dan evans, they all understood this. in his 1965 inaugural address governor evans gave us a road map to solving our challenges. here is what he said, this administration is not frightened by the word liberal nor is it ashamed of the word conservative. it does not believe that the words fiscal responsibility are old-fashioned nor will it fear to spend money if money needs to be spent. that's common sense. that's practical. may those qualities guide us in our work together this session and above all else, let us not be leisurely when the times call for action. thank you for joining me in serving the people of washington state.

[applause]. >> well, it's tuesday morning, january 28th, and the u.s. senate is about to gavel in. as we look live this morning at the u.s. capitol building, today lawmakers will be voting on whether to confirm sean duffy, president trump's pick for the transportation department. and they'll old a procedural vote to sanction members for the recent arrest warrant for top israeli government officials. 60 votes will be needed to advance that legislation. our live senate coverage is here on c-span2. ... the president pro tempore: the senate will come to order. the chaplain, dr. black, will open the senate with prayer.

the chaplain: let us pray. our father in heaven, you have created us for your glory. bless our senators in their work. unite them in their efforts to find common ground and to work for the good of the nation. may they seek creative ways of living a life of service that honors you. lord, guard them from danger and keep them from transgression. as you work out your plan for humanity, inspire our lawmakers with a joy that makes all difficulties seem worthwhile.

spare them from desiring success that focuses on things that pass away and ignores the things that last forever. we pray in your loving name. amen the president pro tempore: please join me in reciting the pledge. be 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: under the previous order, the leadership

time is reserved. under the previous order, 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, department of transportation. sean duffy of wisconsin to be secretary. mr. grassley: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. grassley: today we're confirming former congressman sean duffy as the new secretary of transportation. our nation's infrastructure is essential to the economy, trade, and vitality of each of our 50 st st states, and iowa is fundamental to moving our agriculture products and manufacturing goods

and, of course, our 3.3 million people. i have long supported sound, sustainable infrastructure policies that provide certainty to businesses, states, and the transportation community. i agree that businesses and state and local governments need long-term visions and plans to ensure our infrastructure network remains strong and support our nation's economic growth and competitiveness. we are soon faced in this body and in the entire cons reauthorizing our nation's surface transportation laws. i'm glad that congressman duffy understands from representing northwest wisconsin, that rural

america has many infrastructure needs, as many as urban areas. i supported the bipartisan infrastructure bill to provide needed funding to repair and replace iowa's aging infrastructure. i look forward to working with him to advance iowa's priorities and sound policies for the nation. now, in the case of secretary duffy, even though i didn't meet with him in my office like i do a lot of nominees, i stress today the importance of responding to congressional letters and inquiries. congress has a constitutional duty to perform oversight over the executive branch, or as we learn in high school civics,

what we call checks and balances. congress has a responsibility to make sure laws are faithfully executed by whoever is president of the united states. oversight then allows us to hold bureaucrats accountable to the rule of law, and it helps to keep faith with taxpayers. or another way of saying it, if we have transparency in government, which oversight of congress ought to implement, we have greater accountability of our work. currently i've been conducting oversight over the faa and the safety of boeing aircraft. i fully expect the new secretary to respond to all congressional inquiries in timely and responsive manner. when people come to my office, i remind them of that question they get from every chairman of every committee, that will you

answer the letters that we send. or will you appear before congress? or will you take our telephone calls? every one of them says yes, but that's not entirely how it works out. i use an example of the justice department in the last four years, as i showed soon-to-be attorney general pam bondi that i wrote 158 letters to the justice department, and they, if i got answers, they were partial answers, but most were not responded to. that's not the way the executive branch of government either under a democrat or republican president should be handling or, let's say, should be thumbing their nose at the legislative branch of government. so when people say yes to these questions that they're offered

by the chairman of the committee, i say to them, it would be more honest if you'd say maybe instead of saying yes. so i hope that secretary-to-be duffy will respond to my inquiries about the faa and boeing aircraft. i look forward to working with former congressman duffy to support long-term infrastructure policies, to keep our manufacturing and our agriculture sectors robust, and to support our state and local communities that depend on their jobs. i yield the floor. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. alsobrooks.

>> journalist and professor marvin kalb joint discomfort the author of the new book a different russia. start at the end if you would. you write when nikita khrushchev learns john kennedy had been assassinated he cried. why. >> it was one of the marvelous, interesting fascinating aspects of nikita khrushchev that he had

a dream and the dream was if he could sit down with an american president he figured he and the president could solve all of the problems of the world. all he needed was that opportunity. he got that opportunity only once in june of 1961 in vienna when they met at the summit, the summit that was greeted with enormous expectation and ended in the deepest disappointment. khrushchev wanted to somehow or another take kennedy to the cleaners. is going to get his way. he wanted to rewrite the strategic balance in the world which favors the u.s. he wanted to favor russia, the soviet union and he did at that moment with kennedy and that led right to the cuban missile crisis which led the world in effect to the edge of a nuclear

war, afterward they reached agreement on an atmospheric nuclear test ban treaty. andfter that, finally in his mind he felt that he could sit down finally with kennedy. he thought that kennedy had six more years, two more years of his current term, four years of the second term that would reach all kinds of agreements. of course he did not know what he engaged in this fanciful illusionary kind of feeling about the world that within a month kennedy would be assassinated and within the year he would be kicked out of power. and when he learned kennedy was killed, all of the reports that i've seen indicate that khrushchev cried and when he went to sign his name at the american embassy the day after the assassination, he was in

tears. >> the book is "a different russia." such a first memoir about your time in the broadcast journalist in russia. how is it but different than your others? >> guest: if the continuation of the first two. the first book was the year i was peter the great is a title and that was because khrushchev labeled me peter the great at that help me a great deal as a journalist in getting closer to him. the second book was assignment russia, and that was when edward r. murrow hired cbs and a couple of years later as he sort of moved to the system i've never been a journalist before, and he wanted somebody representing cbs in moscow who spoke the language and knew about the history, the literature of the country and i

had written something for the times that he liked and on that basis had a conversation which lasted for three hours in which he asked me any number of questions, really untested journalist. he stood up, , put his arm aroud me and said how would you like to join cbs? i said yes. that was sort of the end of my career as a scholar and the beginning of it as a journalist to may of 1960. and this book begins with kennedy's inauguration, and a very revealing speech that khrushchev made giving it a sense the world, his judgment, of of what the world should be like an kennedy of course independently was doing his explanation to the american people in the world of the kind

of global system that he would like. and the two, these fascinating individuals, extraordinary people, were in collision with each other because they represented two totally different social, political systems. and when you thought about it in national terms there was a collision between the soviet union on one side of the cold war, which is where we were at that time, and kennedy on the other side. it's an amazing thing, john, that these two people were in charge at that moment in october and november of 1962. 1962. we kind of forget this now. but at that time the world was literally on the edge of a nuclear war, and one of the t

november in an extraordinary and illegitimate move, the international criminal court issued arrest warrants for israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu and former defense minister yoav gal and. the court's -- yoav gallant. first, the international criminal court, or icc, has no jurisdiction over israel or its citizens. neither israel nor the united states is a party to the treaty establishing the court, and thus the court has zero authority over israel or its leaders. second, the court's clear suggestion of moral equivalence between the government of israel and the hamas terrorists who attacked israel and oppressed their own people is beyond the pale. israel wages war against terr

terrorists. hamas wages war against innocents. the only reason israel has been waging war against hamas is because hamas chose to launch a massive attack on innocent civilians that resulted in 1200 defendants and the taking of approximately 250 hostages, more than 80 of whom are still in captivity today. mr. president, when it emerged last year that the icc was planning to seek warrants for israeli officials, the republican-controlled house of representatives brought up legislation to sanction those responsible at the icc. 42 democrats voted for it, but the legislation was dead on arrival in the united states senate, with the democrat leader refusing to bring it up for a vote. when the icc released its warrants last november, i promised that if democrats would not bring icc sanctions legislative to the floor for a vote, i would.

and today, i'm following through on that promise. the bill before us today will sanction foreign individuals who are involved in icc efforts to investigate, arrest, or prosecute u.s. citizens or citizens of u.s. allies that are not party to the icc. the bill passed the house again earlier this month with the support of every republican plus more than 40 democrats, and i hope we will see a strong bipartisan margin in the senate as well. first, because this ill ledge incorporate mat targeting of -- illegitimate targeting should concern all of us. second, while the icc is targeting israeli leaders today, it could easily set its sights on americans and american soldiers in particular tomorrow. it's happened before, back in 2020, and while the united states will not be turning over

any of our military members to the icc, the issuance of warrants for u.s. soldiers and military leaders could jeopardize american troops' abilities to move frailty where needed and -- to move freely where needed and impede our ability to defend our country and stad stand -- stand with our allies. i thank senator cotton for his work on this bill, and senator risch. i hope my democrat colleagues join republicans to swiftly get this legislation over the finish line and to the president's desk. mr. president, i yield the floor, and i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. alsobrooks.

because i i were to cbs i also have to take pictures for television. there was no cameraman that they allowed in the country so i had to take my own pictures. and believe me, john, i was not that terribly good at it but i did the best i could. but if i was taking a picture that they did not like, they would stop me from sending it to new york. how would they do that? they wouldn't let you ship the film, unless it had been developed in the soviet union before you send it to new york, which could've taken weeks and weeks and weeks, which meant that the stories value would have been shot. you couldn't travel around the

soviet union without permission. you always had somebody on your tail. you could not travel more than 25 miles around moscow without official permission. and when you got the permission it was always somebody on your tail anyway. so it was, for western reporter in moscow in the midst of the cold war, it was a fascinating story. these don't get me wrong. all of the obstacles were worth overcoming to try and get your story out because you knew that in the midst of the cold war it was extremely difficult to get the news out what extremely important that the news get out. i mean, for example, john, it's very difficult now. there are very few if any american reporters in moscow at this time. because putin simply will not allow it. one of the reasons i call this

book "a different russia" is that we are so used to thinking of russia under putin. putin has been there now for 25 years. i happen to think he's a short timer, which i mean he's going to be kicked out -- not that is going to be kicked out tomorrow, though that is possible, but rather that it is sooner down the road but not that far down the road. he's run display for 25 years and where in the midst of the ukraine war and a terrible confrontation between the united states and russia, and we think that that is the only russia that exists but that's not true. the russia that i covered under khrushchev was in many ways similar. it was a dictatorship, no doubt about that but it was a dictatorship that was reaching out to the west, that was reaching out to a leader like

kennedy and trying to get a deal. khrushchev always invited western physicians, artists, scholars, journalists to come to the soviet union. that is not happening today at all. so the relationship was so very different. we had a chance then to coexist peacefully, in a competitive relationship but coexisting. today, that coexisting factor is, i do want to say in doubt, it is something we have to consider very carefully. >> host: and that russia that you covered from moscow you begin covering in 1956, correct? >> guest: correct. >> host: akita khrushchev becomes premier of the soviet party in 53. this book is about khrushchev

and kennedy but he had plenty of years under a a different president, under dwight eisenhower. what was that relationship like, khrushchev and eisenhower? and in the change of presidencies, what was his view coming in of john kennedy? >> guest: okay. thank you, john. those are great questions, good historical questions. in 1956 i arrived there in january. khrushchev had been essentially the boss only for about a year, 18 months. it took a year or so before he could establish his position following stolons of death in march of 1953. -- stolons death. khrushchev wanted very much by 1956 to say to the russian people and to the world that

russia is now changed. it is no longer stalin's russia. it is now khrushchev russia. he delivered a very famous quote, secret speech. believe it was a february 24, 1956. and he summoned all of the leaders of various communist parties which had been meeting in moscow at that time to come back to the kremlin in the middle of the night because he wanted to tell them his view of stalin. and his view of stalin was very, very negative. but because he had ruled for 29 years, he was a legend. if you spoke one word against stalin you could be killed. and what khrushchev did was, in

this one speech, destroyed the myth, the legend, the fears that surrounded the russian people when they thought about stalin. khrushchev called stalin a murderer because of what he did during world war ii. he would point out the thousands and thousands of people during the 1930s that stalin sent out to siberia or straightaway murdered. and khrushchev wanted a different kind of russia, a different russia. and he began to release people from siberia. he listened opportunities to write in to speak, and he opened the gates of the kremlin to an influx of western businessmen and scholars and journalists. it was in that opening that i slipped through, and a lot of

other reporters slipped through your and it was an incredibly exciting time. and when i returned in 1959, to cover richard nixon's visit, is also historic kitchen debate with khrushchev at that time. some people will remember that kitchen debate. it was very interesting, and nixon tried very hard and ai think to a very large extent successfully to outwit khrushchev, but it was a collision and it usually is when you talk about russia and the united states. and khrushchev wanted more than anything else, i was saying this order, john, , he wanted to stre this relationship with an american president.

eisenhower was a great favorite in the soviet union because in world war ii he was of course a great and historic general. leading the anti-nazi crusade. that involve the soviet union. we were at that time allies to defeat nazi germany. but when khrushchev met with eisenhower in 1954 or five in geneva, and then twice, once in the united states and once in paris, they met three times and he wasn't able to get anywhere with eisenhower. so eisenhower who it once been held in the highest esteem by khrushchev, suddenly there was nothing to talk to. and so he invested all his hopes that this dream of his about a

deal with an american president, invested all of those old and young john kennedy. and for a time those hopes were realistic. but then finally when it came to the division of berlin and then the movement of russian missiles into cuba, kennedy insisted that those missiles be removed and khrushchev as i said had the guts public youtube knowledge that he had blundered and to pull those missiles out. khrushchev lived with what i regard as a dream that somehow with an american president he could accomplish miracles. but miracles don't happen in international relations. you have to protect your interests and those interests

are protected even at the cost of war. and right now we have many, many different instances with russia, china and many other countries around the world, the book again "a different russia: khrushchev and kennedy on a collision course" newly released marvin kalb is the author and he's with us this morning. taking your phone calls and john is up first in new york, independent. good morning. you on with marvin kalb. >> caller: thanks for taking my call. mr. kalb, i'm 77 and -- >> guest: young man. [laughing] , i knew i liked you for something. i do remember the cuban missile crisis. i remember my father stockpiling food in the cellar. i remember really the fear going around the neighborhoods and people talking about an armageddon. but as i grew older i kind of did a little reading into it and

stuff. i remember some people saying that the real hero of the missile crisis wasn't so much john kennedy. it was khrushchev. the reason they felt that way was exactly what you said. he backed down. an interesting sidebar of the story was, as i remember reading, the united states had jupiter missiles in turkey which were intermediate-range missiles at the time capable of reaching deep inside the soviet union. in order to level the playing field, khrushchev decided that he would send these missiles as i understand into cuba and get them a minute and a half of american cities. it was brinksmanship diplomacy and they say the real hero of all of this was not john kennedy because he was just a new and experienced guy, but dean rusk who went eyeball to eyeball with his russian counterpart and resolve the whole thing. it was really scary because it

was some of the historical anecdotes and filed. the united states issuing the monroe doctrine which didn't really have a right to invoke, you know, legally. i found the whole time fast eddie. we did come very close, and listening to you i don't know if we really learned a lot since that fateful october in 62. i'm an optimist. i'm hoping we did. there's events unfolding around the world that i just hope that cooler heads will prevail and things will work out. i would be interested in your thoughts about that. thank you for doing what you were doing. bye-bye. >> guest: you are very, very kind. i repeat you in your 70s, i'm in my 90s, so keep on going. the period of the mid-50s

through to the mid-60s, there were extraordinary personalities and in the middle of the cold war those personalities had to demonstrate their value. in what way? in holding off a nuclear war between the two powers that could have destroyed the entire world. i think we don't as a people today, maybe people all over the world, don't fully appreciate the deadliness of a nuclear weapon. you think back to world war ii. vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. barrasso: mr. president, criminals in the world today have an international friend. that friend is called the international criminal court. the icc is headquartered in europe. it chairmans un -- claims

unchecked power and power to enforce very loosely defined so-called international law and they're unaccountable. the icc is is a kangaroo court. the u.s. has never ratified this treaty, neither has israel. we're not members with this group. this so-called court seems to me to just do the bidding of the country of iran. it never issued arrest warrants for leaders of iran. it never tried to prosecute assad, the foernl dictate -- former dis-tatar of syria. it -- dictator of syria. it is the fraud that they violate human rights and sovereignty doesn't matter. they believe israel doesn't have a right to defend themselves. last year we saw the icc issue an un-justin un -- unjust and

unlawful arrest warrant for the israeli prime minister netanyahu. the israeli defense minister was also charged. the charges were baseless, bias and basically the icc tends to continue to go after the jewish state. there are many descriptions of president netanyahu. they are observed. they are inaccurate. let's get to the facts. the facts are there was a brutal attack on october 7, 2023 by hamas, it was the single deadliest day for israel since the holocaust. israel has a fundamental right to defend itself. israel went to extraordinary lengths to limit civilian

casualties. hamas hid behind civilians. hamas uses innocent individuals as human shields. israel has allowed hundreds of thousands of tons of food and supplies to go in to help the people of gaza. when the food doesn't meet the actual needs of the civilians there, it's not that they haven't sent enough, it's because hamas steals it first. israel isn't a member of the icc. the court has no jurisdiction over it. israel's a democracy. israel's judiciary is robust and it's independent. the icc is deaf to these important facts. it lives in an anti-israel echo chamber. because of this prejudice against israel, the icc has also attacked israel's allies. in 2020, the icc started to

investigate american servicemembers to served -- who served in afghanistan for alleged war crimes. president trump responded swiftly and strongly. he froez the assets of the icc officials who were involved in the corrupt investigation. president trump also imposed visa restrictions on icc officials and on their families. so then what happens? then, joe biden gets into the white house and former president biden -- i love saying former -- former president biden wrongly overturned these effective sanctions. president trump restored these sanctions on his first day in office last week. today the senate will hold a critical vote on a bipartisan bill to hold the icc court accountable. senators risch and cotton have been leaders here in the senate. under the bill we're going to be

voting on today, any icc official, ploy or associate -- employee or associate who works to investigate, arrest, or detain american citizens or our allies will face immediate sanctions. this bill also blocks u.s. funding from the icc, every penny. critically it ensures american taxpayers are not in any way contributing their hard-earned money to foreign institutions that attack our servicemembers. passing this bill sends a strong message, an important message, that we in america will not tolerate the icc's lawfare against israel. if the icc attacks america or its allies, the consequences will be sift, will be serious and will be severe. this is about much more than israel. the icc also threatens america's safety, security, and our

sovereignty. like israel, america's not a member of the icc. while israel is the target today, the icc could turn around and target american servicemembers and even our leaders in the future. the house of representatives has passed legislation to sanction the icc. they've done it several times. it's bipartisan support -- its bipartisan support continues to grow and has grown stronger in the recent passage and the majority of americans support congressional sanctions to sanction the icc. the most recent in the house was 243 in favor and only 140 against. 45 house republicans democrats voted for it. while the senate couldn't pass icc sanctions last congress, the democrat leader chose to drag his feet instead. he blocked it from coming to the senate floor. he refused to even allow debate. this congress senate republicans have made strengthening our

alliance with israel a top priority. republicans can't sit back and allow a kangaroo court to wage lawfare against american citizens or our allies. the senate will not bend to the p pro-hamas threat. we will stand with israel in the face of senate anti-semitism and in the face of evil, period. will senate democrats join us? we will find out today. now, mr. president, on another matter. since january 20, the united states senate has confirmed six of president trump's well-qualified nominees. today we will confirm the sixth. former man sean duffy is the nominee to be the secretary of transportation. congressman duffy received unanimous support in the commerce committee. as secretary of transportation,

congressman duffy will ensure that americans have reliable infrastructure and safe travel. his job is critical to america's economic success. from the canal to the 19 -- from the panama canal to the interstate highway system in the 20th system, transportation has transferred our republic into a superpower. today our bridges, highways and airports need improvement. we need to build great things in america again, families and businesses need confidence that they'll get where they need to go. sean duffy is dedicated to moving our nation forward, as secretary of transportation, he will lead the department with safety and modernization at the forefront. i look forward, mr. president, to confirming congressman duffy today and working with him

during this next administration. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. mr. durbin: mr. president. the presiding officer: the democratic whip is recognized. mr. durbin: mr. president, we can all agree that the border of the united states should be secure. and, of course, we must deport any dangerous individuals who are here unlawfully. but the executive orders that president trump signed this past week don't target criminals. in fact, president trump terminated a biden administration policy that required immigration officials to prior fiez for -- prioritize individuals who threaten public safety or national security. instead president trump has auth authorized customization officers, known as ice officers,

to make arrest in schools, churches and courthouses across the country. ice even has quotas for arrest, wrapping up from a few00 a day to more than 1500 per day. these kinds of arbitrary quotas will ensure that family members of u.s. citizens and so many who are not criminals, are caught up in the mass deportations. for example, just this weekend, trump officials stayed that the raids they conducted were targeted toward criminals. yet, in chicago, a husband and father with no criminal history was reportedly arrested by ice on his way to work. his family was only made aware that something was wrong when he didn't show up at his shift. in new jersey, ice agents questioned and detained a military veteran and u.s. citizens simply because they weren't carrying on their person

a passport or license. these actions, like many of the president's decisions on immigration have nothing to do with protecting public safety or national security. president trump has also suspended the refugee admission program. why is that important? when american soldiers go overseas to represent this you the country and risk their lives for the country they swore allegiance to, the united states, many times they rely on local citizens in that country to help them. that's what happened in afghanistan. men and women rifbd their lives to step forward and help our troops, many times to risk their own lives in the service of their country and doing it for the united states. they included families of afghans who are now facing persecution for that political decision to help the united states. we've offered to them, after going through extensive

background checks, an opportunity to come to the united states. same thing is true with uighurs fleeing chinese prosecution and row hingeas -- many of these refugees wait for decades to come to the united states lawfully and all must undergo extreme rigorous vetting before coming. but the president canceled flights for approximately 10,000 refugees who have been approved to travel to the united states after waiting for long periods of time and going through extensive background checks. this includes nearly 1600 afghans, many of them risked their lives for the united states cause and we were giving them safety and security. those flights have been canceled by president trump. many of them fought alongside u.s. troops. others are family members of u.s. servicemembers. p flights were even stopped for

afghan children reuniting with their families in the united states. stopping these flights makes america less safe. it is needlessly cruel to american families waiting to be reunited with loved ones. it also sends a message to allies supporting our troops around the world that we will not protect them if they face retribution for helping the united states. additionally, president trump is attempting to deny birthright citizenship to children born in the united states if their parents are not citizens or lawful permanent residents. this is a clear violation of the constitution. i want to read the first sentence of the 14th amendment to the constitution. it is explicit. it reads, all persons born or naturalized in the united states and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the united states, of the state

wherein they reside. one sentence as clear as can be. this order has been blocked, the order by president trump has been blocked by a judge who was appoint bid president ronald reagan. listen to what he said about the lawsuit challenging birthright citizenship and the 14th amendment's language. quote, i've been on the bench for over four decades. i can't remember another case where the p language is as clear as this one is. this is a blatantly unconstitutional order. i was disappointed to see the white house border czar tom homan come to chicago recently with i.c.e. agents asking them questions even after they requested to speak to an attorney. do you know who accompanied him on this raid? dr. phil. dr. phil, a tv doctor, is not an

m.d. for some reasons he was invited to go ooj on this raid. durum the speeches given -- do you remember the speeches given by president trump ferreting out people who were dangerous, and me mentally ill. i took him at his word. apparently dr. phil is an accomplice in this effort. he obviously has been invited to go along for the ride, on a rate involving people who could be dangerous to the united states? if this mass deportation is truly focused on dangerous individuals, murderers, rapists, drug dealers and mentally ill, dr. phil has as much being on this raid as he does performing surgery. he could complicate the situation. we are talking about a legal

process and to have this television character come along for the ride is dangerous and makes no sense. i am concerned these sweeping executive actions will leave those arrested by i.c.e., including those with lawful status in u.s. citizenship, with little opportunity to state their case and show they belong in this country. let's be clear, 90% of undocumented immigrants have no criminal convictions. 90%. immigrants who make up more than 40% of home health care aides and children's assistants at day care, an outsize percentage of these and the agriculture workforce are undocumented. immigrants are a key part of america's success story. i do not want a single dangerous person to remain in this country or to be allowed to seek permanent residence here, period. but there are many who have been here for periods of time, have paid their taxes, followed the

law, and should be part of america's future. our nation needs immigrants in many important places. dom my state of illinois -- come to my state of illinois and ask the agriculture organizations. they will tell you flat-out without assistance from migrants and immigrants, they can't do their work, whether they're running dairy operations, or -- orchards or regular far pursuit. they need a helping hand. they put food on the table and care for our parents and grandparents. many of them are dreamers and have gone to serve our nation as members of the armed services, doctors and first responders. they believe in the american dream and i will continue to fight to protect them for as long as i serve in the united states senate. there is no room in this country for dangerous people but there is plenty of room for those who aspire to make this a better

nation. we should be fair in making a distinction and realizing the difference is significant. mr. president, i yield the floor. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. alsobrooks. to deported to rely on head stt programs, the families who need desperately need that cancer research done. who at the missed one or two appointments, their life falls apart suddenly overnight. we have to understand what is

happening. the president wants you to be distracted by the day-to-day announcements that put together the pardoning of the violent rioters, the firing of the inspectors general, and today the stoppage of federal funding leading the decision only to their political whims of president trump represents the greatest, most serious constitutional crisis of our lifetime, one that threatens to undermine the very premise of american democracy. and glad to be standing here with my colleagues to raise the alarm. >> as i do what appears been talking about, we we're gettg phone calls and e-mails from our constituents, people back interstate and the words

everyone uses is chaos. as i do think that i'll be honest with you, chaos is the point because chaos is their plan. this is going exactly as they want it to go. they could or chose a different way to try to figure out to be more effective and efficient. that was actually their goal. their goal is to sow chaos. i hope the american people see this because this is the style of governing quote-unquote governing we will see for the next four years. the american people have to ask is this what they want? we see right now whether it's the actions we see with omb or the firing of the inspector generals and independent advisers, or what we saw at usaid in the leadership there. what we see right now is it showing the defining phrase of trump administration, the beginning, isn't the golden age. it's a phrase he used during the campaign, the enemies from

within. we see him now in the presidency in the oval office waging war against the american people. try to think about solely how it is that he can attain and consolidate that power for himself. and who is going to be the people that struggle and suffer from it are going to be the american people. i want to read you this e-mail i got, got this overnight the says good morning. we just heard president trump issued a memo temporarily freezing federal grants and loans effective at 5 p.m. today. this is alarming to those who rely on federal funding to help people with disabilities. this is an organization that is trying to figure out how it is they can help the americans that need help the most, that support the most picky idea this is going to cut off funding, put in jeopardy and throw into chaos people with disabilities, seniors, people with health care needs is cruel.

but again that's the point. they don't care about the collateral damage. they care about their own power and they care about themselves. [inaudible] >> i can just tell you that it still 8:00 on the west coast. with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: mr. president, last night incredibly and lawlessly, the trump administration announced a virtual halt to all forms of federal financial assistance. in an instant, one instant, one blink of the eye, in the dark of

night donald trump has shut off billions, perhaps trillions of dollars that support small businesses, that support families, that support police officers and firefighters, that support hospitals and rural hospitals in particular, that support our localities, our states and cities, our schools, and so much more. why? why did donald trump do this? simple. to fund tax cuts for the ultra wealthy. this decision is lawless, destructive, cruel. the president must rescind this order at once, and congress must act if he refuses. make no mistake, this is project 2 2025, project 2025 by another name. and the danger of having someone like russell vought, the chief

cook and bottle washer of project 2025, in charge of omb is frightening. frightening to just about every american family in terms of what it could do to them. when project 2025 came out, it was so ridiculed that donald trump had to say, oh, i don't know much about it. and now he is putting the author of, one of the main authors of project 2025 in the place where he can implement all of these horrible, discredited, unpopular findings. that's where they're headed, folks. that's where they're going. and again, why are they doing it? they can pay for tax cuts for the ultra rich by making these cuts on average american families. this morning i think every senator's phone has been ringing

off the hook. certainly mine has with nonstop calls from hospitals and police departments, volunteer firefighters, food pantries, drug treatment centers, on and on and on. and if someone is going to say they're getting no calls, then they're out of touch because it affects almost everything. people are worried, people are scrambling, people are in panic mode trying to figure out how this order is going to affect them. hospitals with people on life support, food pantries that feed the hungry, police departments that patrol our streets, every one of them is worried because so many of them get federal aid. if federal funding is shut off, so many groups, institutions are worried can they pay the rent, can they pay their staffs, can

they keep their operations running. virtually any organization -- and there are millions -- that depend on federal grant money to run its day to day operations is now in danger. nonprofits that help disabled veterans are now in danger, thanks to donald trump. funding that supports our nation's mass transit from one end of the country to the other is now in danger, thanks to donald trump. hospitals, particularly rural hospitals, and community health centers are now in danger, thanks to donald trump. meals on wheels in danger, to donald trump. even smaller programs -- i'm very proud of something i passed called the nonprofit security grant program which protects synagogues and religious institutions from anti-semitic attacks. we just had one in our neighborhood on sunday. are now in danger, thanks to

donald trump. senior centers, law enforcement, firefighters, water districts, food pantries, all in danger because of the donald trump. again, their master plan to hurt average folks from one end of the country to the other, in red states, blue states, suburbs, cities, and rural areas, take money out of their hides all to pay for tax cuts for the ultra wealthy is now becoming clear, now becoming clear. the blast radius of this terrible decision is virtually limitless. it's american families who are going to suffer mote. american families should make no mistake -- the money being stolen from them will be spent, just not on them. it's going to be spent on tax cuts for the ultra wealthy and the biggest corporations. president trump must reverse this course immediately. the budget committee should slow

down its hearings with mr. vought until it fully comes out what they all intend to do. the funding president trump is halting isn't optional. congress has approved these funds, and they are law. the president does not, no matter what he thinks, have the authority to ignore the law and ignore congress. let me be clear -- this is not an isolated act, unfortunately. this comes a week after trump pardoned violent criminals, who sought to overturn our election, days after trump fired independent watchdogs across the government in a naked attempt to shroud his actions from the american people. i can assure every american that democrats will pursue all available options, legal and otherwise, to halt this assault.

i've talked to the attorney general of new york state, tish james, and she and her association, i believe she's the head of the state association, state attorneys general association, are going to use all their legal power to stop this illegal act. i implore my republican coll colleagues, who know in their hearts and their minds that this is a reckless and unconstitutional action, to speak up, to join us as americans in defense of the law, but most of all to protect our communities and to protect the american people from this awful announcement. deepseek -- when the soviet union launched sputnik 1 into orbit in 1957, it ignited a space race between the two world's greatest powers, and america won. yesterday, we faced a similar inflection point between china and the united states.

this time, the project is not like sputnik, lange on the moon -- landing on the moon, but the prize is something so important, artificial intel intelligence. the recent news from deepseek is being called a.i.'s sputnik moment for america. deepseek unleashed something few could have imagined, an a.i. chat box that runs more efficiently and was sprawled at lower -- was developed at a lower cost. within hours of the announcement, the a.i. chatbot was the number one downloaded free app on apple's app store. deepseek's announcement makes it all but official -- china is captioning up with the u.s. on a.i. it's a wake-up call that congress desperately needs. if america qualls behind -- false behind china, we will fall behind everywhere, economically, militarily, scientifically, educa educationally, everywhere. china's innovation with deepseek

is jarring, but nothing compared to what will happen if china beats the u.s. on the ultimate goal of a grn i, artificial -- agi, we must not, cannot allow that to happen. this is precisely why i made a.i. a top priority in the last congress, with american innovation as minority star, and i will continue to do so. what we do now on a.i., the actions we take, the ways and amounts we invest, the innovation we spur, will definitely define the next decade of this technology. i hope our bipartisan efforts on a.i., which made some progress last year, will continue in an even more robust way this year. i stand ready to work with republicans. this should be bipartisan, to pass legislation and make the investments necessary for the u.s. to win. on rfk jr. -- tomorrow, robert f. kennedy will testify before the senate finance committee on his nomination to become the next

secretary of health and human services. i cannot recall a nominee more dangerous to the health of americans than mr. kennedy. h hhs relies on evidence and impartiality, to ensure the well-being of over 330 million americans. they ensure we eat safe food, purchase reliable medications, oversee medicare benefits, and approve the use of lifesaving vaccines. mr. kennedy, however, is unprepared. his positions have shifted from month to month, moment to moment. he is neither a doctor nor a scientific nor a public health expert, nor a policy expert of any kind. when i met with him, he would not answer many questions directly, saying he would defer to the president, who also is hardly a health expert. and in fact, mr. kennedy has made a living not by promoting public health, but by actively fighting it. he's the face of the modern

anti-vaccine movement, responsible for spreading fringe and outright false beliefs about vaccines. now, of course, tomorrow we'll hear a very different robert f. kennedy jr. he will pretend he's found religion on vaccines or his words have been twisted unfairly or he never intended to say he's anti-vaccines. nobody should believe this 11th hour conversion of mr. kennedy on vaccines. instead, he should be held accountable for the misinformation he has spread for decades. he must answer not only for spreading wild vaccine conspiracies, but also for spreading many other outrageous claims over the years. from saying anti-depress ands cause -- antidepressants cause mass shootings to hiv does not cause aids. in fact, mr. kennedy should answer for the conflicts of interests he holds with the anti-vaccine movement. according to his financial disclosures, he's made millions

by recommending clients to law firms suing vaccines. this was the primary source of his income this past year. a quote from "the wall street journal" editorial board, no friend of democrats said it best, the risk is high mr. kennedy will use his power to enrich his trial lawyer friends at the expense of public health and medical innovation. that's not some liberal publication. that's "the wall street journal" editorial board. donald trump promised to bring a golden age to america on day one, but if mr. kennedy is confirmed it will be a golden age for pseudoscience and possibly even self-dealing in our government. finally, on january 6 -- today senate democrats will go to the senate floor with a resolution that says something very simple, we condemn

pardoning individuals guilty of assaulting capitol police. i thank my good friend, patty murray, for leading this important resolution. no republican should block it. it should be a no-brainer to say people who attack police don't deserve pardons. by handing out these pardons to convicted criminals, president trump is effectively saying you want to attack our brave police officers? that's okay. how are these pardons supposed to make americans better off? how does pardoning lawless rioters help people with affording groceries, paying the rent or for medication? pardoning rioters is not what americans want the president to prioritize, even though it was one of his first acts. they want to see answers to the problems that impact them -- inflation, good-paying jobs, a better future. our capitol police meanwhile deserve nothing less than our full and steadfast support for everything they do to keep us safe every day. the least, the very least we can

do for them as senators is declare those convicted of attacking capitol police officers do not, do not deserve a presidential pardon. i yield the floor. mr. schatz: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from hawaii. mr. schatz: mr. president, have you heard your doctor say there's no vaccine that is safe or effective? or, there are much better candidates than hiv for what

causes aids? or school shootings started happening with the introduction of prozac and other drugs? if your physician said any of those things to you, you would look for a new physician. and yet, this week my colleagues on the senate finance committee and health committee are going to consider the nomination of someone who's not only said all those things and more, but if confirmed he would be responsible for the health and well-being of the entire nation. the unique threat that robert f. kennedy jr. poses to our country really cannot be overstated, and now it is up to us, the 100 members of the united states senate, to deny him the opportunity to use america as one big test lab for bygone diseases. i want to explain what i mean by that. he thinks that fda trials are

not enough to determine the efficacy of a vaccine. so he's suggesting that we use placebo in the population. what does that mean? something might save someone's life, and something might be essentially a sugar pill. but you don't get to know. there are international conventions against this app approach. the tuskegee experiments, conducted by the united states public health service, were universally rejected. and the congress banned this approach because you cannot withhold lifesaving care from an anyone. now, saying crazy things doesn't seem to be disqualifying for a nominee these days, i understand, but it's not just that he has said crazy things or h holds dehanged views. it's -- deranged views.

it's that he has acted on them. i want everybody to listen what exactly happened in samoa. not 20 years ago, not 10 years ago, but in 2019, while he was chairman of the anti-vaccine group, he flew to samoa because he sensed an opportunity to exploit people's hesitations about taking the measles vaccine. people were understandably worried after an accident involved improperly -- involving improperly prepared vaccine killed two babies. it was a tragedy, and it was a costly mistake, but not a reason to abandon the measles vaccine altogether. but rfk sought to make people more afraid. he discouraged people from taking the vaccine because he wanted to, quote, run a natural expe experiment. to see how people fared against the disease without protection.

to see how people fared against the disease without protection? this guy is up for hhs, health and human services? this guy just wants to see what would happen if we didn't give people the lifesaving protection that they need? he literally flew to the other side of the planet to turn people's fears into a data collection opportunity. for context, samoa is a small country and had a population of around 200,000 people at the time. people knew each other and word got around fast -- a kennedy was in town saying a thing. so it was no small thing this man from america, the last name kennedy, pretending to be a health expert was there peddling all kinds of lies to prevent people from getting a lifesaving vaccine.

those lies spread fast. vaccination rates plummeted, and within five months samoa had a measles outbreak. 5,700 people were infected with the measles. 83 people died. almost all of them were children. that was the conclusion of mr. kennedy's natural exp experiment -- children died. this isn't some an chen history i'm digging up here. this was less than six years ago, and is alarmingly reminiscent of one of the darkest chapters in our country's history with the tuskegee experiment. for 40 year, beginning in 1932, the united states public health service ran an experiment with 600 black men in alabama. the majority of them had syphilis, and the objective was to, quote, observe the disease

process. and so, even when penicillin became the standard of care in 1947, the men who needed that treatment, who could have been given lifesaving care, were denied penicillin. researchers did nothing as men died and they went blind. because they wanted to see how the disease would develop, a natural experiment. it took a young doctor, not long out of medical school who learned about the study in the medical journal and could not believe his eyes. he could not understand how the united states government could view these poor share croppers as expendable, as sub human. he thought about the hippocratic oath and he and every doctor like him -- that he and every

doctor like him had sworn to. what happened to first do no harm? and so not knowing what else to do but knowing he was risking a whole lot by speaking out, he wrote to the study's authors and i want to read a bit of what he wrote. i'm utterly astounded by the fact that physicians allow patients with a potentially fatal disease to remain untreated when effective therapy is it available. i assume you feel that the information which is ex ra tracted from -- extracted from the observation of this untreated group is worth their sacrifice, i surth those -- i suggest those associated with it in this study need to reevaluate their moral judgment in this regard. the man who wrote that letter and was the first and for a long time the only person to sound the alarm about the depravity of the tuskegee experiment was my dad.

dr. irv schatz. it is one of the many reasons that he's my hero. but i have never thought -- i never thought that 60 years later i'd be standing in the very body that passed legislation in response to that shameful period arguing against confirming someone who wants to replicate that experiment at scale. that's what r.f.k. jr. wants to do. he wants to use americans as lab rats in a national experiment. and if it means bringing back the measles or the mumps or polio, so be it. i understand my republican colleagues are facing a lot of pressure from within. it's a new administration and you want to give them deference and an executive, generally speaking, gets to have their team.

this nomination is not like the others. even if you don't want to take mr. kennedy's words sole literally, maybe you are wondering allowed, look at his actions, look at what he's done. time and time again he has abandoned every physician's first principle. do no harm. i shall do for my patients as i will be done by. that is part of the oath every medical student takes at graduation before they can practice. yet the person nominated to lead the country's entire health system has consistently done the exact opposite. he has caused disease, he has caused pain, he has caused death. so the vote we're going to be taking on this nominee is much more than your party or mine. it's life or death. and i promise you, if this person is confirmed, it will not age well. not in a republican primary, not

in a democratic primary, not in your family, not in your community. nowhere will an r.f.k. aye vote age well. this person is going to cause disease across the united states. i urge a no vote. mr. schatz: i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. the clerk: ms. alsobrooks. quorum call:

mr. cornyn: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cornyn: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be rescinded.

the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cornyn: mr. president, as the world knows, it goes without saying that one of president biden's biggest failures was security at our southern border. in fact, the situation is so dire that now democrats, after the november 5 election, are actually finally seeing the light that need to do something to recapture the support of the american people, and that was reflected in the first piece of legislation that we passed that president trump will sign into law tomorrow, the laken riley act. 12 of our democratic colleagues in the senate, 46 in the house supported that bill, which i have to think before the november 5 election, they would have uniformly voted against, but they realize that they were so out of sync with the american

people and our national security interests. i would love to say they got religion or saw the light or maybe they just counted the votes. i'm heartened though that they seem to have bucked the liberal status quo when it comes to the border and actually helped us pass a law that will strengthen our security and make our country safer. let's make no mistake where this came from that took the life of laken riley and so many others. this is one that the biden administration exacerbated after president biden took office. on the campaign trail in 2020, president biden made this pledge, and i will quote. he said i would, in fact, make sure that we immediately surge to the border all those people who are seeking asylum.

close quote. now, that was a big welcome mat or invitation for anybody and everybody across the planet to show up at the border and to claim asylum. and because of the backlog and asylum claims and the fact that they would be released into the interior of the country, basically that was a free ticket into the united states outside of what should be our regular orderly lawful immigration system. but president biden didn't stop there. when he assumed office, he ended all of the policies of the previous administration, very successful policies like president trump's remain in mexico policy. he halted the construction of the border wall and instead spent federal dollars to store unused wall materials.

and then toward the end of -- right before the election or right after the election, we found out they were actually selling these border wall materials for essentially salvage, for pennies on the dollar. and knowing that with president trump reassuming office again we would have to repurchase those items, it just seemed like a kick in the teeth for the american taxpayer and contemptuous, frankly, of law and order. so we also know that sort of to add insult to injury, the biden administration created this so-called cvp1 app. it stands for customs and border protection. so what happens is people outside of the country who

wanted to come here and claim asylum knowing they would be released into the country and would have to wait for years, maybe a decade, before they would appear before an immigration judge, they could literally make an appointment to show up at a port of entry using the cbp1 act. you have people moving into the country that were transported here by criminal organization that got rich thanks to the biden administration. and it was not uncommon to see people coming from far-flung parts of the planet. now i live in texas. we have a 1200-mile border with mexico, we are accustomled to people -- accustomed to people from south america coming to america, but not people from

latvia, from china or the middle east. but under the biden administration, they knew they would be able to come to the united states and they could actually schedule an appointment thanks to the misguided policies of the biden administration. even as this crisis continued to grow, president biden ended the use of the very effective title 42 authority, which was used during covid to limit the movement of adult males into the country because of the covid situation. child this is a national crisis that president biden created, it is one that has been felt most acutely by the people of texas. the 31 million people i represent. in the midst of the biden administration's abject failure to keep the american people safe

and control the movement of people and drugs, including some of the most dangerous criminals you can imagine, it was up to the state of texas and our leadership like governor abbott to step up and defend our people and our borders to the best we could. now, understand border security is not normally a state function because this is an international border, which means it is a federal responsibility. but what are we supposed to do when the president of the united states and the federal government fail to do their job? well, the state stepped up, which means not only our leadership, our national guard, but also texas taxpayers. in other words, we had to this pay the tab to provide for border security such as we could

instead of the federal government picking up the tab as it should have. so governor abbott initiated operation lone star which resulted in more than a half million immigrants being apprehended by texas law enforcement. more than 50,000 criminals were arrested and more than 240 miles of border barriers were built by the state, not at federal response, a federal responsibility, but at state expense by state taxpayers. this law enforcement operation also intercepted a half billion doses of fentanyl. fentanyl, as we now know, is spread throughout the united states. it's hidden in counterfeit pills that look like an innocuous

pharmaceutical only to find out it will kill you at small doses. it took roughly 70,000 lives last year alone and it is the number one cause of death for people between the ables of 18 -- ages of 18 and 45 i applaud the efforts of our goefrj and our -- governor and our state legislature to step up and secure the border. even when the president of the united states and the vice president turned a blind eye. as a result of operation lone star, texas was able to reduce illegal immigration into the state by 87%. but, as i said, these efforts came at a very real cost. the state of texas spent nearly

$4.8 $4.8 billion on walls and barriers, local grants to counties and cities processing criminal arrest and moving migrants out of small texas towns. deploying the national guard for building border barriers guarding and constructing those barriers and apprehending migrants who were illegally present in the united states cost another $3.6 billion. then texas had personnel costs for our state troopers, the department of public safety troopers who were responsible for repelling additional illegal migrants arresting those who broke -- otherwise broke the law, transnational gang members, cartel members, human smugglers and human traffickers. the federal government didn't do it so texas did. that came to an additional $2 toy 25 -- $2.25 billion in

taxpayer expenditure, money that should have been provided by the federal government for federal responsibility borne by the taxpayers in my state. the texas department of criminal justice spent an additional $311.2 million on antigang violence, the number of dangerous gangs emanating from central america or venezuela are well known and indeed these are some of the most dangerous people that have made their way into the united states as a result of the policies of the biden administration. so texas had no choice but to deal with antigang violence. and then there's the cost associated with the prosecution of these border crimes. at operation lone star's criminal processing centers.

and then the game wardens. this was an all hands on deck. even the game wardens in texas played a role. they patrolled the rio grande river to prevent illegal entries. criminal processing centers required health and safety services and the list goes on and on and on. this was an all-of-government effort in the state of texas. even the texas alcoholic beverage commission put millions of dollars toward interdicting human trafficking at the border. all told, as a result of the biden-harris administration's abject dereliction of its responsibility at an international border, to enforce the law cost the state of texas about $11.1 billion. now, texas unlike the rest -- many states in the rest of the

country doesn't have an income tax. we fund our government through sales tax and through property tax. and we don't have an income tax. this was a painful expenditure by the texas legislature and by our leadership. and that figure doesn't even take into account what local counties and cities and other nonprofits were forced to further shoulder when it came to the financial burden. before president biden came to office, texas spent $800 million every two years on border security, roughly $400 million a year. that means that taxpayers are on the hook for nearly 14 times what they typically spent on border security due to the failure of the biden administration. it wasn't just negligence. it was intentional.

it was willful. keeping our nation's border secure is the responsibility of the federal government. it is not and it should not be the responsibility of the individual states. that's part of our constitutional framework. this is a crisis that the biden administration literally invited by rolling out the welcome mat and refusing to enforce laws that were on the books. what's worse, in the midst of this disaster, the federal government reimbursed others, nonprofits, nongovernmental associations to help facilitate illegal immigration. through fema's emergency food and shelter program to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. so texas has been stuck with the check for the biden-harris failed policies and that's

wrong. governor abbott has asked congress to reimburse texas for its costs that should have been incurred by the federal government in the first instance. i support this request and along with our state delegation, we are going to fight to get texas taxpayers the money they're rightfully owed. the texas congressional delegation is 40 individuals strong, 38 in the house and 2 here in the senate. and we believe it's only right and just for the federal government and the congress to reimburse the state for expenditures it should have never had to make, that the biden-harris administration had simply done its job, which is to provide for a secure border. surely if the federal government can reimburse nongovernmental

organizations for rolling out the welcome mat for illegal migrants, it could also cover texas' expenses for keeping u.s. citizens safe. and the work that was done along the border did not accrue to the benefit solely of people in texas. i mentioned the fentanyl crisis. fentanyl now, unfortunately, has spread to 50 states. but the work that was done at the border, keeping some of the fentanyl out of the country and arresting criminals at the border, that benefited people in all 50 states. again, another reason why this is a federal responsibility. it's only a matter of basic fairness that the federal government should step up and help address a crisis that was a problem of its own making.

texas taxpayers should not have to foot the bill alone as a result of president biden's mishandling of border policy. so i urge all of our colleagues here in the senate as well as our colleagues in the house to work with me and the tax delegation, all 40 of us, on fulfilling this request by governor abbott to reimburse texas for its expenses that it never should have had to spend and make if president biden and the federal government had simply done its job. the federal government created this crisis and it's up to the federal government to pay the tab. mr. president, i yield the floor. i would note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. alsobrooks.

has no jurisdiction over israel . the treaty establishing the court unless the court has zero authority over israel and its leaders. the courts suggested between israel and hamas terrorists attacks and oppress their own people is beyond.

most ranges war against. thomas chose to launch a massive attack on 1200 deaths in approximately 250 hostages more in captivity today. when it emerged last year planning words public and control house of representatives brought legislation to sanction those responsible at the icc. forty-two democrats voted for it but the legislation was dead on arrival in the united states and in the democrat leader refusing to bring it up. when the icc release warrants last november, i promised if democrats would not bring icc to legislation to the floor for a vote, i would today i am

following through. for individuals involved and arrest or prosecute u.s. citizens allies in the icc and pass the house again and support for 40 democrats. i hope we'll see strong bipartisan margins in the senate as well. this illegitimate really because while they are targeting israeli leaders today and back.

while the united states will not turn over any to the icc, warrants for u.s. voters and military leaders jeopardize american troops ability to move where needed and stand with our allies. i want to thank senator cotton the work on this bill and i hope by democrat colleagues will join get this legislation over the slide. suggest the absence of a quorum. >> criminals in the world today are an integral read for the international criminal of court. unchecked power to enforce loosely defined international

law and they are unaccountable. kangaroo court the u.s. never ratified this treaty. not members with this group, so-called court seems to be fitting. never issued arrest warrants, try to prosecute caps off. icc embraces the moral fraud will violate human rights they believe israel doesn't have a right to defend itself. last year we saw an arrest warrant for the israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu,

israel former defense minister was also charged. the charges the icc for biased and basically they go after the state. we are in accurate. let's get to the facts. a single day for the jewish people since the holocaust. israel has fundamental right to defend itself in america stands with the people. israel went to extraordinary lengths to limit casualties. thomas deliberately hid behind civilian vigils.

israel allowed hundreds of thousands of food and supplies to help the people of gaza. when the food does it meet the needs of the civilians there, it's because they haven't spent enough, it's because hamas steals at first. a member of the icc, the court has no jurisdiction over it, israel is a democracy, judiciary is robust the icc death to these important facts. viewed by israel as you. because of this, the icc has attacked israel's allies. in 2020 icc certified investigates american service members who served in afghanistan for alleged war

crimes. thousand trump this product strongly confirms the assets of officials involved in the corrupt investigations. president trump imposed visa restrictions. then what happens? joe biden gets the white house and former president biden -- love saying warmer, former president biden overturned these sanctions. president trump resource sanctions to on his first day back in office last week. the senate will hold a critical will she hold the international criminal court down. tom cohen of arkansas have been leaders on this issue bill today any icc official for associate

who works to investigate and prosecute allies this bill walks funding from icc. a shows american taxpayers are not contributing hard earned money for service members. since his message we in america will not tolerate icc law. if the icc attacks allies, the consequences will be swift and severe. icc trends security and sovereignty.

today the icc can turn american service members and leaders. the house of representatives passed legislation to sanction the icc and have done it several times. bipartisan support continues to grow. majority of americans support efforts to sanction the icc. the most recent vote was 243 in favor and only 140 against. forty-five house democrats voted for it. the senate could have passed lacks confidence democrat leader joseph drag his feet blocked from coming to the senate for and refused to even allow debate. strengthening alliance with israel top priority.

and american citizens and allies. risch: mr. chairman, i c to the floor today to talk about the icc bill and the vote we're going to have immediately following the lunch hour. when the international criminal court issued arrest warrants for israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu and his former defense minister for defending their country against an unprovoked, brutal tac on their homeland, the icc was exceeding its mandate. there's no question about that in my mind, and, further, there is no question in my mind that it is a clear demonstration of the court's inability to focus on justice and determine what is justice and determine what is right and what is wrong.

the icc does not have jurisdiction over israel. this clearly political move erased the last illusions of legitimacy for the organization and is just another example of partisanship and anti-semitism infecting our international organizations like the united nations, the icj, and, of course, the icc. this needs to end. the united states needs to stand in solidarity with our ally israel, not only by providing them with the assistance they need for their self-defense but by sanctioning the icc to compel the organization to change its corrupt behavior encountering -- countering this blatant anti-semitism wherever it appears. i look forward to working with the trump administration and secretary of state rubio, who i believe will be excellent partners in rooting out the corruption in our international organizations and i urge my colleagues to vote yes on this

bill to support our greatest ally in the middle east, israel. this is a unique opportunity to vote and vote on this will very clearly state whether you stand on the side of israel, whether you stand on the side of the united states, where we will not cede jurisdiction over our citizens to such a corrupt and blatantly inequitable institution as the icc. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the clerk: ms. alsobrooks.

a passport or license. these actions like immigration

have nothing to do with protecting public safety or national security. president trump initiative program. when american soldiers go overseas to represent this country and risked their lives for the country is for allegiance to the united states many times they lie in local mass and happening afghanistan. they first their lives and help our troops many times risking their own lives in service of their country for the united states including families of afghans now facing persecution to help the united states. extensive background checks and opportunity to come to the united states in the same thing is true with leaders and the

persecution and dictatorship. many of these literally wait for decades and undergo extreme value before coming. approximately 10000 refugees approved to travel to the united states and waiting for long periods of time including seen hundred afghans. many risked their lives and give them the insecurity. they've been canceled by president trump. u.s. troops, others are family members and service members. children united with their children in the united states.

needlessly cruel to families will waiting to reunite with loved ones and sends a message to allies supporting troops and will not protect them if they face retribution for helping the united states. president trump denies birthright citizens to children born in the united states. this is clear violation of the constitution. i want to read the first sentence. it is explicit. it reads, all persons, born or naturalized in the united states in the jurisdiction thereof, one is clear as can be.

it's been blocked by the judge. i've been on the bench for decades and can't remember another case is clear as this one. unconstitutional order. ice agents are resting and asking the question even after they requested to speak. do you know who accompanied him? doctor phil, the tv doctor period for some reason he was invited to go along with this,

dedicating himself to murderers and rapists drug dealers mentally ill. i took him at his word but apparently doctor phil is an accomplice in this effort and has been invited to go along for the ride. if this mass deportation is truly focused on dangerous individuals, murderers and rapists drug dealers and the mentally ill, as much as he does performing surgery. he would complicate the situation and talking about possibility of persecution.

and state their case in this country. 90%. immigrants make up more than 40% of home healthcare aids children's assistance. they pay their taxes all the while america's future.

and i said i illinois will tell you flat out systems from migrants and immigrants just can't do their work whether they are running theory operations, orchards greater agricultural pursuits. they put food on the table and care for our children and healthcare for parents and grandparents. many are dreamers who grew up alongside our kids and serve our nation as members of the armed services, doctors and nurses. they believe in the american dream. there's no will for dangerous people of plenty of room for those aspire our nation and make a distinction and realize the differences significant.

quorum call:

the presiding officer: without objection. the question occurs on the duffy nomination. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote: the clerk: ms. alsobrooks. ms. baldwin. mr. banks. mr. barrasso. mr. bennet. mrs. blackburn. mr. blumenthal. ms. blunt rochester. mr. booker. mr. boozman. mrs. britt. mr. budd. ms. cantwell. mrs. capito.

mr. cassidy. ms. collins. mr. coons. mr. cornyn. ms. cortez masto. mr. cotton. mr. cramer. mr. crapo. mr. cruz. mr. curtis. mr. daines. ms. duckworth. >> i rise in support of sean duffy to be secretary of transportation. last week congressman duffy was reported favorably out of the commerce committee without a single no vote. all 28 members of the commerce committee republicans and democrats voted in favor of august and duffy. two weeks ago congressman duffy appeared before the commerce committee for nearly three hours for two rounds of questions. his family seated behind him and he thoughtfully and ably answered the questions put forth by all of the members of the

committee. the resounding bipartisan support for his nomination supports republicans and democrats believe congressman duffy is imminently qualified to serve as the secretary of transportation. transportation is not republican. it's not democrat. transportation is for all americans from roads to bridges to waterways to airspace. all americans depend on the department of transportation to help ensure a safe and efficient transportation system. congressman duffy understands this. he is a five term congressman who reached across not just the aisle autocross chambers to bring home needed infrastructure to his district. to quote his home state senator, senator baldwin a democrat who spoke glowingly of congressman duffy, quote, sean is the right person for this job.

i agree with senator baldwin. as a father of nine children congressman duffy told committee members that, quote, i think about transportation quite a bit and about transportation safety a lot. he understands what american families care about. making sure that when they get in their car or on a plane or with their families they know they will get to the destination safely. he embodies the, quote, revolution of common sense that president trump has called for. not only has congressman duffy earn the support of the entire commerce committee but there are over 60 stakeholders in support of his nomination. congressman duffy has received wide support from labor, from airlines, railroads, manufacturers, from energy providers and many more. it is my hope that given this

unanimous support that congressman duffy received on wednesday from the commerce committee that the. entire sene can follow suit, that we can all agree he is a kind of consensus driven leader we need in the department of transportation. therefore, madam president, i urge all of our colleagues republican and democrats to come together and vote in support of the confirmation of sean duffy to be the next sector of transportation. i yield the floor. >> i rise in support of the nomination of sean duffy to serve as our next secretary of transportation. sean duffy and i have known each other for many years and worked together in the wisconsin delegation during our time in the house of representatives. as the wisconsin native mr. duffy is a former congressman who represented wisconsin's seventh congressional district from 2011-2019. in that time we partnered on shared priorities for

constituents, including the st. croix bridge in western wisconsin. during his confirmation hearing before the commerce committee i shared this story. it usually does not take an act of congress to build a bridge that in this case it was needed to build a new bridge over the st. croix river connecting wisconsin and minnesota. with help from senators klobuchar, coal and johnson, sean duffy and dive without hesitation with a respective caucuses and brought together aa house majority necessary to pass legislation to replace the 80 year old spill water bridge. as sean can attest this was a decades long battle which resulted in significant bipartisan win for our state and our region. it's not a matter of right or left, just what was good for our constituents, our economy and

our state. today the st. croix crossing which opened in 2017 2017 d traffic time, reduce congestion, and most importantly improved safety. this type of bipartisan work for the american people is what i i expect to see from sean duffy as secretary of transportation. our efforts show when we work together we get important things done. as i told my colleagues from te commerce committee about the nominee, we haven't always agreed and in certain that will continue to be true. i will be the first to call it in efforts to roll back our by america rules were we can safety or increase costs for cut funding for critical projects like the bridge in my state. at the end of the day i'm confident sean duffy is the right person for this job and will help deliver for wisconsin families, businesses and workers. he's committed to be a strong partner on strengthening by

america rules vick and i look forward to working with him on upcoming surface transportation reauthorization. i expect he will work with numbers on both -- members on both sides of help to improve our infrastructure and address challenges in the years ahead. i urge my colleagues to support the nomination of sean duffy as secretary of transportation. >> okay. thank you for coming. glad to be joined by senator murray, senator klobuchar, senator kim and senator murphy i believe is on his way. look, last night president trump plunge the country into chaos

without a shred of warning. the trumpe administration announced a halt to virtually all federal funds across the country. in an instant donald trump has shut off billions perhaps trillions of dollars that directly support states, cities, towns, schools, hospitals, small businesses, and most of all american families. it is a dagger at the heart of the average american family in red states, blue states, cities, suburbs, rural areas. it is just outrageous. funds for things like disaster assistance to local law enforcement, rural hospitals, aid to the elderly, food for people in need, all are on the chopping block in this new administration. why?

they need tax cuts for the ultra wealthy. and these cuts they think will fund them. every one of our offices has been deluged with calls from people who are in panic. what does this mean? what if i have a hospital that has people on life support? what are we going to do? and just like the january 6 pardons, this decision is lawless, dangerous, destructive, cruel. it's illegal. it's unconstitutional. i spoke to my attorney general this morning. she is head of the state attorney general association. they are going to court right away. on this horror. this plain and simple this is project 2025.

project 2025 by another name. then you how unpopular project 2025 was. the right-wing ideologues ideologues are still in control so you had to do the different weight but it is the same consequences and by the same horrible negative overwhelming reaction from the american people. and who is going to the implementer of this? none other than the chief cook and bottle washer of project 2025, russell vought. putting someone like russell vought at omb, the architect of project 125, is acute danger sign to america. [phone ringing] >> no. >> put it on speakerphone. >> no, no. my grandson lost his first tooth. it's a very big occasion. and i told his mother to put ten dollars under his pillow. i used to get a quarter.

all right. anyway, having russell vought at omb with this power is just frightening. not to us, although we're going to fight this to the know, but your average american people who depend on this. and what does he want to do? you saw in his blueprint project 2025, eradicate basic services, eradicate investments that helped tens of millions of americans, all so they can pay the tax cuts for the ultra rich. it's hard to overstate how destructive this decision is for the country. he has a lot of really bad decisions for which the american people will rebel and politically will be very unpopular. this is the worst of the worst. the worst of the worst. in our states we talk to people

everyone of us, people are scrambled to figure out what it means to them. we're getting panic calls, how are people going to make mortgage payments? how our small businesses going to keep their staff? if their federal funding is shut off? virtually any organization, school, steak, police officer, county or to be depends on federal grant money to run its day-to-day operations and they are all now in danger. nonprofits that help disabled veterans are in danger thanks to donald trump. funding that supports our transportation system and infrastructure is now in danger thanks to donald trump. hospitals particularly rural hospitals and community health centers are now in danger because of donald trump. meals on wheels are in danger because of donald trump. our cops and firefighters are in danger thanks to donald trump.

funding for the non-security grant program which protects synagogues and temples from anti-semitic attacks, i saw was in my neighborhood just sunday, is now in danger thanks to donald trump. the blast radius of this terrible decision is virtually limitless. and its impact will be felt over and over again. it's not going to each american from in one way. it will hit him in multiple ways. the only people might be immune for the ultra ultra wealthy who do want to give a tax break to. the trump administration is robbing peter to pay the billionaires. american families make no mistake about it. money being taken from them will be spent but not on them. instead, support for your community, it's going to the ultra wealthy and the megacorporations. this is cruelty.

this is lawlessness. this is a heist done on a national scale. no matter how much he may believe he does, the president does not have the authority to thwart the law and we will fight to save the way that we can. senator murray. >> thank you very much. look, we would come here today to talk about the very simple resolution on a different kind of lawlessness by the president in response to in pardoning violent criminals and insurrectionists who attacked police officers. that resolution so you know very simply reads in its entirety resolved that the senate disapproves of any pardons for individuals were found guilty of assaulting capital lease officers. you will hear more from me and others regarding that resolution laid on the floor today but we are here today to respond to the

omb memo issued by the trump administration last night. in a brazen and illegal move, the trump administration is working to freeze huge amounts of federal funding passed into law by republicans and democrats alike. the scope of this legal action is unprecedented and could have devastating consequences across the country for real people here we could see a screeching halt to research for child care, cancer research, housing, police officers, opioid addiction treatment, rebuilding roads and bridges, and even disaster relief efforts. he was just in california to witness the devastation and now he is holding back that aid. trump's actions would wreak havoc in red and blue communities everywhere. this is something that communities are expecting, and this memo is creating chaos and

confusion about whether these resources will be available to them. entire budgets and payrolls across the country are carefully hinging on these resources. we're talking about our small towns, our cities, school dishes, universities and a lot more. while local head start facilities get their funding? will grant these at our local universities get the funding that they use to continue clinical trials? what does this mean for homeless veterans? reworking to get housed. american should ask themselves, is it woke to find cancer research or to rebuild an unsafe bridge? all of these critical priorities are funded by the grants the trump administration -- this illegal move is a massive, massive overreach by the trump administration pick the american people did not vote for this kind of senseless chaos.

so i am urging the senate budget committee chair lindsey graham, a fellow appropriator, to hold russ votes nomination that was supposed to occur this thursday. republicans should not advance that nomination out of committee until the trump administration follows the law. the law is the law. the trump administration must immediately reverse course, fall the requirements of that law and make sure that the nation spending laws are implemented as congress intended. >> as much as trump desires it, the president is not a king. as much as trump desires it, a law is not a suggestion.

he's in the questions of opinion. these are principles at the heart of our constitutional system, at the heart of our checks and balances and thus we have a constitutional crisis. just last week russell vought came before the budget committee any hearing, andle the things hs woke about laid out a a threet plan for this administration. part one, ravage the programs of families depend on the gun the feet and thrive in move in the middle class. part two, borrow trillions and run up the deficit. part three, give massive tax giveaways to the wealthiest americans. what we saw last night was a huge implementation of part one, the attack on families across this country. this is a great betrayal for a

candidate trump who ran on supporting families and then president trump who is serving to attack families. russell vought refused to answer many questions about his plan, particularly to say he would not use the illegal impoundment strategy. impoundment means the president treats an appropriation as a suggestion and decide whether or not to actually implement it or not. that was decided by the course s before 1974. in 1974 congress said if you want to pursue withholding funds jeff to plow for rescission. and this is further affirmed when the supreme court vetoed the line item budget process. so these are not questions that are unresolved. this is why the budget democrats

are going to call upon the postponement two-week postponement of mr. vought's confirmation and committee, voting committee, until we answer these questions and resolve this constitutional crisis. >> last night in the fight of federal law donald trump made the decision to stop federal funding which is my colleagues have pointed out could impact everything and will impact everything from small businesses to local law enforcement to childcare. it was just a week ago that he took his oath of office. and i said that day that we have that swearing in, that inauguration in the capital for a reason. we don't have it over at the white house. that's because there are three equal branches of government under the constitution. and about thele people that were

in that rotunda came from the people who were not in that rotunda. so as we stand today people should think about the mom who doesn't know if she can get her kid to childcare today, or they should think about the teenager in a cancer study hoping beyond hope that that's going to save his life. or they should think about the people from minnesota when last week on the date of that inauguration it was minus six degrees, who depend on heating assistance. those of the people that are standing up here with us today. but this memo, these two pieces of paper, , came from a guy from matthew state. probably never heard of him, the acting director of the office of management and budget. guess what? he's not in the united states constitution. congress is, and we were set up in article one, article ii, article one. article one trump's matthew, and

it is congress' job to have the backs of the american people and look out for them. it is spelled out in the american constitution. maybe not in those exact words but that is what the founding fathers meant. they didn't give that power to matthew. they gave it to us. i hope that our republican colleagues will join us in taking this on. they have the majority in the senate. they know what the constitution says. and add that, they joined us in voting for this funding and to help with these very important causes, the cancer research, use as an example because a mom called me this morning about a clinical trial. they cancer research they voted for. they are proud of it. they put in their campaigns tv ads. so they must join us in stopping this unconstitutional power grab by the trump administration.

>> so this is an attempt by donald trump to seize power. it sounds like like a prove thing to say but how else do you describe what we've watched happen over the last week? the broad immunization of political violence, the illegal firing of inspectors general there to make sure that their money, the money of the taxpayers isn't stolen? and today the illegal and unconstitutional decision to put the president of the united states and no one else in charge of who gets federal money and who doesn't. what president trump is doing is seizing control of the federal budget and deciding by himself who gets money and who doesn't. for two reasons. one, he wants to bank money so that he can afford his massive

tax cut for billionaires and corporations. but second, so that he can hand out money to his friends, to the companies that are run by his billionaire donors, two states that voted for him to congressional district with members of congress who are loyal to him, and so that he can deny money to any organization run by democrats, to companies or that our competitors to his billionaire friends, to congressional districts represented by his political opponents. this is what a team does. this is not how a democracy works. one man does not decide -- what a king does. one mentor is not decide how taxpayers money are spent so delicate sent to the president's political friend and he gets used to punish his political enemies. the scope of the damage that will be done is enormous.

to poor kids rely on head start programs, to families who need desperate need that cancer research done, to veterans who is in this one or two appointments their life falls apart suddenly overnight. we have to understand what is happening in contrast. the president wants you to be distracted by the day-to-day announcements, but put together the pardoning of the violent rioters, the firing of the inspectors general, and today the stoppage of federal funding leaving the decision only to the political whims of president trump represents the greatest, most serious constitutional crisis of our lifetime. one that threatens to undermine the very premise of american

democracy. and i'm glad to be standing here with my colleagues to raise this alarm. >> is read what other has been talking about, we are getting calls and e-mails from our constituents, people back in our state and the word and when uses is chaos. as i been think i'll be honest with you, chaos is the point because chaos is their plan. this is going exactly as they want it to go. they could've chosen a different way to try to figure out how to be more effective and efficient if that was actually their goal but their goal is to sow chaos. i i hope the american people see this because this is the style of governing quote-unquote governing that we will see for the next four years. the american people have to ask is this what they want? what we see right now, whether it's the action received with this omb or the firing of the

inspector generals and independent advisers, or what we saw usaid and the leadership there, we see right now is it showing the defining phrase of trump administration and beginning of this administration isn't the golden age. it's a phrase used during the campaign, the enemies from within. we see him now and the presidency in the oval office waging war against the american people try to think about solely how it is that he can attain and consolidate that power for himself, and he was going to be the people the struggle and suffer from it is going to be the american people. i want to read you this e-mail i got, got his overnight, says good morning, which is her president trump issued a memo temporarily freezing federal grants and loans effective at 5 p.m. 5 p.m. today. this is obviously alarming to those rely on federal funding to

help people with disabilities. this is an organization that is trying to figure out how it is that they can help the americans that need to help the most, support the most. that did this is going to cut off funding, put in jeopardy and throwing the chaos people with disabilities, seniors and people with health care needs is cruel. but again that's the point. they don't care about the collateral damage. they care about their own power and they care about themselves. [inaudible] [inaudible question] >> i can just tell you that it still in the clock on the west coast.

and calls are flooding in, just sheer panic that at 5:00 tonight the funds that they count on, whether it's for our schools, title i, whether it's our hospitals were doing research, whether it is our community health centers were providing care for people in line right now in rural communities in my state, whether they will be able to provide those services tomorrow. i have used my appropriations committee, long has been trying to get in touch with the agencies to fully understand the impacts of this, and they are broad and, quite frankly, very poorly written. this is exactly what andy is talking about, the chaos that this is creating is horrendous. no one voted to wake up this morning and wonder whether their child would get the care they need, wondered whether or not their parents would be kicked out of a nursing home, whether

or not the research that is so critical to keeping your child alive would continue. whether the road, when the calls i got was about the bridge between oregon and washington that we've been working on for 25 years. does that mean all that work stops tomorrow? these are the kind of calls we're getting because that is what this memo is stopping. >> at a niche in the example little later in minnesota, when they get up super early, but they are a mom, kit, teenager in a cancer trial. these trials sometimes are funded by other agencies but a lot of the fun is nih funding. asking what's can happen if it's just going to stop right in the middle. that's a very real question right now. by the way, we could go through example after example and the reason so many of us lead with his unconstitutional power grab

in the chaos and corruption that involve is because there are ways to do this. we made very clear we were happy to join within to find common ground on efficiency and things they could do better and ways we can save money for taxpayers. that's not what this is. they decided to come in because this is what he does. chaos, innocent people hurt, courts have to intervene. this is no way to govern and it is certainly no way to govern for people who are reliant on this help. [inaudible question] >> look, i know my colleagues have worked a long time to negotiate bipartisan bills. you cannot attach appropriation bills and in your opinion without bipartisan cooperation. that made you sit down at a

table and you work out what we can all agree on. i don't love everything that we agree that this is what we find picky pass into law. the president signs it. can you imagine what it's going to be like for any of us either under this administration for the future administrations of any kind if those agreements need nothing? that some vacancy back and say sure, knowing full well the president is in power and they will keep defending out and send it out. we cannot function as a democracy in this country if we cannot respect and abide by our ability to make agreements in congress. congress holds the power of the purse. that is very clear in the constitution, in the rule of law and it is critical for us to be able to find and make this country run in the way that is competent. [inaudible question]

>> yeah. that's dyson somebody up at the top but i'll tell you what's happening, to every single agency, , schools, healthcare agencies that got that memo is going to say i better be darn careful not to accidentally find something that is supposed to, so the stop everything. that is exactly happening. i didn't get with the put up in some kind of qualifying thing. they put out a memo last night. >> and they're ready to take action against one agency folks they thought would violate the rules for this isn't a funding freeze. >> it says in accordance with the present priorities, the point is the president doesn't get to decide what programs to fund and not.

the laws are written by congress. [inaudible question] >> the law is very clear right now that senator merkley describe to you. and, in fact, win votes came before the budget committee, i asked him are you going to follow the law? he said we don't believe in that law. and i said to him well okay so there's a speed limit, 15, 255 miles an hour. you don't like it because it slows you down. that does that mean you don't follow that because you don't believe it and you told your neighbors you didn't believe in a? the law is the law. the rule of law is what we all rely on to be able to have a democracy and a consistency in this country. he is wrong and were going to fight him as senator merkley has that and we're going to a republican colleagues we expect them to follow the law as well.

[inaudible question] >> we are speaking out loudly and clearly. were having a press conference hours after we found out about this. we're making sure they don't understand what is at stake. we are asking our republican colleagues to join us. they have something at stake in following the rule of law. that's what i just talked about. senator merkley will talk about the nomination vote for vought himself. >> so profoundly disturbing as senator merkley has pointed out that someone stand before you and say i just don't agree with what the court decide about the constitutionality of the impoundment and will do what we want.

how do you actually go forward if you have an executive who says we only follow the law we want? we only fund the programs we want. in the budget committee the democrats are calling for a vote on russell vought's nomination to be postponed until this current crisis is resolved. we do not have the power specifically to bring a quorum. we do not have the power to force the chair but a hope that the chairman of the budget committee realizing how this attack on the foundation of our constitution is unacceptable and will join us in standing together. [inaudible] >> this is a profound constitutional issue. what happened last night is the most direct assault on the authority of congress i believe in history of the united states.

it is lately unconstitutional. article two does not give the executive the power to determine budgets or expenditures. that power is vested in article iii, in the congress. if this stands, then congress may as well adjourned because what the implications of this is, the executive can pick and choose which congressional enactments they will execute. president took an oath the other day to faithfully execute the presidency of the united states. that means to execute the laws that are passed by congress. not edicts passed by the office of management and budget. so i hope and believe that our colleagues on all sides of the aisle will realize that this is not a political discussion. this is not a programmatic discussion. this is an institutional discussion that goes to the viability and authority and

expertise and work that is based upon article iii of the constitution. this is just a usurpation of authority as i said i believe, i've never seen anything quite like this in american history. richard nixon tried to do it. congress passed a specific statute which is been the concept the basis of which has been upheld by the supreme court. and to assert this power really renders the power of congress and nobody. as i say i hope members of both sides of the aisle will realize this and stand up for the institution. james madison said the interest of the individuals will enable them or empower them to stand up for the interest of the institution. and if this stands this will redound to the detriment of both

parties, whichever party is in charge. imagine from a if joe biden did this or senate republican congressman the past the statutes and we want to find head start and joe biden said i would rather put the money over here. we would be hearing a lot of reaction. the reaction should come from both sides. as someone who's worked in the law and worked with the constitution for many, many years, i was stunned last night to see this order. i i thought first was a productn of the onion, because it's so grossly, blatantly unconstitutional and threatening to the foundation of the separation of powers under the constitution. thank you, madam chairman. >> thank you. [inaudible]

>> obviously we are like 12 hours into this and we with multiple state attorneys general as well as others who are looking at what our next steps can be in the courts. i would say to all of the republicans, we didn't come here to go through bunch of court orders about current law. we came here to fight for our constituents, to make sure that they had the basic things that they needed every single day including cancer research, roads and bridges built unity said, police officers on the street are protected and we will keep fighting. the clerk: mr. paul, aye.

the presiding officer: on this vote the yeas are 77, the nays are 22. 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 stands in recess until >> the sin has come about and will be back at 2:15 p.m. eastern. when members return they will vote on whether to move forward

with the house approved a bill to sanction certain of the international criminal court for treason arrest warrant for top israeli government officials. 60 votes will be needed to advance that legislation. live senate coverage when lawmakers return here on c-span2. >> c-span democracy unfiltered. we are funded this television companies and more including cox. cox. >> when connection is needed most cox is there to help bringing affordable internet to families in need, new support for boys and girls club and support for veterans. whenever and wherever it matters most we will be there. >> cox supports c-span is a blic service along with these other television providers giving you a front-row seat to democracy. >> i will republican governor kim reynolds address medicaid and education policy in her annual condition of the