>> today senior officials with the c.d.c., national institutes of health and f.d.a. testify on lessons from the pandemic and strategies to plan for the next outbreak. watch the house oversight and committee live at 11:30 a.m. eastern on c-span 3. c-span now our free mobile video app or online at c-spanrg. >> c-span is your unfiltered view of government who are funded by these television companies and more, including wow. >> the world has changed. today the fast reliable internet connection is something no one can live without. so wow is there for our customers, with speed, reliability, value and choice. now, more than ever, it all starts with great internet. >> wow. >> wow, support c-span as a public service, along with

these other television providers, ging you a front row seat to democracy. >> the senate's coming in this morning for more work on president biden's nominees. votes are planned today on a judge for the u.s. tax court, and the director of the government ethics office. president-elect trump has called on senate republicans to block all of president biden's remaining judicial nominations. and a government funding deadline is approaching. federal spending expires on december 20th. live coverage of the senate on c-span2. ... the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. the chaplain, the reverend dr.

barry black, will open the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray. ever loving and eternal god, a source of the light that never dims and of the love that never fails. draw near to us today. lord, we know not what the future holds, but you do. we rejoice that you hear and answer prayers as we watch the unfolding of your prevailing providence. lord, continue to be the sustaining presence in all of

our tomorrows, bringing us to the destination of your ch choosing. today use our lawmakers for your glory. strengthen them in all goodness that they may experience the joy of your eternal presence. we pray in your merciful name. amen. the presiding officer: please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to the flag. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the presiding officer: the clerk will read a communication to the senate. the clerk: washington, d.c, november 14, 2024.

to the senate: under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable raphael warnocka senator from the state of georgia,to perform the duties of the chair. signed: patty murray, president pro tempore. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, united states tax court, cathy fung of california to be a judge.

>> we have the team assembled. good afternoon, and thank you all for being here.

today in the nicest sense any day. the american people have loudly rejected the failed policies of the biden-harris schumer agenda. this republican team is united. we are on one team. we are excited to reclaim the majority and get to work with our colleagues in house to enact president trump's agenda. we have amended to the american people. a mandate that ought to up the mess left by the biden-harris schumer agenda but also to deliver on president trump's priorities. we will make sure the president and his team have tools and support that they need to enforce border security laws and remove the violent criminals who are wreaking havoc in every one of our states. we work to make america prosperous begin by streamlining the bureaucratic machine and overturning costly biden-harris regulations. we will work to restore american

energy dominance. not just for energy security but energy dominance which will lower costs and bolster our national security. i'm excited to get to work with right away, to think by card suit placed their faith in me to serve as leader to those who were supporting another candidate, i promise to be a leader who serves the entire republican conference. we will have an ambitious agenda and will take each and every republican working together to be successful. without a want to turn things over to senator john barrasso the newly elected republican whip. [applause] >> on election night america saw the remaking of the republican party for the better. this election was about the answer to the question of are you better off now than you were four years ago? the american people said no.

only one in four americans felt that the country was headed in the right direction, and you've seen the republican party grow in terms of hard-working middle-class families in terms of minorities, in terms of junk people, families struggling to get by your the last two weeks before the election i was all over the country. president trump, j. d. vance as well as a number of our senate candidates. one of the stores the stuck with me was a woman in michigan who talked about the fact she was embarrassed to let her husband no that she had to go to the local food bank in order to get by. republicans listened to those stories. democrats were focused on president trump. republicans were focus on the needs of the american people. people who want to get prices down, wanted to secure the border, wanted us to unleash american energy, people wanted to make america look and be strong once again around the

world. that's what the republicans listened to. that's what we are responded to and we are now working together to make sure we can put america back on track. the newly elected republican conference chair is the senator from arkansas, senator tom cotton. >> thank you, senator think i'm looking for to wait with senator thune and the rest of this team. i'm grateful for the confidence that you must place to me. we all member what it's like when president trump was in office and went republican charge of the went republican georgia-pacific window prices, high wages, , secure border, strong military, he still stable world. starting on january 3 that's what we will be working to build again with president trump, with mike johnson and rest of the house republicans on death of the american people. thank you all. >> the newly elected republican policy chair, senator from west

virginia, senator shelley moore capito. >> thank you, and congratulations to our new leader johnston. he will be a strong voice as he has been in the past as the whip, i look for disorder with him and with all. i want to thank the other terrific way to really strong healthy discussion and we've all come out genetic and friends. one of the people that was in our discussion is one of the people that is going to although he didn't say anything his presence was very much felt and that is the vice president-elect j. d. vance. i think the fact that he not only was a voting member of our conference but also in there with us every step of the way to make sure that the direction we're going to go as a net a conference and with me leaving the policy issues and all of us working together that were going to have a united voice. and i will say one thing about the election, i said this, on our local station put a think the biggest issue was and there

are big ones, border national security and others republican colleagues officially decided who will lead their conference beginning in the new year. once again, i congratulate senator thune on being chosen by his colleagues as the next republican leader. i've served with senator thune in this chamber for many years and i'm glad to say we found common ground on a number of different issues including veterans assistance, is then they think our national security and -- strengthening our national security and the kids online safety bill, among other bills. we've gotten along well and worked together in the past. i look forward to finding ways to work together in the future. we'll have our differences for sure and we'll make those differences known on a regular basis here on the senate floor. but my friend from south dakota can rest assured our side of the aisle will always seek to work in good faith and seek common ground whenever possible. but if the senate is to be successful in the years to come, if we are to continue to be

productive and effective in representing the american people as well as we have over the past four years, there are a few things the new republican majority should not forget. hopefully they won't. most importantly, senate republicans should continue to prioritize bipartisanship when they enter into the majority next year. on my first day as majority leader, i pledged to make bipartisanship a key part of how the senate does its business. i said then, i've said it many times since, the senate works best when both sides work together. four years later democrats have not only kept our promise, but we have proven that bipartisanship can work in very significant ways. the majority was the most productive majority the senate has had in decades. but that could not have happened had we not made the conscious choice to reach across the aisle. it was bipartisanship that cleared the way for the biggest infrastructure bill in a generation. it was bipartisanship that got

the chips and science bill done. and now jobs, thousands, hundreds of thousands of jobs are returning to the united states, and we're making those chips here. it was bipartisanship that held the line against putin and defended ukraine. it was bipartisanship that made sure we saw zero government shutdowns under this administration. the list goes on. marriage equality, the first gun safety bill in decades, kids online safety. all of these accomplishments were possible because democrats were willing to work with the other side. we still have to work, we still have work to do in this chamber before the year is out, but i'm proud of the record we built over the last four years, one that we accomplished by reaching across the aisle whenever the chance presented itself. i earnestly hope the next few years are as fruitful and collaborative as the last four. i hope bipartisanship continues

because that's the only way we'll be successful in the senate. but that will be up to senate republicans to decide for themselves. now on senate business, there's much the senate has yet to accomplish before the end of the year. it will be a busy time. government funding is scheduled to run out on december 20. both sides must work together to prevent a shutdown before then. nobody wants to hear the words christmastime shutdown a few weeks from now. i can't think of something the american people would want less during the holidays. as we've done repeatedly over the past couple years, both sides must compromise and work together to make sure the government remains funded. we also need to pass the national defense authorization act, the ndaa, to provide for our troops and hold the line against america's adversaries. i hope our republican colleagues work with us to advance key policies to outcompete the

chinese communist party and secure america's leadership on some of the most cutting technologies from our time. from a.i. to innovations in biotech and quantum computing, and more. we've gotten the ndaa done over the last six decades without fail, and we must do it again this year. another issue that requires our attention is disaster aid to support communities across the country in times of disaster. no state or community is immune from disaster, we've seen that over the last few years, from hurricanes in florida and wildfires in hawaii, floods in the northeast, droughts on the west coast, and everywhere in between. if we want to help these communities recover and rebuild after disasters, we must pass comprehensive, robust funding that leverage all programs across the federal government to help our communities in need. it's been a hallmark of america. when one of the regions of our country, one of the parts, the

towns, villages, the counties, the states, have had real trouble because the hand of god, through weather and disaster has affected them, the whole country rallies to their side. that's been a tradition. few have been owe bided by it on inst instances the other side. hopefully, we move forward on disaster aid. we also need to make progress on the farm bill. commend chair stabenow for her bipartisan work on this matter. democrats are serious about getting a farm bill done, one that represents the needs of everyone, from farmers and ranchers to hungry americans. finally, as we continue to work through these matters, the senate continues to make progress on confirming president biden's highly qualified nominees. today, the senate will confirm another judge on the u.s. tax court and the director of the office of government ethics, and will advance embry kidd's nomination for circuit court judge for the 11th circuit. so, mr. president, we have a lot of work to do on simple fronts,

but i am encouraged, so far, by the cooperation on both sides. yield the floor, note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. baldwin.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> distinguished guests, the president of the united states and dr. biden. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [applause] [cheers and applause]

>> thank you. thank you. thank you very much. please be seated. well, joe, that started our day off right, didn't it? [laughing] so welcome to the white house. several years ago a student of mine came running into my classroom and breathless he said they should see me on tv. she had said, mom, mom, that's my english teacher. and her mother said, that's not her english teacher. that's the second lady. so when joe was elected as vice president, people assumed that i would stop teaching. but you know, i just couldn't give it up. i am first and foremost and forever a teacher. [cheers and applause]

though i did most. teaching in the morning outstanding front of my community college students -- [applause] for the eight in english comp class action i'm still doing it. and by the evening i was at the white house state dinner or boarding air force two. then one day in 2010 some white house advisers were trying to figure out and determine, you know, who could highlight the role of community colleges in our economy? then someone at this revelation, you know. [laughing] wait, doesn't the second lady work attic unity college? [laughing] so this might be surprising that

i think i had gotten so good at stitching the two worlds together and sort of fighting this seems that i never considered using my experience to become an advocate. but i said yes. and at the time i called community colleges america's best-kept secret. and i knew that they deserve to be seen and celebrator and championed at every level of government. and joe knows this, too. so when he became president joe put community colleges front and center in his workforce strategy. [applause] and from day one as first lady i knew that community colleges would be a priority for me.

so part of that means wishing to make them tuition free and. [applause] so i have been so proud to work alongside dedicated leaders like my friend martha kanter. [applause] walter bumpus and others who have been dedicated partners in this work. so today, less than a decade after we launched the effort to make community colleges free, 34 states plus washington, d.c., and counting, offer tuition free community colleges and job training programs. [applause] we came close to making community college free for everyone across the country but a few senators -- i'm not going

to name them -- blocked our way. but that wasn't the end. this movement continues to gain momentum. we must keep fighting for free community college. [applause] as firstly i also focus on strengthening the pathways between classrooms and careers. nearly -- you probably all know this but nearly 60% of graduating high school students don't go directly to a four-year degree. we know that. six out of every ten students, some will start working, some will go to community college or technical colleges. some will even know what they want to do next. so we continue to keep transforming education to bridge the gap between what students learned and the careers that

they can enter. we've had amazing partners in high schools across the country, and in advocates like becky pringle and randi weingarten. [cheers and applause] together, we're making sure that high school graduation isn't a sudden halt in a students education. but rather like the seamless step forward, whether that's on a college campus, a registered apprenticeship or another career opportunity. and we've partnered with the leaders of unions and businesses and school districts, colleges and universities. to match what local employers and workers that they need. and that's what we have been able to do with our investing in american work force hobbes.

and it's a model that communities across the country can replicate. community colleges are no longer america's best-kept secret, thanks to the progress of joe's administration and what they have created we are all in a way making them america's best kept promise. thank you. [applause] >> but there is more ground to cover and it will take all of us to get there. if we work together we can build a future where more high school students will graduate with credits and skills that they can apply to their future careers. where community college is free for every student in every state of america. and where all students have a clear pathway to jobs that pay well right in the communities where they grew up.

this semester is coming to a close. my students are starting to write their last assignments, and they are signing up for new classes and some are going to graduate. joe and i are also for what's coming next. [laughing] [applause] [laughing] >> it has been the honor of our lives to serve in the white house, and work alongside really all of you in this room. so as you keep pushing forward to make our country shine with opportunity, know that you will always have a partner in us. and now i would like to introduce a longtime champion of our nation's students. not only has joe always supported my career as an

educator, as president he wakes up every day with a mission to lift up all americans to the endless possibility of education. please welcome your president, my husband and hero, joe biden. [cheers and applause] mr. mcconnell: mr. president. the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: yesterday, senate republicans elected leaders to steer our incoming majority through the 119th congress.

senator thune, senator barasso, senator cotton, senator capito, senator lankford, and senator tim scott have earned the trust and support of their colleagues. i'd like to congratulate each of them and reiterate that the entire republican congress stands united and ready to tackle the important work of the country. as i've said before, i'm very much looking forward to taking on this next chapter from a different seat here on the floor. but before the year is out, i'd like to continue thanking the many individuals and teams who have served this institution so well during my time as republ i've had the privilege of working consummate experts and

relying on the professionalism of so many unsung heroes. take the office of the sergeant at arms. under the leadership of a distinguished career army officer, karen gibson, and with the deep bicameral experience of the staff like ms. hemingway, they shoulder enormous responsibilities, from the day-to-day procedures to the telecommunication infrastructure. i'm particularly grateful to the staffs of the protocol office, whose work helps to navigate the most solemn and visible occasions. the chief information office, telecom and help desk who keep essential communications and technology across the senate running smoothly.

capitol facilities, including terry "tiny "richson who maintains the building and campus around it with unfailing care. the employee assistance program who helped public access around the senate access. the doorkeepers and press gallery who carefully control access to this chamber and make con sting wednesdayy welcome in the -- constituency welcome in the capitol. the -- a daily word of motivation with my chief of staff. the senate recording studio and photo studio who capture the senate for posterity and the offices of printing, graphics,

and direct mail and state office operations who put senate business within reach for the american people. and the office of security emergency preparedness and continuity, whose careful attention, training and planning ensure the senate is able to discharge its constitutional duties even under the most trying circumstances. so to everyone whose work under the sergeant at arms keeps the senate safe and operating smoothly, thank you very much. now, every day my team also relies on the work of several more teams working under the leadership of the secretary of the senate. ann berry and her professional staff like sidney butler, stretch aring from here on the -- stretching from here on the floor to outposts, they are

involved in a dizzying array of critical operations. i'd like to thank the staffs of the senate library who collect and maintain a rich archive of institutional knowledge and help senators and staff tap into it. the senate historical office, the office of the senate curator and the office of conservation and preservation, including the frame shop who dedicate deep expertise to understanding the senate's history and maintaining its home here in the capitol for posterity. the office of senate security who maintain our ability to conduct oversight and address highly sensitive matters of national security here in the capitol. the office of services, particularly sally walsh who supports senate delegations and

conferences, the office of printing and document services, the daily die gentlemens and the -- digest and the office of captioning services who format transdescribe -- transcribe senate proceedings. and the stationery room who keep the offices well stocked, the dispersing office who diligently process all of the senate compensation and patient i will answer all manner of staff questions. the faculty and staff of the page school under the leadership of principal joshua dorsey who make the page program such an enriching experience for bright,

despairing public servants throughout the year and the most visible teams here on the senate floor. from our formidable parliamentarian, and her team, our bill clerk lindsey gidmeyer and her team, enrolling clerk cassie byrd, executive clerk rachel creviston, along with alaina and chris. journal clerk megan pickle, and our legislative clerks, john

merino and maryanne clarkson, so to all of you who devote your important work to the secretary's office, thank you so much. there are, of course, still many more proud members of the senate family who deserve our thanks, including the youngest members of the institution. so, mr. president, if i may speak directly to our impressive class of pages here on the floor it's not easy throwing a full-time job on top of full-time schoolwork and if we are so grateful for your interest in public service and for all you do to keep this place humming. we're glad you're here and we will be proud to watch as you step into careers of leadership and service. i also want to thank chaplain black -- barry black and his staff, including susan chapis,

an honorary member of the team who attends with grace and care to the spiritual needs of a flock who so often carry heavy heavyweights, as well as the staff of the architect of the capitol who move the many pieces of an ancient building and its many occupants, the and those who conduct the american people's business, the congressional budget office, the congressional research office whose work informs many of the most conventional votes we cast. the office of legislative counsel who work often in demanding circumstances under tight deadlines to put the will of the senate and the nation on paper. the office of senate legal counsel and the chief counsel

for employment whose sober assessments and reliable representation are a tremendous asset to the members of the staff of the article i branch. the office of attending physician who help to meet mundane ailments and grave public health challenges alike, the food service program who feed thousands daily meals and greet staff and visitors alike with a smile and the training and development office who help cultivate excellence among senate staff at all stages of their careers. now, i could go on thanking the outstanding members of the senate staff a good while longer and in the coming weeks, i will. but for today, i'll close with the men and women who form the senate's first line of defense, the u.s. capitol police and in

particular the senate division make all of the other work we do possible. they ensure the senators and their staff can work in safety, that members of the public can visit in safety and that this institution carries on in the face of very real threats to its security. as i look back on my time in party leadership, i'm particularly grateful for the devoted service of the members of the dignitary protection device who safeguard the continuity of our government by surrounding me and other senior leaders with around-the-clock security. sometimes it's meant spending long hours on the road, other times it's meant making split-second decisions that avert danger. and in every case i've been so fortunate to have these

professionals on duty. so to members of my detail, past and present, the members of the senate division here in the chamber and across the campus, and to the entire force of the capitol police, my staff and i are deeply grateful for your service and your sacrifice. so, as i said, mr. president, the work of thanking the outstanding staff who have made my job easier over the years continues, i look fwoord to paying -- forward to paying tribute to more of them very soon. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. vote: quorum call: the clerk: ms. baldwin.

quorum call:

[applause] >> thank you. [cheers and applause] thank you, thank you, thank you. thanks, all of you, please. i'm joe biden. i'm joe biden's husband. [laughing] and you can see she did have any strong notions or ideas. you know, teaching is not what jill does. it's who she is. and i mean that there quite many

of you teachers. it's built in their dna. she was surprised when i got elected vice president she said she wanted to keep teaching. i said of course. she looked at me like really, you're going to do that? we did that. the point is that this is a passion. passion for jill and when i ik at is a simple proposition. how can we be the greatest nation in the world and that of the best education system in the world? [applause] no, i mean it. pretty straightforward. so i'm honored to host this white house classroom of career summit. look, 15 years ago when jill hosted the first one during our vice presidency, to state the obvious, as i said, with jill, for jill being an educator is just what she is, period.

i believe the work she's done to connect students to good-paying jobs will prove when the most important effort of a presidency, and i mean it. look, that's why we are here today. want to thank doctor norcross from new jersey. i keep reminding the new jersey guys, we did really well in jersey. jill is a jersey girl born and raised. i tell them though, there was a case of long time ago, delaware is a second small state in the nation. we own the delaware river up to the high watermark of new jersey. [laughing] i ask unanimous consent that the privileges of the floor be granted to the following member staff. peyton thomas during the pendency, through november 14, 2024. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. warner: thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor.

>> from day one of mr. trump not only to vaccinate the nation because and deliver economic relief but i also did come transfer away -- the way archival trayvon. to write a new economic playbook. i mean this sincerely. new economic playbook to build the economy come from me bottom-up not from top the . my dad used to have an expression he would say joey, talk about trickle-down economics, not a whole hell of a lot trickles down to our kitchen table. well, when we do that, the middle class do well and wealthy are still able to do very well. we all do well. it's a playbook based on the value set that my dad taught me. he used to say any means essentially, jelly, a job is a lot more about the paycheck. it's about your dignity. it's about your place in the community. it's about being able to look to

get in the eye and say honey, it's going to be okay, i mean it, and mean it. in matters. that of an assault the progress because it takes time. we've emerged from a crisis. we have the strongest economy in the world. much more to do. working families and middle-class are the center of a strong equitable and sustainable recovery. the big reason why i called invest in america agenda, you know, it's a page from economic playbook that invest in all america and all americans. created pathways from good-paying jobs created in our economy. juno, the key pieces of invest in america include historical loss i psych up the a stork investment and modernizing our roads and bridges, our ports, airports, public transit. we are replacing poisonous lead pipes, delivering clean water to every american. it takes time. but it's the beginning. it's real. it's in there we're delivering affordable high-speed internet and so much more. roosevelt talked about the need to electrify america during that

era. how can you have access to be able to participate in everything if you don't have access to from threat? you have access to -- anyway, don't get me going. [laughing] but look, we are also making sure the supply chain title think americans are gradual supply chain before we came to office. but the supply chains start in america. no longer come for the longest time the longest time corporate america decided to export jobs for cheaper labor and import the product. not us. we change that dynamic. for example, semiconductors. the little computer chips smaller than the tip of muddled thinker, that power every thing from her smart phones to automobiles to weapons systems. america invented the chips. we and the united states invented. we modernized it. we even did all the work on it but we stopped making them. we used in over 40% of the

market. we got down to virtually none of it. not anymore. today we're making once in a generation investments in american science and innovation that a building chip factories all across america. they are going to be creating tens of thousands of good-paying jobs and that's a hyperbole. but it takes time to build them. one thing i was all excited about how much we've invested and how much is going to come in. it's taking time. to build the so-called fabs, fabs come factories to build these things are as long as, as big as the ball field. they pay of an average of $105,000 per year and you don't need a college degree to get there. that doesn't account for ten siblings of dollars being spent to build these facilities to attract of the businesses. i said in a significant climb lot ever in american history and history of the world. [applause] >> we were told we couldn't get it done. we got it done.

got it done. it's leading us into a clean energy future. with even more good paying good clean energy jobs. that result, , i want to take or time, but key actions, the result is we created in the four years we've been come almost four years we've been here, , we have created 16 million new jobs, brand-new jobs since i took office. [applause]

mr. thune: mr. president. the presiding officer: the republican whip. mr. thune: mr. president, last tuesday, the american people spoke, and they spoke decisively. they made it clear they've had enough of the failed biden-harris-schumer agenda and chose president trump and vice president-elect vance to lead our countries, along with republican majorities in the house and senate. i congratulate president trump and vice president-elect vance on their tremendous victory. it is difficult to overstate what president trump did from in election. republicans have improved our margins, in three out of every four counties in the united states and grew support with nearly every demographic group. president trump won more

hispanic support than any republican president ever before, and younger voters played a crucial role in his victory. the republican coalition is broad and strong and growing. mr. president, the american people handed president trump and senate republicans a decisive victory, and now the real work begins, delivering on our agenda. that starts with ending the biden-harris border crisis and deporting illegal immigrants. also at the top of the list is strengthening our economic and fiscal future. the last four years of democratic inflation have been very difficult for working americans. republicans will be focused on doing everything we can to expand economic opportunity and increase growth. that starts with taking action to preserve the tax relief republicans delivered for americans during the first trump administration. it's also time to check the bureaucratic machine here in

washington, d.c. a key element of making america prosperous again is taking a hatchett to the leg -- to the regulatory apparatus choking our economy, starting with the 1,000 biden-harris regulations that cost americans nearly $2 trillion. of course, a major focus of both the trump administration and the republican congress will be restoring american strength to promote peace at home and abroad. that includes restoring american energy dominance for the sake of both economic growth and our national security. mr. president, yesterday, my colleagues chose me to lead republicans here in the senate during the 119th congress. i'm honored by the trust they've placed in me, and i will work every day here in the senate to serve my colleagues and to advance president trump's agenda. my philosophy of leadership is inspired by my dad. some of you know that i played basketball growing up. i remember one game, in

particular, i had 36 points and 12 rebounds. at one point in the game there was a time i came down on a fast break, i pulled up and made a shot off the glass. after the game, my dad pointed that out, he said, you know, chris was open, wide open under the basket and you should have given him the ball. that was my dad. he hated ball hogs. he wanted me and my siblings to be team players. is he always believed if there was somebody else who had a better shot than you did, you got him the ball. that's my goal as leader, to pass the ball to the best-positioned player, to empower everybody on the team. we have a lot of brilliant people in the republican conference, brimming with ideas and knowledge, and it will be my job to make sure they have the chance to use those ideas and that knowledge to strengthen our country and make life better for the american people. that's what i focused on as

chairman of the senate commerce committee. it's what i focused on as whip. and it's what i plan to do as leader. le leader's office will be a resource, not a roadblock, for members seeking to achieve less lative goals. that starts with empowering committees, which will ensure individual members at all levels of seniority have a real voice in the legislation we consider. as whip, i have consistently advocated for our members' amendments, resulting in over 100 amendment votes this congress. in the majority, we can do better, and i will continue my commitment to amendments as leader. the committee process is key to developing strong legislation, but all members of the senate, and not just the members of a particular committee, should have a voice in final legislation through amendments on the floor. members should assume amendment votes will be the norm. that will mean taking tough votes at times, but thatch,

folks -- but that, folks, is part of our jobs. members should also expect a return to regular order in the senate next year. i will devote serious time in the summer to floor consideration of appropriations bills, so that we don't constantly wind up with an end-of-the-year pile-up and problematic continuing resolutions. needless to say, the floor priority at the start of the year will be confirming president trump's nominees and members should expect an aggressive schedule until those nominees are confirmed. mr. president, i know communication has been a concern for members of our conference. as whip, i've tried to be very accessible, whether that's by phone or in person, and that's something i intend to continue as majority leader. that includes regular, substantive updates for members and staff. neither members nor staff should be left without information, wondering what's coming next. and i plan to have regular

meetings with speaker johnson and with the white house to ensure smooth coordination and a strong working relationship between the house, the senate, and the administration as we work together to implement president trump's agenda. i'll have more to say on all of this down the road, but for now i want to once again thank my colleagues for the trust that they have placed in me. and i will work every day to honor that trust and to serve our members and the american people. i want to also express my gratitude to leader mcconnell for his tireless service to the republican party and to the senate, and i'm glad that while he may be stepping down as leader, he will still be serving here in the senate. mr. president, i want to again congratulate president trump and vice president-elect vance. they ran a tremendous race and it will be my honor to work with them to advance our republican agenda. i want to say a special word of

congratulations to vice president-elect vance who has been our colleague in the senate the last couple years. he made an impact right out of the gate and has been a stalwart advocate for his constituents. now, he will be a stalwart advocate for the american people. i look forward to continuing to work with him in his new role as vice president. mr. president, a big thing that drew me into politician was ronald reagan. his philosophy of limited government and peace through strength resonated with me. but he was also drawn by his sense of humor, his optimism, and his belief in america, and i suspect that a lot of people who voted for president trump in this election were attracted in part by the fact that president trump conveys a lot of that optimism and faith in our country. it's been a tough four years for the american people, but like president trump and ronald reagan i believe that america's

bast days -- best days lie ahead. i work forward to working with my republican colleagues here in the united states senate and with president trump and vice president vance to build a strong and prosperous america and a bright, new dawn for the american people. mr. president, i yield the floor. mr. tillis: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. mr. tillis: i ask unanimous consent that caleb carlin, preston romaine-off and taughton barnett from senator paul's office be granted floor privileges until december 12, 2024. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. tillis: thank you, mr. president. mr. kelly: mr. president. i ask that privileges be granted to my following interns and fellows for today -- alberto arevelo, clara monjia,

lars ekstrom, mia adams and alinia rainy. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. budd: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. mr. budd: mr. president, thank you. i come to the floored today, i'm ult -- mr. tillis: i'm ultimately going to offer a unanimous consent. i want to talk about what happened in north carolina with the storm of hurricane helene. it starts a couple days earlier, when a weather system came into western north carolina and dumped inches and inches of rain on several, more than a dozen, major river basins and saturated the land. now, we have hurricane helene come in, through the florida panhandle, georgia, up through south carolina and into north carolina. it largely maintained the integrity of a category 1 storm, tropical storm, a couple hundred miles inland in a mountain range. it's a first of a kind storm

that is the most deadly in north carolina history. folks, we've been hit by florence, matthew, hugo, i can go through a long list. over 102 people dead, some still missing. we have families that are disconnected and will likely not even have electricity. there's a community called bed creek. asheville is without drinkable water today. businesses are suffering. the small business administration somewhere out of money. they are telling people who have had claims processed that your claim has been approved, and as soon as the federal government replentishes the small business -- replenishes the small business administration account they will get the money. think about that. if you're one of thousands of people in western north carolina in a landmass the size of the

state of massachusetts -- ladies and gentlemen, that is how big the landmass was that had devastating storms, 102 people die, hundreds of businesses out of business. i've got a 20-mile segment of i-40 that is impassable. it's not from rock slides. it's because the land underneath the roads no longer exists. there are five miles that are going to have to be repaired and 20 years ago, when we had a three-tenths of a mile segment, it took seven months to repair it. that was just removing a landslide. the integrity of the roadbed was. there we don't have that -- we don't have that anymore. we have 80 miles of rail tracks gone. we have hundreds of businesses out of business right now. we have a major water system that hopes to have drinkable water by christmas. we have people suffering. we have businesses suffering. we have a disaster we have to

respond to, and a lot of work is going to have to be done before the end of this congress, and certainly in the next congress, when the nearly $50 billion between state and federal dollars is going to have to be appropriate rated, just to help north carolina, not to mention the $3 billion of agricultural damage in georgia. i can go down the list of florida. we've got a lot of work to do. but folks, this is a time where you don't question what we're doing. you don't question how you pay for it. you get the money there, and you get these communities back on track. i'm not saying that we shouldn't be paying for this. we absolutely should. and up here in the rarified air of washington, d.c., we can say, well, let's just, you know, be responsible about this, and let these people suffer until we get it. but that's not how it works in western north carolina. they need help now, today. i'll talk a little more about that before i offer my unanimous

consent request. but before i do, if i may, mr. president, i'd like to pass it over to senator budd, and i believe senator budd will pass it over to senator warner, then i'd like to reserve recognition at that time. mr. budd: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. mr. budd: i want to thank my friend, senator tillis, for his partnership, not just for today but throughout this whole crisis in our state. hurricane helene represents one of the worst natural disasters ever to happen to our state, in particular person north carolina. more than, as he mentioned, 100 people were killed, hundreds more injured, and some are still missing. thousands of north carolinians lost their homes and family businesses. every day i was in the region, i was stormed by the enormity of the damage. it's unlike anything i've ever seen. i went to college at appalachian state in boone, you learn very quickly how tough these mountain folks are. they're proud, they're

self-sufficient people. the citizens of western north carolina, they're some of the toughest, most resilient people around. they don't look for handouts. they don't complain. so when there's a need like this, government needs to be ready, and needs to be there to help. they've got to be able to access the loans from the sba so they can continue to rebuild and recover their communities. now, this program provides victims with low-interest loans to replace lost property or rebuild businesses, homes, or shops. this is very important because very few helene victims, they don't have flood insurance, and it covers -- anything that covers a disaster of this magnitude. now, it's critical this program be funded and effectively managed to get loan dollars flowing to those in need immediately. but as my colleague mentioned, the sba announced october 15 that it ran out of money. every day that this fund sits empty, it further slows the process of roo building the --

rebuilding the lives for thousands in north carolina. we've got to replenish it and do it now. i stand ready to work with senator colleagues to cut through the delays and provided the resources as quickly as possible. i strongly want to support senator tillis' relief act to refill the sba's disaster loan programs, and i hope the senate can pass it today. i also strongly support the quick approval of a supplemental bill to help fund a long-term recovery for the folks in western north carolina. congress shouldregion. take up this bill without delay. i yield to senator warner. mr. warner: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from virginia. mr. warner: let me acknowledge that you guys got hit the hardest, but we got hit as well

in southwest virginia. we've got community that without this relief are going to die. i want to echo what both of my colleagues have said. this relief act, it's bipartisan. it is what we do as a matter of course when an entity like the sba runs out of money. since october 15, 34,000 businesses across the country have applied for sba relief. many of them got approved, but they get a response that says, we'll give you money when congress does its job. this is done as a matter of course. and, frankly, the sba screwed up a little bit on not getting better numbers before we broke before the election. i want to take one moment and tell you about a community in particular in southwest virginia. damascus, virginia, was an old town, it's economy basically

disappeared, but it came back thanks to the creeper trail, it has biking and hiking. parts of this trail are gone, 18 of the roads are gone. we've got part of our road that gets to the top of the mountain gone as well. i went to ten jurisdictions in southwest virginia, and in this town every single home and business was gone. one guy had three businesses, two restaurants and a bed and breakfast. he paid out of pocket to keep his workers on even though it will be months before anything happens even if the money was there. we owe it to the folks in dem demascus, the people in southwest virginia, north carolina and all of the areas that have been hard hit to do our job, just like folks in north carolina, folks in southwest virginia are proud. they had an enormous amount of

self-help. this kind of assistance, whether it's fema or sba alone, it is not charity. it is their right as americans. it's what we pay our taxes for. instead, thousands of virginians who asked for -- who asked for that right to apply for this loan have gotten a note saying we can't pay the money until congress does its job. we need to take this bipartisan piece of legislation, pass it through and get those businesses the funds they deserve. i thank my colleague and will yield back to the senior senator from north carolina. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. mr. tillis: 203 people, 110 -- total damage $38 billion to $48 billion across seven states. north carolina 1400 landslides,

one million-plus houses and businesses lost utility, some areas in asheville may not have drinkable water, this is a major urban center in north carolina, may not have drinkable water for tens of thousands of people before the end of august, that is including businesses that are struggling right now. think restaurants. struck during the peak of the season, the majority of the revenue starts in october and ends in november. they lost that. they're gone. a lot of these people lost loved ones who are businesses, now they're trying to keep their business afloat while going to funerals and away tell them we've got to wait for congress before we can send you a check because for the first time in this body we're going to cause -- we're going to demand a pay-for disaster recovery? down about where the pages were

sitting, a few months ago, brian schatz came to me, an are senator from hawaii, he said, tom, i hope you will support mae for the -- me for the supplementals. i said count me in because this is when we cut the crap and do our jobs. count me in because i'm pretty sure before this season is over, i will have to come to you for help in north carolina. i had no idea that there was going to be a record-setting deadly storm. but if we want to keep these communities vibrant, asheville will come back. it has the critical mass. canton, clyde, burnsville, i could list dozens of towns that are hanging in the breach. let's give them be a chance. and if we don't, then businesses are going to make the right business decision. there's two here, okay. we've got the small businesses that hopefully they can bridge

the gap and recover. again, these are people who have lost loved ones and many lost their own homes. while they try to figure out a place to live, they're trying to figure out how to run their businesses and keep people employed. now, big businesses are looking at what the business network or what the ecosystem is going to look at. we have major employers who may leave if they don't show them we can recover. i could go on at gnaws yum. when i tell -- gnaws um. when a major road like i40 is going to be down for years, i can't tell people that it suction for you, you may have to go out of business while i try to fix the dysfunction in washington. this is a time for us to act and do like we have done every time with a disaster supplemental. so, and, by the way, in advance, senator paul is going to offer

an amendment, i like it so much i would like to marry it but i object to it. it is the right amendment at the wrong time. i look forward to it being inkofrptd that my -- incorporated. it will be passed in the next congress. in spite of the fact i support it i will object to it because i want mission certainty here. i want this disaster supplemental for the small business administration passed through like we have on every other disaster supplemental we have to today. mr. president, as if in legislative session, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to immediate consideration of calendar number 465, h.r. 6651, i ask that the tillis-warner substitute amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to, the bill, as amended be considered rid a third time and passed that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

pra is there objection -- the presiding officer: is there objection? mr. paul: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from kentucky. mr. paul: reserving the right to object. i lived for four months in asheville, worked at the v.a. hospital. i have fond feelings for western north carolina, i have an uncle who lives up the road from asheville. one of my best friends lives in asheville as well. the reason we won't do in a responsible way, because the senate sent all of its money to ukraine when the senate sent $2 billion to ukraine, i went to appalachia, i asked if you would want your senators to take care of you here or send the money to ukraine? you can get all kinds of sympathy for ukraine, russia being the aggressor nation, but we don't have money. interest this year will be a

trillion dollars. as far as passing this. i'm willing to let it pass today. he's going to object to passing his own bill today simply because it gets paid for. how crazy is that? not even let the other side object to it. he's going to object to his own bill. i'm willing to let the bill pass but take some of the fluff and boondoggle subsidies from the green new deal and put it in here. the money's sitting here. we put it into here for disasters, we help asheville today. oh, no, it's not the time nor the place to pay for things. the question before the senate is whether on behalf of the american people we borrow and spend an additional $810 million for small businesses loans. you know who gets those? ukraine, we are funding a purse and dress store in ukraine. we fund the ukrainian government

pensions. look, half of our state governments are short in pensions, our u.s. government is short in pensions and we're funding them in ukraine. so some of the same people who want this immediately now, now, now, now, we don't want to pay for it, are happy to pay for crap all officer ukraine, including -- all over ukraine, including government salaries and pensions. the job of legislators is to makes decisions, to set priorities. we don't have an infinite amount of money, but we do have enough to take care of them in asheville and virginia, simply pay for it. realize the people assembled will object to their own bill. i'm offering their bill, we have to take some money laying around in a pot of money, green new deal boondoggle money going to big corporations and put it into disaster. we can do that today. if you want to subsidize green

new deal, do that tomorrow. we don't have hundreds of billions of dollars to bail this program out. congress has a habit of rerefusing to do what you and i would do when faced with an expense. even when saying yes to every new program that has led to record-high inflation. americans have been forced to learn the hard way they have to pay for congress's addiction to spending. so i offer a fiscally responsible path, spare americans from the hidden tax inflation, my tax would take $10 billion from the department of energy boon doogle green new deal. this has been repeated bankruptcies in it previously. it's absurd to force taxpayers to subsidize rich companies to

gamble on energy projects that the private sector finds too risky and it should be about priorities. the peechl in asheville or the green new deal? no, this is the best time to put them in contrast, not some other time when people are not hurting, when people can't see the contrast, everybody in asheville should wake up today and find out their senators are going to reject the disaster mane because it's paid for. that's it. they're going to reject taking it from the green new deal boon doogle and sending it to afternoon labor, h.h.s.a, it -- appea appalachia, i approve of the money, take it from somewhere where it is wasted. ideally which would take it from ukraine, but that is not available. a 2015 report from the government accountability office found that when five companies defaulted on these green new deal, the government, the taxpayers lost $800 million. it's not a good program to begin with but it's an easy place to

look for something that is more important like the people in asheville, north carolina. this money would have nearly covered today's disaster loan funding. but there's still money in the fund today. i offer this identical amendment to pay for another bill a month ago and every republican voted for it. so i don't understand why republicans would object to a pay for they all voted for last month. if the small business administration must have this additional money, the least we can do is respect the taxpayers and act as good stewards with their money. therefore, i ask the senate to -- senator to modify his request to include my amendment, which is the at -- which is at the desk. this will allow the bill to pass if my amendment is attached to it. the amendment be considered and agreed to,s bill -- the bill as

further amended, be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: does the senator so modify his request? the senator from north carolina. mr. tillis: i wonder if the senator from kentucky would yield. the presiding officer: does the senator from kentucky yield? mr. tillis: i think i know the answer to this, senator paul. i want to confirm it. do you recall how you voted on the pact act? mr. paul: i asked for a unanimous consent. does he object? the presiding officer: does the senator from kentucky yield? mr. paul: i made a motion. mr. tillis: i and i reserved -- and i reserved the right to object to that motion. the presiding officer: does the senator from north carolina object to the modification? mr. paul: i made a motion to pass your bill. you need to respond. the presiding officer: the senator from connecticut has -- kentucky has not agreed to

yield. mr. tillis: reserving the right to object, i would ask him to how he voted on the pact act. i think he voted against it i'm not sure. has he voted for a disaster supplemental that was an offset. that was the two questions i was going to ask. i will find it out later on. look, our state motto is to be rather than to see. this is a disingenuous offer to amendment my bill. let me tell you why. maybe it will be a fundraising campaign later this week, i'm fighting to dismantdle the green new deal. this bill, if it got amended has no prayer. i came to the senate to make a difference, not make a point. i get the point. there are a lot of things in the inflation reduction act and green new deal that need to be

clawed back. i look forward under president trump's leadership having that vote. i assume that senator paul knows how to count votes. he has to know that he doesn't have the votes to get this bill done if it's amended. to be rather than to seem. imf' focused on -- i'm focused on getting north carolina back on track and not playing a game on the senate floor. i'm going to object to this, mr. president, and amend it because it's a game. we never fund disaster supplementals because we know that people are hurting. you take that case to ukraine, to asheville. you take it to burnsville, you take it to banner elk and i'll go with you and i'll see if they're as worried about that or if they're just worried about making sure their families have a place to live and their businesses have a chance to survive. mr. president, i object. the presiding officer: the objection is heard to the

modification. is there objection to the original request? mr. paul: reserving the right to object. the presiding officer: the senator from kentucky. mr. paul: the insinuation is made that there's a better time. we'll vote on this at another time. maybe it's just not the time. not the time nor the place. it is the time or the place. and the only vote against the disaster bill today will be the senator from north carolina. he will today vote to kill the disaster aid. he says there aren't enough votes. we won't know because he's objecting. he isn't allowing the democrats to object because they always object to anything paid for. but by his objection, he's not allowing the system to play out. if democrats want to object, we'll find out they're opposed to pay-fors and we'll further the definition of what is for not paying for stuff and who s. to say we as republicans are never for paying for disaster relief is to say that we are equally or the republicans are for this are equally complicit

in the accumulation of $35 trillion in debt. no matter how good the cause is, i don't care whether there's a fire or a flood or rain or all the damage, it all should be paid for. it's not -- it's the responsible thing to do no matter how terrible the disaster is and it's not like i'm saying well, let's just wait two years until we can earn enough money to pay for asheville. we have the money. we're a rich country. it's sitting here. i just simply ask take it from something here that is a wasteful corporate bailout to green energy companies and put it over here. but the fact that the senator from north carolina is going to kill his own bill today, he's going to vote not to allow it to be heard, we have no idea whether enough votes or not. he can say there's not enough votes but he's now the vote that stops the spending from getting easy passage. what we're going through is a procedure of easy passage. this is allowing things not to go to committee, not to be deliberated but to easily pass.

and i'm in favor of doing that because of the emergency, because of the tragedy. we allow this to easily pass by simp liver taking money from a pile over here. if he weren't to object and the democrats don't stand up, it passes like this. but it's not on me. it's on them. they decide that they didn't want to pay for anything and disasters should never be paid for. well, that's how we have this disaster of a $35 trillion debt. because nobody pays for anything. nobody cares. it's never the right time. well fwhou is the right now -- now is the right time. if you want else passage, you have to hear what the problems we face are. so i object. the presiding officer: the objection is heard. the senator from north carolina. mr. tillis: ladies and gentlemen, i've prided myself on working on a the love legislation over the last ten years. and i'm proud of the fact that i've figured out how to get votes in this chamber and get votes in the other chamber and get bills to the president's

desk. let me explain to you how this process works. we are going to pass a bill out of here and even if it's not funded, i am pretty sure that the house is going to insist on some sort of a pay-for. what we're doing here is playing a game and being disingenuous. folks, i support what senator paul does. by the way, i'll be checking the fundraising e-mails to see if we're fighting the green new deal dismantling. count me in for that. what i'm not for is putting a poison pill in here that prevents this bill from going to the house, my colleagues in the house intend to get a pay-for. they intend to get a pay-for. i mean, how hard is it? i have a community college education and i'm smart enough to figure this out. so are a lot of people from community colleges. but this is a game. it will be paid for in the house or it won't pass. we have a majority there. so instead of facilitating the process to move it there and us

find a way to offset it, we're trying to kill it here. i support so many provisions of the inflation reduction act and the american rescue plan being repealed and using the money for better purposes and disaster recovery is one of them. but that's not what we're here to do today in this congress with that president. that's what we're going to do here next congress with a different president. i want to set the record straight. i don't like games being played. my colleagues on the other side of the aisle know i try to be even-handed. i told mark warner, senator warner, i was going to object because it was a procedural game and if it's characterized as anything other than that, let me know who you are because i will educate you. thank you, mr. president. mr. warner: mr. president, will the senator yield. i want to say i prepare to object as well.

but is it not the case, when it comes to sba -- if they had their act together earlier and had better accounting so we knew how much we needed to refill the pot, we might not have been here. but this is -- want to change the law how the sba praits and disaster -- operates and disaster relief, that's a fair debate. whether it's in your community or mine, people are sitting there, a piece of paper that says all a he get your loan. you've been approved once congress does their job. would not your bill, my bill, our bipartisan bill if it had been able to go through today, wouldn't those folks in north carolina, virginia, and across our country would have -- who have been hit be one step closer, those small businesses, to get the sba loans they earned, deserve and should be

funded. mr. tillis: without a doubt, senator warner. there are some people saying if i've got to wait until next congress, i've got to followed up --fold up. i'm trying to find a place to live and trying to keep my business afloat. absolutely it gives them hope. our failure to act doesn't. mr. warner: i yield. the presiding officer: the question occurs on the following nomination. the question occurs on the fung nomination. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. 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. 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.

vote:

the clerk: mr. peters, aye. the clerk: mr. crapo, aye.

the clerk: senators voting in the affirmative -- booker, cramer, durbin, heinrich, kelly, lujan, manchin, murray, ossoff, peters, shaheen, tillis, warner, warnock, and whitehouse. senators voting in the negative -- grassley, hagerty, paul, scott of florida, sullivan, and tuberville.

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

the clerk: mr. casey, aye.

mrs. fischer, no.

the clerk: mr. welch, aye.

the clerk: mrs. blackburn, no.

mr. braun, no.

the clerk: mr. carper, aye. mr. cotton, no.

the clerk: mr. barrasso, no.

the clerk: mr. merkley, aye. the clerk: mr. daines, no. mr. risch, aye.

mr. reed, aye. mr. king, aye. ms. stabenow, aye. vote: the clerk: mr. boozman, no.

ms. ernst, no. the clerk: ms. collins, aye. mr. ricketts, no.

the clerk: ms. cortez masto, aye.

the clerk: mr. moran, no. ms. lummis, no.

mr. cruz, no. mrs. capito, no. mr. lee, no.

the clerk: mr. blumenthal, aye.

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

the clerk: mr. van hollen, aye. the clerk: ms. rosen, aye. mr. scott of south carolina, no.

mr. graham, no.

the clerk: mr. cornyn, aye.

the clerk: mr. padilla, aye. ms. sinema, aye.

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

the clerk: mr. helmy, aye.

vote: the clerk: ms. smith, aye. ms. baldwin, aye.

the clerk: mr. hoeven, no.

the clerk: mr. schatz, aye.

the clerk: mr. mcconnell, no.

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

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

the clerk: mr. wyden, aye.

the clerk: mr. schmitt, no.

the clerk: mrs. britt, no. ms. butler, aye. mrs. hyde-smith, no.

the clerk: mr. rubio, no.

mr. mullin, no. ms. klobuchar, aye.

the clerk: mr. sanders, aye.

the clerk: mr. markey, aye.

vote:# vote: the clerk: mr. bennet, aye.

mr. fetterman, aye. ms. cantwell, aye. mr. coons, aye.

the clerk: mr. hawley, no. the clerk: mr. hickenlooper,

aye. mr. johnson, no. the clerk: mr. rounds, no.

the clerk: mr. schumer, aye.

the clerk: mr. budd, no. mr. romney, aye.

the clerk: mr. murphy, aye.

the clerk: mr. thune, no. the presiding officer: on this vote, the yeas are 59, the nays are 37, 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. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report.

the clerk: office of government ethics. david huitema to be director. the presiding officer: the question is on the nomination of the knee. the yeas and nays have been requested. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. 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. vote: 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. 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, bennet, booker, brown, casey, cortez masto, duckworth, durbin, hassan, hickenlooper, kaine, king, lujan, markey, merkley, murray, peters, reed, rosen, sanders, schatz, sinema, smith, stabenow, warner, warnock, warren and wyden.

mr. klelly, aye. . mr. murphy, aye. . mr. schumer, aye. senators voting in the negative, blackburn, boozman, capito, cornyn, cotton, cramer, crapo, cruz, fischer, graham, grassley, hawley, johnson, lankford, mcconnell, moran, paul, risch, romney, rounds and rubio. mr. braun, no. mr. padilla, aye.

mr. young, no. ms. klobuchar, aye.

the clerk: mr. whitehouse, aye.

mr. tester, aye.

mrs. britt, no. mr. welch, aye.

mr. ossoff, aye.

mr. hagerty, no.

ms. hirono, aye.

the clerk: mrs. shaheen, aye.

the clerk: mr. tuberville, no. vote:

the clerk: mr. helmy 6 the clerk: mr. helmy, aye. the clerk: ms. butler, aye.

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

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

the clerk: ms. collins, no. mr. schmitt, no. the clerk: mr. daines, no.

the clerk: mr. blumenthal, aye. mr. ricketts, no. the clerk: mr. van hollen, aye.

the clerk: mr. marshall, no. mr. sullivan, no. the clerk: mrs. hyde-smith, no.

mr. scott of florida, no. ms. ernst, no.

the clerk: ms. lummis, no.

the clerk: mr. carper, aye. ms. murkowski, no. the clerk: mr. coons, aye.

the clerk: mrs. gillibrand, aye. vote: vote:

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

the clerk: mr. budd, no.

mr. scott of south carolina, no.

the clerk: mr. barrasso, no.

the clerk: mr. thune, no.

the clerk: mr. tillis, no.

the clerk: mr. wicker, no.

the clerk: mr. hoeven, no. vote:

officer the yeas are 50, the nays are 46ment 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. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, the judiciary. embry j. kidd of florida to be united states circuit judge for the 11th circuit. mr. schumer: i move to trowed legislate -- to proceed to legislative session. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the motion is agreed to. mr. schumer: i move proceed to executive session to consider calendar 464. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. cleric clinic nomination, the judiciary. mustafa kasubhai of oregon to be united states district judge for the district of oregon. mr. schumer: i send a cloture motion to the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the cloture motion.

the clerk: 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 4649, maw at that if a kasubhai of oregon to be united states district judge for the district of oregon, signed by 17 senators as follows -- mr. schumer: i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i move to proceed to legislative session. the presiding officer: question is on the motion. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the motion is agreed to. mr. schumer: i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 464. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: nomination, the judiciary. sarah french russell of

connecticut to be united states district judge for the district of connecticut. mr. schumer: i send a cloture motion to the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the cloture motion. the clerk: 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 466, sarah french russell of connecticut to beious district young for the district of connecticut, signed by 17 senators as follows -- mr. schumer: i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i move to proceed to legislate tiff session. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the motion is agreed to. mr. schumer: i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 651. the presiding officer: the question is on otomotion. all those in favor, say aye. those opposed, say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: nomination, the judiciary. rebecca l.panell of washington

to beious district judge for the eastern district of washington. mr. schumer: i send a cloture motion to the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the cloture motion. the clerk: 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 651, rebabying can a l.pennell of washington to be judge jackson district judge for the eastern district of washington, signed by 17 senators as follows -- mr. schumer: i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the mandatory quorum call for the cloture motion on the kidd nomination be waived. expeditious officer is there objection -- the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, so ordered. mr. schumer: i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from florida. mr. scott: i ask unanimous consent that the committee on commerce, science and transportation be discharged from further consideration and the senate now proceed to the immediate consideration of

senate resolution 874. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 874, honoring the baseball team from lake mary, florida. the presiding officer: is there objection to proceeding to the measurement? without objection, the committee is discharged. the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. scott: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection.

the presiding officer: the senator from maine. ms. collins: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the previously scheduled vote occur immediately. the presiding officer: without objection. the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture.

the clerk: 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 704, embry j. kidd of florida to be united states circuit judge for the 1th circuit, signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: i 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 embry j. kidd of florida to be united states circuit judge for the 11th circuit 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.

the clerk: mr. scott of south carolina, no. mr. scott of florida, no. mr. risch, no.

the clerk: mr. lankford, no. the clerk: mr. hagerty, no.

the clerk: mr. mullin, no. mr. tillis, no. vote:

the clerk: mr. cornyn, no. mr. romney, no. mr. crapo, no.

the clerk: mrs. blackburn, no.

the clerk: mr. cramer, no.

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

the clerk: mrs. shaheen ms. ha hassan, aye. . mr. lee, no.

the clerk: mr. grassley, no.

the clerk: ms. duckworth, aye. mr. paul, no.

the clerk: mr. welch, aye. mr. mcconnell, no. mr. cotton, no. mr. hoeven, no.

the clerk: mr. ricketts, no.

the clerk: mr. boozman, no. the clerk: mr. kelly, aye. mr. rounds, no.

the clerk: mr. young, no. the clerk: mr. wicker, no. mr. barrasso, no. mrs. hyde-smith, no.

mr. thune, no.

the clerk: mr. reed, aye. mr. murphy, aye.

the clerk: ms. lummis, no. the clerk: mr. peters, aye. mr. helmy, aye.

mr. heinrich, aye. vote:

mr. sanders, aye. mrs. fischer, no. mrs. capito, no.

the clerk: ms. smith, aye.

mr. kaine, aye.

the clerk: ms. butler, aye.

mr. graham, no.

the clerk: mr. fetterman, aye.

mr. lujan, aye. ms. rosen, aye. mr. blumenthal, aye. mr. ossoff, aye.

the clerk: mr. warner, aye. ms. baldwin y, aye. . mr. durbin, aye. mr. casey, aye. mr. van hollen, aye. mr. bennet, aye. ms. cortez masto, aye. mr. tuberville, no. mr. booker, aye. ms. warren cringes ms. warren, aye. mr. hickenlooper, aye. mrs. murray, aye. mr. schatz, aye.

mr. carper, aye. mr. padilla, aye. mr. wyden, aye.

vote:

the clerk: mr. warnock, aye. ms. murkowski, no. mrs. britt, no. ms. hirono, aye.

the clerk: mr. coons, aye.

the clerk: mr. schumer, aye. ms. stabenow, aye. mrs. gillibrand, aye. mr. cruz, no. ms. cantwell, aye.

the clerk: mr. markey, aye.

the clerk: mr. schmitt, no.

the clerk: ms. sinema, aye.

the clerk: mr. hawley, no.

the clerk: mr. merkley, aye.

the clerk: mr. daines, no. mr. brown, aye. the clerk: mr. budd, no.

vote:

the clerk: mr. manchin, no.

the clerk: ms. klobuchar, aye.

the clerk: mr. whitehouse, aye.

vote:

the presiding officer: the yeas are 49. the nays are 44. the motion is agreed to. the motion is agreed to.

let's begin the associate press yesterday calling the house for republicans after television networks have done so in earlier days. in washington new leadership saying we have a mandate. do you agree and if so what is it? >> i do think we have a mandate and the mandate is for the american people and it is quite clear. the economy is a mess.

inflation over the last four years is increased over 20.5% 2% cumulative. 2.7 oh whatever right now but you have to take it from a perspective how much it has increased over the last four years. people are hurting. i can kill people my district are hurting. they're having to make a decision between groceries and gas and that's not good. they also are concerned about the southern border. that mandate for us is we got to secure the border and we've got to do something about it, illegal immigration. something that the drug problem that is the result of that border being so porous. we've also had her do something about being respected on the world stage and the people understand that. they want to make sure we are respected on the world stage. we were not respected during the biden-harris administration and the want to do something about crime in our cities. that's important. people want to make sure they feel safe and we want to make sure their family members are safe. right now this administration did not. the mandate for us in congress

is to dress of those issues, those issues that are so important to the american people. >> when it comes to inflation what can congress due to bring down inflation? isn't that the job of the federal reserve? the independent federal reserve. >> let's look at the cause of inflation. the root cause of inflation started day one of the beit harris administration when they declared war on fossil fuels resulting in higher gas prices. resulted in higher grocery prices a result of higher fertilizer prices and transportation costs. all of that is result of the war on fossil fuels that this administration undertook from day one in office. we have passed h.r. one which of lowering energy costs and we can do that and look i believe in all-of-the-above energy strategy, and best buy the above energy strategy if you will. that's what we need to do. we can bring down the cost of groceries. we can bring down the cost of gas. we can have energy independence

in this country. not only if we utilize all the resources that are available in this country. we need to do something about that. that's the way we can help inflation. >> host: on immigration would you support mass deportation? >> guest: well let's see what it looks like. that's a very general term, just mass deportation. i can tell you one of the greatest experiences that i've had as a of congress is be able to attend a naturalization ceremony and it did that a a couple weeks ago doubt in glenn county in georgia. judge would was kind enough to invite me to that and allow me to speak. we had 32 people from 16 different countries who came in and the citizens of our country. i can tell you what a great, great day. i was so proud to be there, so proud of those people. it was so happy. they were becoming american citizens and that something that is valuable now. if you want to talk about

illegal immigration, talk to those people. it's not an easy process to become a citizen here in the united states. it's not an inexpensive process either. they really are to be congratulated and we are so happy there are people, citizens of a country now. >> host: if not mass deportation then what would republicans do to address the situation at the border? >> guest: what we can do is secure the border. we can continue with the fence and the fence that barack obama started. donald trump continued and that joe biden stopped. that would be one way to secure that border. the remain in mexico policy is another way we could make sure implement that. the supreme court of said you need to be doing that and you should be doing that. the biden administration has pretty much ignored it. the trump administration during his previous administration with one of the most secure borders we've ever had. i'm very confident he's going to

continue on with that. so yeah, tom homeland by the way, what a great choice is border czar. i have tremendous amount of respect for tom and i think he's going to an outstanding job and kristi noem come home and get cash homeland security directly to outstanding job as well. i'm very excited about what's going to happen at the border. i hope i feel like it will result in a decrease in the amount of illegal drugs coming across the border now and the amount of illegal immigrants are come across that border. >> host: to endorse your colleague matt gaetz -- matt gaetz as attorney general? >> guest: matt gaetz, i stood with matt for about eight years now. one of the smartest guys i know. certainly i think that's what the the president is wanting to do here. he's wanting to shake things up. let's face it the department justice as has been weaponized by this administration by the biden-harris administration. people don't have confidence in

our justice system anymore and i think that's the message the president is sending with this choice of matt gaetz is that we are going to shake this up. we're going to make sure that people have trust in the department of justice and make sure that they are doing their job and not being weaponized. >> host: the "wall street journal" believes the nomination of matt gaetz since the opposite message, the people will not trust his decision. they will think he is out for political revenge because of his personality, because of what you were just saying. >> guest: look, again, i think the intent of the nomination is to send a message, a strong message that look, the department of justice is out of control and they've been out of control for the last four years during the biden-harris administration. the american people don't have faith in that. the american people fear the

department of justice to a certain extent. that's not the way we are supposed to be living here in this country. so you know the nomination of a firebrand like matt gaetz i think sends a clear message of what this president hopes to achieve in the way of reforming the department of justice and the fbi and all the other agencies. >> host: that congress still needs best for your spending bill for the current fiscal year, or extend the continuing resolution to keep the government funded past december 20. what do you support, another short-term spending resolution or should the address spending levels and pass appropriation bills? >> guest: a lot of that will be dictated by what this incoming administration would like for us to do. if they want us to do another continuing resolution to get into the first of the year so they can put their fingerprints on this budget, then certainly we will be accommodating them

with that. .. have proposed a ten year plan the budget is it follows that, we can achieve our goal. >> how you do that if there is a push by the president-elect to renew the tax package? congressional budget office estimated continuing expiry

provision would cost 4 trillion over a decade. >> keep in mind we don't have a revenue problem. we got to cut back on pending. we got to address the majority of what is causing our budget. 72% is medicaid and medicare. we'll be getting it in the near future and if we don't, young people will not be there. we are being responsible if we don't. it can only be done in a bipartisan fashion. for the republican or democrat, good by themselves.

with got publishing. we should be doing this in a bipartisan fashion. you want accessible forcible quality healthcare. >> independent, hi, ev. >> good morning and good morning to the congressman. i teach academics and pharmacy college so i'm calling because i'm in the georgia area now. i was up in virginia.

albany of course as you know to the southeast coast with the in between rule county, albany georgia being the southwest bridge, are you understanding? 15000 residents across the private island the new goal of

south savanna about 147,000 of the economic structure of your district. and with the structure of the districts and then you come to my region. >> we have others waiting, can you get your question? need to create broader. we see brown people doing 70% of the work is construction and farm workers, those are not black and white people of your district. medicaid as we know is federally funded program the federal

government -- >> just going to take those. >> she makes very good points. his advanta and there is everywhere else. healthcare is different and has to be addressed that way. the first thing we got to do have transparency. we need to do with the money is being and. that's why i call on congress to pass the transparency act sitting in the senate now.

so the two reasons mentioned in georgia and my district, we need that program there's no action about that.

>> when i watch and listen and understand how they have been upside down, we do not level the laws against illegal immigrants get politicians and been fed after who to jump through for forever now. i hope it is a path of unity instead of upside down or right side of. >> as you know and new york and

we went down, it would serve and help people and extend my condolences. all of us are remembering that. you 1 million. it would be naïve to think that. some of them are criminals and they are. they need to be deported and that's why we passed in the house if there is someone detained because of theft or

another reason, they have to be deported. past the house, it's over in the senate. we need that law addressed. the caller is right, we've got to do something about those. if they are here legally or illegally in this country. >> democratic caller. >> thank you for c-span. aim of control, they give more tax cuts to the building is say the deficit is out of control. this is what they're going to do. another truth.

anybody that is out is our that, that's far from the make sure we are delivering the text because it the trump administration. that had our economy probably. we were doing well during the time. as i said earlier anyone currently i will in the future but it is not going to be there for our children and grandchildren and we need to address medicare as well we can deliver unaffordable accessible quality healthcare.

>> in baltimore. independent. >> you made a statement about medical needs to be acted on the world stage get credit i will the united states respected against? on sexual assault if they were president committed sexual assault? not rate but sexual assault, can you explain that to me? >> when donald trump is always some of we didn't have a problem in the middle east. it all started in the biden-harris administration. one of the worst tobaccos in the history of this country that resulted in american citizens

being filled. a result of lack of respect of america on the world stage. donald trump will bring that back and then about that. patty is appointed a lease from a she will do an outstanding job. an enormous amount of respect for her and looking forward to her representing the butt we are not respected of the world stage and i look forward to donald trump being president again. you get the attention of russia, iran he's not going to spend billions so they can fund terrorists like the biden-harris administration did. >> incoming president cabinet picks so far.

matt gaetz, pete hegseth. go back to the central intelligence agency. the director of national intelligence. you think senate republicans appointments to fill out the president cabinet for follow president and have hearings and vote on who will serve in the cabinet? >> outstanding pics. sharp as a tack i can't say enough about lee zeldin. i think she is a great pick and marco rubio, he did it out of

the park with that. i am so excited about marco. outstanding pics for his leadership team and. hard to figure out. i've done in my office. whether they should be voted on or not, to a certain extent it depends on office and another, it's up to the. the power in the senate, i would love to have a little dormant. >> democrat paula, hi, gary. >> , democrat i voted for biden

in the primary in that was taken away from me. i realized it at the time the tried to plan, down our throats and she turned out to be a disaster so i want to thank greta and stan helping me make the decision to vote for donald trump because the propaganda is unreal. they have a lot of problems to pick made but they didn't have problems with the pics that biden made array of people is a joke. as far as corrections take care of the democrats with that. they going to help pick out the budget?

i hope you listen carefully to what they are doing and spent because i think that will help a lot decisions. thank you. i love the new base. >> thank you. if you are with the budget out of control, when have a? they exceeded in business, they understand it. be able to bring to the table and what they bring to us.

we have the wisdom and discernment to go in and listen to them and take the suggestions they make them act on them because it would be irresponsible to ignore their suggestions. that's what he is trying to lay the groundwork for. let's get the best of the best and see what they think and go from there. >> we just have a few minutes left. you have the disaster. >> it has been the state of georgia. we had a tropical storm that caused letting in our district and throughout the state we had hurricane helene which was one

of the most destructive forms we ever witnessed in the state of georgia and another hurricane and florida. we got to address fema and small business administration. make sure we take care of them, a disaster relief package. it's very important. always relate. 8% in the state of georgia removed by force. we need to make sure what the

reports station act will do it they will read and those property owners can get a tax deduction and value of their property. after year seven they don't get anything in the can't harvest until 2025 or 30 years later. there's an open window there where they are at the mercy of nature. we win because they replant trees. they win because they can sustain. >> a lot of people are saying a lot of things about matt gaetz. i think is going to do what the president wants him to do. my question is, during the

israel war, we had international students who thought they had the right to free speech and the right to protest and create a lot of problems with anti-semitic leaves and packs, the jewish students. what you think matt gaetz would do in that situation? >> honestly, i don't know is views on that. i suspect just as concerned as anyone about anti-semitism and be have been the party to remember. i'm sure matt would address this as well. i got a bill right now and have

the holocaust somebody today know about the holocaust should make sure we never forget what hunter it is widely important. i'm going to the bible this year and about this is something all of us make sure a whole. >> republican political think you for the viewers this morning.

talk about what happened in north carolina. it starts a couple days early when the weather system came into north carolina and don't inches of rain on a dozen river basins and saturated the land. we have hurricane helene to the panhandle, south carolina and north carolina largely maintaining the integrity of the category one form tropical storm a couple miles inland. the first of a kind storm. lawrence from a matthew, hugo, i did go through those. 102 people that. we have families it isn't

disconnected. will likely not even have electricity. without a drink of water today. they are out of money, they are telling people who have had claims airplanes have been approved as soon as the federal government replenishes small business administration account and they will get the money. about that. if you are one of thousands of people in north carolina the size of the state of massachusetts that is eliciting forms hundreds of businesses out of business. his is because they no longer

tried. a week 10000-mile segment at the seven months prepare in living a landslide. we don't have that anymore. 8 miles of rail tracks gone. we have will suffering and a disaster and to respond to was. nearly $50 billion would have to be related agricultural damage

and go down the list we have a lot of work to do where no you don't question what we are doing and having to pay for it. the community is back on track. i'm not saying we pay for this, we should. a here in, we can say let's be as possible and suffer until we get it but that's not how it works in western north carolina, they need help today. i will talk a little bit more about that but if i make, i would like to pass it over to senator biden for senator warner and reserve recognition.

>> senator from north carolina. >> senator tillis throughout this crisis in the state, one of the worst national disasters in our state, western north carolina. one hundred people killed and injured herself. the enormity of the damage. unlike anything ever seen. the citizens of western north carolina. when there is a need like this

from a they need to be there to help them. bills and recovered. this is very important. if you state have a and it covers the encouragement. as we covered. we october 15. rebuilding the lives.

they need as quickly as possible. refill the disaster loan program and pass it today. i strongly support quick approval of a supplemental bill to fund long-term recovery in north carolina. congress should take up the bill without further delay. from. it what we do when they run out

of money. october 15 from of 34000 across the country have applied. many more approved. they say we will give you money. done as a matter of course. i say one moment. the economy has disappeared, they came back of something called the trail. parts of the trail are gone now. teen are damaged or gone.

it is every business. pay out-of-pocket to them on even though it will months even if the money was there. in north carolina and across that have been hard-hit just like in north carolina. kind of assistance whether it is fema dollars, it is not charity. it's what we have our taxes.

thousands of virginians ask for that. we can't get the money. the unanimous consent and this bipartisan legislation. get those businesses the funds they deserve. 233 people dead. 102 in north carolina. seven unaccounted for. total damage estimated between 30 -- 48 billing dollars across seven states. north carolina 1400 landslides. 6000 miles of road damage. 1 million in businesses. like you said earlier this is major in western north carolina. they may not have water for tens

of thousands of people before the end of august including businesses struggling right now. the majority of revenue occurs in western north carolina. we lost that, they are gone. a lot of these people lost loved ones who are businesses. the demand for saying work for disaster recovery the pages are sitting a few months ago he said i hope you will support me on the supplemental. count me in because i have no doubt in cap me and for every

supplemental because this is where we do our jobs. count me in. in it we want to keep them they will come back. they will have the critical mass. i can list dozens that are paying in the fridge. the right business decision bridge the gap and recover. they lost their loved ones and their own homes trying to figure out how they can run the business keep them employed.

i'm telling you, it's a crisis in north carolina for years. i can't tell people just because i don't like the way, it sucks for you, he may have to go out of business while i tried to fix this. this is a time for us to act in like we've done every time with the disaster supplemental so by the way, offer and amendment, i'm going to object to it because it is the right amendment at the wrong time. i'm looking forward in my democrat colleagues are going to hate.

and the fact that i supported, i want to object to it. he administration passed through every of the disaster to this day. immediate consideration of calendar 465 hr 6551. the substitute amendment of the desk he considered and agreed to the bill considered a third time and past and reconsider made and laid upon the table. >> is there objection? >> reserving the right to object. >> i have on feelings for western north carolina.

i know about the devastation. in take care of it here in nashville for appalachia. would you rather spend money to ukraine? you can give all kinds of but we don't have the money. we are $2 trillion in the hole. he's going to object to passing his own bill because it gets paid for. how crazy is that?

should is going to object his own will. take the fluff and subsidies from the pre-new deal and the money is sitting here. the question before the senate is on behalf of the american people we should spend 810 million for small business loans. tina who gets it that's ukraine. and funding in ukraine. we are finding that in ukraine.

they are happy to pay for all over ukraine and legislators' decisions to set priorities. simply pay for it. they will object to their own bill today big corporations. borrow hundreds of millions of dollars. congress has the habit of refusing to cut elsewhere.

programs led to record high inflation and forced to learn the hard way that they are the ones who have to pay. spe americans from seeing the tax and inflation. it would rescind $810 million the department of energy energy deal. subsidized for energy projects if they find it too risky about priorities. the best time to put them in congress.

it can go today shining just take it from somewhere where it is. ideally i would take it to ukraine but that's not available right now. 2015 report from the government accountability office found when five companies on the green deal loans from the taxpayers lost $800 million. mozilla. we can bring to the disaster and

not difficult amendment to pay for another bill a month ago i don't understand why they object, they all voted for last month. small business administration with have additional money of the least we can do is respect the taxpayer money. i asked the senator to modify his request to include my amendment which is evident and allow the bill to pass the amendment considered and agreed to promote further amended the agreed to end the motion to be considered made laid upon the table. >> i was wondering if the gentleman from but is able to.

>> wanted to confirm, do you recall how he voted, fact that. >> order in the senate -- he majority leader. schumer i ask unanimous consent that the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: 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: i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar number 519, s. 4716. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 519, s. 4716, to amend section 7504 of title 31, united states code and so forth. the presiding officer: is there objection to proceeding to the measure? without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendment be agreed to, the bill as amended be considered read a third time and passed, and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the committee on the judiciary be discharged from further consideration and the senate now proceed to the immediate consideration of s. res. 889. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. res. 889, designating october

30, 2024, as a national day of remembrance for the workers of the nuclear weapons program of the united states. the presiding officer: without objection. the committee is discharged and the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of h.r. 6324, which was received from the house and is at the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: h.r. 6324, fiscal year 2024 veterans affairs major medical facility authorization act an for other purposes. the presiding officer: without objection. the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. schumer: i further ask that the bill be considered read a

third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 3:00 p.m. on monday, november 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 for their use later in the day and morning business be closed. following the conclusion of morning business, the senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the kidd nomination postcloture, and that all time be considered expired at 5:30 p.m. finally, that if the nomination is confirmed during monday's session, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: if there is no further business to come before the senate, i ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order. the presiding officer: the united states senate stands

adjourned until 3:00 p.m. being comcast. ♪♪ >> it's way more than that. ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ earlier today and the senate majority leader chuck schumer talk about legislative parities for the next congress beginning in january and reviewed the current congress needs to get done