the e.p.w. committee, senator inhofe, and the ranking member, senator boxer, for their leadership on this. you know, sometimes it's important just to look at what these bills are doing. the water resources development act, wrda, we call it here, and the title talks about to provide for the conservation and development of water and related resources, to authorize the secretary of the army to construct various projects for improvements to rivers and harbors of the united states. now, mr. president, one of the things i've come to the floor of the senate to speak on for a number of times is one of the most important things i think we can be doing in the senate, and that's focusing on our economy. and with all due respect to the minority leader, with regard to our economy in the united states, things are not going well. just over the past two quarters we again had numbers that were dismal by any historical measure in the united states. last quarter i think it was 1.5% g.d.p. growth. a quarter before that .8% g.d.p. growth. as a matter of fact, president obama is going to be the first president i

bring the senate bill to the floor. if, in fact, as the majority leader just said, we ought to have debate, consider it, if it goes down, fine. if it passes, that's the will. if that is a good premise in the senate, it's even a better premise in the house of representatives. and so, mr. speaker, i ask my friend, the majority leader to bring that bill to the floor. let's vote on it. that's what he said his premise was and what we were committed to, and i agree with him. i don't like the filibuster or the 60-vote rule in the senate. the 60-vote rule undermines democracy. if a bill has 50% and the committee reports it out, it ought to come to the floor. i agree with the majority leader on that. -- eed and i had that discussions on that. if it's good for the senate and it's good for the house. the majority can rule in this house. and if he brings that bill to the floor, it will pass. it will pass on monday. i guarantee the gentleman. and i know we need to conclude -- so in all consideration explaining to me the schedule. bu

to the senate: under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable james lankford, a senator from the state of oklahoma, to perform the duties of the chair. signed: orrin g. hatch, president pro tempore. mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i move to proceed to h.r. 5325. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the motion. the clerk: motion to proceed to calendar number 516, h.r. 5325, an act making appropriations for the legislative branch for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2017, and for other purposes. mr. mcconnell: i send a cloture motion to the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the motion. the clerk: cloture motion. we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereboy move to bring to a close debate on the motion to proceed to calendar number -- an act making appropriations for the legislative branch for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2017, and for other purposes, signed

mcconnell: could we have order in the senate. the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. mr. mcconnell: i enter a motion to reconsider the vote. the presiding officer: the motion is entered. 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 of the standing rules of the senate do hereby move to bring to a close debate on h.r. 5325 an act making appropriations for the legislative branch for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2017 and for other purposes signed by 16 senators. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent the mandatory quorum call has been waived. is it the sense of the senate that debate h.r. 53425 an act making appropriations for the legislative branch for fiscal year ending september 30, 2017 and for other purposes shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: vote: the presiding officer: have all senators voted? does any senator wish to vote or change their vote? on this vote, the yea

yet before the just senate right -- yet, before the united states senate right now, we have nominees for these vacancies, 27 in number, that are available for our consideration. each of those names has garnered a bipartisan majority from the judiciary committee, a bipartisan majority has supported those presidential nominees. and each and every one of them deserve a vote in the full senate. the american people fully deserve a functioning and -- a functioning federal judiciary. whether that's the supreme court, our circuit courts, our the district courts. now, for my home state of wisconsin, we have a long-standing vacancy on the seventh circuit court. and this long-standing vacancy is absolutely unacceptable. this traditional wisconsin seat on the seventh circuit has been vacant for more than six years. this is the longest federal circuit court vacancy in the country. today marks the 2,435th day -- that's six years and eight months -- of this vacancy. the people of wisconsin and our neighbors in illinois and indiana deserve a fully functioning court of appeals. during this long vacanc

i yield the floor. a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from oregon wide before he leaves -- mr. wyden: before he leaves the floor, i note the very fine statement of the dean of the senate democrats, and i would just like to say that i want to subscribe to senator leahy's view and be a charter member of the caucus. i thank you, senator la leahy. madam president and colleagues, i come here to discuss s. 2979, the presidential tax transparency act. i'm very pleased that my colleague on the finance committee, such a valuable member, senator cardin, is here as well. madam president, in america, nobody forces you to run for president. you volunteer to run for president and this year we have had a bumper crop of volunteers. now, since watergate, there has been a bipartisan tradition honored by all candidates that they would release their tax returns. every democrat, every republican, every liberal, every conservative has subscribed to honoring this particular tradition. why is it so important? tax returns say so

the presiding officer: the senator from connecticut. mr. blumenthal: i ask that the quorum call be lifted. the presiding officer: without objection. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of the veto message to accompany s. 2040, which the clerk will report. the clerk: vietnam message a company s. 2040, the justice against sponsors of terrorism act. the presiding officer: under the previous order, there will now be two hours of debate equally divided between the leaders h.r. their designees. -- between the leaders or their designees. mr. blumenthal: thank you, mr. president. i am honored to open the debate today on the forts by this body and the united states congress to give loved ones of the victims of terrorism on 9/11 their day in court simpler justice. 15 years ago we stood in horror as our country suffered the worst terrorist attack on the united states in the history of our nation. nearly 3,000 innocent lives were lost, including heroic first responders, firemen, police, and beloved and honorable men and women,

the senate approved $1.1 billion. i'm somewhat excited to hear all the democrats will change their mind now and vote for the bill. i would like to remind the gentleman that in june this house took up this issue because we know what would happen in the summer. we know what's transpiring in florida because we predicted it would because it was already happening in puerto rico, but that was not the case on this floor that night. everyone on the other side said no. well, you know what, in the senate they've taken this up three times. your side of the aisle decided to leave without dealing with this issue. they could have dealt with this issue this week. this is the exact amount of money that the president or the senate voted for unanimously over there. maybe not unanimously but bipartisan. this is not one to play politics with. we did our job here. it's quite ironic on a clarification on your past one saying republicans are in the majority here. yes, that's true. and you saw that happen. the rules in the senate are much dif

: the senate will come to order. the chaplain, dr. barry black, will lead the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray. eternal god, you sustain us with your unfailing love, for your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. use our senators to accomplish your purposes in our nation and world. may they tackle the complex challenges of our times with the confidence that your providence will prevail. train them in the school of humility so they will walk safely without stumbling. may they remember that humility precedes honor. lord, bless and protect america, making it a land that provides freedom's lamp to our world. incline each citizen to hear your words of truth and to apply his or her heart to knowledge. we pray in your great name. amen. the president pro tempore: pleae join me in reciting the pledge f allegiance to our flag. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. mr. reid: snrp. t

it has already passed the senate. amanda nguyen is a rape victim and a survivor who has been the surviving force -- the driving force behind this legislation. she is founder and president of an organization that goes by the acronym "rise" -- r-i-s-e, a group that advocates on behalf of survivors of sexual violence. amanda has worked hand in hand with both political parties on this bill to establish new rights for survivors of sexual violence. this is the way it should be because, regardless of political party, all members of congress should be empowering survivors of sexual violence. however, while republicans were ready to move forward on this bill last week, democrat leadership has been stalling amanda's diligent efforts. this bill ensures that all survivors of sexual violence have equal access to all available tools in their pursuit of justice. this includes the proper collection and preservation of forensic evidence that is so vital in cases of sexual violence. this bill also guarantees these survivors a new packag

and now live to the senate floor. the president pro tempore: the senate will come to order. the chaplain, dr. barry black, will lead the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray. eternal god, every good and perfect gift comes from you alone, for with you there is no variation or shadow of turning. help us to remember that the function of prayer is not to influence you, almighty god, but to change us. we, therefore, do not pray for an easy life but for the strength to endure a difficult one. give our senators the wisdom to trust you in the small things, realizing that faithfulness with the least prepares them for fidelity with the much. may they trust you to do what is best for america in good times and in bad. may we place our hope in you and never forget how you have sustained us in the past. we pray in your sacred name. amen. the president pro tempore: pleae join me in reciting the pledge f allegiance to our flag. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and ju

the senate won't take the bill up. it is a step in the right direction to take care of our veterans, yet we won't take it up because we've got to go home. claire showed you the map. you would think congress could do their job on behalf of veterans, but they're wrong. and then we have the supreme court. you know, the constitution which people cite in this body a lot and should is very clear that the senate has a duty to advise and consent to the president's supreme court nominees. i just heard the republican leader the other day say there will be no supreme court nominee taken up this year. that's great. now the supreme court is as dysfunctional as congress. and we see it with the decisions that come out on tie votes. they won't even give judge garland a meeting much less a hearing. i think the american people deserve better. they need an opportunity to see the nominee in action. but my colleagues here set on their hands. it will be probably 15 months before the supreme court gets another nominee and maybe not then eith

i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from new mexico. mr. udall: thank you, mr. president. this week marks a sad milestone for the u.s. senate, a milestone of inaction, of obstruction and of failure. this week marks six months since president obama nominated judge merrick garland to the supreme court. president obama did his job, his constitutional duty, and judge garland should have been confirmed by now. he is eminently qualified, he's a dedicated public servant, and a respected judge. instead, judge garland hasn't even received a hearing. today marks 182 days since his nomination, and not even a hearing. in the last 40 years, the average time for a nomination to confirmation has been 67 days for a supreme court nominee. no matter which party has controlled the white house and the senate. we've always done our job, we've always given a president's nominees a hearing and a vote as the constitution requires. after my remarks, i will formally introduce a proposal to change the senate rules, to require that any judicial nominee who has been

is there anything the senate can do to fill them. mr. mcconnell: as you've heard me say repeatedly, if you ever listened, the president has gotten more judges over his eight-year tenure than president bush did over his eight-year tenure. there was a rush of confirmations right at the end of the -- of 2014 before the majority flipped. i think president obama has been treated very fairly by any objective standard over his eight-year period. >> you listen to the accomplishments of the congress - you listened -- listed the accomplishments of the senate but voters are frustrated that there hasn't been more progress on big ticket items like tax reform. do you regret not having more progress on those and looking ahead to next year, do you think there's hope for congress in those big ticket items? senator mcconnell: to tackle the really big issues confronting our future, you need a president ho is willing to engage, and accept in this particular instance the fact that his party does not control the congress. the three biggest challenges we have f

i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from maine. mr. king: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent to speak in morning business for five minutes. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. king: thank you. mr. president, last march this body passed cara, the comprehensive addiction and recovery act. unfortunately, at the same time we didn't fund it. we didn't provide any additional funds to support the treatment and recovery of people throughout the country. since we passed that bill and failed to fund it, 15,000 people have died. 78 a day, three an hour have died because we haven't acted on funding. a a group of us got together on may 2 brought forth an amendment to provide emergency funding to give some substance to this bill which had so much promise and to provide support for recovery and treatment. that amendment was defeated. passing that bill without funding is like sending the fire department to a five-alarm fire with no water. we don't have the means to do what has to be done to defeat this scourge which has taken the life of

>> senator schumer said the american people's priorities are with the democrats in taking back the senate but the only thing that's holding them back is money. mr. mcconnell: did he mention tom stire? i wonder why? i don't know either. >> one of the areas democrats point to in dysfunction is judges, you talk about merrick garland but there's a record umber of traditional -- or other vay can sis. is there anything the senate can do to fill them. mr. mcconnell: as you've heard me

the roll. quorum call: a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from south carolina. mr. graham: are we in a quorum call? the presiding officer: we are. mr. graham: i would ask unanimous consent the quorum call be termed. the presiding officer: without objection -- be terminated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. graham: would you let me know when ten minutes expires? the body is going to have a voto have a vote in a couple of hours about whether or not we should approve an arms sale to our friends in saudi arabia. i use the friend term because that's what i think they are when it comes to the efforts to win the war against terror. internal problems in saudi arabia are real. they need to modernize the way they do business. they have double-dealing in the past of helping terrorist organizations. at the end of the day, the middle east is a very complicated place. but here's what's not complicated. saudi arabia shared intelligence with us that's made americans safe. they have allowed us to use their air bases in time of conflict. they are all in against isil,

president, days before obamacare passed the senate in 2009, the senior senator from new york predicted that americans would come around soon on the unpopular bill that his party was trying to force through. the reason people are negative is not the substance of the bill, he mused, but the fears that the opponents have laid out. when those fears don't materialize and people see the good in the bill, the numbers are going to go up. today, years later, one need only read the headlines to see just how wrong that prediction was. one-third of the u.s. won't have a choice between obamacare plans in 2017. another headline. "frustration mounts over obamacare co-op failures." and another headline -- "insurers propose massive increase in individual health insurance rates." and as my constituents read just recently, "get ready to pay more for health insurance in kentucky." these headlines tell the story of a failing partisan law and its continuing assault on the middle class. when republicans warned of predictable consequences like these, democrats waved off our concerns and forced their partisan

the ranking member in the senate is the chairman of the committee of the republican from the eastern part of kentucky so you've got these vendors who want to get done before the enda of the year but if you're concerned with the group of house members these are the people you don't like making the law because people tend to want to spend more than you. it's something they will have to deal with in the next few weeks. >> host: what could keep this from happening? >> guest: in addition to the continuing resolution the speaker hasn't been able to figure out the right negotiating tactic that the group is largel. unpredictable and one of the options as they would like a vote on the commissioner. >> host: the question will be what bargaining chips there are which tells you something that is not related to how much you spend the federal government as a bargaining chip that the other thing that is going to come into play is how much there is an appetite for dealing with supplemental funding in this continuing resolution to. viewers who might not be as familiar in the process wouldun outline u

he is the sitting senator. he is painting his opponent as the former senator russ sign goal. let's go to greg in tennessee. know, thejust want to united states and america, do you believe yourself or your lying eyes or did you not see the men and women, lacks and hispanics, everyone who went to see donald trump and still goes to his rallies every day? he would be quite a president. host: the senate races -- that is what we are talking about. caller: of course he is ahead in the polls. of course they are too. nobody likes globalism and we all like our country. if you like your country then you better vote for donald trump because hillary clinton is a globalist. she hangs out with kissinger and soros. and what she has done blatantly in our face, she takes money from foreign countries to apply it to her running for president. guest: well, in so far as these theseare concerned, for folks, donald trump is not popular. the focus i think at this point is republican senators is hoping to court supporters. you mentioned previously with florida and senator rubio back in the race, who is

barry black, will lead the senate in prayer. the chaplain: let us pray. gracious father, fill our senators with your truth and peace. let your truth bring them freedom from anxiety, fear, pride, timidity, and sin. let your peace guard their hearts, reminding them of the power of your sovereignty and grace. as they have opportunity, empower them to do good for all people. thank you for bestowing such love upon us that we can be called your children. lord use us for your glory, as you keep us on the path you have selected for us. for our lives. we pray in your great name. amen. pleaseg the pledge of allegiance to the flag. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senate majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader

a lot of people think, oh, it's the senate. nobody understands these procedural filibusters and things. the men and women of the united states military know exactly what's happening. welcome down here and continue to fight for the funding and support of our troops and their families as long as the other side continues this filibuster. and senator capito, as i mentioned, asked a really important question: why? but here's another important question for my colleagues: i serve on the armed services committee. i serve on the veterans' affairs committee. i know these are great, bipartisan committees, members of both bodies, very patriotic, very supportive of the military. but why are my colleagues on the other side of the aisle following the senate minority leader? why are they following his lead in the filibuster? i really, really wish one of them -- just one -- would come down and explain to the american people why six times -- six times -- in the last year and a half the minority leader has filibustered spending for our troops and

care pass the senate, the senior senator from new york predicted americans would come around soon onhe unpopular bill the party was trying to force through. the reason people are negative is not the substance of the laid bill, but the fear that the opponents have laid out.he when those fears don't materialize and people see the good in the bills, the number is going to go up. today, years later, one need only read the headlines to see just how wrong that prediction was. one third of u.s. won't have a choice between obamacare plans in 2017. failu another headline, frustration frustration mounts over obamacare co-op failures. and another headline, insurers c propose health insurance rates. and as my constituents read just recently, get ready ready to pay more for health insurance in kentucky.ti these headlines tell a story of a failing partisan law and its continuing assault on the middle class. off when republicans learned our potential consequences like these, democrats waved off ouran concerns and forced the law through anyway with the middle class forced to bear the consequences ev

that said, the senate is another thing altogether. right now, of course, as you know, both the house and the senate are republican controlled. that's why you don't hear much in terms of policy coming out of washington, right, with capitol hill red and the white house blue and the fact that there's no purple left anymore in d.c.'s ideoloical real estate. nothing gets done. they have been really high on their chances of taking back the senate. they've been very enthusiastic about that. they really think they can take back the senate. because they do better getting voters to come out in presidential election years. but kind of an accident of the map and accident of the timing this year. basically by accident, a ton of republican senators are up for re-election. and what is particularly exciting for democrats this year is that a ton of republican senators are up for re-election specifically in states where clinton is likely to win the presidential election or where she'll have a great shot at winning. places like illinois where clinton wil

let's get this done in the senate. let's work on encouraging our colleagues in the house to do the same so we have at least some good news to tell the american people at the end of this month. number one, your government didn't shut down, and number two, number two that congress has finally provided funds not just to help states and localities deal with zika, not just to help health care facilities treat people with zika and not just to help people prevent zika, but to continue the research to develop a vaccine because once we have a vaccine, then i think this issue becomes very different. then we have an answer with permanency to it. so that's where i hope we're headed. that's why i encourage my colleagues here to continue to work on. let's get this done once and for all. it's the right thing to do for america. it's the right thing to do for our people. with that, mr. president, i thank you and i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the presiding officer: th

the odds are that the senate democrats will win on that because there are several that agree. if the administration does something with regulation or something that happens after it is one last chance for republicans to put a stan stamp. the administration. said? >> would you agree as far as what this said? stomach absolutely. and particularly because you have retiring lawmakers and the democrat from maryland in the senate over in the house. they are the chairman of the appropriations committee in the republican from eastern bordersr of kentucky. they have these priorities they want to get done before the end of the year but if you are a conservative activist or someone associated with the conservative group of house members, these are the people you don't like making the law and the fact that they are the ones who get to decide how the money is spent because they want to spend more than you do so that is the tension that we will have andha that folks like paul ryan and the speaker of the house will have to deal with in the next few weeks. there are several things that they wan

the united states senate. he couldn't foints a single amendment -- he couldn't point to a single amendment on a single bill that he had actually sponsored that had got an roll call vote in the united states senate. and that was pretty hard to explain, especially when you're in the majority. but that's what happened. so you would think our colleagues would have learned something from that. so what did they gain by edging our country toward a government shutdown this friday? i don't sa-- i don't see how ths anyone. that's why we're here trying to hammer out a stopgap spending bill. this only gets us to december 9. again, the reason we find ourselves having to do this is because they have simply shut down the senate appropriations process, forcing us into a position that no one who actually has any interest in performing the duties of their job actually likes. this is not the way the senate is posed to work, but this is the hand we've been dealt -- is supposed to work, but this is the hand we've been dealt because

pelosi: the senate is not in order. mr. reid: i would yield to the senior senator from michigan. the presiding officer: the senator from michigan. ms. stabenow: mr. president, i want to thank the majority leader for his comments and conversations we've had publicly and privately and our senate democratic leader as well for being such a stalwart in all of our -- and all of our colleagues. we in the senate have done the right thing and moved forward on a wrda bill that has an important package for flint and other communities that have lead and water issues. at the beginning of this week, there was a house bill that did not include anything for flint or anything around lead contamination. we now have a commitment. there is going to be something in the house wrda bill and a commitment that the final bill will include the work that we did in the senate, so i just want to thank again senator inhofe, senator boxer, all of our colleagues. this is a very positive step forward and just remind people that folks in flint are literal ly bathing with bottled water every single day, and the sens

around forever in the senate. i can't imagine what he's done. since he became chairman, we've seen the independence and prestige of the judiciary committee manipulated by senator grassley's boss, the republican leader. for narrow, partisan warfare. we all know where the republican leader stands on president obama's supreme court nominee. long ago senator mcconnell decided to abandon any degree of bipartisanship or decorum to spite president obama. we heard that within hours of scalia having passed away. the republican leader admitted as much last month when he told a gathering -- and i quote -- "one of my proudest moments was when i looked at president obama and i said mr. president, you will not fill the supreme court vacancy." isn't that something to be proud of? one of the republican leader's proudest moments was a time he abandoned his constitutional duty and failed to do the job he was elected to do. the republicans proudest moments are not accomplishments. they are obstruction. what a shame he's putting senat

the capital. only senators could go. andill go home for dinner come back and stay there until 10:00. he did the four weeks to read these as he was making his decision. back to the go moments on that day. the first lady was in your office and she was leaving. what hermember security detail was like and the x russians on other faces including senator right? senator gregg look is this like -- business-like. lady looks a repeat she's out with the first family and she looked composed. there was a lot of flurry with her security detail as they moved her down the hall. host: what time did you make it home? or five :00bly 4:30 -- 5:00. host: what were you thinking? i was done -- i was stunned. host: as you remember that evening and you put your head down at night did you have time to reflect on the role that you played on the sister day? guest: i didn't think of myself as playing a role. i had witnessed something special between two very eminent americans. they conducted themselves with calmness. that night nobody knew

the presiding officer: the senator from ohio. mr. portman: madam president, i'm on the floor today to talk about the epidemic -- officerster we're in a quorum call -- the presiding officer: we are in a quorum call. mr. portman: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. portman: with snarks madam president, i am here on the floor to talk about an epidemic that has gripped my state of ohio and affected every single state in this body and every community we represent, and that's the issue of prescription drug, heroin, and now fentanyl and other synthetic heroin addiction. this epidemic is affecting our communities in fundamental ways. it is breaking families apart. it's causing crime. in fact, in my home state of ohio, as i talk to law enforcement first of all, in every county, they tell me it is the top reason for crime and the growth in crime. it's certainly affecting our first responders. when i go to a firehouse and talk to the firefighters there about what they do w

the senate does not have that. you were unable to get it passed because democrats wanted to demand equally great spending on domestic provisions. that is a tough area to work out. the other issue is guantanamo bay. one of the signature issues, the president would like to do -- close it. they added that makes it difficult to transfer the chinese out of guantanamo bay. making it harder to -- detainees out of guantanamo bay. make it harder to close. and there is an acquisition reform provision that house members do not fully agree with. they will have to work out those things. the president is starting to veto this bill over the guantanamo bay issue and racing defense spending. democrats if you're going to raise defense spending, then he had to raise domestic spending. -- you have to raise domestic spending. >> what is the area compromise? this is a must pass bill? >> that is what the fed talks will say. we must have the defense authorization bill. we must do it. it is really important. they're going to have to find a

the law says. and i know senator isakson, the chairman, we're joined by senator carper on the floor, too. he's interested in this. i know senator tillis has cosponsored my bill actually to fix this. it is something we need to do. we're here today -- we're not the only ones who believe action needs to be taken. governor mike pence, the governor of the state next door to mine, indiana, the republican nominee for vice president, supports this. the closure of i.t.t. was the fault of the management of that school who -- who spent a lot of money on marketing and a lot of money on helping people -- students get financing, but not much money on education and even less on job placement for their -- for their students. the closure of i.t.t. was not the fault of the veterans, for sure, not the fault of the students, but now veterans are worried about being able to pay their rent and pursue their education, which is what this legislation is going to allow them to do. 520 veterans in my state of ohio have been -- have had -- have been impacted by i.t.t.'s closure. there are some questions of finding a

i believe it's time for the senate to confirm mr. wilson so that the commission quarterback fully constituted -- can be fully constituted to carry out its important mission. surely, these days when there are so many hot spots around the world, when there is so much going on, it would be helpful to have that commission on public diplomacy in place, fully staffed up to be able to help advise on so many of the conflicts that we are seeing going on in the world. doug wilson has had a distinguished career of more than three and a half decades in the public and private sectors. after graduating from stanford university and the fletcher school of law and diplomacy, doug became a foreign service officer serving in posts throughout europe and later in senior positions with the u.s. information agency. during the clinton administration, served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for public fairs under secretary cohen. most recently in public service from 2010 to 2012, he was the assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, serving as

i want to commend the leadership of senator inhofe, the senator from oklahoma, and senator boxer, the senator from california, the chairman and rairveggin--ranking member, fork they've done in et going us this far. but i wanted to mention in particular the application of this legislation to my home state of texas. texas understands that water is a precious resource and one that needs to be managed effectively. there is an old saying in texas that, whiskey is for drinkening and water is for fighting. it just demonstrates -- it's kind of makes you chuckle, but the point is that water is essential to life. it is essential to our agriculture community to be able to grow our crops and water our livestock. it is indispensable, but it's easy to overlook all the work it takes to craft good legislation, that looks out for the whole country's water supply and also protects our ports and waterways and helps guard against flooding, just a few of the projects included in this bill. back in april this legislation overwhelmingly passed out of committee, and i'm glad this bill serves as just another

the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. grassley: mr. president, over the last several days, we have heard a lot of complaining from the other side about the partisanship that's involved with getting the final appropriation bills passed so government can function. yesterday, i came to the floor to talk about a bill that was being held up on the other side called the survivors bill of rights act of 2016 which passed the senate unanimously, passed the house of representatives unanimously and now it's being held up. what would be wrong with moving that bill? now, here's another bill. the justice against sponsors of terrorism act that passed this body unanimously on voice vote, unanimously in the other body and somehow the president of the united states vetoes it and then a democrat president vetoes something that passes unanimously and we're getting complaints from the other side about partisanship that tends to be our problem. so i come to the floor to talk about this veto. given the overwhelmingly bipartisan support that this legislation e

the senate's passed theirs. we need to complete work on that. i also am hoping we can make progress on criminal justice reform. lastly, saturday marks the third anniversary of the rollout of obamacare. it isn't so much limping toward that anniversary as this law is collapsing. this law is collapsing under its own weight. in a matter of weeks, americans are going to face another round of steep and massive premium increases, coop programs are failing across the country, leaving people without coverage, these are fundamental problems. these are not problems that can be fixed by tinkering at the margins. this law does need to be repealed and replaced. it needs to be replaced with real, patient-centered health care reforms. this is our plan to do it. page 20, and will you see our plan for a comprehensive replacement of obamacare to finally give people what they want. patient-centered health care, more choices, lower prices. we need to give people a very clear choice in this election. a clear path. that is what we are endeskering to do. we want to go b

a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. ms. murkowski: mr. president, it seems that i am coming to the floor of the senate on a more increasing basis or increasing frequency to honor the pioneering men and women who arrived in the state of alaska prior to statehood who truly have left a lasting impression on the history of the 49th state. today i rise to remember the venerable norman h. v. elliot. father elliot was an episcopal clergyman. he arrived in alaska back in 1951, and he was truly a profound spiritual force in alaska from the day that he arrived in our state until his death on friday, september 9 of this year. father elliot passed at the age of 97 and to say that he lived his life to the fullest would be a huge understatement. father elliot lived a life as big as the state of alaska, and we reflect upon that life. it would be no overstatement to characterize norman elliot as a true alaskan icon. father elliot was born in england. he moved to detroit, michigan, when he was 4 years old. and according to the stories he decided very, very

tonight, the republican candidates for u.s. senate. >> good evening and welcome to the gran s thanks for joining us. tonight, we're joined by the beginning with former state jim rubens was born new york city and attended dartmouth college. he has founded a number of small businesses and has been an investor or high-tech new england startups. he was a two-term new england senator and let the coalition against expanded gambling. he is married, has one child. your opening statement, please. mr. rubens: i am going to show you i am a conservative in this race. bottom and learned a lot from the school of hard knocks. i am a businessman and i have created jobs here in the state. i am a family man and have a son in college. i understand your concerns and challenges. now i want to run for the u.s. senate to turn our great nation around. josh: our next candidate is the incumbent in this race, senator kelly ayotte. >> she received her law degree from villanova. she was a deputy attorney general before becoming the state first female attorney gen

we cannot, of course, control the senate. i would say that a president will be able to lead -- a president will be able to get his program through -- to the effect that he has the support of the country, the support of the people. sometimes we get the opinion that in getting programs through the house or the senate it's purely a question of legislative finagling and all that sort of thing. it isn't really that. whenever a majority of the people are for a program, the house and the senate responds to it. and whether this house and senate, in the next session is democratic or republican, if the country will have voted for the candidate for the presidency and for the proposals that he has made, i believe that you will find that the president, if it were a republican, as it would be in my case, would be able to get his program through that congress. now, i also say that as far as senator kennedy's proposals are concerned, that, again, the question is not simply one of uh -- a presidential veto stopping programs. you must always re

take up and pass the senate bill. we have had 93 votes for cloture, and i see the majority leader here. i want to thank him so much for his work. he promised me this would happen, and he kept the promise. and senator reid, who had a lot of other fish to fry around here. but he said you know what? let's get this done. i mean that's really good for the country and for the way this place functions. when i'm not here, i just hope to leave behind a few of these bipartisan crumbs that i have been able to work on in my time here. and so in conclusion, i don't want to get into what the house does. i hope they take up and pass our bill. if they don't, we'll have to work with them. but let me just say it's heartening to hear my colleague say he will stand for this lead provision. i also want to thank senators stabenow and peters for bringing this, you know, unbelievable crisis to our attention and to staying on this day after day. i can't say how many phone calls i've had. and she would call me and i would call senator inhofe, a

the first amendment. they trample on it. senator warren and i offered a suggestion to the house committee in our "washington post" piece. if this committee is so concerned about the first amendment rights of exxonmobil, call a hearing invite exxonmobil executives to testify and give them the opportunity to speak freely. what better way to protect a person's right to speak freely than to give that person a forum to speak freely right here in congress. they can come in, say whatever they want to say, and answer questions. i know i would love to hear what they have to say. i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from louisiana. a senator: mr. president, today i rise to honor two of my longest serving staff members who have been tremendous team leaders in our office. david doss, my state director and nicole hebert my deputy state director. they're both sadly departing the senate later this month but to start exciting new careers. mr. vitter: nicole started with our team when i was first running fo

to the senate: under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable joni ernst, a senator from the state of iowa, to perform the duties of the chair. signed: orrin g. hatch, president pro tempore. mr. mcconnell: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: is there a message at the desk in reference to s. 2040? the presiding officer: the chair lays before the senate a communication from the secretary of the senate regarding that matter. the clerk will read the communication. the clerk: united states senate, office of the secretary. september 26, 2016. the honorable joseph r. biden jr., president of the senate, united states senate, washington, d.c., 20510. deer mr. president, on friday, september 23, 2016, the president of the united states sent by messenger the attached sealed envelope addressed to the president of the senate dated september 23, 2016 said to contain a veto message on the bill s. 2040, the justice against sponsors of terrorism act. the senate not being in session on the last day wit

the presiding officer: the senator from minnesota. mr. franken: thank you, mr. president. i ask unanimous consent that the democrats control the next 30 minutes and the republicans control the following 30 minutes. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. franken: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i rise today to discuss the central states pension fund crisis and proposal to address that, but before i do, i want to take a moment to talk about the horrific events that unfolded in st. cloud, minnesota, this weekend. the investigation is ongoing, but we know that last saturday evening, a man dressed in a security guard uniform took to the crossroads mall in st. cloud, minnesota, and senselessly stabbed nine people. fortunately, they have all been treated and discharged. this was a heinous attack, and i hope that all the victims and their families know that minnesotans are thinking of them. mr. president, i also want to commend the actions of jason faulkner. the off-duty police officer who bravely stopped the at

senator mccain at the meeting. also c-span capitol hill producer craig kaplan tweets that senate minority leader harry reid said when the vice presidential nominee returned to meet with the senate a tear or two was shed. >> he is described as hillary clinton's invisible guiding hand hand, a a statistician between her most important strategic decision. he is joining us from new york city. thank you for being with us. >> thank you for having on. who is eli kriegel and how did you come across this gentleman? >> he is hillary clinton's director of analytics and while that is sort of a strange sounding title, it really does put him at the epicenter for the campaign because she is running a data-driven campaign. he is the guy in charge of the data, not just parsing voter data, but television watching data, e-mail open read data, volunteer frequency data, how often you are volunteering for the campaign, all manner of data and he is the guy in charge of it. it's interesting looking at the clinton campaign and how they are p