mr. leahy: mr. president before i begin my comments on the u.s.a. freedom act i'm going to speak for a moment on a personal matter. marcel and i have known beau biden since he was a child. i'm the longest-serving member of this senate. when i came here, there was one senator who was one term senior to me. that was joe biden. i knew the tragedy his family had gone through and i cherished time with his office near mine, when his sons beau and hunter would be there with him. i watched them grow up. i saw beau biden become the epitome of what a what a state's attorney general should be. that's a model that all attorneys general throughout the country could have followed. progressive, worried about improving the law improving people's lives; he did that. i know how much we appreciate when we see he and hallie at an event. when we get a chance, marcel and i can talk with them. it is like picking up a conversation that ended just if a few minutes before. i remember one thing especially about him. i was in iraq during the war. it was a day when it was well

mr. leahy: mr. president i ask consent the call of the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president i have pushed for a vote for several weeks, and now i know we're finally going to confirm sally yates to be our next deputy attorney general of the united states. i think it means we'll have a fine commendation -- i'm sorry. the presiding officer: will the senator suspend for one moment? mr. leahy: of course. the presiding officer: under the previous order the senate will proceed to execute -- or to executive session to consider the following nomination which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination department of justice sally yates of georgia to be deputy attorney general. the presiding officer: there will now be up to one hour of debate equally divided in the usual form. the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: thank you. mr. president, i am delighted that we do have the confirmation of sally yates before the body. i think she will be easily confirmed.

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president the distinguished senator from utah has laid out very well the reasons for the changes proposed in the house and proposed by his and my bill. he also said something that we should all think about just a couple minutes ago. he said, what about assuming everybody is following the rules today, are they going to follow them tomorrow or next year or the year after? and when he mentioned that and also mentioned my years as a prosecutor let me tell you a short story on this. i became one of the officers of the national district attorneys association and eventually vice president. a number of us, four or five of us had occasion to meet with then-director of the f.b.i., j. edgar hoover. i've thought back to many 10 of the frightening things he said about investigating people because of their political beliefs communists are all hippies driving volkswagens -- that's one of the things he said. secondly "the

mr. leahy: mr. president i just want to praise the senior senator from illinois. he has been consistent on this issue since i came here. he was one of the architects of a major over all over haul of our immigration legislation a year and a half ago which passed by a two-thirds majority of this body republicans and democrats alike. we've gone such a long way towards solving this problem. the republican leadership in the house, even though the votes were there to pass it in the house, refused to bring it up. i'm proud to align myself as a follower of the leadership of the senator from illinois, senator durbin, on this issue. i wonder if the way ply we apply the laws today if my grandparents would have been able to come to vermont from italy and see their grandson become a u.s. senator. or see the highly decorated son serve in world war ii. i wonder if my wife's parents would have been able to come from canada, so she could be born in vermont. you know, come on ... we're a nation of immigrants. let's welcome -- they can often make our country much stronger than it wa

mr. leahy: mr. president, i will be very brief. i've had the privilege of serving longer in this body than any other member of the senate currently. i can count on my one hand -- or probably a few fingers some of the great speeches i've heard by both republicans and democrats in this body. one great speech i'll never forget was that of the senator from rhode island. he speaks to something that every single vermonter would agree with, and this veteran of the senate thanks him from his heart. mr. schumer: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from new york. mr. schumer: well, my deer friend colleague deserves a real moment of recognition today. we're all passionate about issues here in the senate, but very few of us take to the floor each week to stoke the fire on a single issue and to inspire others. -- others to action. that's what senator whitehouse hag done in defining one of the issues of our time, one of the defining issues of our time: climate change. today is the 100th speech he's made on the floor of the u.s. sen

mr. leahy: can we have order mr. president. the presiding officer: the chamber will be in order. the senator from kentucky. mr. paul: do you need to report the bill or are we good? can you tell me when i have five minutes left, please. the presiding officer: the senate will so notify you. mr. paul: tonight begins the process of ending bulk collection. the bill will ultimately pass but we always look for silver linings. i think the bill may be replacing one form of bulk collection with another but the government after this bill passes will no longer collect your phone records. my concern is that the phone companies still may do the same thing. currently, my understanding is the n.s.a. is at the phone company sucking up the phone records and sending them to utah. my concern is -- the presiding officer: order. order in the senate, please. the senator deserves to be heard. mr. paul: my concern is under the new program, that the records will still be sucked up into n.s.a. computers but the computers will be at the phone company, not in utah. so the question is, will it be a distinctio

mr. chairman. chairman graham, ranking member leahy leahy, thank you for the leadership. this committee, this chamber, this congress, and two administrations reached across party lines to reach those in need. your compassion and insight reflect the best of the american people. you've changed the landscape from working to end death to we're being on brink of ending three plagues two around since recorded medical history in modern black death on the path to extinction. while building resilient economies, thank you, also, for including me in the panel. it's humbling to be here with a world famous preacher, performer, and expert scientist. all friends for years and i'll do my best to make three points. strengthen partnership, shared responsibility, and drive innovation innovation. advances in science, which i know you heard about before, and also the experience of the invest ment investment made over the last 15 years, on the brink of ending tuberculosis, around since recorded medical history, and hiv/aids in the path to be not the epidemics anymore. to end them as public hea

chairman, mr. leahy, and members of the subcommittee thank you for giving me the opportunity to testify before you. it's a task to sit at the table with amazing people people who are in the trench every day, who do amazing work every day. i'm humbled. at 2003 at the invitation of senator ted kennedy, i had the honor of speaking before the senate health committee in my capacity as the elton john aids foundation. i created the foundation in 1992 to address the dire need to provide basic services and support to those dying from aids. over the past 23 years, we have raised over $321 million to fund organizations that provide direct treatment and prevention efforts in dozens of countries around the globe. the first time i testified before congress 12 years ago, almost no one had access to anti-retro viral medicine in subsa hare an africa, where the epidemic was most acute. people being infected and dying by the millions, even though we very literally have the drugs, could save their life in our hands. childre

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president the distinguished senator from utah has laid out very well the reasons for the changes proposed he house laid out very well the reasons for the changes proposed in the house and proposed by his in my bill. he also said something that we should all think about a couple of minutes ago. he said, what about assuming everyone is following the rules today tomorrow next year, the year after. he mentioned that and my years as a prosecutor. let me tell you a short story. i became one of the officers of the national district attorney association and eventually vice president. a number of us had occasion to meet with them director of the fbi j edgar hoover. i thought back to some of the frightening thing she said about investigating people because of their political beliefs, communists were all hippies driving volkswagens was one of the things he said. secondly, the new york times was getting to left in some of their editorials and had come very close to being a communist paper. he was

mr. leahy: mr. president i've been having a lot of people ask me where we are on the u.s.a. freedom act and we actually have a very interesting easy choice. you can either pass the bipartisan bill that the house of representatives passed with a majority of republicans a majority of democrats voting for it or we can let the whole patriot act expire at the end of this month. some may prefer that. i think there's a number of improvements that the house made which would protect our freedoms and protect our security, and that's what we ought to have. people have talked about short-term steptions. -- short-term extensions. well, you could have a two-day extension or a 5,000-year extension. you'd be extending something that doesn't exist. the fact of the matter is, the house gave us their bill in plenty of time to act upon it, to amend it if we wanted to, send it back, do a conference. but now they've gone on recess. if we don't vote for their bill, we can -- we'll end up at the end of the month with nothing. there will be nothing to extend. we can feel good about passing an extens

leahy? >> thank you, mr. chairman. didn't think it was long-winded at all, it's a subject that should be heard over and over and over again. one thing, ambassador birx, dr. dybul, the question asked on dollars, please give us -- be very honest and very direct in what some of the sequestration things would count. tim in my office who worked on this, janis, alex, far more knowledgeable in the nitty-gritty than i am. the numbers i'm seeing are devastating, devastating. and they're not anywhere near the numbers that senator graham and i and the bipartisan way have supported in the past. don't sugarcoat it. make it very clear. and sir el tonight you talked about how much less expensive it is for prevention than care after the fact. i'm aware of that. i know pastor warren and i have talked about this before. you were mentioning quilt, when you were speaking last night. i think my dear friend i grew up with from vermont, when he was diagnosed and he was a public figure in vermont, rest his soul, he -- when he was first diagno

mr. leahy: madam president. the presiding officer: objection is heard. the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: madam president i also no matter how we vote on trade, i understand the importance of it, but i want to compliment the senator from utah for his statements. the fact is a great deal of work has gone into this. we have a bill -- the senator from utah's bill and my bill is the same as the one in the house. i would hope people would not lose sight of the fact that the house represented really what the american public wants. by an overwhelming, overwhelming bipartisan majority, they passed it. some have been saying that they -- the other body could not have gotten that kind of a vote to say the sun rises in the east but here they came together. and it's across the political spectrum in both parties. i think we ought to respect that. we also, as the senator from utah has said, we have a unanimous decision from the third circuit which puts into question the constitutionality of the current prog

leahy? >> thank you, mr. chairman. i didn't think it was long-winded at all, it's a subject that should be heard over and over and over again. one thing ambassador birx dr. dybul, the question asked on dollars, please give us -- be very honest and very direct in what some of the sequestration things would count. tim in my office who worked on this, janis, alex, far more knowledgeable in the nitty-gritty than i am. the numbers i'm seeing are devastating, devastating. and they're not anywhere near the numbers that senator graham and i and the bipartisan way have supported in the past. don't sugarcoat it. make it very clear. and sir el tonight you talked about how much less expensive it is for prevention than care after the fact. i'm aware of that. i know pastor warren and i have talked about this before. you were mentioning quilt, when you were speaking last night. i think my dear friend i grew up with from vermont when he was diagnosed, and he was a public figure in vermont rest his soul, he -- when he was first diagnos

mr. chairman. chairman graham, ranking member leahy leahy, thank you for the leadership. this committee, this chamber, this congress, and two administrations reached across party lines to reach those in need. your compassion and insight reflect the best of the american people. you've changed the landscape from working to end death to we're being on brink of ending three plagues two around since recorded medical history in modern black death on the path to extinction. while building resilient economies, thank you, also, for including me in the panel. it's humbling to be here with a world famous preacher, performer, and expert scientist. all friends for years and i'll do my best to make three points. strengthen partnership, shared responsibility, and drive innovation innovation. advances in science, which i know you heard about before, and also the experience of the invest ment investment made over the last 15 years, on the brink of ending tuberculosis, around since recorded medical history, and hiv/aids in the path to be not the epidemics anymore. to end them as public hea

senator leahy. >> thank you mr. chairman. i, i didn't think it was long-winded at all. something that should be heard over and over and over again. there is one thing ambassador birx and dr. dybul question has been asked on dollars be honest and direct what the see questions operation. -sequestration. janet and alex, far more knowledgeable on the nitty-gritty than i am. the numbers i'm seeing, are devastating. they're devastating. and, they're not, anywhere near the numbers that senator graham and i in bipartisan way have supported in the past. so don't sugarcoat it. make it very clear. and, sir elton you talked about how much less expensive it is for prevention than care after the fact. and 'm aware ofokym that. iw3 know pastor warren and i have talked about this before. and you were mentioning about holding the quilt. when you were speaking last night. and, i think my dear friend, i grew up with from vermont, and when he was diagnosed and he was actually a public figure in vermont, rest his soul, he when he was first diagnosed i remember okays stray sized. my wife and

mr. chairman, before we turn to senator klobuchar, can i ask unanimous consent that the statement of our ranking member, senator leahy, be added to the record of this proceeding. >> without objection. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman and senator whitehouse. thank you all for being here. this is an issue very near and dear to my heart. i used to be a prosecutor and minnesota was one of the first states in the country that videotaped interrogations, both in squad cars, and custody, anything that was in custody. and when i was -- it came about because of defense efforts actually to prevent -- to prevent any kinds of questions about bad activities, but also to protect civil rights. but i made the argument, and our police pretty much agreed, that it also protected them, it made for a better process. it allowed people to see videotape of someone when they were being questioned so the jurors could judge for themselves what they thought. we had a few cases where we had people that would say things that were somewhat incriminating on the videotape. the jurors were able to see. and mostly, it made sure miranda rights were

mr. chairman, before we turn to senator klobuchar, can i ask unanimous consent that the statement of our ranking member, senator leahy, be added to the record of this proceeding. >> without objection. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman and senator whitehouse. thank you all for being here. this is an issue very near and dear to my heart. i used to be a prosecutor and minnesota was one of the first states in the country that videotaped interrogations, both in squad cars, and custody, anything that was in custody. and when i was -- it came about because of defense efforts actually to prevent -- to prevent any kinds of questions about bad activities, but also to protect civil rights. but i made the argument, and our police pretty much agreed, that it also protected them, it made for a better process. it allowed people to see videotape of someone when they were being questioned so the jurors could judge for themselves what they thought. we had a few cases where we had people that would say things that were somewhat incriminating on the videotape. the jurors were able to see. and mostly, it made sure miranda rights were

mr. chairman, before we turn to senator klobuchar can i ask unanimous consent that the statement of our remarking member, senator leahy be added to the record of this proceeding. >> without objection. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman and senator whitehouse. this is an issue very near and dear to my heart. i used to be a prosecutor and minnesota was one of the first states in the country that videotaped interrogations, both in squad cars, and custody, anything that was in custody. and when i was -- it came about because of defense efforts actually to prevent -- to prevent any kinds of questions about bad activities but also to protect civil rights. but i made the argument and our police pretty much agreed that it also protected them, it made for a better process. it allowed people to see videotape of someone when they were being questioned so the jurors could judge for themselves what they thought. we had a few cases where we had people that would say things that were somewhat incriminating on the videotape. the jurors were able to see. and mostly it made sure miranda rights were read and that the process was fair.

leahy. >> thank you mr.chairman, and madam attorney general nice to see you again. >> thank you. >> thank you for being here. i agree with what senator mccosky said about your presence in baltimore. it's not only important for the community, which you understand probably far better than i but it's important to the country and i understand that as you did in your hearing before the judiciary committee you were asked a number of questions on immigration, executive action, something that, since i've been here every president has done executive actions on immigration. i think probably the most extensive were by president reagan. but i also point out if an executive action is usually done when congress doesn't act. now, we spent hundreds of hours putting together an immigration bill in the u.s. senate, passed a couple years ago. two-thirds of the senates voted for it, republicans and democrats, huge bipartisan effort. the republican leadership in the house, even though it by all analyses would have passed the hou

mr. vice president, thank you for your comments today. but also for your steadfast support and your wise council through this process. it's been a process. i have to thank senator schumer and senator leahy. thank you so much for being here. thank you for your support not just today but over the years and doing what i thought was impossible, making the senate a welcoming place for me and my family. thank you so much. and of course thanks to my wonderful family. we are quite the force multiplier. many of you have come to know my father to this process. he has been in every hearing and every vote. it did not just start now. i remember looking up and seeing him in the gallery at my first trial. he was there for everyone. he has encouraged me in all things, even when my choices were not ones he would have made for me. he has been the best of fathers and i thank him. [applause] i hope you know that without him, i would not be standing here before you today having just been sworn in as the 83rd attorney general of the united states of america, just one week after his 83rd birthday. [applause] my mother could not be here today, but she is never far from my thoughts here it she grew up in a worl

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. almost leahy: i ask consent that the call of the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president i'm shortly going to make a unanimous consent request and i've notified the republican leader of this, and before i do i'd like to make a statement about what i'm talking about. i'm talking about the bulletproof vest partnership grant program reauthorization act of 2015. that's a large amount of words but it's basically talking about the bulletproof vest bill that republican senator ben nighthorse campbell and i first put together 17 years ago. it's a lifesaving grant program. senator campbell and i both had the privilege of serving various forms of law enforcement we knew how things had changed we knew the number of police officers, men and women who were dying being shot to death who would have lived had they had bulletproof vests. we also knew a lot of small -- especially small