the clerk: mr. murphy, aye.

the clerk: mr. tester, aye. vote: vote: .

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

mr. markey, aye. mr. budd, no.

the clerk: mr. mcconnell, no.

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

the clerk: mrs. gillibrand, aye. the clerk: mr. tillis, aye. mr. hawley, no.

brought their war on the united states to american soil. they fill the clear blue sky with smoke, fire, and shattered the lives of 2977 innocent people. before the dust had settled, the world witnessed the extraordinary heroism of first responders. the compassion of neighbors and volunteers and the will of a proud nation not to let this savagery go unanswered. the terrorists who started this

war, and at times that has wavered. since the years since september 11, 2001, the administrations of both parties, not to shortchange or abandon our fight against the terrorists or adversaries. colleagues in congress, not to make the job of the war fighter harder by taking essential terrorism authorities off the table and i will continue to do

so as our colleagues continue section 702, two years to further extend this vital intelligence authority. the biden administration pretend the war on terrorism is over. the vice president claimed last night but, quote, there's not one member of the united states military who is in active duty in a combat zone for the first time this century. this would of course be news to us service members who conduct operations against isis in a rack last week. and to the sailors intercepting houthi rockets in the red sea and to the families of servicemembers killed and

injured in the attack, earlier this year. our current commander-in-chief and the biden/harris administration are not the first to chase the tail of terrorist detention at guantánamo bay. not the first to indulge in the idea to pivot away from a region full of important us interests. america gets to decide unilaterally when threats from afghanistan. they follow through with the disastrous retreat the torched american credibility and left 13 servicemembers dead.

the administration has the mistaken idea because the us-led coalition made tremendous progress, continue to do so over the horizon, so how is that going? despite assurances from the secretary of defense that over the horizon operations would not suffer from lack of human intelligence after the us withdrawal, the administration hasn't conducted a single strike, not one against isis k, the terrorists responsible for the abbygate bombing and other atrocities since 2001. that's not because the terrorists have been quiet. one analysis this year, isis k had 24 thoughts in 9 countries

in the previous 12 months alone compared to 3 between 2018 and spring of 2022. the annual threat assessment was forced to acknowledge, quote, terrorists will maintain an interest in conducting attacks against us persons, allies and interests worldwide. america's retreat from afghanistan invited balance elsewhere from the resurgence of the islamic state in iraq and

yemen to al qaeda affiliates. then palestinian islamic jihad and hezbollah and the houthis and iraq terrorist groups who have been trained and equipped, aided and abetted by the world's state sponsor of terror, iran. on october 7th, described as israel's september 11th. relative to population it was september 11, '15 times over. it was the deadliest day for the jewish people since the holocaust and it wouldn't have been possible without the involvement of terror on.

the chaos stemming from this assault, and the violent choreography from the irg see of attacks on israel and us interests across the region is evidence of the failure of this administration's accommodative approach to iran and terrorist proxies, america's weakness, to not deter our adversaries with critical appearance from partners on the front lines who have to treat them, this is true in israel and ukraine, allies, partners and adversaries and elsewhere, watching a generative america pool its punches. they are questioning our resolve and commitment to our friends. if we are unwilling to change

iran's calculus and compel a end to attacks on american forces in iraqi. and and can we be trusted. and 23 years ago a dangerous world struck america here at home. we must not wait to do the same. since president biden took office consumer prices have increased 20%. the monthly inflation report, vice president harris has said we are very proud of bidenomics,

she should be. it was the vice president herself who helped send our economy into a historic inflationary spiral. back in march 2021 she cast a tie-breaking vote on the motion to proceed to the american rescue plan. in august 2022, passage of the so-called inflation reduction act. sure enough, the vice president is proud of this record. the way she tells it, through all the work president biden and i are building an economy that works for working people. what does it really? does it really work for working people? if you ask some of the folks i talked to last month, you would likely hear a different story.

two years on, high prices in the wake of the inflation reduction act are forcing working americans to make tough choices. a mother in north carolina told a reporter recently sometimes i have to choose whether i am going to pay the light bill or pay all the rent or food or let my son do a sport. surging prices are especially challenging for seniors on a fixed income. one pennsylvania retiree observed that she was, quote, down to eating ramen for lunch. ? if not, the yeas are 55. the nays are 42. and the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomi nomination. the clerk: the judiciary, mary kay lanthier of vermont to be united states district judge for the district of vermont.

a senator: madam president. the presiding officer: the democratic whip. mr. durbin: madam president, i rise today to discuss the confirmation of four pending u.s. attorney nominations. currently in the united states we have 85 u.s. attorneys. there are several in my state and depending on your population, it really indicates how many numbers you have. those u.s. attorney nominations are filled by the incumbent president of the united states. recommendations are made to the united states senate and we advise and consent on those nominations. and after an examination of their background, we vote these individuals to become u.s. attorneys. now, we've -- we have an agreement that has endured for a number of presidents and a

number of years which says that these will be fairly routine. in fact, very routine. the fact is that each one of the u.s. attorney nominations goes through a review by the senate judiciary committee, both democrats and republicans, and if they pass that review without controversy, they move to the floor for a vote. to give you an idea how that works so the members on the other side who are relatively new to the senate, when president donald trump made nominations of u.s. attorneys, he made 85 nominations. each one of those nominations came to the floor of the united states senate, and they were approved by voice vote, unanimous consent. in other words, not even a roll call was required. it was a routine approval of the u.s. attorneys nomination, and a situation where a body like the senate would have a majority of democrats approve a nomination from a republican president by

voice vote. no controversy. moving forward. why is it important to even fill these vacancies? because these 85 u.s. attorneys are literally the people who implement the policies of the department of justice. if the department of justice of the united states decides that we're going to have a serious effort under a president to go after fentanyl, for example, or narcotics, for example, or some crime wave in another area, it's the u.s. attorney who runs the play. he's the quarterback in the u.s. attorney district. so these turn out to be fairly critical. some of us stayed up late last night to watch the debate. and in that debate there was discussion of crime in the united states and what we're going to do to stop it. well, all the candidates regardless of party would be in favor of reducing crime. i'm assuming that every one of my colleagues who is on the floor now and wishes to speak would put themselves in the same

category. we want to stop crime in our states and in our country, and we rely on the department of justice to do that. the one who leads the effort in each and every state is the u.s. attorney. and in this circumstance we have four nominees for u.s. attorney who have been waiting patiently for the approval of the united states senate. on seven previous occasions, i have requested unanimous co consent, the same process that was followed with every single one of donald trump's u.s. attorneys. i requested unanimous consent for the senate to take up and confirm law enforcement nominees nominated by president joseph biden. each and every time the junior senator from ohio now running for vice president of the united states has objected. i asked him on many occasions when we came to the floor and raised this question what objection do you have to this

u.s. attorney nominee? he said at the time i don't have any objection to this nominee. i object to the department of justice, and i want to stop u.s. attorneys from being appointed nationwide. communities across america desperately need their top federal prosecutors in place. u.s. attorneys lead the nation's effort to prosecute violent criminals and protect their communities from violent crime, child exploitation, terrorism, and much more. the u.s. attorneys office in four districts i'm talking with today -- about today are no exception. i just left a meeting this morning. we gathered about 40 or 50 leaders from across the united states to talk about child trafficking. child trafficking, of course, is a federal crime prosecuted by the department of justice and each and every one of our stateswhere it happens. i can't think of a more awful situation for a person to live through as those this morning who talked about what they lived

through before the prosecution took place and the person was removed from the state. i would not want to play political games with those nominations. those u.s. attorneys do critical work in each and every state. we felt that way under president trump and that's why we allowed his u.s. attorney nominees to move forward by voice vote and i think president biden is entitled to the same treatment. the entire nation has been impacted by the opioid epidemic. ohio is one of the states that's been hit the hardest. in 2023 nearly 4,500 ohio residents died from an accidental drug overdose. that story can be told over and over in state after state. the u.s. attorney for the northern district of ohio can focus her attention on combatting this drug crisis with the dea's operation overdrive. this operation set up in a location in toledo is due to the city's copious violent crimes, including homicides, shootings,

assaults, and drug overdoses. we're talking about serious prosecutions and a team of effective professionals to fight them. not just in ohio and illinois but around the nation. instead this nomination, one of them today which i'm suggesting, the nomination of rebecca lutzko has languished more than a year because of the objection of the junior senator from ohio. is may have helped the senator to make that decision for some other reason but it certainly doesn't help fighting crime in his home state to have a vacancy in this office. he's harming americans and undermining public safety across the country for reasons i can't explain. the senate has a long history of confirming u.s. attorneys nominees as i've said. we've done it by unanimous consent. we made it fairly routine as it should be. all 85 of president trump's nominees for u.s. attorney were filled by unanimous consent. the senate has a long history of following that practice.

before president biden took office, the last time the senate required a roll call on a u.s. attorney was 1975 tshgs 49 years -- 1975, 49 years. you have to go back 49 years to find an objection of a nominee. it's u.s. marry for the u.s. attorney to sift down and the new president to select replacements. that's why during the trump administration we moved so many so quickly. senate democrats allowed every single one of president trump's nominees to be confirmed by unanimous consent, many of whom we would not personally have selected but it's just a courtesy to a new president to fill the vacancies. it woonthsz have been fair or realistic to force the senate to debate and vote on every single one of these nominees. each one of these votes is a process. we already do that for nominations for the federal bench.

it would not have been fair or realistic to expect it for u.s. attorneys. so we respected the then president, respected our colleagues and respected the need for the senate to have confirmed leadership of the u.s. attorneys office. we put public safety and the needs of law enforcement ahead of politics. we've done it always when it comes to u.s. attorneys until now. the senator from indiana and some of his colleagues have set an unfortunate standard. they're putting us on a path to require cloture and confirmation votes on every u.s. attorney nominee. talk about a waste of time. that would be a terrible waste of time. this is entirely unsustainable, which is something everyone here knows. without senate confirmed leadership of u.s. attorneys, public safety will suffer across the united states. candidates cannot vote to delay these nominations and then stand up that they want -- they want

law and order and want to fight crime. we shouldn't be playing politics. i don't know the reason behind this. i believe it's entirely political. but i hope my colleagues will think twice about it. what we do to one another will likely be revisited and become a precedent in the senate to the detriment of everyone. these highly qualified nominees that i'm nominating today, the four of them, have a strong support of their home state senators, including several members of the republican caucus. and if president biden has been accused of misuse of the justice department, we shouldn't take that out on these individuals who are competent and qualified to keep us safe. until we confirm them, law enforcement offices will be stymied in their ability to fight crime. don't be giving a speech that says i want to have a real assault on crime in my state or

district and then turn around and stop the prosecutor from being appointed who has that job. otherwise there will be a temporary appointment and the effort cannot be as effective as it might be. that is a loss to the nation and increases the danger of the people living in that particular state. and so, madam president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate consider the following nominations en bloc -- calendar number 544, 545, 604, and 605. those are the nominations of mat matthew gannon, rebecca utzko, jo joshua levy, and david waterman to serve as u.s. attorney for the southern district of iowa. that the senate vote on the nominations en bloc, with no

intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and the president be immediately notified of the senate's action, and the senate resume legislative session. the presiding officer: is there objection? mr. hagerty: madam president. the presiding officer: the junior senator from tennessee. mr. hagerty: reserving the right to object, these are biden-harris department of justice nominees. what's the biden-harris department of justice focused on right now? multiple prosecutions of former president donald j. trump. never before in history has a major american presidential candidate been criminally charged, much less by his campaign opponents' department of justice. now, in had the middle of this -- yet, in the middle of this presidential election, the biden-harris justice department has brought two prosecutions against their opponent. other democrat prosecutors have brought three other sets of charges. these cases have been timed to

peak during the election. so right now president biden's election opponent is on trial in five separate jurisdictions, all by partisan democrat prosecutors, all on different charges, and all peaking right in the middle of this presidential campaign. this begs a simple question -- is this coordinated election interference or is this merely a coincidence? it's beyond credulity that these charges would have been brought against anyone but president trump, especially five different prosecutions all brought during the presidential election. the contortions of fact and law under lying these prosecutions testify to that. so do the political presidential underscore this, of course they

do. "the new york times" reported in april of 2002 that president biden told advisors that he wanted his justice department to prosecute president trump. shortly thereafter, his justice department dutifully appointed jack smith to prosecute president trump. when alvin bragg ran for district attorney, he campaigned on getting trump. he did just that, using a made-up, never-before pursued theory. when letitia james ran for new york attorney general, sheer said that her -- she said that her entire campaign was about getting president trump. even democrat representative dan goldman called it, quote, an individualized political vendetta. five years later, in the middle of the campaign, she brought a baseless case for a $454 million fine. unheard of. this is a case of show me the man and i'll show you the crime.

it's also blatant election interference. it's outrageous to many americans. it violates our basic principles of blind justice and the rule of law. and i'm not going to consent to the expeditious confirmation of any more biden administration nominees until the american get a chance to reject this politicized department of justice. and i'll say this -- if these numbers were truly important to senate democrats, they would schedule votes on them. senate democrats held me for 30 hours of cloture when i came through this process. they're not doing the same here. therefore, i object. i'd like to reserve the right to object and i want to withhold my objection to allow the junior senator from missouri to be recognized. mr. schmitt: madam president. the presiding officer: the junior senator from missouri.

mr. schmitt: i want to note to my friend from illinois that we're not doing anything else on this floor. we're certainly not moving an proceedingses process -- an appropriations process. we could be doing appropriations bills in september, but chuck schumer doesn't want to do any of that. so all we're doing is nominations. you feel so strongly about these individuals, go through the process. and also it's curious to mention precedent being raised 00er in this. i in my first term in the senate just witnessed for the first time in american history, the first time ever, an articles of impeachment came over to this chamber and we didn't have a trial. so forgive me if i don't want to be lectured by precedential. -- about precedence. we'll never have an opportunity to have a trial on mayorkas, like we should have. but i digress. my objection is to the fact that we live in a time right now and

as a lawyer this is deeply saddening, where the department of justice and other government agencies are being politicized and weaponized. and this is angering the american people, and it should. american history has no shortage of important moments marked by statesmen making difficult decisions which balance the outrages of the moment with the long-term stability of our republic. throughout this last year, many of us have denounced here the weaponization of joe biden -- the weaponization of the justice department by joe biden and kamala harris. what many in the political establishment don't care to acknowledge is this is resonating even more with american working folks who believe there is a two-tiered system of justice in our country and it's being unlawfully applied. the american public have watched certain people be immune from

consequences for their actions. biden and harris are attempting to throw their political opponent, donald trump, in jail for the rest of his life. it's wrong. they're trying to interfere with this election, and that's why we stand here on the floor today. so if you're not part of the exclusive club or if you dare to fight back against its monopoly on power, you're held to a different standard. those brave enough to fight this system are not only expected to play by the rules but also subject to capricious legal and inconsistent lawfare. banana republic stuff. if this were happening in another country, our state department would be warning us about it. it's happening right here under our noses. these political attacks undermine the american people's faith in their government, a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. we all are one people, but we must only have one standard of which we are judged in our

courts. we must immediately halt our creep towards tyranny. so, until the justice department resumes its focus on applying equal justice under the law, instead of engaging in partisan lawfare against president trump, i'll join my colleagues here today. i withhold my objection, madam president, to allow the senior senator from alabama to speak s. mr. tuberville:. the presiding officer: -- mr. tuberville: madam president, i rise today to join my colleagues in objecting to the fast-tracking of the biden-harris nominations. this is a commitment we made in june because of president biden and harris' unprecedented attacks on donald trump. it didn't have to be this way. but the biden-harris administration chose to target its political opponent in an election year. this is the direct result of the weaponization of a justice

system they created. this administration has shown time and it time again -- time and time again it's willing to do whatever it takes to maintain power. whether it is lawfare against president trump or allowing illegals to vote in elections, this administration is hell-bent on election interference. if we don't return to the principles of our constitution, we will be no better than venezuela or communist china. as long as this administration remains weaponized against the will of the american people, my answer is no. this is why i'm objecting to unanimous consent of these u.s. attorney nominees today. it is my intent to attach these nominees -- not tack these nominees -- not to attack these nominees individually. remember -- rather, it is my intent to use might power as a

senator to restore the rule of law in the united states of america. it won't end well if we continue down this path. i for one will never stop fighting against this weaponization of the federal government. i don't care who it is. by continuing to stand up for the rights, i believe americans' faith in our institutions will be restored. madam president, i withhold my objection to allow the junior senator from tennessee to be recognized. mr. hagerty: reserving the right to object, madam president shall did. the presiding officer: the junior senator from tennessee. mr. hagerty: ail want to thank my colleagues from missouri and alabama and for the reasons stated earlier, i object. the presiding officer: objection is heard. mr. durbin: madam president. the presiding officer: the democratic whip. mr. durbin: did you hear that? the department of justice is too

partisan. the department of justice is too partisan. it's interesting to note that two of the prosecutions of donald trump are not even starting at the department of justice. they come from state prosecutions in the states of georgia and new york. not washington. so these nominees for u.s. attorney are being held up because of decisions made by some other prosecutor in another state? apparently that's the case in this situation. and i just have to say, at least in one of these prosecutions, in new york, they have been successful in bringing the case against the former president and convicting him of felony counts, 34 if i'm not mistaken. so there is some merit to it that goes beyond any question of intrigue in washington, d.c. met me also said -- let me also add that as far as i can tell,

this department of justice has tried to take a reasonable position to avoid conflicts of interest. in this circumstance, we have a special attorney who was appointeded to prosecute the president's own son, the president's own son. this department of justice which is being accused of being partisan in this situation. there's no precedent for that in history. and it's a clear effort by the biden administration to deal fairly with the painful situation personally. you look at this and you say, what point have my colleagues made today? they've made the 0 interthat in -- that in these places, iowa, massachusetts, and ohio,the incompetent professionals for prosecution will not be filled -- these competent positions will not be filled with individuals who they admitted on the floor they have no objection to.

what is the net result of this? it means that crimes that are being committed or alleged to being committed in these states are not going to be prosecuted as aggressively as they should. don't give me a speech about wanting law and order and they shall turn around and say, we're going to. it's unfortunate. i'm sorry for these four individuals who are worthy candidates to be u.s. attorneys that this happened today. it's happened before. and it's a sad day if this is going to be a new precedent that any president coming in a new term is going to face this kind of an obstacle course for the routine appointment of individuals to enforce the law across the united states. we will not be aive nation because of this political strategy. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the

junior senator from tennessee. mr. hagerty: if the senator from illinois would allow, i would like to respond to two points. one of them is the fact that mr. coangelo was moved. the other is that the reference to the son of the sitting president and his prosecution. i'll point out that this department of justice allowed and made certain that the statute of limitations on far more serious charges expired. that is politicization in the department of justice.

>> today members are working on a pair judicial nominations. congress is facing a government funding deadline and must pass federal spending by september 30th to avoid a shutdown. house speaker mike johnson is pulling the funding will he plan to bring up for a vote. the presiding officer: the senior senator from connecticut. mr. blumenthal: thank you, madam president. i ask that the quorum call be lifted. the presiding officer: we are not in a quorum call. mr. blumenthal: thank you, madam president. as all of us know, and the

nation today commemorates 23 years ago, we experienced the unthinkable. our nation went through unspeakable massive terrorist attack on our own soil for the first time in our history. the attacks on september 11 reshaped the world as we know it, even today, and changed our country to its core. nearly 3,000 innocent lives were lost and countless more were forever impacted as families and loved ones carry their memory. thousands survived the attacks but they were forever changed as well physically, emotionally, and in many other ways. no matter how many years go by, the survivors and victims of the

september 11 attacks and their families will always be in our he hearts, and many of them live in connecticut, and we remember them and their loved ones today. as all of us know, this unimaginable loss shook our nation to its core, and now more than two decades later we remain committed to honor the survivors and the fallen. we remember the people we lost, but we should also remember the surv survivors, the loved ones of the fallen, the first responders who continue to bear the wounds of that day and the successive days, the veterans who bear the

visible and invisible wounds of war, because the ripple effects of that attack on september 11 continue to haunt us, and we should remember not just the horror of that day, but also the heroism because in the days and weeks afterward, as well as on that day, that heroism helped to bring us together as a nation as never before since. we were as one in those days, and all of us have memories, especially in connecticut and other states impacted directly in our losses, the vigils, the conversations, and the acts of

kindness and generosity. most of them totally unrecorded, and many of them now perhaps unremembered. but in remembering the great heroes whom we lost, in their honor we should also remember the loved ones who survived them. that is the reason that we have the victims compensation fund and that is the reason that we are fighting for justice for them, so that their rights are vindicated, whether it's in court or through diplomatic cha channels, they deserve justice against all who were complicit in the unspeakable horrific acts of that day. all who supported them and who

enabled them. and that is the reason why in congress i have helped to lead efforts to keep the courthouse doors open to their legal action along with a bipartisan group that in fact overrode the veto of the president on jasta. justice for the loved ones. and the wounds of that day will never completely heal because we suffered losses that we will never forget, our friends who lost lives. in connecticut, we gather every year in one of our most beautiful parks -- sherwood island in westport, where there is a memorial. every year many of those loved ones come for a ceremony that is

both solemn and exquisitely beautiful. and every year we lay flowers at that memorial as part of our remembering. but we also know that on that d day, first responders rushed toward danger. they ran into burning buildings, and many of the firemen and police from connecticut spent weeks breathing in toxic chemicals from burning jet fuel and concrete filled with asbestos that has led thousands of them to develop chronic medical conditions that require ongoing medical treatment and consistent monitoring for delayed onset of illnesses such as cancer.

and that is why in 2010 congress created the world trade center health program to provide health services with no out-of-pocket costs, none to those directly impacted. this program treats first responders and survivors for many chronic illnesses and respiratory diseases including asthma, obstructive pulmonary disease, other kinds of health issues directly associated with the 9/11 attacks that continue to grow and evolve. over the years there have been efforts to cut funding for this crucial program. to be clear, let us resolve on this day that the funding the world trade center health program would be an unforgiveable betrayal of the

thousands of individuals who risked their lives in the 9/11 attacks. i will continue fighting against any attempt to strip even one first responder or survivor of the health care they deserve. in connecticut, as of june 2024, 1,365 individuals were enrolled in this program. they deserve that we continue this support. and that is also why i'm proud to join my colleagues in introducing the 9/11 responder and survivor health funding correction act. it ensures that the world trade center health program receives permanent and mandatory funding while updating the outdated funding formula to prevent a shortfall that would put survivors and first responders at risk of losing access to

health care. we cannot afford, in terms of conscience and conviction this betrayal of our solemn obligation to those first responders and their families. and likewise, to veterans, thousands of them who now bear the invisible wunts of war -- wounds of war from pts to the cancer or hypertension or other kinds of medical conditions resulting from their exposure to the poisons and toxic chemicals in burn pits and elsewhere during their fight for our nation in iraq and afghanistan, we need to keep faith with them. the pack act should be fully

funded, robustly supported by congress. and never abandoned. i will continue to fight to support the pack act, but also to support outreach so that more veterans are aware of these benefits and the care that is offered by the veterans administration. the screening that can help save them from diseases that will be less severe if they are stopped earlier. so we vow again today and never forget, those two words are probably repeated on this day year after year more often than any other time, never forget. but never forgetting is more

than just words. it is a commitment to honor the memories of the fallen with action. the fallen on 9/11, the fallen who died afterward from diseases that resulted from 9/11, the fallen among our veterans who gave their lives or now suffer medical conditions resulting from their service. we will never forget in action as well as in words, in deed as well as in rhetoric. that has to be the promise that we keep today. thank you, madam president. thank you, madam president.

independent agency. our nation's environment.

his commitment to supporting the rights and alaskan natives. this year president biden nominated to serve as a member board of trustees of the foundation. a highly qualified nominee in her professional career will in the american indian government is and will policies. it will travel nations with in research is policies.

over a decade of this nomination process in the nominees approximately 280 physicians including nominees in the u.s. nomination for of trustees. see executive however may 16. this morning i stood at ground zero in new york joining president biden, vice president harris, new york leaders, and thousands of new yorkers to mark the 23rd anniversary of 9/11. so many of those who lost loved ones were there remembering -- it's been 23 years. now every day i wear this flag pin in my lapaille as a remind -- lapel as a reminder to never forget. today the pin is a little

heavier. i called the day after 9/11, 9/12, i called on americans to display the flag as a show of solidarity and a show of our anguish over so many who were lost and at that time missing. i've worn the flag every day since because i never forget. i knew people who were lost. a guy i played basketball with in high school, a businessman who helped me on the way up, a firefighter, i went around the city with him, urging people to donate blood. and so it's a tough day. it's been 23 years since 9/11, but i remember it like yesterday, the smell of the pile, the images of destruction that new yorkers had never seen before. i remember the chilling and other worldly images of people lining up on the sidewalks, hundreds of them with pictures,

because no one knew who was dead and who wasn't. unfortunately very few survived. but the pictures, have you seen my daughter mary? have you seen my brother john? i'll never forget. i had some of those pictures donated to the 9/11 museum. i remember the people, as i said, who died in the attack, but i also remember the heroism, first responders disregarding their own safety and running towards danger to save others. i remember new yorkers going out of their way to go help each other to rebuild and heal. many had ran down those stairs to escape the towers, and left their shoes behind and a block away was a guy with a shoe store just handing out shoes to people. that's the kind of people

new yorkers are and americans are. 23 years later, our sacred obligation to care for the survivors and their families continues. in the last two years, i've secured nearly $1.7 billion in funding for the world trade center program, which helps responders and survivors to survive cancer. i thank the new york delegation in the house and senator gillibrand. we made funding for this program permanent so that our 9/11 hoarse and families don't have to keep coming down to washington to ask and advocate for the care they deserve. and the -- in the last congress i was proud to work with my colleagues to pass the fairness for 9/11 families act, which finally compensated those who were wrongly left out of

state-sponsored terrorism fund. that is what never forget means. it's not a passive promise. it's an act of commitment to act every day to ensure that the survivors are provided for, it's a prayer that america may find the strength and grace to endure, always weather the storm, to come back from adversity stronger, and never turn on each other but to be unified in our strength and camaraderie. now on the c.r. a few hours ago, speaker johnson announced that he delayed a vote scheduled for today on his partisan, insufficient and deeply flawed c.r. proposal. frankly, no one should be surprised that speaker johnson is having trouble with his bill. it's not a serious effort at keeping the government open. it's a political document, not a

substantive one. the speaker's proposal suffers from many fatal flaws. it omits and shortchanges so many critical programs that americans rely on every day. for one, the speaker's proposal underfunds the department of veterans' affairs by a $12 billion, that means that veterans exposed to burn pits and develop cancers and other diseases would struggle to get the care they need. the speaker's proposal is also a disaster for the armed forces. the secretary of readiness said it would risk crucial investments in our defense industrial base, and delay repairs and weapon modernization. again, you can't run a military at a six-month patch at a time. they have to have contracts. they have to do research. they have to do planning. the speaker's proposal is also a nonstarter for border security and immigration and law

enforcement. his bill would effectively end a crucial law enforcement effort to stop drug smuggling, cartels and mo i -- and money laundering. it fails to extend funding for e-verify, hb2 visas and proy grams that -- programs that stop drugs like fentanyl. all this from a republican proposal, the party that supposedly likes to talk about border security. but talk is all it is if you take this stuff out of the fill. if you are one of the tens of millions of americans who rely on social security or disability benefits, watch out. the speaker's proposal contains no additional funding for the social security administration's operating budget. which would lead to delayed benefits, understaffed or closed field offices and longer wait times for applications. the speaker's c.r. fails on health care. it would endanger federal funding for telehealth services, one of the most important ways

rural americans get access to the care they need. the c.r. also fails to extend funding for community health centers, which is often the only resource for millions of americans who live in poverty or near poverty, but fall in the gray zone right above the medicaid line. with the community health centers, they get good health care. those would be gone. the speaker's plan to do anything on the farm bill, which if it expires would send farmers over the dairy cliff in december, risking closure of farms and sending the cost of products like milk and cheese through the roof. so it would cost the average consumer. now, we all know the end game here for the hard right, a six-month stopgap measure, means we'd have a funding fight all over again in march, at the beginning of a flu administration. it's pretty transparent that the hard right wants to delay this fight, then -- until then, in hopes of being able to pass the bulk of donald trump's project

2025 agenda. we all know what 2025 is about. the hard right wants to turn our country inside out and institute the most conservative agenda america has seen in modern history. project 2025 would mean the end of the department of education, it would eliminate head start programs which help millions of kids in poverty get a good start in their education, would wipe out funding that helps kids get free and reduced lunch at school, would send the cost of child care up, leaving parents exasperated, harder to make a living. project 2025 would also betray our veterans. it would lead to cuts to disability benefits by shrinking medical conditions that qualify. it would revive a trump-era commission that defunds v.a. hospitals, including the only v.a. hospital on long island, the northport v.a. how cruel can you get? how in the world can you think this is an okay thing to do to the brave americans who wore the

uniform? project 2025 would lay the groundwork for the nightmare scenario of a national abortion ban. it would effectively clear the way for states to monitor women's pregnancies and threaten federal health funding if they don't comply. madam president, this is all outlandishly sinister, yet it's precisely what the hard right is promising the american people if donald trump returns to office. make no mistake, there's no better opportunity for republicans to ram these cruel policy down american throats than a government funding fight early next march. a six-month c.r., particularly one that fails to fund important programs, some of which i've outlined a few minutes ago, is therefore not the answer for avoiding a shutdown later this month. speaker johnson ought not bother with merely delaying his vote. he should scrap it. scrap his plan and start over.

speaker johnson, scrap your plan. don't just delay the vote. find a better one that can pass in a bipartisan way. leader jeffries, the president, and i will gladly and readily work with the speaker to keep the government open, just as we worked with him earlier this year on funding levels that honored our agreement from the debt ceiling debate. i hope, i pray, speaker johnson will soon acknowledge the inevitable -- we need a bipartisan plan to keep the government open. i yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. baldwin.

mr. welch: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. welch: i'd ask that the quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. welch: madam president, i've come to the senate floor time and again and said to my colleagues that disaster relief funding is absolutely urgently needed. today, the future of government funding is imperiled right now in the house, and the future of disaster funding is still unknown in the senate. let me be clear, there are families across america, in vermont and in communities impacted by natural disasters all across our country, that need us to help, and they can't

recover without us. fema's disaster relief fund is running out of money, forcing fema to function on what is essentially reserve funding. this is no fault of fema's. it's all a result of the catastrophic weather events that have been occurring rapidly, frequently throughout our country. and in vermont. this past year and a half has brought brutal floods in vermont, and terrible fires, hurricanes, and tornadoes across our country. louisiana right now is bracing for the worst as hurricane francine moves on shore, and our prayers in vermont are with the people of louisiana. we know their heartbreak and their pain right now. these communities, and it's especially the case with rural communities, cannot weather these storms alone. some of those that are hardest hit are being financially destroyed. it's a function of the effects of climate change.

those communities don't have the resources to dig out, make repairs, and rebuild in the resilient way required for the future. they can't handle a 100-year flood, and many in flood have had two 100-year floods in a year, and some towns even three in 12 or 13 months. madam president, it's very important that disaster aid be fle flexible. we can't expect our communities, and it's from vermont to mississippi to hawaii, we can't expect those ravaged by disaster to fight this fight alone. the entire country has been hammered by climate change and by these weather events. we need, in addition to the supplemental funding for the disaster relief fund for fema, we need flexible funding which is available through the housing

and urban development's community development block grant disaster recovery program, the cdbg-dr program is a great example of how aid can be controlled by communities because there's so much more flexibility with that fund. our senator schatz of hawaii, as chair of our appropriations subcommittee on transportation, housing and urban development, is leading the push for this funding, and i join him in that ef effort. also, madam president, the experience i've had visiting communities, visiting farms, visiting businesses, and visiting vermont homeowners immediately following our state's flooding has given me, number one, enormous respect for administrator chriswell.

she was right there after the flood, with her wonderful fema staff, doing everything they could to help communities. but once the immediate event has come and gone, and the repair and recovery has to start, it's going to take oftentimes a year or more for communities to repair bridges, to families to get an answer on whether they do or don't get a buyout, for farms to get what meager relief may be available. and what we've seen is that at that point the centralization of decision-making authority and responsibility, with various fema offices located around the country, and the fema office in charge of vermont that has to make these decisions about yes or no on moving forward on a bridge or buyout, things really

crucially important to vermonters, to our local governments, to our homeowners, is in puerto rico. what i've seen is that the energy and the effort and the resources and the talent is at the local level. so if you are on the slack board in lindenville, you have a responsibility to your voters to get the bridge fixed. you actually know who the best contractors are. you know how to get it done. but the way it works right now, those decisions about moving forward on a recovery project are made in a distant location. i've talked to many of my colleagues about a similar aftermath of the original event. immediate aid is provided. but then when you're talking about a contract, you're talking about implementation, the reality is we've got to have, in my view, much more local control, much more local

responsibility, and much more local capacity with the resources that are available through fema. it means decisions will be made sooner, the work will be done in a more cost effective and efficient way. i raise that because i am talking to colleagues who have had similar experiences, some in states that are republican led, some democratic led. it really doesn't matter. it's about trying to get that authority at the local level so that the local people, whether it's mississippi or vermont, have much more authority, responsibility, and capacity to carry out those very, very needed repairs. so that will be something i will be inviting my colleagues to work with me on. this last summer i spent a good deal of time, madam president, traveling to the flooded communities, and there's too many of them in vermont, to see what has happened to our homes,

our small businesses, and farms, to roads and bridges that were washed out. and folks across vermont in places like mooretown and barre, st. johnsbury, hardwick, are all reeling from what has happened. they're coming back. neighbors are helping neighbors, but it's not going to get done unless we provide the supplemental funding with the disaster relief fund that is essential to the well-being of vermonters as well as the well-being of folks who have suffered from these catastrophic weather events across the country. vermont will hang in, but we do need help. and we're ready as we always have been, but to help others. madam president, thank you. before i conclude, i just would like to make a remark about -- a

word of support for the judicial nominee for the vermont district federal court whose nomination the senate will be voting on shortly. and i'm going -- we're going to be hear -- hearingfrom my senior colleague senator sanders but i wanted to add my own acknowledgment of the extraordinary person that mary kay lanthier is. she's got a lifetime commitment to public service. she comes from a very small town. her dad in fairhaven -- in fairhaven, vermont. her dad was a roofer and worked in the slate wary, did slate on roofs. her mom has been a lifelong head of -- she's the postmaster in fairhaven. and mary kay grew up in this small town and has small-town values of service, modesty, humility, and she's incredibly

accomplished as a person. i believe she will be an excellent judge serving the state of vermont. with that i yield. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. baldwin.

our nation went through unspeakable things the first time in history. even today and for our country

to explore. 3000 innocent lives were lost and countless more work forever impacted families and loved ones, thousands survived the attack but they were forever changed as well physically, emotionally and in many other ways. no matter many ways to apply their families will always and many of them any netiquette and we remember their loved ones today. all of us know this unimaginable posture of our nation to its core and now women two decades later we remain delivered to our the survivors and the following.

we remember the people we lost for we should also remember the survivors. the loved ones of the fallen, the first responders who continue to remember that day. the veterans will bear their visible and invisible wounds of war because the ripple effect of that attack on september 11 continues to fox and we should remember not just the horror of the day but also the heroism because in the days and weeks "afterwards" as well as all that take, that heroism brings us together as a nation and never

before since. we were as one of those days and all of us have memories in connecticut syllabus case impacted directly, the conversations and the act of kindness and generosity, many of them now perhaps unremembered but in remembering the great heroes whom we lost in the owner we should also remember the loved ones who survived them. that is the reason we have the victims compensation fund and the reason we fight for justice,

for them. so that their rights are vindicated with her in court or through medical channels, they deserve justice again to meet unspeakable horrific act of that day. all those who supported and enabled them and that is the reason why congress i helped lead efforts to keep the doors open along with a bipartisan group overrode the veto so justice for loved ones and the wounds of that day will never completely heal because we

suffered lawsuits will never forget, our friends. for netiquette we gather every year and one of our most beautiful where there is a memorial, every year many of those loved ones from for a ceremony that's both on an exquisitely feasible. we lay flowers at that memorial remembrance but we also know that on that day, first responders rushed and ran into burning buildings and the firemen and police from

connecticut spent weeks reading and toxic chemicals and burning jet fuel and concrete and led thousands to develop chronic medical conditions that require ongoing medical treatment and monitoring for the late onset and next line 2010 congress created the world trade up program to provide the services no false. none of those directly affected. this program treats first responders and survivors for many illnesses and respiratory diseases including asthma, pulmonary disease, other kinds of health issues directly

associated with 9/11 attacks continue to grow and evolve. over the years, there have been efforts funding to be poor, bennet resolve on this day that the program would be of people will frail of the thousands of vigils list their lives in the 9/11 attacks. no fighting against any attempt to strip even one first responder or survivor of the healthcare they deserve netiquette on 2024, 1300 euros for enrolled in this program. they deserve that we continue

this support and that is also fine and proud to join the 9/11 report of the five and felt funding correct that ensures the world trade center of program receives permanent mandatory funding while updating the outdated formula to prevent shortfall that would put survivors and first responders at best of losing access to healthcare. we cannot afford in terms of common. this betrayal to those first responders and their families and likewise, to veterans, thousands of them will now bear the invisible war to cancer or

hypertension or other medical conditions in their exposure to poison concrete chemicals plant examples are during their fight for our nation's. the fact that should be fully funded, robustly supported by never. aware of these benefits offered

and will answer is one of the great ones. more often than any other time, never forget. never forgetting is more than just work. "afterwards" that resulted from an 11 airlines now sovereignly the minimal conditions resulting new as i was learning will never forget.

the blue thank you, i feel the floor. the

577 people. before the dust settled, the world witnessed extraordinary heroism of first responders. the compassion of neighbors and volunteers in the nation for the savagery unanswered. americans resolve to function.

it has wavered over the years 2001 and both parties. the colleagues and congress will be inviting order.

she grew up in a hardworking vermont family where the parents emphasized the importance of serving her community. ms. mary kay lanthier served that lesson well and has dedicated her career to being a public defender. in that role, she has fought for her clients to have a fair chance at justice in her courtroom, and if she is confirmed, i am confident that she will make sure that all of the people who appear in front of her are treated fairly and get the justice that they are

due. ms. lanth jer began her judicial career as a legal clerk in chittenden county where she developed a deep love and dedication for the work taking place in vermont courtrooms. early in her career, ms. lanthier worked in private practice and public defense, working on family law, workers compensation and criminal cases. since 2007, she has served as the supervising attorney at the rutland county public defenders office. in that role and throughout her career, she has developed a reputation as a respectful and skilled attorney. judges have praised her preparation and opposing lawyers have written letters in support of her nomination. as one of those letters says,

quote, ms. lanthier's compassion is a virtue that improved the administration of justice, end of quote. last november i was pleased to be joined by senator welch with input from congresswoman balint in forming a nonpartisan judicial nomination voucher panel to fill this vacancy on the federal bench in vermont. the panel was impressed by mary kay's career in public defense, her stellar reputation in the legal community, and her warmth and empathy. i was also impressed after interviewing her. one thing that struck me was not only her deep love of the law, but her deep love of rutland, vermont, where this judgeship is based. for mary kay, i know that there is particular pride in doing this very important work in her hometown and for being a role model for the young people

growing up there today about what is possible. along with senator welch, i was pleased to recommend that president biden nominate her for this position. she will be an excellent district court judge for rutland and for the state of vermont. i'm confident that she will treat everyone in her courtroom with the compassion, respect, and dignity that they deserve. i urge my colleagues to support her confirmation. a senator: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from minnesota. ms. klobuchar: i rise in support of laura margarete provinzino to serve as the next u.s. district

court judge of the district of minnesota. i want to thank senators durbin and graham for working with me and both of them for supporting her to move her nomination through the judiciary committee. i want to thank leader schumer for making the time and leader mcconnell for the senate to consider her nomination, and also to thank my friend and colleague, senator smith for her work in support of this nomination. we jointly had a committee made up of esteemed members of the bar that made recommendations to the white house. ms. provinzino is a distinguished public servant who has served the people of minnesota as a federal prosecutor. as an assistant u.s. attorney, she has led efforts to prosecute violent crime, human trafficking, child trafficking and crimes against native american women. through her devotion to justice and the rule of law, she has earned the respect and support

from attorneys and law enforcement across our state. that is why she received a bipartisan vote in the judiciary committee and why i hope my colleagues on both sides of the aisle will support her. public service runs deep in her family, and her family roots stretch across all corners of other state from the iron range up north to the small rural town of melrose where her great-grandparents ran the lowell paper to the twin city's metro area. she was born and raised in st. cloud, minnesota. after graduating from st. cloud technical high school she earned her b.a. at lewis and rhodes college. she received her j.d. at yale. she joined the u.s. attorney's office in 2010. as an assistant u.s. attorney, she has prosecuted over 500 cases and has served as a deputy

chief of violent and major crimes. her work end the respect and support of law enforcement, the largest police station in minnesota praised her, quote, exceptional legal skills, unwavering integrity and commitment to upholding the rm rule of law. she received support from law enforcement officials who work closely with her. these officers as case agents wrote that she is highly respected in the law enforcement community. and 19 former colleagues at the u.s. attorney's office including erica mcdonald likewise praised her for her sharp legal mind and devotion to enforcing the law. given her extensive experience it is no surprise she received commendations and awards from

groups such as the duluth police department to women in federal law enforcement who honored her with the 2023 top legal award. the u.s. department of justice honored her with the david margolis award for exceptional service, the highest recognition for service, and she earned it for her work dismantling a massive international sex trafficking criminal organization that forced hundreds of women to engage in commercial sex across the united st states. her efforts in this case are considered a model for prosecutors across the country and are used top train federal and state law enforcement on how to pursue international sex trafficking and money laundering investigations. of given her leadership on this issue, human trafficking prevention group strongly supported her confirmation. her work goes beyond women and children and her nationally

recognized human trafficking work. she led t t our state's u.s. attorney's office on the childhood state program which is the justice department's effort to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. today she serves as one of only five missed and murdered indigenous people nationwide as part of the efforts to prevent kidnapping, murder and trafficking of indigenous people. her area of responsibility covers 22 states. she is ready to serve on the bench. the aba gave her the highest ranking as well qualified and i know she will make an outstanding federal district judge for the district of minnesota, and i ask my colleagues to support her confirmation. again, i thank senator durbin for his leadership of the

committee and for all who worked to support her. thank you, and i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the question is on the nomination. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. all in favor -- i'm sorry. the clerk will call the roll. the clerk: ms. baldwin. vote: 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. the clerk: mr. coons. mr. cornyn. ms. cortez masto.

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

mr. graham. mr. grassley. mr. hagerty. ms. hassan. mr. hawley. mr. heinrich. mr. helmy. 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. 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. senators voting in the affirmative -- baldwin, butler, coons, cortez masto, duckworth, durbin, gillibrand, heinrich, padilla, sanders, welch, and whitehouse. senators voting in the negative -- lankford, lee, and

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

the clerk: mr. mullin, no. the clerk: mr. booker, aye.

the clerk: mr. tillis, aye. mr. reed, aye. ms. hassan, aye.

mrs. capito, no. vote:

the clerk: ms. ernst, no. mr. scott of south carolina, no. the clerk: mr. king, aye.

the clerk: ms. stabenow, aye. ms. collins, aye.

the clerk: ms. hirono, aye. mr. kaine, aye.

the clerk: mr. lujan, aye.

the clerk: mrs. blackburn, no.

the clerk: ms. smith, aye.

the clerk: ms. cantwell, aye. mr. ricketts, no.

the clerk: mrs. shaheen, aye. mr. hagerty, no.

mr. merkley, aye.

the clerk: mr. rubio, no. the clerk: mr. blumenthal, aye. mr. wicker, no.

mr. crapo, no.

the clerk: mr. cramer, no. mr. cornyn, no. mr. casey, aye.

mr. carper, aye. vote:

the clerk: mr. warnock, aye.

the clerk: mr. schmitt, no. mrs. britt, no. the clerk: mr. cardin, aye.

the clerk: mr. peters, aye. mr. marshall, no.

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

the clerk: mr. kelly, aye. the clerk: mr. warner, aye.

the clerk: ms. klobuchar, aye. the clerk: mr. tuberville, no.

the clerk: mr. tester, aye.

. the clerk: mr. paul, no.

the clerk: mr. graham, aye. mr. van hollen, aye.

the clerk: mrs. hyde-smith, no. mr. grassley, no.

the clerk: ms. sinema, aye. the clerk: mr. markey, aye. mr. cotton, no. vote:

the clerk: mr. young, no. mr. braun, no. mr. murphy, aye. mr. boozman, no.

the clerk: mr. wish, no. -- mr. risch, no.

the clerk: mr. fetterman, aye.

the clerk: mr. ossoff, aye.

the clerk: mr. brown, aye.

the clerk: ms. lummis, no. mr. manchin, aye.

the clerk: mr. wyden, aye. mr. johnson, no. mr. sullivan, no.

the clerk: ms. murkowski, aye. mr. hoeven, no.

mrs. murray, aye.

the clerk: mr. barasso, no.

the clerk: ms. warren, aye.

the clerk: mr. budd, no. mr. romney, no. vote: the clerk: ms. rosen, aye. mr. moran, no.

mr. hawley, no.

the clerk: mr. daines, no. mr. cassidy, no. mr. bennet, aye.

the clerk: mr. schumer, aye. the clerk: mr. hickenlooper, aye.

the clerk: mr. cruz, no.

the clerk: mrs. fischer, no. the presiding officer: the yeas are 55. the nays are 426789 and 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 clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the

nomination of executive calendar 781, laura marguerite provinzino of minnesota to be united states district judge for the district of minnesota 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 laura marguerite provinzino of minnesota to be united states district judge for the district of minnesota 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. the clerk: mr. boozman.

the clerk: mr. braun. mrs. britt. the clerk: 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. helmy.

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. merkley. mr. moran. mr. mullin. ms. murkowski. mr. murphy. mrs. murray. mr. ossoff. mr. padilla.

vote: 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. senators voting in the affir affirmative, bennet, brown, carper, casey, collins, coons, cortez masto, cramer, duckworth, durbin, fetterman, gillibrand, graham, heinrich, helmy, hickenlooper, kaine, kelly, king, lujan, manchin, merkley, murphy, murray, ossoff, padilla, reed, rosen, sanders, schatz,

schumer, shaheen, sinema, tester, van hollen, warren and welch. senators voting in the negative, barrasso, blackburn, boozman, budd, capito, cornyn, cotton, crapo, cruz, daines, fischer, grassley, hawley, hoeven, hyde-smith, johnson, lankford, mcconnell, moran, paul, ricketts, risch, romney, sullivan, tillis, wicker, and young. ms. ernst, no. mr. cassidy, no.

mr. wyden, aye.

the clerk: ms. baldwin, aye.

the clerk: ms. murkowski, aye.

the clerk: mr. cardin, aye. mr. warner, aye. ms. lummis, no.

mr. scott of south carolina, no.

the clerk: ms. klobuchar, aye.

the clerk: ms. hirono, aye.

the clerk: mr. thune, no. mr. scott of florida, no.

mr. whitehouse, aye.

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

the clerk: mr. mullin, no. ms. stabenow, aye.

the clerk: mr. booker, aye.

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

the clerk: ms. smith, aye.

the clerk: mr. warnock, aye.

the clerk: mr. peters, aye.

cleric will mr. schmitt -- the clerk: mr. schmitt, no.

v vote:

the clerk: ms. cantwell, aye.

mrs. britt, no. the clerk: ms. butler, aye.

the clerk: mr. braun, no.

the clerk: mr. rubio, no. the presiding officer: the yeas are 55, the nays are 39, and the

motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: the judiciary, laura margarete provinzino of minnesota to be united states district judge for the district of minnesota. the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: mr. president, six years ago i sent all of my colleagues in the senate this binder of economic warnings about climate change.

here it is. the warning signs were flashing, so i shared all those different reports. when i assumed the role of senate budget committee chair, i provided an updated version of that binder to my committee members. as you can see, it had gotten a lot thicker. the warning signs had kept piling up, imploring us to act now before it's too late. and what is happening now? the events warned of are coming to pass. over 19 budget committee hearings we heard from serious experts about the looming economic, financial, and fiscal risks of climate change. we had economists, actuaries, industry analysts, scientists, health care providers, farmers, academics, national security

leaders, even some conservative political leaders share the warnings. the witnesses and the topics differed, but the message was the same. look out. climate change presents an economic threat, and ignoring it poses severe, even systemic, economic risks. we ignore it at our economic and fiscal peril. ignoring it is unfortunately the path my republican colleagues have chosen to follow. but ignoring climate change does not stop climate change from hitting our economies, even in red and purpose states. the changes are happening in every corner of the country, and day after day news reports only

confirm the warnings. we held hearings on communities facing coastal flooding risk and wildfire risk, and how those risks affect insurance and mortgage markets and ultimately property values. a mortgage issuer looks forward 30 years, the term of the mortgage, and climate-driven sea level rise, extreme precipitation, hurricane damage and river flooding will add big risks to residential properties over the next 30 years. i'm a many rhode islander, so the flood risk is close to home. but more than half of all u.s. properties face a wildfire risk, and that is also getting worse with climate change insurers are taking notice.

when climate-driven losses increase, premiums increase. and when driement-driven -- climate driven losses become too hard to predict, insurers pull out. insurance becomes not only not affordable, but not even available. since our hearings, insurance and housing markets in florida, louisiana, texas, and california, states highly exposed to climate-driven hurricane flooding and wildfire risks, are in full crisis. in may last year, state farm announced it was no longer offering new policies in california. then in june all state followed suit. that july farmers announced it was pulling out of the florida market entirely. just last week progressive insurance announced that the company was, quote, temporarily

restricting new homeowners business in texas, after texas got a double whammy, historic wildfires through february and march. and then hurricane beryl flooding in july, knocking out power to nearly 3 million texans and leading to, i quote, the most tornado warnings issued in the u.s. in a single july day since reports began. people sat in flooded homes, without air conditioning, in 90-plus degree heat with mold growing, and texas politicians still denied climate change. well, homeowners' insurance companies don't deny climate change. nationally average homeowners insurance premiums increased 33% between 2020 and 2023.

in florida, already high premiums more than doubled. average insurance premiums in florida are now more than $10,000 per year. average. over in new orleans, average premiums are closing on $10,000 per year. in miami, they average almost $17,000 per year. this is fossil fuel-driven climateflation. it presents an affordability crunch for american families. dough just take it from -- don't just take it from me. take it from chairman jerome powell, who testified rising premiums have been a significant driver of inflation. he warned that, i quote, in the longer term companies are withdrawing from writing insurance in some coastal areas.

it's a significant issue, end quote. it even came into the presidential debate last night, when vice president harris said what we know about climate change is that it is very real. you ask anyone who lives in a state who has experienced these extreme weather occurrences, who now is either being denied home insurance or is being jacked up on insurance on insurance rates. and there's a cascade of fact, the crisis in coastal homeowners insurance, leads in the mortgage markets and when mortgage markets suffer, that affects property values. they cascade the poses what economists call, a systemic threat to our economy. if your property cannot get

insurance, good look getting a mortgage and without mortgage us, you'll the buyers are those able to pay cash. the drive down your property values. the chief economist at freddie mac actually wanted to be coastal property values crash, the damage entire economy systemic damage just like we saw in the 2008, financial crisis, and create a recession. florida come up in parts of texas, are already in that spiral. as unsold condominiums oil up in those markets and the values fall.e we face national affordable housing challenge so is another piece of good news from housing nonprofits but the insurance rates" come up with rising to add affordable housing developments come up as we know

it. back to wildfires. new york city, saw this orange sky line, the phenomenon san francisco got to know all too willing 2020s wildfire season. that is been cut because extreme wildfires have more than doubled for the past two decades. the sixth worst wildfire seasons, occurring in the last seven years. that makes the wildfire risk of evil twin a flood risk. for insurance, mortgage and property values. to put a witness, benjamin keeps, a professor of finance at porton, this should be ringing alarm bells for housing markets over the country.

april's economist magazine, get a bigger version of folks watching this. on c-span. april's economist magazine, not exactly a green publication, went what doctor keyes 100 warning that the whole world should be concerned about climate change putting $25 trillion of globalob real estate at risk and threatening a global financial meltdown. cover article, read it your self. insurance is not the only cost being driven higher by climate inflation just go to the grocery store. when hearing last year, west actually got bipartisan agreement, theag climate changes

damaging crop fields and driving up prices. year. just look at breakfast, the price of orange juice, is an all-time high driven by the lowest harvest in florida and 90 years. 24 percent decline in yield in brazil which supplies about 70 percent of the worlds orange juice. climate inflation. brazil and vietnam sublette more than half of the world coffee beans in both countries, the drop grows coming prices up yet they just reported that inly juy coffee exports declined nearly 30 percent year-over-year. force was june which declined to 50 percent year over year. more climate inflation. and yet in thailand of the two largest exporters of sugar the hunt brazil and severe droughts

in both of these countries have pushed global cost of sugar to its highest level since 2011. according to the u.s. department of culture, u.s. consumer so the price of sugar and sweet, raised by 8.9 percent in 2023 the usda expect prices to increase, the five points this year. in cocoa production is also with april prices, 235 percent in less than six months. all of oil pigeon stable so prices of over 130 percent due to lester's mediterranean drought and international all of counsel expecting the last production this year, as the droughts persist. it's think about bottles of olive oil are now one of the most shoplifted items.

climate change bodes ill for going as well in the recent review of more than 200 studies predicts", 70 percent of the current wine producing regions, faces substantial risk losing their suitability for wine growing in global temperatures increase more than 2 degrees celsius. that's a danger threshold and we are coming closer and closer to. in a new meaning to in vino — and when we wonder why grocery prices remain high, look at climate driven disruptions. climate inflation, not just to agriculture as i've been describing, but also do the supply chain those products around. ours informed the committee that inputting your, that the direct impact of the three other events

can cascade through supply chains. thinking the flow of commodities goods to regions and sectors leading to increased cost come up tohe businesses into the brod economy. more climate inflation while we were listening to the testimony, historic drought has reduced panama canal vessel traffic, to 24 crossings today so that this was resorted to this who has come out and you can help with around south africa to avoid the delays of the canal travel is longer roads came at a higher shipping cost past the consumers in higher prices, climate inflation predict climate changes even beating up the infrastructure that underpins our supply chain as a witness was last year, physical impacts have been observed from extreme heat waves events, optimizing

roads are max, pipelines and rail lines with direct repair and delay costs and felt throughout the economy annual direct damage across the road and rail impacts alone, are estimated to be just under $20 million a year by 2050. this past july new york at the close of third avenue bridge from the bronx to met had it 95 degrees heat because the still to expand severe flooding struck i was5 at the coded minnesota and judy led to the collapse of a railroad bridge that their failure description of hundreds of homes and bridge in lewiston maine riesling close because the statement started to buckle and high temperatures pretty expert of the new york times finishing heated flooding accelerating and deterioration bridges causing them to fall apart like tinker toys. and this will get worse.

extreme temperatures because one for steel bridges to collapse by 2050. merck is not just putting cost through climaflation your paying it through direct big oil price gouging anyone gas market so-called, is actually controlled by international cartel when opec, jack's those prices, legally only less heavily right along and loading up the biggest corporate profits in history. and that also drives inflation. one last thing. last year i came to the senate floor and i talked about what was that the hottest june on record followed by the hottest joint record all about the hottest august on record in the hottest september on record and

well this july, the world experienced the hottest day in at least come up 100,000 years. we have talked a lot about cost, and the cost matter the point of the speeches the economic arms of climate change. but that he kills. harboring a public health work have limitations accessing threat multiplier with health impacts have been through a variety of mechanisms including worsening temperature extremes. shortly after that hearing, phoenix arizona experienced it 31 straight days of 110 plus degree temperatures, shattering the previous record. mr. come the phoenix hot streak continued with temperatures breaking 100 degrees from they may, for more than 100 straight

days. in the maricopa county were phoenix is located, at least 150 people died heat and hundreds more's are still under investigation. the centers for disease control and prevention estimates that over 1200 people are killed by extreme heat in the u.s. every year. he doubts in 2023, were the highest in 45 years. in just one month, just one month, july 2023, the death count was near the annual average, one month early next the annual average and estimated 1130 u.s. residents died heat. in his work from brown university come in and other shown, that is likely an

account. and in spite of all of this danger, and severe physical implications. summa republican colleagues complain the budget committee is giving climate change too much attention. and for then, it's not enough the risk to the federal budget. in her mind, that at least $10 trillion national debt steps from economic shocks. an exogenous they would call it in economic summit economic shocks and specifically the 2008 financial crisis and the covid-19 pandemic. and well, climate change

printed, the biggest systemic chalk of all. it was the lessons of all of these economic reports and studies in the lesson cover article from the economist, the lesson of our testimony in the budget committee hearings. for homeowners in florida, those dangers are already on the doorstep they are suffering through sealevel rise extreme precipitation that lets homes and cars and intense hurricanes of bettering the families and communities, soaring insurance premiums that result leading into the cascade from the insurance market and the mortgage market to the property values market. the chief economist warned about

into all of this, what is florida republicans answer. to try to saw this conversation about the climate crisis to prevent the state employees to discuss climate change even when it's affordability crisis, for their own stitch once is really no doubt the dangers are going worse and more widespread economic shadow of those dangers is loving. and folks fiduciary responsibilities, told us in the budget committee, we have to address the dangers. folks with business responsibilities, told us in the budget committee how they have to adjust to these new dangers. and, i have been telling you for a while now, and he to say that

i told you so but is here now and darn it, i told you so and i do yield the floor. [background sounds]. [background sounds]. [background sounds].

>> okay we are on to the wrap up. >> the senator from rhode island. >> we has unanimous consent they proceed to morning business, senator's permitted to speak. for up 210 minutes each. >> without objection. p >> and asked unanimous consent of the many on foreign relations be discharged from further consideration of s376 for the center proceed to his immediate consideration. >> the court will a report. >> yes 3764, a bill to extend and authorize annual appropriations for the united states mission in international religious freedoms fiscal year 2026. >> without objection the committee's discharge in the will proceed to the measure. >> asked unanimous consent of the bill be considered ready for time and passed under the motion

to reconsider, be considered made and laid upon the table. >> without objection. >> i asked unanimous consent this and proceed immediate consideration of hr 7377, which was received from the house. >> the clerk will report. >> hr 737, an act to amend the >> oil inactive 1982, and >> so forth and for the purposes. >> without objection the senate will proceed to the measure. >> asked unanimous gets of the bill begins in a red paper time in past and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table seen that without objection. >> austin is considered the center proceed pr to the in a block consideration of the following resolutions 810, patriot week, senator resolution 8101, apalachee high school. >> without objection in the city will proceed to the resolutions on the block. >> i asked unanimous

consent that the resolutions be agreed to in the preamble be agreed to in the motions to reconsider be considered made at laid upon the table, all in block. >> without objection. >> and i asked five request from committee during today session of the senate, with the approval of the majority andth minority leaders summit duly noted. >> and asked unanimous consent them indefatigably business today from oksana joan until 10:00 a.m. and thursday sent number 12 following the prayer and pledge the journal proceedings be approved and today the morning ours begin and the two leaders be reason for later that morning business be close, following the conclusion morning business and proceed to executives concession to resume consideration of the nomination and further without sending rule 22 all-time be considered expire at 11:30 a.m. and upon his position then nomination senate consideration of the risk nomination further vote on the motion on that's ritz nomination 125 and finally the divinity nomination

confirmed during thursday session the motion to be considered to come up deacons and remain at laid upon the table, the resume read notified that the senate's action. >> without objection. >> with no further business of the senate asked to stand agenda review sorter. >> this in the stands at work until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow. >> the senate has gaveled out for the day, today lawmakers. judicial nominations including the confirmation of mary kay land to be u.s. district court judge the district of vermont in congress still has passed a short-term spinning bill for september 30th to avert a jump government shutdown in the house, speaker mike johnson spinning about in the fifth on the measure was originally supposed to happen today on public's need agreement on substance, with full before poking it live of the senate resumes tomorrow right here on "c-span2". >> tonight governor faces

off against the democratic challenger, say representative brian king new debate hosted by the utah debate commission in salt lake city, watch live 80 p.m. eastern on "c-span2", she's bee out are pretty in a three mobile video ever unlike, cspan.org. is the heartbeat and democracy, cspan voices 2024th about as we engage the voters nationwide asking, what issues most important to you this election and why. >> winning — from from alabama my biggest issue that probably the media i sorely do not have adequate coverage of both parties and you know we just have left to the media went but as was women's rights and productive rights and how my — my wife has two daughters and two sons, and most important thing for me is

makes with my daughters are safe and my wife is safe and every other woman a safe exam a big believer it will not just equal rights that every woman has a choice in this my top issue is that the preservation proceed and freedoms as seems like our freedoms are being eroded. within the mall and the world war ii museums are next-door a lot of people paid every price for their freedom this with nothing we needed to focus on. >> i think about u.s. money for, healthcare and women's rights and right to choose and be in charge of our own bodies it really just big picture that access and better access to healthcare equal pay for all cement i was having top issues for the u.s. radio immigration and illegal illegals close of the border keep an open to people emigrating legally, that would be fine but until they get directed

we have a lot of other issues that will simply them so hopefully that will get corrected. >> cspan voices 2024, part of the conversation. >> cspan is your unfiltered view of governments come up by these television companies and more, including media call. >> nearly three years ago, media, was founded the powerful idea when cutting edge broadband to underserved communities, from coast-to-coast we connected 850,000 and our teams delivered. amy: every customer and of the way in developing the platforms and now many accountable, this past most reliable network on the go media come, dedication decades of deliverance in decades ahead cement media, suppt cspan as a public servicen these other television providers giving you a front row seat to demo