mr. mcconnell: now, mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m. thursday, ology 23. further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed. and that following leader remarks, the senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the johnson nomination. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: if there is to further business to come before the senate, i ask it stand adjourned under the previous order. the presiding officer: will the senator suspend? mr. mcconnell: mr. president, i ask consent that the order with respect to s. 1142 be amendedders the bill as reported be considered, the committee substitute be withdrawn and the murkowski amendment be agreed -- amendment be agreed to the order in effect. the presiding officer: without

mr. mcconnell: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i thank my friend from utah, and i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar 504, s. 2511. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 504, s. 2511, a bill to require the under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere to carry out a program and so forth and for other purposes. the presiding officer: is there objection to proceeding to the measure? without objection, the senate will proceed. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the committee-reported substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill as amended be considered read a third time and passed, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent

mr. mcconnell: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the provisions of rule 22 the pending cloture motions on executive calendar 911, 783, and 720 be withdrawn and that at 3:45 p.m. today the senate vote on the following nominations in the order listed with no intervening action or debate: executive calendar 910, 911, 783, and 720. that if confirmed, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. i further ask that the pending cloture motions on executive calendar 633, 635, 636, 674, 676, 692, 693, 731, 779, 782, 838, and 839, 893 be wraub and following disposition of the patelunas nomination the senate vote on the following nominations in the order listed with no intervening action or debate. executive calendar 663, 635, 3636, 3674, 676, 692, 837. that if confirmed the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. i f

mr. mcconnell: now, mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10:00 a.m. tuesday, august 28. further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed. and that following leader remarks, the senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the johnson nomination under the previous order. i ask that the senate recess from 12:30 to 2:15 to allow for the weekly conference meetings. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: if there is no further business to come before the senate, i ask it stand adjourned under the previous order under the provisions of s. res. 619. the presiding officer: under the previous order and pursuant to s. res. 619, the senate stands adjourned until 10:00 a.m. on tuesday, august 28, 2018, and does so as a further mark o

mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: are we in a quorum call? the presiding officer: we, we are. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be suspended. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: before we wrap up i would be remiss if i let the day pass without calling our attention to two veteran staff members who have concluded their distinguished service this week. patrick renzi has served the u.s. senate for 27 years rising to chief reporter in the office of official reporters of debates. patrick is a native of silver spring maryland. his mother eileen also worked in tran crisp including here in the very same office. as my colleagues know well, no route to the senate is a straight line. after completing his studies at the university of maryland and strayer college patrick moved furniture, tried freelance court reporting, and recorded a brief forgivable stint working over in the house of representatives. but by 1991, he'd returned to where it all bega

mr. mcconnell: on saturday evening, a great loss echoed throughout our country. six decades of patriotic service came to an end. we suspected for some time that we'd bid farewell to our colleague, the senior senator from arizona, john mccain. john took full advantage of the months since his diagnosis. his hard work continued. but happy reminiscing, fond farewells, final reflections, and time with family actually came to the fore. i was privileged to spend a small share of that time with john. we sat on his back porch in sedona under the desert sky replaying old times. john did things his way these last months. for his colleagues here, the time confirmed but sad the obvious truth. the senate won't be the same without john mccain. i think >> the senate will not be the same without john mccain.o it's fair to say that it is 30 s unsurpassed that in more than 30 30 years that the senator never mars failed with his razor sharp wit a big heart and of course his fiery spirit when john saw an found issue the same way you did it was the most tall wart ally and you would th

mr. mcconnell: i moved to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 1061. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor say aye. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i moved to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 1061. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor say aye. mr. graham: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from south carolina. mr. graham: thank you. i have been thinking about this. i have been dreading this. and i am now going to do this. to all of my colleagues who have gone before me, you have done right by our friend, senator mccain. the family appreciates all the good words, the kindnesses, the anecdotes that have come their way. this is a tough time for the family. john has seven wonderful children, cindy, devoted wife, you really did well by john. but before anything else, i just want to know -- i'm going to try to make this somewhat fun, even though i don't feel in a funny mood right now. but the bottom line is, let's start off with t

mr. mcconnell: mr. president. the presiding officer: majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, we're making good progress on the rather large package of appropriations bill, including defense and labor-h. just to make sure we're in a position to wrap it up before we depart for the week, i send a cloture motion to the desk for senate amendment number 3695. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: cloture motion. we, the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate do hereby move to bring to a close debate on senate amendment number 3695 to calendar number 500, h.r. 6157, an act making appropriations for the department of defense for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2019, and for other purposes, signed by 17 senators as follows. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent

mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: nor for than a week, the senate has carefully considered a set of four appropriations bills. together they'll account for about one-eighth of the discretionary spending for the next fiscal year. they allocate funds for a variety of pressing neat needs in communities around the country, and they represent four more steps towards the goal this senate has set to fund the government through regular appropriations and steer clear of another omni-us about. -- omnibus. a lot of of attention has been paid to two huge priorities where this legislation will bring major progress. our mission to renew america's infrastructure and the ongoing fight against opioid addiction and abuse. both are urgent challenges. in one survey last year, 81% of americans said the opioid epidemic is either a major problem or a full-blown emergency. and more than half said infrastructure investment was a very important or extremely important priority. these are two priorities we share throughout this congres

mr. mcconnell: madam president? the presiding officer: majority leader. mr. mcconnell: it was quite something to listen yesterday to members' heartfelt tributes to the memory of our friend senator mccain. he meant so much to so many of us, both inside the chamber and out. as i noted yesterday, the senate is eager to work on concrete ways to continue this momentum and provide a lasting tribute to this american hero long after this week's observances are complete. following senator kennedy's death in 2009, for example, we named the kennedy caucus room to honor him and his brother's public service. some have suggested we take a similar step so that the armed services committee on which our friend played such a critical role would meet in a committee room named for senator mccain. back in 2000, the senate approved recommendations to add two additional portraits to the capitol senate reception room right off the senate floor. only seven senators in the entire history of this institution are honored with portraits there. i actually had an opportunity to serve in the

mr. mcconnell can't eat in piece.i feel like what you are doing is making the situation worse. nobody is suggesting you shouldn't be passionate about issues. nobody is suggesting there are not venues to express your penalties. what i'm suggesting and i think what i think most people would agree with, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to acost public officials in a public blaise their family and make things uncomfortable for everybody that they fear for their own safety. i think we should all agree on that at a bare minimum. >> it's clear that senior mcconnell was not being accosted in public by your description. >> is it? >> did you see when he and his wife were coming out of the building and there was a time limit. >> there's been four different events. >> i think people being uncomfortable we should be comfortable with that. there is a difference between that and president trump inciting violence. >> we are deadly concerned about a press bullpen that is protected by secret service about the health and well-being

mr. mcconnell, has not moved on that because the white house continues to say the president is not going to fire mueller. but i think this is at best a jump ball. i got no insight into what the president may do or not do, but i don't think it is coincidence that with this series of dominos starting to fall, and i think -- i believe there will be more coming from the mueller investigation as well. we've still not heard any resolution or sentencing of general flynn and whatever stories he had to tell. we've clearly got whatever mr. cohen has in terms of additional information. we still hope to bring him back before our committee. we have the cfo. i think it would be the wiser course to go ahead and -- for so many of these republican senator friends i have who said, don't worry, mark, if the stuff really hits the fan we will be there to protect mueller. well, that day of reckoning may be coming sooner than any of us would like. so let's take it off the table by passing a law protecting the integrity of this investigation. let it finish. for a president who says he has nothing to hide, i don

mr. mcconnell: the senate is back in session this august for a simple reason. we have more to do for the families across america who count on us to work hard and to fight for them. that's why the next legislation the senate will consider is a pair of critically important appropriations bills that will fund our national defense along with the departments of labor, health and human services. talk about subjects that are vital to the american people, at stake is a 2.6% pay raise for u.s. service members, the largest pay raise for troops in almost a decade. the equipment tools an training they need to complete their missions when the john s. mccain national defense act became law earlier this week. at stake are billions of dollars to fight back against the opioid crisis, hundreds of millions to support and retrain american workers who need a boost back into the labor force. hundreds of millions more for employment training, specifically for our veterans. funding for the centers for disease control and the national institutes of health, and federal funding for our n

mr. mcconnell. you mentioned that the difference between an election and campaigning and working for the president is language gathering versus hope versus the language of power. how do you distinguish between those besides just the tenets of grammar? >> really the points are summed up in the example i gave. a candidate for president says, i can do this as president, i intend to do this as president, i promise you i will do this as president. but as the speechwriter learns when you're writing for the president, you're saying, i am doing this. i am happy to tell you that i have just done this. or i am happy to tell you the secretary of state is going to the middle east tomorrow because i have sent him. you're just -- it's no longer the aspirations of a presidential candidate, it is now the actions of a president. >> first of all, these are very busy times. thank you both for taking the time to talk to us. since you both have written for various people, and we talked about tone. did you find it diffic

mr. mcconnell. you mentioned the difference between an election -- campaigning and working for somebody that is president is the language of gathering hope versus the language of power. how would you distinguish those besides just grammar? john: the point is summed up in the example is the candidate saying i intend to do this as president, i promise i will do this as president. then, as the speech writer learns when you are writing for the president, you say i am doing this, i am happy to tell you i have just done this, or i am happy to tell you that the secretary of state is going to the middle east tomorrow because i have sent him. it is no longer the aspirations of a presidential candidate, it is now the actions of a president. >> first of all, these are very busy times, so thank you both for taking the time to talk to us. since you both have written for various people, since we talk about tone, did you find it difficult -- i mean, i guess hillary and bill had a similar tone to how they speak. da

mr. mcconnell: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: this week i've been highlighting some examples of the strength of the u.s. economy. people of west virginia where president trump visited yesterday evening are no exception to this national trend. during the obama years west virginia's economy was hit hard, manufacturing employment shrunk by 13 are%, -- 13%, but today things are different. the state's unemployment rate has been lowered during each of the last 19 months under this united republican government than it was during any of the months of the obama administration. coal jobs are surging back. according to one industry estimate, in 2013, west virginia saw faster growth in construction jobs than any other state. as senator capito explained in a recent op-ed, this shows that republican policies are helping the entire state write a new chapter. senator capito said that in wheeling, west virginia, a company is creating a new line of products thanks to the new flexibility brought about by tax reform. in wellsburg, they are

mr. mcconnell said he would appoint a bipartisan group of senators to hash out ways to honor senator mccainould be erased. that is in "the new york times." the open phones starting is off in california, democrat line. reggie, go ahead. caller: yes. i've been a union painter for 20 years in california. are in thespanic men union, they do not employ the black painters in the union. they send you away and there is no recourse had it with the union. i would like to know what could be done about that? host: what would you like to see done? what i would like to see done is across the board where everybody is employed equally. they would at least give you the opportunity to paint to see if you are excellent or not. they do not even give you the opportunity to do that or not. it falls on deaf ears when you go to the union and complain about it. host: richard, west virginia on the republican line. last caller was talking about immigration, i think you did a reasonably good job of staying neutral. [indiscernible] it was interesting to me that the last thing he says he remembered[indiscernible] it was

we expect to hear forever senate majority leader mitch mcconnell. >> mr. vice president, mr. speaker, colleagues, distinguished guests, and the mccain family, it's an honor to welcome you this morning. we gather to recognize a great loss and celebrate a great life. we celebrate six decades of devotion to the american idea and the cause of human freedom. generations of americans will continue to marvel at the man who lies before us. the cocky, handsome, naval avate tore who barely scraped through school and then fought for freedom in the skies. who witnessed to our highest values even through terrible torture. and who became a generational leader in the united states senate where our nation airs its great debates. now, airing our great debates is a gentle way to describe how john approached the work of a senator. i've long joked his guards at the hanoi hilton probably needed group therapy after john was finished with them. let's just say there were times when some of his senate colleagues were tempted to form a support group of our own. he treated every issue with the intensit

mr. mcconnell's office, but he won't let his people answer the phone so i have to get a message to him throughy senator. engaged. all i can do is educate myself and not allow myself to believe what i know are lies. this man lies the way he breathes, believe me, he does. for those who want to just to keep both -- want to just keep believing it at the expense of putting this country first, i am appalled. i have never seen anything like this, and i lived through watergate. i am appalled at the past people people want -- pass to keep giving this man. i would hate to say it is racial. if it is not, then what is it? what is it about brown people, people of color that so in s peopleeople -- enflame that they issue hate to each and every person they see that is not white? host: that is janice in maryland. indiana, independent. good morning. caller: i am a redneck all the have nearly the youlligence as the woman just had. i will tell you what, anybody crazierhers trump is than anyone i have ever seen. i am 79 years old and not very showt, but i watch your for about two weeks now. it's the first time i

mr. manafort. i believe still, chairman grassley, leader mcconnell should consider him a given the president's legal trouble, given the fact that the majority of the senate has not had a chance to review or even access judge kavanaugh's full records and what he may feel about executive power, i feel that we should hit the pause on the hearing. it makes logical sense. leaderhe senate minority , chuck schumer of new york, calling for the confirmation hearings to be delayed. so far, they have not been delayed, and they are slated for september 4 through 7, which is after labor day. a tweet from c-span. confirmation hearings live on c-span3, c-span radio, and online at c-span.org. you can follow along at our website for more details. is what they are planned for. so far, it does not look like republicans would delay them. will be there for gavel-to-gavel coverage of those hearings. in mountto deb pleasant, texas. independent. good morning. caller: good morning. i wanted to respond to stephen from earlier who talked about who has toured this country apart. actually, it was not this one, it was obama and

mr. president, is simple. they are unfounded and unproductive, unconscionable. >> this is the moment in mitch mcconnell's career when standing up to the unconscionable is the most important thing he can do. it is the most important moment in mitch mcconnell's career. there will not be a video library that lives in history showing what mitch mcconnell had to say at this point in the challenge that donald trump presents to the united states of america because mitch mcconnell has been so silent at every turn. in history, we will be turning to the bank tape of mitch mcconnell saying nothing about what donald trump does. mitch mcconnell was silent today. he was silent today in the face of a president publically obstructing justice. mitch mcconnell could not find one word to say about it. presidents of the united states cannot comment on ongoing prosecutions and mitch mcconnell used to know that. everyone knew that. prior to donald trump it only happened once in the modern history of the presidency, and it was a shocking mistake made by the well-trained lawyer turned president richard nixon. >> i noted for example th

the clerk: senators robert, mcconnell, boozman, hoeven, earn tion, stabenow, leahy, brown, and heitkamp. mr. reed: mr. president, i would note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: mr. kennedy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from louisiana. the senate is in a quorum call. mr. kennedy: i ask that the quorum call be suspended, mr. president. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. kennedy: mr. president, i'd like to talk for a few minutes about our farm bill. as you know, our farm bill is the primary agricultural and food policy tool for the united states. we pass it every year or rather every five years. we just passed it this year. the bill is going to conference. as you know, the senate passed its own farm bill and the house passed its farm bill, so we're going to go to conference and try to work it out. again, the bill is a five-year bill, but it spends $860 billion in taxpayer money. let me say that figure again. $860 billion in taxpayer money. we throw a billion around these days in washington like it was a ni

very fortunate and a be joined by our distinguished majority leader, senator mcconnell, and i want to recognize him to introduce mr. moore hard -- mr. morhard. >> thank you. appreciate the opportunity to be here to introduce it established public servant we are all quite familiar with. we know a lot about the gym -- brand oforhard leadership, talent, dedication, patriotic commitment to excellence, the ability to set the bar high and then raise it even higher. we will all be sorry to lose our deputy sergeant at arms, but it's actually for a good cause. jim is completely qualified and uniquely prepared to serve as second in command at an agency as crucial as nasa. let's talk about subject matter expertise. one of the many impressive stations on jim's resume is subcommittee -- the senate statemittee on commerce, funding issues. he was charged with strategically resourcing these agencies while also avoiding a culture of self justifying spending growth. jim so mastered this role he was subsequently asked to serve as committee chief of staff. mastery of the budgeting and legislative process -- you can check that off. sk

tonight, the senate majority leader mitch mcconnell is expressing confidence in sessions after senator lindsey graham warned that sessions' relationship with mrump is, quote, beyond repair. joining us now, the former defense secretary. he served many roles here in washington, including white house chief of staff, cia director among many. thanks so much for joining us. >> good to be with you. >> i want to get to all those issues but let me get your reaction, mr. secretary, the comments the president made last night beyond closed doors in a closed door meeting with evangelical meetings at the white house if the was captured on an audio recording which was then shared with cnn. he urged the minute sterss, the evangelical leaders to support republican candidates because if they lose control of the house, the republicans to the democrats, the president said this. they will overturn everything that we've done and they doll i quickly and violently. violently. there is violence. when you look at antifa. these are violent people. let me get your reaction to the president warning of violence here in the united states if the republicans lose the majorit

mr. manafort. i believe, still, chairman grassley, leader mcconnell should consider, given the president's legal troublegiven the fact the majority of the senate has not yet had a chance to review or even access judge kavanaugh's full records and what he might feel about executive power, i feel we should hit the pause on the hearing. it makes logical sense. host: that was chuck schumer from the senate floor getting your questions, your comments kavanaugh nomination. for democrats, republicans, and independents. caroline in jacksonville, florida, a democrat. go ahead. caller: hello. eating a democrat, i am getting disgusted -- being a democrat, i am getting disgusted with the way my party is splintering and all of this balking and etc.. lies to ther american people, talking about how kavanaugh is going to be a juror, he said that the other day, for the president, which is an out and out lie, not true. anything they can do except to work for the american people the way they should be is disgusting and they are just making me feel worse about the party every day. what do they stand for? what does our party

mcconnell hasn't spoken on the issue. house speaker paul ryan's office spoke only in a statement. we ar wear of mr. guilty plea to these serious charges, we will need more information at this point. >> what more information. i am joined by democratic senator. what is your party, is it rig -- under oath and said he directed me to break the campaign laws and secretly spend 130,150,000 -- 130,000 -- and 150,000 to shut up his girlfriend. if this was braobama, it would unseemingly. >> you would have heard a little bit different message from republicans that you played. but those senators who aren't retying did indicate it was a very serious issue. and i get back it the comment that you made in the previous segment with barbara. is this a buckley b vallejo issue? the president using his own money is markedly different than some of the other things that mule s mueller is investigating. >> i mean, cohen is going down with the ship. he said i did what the president wanted me ton do. i did the payments. and he told me to do it. >> totally agree with you. but i think what to lanny davis's point is the real i

mcconnell has continued. brian: is there any way to describe what impact this would have on the house? mr. smock: the house and senate are vastly different bodies and i think we often overlook that. people think there is a congress, and they know there's two bodies, but the house has always worked by the numbers. the majority party rules the house and always has. there's been various ways the minority has tried to find ways to get around that, but the senate has to run by consensus. it's 100 members. they ought to be able to figure out how to make something happen, where is the house, while it works by the numbers, it does not always mean that the majority wins. but in recent times, under the so-called has to rule -- hastert rule, which is not brand-new, but it has been used more extensively than it ever has in recent congress history, were the only way you bring a bill to the floor is to have a majority of the majority party ready to vote for it. so you completely ignore the minority. the minority has no role in any kind of debate, no opportunity to amend the bill. if a bill comes to the

mr. dean. good to have you on. let's talk about the attorney general jeff sessions. we're hearing mixed messaging from senate lindsey graham and mcconnell on whether sessions should stay or go. let's watch this. >> the president's lost confidence in jeff sessions and i'm telling you what everybody in the country knows. this is a dysfunctional relationship. we need a better one. >> i have total confidence in the attorney general. i think he ought to stay exactly where he is. >> the president is likely hearing these mixed messages. what will the president do and when might he do it. >> well, that's anybody's best bet. he'll probably wait till after the election just not to stir up more problems. that would be the intelligent thing to do. although that snlts necessarily his guiding light. i think that we -- the members of the senate on this issue have been all over the lot. sometimes they're with their former colleague. sometimes they're not so much with him. he's -- sessions is also doing his life's dream down there implementing all the radical policies at the justice department he's dreamed of implementing. he's just quietly doing its. a

mr. cohen's credibility is going to be challenged. i don't think the full story has been written yet. >> the top gop leadership, silent so far. mitch mcconnelleclined to respond to questions. house speaker paul ryan said he needs more information. among democrats, across the board outrage but mixed opinion over how to channel that outrage. some saying everything should be on the table, including impeachment, even indictment. others, let's be a little more cautious. >> protect robert mueller. let him finish his vfigation. and when we've got that, then we can make a decision on what the appropriate next step is. >> i don't think we should be talking about impeachment. >> we should be withholding this decision on the supreme court nominee until the air is cleared. >> we should talk about all the remedies. every single remedy including indictment of the president should be on the table. the president can be indicted. >> let's get straight to cnn's phil mattingly who has been racing around capitol hill. interesting day out there. what's the most surprising thing, if anything, that you're hearing? >> the most surprising thing is nothing is really

approach the casket together and he wanted chuck schumer and mitch mcconnell to approach the casket together. it is not about hearing from mrve a problem unless you start with bipartisanship. tomorrow at the cathedral we'll hear from the two men who defeated john mccain for president. george w. bush and barack obama. the message he is trying to send we're americans first and that's the single message he wants everyone to take away at the end of this week. >> you heard in a lot of references in this service to mccain's intensity. whatever he was saying whether he was making a joke or yelling at you or whatever, there was this intensity. i think he hasn't spoken enough. he was incredibly ambitious. we talked about his time in the senate and house. he really wanted to be president. in 2007 i remember his campaign. he wanted the run a big, rich, corporate kind of campaign that george w. bush had used to defeat him eight years earlier but it went bad. his campaign went broke, almost imploded. so we were out in person iowa staying in a really budget hotel, smell of manure was rather strong everywhere. the bus breaks down. the str

secretary of state and does so, so publicly even mitch mcconnell and all justified frustration i'm not saying they say well you're not going to be loyal to me mr. president, when i get the opportunity, i'm going to return the favor. >> well i think it would impact even just the hiring process in the sense that you might have some really talented smart individuals that would be hesitant to potentially go into this administration looking at those examples that to bill's point because i criticized some of people he surrounded himself with, he also surrounded himself with a lot of great people. neil: absolutely. >> but i think this is an exercise in evidence that it is important who you surround yourself with. neil: but a lot of those people, talking about the president here are you really going to be surprised if and when given the opportunity they don't return the favor? >> well i think this situation is a little different from a pr perspective it is advantageous for the white house to go out and look at the way she mistreated the white house even with her wedding photos and things of that nature so it is add vantage us i think, for the white ho

. >>> leader mcconnell, speaker ryan, leader schumer, leader congress, members of the cabinet, members of our arm forces and honored guestso the family, to cindy, his children, and mrss deeply humbling to stand before you today at the united states capitol to commemorate the life and service of an american patriot, senator john mccain. the president asked me to be here on behalf of a grateful nation to pay a debt of honor and respect to a man who served our country throughout his life in uniform and in public office. and it's my great honor to be here. in the long history of our nation, only 30 americans have laid in state here in the united states capitol rotunda. today, as a reflection of the esteem in which his colleagues and our country hold him, senator john mccain joins those ranks. the son and the grandson of four star admirals, john came from a family that prized military service. he entered the united states naval academy when he was just 17-years-old. his service as a naval aviator took him around the world and eventually to the war in vietnam. it was there on his 23rd bombing run that john was shot down and captured, refusing early release for the sake of

leader mcconnell, speaker ryan, leader schumer, leader si congress, members of the cabinet, members of our armed forces and honored guests and, oall, to the mccain family, to cindy, his children and mrsbling to stand before you today at the united states capitol to commemorate the life and service of an american patriot, senator john mccain. the president asked me to be here on behalf of a grateful nation to pay a debt of honor and respect to a man who served our country throughout his uniform and in public office. it's my great honor to be here. in the long history of our nation only 30 americans have laid in state here in the united states capitol rotunda. today as a reflection of the esteem in which his colleagues and our country hold him, senator john mccain joins those ranks. the son and the grandson of four-star admirals, john came from a family that prized military service. he entered the united states naval academy when he was just 17 years old. his service as a naval aviator took him around the world and eventually to vietnam. it was there on his 23rd bombing run that john was captured. refusing early release, he endured five and a half years of confinement and torture. then

mr. avenatti but other people have said the same thing, i need to go hard and fast on donald trump and his allied supporters, paul ryan and mitch mcconnellday until election day and all the way until 2020. >> congressman, just to put a finer point on phil's excellent question, do you think democrats should take michael avenatti seriously as a potential presidential candidate? >> you know. i don't know much about mr. avenatti except for what i've seen here and there on tv. i think one lesson i've learned so far in my short years in the democratic party but very much involved in the activist movement is not to try to dictate who is a clarified leader versus not. at the end of the day i'll listen to anybody and if he ends up being a credible nominee then maybe but i think it's too early to speculate on 2020 to be honest. >> congressman ruben gallego, thank you very much for being on tonight. appreciate it. >>> i have to -- just ahead, the president fumes at his attorney general while his personal lawyers take over sean hannity's radio show. ♪ -morning. -morning. -what do we got? -keep an eye on that branch. might get windy. have a good shif

mr. mcconnell: now, mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 3:00 p.m. monday, ology 20. further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, and the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed. and that following leader remarks, the senate resume consideration of h.r. 6157. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: so if there is no further business to come before the senate, i ask it stand adjourned under the previous order, under the provisions of s. res. 609. the presiding officer: under the previous order, and pursuant

mr. mcconnell: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today it adjourn until 10:00 a.m., wednesday, august 22. further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day and morning business be closed and that following leader remarks, the senate resume consideration of h.r. 6157. further, that the senate recess from 3:30 to 4:30. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: if there is no further business to come before the senate, i ask it stand adjourned under the previous order. the presiding officer: the senate stands adjourned until senate stands adjourned until funding defense, labor, hhs and the education department. more debate and tomorrow for the rest of the week. we will continue with our live coverage on c-span2. >> supreme court nominee bret cap next is on capitol hill today meeting with maine re

mr. mcconnell: i moved to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 1061. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor say aye. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i moved to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 1061. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion.

mr. mcconnell: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: last week the senate turned to a critically important pair of appropriation bills, those which encompassed the departments of defense, labor, health and human services, and education, and we proceeded to this legislation by unanimous consent. that might seem a like small detail in the scheme of things, but it underscores a fact that should be a real source of pride for this senate. bill by bill, we are rebuilding a regular process for responsibly appropriating taxpayers' money. we are achieving what we set out to do, we are doing it together, because of our chairman and subcommittee chairs and ranking members, all 12 appropriation bills for this fiscal year were reported out prior to the july 4 recess. the process was to bipartisan, that latively -- cumulatively the committee bills were 363-9. here on the floor we already approved with bipartisan support measures to fund energy and water development, military construction, veterans' affairs, transportation, housing and urban

mr. mcconnell, for mr. shelby, proposes an amendment numbered 3699 to amendment numbered 3695. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent the reading of the amendment be waived. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. shelby: are we in a quorum call? mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from alabama. mr. shelby: mr. president, today -- there's no quorum call, is there? the presiding officer: no. mr. shelby: today the senate begins debate on an appropriations package that i believe is absolutely essential to the strength and security of this nation. the package before the senate marries the two largest fiscal year 2019 appropriations bills, that is the defense bill that funds all the national security and the labor h.h.s. education bill. each of these bills, mr. president, carries the near unanimous support of the appropriations committee, which is quite unusual. the chairman of the labor h.h.s. subcommittee, senator blunt, and his ranking member, senator murray, worked together to produce a strong bipartisan bill that balances many competing priorities. i commend both of these

mr. mcconnell: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: as the senate reconvenes to cross more items off our to-do list, we should take pride in all we have already accomplished this summer. this month alone we have already advanced the senate's farm bill to conference and named conferees to finalize this important legislation. we have also passed another set of appropriation measures. the senate has now approved seven of the 12 measures for next year, and we have finalized the john s. mccain national defense authorization act for fiscal year 2019 which president trump signed into law on monday of this week. but the reason we are convening today is that important work remains for the weeks ahead. that includes more progress on appropriations and it includes confirming more of the president's nominees. last week, chairman grassley announced that judiciary committee hearings for judge brett kavanaugh whom the president has nominated to serve op the supreme court will begin september 4. judge kavanaugh's testimony will only add to t

mr. mcconnell: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: could we have order in the senate. the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule 22, that following disposition of h.r. 6147, the senate proceed to the consideration of the conference report to accompany h.r. 5515. cloture motion on the conference report be withdrawn and there be up to one hour of debate on the conference report with 30 minutes under the control of senator rubio and 30 minutes under control of the managers and that following the use or yielding back of that time, the senate vote on the adoption of the conference report without intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. mcconnell: now, madam president, very briefly on another point, i want to take a moment as we wrap up this appropriations package to recognize a distinguished tenure and leadership of our chairman richard shelby. earlier this year, senator shelby cast vote number 10,000 r