingerprints on it because of the capabilities hamas alone does not have.

intelligence and technological factors. only a state actor would have that. and the only state actor willing to assist hamas with that is iran. now, perhaps hamas launched its attack in the belief that others would join a multi-front war to eliminate israel. perhaps it saw the writing on the wall with the recent abraham accords and talks of israeli-saudi normalization or perhaps it sought to turn sentiment to a tries the bottom boosting its own image. but regardless of why hamas carried out its attack, today in this chamber, let us expose hamas for what it is. let us reject the trap that they have tried to set and stand with our ally israel in the wake of abhorrent attacks.

let us recommit to the principles we share with israel as we support her in her hour of need. let us call out holocaust deniers who deny israel's legitimacy. let us promote the honest truth about israel's contributions and call out anti-semitism wherever it is found. and let us also root out the poisonous ideology of islamophobia that recently claimed the life here in the united states of a 6-year-old palestinian american boy, with e amendment of. let us do the work we were elected to do, passing a bipartisan funding package to replenish the iron dome, something that in the past i have led on, and swiftly confirming a nominee to be our ambassador to israel. this is not a moment to hesitate. this is a clarion call.

as we prepare to take votes on our allies struggle against terrorism, i can't help but think back to my very first visit to israel over three decades ago. it is a trip i'll never forget. especially the helicopter ride that crossed the narrowest part of israel in only three minutes. in three minutes we transversed is a pierce of land with significant history where so many reserve did notes with their backs to the sea are surrounded by unfriendly neighbors a. as i crisscrossed the country from the negev desert to jerusalem to the galilee, i was impressed by the holy sites that ground my faith as a christian. i freely visited these sites as so many others have over the years because israel's jurisdiction opened them up to all. it is a freedom to worship that isn't guarantee the everywhere.

mr. president, this boils down to the fundamental idea of freedom. will we accept a world where militants with rockets and weapons can dictate the future or will we send them to the dustbin of history? will we stand up to terrorists appeared be there for our staunchest ally when they are in need? freedom-loving people, freedom-loving nations must answer this call and meet the moment at hand. israel is the one place in the world, the one place, where anti-semitism can be struck truly impossible. it is the field of hope on which fear can be veining wished, the d.d. advantage wished, the idea that stand stills no matter how stormy. that's why we must always keep it safe and always keep it free. may we find the courage and the political will to do so quickly in the days ahead. with that, mr. president, i yield the floor.

mrs. fischer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from nebraska. mrs. fischer: thank you, mr. president. along with americans all across our country, i am appalled at what has happened in israel over this last week. it's hard to watch the brutality of hamas' attack on israel. it's hard to believe that the terror hamas perpetrated is something human beings are capable of doing. last week hamas militants stormed the israel-gaza border in a despicable deadly attack against israeli civilians, men and women, children and the elderly, israelis and foreigners, americans.

hamas killed person after person with no regard for human dignity. the militants seized and kidnapped almost 200 hostages, including many of our own american citizens. when civilians in small israeli storms came out of hiding, sheltering for their lives and praying they would be spared, they came out to find corpses in their streets. doors riddled with bullet holes. the ground stained with human blood. houses burning and collapsing. they told journalists the horror they felt when they stepped out into the wreckage and were met with the smell of decaying flesh. this is obscene. this is hideous.

we can and should all agree on that. secretary of state blinken on his visit to israel said he saw images of a baby covered in bullet holes, soldiers who had been beheaded, and people burned alive in their cars. he said, quote, images are worth a thousand words. these images may be worth a million. end quote. how do we respond to such a tragedy? not only are these actions depraved and inhumane, they have been perpetrated against one of our closest partners in the world. hamas' goal in this attack, its goal in kidnapping babies and elderly women was to shock israel to the core, bring it to its knees so that vicious terrorist groups could get the

upper hand. hamas from the west and now hezbollah to the north. hamas and hezbollah will not get the upper hand. israel will defend its sovereignty and its people, standing tall, and we will support them. now is not the time for the united states to shrink back from the world stage and let israel stand in isolation. we must stand up against terror. we must stand up against the kidnapping of little babies. we must stand up against the rape and torture of innocent citizens. we must stand up against those who would grasp at political

power by committing war crimes. if we can't stand up against this, what can we stand against? and in response to this terror, we must stand with israel. in response to a brutal attack on its sovereign territory, we must stand with israel. in response to the heinous massacre of its citizens, we must stand with israel. israel has the right and the responsibility to defend itself against this unconscionable aggression. we must provide its government with the support it needs to defend its territory and its

citizenry. we must take steps that allow israel to regain its footing and make the difficult decisions it needs to make as a sovereign nation. the united states and israel are bound by shared values and strategic interests, and we are now further bound by shared tragedy. hamas has american blood on its hands after this attack. some of our own citizens are being held hostage underground in gaza. we must act to show terrorist groups and their close friend iran that we will not abide the slaughter and kidnapping of americans. as a member of the senate armed

services committee and the senate appropriations committee, i am working with my colleagues and the administration to ensure that the united states is able to provide israel with the support and the resources it needs to eliminate this threat. our allies and partners as well as our adversaries are closely watching how our country will respond to hamas' loathsome attack. our actions, they should encourage leams and partners to follow suit in supporting israel and denouncing this terrorism. and our actions must deter our adversaries from taking advantage of the volatility in the middle east and to further destabilize that region.

our focus in the region must turn to one adversary in particular -- iran. the iranian regime bankrolls tricht activity throughout the middle east. iran has provided hamas with the weapons it used against israel. the regime directly supports hezbollah, the group that israel is now facing from across its border with lebanon. for the time i've served in the senate, i've supported efforts to curb iran's incessant attempts to sow chaos in the middle east, and today those attempts are coming to a head. we need to gather all of our economic and diplomatic strength so we can send a strong message to iran.

by countering iran, we will help israel, but it will advance american interests as well. we all know that iran is bhenlt on destroying -- is hell-bent on destroying the united states of america. its proxy forces continue to attack our forces regularly in iraq and in syria. the risks are too great to allow iran to accelerate this conflict my republican colleagues and i sent a letter last week urging president biden to immediately convene the g7 nations and take coordinated action to isolate iran using severe sanctions. our letter also called on the president to reverse a decision allowing iran access to a $6 billion fund which had

previously been frozen under sanctions. we urge president biden to instead lead america's partners and allies in securing agreements from as many nations as possible, agreements to take the most severe economic and diplomatic action possible under the law against iran. the u.s., the united states, must lead in imposing multilateralling sanctions against iran and continue to lead in making certain that those sanctions are then enforced. this week my colleagues and i introduced legislation that would revoke the $6 billion fund. the united states must not allow funding to flow to state sponsors of terrorism.

as americans, we must come together in a bipartisan manner to keep terrorism in check and to stand with our ally, israel. i call on my colleagues here in congress as well as the administration and people across our country to continue to unequivocally condemn the evil acts committed by hamas, hezbollah, and their primary sponsor, iran. we must stand together to support israel and to protect both american and israelis being harmed by the conflict and the bloodshed in the middle east. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor.

ms. murkowski: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: mr. president, i'm pleased to be able to follow my colleague from nebraska in urging for us as members of congress, really for us as americans to really come together, come together with a show of solidarity as we speak about the awful war that we are seeing unl fold -- unfold in israel. the unspeakable, the unspeakable actions that we have seen by the terrorist group hamas, the awful, the barbaric, the genocidal

violence and the murders that we have witnessed committed against thousands of innocent israelis beginning on october 8, none of us, none of us can unsee what we have seen that morning, throughout that day and then in the ensuing days that followed. we may be thousands of miles away here in the united states, but we are reminded of it daily when we turn on our televisions, when we open the newspapers, when we open our social media, the atrocities, the brutality, the kidnapping of civilians, the murdered children, elders, the women, these cold-blooded crimes that have been committed by hamas terrorists are unimaginable and

absolutely unforgivable, and our hearts are just heavy just talking with people, i've had an opportunity to be on multiple coasts this week from alaska to tennessee to california, here in washington, d.c., on the airplanes in between, and people are just heavy with sadness, with grieving for what we're seeing in israel, what we are seeing with the israeli people. it's hard to imagine what so many families are going through right now. and so at times like this, when sometimes you're not quite sure how to proceed, how to move, it is so important to make sure that those words of commitment, that those words of support, that we stand with you, that we unequivocally, unequivocally support israel. we unequivocally support

israel's right to defend their people from these brutal terrorist attacks. we unequivocally stand against hamas, which as secretary of defense austin has said has deliberately committed acts that match and exeend the absolute evils inflicted by isis. we must assure the world that we stand with israel and against the brutal genocide that we see from these terrorists. we must be unwavering. we must be ironclad. we must be resolute in our commitment to israel afnltd we use these words time and time again. here in the senate, there's a resolution that has been introduced, signed by almost member of this body that reaffirms israel's right to

self-defense, calls on all countries to unequivocally condemn hamas' war on israel, demanding that hamas release, safely release all hostages, condemning iran's support for global terrorism, including its support for terrorist groups such as hamas and palestinian islamic jihad, calling on the united states to lead an international effort, including through sanctions, as the senator from nebraska was just outlining, to deprive hamas and iran and other iranian groups their sources of funding. so these words of support, whether through resolution or words on the floor, are so important as they are, but they also have to be matched by our deeds, by our actions. and for congress, that means ensuring that the israeli defense force has the resources

that they need to defend to defend their people. first and foremost, the iron dome must be at full l strength to protect civilians from short-range rockets. the enormous strain that these hamas attacks have placed on iron dome of course means that the system is low on interceptors. we can and we must resupply israel and help ensure rockets launched from hamas cannot penetrate their defenses. congress must come together to proil funding -- provide funding and all munitions and equipment that israel may request. this is not a time for us to hem and -- to hem and haw. this is their time of greatest need. we must provide israel with everything that they ask of us. we have to be there. we must be there for our

strongest ally today, tomorrow, and going forward. and so for those americans at home who are asking, what can we do? we can individually -- we can individually step forward. we can support -- you can support our efforts here in congress, but you can also support our jewish friends and our neighbors who are seeing a surge of anti-semitism at home and abroad. in anchorage over the weekend there were several different gatherings of solidarity for israel. i had an opportunity -- i wasn't able to participate. i was there virtually and on an airplane for the first one, but i was able to meet with rabbi greene afterwards, and it was

gratifying to hear the solidarity by so many in our community embracing our jewish neighbors. it was very heartbreaking when he showed a picture of the armed security that had come together for this event to be there to provide protection, to know that security and protective details are needed in our domestic synagogues where people of jewish faith gather is heartbreaking and it is heartbreaking to acknowledge this is a problem here in our country. the fbi released a statistic that anti-jewish incidents were the most common, totaling 1,124 incidents in 2022 alone. not a single one of us should accept those numbers or ct acts -- or the acts behind them or that they are growing worse in the months ahead. please check in on friends who

not only have to confront the extensional front their friends in israel are facing but here at home. anti-semitism comes in many forms and we must combat it. we saw the story in the news of the 6-year-old chicago boy who was killed because he was muslim. stabbed by his landlord, his mother stabbed. to see this peaceful family who had nothing to do with the conflict in israel destroyed by an act of racist violence is beyond comprehension. we must never tolerate hate in any form against any people in israel, america, or anywhere else. so, mr. president, we -- we join countless americans in prayer, prayer for the families of those who lost loved ones in hamas's terrorist attacks on israel, those who are held as hostages, prayers for the innocence in

gaza, and prayer for the americans who have to watch their loved ones face danger at home and abroad. mr. president, i thank you. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. a senator: mr. president, last week i met with kansans at the -- moon moon mr. president -- mr. moran: mr. president, i ask to speak for five minutes prior to the scheduled roll call vote. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. moran: again, mr. president, last week in kansas, i met with kansans at the jewish community center. it's in overland park, and it serves our state and parts of missouri and the kansas city

region. i heard from the leaders of those religious communities. they were saddened and outraged against the barbaric attacks against israel. i join them in that outrage, and i pray for a justice that comes that those who have been -- are being held captive are released. it's been ten days since the world saw the images of carnage that hamas has wrought against innocent men and women and children in israel. the images depict crimes that are brutal and heinous and cause decent human beings to look ray way in disgust and horror. we cannot look away. we cannot look away. we cannot ignore what happened. hamas targeted elderly israeli citizens waiting at bus stops, young children and faints at home and in -- infants at home and in day care and young people at a musical festival, among others. as we continue to take stock of the impact of what transpired

last week, it is important to note that more jews were murdered on october 7 than on any single day since the holocaust. among those dead are 30 american citizens as well as others around the world. while security has been re-established in israel, the ideology which provided the rationale for the attack is still espoused by many and celebrated by many more, a fact made apparent in the demonstrations on university campuses since the attack. americans of both political parties have shown outrage, the appropriate response to terrorism. our grief followed by resolve. grief over the inhumanity of the terrorists and the tragedy of their crimes and resolve to protect innocent israelis from fursdz harm and achieve justice for the families and the entire

nation. israeli's -- israel's right to defend itself is not open to debate nor is it its -- is it its right to exist. america will stand with israel, our greatest ally in the middle east, we muss not delay -- must not delay in helping israel against terrorism many we must deter others who may escalate the war against israel. -- iran's leaders must know the fury of the united states awaits, the fury of the world, i hope, if they become directly involved many iran's complicity in the recent violence and suffering around the mez has to be un -- middle east has been undeniable. for years millions of dollars flowed to hamas from iran. iran's close alignment with hezbollah puts israel at risk of an arsenal of 150,000 advanced

missiles. for too long the biden administration has failed to enforce the sanctions passed in a bipartisan fashion in this senate in the house and signed by the senate to choke off iran's oil revenue. the results are stark. last year iran earned $30 billion in oil exports. from 2020 until now, iran's foreign reserves ran from $4 billion to $40 billion, a four-time increase and that's a lot of money to spread to its terrorist proxies, the administration should no longer delay in choking iran's revenue spree and that includes the money recently released by the biden administration. american foreign policy must be against iran to prevent future acts of terrorism. americans have committed to maintaining the principle that

the use of violence against civilians for political goals is an unacceptable form of welfare. now is the time to stand against terrorism and its enablers and supporters, now is the time to stand with our jewish communities here in the united states and around the world and now is the time to stand with israel. mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the question is on the nomination. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be a sufficient second. the clerk will call the roll. vote: the clerk: ms. baldwin mr. barrasso. mr. bennet.

mrs. blackburn. mr. blumenthal. mr. booker. mr. boozman. mr. braun. mrs. britt. mr. brown. mr. budd. ms. butler. ms. cantwell. mrs. capito. mr. cardin. mr. carper. mr. casey. mr. cassidy.

ms. collins. mr. coons. mr. cornyn. ms. cortez masto. mr. cotton. mr. cramer. mr. crapo. mr. cruz. mr. daines. ms. duckworth. mr. durbin. ms. ernst.

mr. fetterman. mrs. fischer. mrs. gillibrand. mr. graham. mr. grassley. mr. hagerty. ms. hassan. mr. hawley. mr. heinrich. mr. hickenlooper. ms. hirono. mr. hoeven. mrs. hyde-smith.

mr. johnson. mr. kaine. mr. kelly. mr. kennedy. mr. king. ms. klobuchar. mr. lankford. mr. lee. mr. lujan. ms. lummis. mr. manchin. mr. markey. mr. marshall. mr. mcconnell. mr. menendez. mr. merkley. mr. moran. mr. mullin. ms. murkowski. mr. murphy. mrs. murray.

mr. ossoff. mr. padilla. mr. paul. mr. peters. mr. reed. mr. ricketts. mr. risch. mr. romney. ms. rosen. mr. rounds. mr. rubio. mr. sanders. mr. schatz. mr. schmitt. mr. schumer. the clerk: mr. scott of florida. mr. scott of south carolina. mrs. shaheen. ms. sinema. ms. smith.

ms. stabenow. mr. sullivan. mr. tester. mr. thune. mr. tillis. mr. tuberville. mr. van hollen. mr. vance. mr. warner. mr. warnock. ms. warren. mr. welch. mr. whitehouse. mr. wicker. mr. wyden. mr. young. vote:

senators voting in the affirmative -- cardin, gillibrand, hickenlooper, kaine, lujan, menendez, murray, padilla, reed, rosen, schatz, smith, tester,

warner, warren, welch, whitehouse. senators voting in the negative -- blackburn, boozman. cassidy, cotton, cramer, hawley, hoeven, hyde-smith, johnson, kennedy, moran, mullin, murkowski, ricketts, romney, rubio, tuberville. mr. scott of florida, no. the clerk: mr. fetterman, aye.

mr. markey, aye.

the clerk: ms. ernst, no. mr. cruz, no. mr. wyden, aye.

mr. brown, aye.

the clerk: ms. baldwin, aye. mr. lankford, no.

ms. sinema, aye. ms. lummis, no. mr. carper, aye. ms. hirono, aye.

ms. stabenow, aye. the clerk: mr. rounds, no. ms. collins, aye. mr. kelly, aye.

the clerk: mr. booker, aye.

the clerk: mr. thune, no. mr. grassley, no.

the clerk: mr. wicker, no.

the clerk: mr. daines, no. the clerk: mr. vance, no.

the clerk: mr. hagerty, no. the clerk: mrs. capito, no. mr. cornyn, no, mrs. shaheen, aye, mr. braun, no.

the clerk: mr. casey, aye.

the clerk: mr. merkley, aye. the clerk: mrs. britt, no.

the clerk: mr. mcconnell, no. the clerk: mr. warnock, aye.

mr. king, aye. mr. graham, no. mr. blumenthal, aye. ms. cortez masto, aye. mr. bennet, aye.

the clerk: mr. sanders, aye.

the clerk: mr. peters, aye.

the clerk: mr. van hollen, aye. the clerk: mr. btu, no. -- mr. budd, no. the clerk: ms. hassan, aye.

ms. duckworth, aye. mr. schmitt, no. vote:

the clerk: mr. marshall, no. . the clerk: mr. sullivan, no.

the clerk: mr. risch, no. mrs. fischer, no. the clerk: mr. young, no.

the clerk: mr. barrasso, no. mr. tillis, no.

vote:

the clerk: mr. lee, no. mr. murphy, aye.

the clerk: mr. heinrich, aye. the clerk: mr. manchin, aye.

the clerk: ms. klobuchar, aye.

the clerk: ms. cantwell, aye.

vote:

vote:

vote: the clerk: mr. schumer, aye.

the clerk: mr. ossoff, aye.

the clerk: mr. coons, aye.

the clerk: the yeas are 50, the nays are 46.

the nomination is confirmed. under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table, and the president will be immediately notified of the senate's action. the senator from missouri. schmitt schmitt thank you, mr. president. i -- mr. schmitt: i rise to speak -- mr.. mr. schmitt: i rise to speak of the world's most deliberative body. maybe we were, or we can be again, but right now, we're not. this chamber spent exactly 0.0 minutes in the first nine and a half months we've been here on appropriations bills. not a second. and obviously, it leads to omnibuses, it leads to mini bustleses -- minibuses. this is a bus headed off a fiscal cliff. the founders enviptioned two senate from each state -- envisioned two senators from each state come here, with

elongated, deliberative debate. what we see is more like scripted kabuki theater. you don't get to offer an amendment unless we know exactly what the final outcome is going to be. for me, why not have open debate? have people offer amendments. debate these bills individually on their own merit. i think the american people think that's actually what happens here. it's not. when i go back home to missouri and talk to people about the process here, it is like a foreign land. it doesn't make any sense. it's not how state legislatures do it. but this vaulted arena of our republic has been diminished by the fact that we can't have debate on individual appropriation bills. we didn't have it, by the way, at the last deadline. we extended the deadline to november 17, which is exactly 30 days from now. for anybody keeping score at home, that's nine working days

according to the majority leader's calendar. nine working days. we're going to end up at the exact same place. on top of that, now there's a supplemental funding request coming related to foreign aid. my message on that would be the same -- these disparate issues, israel, ukraine, border, taiwan, should be debated on their own merits. there are different considerations. israel has a lot of support right now. what's happening, the terrorism that's happened, inflicted upon that country by hamas and the people, the beheadings, people burned alive, they have every right to defend themselves. we should consider that request when it comes. it is a very different dynamic when it comes to ukraine. we are $112 billion in. no one can define what victory looks like. seemingly, each rounds that we get to one of these deadlines, there's more money being asked,

it could be $100 billion next year. we don't really know. these things being lumped together makes no sense. when it comes to border security funding, color me skeptical of the biden administration's desire to actually spend that money thwarted illegal immigration. this administration has been hostile to the whole idea. i speak from some experience. my previous job as attorney general of missouri, we litigated with the biden administration in court over remain in mexico policy, title 42, the money already allocated to build the wall that he used for contractors to not build the wall. this administration is not only complicit, they have encouraged a flood across our southern border. we ought to have a debate on that on our own as well. any of the other issues we want to lump in, bootstap an idea or a proposal that is hiewzing popularity is -- losing

popularity is something that we ought to reject. this is a unique american institution, a senate that debates things in long form. and i come back again. we have spent 0.0 minutes in this place debating the most important thing we can do each and every year, which is to debate our priorities about funding, what we should increase, what we should decrease. the result is omnibuses that appear in the middle of the night, no time to read them, that add to the $3 trillion worth of -- $33 trillion of debt. this is our opportunity. let's spend the time. let's be here more than two days a week. let's get the work of the people done. debate these bills individually on their own merit and restore what this place should be which is a deliberative body. thank you, mr. president, i

no words can express the horror on the attack two saturdays ago. in the single day 1300 jews murdered in cold blood. men, women, children, the elderly, the disabled. those nearly 100 years old out of toddlers and infants. i was told at one of the kibbutz hamas rounded up over 100 people from 90 years old down to little babies they put them into the recreation room and then machine-gunned every single one of them down. and now it is reported there are

about 200 colleagues are being held by hamas including american spirit walk by the tv that said they just showed the first hostage a 22-year-old girl, it wrenches your >> how evil these people the art. how evil. wheat jewish people have been used to this for thousands of years. we live with it. as i mentioned when i talk about the kibbutz i remember my great-grandmother. 1940 when the nazis came into europe and told her she was well known because her late husband was a famous rabbi. gather your greater family on the porch of your home. they may be 800 jews in the town square which was to her home. they told her 35 people gathered from 88 years old until three months. they said to hurt you are all coming with us she said we are not moving and they machine-gunned every one of them down in front of the others. this is what we live with. this is why we are so resolute that the threat to hamas must be

extinguished. this morning my four colleagues who traveled to israel and i will have a phone conversation with president biden about how we can be most helpful to bring all of the hostages home safely. i promise the families we met that we would do everything we can and we are exploring every option. the five of us met with the hostage families and there was not a dry eye in the house watching the videos some had videos hamas sent some videos to the families. and we were just weeping together. that cruel inhumanity of hamas and the desperation these families had to get their loved ones back. october 7 will go down as a day of an extinguishable brief

reminder of much older darker days we must never return too. my colleague so i traveled to israel this past weekend the jewish people in america will stand with israel as an unrelenting partner. i promised that i will do everything possible to ensure the united states senate provides israel with the support she needs to defend her people the highest ranking jewish elected official ever in america the first jewish majority leader i will do everything i can to see that happens as will so many of my colleagues jew and non- jew alike democrat and republican alike which we so appreciate. the senate must above all work quickly and swiftly to draft, consider, past a strong package for israel as soon as we can. that includes military support, intelligence supports,

diplomatic help the military said the israelis have outlined to us on our trip with they needed we have conveyed that to the administration. very important and spoke with the president yesterday and he said something i had been urging there be a significant amount of humanitarian aid who have had nothing to do with hamas. while abroad i spoke with the israeli leadership. every single member we met with we said we want to make sure we have what we need to eliminate the threat but we also reminded them humanitarian assistance who needed including innocent palestinian citizens and the fastest, safest most effective way possible. we are going to keep working to ensure that happens reports in israel that hamas was trying to block that aid in certain ways blocked the highway at the people drove down. some told us israeli soldiers

were putting together water it means to bring water to some of the people hamas is shooting at but we must persist. we must be above the kind of evil cruelty that we saw from hamas. we must go by the rule of law to try and make sure that we do everything we can to minimize the pain and loss of innocent civilians and palestinians and everyone else. i thank my colleague senator rosen, kelly, cassidy, romney for joining on this bipartisan delegation. our mission in israel it was threefold to send a clear message of solidarity to assess what israel's security needs are we can put together a strong aid package and show support for israel is bipartisan. standing with the israeli government as i mentioned a list of military assistance they need in order to fully defend themselves and the limited the threat of hamas.

now tomorrow president biden to will travel to israel to affirm as only an american president can as long as there is a united states of america, israel will never be alone. i have known president biden who senator biden and vice president biden and now president biden his support for israel comes from the heart. he is a believer and that is so good. i know he will deliver a strong message of support and solidarity when he comes before the jewish people and i know he will reiterate as my colleagues and i did a meeting with each israeli leader the need to follow the laws of war and minimize civilian palestinian deaths. this is very important, very important civilian casualties are something we stress strongly will be spoke to israel leaders. now make no mistake the task we will face is so, so difficult. eliminate the threat of hamas

hard enough. secure the return of safe hostages safely held by these evil vicious horrible cruel. i do salt while minimizing the loss of innocent palestinian lives. this is all not easy but it is very important as we achieve all three. we continued working with the biden administration to stand israel on the world stage the senate has a lot to do here at home. move on eight robust i'm instructing art leading national security committee chairs to work with the public and calling some of the biden administration on the details of an aid package the senate can take up as soon as possible. hopefully within the next few weeks. that will include military aid, diplomatic help, humanitarian

aid, and intelligence aid. all things israel needs. what the house in disarray the senate will not wait to vote on an israeli aid package we cannot wait for the senate, for the house. who knows what's going to be happening there. the senate will go first and it is my hope at the senate can move quickly and passed pass sog with strong bipartisan support very soon perhaps as soon as today the senate will also act to pass a resolution championed by leader mcconnell and myself. condemning and confirming the right the right to defend themselves. the resolution it matters the senate must speak in one voice against dangerous false equivalency between the evils of hamas and their response against them. let us not forget it does not believe in any jewish state the

reason their charters hamas will do to the jewish people and the rest of israel what they did to the people on the gaza border. israel therefore it not only has the right but the obligation to defend itself and its people to eliminate the threat so they cannot carry out an attack heart wrenching attack like this ever again. we have to do our part to help them. so the next few weeks will bring a great challenge not just to the israeli people but for us here in america as we maintain our resolve to help the israelis. the world unfortunately it moves on quickly from tragedy. some already trying to move this tragic tube skewer the nature of power and under my right to defend herself. but for all israelis and for all supporters of israel across this country democrat, republican, liberal, conservative, jew,

gentile, moves them, hindu, anybody. they cannot be any moving arm from october 7. it is going to stay here like a deep wait in our hearts. the world shakes his head and said that was yesterday, the horrors are going to happen again. doesn't happen or it does everything possible to ensure the senate acts as soon as possible. i yield the floor and note the absence of corn.

between now and then the senate needs to do our part to pass as many appropriation bills as we possibly can. first in line is the minibus legislation that would send critical resources toward supporting america's farmers, keeping promises to our veterans and rebuilding crumbling infrastructure.

before the state work. senate republicans agreed on a list of amendments that would allow this package to move quickly here on the floor. i'm hopeful the democratic leader will call it up this week and give the full senate the chance to take an important step toward funding and government. of course passing the minibus is an early step. we have a great deal of work still ahead of us to finish the job. consider collins, senator murray and the appropriations committee literally. and as i have said before we need to consider additional time sensitive resources for a number of supplemental priorities but we cannot get on with this work

unless we clear and important hurdle this week. now on a different matter, is encouraged to hear president biden will visit israel tomorrow. as a jewish state mourns the victims of the barbaric october 7 attacks and israel forces continue in their work to root out the terrorists responsible it is important for the president israel's closest ally and bear witness to the destruction wrought by hamas palestinian islamic jihad and their patrons in tehran. the president will have a number of responsibilities on this consequential trip. first he needs to console a grieving nation while

demonstrating america's firm resolve to back israel and its time of need. american people feel the pain in israel we mourn our citizens, our own citizens who were slaughtered alongside israelis by these savages. in our grief and in our anger it america's interests are truly intertwined and our policies must be as well. president biden is to demonstrate support for this difficult but necessary step israel must take to destroy the terrorists capacity to wage war. the moral equivalence that is really perennial critics are using to mask anti-semitic

patron. resist the ardea mounting pressure and that media and diplomatic channels to constrain israel's effort to defend itself. needs to make it clear the administration will do everything possible to keep israel time and space it needs a military operation for as long as it takes. as long as it takes. words and actions president bided must also deter iran and tried for further additional involvement in this terrorist war. the deployment of a battle groups of marine unit and additional fighter squadron to the region are a good first step. but deterrents require both

capabilities and credibility the president needs to show that he means business. his tone, his statements and his actions need to send an unambiguous message to iran about america's resolve no more splitting hairs about whether intelligence demonstrates iran's direct involvement to the attacks supreme leader has rejoiced of dead israelis. the senior iranian official called it a proud operation hamas has a history of thinking israel for its support in public thinking iran for support and public no more absurd

suggestions seeking to free up $6 million in assets does not embolden tehran. we have reams of evidence that the regime that chance death to america and death to israel puts its money where its mouth is. ultimately president bided must accept the fundamental assumptions of his administration's iran policy were morally and practically bankrupt. begs to the obama administration flawed nuclear deal iran since their desperation and played hard to get. then at sought to de-escalate tensions by overlooking plots against american citizens and former officials ignore tehran's growing repression at home and

aggression of our own. while iran had other ideas. they like killing americans is much as a like killing israelis. after all the way tehran sees it america is the great stay tuned to israel's. we should expect that until iran's are afraid of us they as theywill continue to undermie american influence to test our boundaries and to kill our citizens. the biden administration previous iran policy is now history. the president must go back to the drawing board. he should start by doing what i have recommended to him since he took office. work with republicans to craft a bipartisan iran policy that will

survive his administration a plan that addresses all aspects of the threat iran poses. more immediately the president needs to show iran and its terrorist proxies like hezbollah further involvement in this conflict won't risk crippling economic sanctions and the decisive use of american military strength. the terrorists and their sponsors with israel and american blood on their hands represent a clear and present danger to the united states, to our allies and our interest. it is long past time for america to meet this threat with a seriousand credible deterrence.

>> 10 days ago as israeli families celebrate the sabbath and the jewish holiday around terrorist proxy mosque wants a barbaric surprise attack against israel. killing at least 1400 or israelis and 30 americans. hamas fired thousands of rockets infiltrated communities like massacre mothers, fathers, children and grandparents. it was the deadliest day since american gis liberated the final concentration caps as a third reich. hamas terrorist raped women paraded corpses through the streets and posted their crimes on social media. they burned families live they murdered babies.

this time of horror and grief my prayers are with the people of israel and i know i am not alone. upon hearing the dark news last saturday god-fearing americans across the country knelt in prayer to the people of israel. i believe all israel was uplifted by the prayers of our people for theirs that day. but like israelis americans do not remain on bended knee for long. and let me remind you hamas massacred 30 americans and may hold as many as 13 hostage. making it one of the worst terror attacks against america and recent times. we have to avenge those deaths and do everything possible to bring those missing americans home. we stand squarely with israel and its objective to destroy it not only as a terror group but

as a governing entity and a social movement. hamas did not act alone and it should not pay the price alone. hamas it would not exist at the scale and savagery that it does without iran. iran funds political organization in gaza insisted the manufacturing the october 7 attacks. an ironic trained terrorists who organize it executed these. most damning according to the wall street journal islamic revolutionary help plot the attack against israel and iran's foreign minister attended meetings with hamas to discuss the attacks. yet president bided could send the terrorist regime in ridge

and i run another six by dollars in cash. they've already given $90 billion through his lack enforcement of sanctions and unfreezing of iranian assets. tehran has predictably used this biden bonus to strengthen its military and armed as proxies. just last year i iran doubled the budget of the revolutionary guard corps of its terror regime. it more than tripled its support for hamas military. worse since president biden took office ironic and its proxies have attacked american troops more than 83 times. it's more of russia and war on ukraine helped orchestrate the worst terrorist attack since september 11. the last thing we should do is give iran another $6 billion in a dangerous payment for american

hostages. under republican congressional pressure the biden administration purported to delay the release in concert with qatar where the money is now located. color me skeptical of the quiet understanding between

>> walking down those funds and preventing iranian regime from withdrawing them. like barack obama, before him president biden simply keapght be trugsed when it comes to iran. but appeasement and accommodation instinctual and joe biden will revert to form and, in fact, he already seems to be doing so. this legislation would stop such a predictable reversal. i'm pleased to report that many of my democratic colleagues have joined senator mcconnell and me to call to the freezing of this $6 billion. understandably so, since it means iran will have an extra $6 billion to support hamas to expand the revolutionary guard core, and to accelerate its nuclear program. so will they allow this bill to

pass today? or are they all talk in the campaign trail and no action here in the senate? let's find out. mr. president, as if legislative session i ask unanimous consent that the committee on banking housing inurban affairs be discharge from further consideration of s3041 and senate proceed to its immediate consideration. i further ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed that motion be considered made and laid upon the table. >> senator from vermont reserving the right to object make a few comments. first of all, the senator from arkansas speaks for a hundred members of the senate when he expresses his outrage at the

horrendous killings, terrorist acts, by hamas against innocent people in israel. the worst attack and suffering in israel since holocaust so the senator from arkansas speaks for every single one of us. second, characterize of iran as malign actor attacks they have on our soldiers when they were in iraq i believe the senator from arkansas speaks for all 100 of us. he certainly speaks for me. and i want to salute the senator for the time that he's spent during his service in the senate. learning america to the threat

that iran faces. but i object for the following reasons. first of all, this president, president biden made a tough decision that presidents before him had to make including president trump by using power of the office to bring back hostages who were viciously detained, cruelly detained in this case by iran. he made that decision and with the help of qatar we were able to bring five american hostages home. that is a tough decision. but i would disagree with my colleague when he says that

decision in any way calculates weakness towards what is happening and has happened to israel. there's no better friend to israel than president joe biden. he has been a ally, supporter of israel throughout his time of service in the united states senate and vice president and as president of the united states. and i do disagree but this is not the time to get into the debate. about the senator from arkansas's characterize of some of the intelligence about what was the role of iran in what just happened it is a debate for a separate time. i also wanted to disagree with the characterization this is

more money to go to iran. when this was being negotiated there was great care given to the fact that this money had to be fenced off so that it could only be used essentially for humanitarian purposes. and i'm talking about medicine, medical devices, food and agricultural products. and let's keep in mind that yes we have an adversary in -- in iran with the itola with iran revolutionary guard but there are iranians who are suffering and who do need medicine and our beef is not with the people. it's with that government. how are these -- how are these funds limited? no bank can approve any one of the transaction this money is

not in the hands of iran. and for any money to be released we have the back up qatar where the funds are deposited and the money cannot be approved for any expend hour to any vender unless it gets approval from the united states government first. so there's constant constant monitoring to make certain that the purpose that it be for humanitarian use only is met. so u.s. controls with the backup of qatar. finally, this would be somewhat insulting to the confidence we placed in qatar in what diplomatic eflts they may be

involveed with now for other hostages i don't know but we want to express confidence in qatar that has assisted us to bring five american -- five americans home. and then finally, there's a proposition -- united states made an agreement here. we've got the benefit of that agreement besides americans back home with their families. mr. president, we keep our word. we keep our word. so for these reasons, i object to the unanimous request. >> mr. president, senator from arkansas. >> i want to respond briefly to my friend from vermont. my friend from vermont i don't mean that in a way that senators say that when they say friends from another state but they often can't stand each other and a friend from vermont and served

in the house some time ago together. first, i will note as i said that nine democratic senators have joined my call to freeze this money. those would be senator rosen and manchin and baldwin and casey senator sinema and browns and senator kesser. i will everybody on that list seven of those nine are up for reelection in difficult campaigns next year. unlike my friend from vermont who just won his election in one of the most democratic states in the country so i wonder why these seven democratic senators who are at risk on the campaign trail last year -- weren't willing to join my bill we offered them all of the opportunity to join the bill but it was radio silence. could it be they want to say one thing on the campaign trail and do another thing here? in the senate -- a few points that senator from

vermont made that this was a tough decision to free hostages and that we have to keep our word. it is always tough decisions. when we face hostage situations overseas. however, paying $6 billion for five american hostages 1.2 billion for hostages simply encourages more hostage taking. we saw this the last time we paid ransom so iran under the obama administration. they immediately took more of the hostages that we just freed by paying ransom. also to note that a few weeks after we paid that hamas perpetrated and took 200 hostages maybe, maybe they took less from what president biden did with the hostages held by iran and we can't be so naive to think that well we've made this deal and we've got the hostages intook we have to give iran the benefit of the bargain as if you can deal in good faith with the

terror regime like iran. second senator from vermont said there's no better friend than president biden to israel over his long, long career in public office. i have to say, i find it hard to believe that israel can have no better friend than a man that spent decades to include eleven years as vice president empowering iran the worst enemy of israel a regime that can't death to america and death to israel by giving them hundreds of billions of dollars of sanction relief by putting them on the path to get a nuclear weapon. by for instance, not insisting that we continue to multilateral sanctions on iran's missile program that expire under the nuclear deal tomorrow.

when iran -- and joe biden didn't just empower iran he was empowering the exact terror proxies we're products martyr payments grotesque practice of paying the families of suicide bombers and murderers of jews. or paying them if they survive, congress, stop that practice something called taylor force law and refused to enforce that law to my knowledge they continue to say that they'll make aid payments to palestinian entities which in the end inevitably free up more resources to attack israel. which gets to another point senator from vermont made that

the $6 billion is sitting in qatar and is kind of count is used for humanitarian purples or things like foods and medicine and so forths. that i understand that's the argument. i get that. $6 billion to do other things now. if a family in arkansas is struggling to pay the bill for the groceries, and they don't know if they can buy christmas presents for their kids and they win a $500 gift card to a grocery store on a friday night booster clean up football event. guess what, it may not pay for the christmas gifts but they now have $500 freed up to buy christmas gifts. the exact same principle applies here. and no, iranian people, government doesn't care for its people that's why they oppress them and murder them i graduate you that. but they also -- need some type of social stability to maintain their grip

on power. so yes, it is a direct benefit to the terror regime in tehran that they get $6 billion for things like food and medicine that trees up their finances for other activities like supporting hamas and supporting hezbollah and supporting the proxies in syria and iraq that attacked americans more than 83 times. and -- the senator from vermont also mentioned that suffering iranians. they are in deep suffering. they have for more than 40 years under the yolk of the itola they have occasionally risen up in opposition in 2009 during the green revolution when barack obama stood idly by and did nothing to support these brave iranians with joe biden sitting by his side. where was he was he caught flat fooded naive inexperienced president in fifth month in office, no he didn't support the iranian people when they were rising up against the itola in summer of 2019 because he

prioritized above all else atoning for america sins against iran and his mind -- in procuring nuclear deal that would elevate iran. to a regional power that would balance against our friends in israel and arab nations so we could exit the region and that's the exact policy that joe biden pursued in nearly three years in office as well. there's been uprisings in iran for over a year. where's the administration been to support them? and -- i would just say finally the point about the intelligence on whether iran had foreknowledge and planning them. there's disputes that i find it skeptical that an organization that gets more than 90% of its funding from tehran would launch and attack like this against israel. and iran at least blessing it but also say, to the point of

analogy you cannot breed pit bulls, feed them, house them. train them to attack and kill, and then let them off the leash and claim no responsibility when they mull your neighbors that's exactly what iran has done, has done with terror groups like hamas and hecks hezbollah so i regret my friend vermont rejects from the former democratic colleaguesly continue to work with my colleagues and hopefully democrats who claim they want to stop the $6 billions from being released because the last thing we should be doing after these atrocious attacks on israel and on america i remind you is enriching itolas any further. mr. president, i yield the floor.

[silence]

[silence] >> all right. okay. hi everyone. good afternoon. i would like to introduce admiral john c. commander united states indo pacific command doctor eli secretary of defense for security affairs. they will brief you on some newly declassified images of risky pla operational behavior

over the last year or so. against u.s. aircraft operating international air space in east and china sea regions and release video and images later this afternoon. with that i'll turn it over to dr. ratner. >> thank you sabrina good afternoon everyone. i would like that i can opportunity today to speak about the newly declassified pictures and video shared by the department today that depict the pla sharp increase in cohearsive and risky operational behavior in the eons south china seas. and in particular, i would also like to discuss why it represents such a significant concern. now, as many of you know every year, for over 20 years, the department of defense has released what we call the china military power report or cmpr a important document because it is the department authoritative public assessment of the pla role it plays in helping to realize beijing broader ambitions. this year's report will be out

soon, and taken together with today's announcement it is represents the department's most comprehensive depiction to date of this highly concerning behavior by the pla. well last year cmpr noted that pla fighter jets were increasingly engaging and cohearsive and risky operational behavior. this year cmpr provides much clearer estimate of that disturbing trend. specifically, since the fall of 2021, we have seen more than 180 such incidents, more in the past two years than in the decade before that. that's nearly 200 cases where pla operators have performed reckless maneuvers or discharged or shot off flairs or approached too rapidlily or too close to u.s. aircraft all part of trying to interfere with ability of u.s. forces to operate safely and places where we and every country in the world have every right to be under international law. and when you take into account cases of cohearsive and risky

pla intercepts against other states, the number increases to nearly 300 cases against u.s. ally and partner aircraft over the last two years if -- now let me take a moment to explain why this matters so much from our perspective. for decades, the united states has operated in the region safely, responsibly, and in accordance with international law and we will continue to do so. our allies and partners welcome our military presence because it advances our shared vision for a trees and open endopacific this vision at the dialogue this year is characterized by respect for sovereignty adherence to international law. belief in transparency and openness, freedom of commerce and navigation, equal rights for all states, and the resolution of disputes through peaceful means. not through coercion or conquest. and it is the peace and stability extending from the security environment that has provided the foundation for the

region's shared prosperity. by contrast, the pla cohearsive risky behavior like the kind that department is highlighting today seeks to intimidate and cohearse members of the community and giving their right under international law that directly contracts what the region wants for itself, and it can put lives at risk the lives of our service members, lives of our allies and partner service members and even lives of pla operators examples released by department today may each look different whether many terms of the distance between the lawfully operating asset and cohearsive and risky behavior or in term was how exactly the pla assets behaves in every interaction and all of the examples today underscore cohearsive intent of the pla by engaging in behaviors particularly in international air space and the bottom line is that, in many cases, this type of operational behavior can cause accidents, and dangerous

accidents can lead to inadvertent conflict in january of this year, for example, the american aircraft was flying in the skies above the south china sea safely responsibly, and in accordance with international law and hundreds of miles from land. a pla jet fighter approached our asset at a speed of hundred miles per hour clearly armed closing to just 30 feet away. and in fact once it was there, the pla fighter jet lingered at narrow proximity for more than 15 minutes just weeks before, indo pay com publicly released a video of a similar distinct and for the pla to engage in cohearsive and risky behavior so soon after that incident, indeed for pla operators to continue this behavior at all, points to what this year's cmpr will describe as quoting directly here a centralized and concerted campaign let me say that again a centralized concerted campaign to perform these risky behaviors

in order to cohearse a change in lawful u.s. operational activity, and that of u.s. allies and partners. we've also witnessed pla pilots deliberately interfere and create turbulence for u.s. by flying in front of aircraft at close disstances photos from a distinct in january 2022 show a pla fighter jet crossing in front of a lawfully operating u.s. asset at a distance of just one hundred yards forcing u.s. pilot to fly through the pla wake. again, this is at speeds of hundreds of miles an hour and at altitude of tens of thousands of feet. and this is not a one off occurrence in may of this year as many of you know, indo pay com released video of a pla aircraft speeding along a u.s. aircraft before cutting in front of it. you can even see the physical effects of the resulting turbulence on aircraft and the crew. this is yet another disturbing sign of the pla cohearsive operational behavior at a time

when the prc denied our invitation to open lines of military to military communication at the senior most levels. these images and videos speak for themselves. u.s. planes are operating safely, responsibly, and in accordance with international law. and indeed skill and performism of american service members should not be the only thing standing between pla fighter pilots, and a dangerous even fatal accident. yet, and yet -- time after time that is exactly what has prevented a disaster in the east and south china seas. as secretary austin has said on numerous occasions prc can and must end this behavior full stop. for our part, the department will continue to raise awareness about the dangers of the pla cohearsive and risky operational behavior, we will also continue to seek open lines of military to military communication with the pla at multiple levels including senior most level because we believe these channels are crucial for

preventing competition from veering into conflict. finally the united states will not be deterred or cohearsed we will continue to fly, sail and operate safely and responsibly wherever international law allows. our forces help sustain peace and stability in the endopacific for decades and we will continue to do so every day. so i hope today announcement can help increase understanding here in washington, across the endopacific around the world about why the pla operational behavior is so concerning, thank you and i'll turn it over to admiral before we open it up to questions. >> thanks doctor sabrina nice to see you and thanks for inviting me here today and in the audience honored to be here and i thank you for participating. eli talked about perspective and challenges that exist as it applies to the prc activity as described in the report. i'm here to talk about these concerns from my perspective as a commander of u.s. endopay com.

first let me start by stating, that the service members of endopaycome are uniform members are civilian warriors every day operate in order to prevent conflict. that is prevent conflict, not provoke it. now, we do that in order to execute our functions and our missions and that is to maintain a free and open endopacific. ....

plan, or hers, executed safely every day. as a joint force commander i am most concerned about the potential for accidents the weight doctor explain them. those accidents could lead to miscalculation. we must prevent these from happening in the theater. intercepts happen every day around the world. the vast majority are conducted safely and without incident. there is no reasons for the intercepts with the prc in the indo pacific region to be any different. i am here today the operational commanders number one responsibility to ensure the safety of our service members and our responsibility i take very seriously. so, highlighting these behaviors

and ensuring we can prevent them as a top priority. i want you to thank you again for being here today and look forward to your questions. corrects a quick note at the top i would ask you keep your questions to the topic. with that. >> thank you. given the conflict in the middle east how concerned are you that you will not have assets you need given there is now two carriers monitoring. how will you continue to deter china if all these assets need to go into another central command conflict? and given that there is also a second conflict have you been able to speak to any of your partners or allies about increasing production to get more since both israel and ukraine will need them? >> thanks, let me start first it

is incredibly sad to watch the actions of the terrorists in the middle east. it is also sad to watch ill it illegal war in ukraine. that has been initiated by the russians. as it applies to the end of pacific and my responsibilities what i will tell you is i have not had one piece of equipment or force structure depart the united states as a global power. that means we can deliver affects and execute our deterrent responsibilities across the globe. i don't think any other nation can do that at this time. the united states can. by the way the indo pacific command has two aircraft carriers right now at sea as well. along with the larger portion of the joint force executing missions in my theater. >> maybe i will follow follow up i'm going to stay away from the questions about issues related to other theaters and discussions with her allies and

partners. but what i will say about this question, the events in other parts of the world mean for our policy and strategy in the end of pacific and as it relates to the prc we have a 2022 national defense strategy described the prc as the department challenge that remains true today. we have presidential budget request for the department that reflects that strategy. a strategy driven budget. we have been in addition to those investments developing new operational concepts relevant to the region. we have been developing a more mobile distributed lethal and resilient posture in the end of pacific without a banner year in that regard are less 12 months a great work in concert with an opaque come from japan, the philippines down through australia and in the meantime we haven't deepening our alliances and partnerships in the region

to a-t our key alliances and partnerships in the region are stronger than they have ever been. as a result of that activity you have likely heard department leaders say repeatedly we believe deterrence is real and deterrence is strong. we are doing everything we can to keep it that way. >> is their concern in the region having to engage in both ukraine and israel there might be a reduced capability to meet whatever threat is faced by those same countries by china? looks like i said to take a number steps to strengthen our commitment to strengthen our deterrent we will continue to do that. ask admiral, similarly you see in indications or intel chinese are looking at the. then as an opening for a for pol invasion of taiwan.

how many of these what her 80 or unprofessional that's the standard you have measured with yourself. it's subjective a metric. >> first, thanks i'm certainly not going to discuss an intel i have seen. what i would say is historically all nations look at what is going on in the geopolitical space in the military space. art expected to be lessons learned. i redid to ensure we execute both the missions a secretary my gave me. if mitch and one fails be provided to win. those go on each and every day. we would expect all nations to be watching these actions and determining how this best fits in the future ways.

that said my forces are ready today. works in response to your question with a very specific set of criteria we used to articulate and describe particular behaviors. that is classified should remain classified and what we are presenting today is a set of activities that we believe exhibit observable behavior we have catalogued along the lines i have described. i understand the desire for exactly how many of these but what is the exact number? one is too many that's our view with the department. we have provided and will have on our website if it's not up already weigh 15 specific incidences cataloging over the period from the fall of 2021 through today. the most recent case in september and every one of these is one too many.

>> am going to go to janie. [inaudible] with the minister meeting tomorrow. [inaudible] [inaudible] >> thank you. we watch very closely the cooperation and certainly the concern and opaque come on the relationship between the prc and russia. the inability to denounce bad actions globally in their increased cooperation exercises we watch very closely. two authoritarian powers working work inthe closely together is

certainly concerning. cycling following north korea and russia with a transfer of weapons and capabilities you've seen and written about is also of concern. the region has gotten more dangerous and we watch very closely. >> the top reasons, the reason why? what you are going to have to ask my counterparts in china as i've been on that record before i've asked to speak with my counterparts the eastern and southern theater commanders now going on in two and half years. i have yet to have one of those requests excepted. i look forward to speaking to my counterparts i think developing that relationship would be critical to maintaining in the region. >> the incident you are talking about focusing on i am wondering

racing related action and that maritime domain? there been some impotence and videos shared by dod and others. is there a similar trend that you are seeing? >> maybe i will take that first and pass it over. absolute yes this is part of a broader pattern of the pla behavior throughout the region. throughout domains and throughout geographies we are seeing this behavior on the water in east china sea and south china sea are seeing it against allies and partners. not just the united states we are seeing it on land against our indian partners. this is part of a much broader picture. what we wanted to do today was a focus on this particular set provide some information. execue calendar number 209, that the

senate vote on the nomination without intervening action or debate, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, department of state, ana a. escrogima of new york to be ambassador of the united states of america to oman. 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. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to legislative session to be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule 22, at a time to be determined by the majority leader in consultation with the republican leader no later than october 26, 2023, that it be in

order for senator more shal or his designee to move to calendar 229, s.j. res. 42, further that if the motion is agreed to, there be ten hours of debate equally divided between the proponents and opponents ever the joint resolution. further, upon the use or yielding back of that time, the joint resolution be read a third time and the senate vote on passage of the joint resolution. finally that all other provisions under chapter 8 of title 5, united states code, remain in effect except the 60-session day clock. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the senate now proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following senate resolutions submitted earlier today. senate res. 409, senate res. 410, senate res. 411. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the resolutions en bloc. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the resolutions be agreed to, the preambles where applicable be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc. the presiding officer: without

objection. mr. schumer: mr. president, i have three requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. the presiding officer: duly noted. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10:30 a.m. on wednesday, october 18, that following the prayer and pledge, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved later in the day and morning business be closed. that upon the conclusion of morning business, the senate proceed to consideration of calendar it 228, s.j. res. 32, at 12 noon the joint resolution be read a third time and the senate vote on passage of the joint resolution without intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: if there's no further business to come before the senate, i ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order. the presiding officer: the senate stands adjourned until senate stands adjourned until

and it without the u.s. senate has gaveled out for the debris lawmakers approved nomination of jennifer halter but u.s. district court judge for delaware and julie to be a u.s. district court judge for the middle district of pennsylvania. as always you can follow gaveled to gaveled senate coverage by here on cspan2. ♪ c spans a "washington journal" live performer involvement you to discuss the latest issues of government, politics, public policy. for washington d.c. and across the country. capito lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and a preview approach in biden's trip to israel. she spent a "washington journal" join in the conversation light seven eastern wednesday morning on c-span, c-span now or online at c-span.org.

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