cornyn: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cornyn: mr. president, i'd ask consent the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cornyn: over the past months we've heard a lot of talk about medicare for all. if democrats -- if democrats supporters claim this is a panacea that will solve all of america's health care woes, they say it will guarantee every person's access to health care and simplify our health care system. but it didn't take much effort to see the flaws in their proposal and in their argument, something we're obligated to do, to examine these proposals and see will they work or will they not work. our democrat friends proudly own the fact that medicare for all would completely end employer-based health insurance as we know it. we heard that a lot last night during the debates of the democratic candidates running for president. it would literally force every american into one government-run plan modeled after our curren

i think someone like mj hagar might be a better contrast to senator cornyn. someone who is a political outsider and a veteran. i know that she has to build a network that can raise the money necessary to compete and congressman o'rourke has that established network. he also is now may be more of a political figure and less of a onshface then when he took senator cruz. i would like to see where this race ends up a year from now. host: market is on our independent line in fort lauderdale. you for c-span. i appreciate hearing all the varying viewpoints. guest, we haven't really discussed the probability of outside election interference from foreign agents and foreign sources and such and this current administration's reaction to that. and in fact c-span is oferiencing and is a victim that right now. i don't know if you guys are aware of it or not. you just had a few calls ago from a used to be a democrat, i was a democrat all my life but now i changed to republican to vote for trump. patter downhe exactly that was republican patter and it wasn't the democratic p

keep it and risk it not passing in congress and the sooner the better texas republican senator john cornyn says there's not a lot of time left to get democrats on board because once. >>it's comes from the white house and it's on a 90 day. a fast track and that can't be amended by congress. >>this is not the only issue democrats have with the u s m c a house speaker nancy pelosi

i wanted to comment on the dynamic that's happening in texas because senator cornyn is a republican, but depending on what happens between beddoe -- beddoe o'rourke -- bedo o'rourke and julian castro, that could easily become a tossup because republicans in the state are rightfully worried that they might lose texas. president trump only won it by nine points in 2016, and depending on -- there's a lot of interest to see what happens between bedo and julian because if one of them does not continue to run for president there's a lot of talk in that senate seat. i just want to see what nathan thinks about that. guest: texas, i wrestle with where's a good place to put texas. i believe it is becoming more competitive. i don't believe it is in the tossup status quite yet. in the most recent senate ratings, we moved senator cornyn out of our solid republican category to a likely republican category, which is a more vulnerable place. i think it could get more competitive as it goes on. >> on behalf of the center of the brookings studio. i want to welcome you. we have a full house. this is no

royce west just announced his bid to unseat senator john cornyn.ready crowded primary field that now includes at least three other candidates hoping to pull off the democratic dream. it's a dream that beto o'rourke came close to grabbing but failed to deliver back in 2018 despite a near record amount of campaign cash. and really unprecedented national attention. royce west joins me now. state senator west, just in terms of historical context, testimony really hasn't gone blue since the late anne richards governed the state, and that was 25 years ago. how can you and how can democrats build a winning coalition there? what will be different? >> well, morgan, thank you very much. what will be different is this. when you begin to look at beto o'rourke's election, it was not a political ab doreration, it was part of a trend. you correctly said that was historic turnouts during a midterm election. you can imagine what it's going to be doing the general election. we believe that there will be democrats, independents, and also republicans that will begin t

senator cornyn? >> thank you for opening your remarks with your tribute to local, state and federal law enforcement officers. it's really important for all of unot just the professional law enforcement officers you represent but to the entire nation to acknowledge and honor these heroes for their service and sacrifice. so thank you for that. you may be interested to know that this friday it will be my honor to deliver the congressional badge of bravery to a group of houston fbi agents for their work during hurricane harvey, which was particularly significant event in my state. and so on their behalf, let me thank you and all of the rank and file fbi agents that do such a great job every day. you'll recall that on november the 5th, 2017, devon patrick kelly killed 26 worshipers at a little baptist church outside of san antonio in sutherland springs. he injured 20 more people. devastating that community as we could imagine. we found out that mr. kelly was a convicted felon. he had a record of being det

and senator cornyn asked the question about the background checkng system. but there ises so much more we could do, like closing the gun show loophole and here in congress passing the bill that we had, the bipartisan bill to improve background checks. and then also specifically one of your examples was about domestic violence, domestic violence report that an officer went to scene and got killed. we in a similar one like this in minnesota. and right now in the violence against women act thatpr passed the house with 33 republican votes, is a provision that i have long worked on with senator hirono and others that closes the gun show -- the boyfriend loophole. and ifs in where an existing law right now if you live with someone or you are married to them and you've been convicted of defectt violence then you can't go out and get a gun. but half of the domestic homicides are involving boyfriends or sometimes girlfriendset and there is a loophole saying it doesn't apply if you are convicted and you can't t go out and get a gun if you exited domestic violence agai

do to help kron four's washington dc correspondent anna anna warning key reports that senator john cornynrom texas will be among those on the trip he says one thing is for sure congress needs to direct more money and resources to the southern border. >>vice president mike pence and a group of republican senators including john cornyn of texas are heading to the southern border on friday, we'll be talking to the border patrol and customs. >>officials about how they are dealing with the humanitarian and security crisis the delegation plans to tour the federal migrant detention center in mcallen that investigators have called a ticking time bomb there trying to deal with an emergency. in the problem is congress. it is the one who can stop and fix it. congress is simply a sat on its hands warning says a billion immigration funding bill congress passed last month is just a be indeed doesn't. >>the with the underlying causes of that a flood of humanity coming across the border, according says he hopes lawmakers see that the border patrol needs more money. >>more resources and more man power to

why go-- why gear up this other thing instead of, you know, taking the next chop at cornyn?in this country, this moment of truth on everything that you can care about, will we be up to the challenge of confronting climate change before it's too late? will we be able to extend health care to every single american? will we ensure that our democracy, under attack by powers from without the country, under attack by our very president, can we save it? i want to be in the most consequential position to make sure that i do everything i can for-- to deliver for this country. so i want to run to serve as president of the united states. and i want to do so in a way that brings people in, that fixes our democracy, that ensures that we're not defined by our differences but instead by our ambitions and the work that we're willing to do in order to achieve them. so that's what has moved me and amy and our family to make this decision. and i'll say this for texas: there are going to be some extraordinary candidates running to oppose john cornyn. one m.j. hager, a combat veteran, an extraor

cornyn: madam president, i would ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be rescinded. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cornyn: madam president, for every american who is old enough to remember the attacks of september 11, 2001, can be recalled like it happened yesterday. it's one of those rare, almost generational moments, that stand in the forefront of our nation's collective memory. i'm confident if we lined up all 100 members of the senate and asked them where they were that morning, they could tell you. i was in austin at home on the telephone talking to then-governor perry, now the secretary of energy. my wife got my attention and said hold on, you're going to want to see this. and i turned to look at the television just as the second airplane hit the world trade center. and i don't have to tell you, we all remember the heartbreak, the confusion, and the anger that weld up in -- welled up in all of us as we saw those images. in the days and months and years since the attack, we have vowed as a nation to never forget the events of september 11. i think

cornyn: -- mr. cornyn: mr. president, i joined the vice president and a number of colleagues with a trip to the rio grande valley. the rio grande valley headquarter is ground zero for the humanitarian crisis on our southern border. i know some of our colleagues refuse to acknowledge this is a humanitarian crisis on our border, but that seems to have waned in recent days in light of the overwhelming evidence. in fact, president obama, himself, in 2014 called it a humanitarian crisis in 2014. of all sectors that's head and shoulders above the rest of apprehensions trying to enter the country illegally, 26% of all apprehensions along the southern border occur in the rio grande valley sector. across the border, 68% of those apprehended in june were unaccompanied children or part of a family unit. in the rio grande valley, that figure shot up to a whopping 79%. people may be asking themselves, well, why are unaccompanied children, and families, that is an adult with a child, why are they the ones predominately comin

cornyn: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cornyn: mr. president, i have nine requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. these have been approved by both the majority and minority leaders. the presiding officer: duly noted. mr. cornyn: mr. president, i'd ask unanimous consent that senators alexander and menendez be allowed to speak for five minutes each before the vote scheduled at 2:00 p.m. today. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cornyn: mr. president, 50 years ago the world was transfixed by a grainy black-and-white image of neal armstrong descending a ladder preparing to take humankind's first steps on the moon. i was one of more than a half billion people, the largest television audience in history, glued to that television screen on that day. i was actually in high school. and like so many texans at the time, i was totally engrossed in what was going on. staring at the television, it was hard to imagine that hundreds of t

. >>> this morning the powerful texas republican senator john cornyn has a new challenger.nda edwards just announced she is running for his job. watch this. >> this is not about politics. this is about people and what matters most to us. ♪ let it shine ♪ let it shine it's about people like my parents whose battle with cancer illustrate that for so many americans and their families, access to health care is really a matter of life or death and isn't just a chip in some political game. >> houston city council member ammaanda edwards joins us now. thank you for being with us. texas has not elected a democratic senator since 1988. you're the first african-american woman to enter the race. how do you win? >> well, good morning. thanks for having me on the show. i think what's most important in winning this election and of course serving the people of texas is to address the issues that matter most to them. making a transformative difference in their lives such as health care, access to health care that is. and making sure there's economic opportunity just a couple of examples in

cornyn: mr. president, earlier this week the administration and house democrats reached a bipartisan budget deal to deliver on the president's priorities and prevent a funding crisis this fall. as our armed forces continue their global engagements, this agreement importantly secures the funding necessary to maintain readiness and modernize the force. it provides increased defense spending to recover from a depressed military readiness rates of the previous administration and provides our men and women in uniform with the resources, equipment, and training they need in order to defend our freedoms. i know congress deals with a lot of different topics and all of them by and large are important. but there is nothing more important nor is there anything more quintessentially a federal government responsibility than national security. all other consideration aside, if this bipartisan budget deal did nothing more than fully fund our national security efforts, i would support it. but importantly, it als

>>texas senator cornyn says the billion immigration funding bill congress passed last month is just ad cornyn is hoping lawmakers see that the border patrol needs more money more resources and more manpower to manage the influx of migrants crossing into texas in a related story as we mentioned protests erupted all around the country today in reaction to the upcoming immigration raids. >>some people blocking streets others demanding businesses cut ties with immigration reporter lonnie wong has more on the rally in sacramento just outside the state capitol. >>a gathering of labor organizations faith-based groups and community activists left a meeting with congress them adores office letting your staff know that the housing of asylum, seekers is out of hand. recent photos taken of detention centers shown horrid conditions is striking a nerve among critics of president trump's immigration policies. they are confirmed by those who witnessed it in person these children are getting. >>we're not getting food they're not even getting clean bedding protesters here say these are not illegal immi

keep it and risk it not passing in congress and the sooner the better texas republican senator john cornynays there's not a lot of time left to get democrats on board because once. >>it's comes from the white house and it's on a 90 day. a fast track and that can't be amended by congress. >>this is not the only issue democrats have with the u s m c a house speaker nancy pelosi says she will not bring the deal up for a vote in the house until the president addresses all her concerts, including labor environmental enforcement issues in washington, i'm anna warning key. >>scientists say they may have found a way to make mars a livable place for humans. a new study published today in the journal nature astronomy but for the idea of using an insulating material called silica aero gel. the substance could be used to build oems or biles fears to block radiation control temperatures and still allow for photosynthesis scientists at nasa's jet propulsion laboratory in pasadena say mars is the most habitable planet in our solar system after earth silica aero gel is known for being incredibly insulatin

john cornyn, the republican from texas.residential candidates on that stage last night facing some heat today for not putting his hand over his heart during the national anthem. ari fleischer is here to respond to that next. >> i love this country as much as everybody else. i've been having the national anthem play on football games. the choir was singing and it was great. >> tech: at safelite autoglass, we really pride ourselves on making it easy for you to get your windshield fixed. with safelite, you can see exactly when we'll be there. saving you time for what you love most. >> kids: whoa! >> kids vo: ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace ♪ and my side super soft? be firm? with the sleep number 360 smart bed you can both... adjust your comfort with your sleep number setting. so, can it help us fall asleep faster? yes, by gently warming your feet. but can it help keep me asleep? absolutely, it intelligently senses your movements and automatically adjusts to keep you both effortlessly comfortable. will it help me keep up wi

the asked for a hearing on this topic and republicans were fused but texas republican senator john cornynlamed democrats for congressional inaction i can only hope that this trip. >>that our democratic colleagues took. convince them it was time to quit playing games. >>and get serious and oklahoma republican jim inhofe says congress should work to stop migrants from coming into the us in the first place we don't have the. >>the resources to take care of unlimited people in the country president trump extended an olive branch over the weekend he tweeted that he's willing to meet with democrats to discuss what they witnessed at the border. >>in washington, i'm anna warning keep. >>9.11 survivors are one step closer to securing their compensation for decades to come. the us senate passed a bill today extending their compensation claims fund. the bill cleared the house earlier this month and president trump is expected to sign it. the move will extend the fund that's compensating first responders and others who were injured. during the 2001 terrorist attacks and their aftermath rescuing peopl

i think someone like mj hagar might be a better contrast to senator cornyn.omeone who is a political outsider and a veteran. i know that she has to build a network that can raise the money necessary to compete and congressman o'rourke has that established network. he also is now may be more of a political figure and less of a onshface then when he took senator cruz. i would like to see where this race ends up a year from now. host: market is on our independent line in fort lauderdale. you for c-span. i appreciate hearing all the varying viewpoints. guest, we haven't really discussed the probability of outside election interference from foreign agents and foreign sources and such and this current administration's reaction to that. and in fact c-span is oferiencing and is a victim that right now. i don't know if you guys are aware of it or not. you just had a few calls ago from a used to be a democrat, i was a democrat all my life but now i changed to republican to vote for trump. patter downhe exactly that was republican patter and it wasn't the democratic par

they get to meet anna cornyn.tune in all day thursday, july 4th, for our live coverage, we will be right back. heather: the good, the bad and the ugly, first the good, a new menu with couples in mind going viral at a diner in arkansas adding a dish called my girlfriend is not hungry. they will add some extra french fries, wings or cheese sticks for every customer who has become a victim of date night food theft. the bad, taco bell running out of tortillas. the fast food giant confirming a shortage across the country. unclear what is causing the shortfall, the company working to replenish its supply. the ugly, american soldiers could be banned from drinking beer and eating pizza. the defense department considering enforcing the cato diet to enhance performance on the battlefield. that consists of foods that are high in fat or low in carbs. it is highly effective for military divers apparently. "fox and friends first" continues right now. have a great day, goodbye. rob: it is wednesday, july 3rd, it is heard across

another person we need to recognize is john cornyn. he really does understand these issues and is oftentimes a partner on a lot of these initiatives that we are working on. >> he is right. the people that live the furthest from the border are the ones that have the most interesting solutions to the border. you are absolutely right on that. and you will represent the longest border. he spent a lot of time at the border so when i hear members saying well i went to the border for two hours. i went down to the border and i know this and i know this and i've been down to the border my response is will i live at the border. i drink the water but i breathe the air. i have a family there so i know the border. i always get a kick out of forks folks that go in and get this little snapshot and then they go in like when they go to the border what do they do? they talk to border patrol and there's nothing wrong with that. i'm a big supporter of the border patrol folks but you also have to talk to the stakeholders. the last time when i was in the co

that were toured by the vice president and his republican colleagues, including texas senator john cornynth carolina senator lindsey graham. everybody you saw here today. >>will be released into the united states and the next 20 days. and 90% of the people never show up for the hearing the number of people coming to this sector. has doubled since last year. if we don't change our laws. >>in a double by next year. graham says that means adding more resources to keep up with the growing crisis both democrats and republicans agree more needs to be done. congress passed a billion immigration funding bill last month. but senator graham says now it's time to fix the system. graham says lawmakers will return to washington and get to work to try to pass legislation as soon as possible. >>meantime continuing our coverage during an unusual hearing in washington today, lawmakers lawmakers heard testimony from other lawmakers about their own troops to detention centers. they reported overcrowding and unsafe conditions as alexandra le mon tells us members of congress testified about what they saw for

john cornyn also up for reelection said he didn't see the rally. and ted cruz of texas, i asked him if it was appropriate and he said i'm not interested in giving color commentary. >> that's fine, but the explanation of convenient racism is a strategy? he's not actually racist, manu, but he's conveniently spouting racist rhetoric if you speak out against him? the congressman don boouyer is e perfect person of that. >> ted cruz was born in canada as well and he didn't want to engage on this topic. lindsay graham tried to make the point that -- he said to me that well, if trump were racist, he would want all people who came from somalia to go back to somalia. he's not saying that. he's only talking about a critic of his policies. that's the distinction he's making. but of course last night those chants of send her back did not have that kind of distinction. when i tried to ask him about that directly, he sidestepped that and said, look, i wouldn't be saying that. but he also didn't call it ra racist. >> manu. thank you so much. joining me now nationa

cornyn: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cornyn: mr. president, yesterday president trump announced that after nearly two and a half years of dedicated service, our former senate colleague, dan coats, will be stepping down from his post as director of national intelligence. director coats has led the intelligence community during a turbulent time for our country, and with our country continuing to face persistent threats from rogue and hostile states, as well as the ongoing war against terror, he's done a magnificent job, and one that deserves all the accolades we could possibly bestow upon him. we know he entered the job on the tail of a blatant attempt by the russian government to interfere with our nation's elections, and he made it a top priority to ensure that the american people could cast a vote with confidence in 2018 and beyond. and i just happened to come in the chamber, mr. president, when the senator from ohio was continuing to question the majority leader's commitment to election integrity, and i must say that it's ironic t

i think that the senate race is going to have an impact on what happens at the presidential john cornyns running again. democrats had hoped that beto o'rourke would jump in the senate race. >> would that have been the best candidate? >> i think they got mj hagar. i think that is a very strong candidate and i don't think that they are sad about it. you hit it in your question, though, chuck. is the democratic party prepared to invest there. not only the national democratic party but the local texas democratic party as well, which has not -- is not nearly as robust as the republican party there. >> we were down there during the midterms in october. the biggest complaint i got was beto's hoarding all the money. he didn't invest, he didn't plant some seeds that he could have planted and nobody else did because the dscc didn't believe it. >> they said, beto, good luck. so the national party did not invest. and it's obvious -- look, it's another a small thing, it's going to take a large investment. but, my god, the payoff. and here's the thing -- >> the trump campaign is worried about texas,

even in senator cornyn's comments of the three republicans you played there, he was probably the most forward-leaning in terms of supporting him. that is not iron clad support that you heard from him there. i think that he and others are certainly leaving themselves a lot of wiggle room in case they feel like this turns a corner and it gets to a point that acosta holding on to this job becomes untenable. >> very legitimate questions to begin with and heading into an election year environment. we'll see if the president speaks to this in a few moments if reporters get to ask questions in the oval office. >>> up next for us, mitch mcconnell has a democratic challenger, and she has an uphill climb. award winning interface. award winning design. award winning engine. the volvo xc90. the most awarded luxury suv of the century. the volvo xc90. prestige creams not living up to the hype? olay regenerist shatters the competition. big hype? big price? big deal! olay regenerist hydrates skin better than creams costing over $100, $200, and even $400. for skin that looks younger than it should. fa

centers to run by the vice president and his republican colleagues, including texas senator john cornyn and south carolina senator lindsey graham. everybody you saw here today. >>will be released into the united states and the next 20 days. and 90% of the people never show up for the hearing the number of people coming to this sector. that's double since last year. if we don't change our laws. >>in a double by next year. graham says that means adding more resources to keep up with the growing crisis. >>both democrats and republicans agree more needs to be done congress passed a billion immigration funding bill last month. but senator graham says now it's time to fix the system. he says lawmakers will return to washington try to get to work to pass legislation as soon as possible. >>now continuing our coverage during an unusual hearing in washington dc today, lawmakers heard testimony from other lawmakers about their own trips to detention centers. and they reported overcrowding and unsafe conditions as our washington dc correspondent alexandra le mon tells us members of congress testifi

senator john cornyn's district office in houston, texas. what you can hear people saying there is "close the camps, close the camps." it was the same slogan at the federal building in raleigh, north carolina today. >> close the camps. >> now. >> close the camps. >> now. >> close the camps. >> now. >> this was the scene in new york city today. >> close the camps. close the camps. >> again, "close the camps. close the camps." these protests around the country today, these are not something that had a ton of lead time or a ton of national press attention. these were a fairly spontaneous thing. but there were "close the camps" protests that sprung up all over the country today, red states and blue states alike. on friday last week, you might remember the head of the homeland security department in the trump administration told congress that unfortunately his department, homeland security, was dealing with a new national sensation, that's the word he used, a sensation that had been unfairly created by what he called unsubstantiated allegations.

senator cornyn said he hadn't seen it and walked into a hearing.enators rounds and moran reportedly said the same. look, the problem here is that the president is trying to have it both ways, feed the base its outrage and then try to convince the rest of you that his actions aren't outrageous. here's the proof. >> david duke endorsed me? okay. all right. i disavow. okay? >> a disavowal with a shrug. two days later to jake tapper. >> i know nothing about david duke. i know nothing about white supremacists. certainly i would disavow if i thought there was something wrong. >> the ku klux klan. >> give me a list of the groups and i'll let you know. >> okay. i'm talking about david duke and the ku klux klan here, but -- >> honestly i don't know david duke. >> no good groups among white supremacists, by the way. what's he doing, he's struggling? when you're struggling to disavow white supreme sifts, it's a problem. when you see a moral equivalency between those fighting for the confederate flag and those fighting against it, that's a problem. and of cour

>>you just heard there from senator john cornyn he says the billion immigration funding bill that congressd last month is just a band-aid he's hoping lawmakers see that the border patrol needs more money. more resources and manpower to manage the influx of migrants crossing into texas. for your money this morning on the current prices are skyrocketing prices and on the pitted fruit are more than double what they were just a year ago. analysts attribute the price spiked to the growing global demand and the natural seasonal dip in production both mexico and california prices are forecast to come down. in about a month when production in mexico ramps back up. speaking of your money, here's a quick check of the big 4 this morning. we see the dow up strongly 13430 points. the good side trading at 27,000 to 19 as we continue to climb into more record territory with investors and traders on wall street pretty optimistic that the fed will cut rates. interest rates at the end of the month. and so they're trading on that good sentiment. >>our a near-death experience for a california woman. a bullet

senator john cornyn's district office in houston, texas.people saying there is "close the camps, close the camps." it was the same slogan at the federal building in raleigh, rt

senator john cornyn's district office in houston, texas.

mexico has stepped up, and in the words of john cornyn, he said it quite well.at mexico is actually done a lot more than some of our colleagues across the aisle. in helping with this border crisis. >> harris: senator joni ernst joining us today on a recent visit to the board. thank you very much. we appreciate your time. president trump's war of words with the four congresswomen you see on your screen, as new polling suggests this maybe good for the president political. could this strategy help him carry on to reelection to the power panel, next. since you're heading off to school, i got you this brita. dad... i just got a zerowater. but we've always used brita. it's two stage-filter... doesn't compare to zerowater's 5-stage. this meter shows how much stuff, or dissolved solids, gets left behind. our tap water is 220. brita? 110... seriously? but zerowater- let me guess. zero? yup, that's how i know it is the purest-tasting water. i need to find the receipt for that. oh yeah, you do. >> harris: fox news alert now, the attorney general william barr is here in new

another call i made literally only one day later to the home state of senator cornyn and senator cruise from the mission police department was killed while trying to catch a guy who threatened his family with a gun and then fled on foot and was 44 years old and had a wife and two kids. these calls never get any easier and just under two years as director i artie had to make condolence calls like that do more than half of the states represented on this committee and i have had to speak some chiefs and stare on the sheriff's more than once per will never forget last september when i called the mississippi police force after two of their men were killed. to put that in context a tire force of 30 people but unfortunately we already had two more officers killed just this month what was as an officer from this past thursday. with only a few specific tragic incidents but i cannot express enough this is a powerful to express towns big and small over the country it can happen anywhere, anytime and the level of violence against law enforcement doesn't get a lot of national coverage and i worry of

in the most recent senate ratings, we moved senator cornyn out of our solid republican category to a likely republican category, which is a more vulnerable place. i think it could get more competitive as it goes on. >> on behalf of the center of the brookings studio. i want to welcome you. we have a full house. this is not the first event in washington on this general topic. i think it's a fair question to ask why. why are we still on the murder of one individual? that's a topic that will come up in our discussion today, of course. two points are worth pointing out. brookings has a quaint notion that facts matter. we still believe that. it's controversial, but we do. we also think norms might matter or should matter. that is more open for debate on which norms and when. in that sense, i couldn't think of a better event to shed light on some of the facts of what became a very large, very important event. jamal khashoggi was known to many people in washington and was, in this building many times -- and was in this building many times. he was known to people here and abroad. his murder,

no problem charginged him and this steele dossier predated the attorney general and when senator cornyn asked him the same exact question, the attorney general said i'm quoting no. i can't state that with confidence. that's one of the areas i'm reviewing. i'm concerned about it. i don't think it's entirely speculative. now if something is not entirely speculative then it must have some factual basis but you identify no factual basis regarding the dossier or the possibility that it was part of the russia disinformation campaign. now christopher steele's reporting is referenced in your report, steele reported to the fbi that senior russian foreign ministry figures among with -- along with other russians told him that there was -- i'm quoting from the steele dossier, extensive evidence of conspiracy between the trump campaign team and the kremlin. so here's my question. did russians really tell that to christopher steele or did he just make it all up and was he lying to the fbi? >> let me back up a second if i could and say as i have said earlier with regard to the steele -- that's beyond

cornyn: madam president. the presiding officer: senator from texas. mr. cornyn: i ask unanimous consent that the remaining votes in the series be ten minutes in length. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22, do hereby bring to a close debate on the nomination of mark t. pittman, of texas, to be united states are district judge for the district of texas. the presiding officer: is it the sense of the senate of the nomination of mark t. pittman, of texas, to be united district judge for the district

emmer: they have got john cornyn on the ballot this time which is going to help a lot of them. that is a variable that they didn't have last time. also, i think the beto effect has dissipated. the air has finally cleared. i think the emperor has no clothes, we now see the real beto, or albert or robert, whatever the name is. robert francis. that's great, and by the way, hats off to him. what a great marketing thing, but it's kind of like a pet rock. it was big big for a little while, but it just disappeared. i think that happened in texas. we are always concerned, though i don't want to sound like we are overly confident because we are not. we take nothing for granted. we have sat down every texas -- with every texas member and build up plans with them to the extent they are willing to work with us and they have been. in fact, i think for the first time ever, we have four of them in our patriot program, which has been completely revamped thanks to the executive director. i think that's his title, john billings, who has been around and john technical, our member from syracuse. k

just in the state of texas where i am now, senator cornyn is up for reelection. he said nothing.d vice president pence. but you have 2.5 million unregistered american latinos who are young, present and will be fighting for our families. that's when we need our allies at the door standing strong next to them and saying, this is the future. we are present. >> when you put all the different policies together, the census question which was revealed by a now deceased operative to say no, we want to make more rights for white and republican people. you have this attempt to -- just announcing in advance you're going to go out and deport thousands of people, which you wouldn't do that, he wants people to know they're doing it. it's saying, we want you to be afraid, you don't belong here. we're getting rid of you whether we have to take your kid, if we have to lock you in a cage, take your baby away, we'll do whatever we can to make you terrified. we don't want you here. it's about minority rule. >> minority rule all the way down to when you go back to what was the outcome of the election

. >> well, you throw your hat in the ring and you get a response from cornyn's team, releasing a statementeral for the state. it reads in part, councilwoman edwards is a true progressive with a record that would make elizabeth warren jealous. what do you say to that? >> i want to say the texan people deserve our focus and not political banter back and forth. it's been too long where we haven't been focused on delivering more access to health care or more economic opportunity for texans who are living in urban, rural and suburban markets. we have to be more focused on policy and results rather than just political banter. >> you know the 2016 race caught a lot of national attention as it was texas' closest senate race in four years. you had democrat beto o'rourke nearly losing to ted cruz. is there a look at that race as you approach your own? >> absolutely. beto did an incredible job going across texas, persuading people to come and vote in the last election cycle. we want to build upon beto's success in terms of being able to bring more people into the fold, but we also have to galvanize m

cornyn: mr. president, yesterday our friend from new york, the minority leader spoke her on the senate floor about the latest challenge to obamacare, the affordable care act which is being considered by the fifth circuit court of appeals this week. he's also -- if you request believe the press, going to have a press conference with the speaker and other notable democrats to talk about the danger of a court decision on the constitutionality of the affordable care act. as you might imagine, he painted a pretty grim picture of what would happen if the court were to strike down the affordable care act affirming the judgment of the trial court and of course he tried to place the blame squarsquarely on those of us ons side of the aisle. it's strange to me because blaming republicans in congress for a yet to be decided court case doesn't make a lot of sense, but it's pretty consistent with the message we've heard from our democratic friends. and if the minority leader is going to pick a bone with anyone

have this happen at all because it eventually comes to our shores and i've worked hard with senator cornyn to include a vaccine bank in the last farm bill. an outbreak of african swine fever in china has significantly reduced their hog production and some economists have noted that china may lose more pork than the u.s. produces. dr. johansson, do you believe that u.s. pork producers could expand their market in china if there was a negotiation with china and that would relieve from that country 62% import duty on pork products? it would help us. >> yeah, i think there's a lot of uncertainty about how bad the asf outbreak is in china right now. there's been widespread speculation that it's 20%, 30%, even greater percent of their herd is going to be affected and destroyed as a result. that will open opportunities for pork suppliers across the globe to get into that market in a larger extent. i think the u.s. hog producers will also benefit from seeing that with our without tariffs, backfill behind what other countries are sending them or we'll get in there as well. of course, with the tarif

pre-dated the attorney general and he didn't have any problem answering the question when senator cornyn asked the exact question. the attorney general said i can't state that with confidence. that's one of the areas i'm reviewing. i'm concerned about it and i don't think it's entirely speculative. it must have some factual basis but you identify no factual basis regarding the dossier or the possibility that it was part of the russia disinformation campaign. christopher steel reporting has referenced in your report, steel reported to the fbi that senior russian foreign ministry figures along with other russians told him that there was and i'm quoting, extensive evidence of conspiracy between the trump campaign team and the kremlin. here is my question. did russians really tell that to christopher steel or did he just make it up and was he lying to the fbi? >> let me back up and say as i said earlier with regard to steel that's beyond my purview. >> it's exactly your purview. only one of two things is possible. either steel made this whole thing up and they were never any russians telling

of factct this predated the attorney general he had no problem answering the question when senator cornyn asked that exact same question he said "no. i cannot say that with confidence so i am concerned and i don't think it's entirely defensible if it is speculation that there must have some factual basis be identified no factual basis regarding the dossier or the possibilityy from the russian disinformation campaign. but still reported toph the fbi's senior ministry figures along with other russians told him there was extensive evidence of conspiracy between the trump campaign'm team so here is my question did russians really tell that to christopher steele or did he make that up and lying to the fbi. >> i would back up as a said earlier with regard that is beyond my purview. >> but it's not and here is why only one of twoon things as possible. either steele made the whole thing up and there was never anything from what you did not find or russia is lying to steal if they were lying to steal to undermine our confidence than that is precisely your purview because you stated in your opening