The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell as we open the second session of the 115th congress, were pleased to welcome my colleagues back to the chamber. Id like to extend a particular welcome to our two new senators who were just sworn in. First senator doug jones of alabama will have big shoes to fill. His state has sent some very distinguished legislators to washington, including our attorney general, jeff sessions. Senator jones brings a background in law enforcement, having served as a federal prosecutor in the Northern District of alabama, and we welcome him. We also welcome senator tina smith. For three years, she served the people of minnesota as their Lieutenant Governor. Now she will join senator klobuchar in representing them here in the senate. I congratulate both of these new senators and look forward to working with them in the month ahead to make bipartisan progress and to find Common Ground on behalf of the American People. The senate will need to tackle a number of important issues this year. Its my sincere hope that we can do so in a renewed spirit of comity, collegiality, and bipartisanship. I note that colleagues on both sides of the aisle share the hope and its urgent that we make it a reality. Congress must reach a spending agreement by january 19 to ensure uninterrupted funding for the federal government. Among several key priorities, it is vital that our agreement provide sufficient resources for our allvolunteer armed forces. Under the budget control act, americas military has been stretched thin by disproportionate cuts that have harmed our combat readiness since fiscal year 2013, defense cuts have outpaced, outpaced domestic spending cuts by 85 billion. Im going to say that again, mr. President. Since fiscal year 2013, defense cuts have outpaced domestic spending cuts by 85 billion. To fix this, we need to set aside the arbitrary notion that new defense spending be matched equally by new nondefense spending. There is no reason why funding for our National Security and our Service Members should be limited by an arbitrary political formula that bears no relationship to actual need. So lets come together across the aisle and construct a Funding Agreement that gives our men and women in uniform the tools and the training they need. On another matter, mr. President , over the last week one of the often overlooked costs of irans regional aggression has come to light. Iranians have taken to the streets in protest, demanding that Supreme Leader khamenei and president rouhani do more to expand the domestic economy. Irans action in yemen, syria, and iraq and its support for proxies such as hezbollah have diverted resources away from economic reform and investment. While the government has prioritized payment to the military and security elites in clerical institutions, the people throughout iran have suffered. Now their discontent is fully evident. As part of our overall strategy toward iran, we should be focused on ending irans maligned activities across the middle east. We should hold accountable any officials behind a crackdown on these protests. The coming days will be noteworthy as we wait to see if hardliners will use these protests as an excuse to promote even more aggressive policies toward the west and tighten their grip further on the country and its economy. Now, one final matter. Yesterday, a very distinguished senator announced his intention to retire at the end of this congress. For more than 40 years, senator orrin hatch has served the people of utah in this body. He is not only our president pro tempore, as we celebrated last year, senator hatch is also the longest serving republican senator in the history of the United States. During this historic tenure, senator hatch has shared three key committees, he has amassed deep expertise among all manner of policy issues, and he has built a truly remarkable resume of accomplishments on behalf of the American People. Senator hatch has defended our National Security and our religious freedom. Hes fought to protect americans with disabilities and has shepherded fine judges onto our courts. Last month, he played an integral reform in passing the most significant tax reform law in more than 30 years. Senator hatchs colleagues here will be sorry to see him retire. I will miss his friendship. But i know his wife elaine and his beloved family will be glad to welcome him home. Fortunately, its not yet time to say farewell to. The institution and the American People will benefit greatly from the senators wisdom and famous work ethic for one more year before his retirement. Now, mr. President , i understand there is a bill at the desk due a second reading. The presiding officer the senator is correct. The clerk will read the title of the bill for a second time. The clerk s. 2274, a bill to provide for the compensation of federal employees affected by lapses in appropriations. Mr. Mcconnell in order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule 14, i would object to further proceedings. The presiding officer objection having been heard, the bill will be placed on the calendar. Mr. Schumer mr. President. The presiding officer the democratic leader. Mr. Schumer thank you, mr. President. First, as we begin the second session of the 115th congress, i welcome all of my colleagues back from holiday break. I wish them a happy new year. Wish our country a wonderful 2018. I was also very gratified to see two of the best former Vice President s that we have ever had on the floor today for the ceremonies. Im glad to see senators former senators mondale and biden, former Vice President s mondale and biden, as feisty and strong and giving us their opinions as they have ever been. Its also very exciting to welcome two new members of this body who will be joining the Democratic Caucus tina smith from minnesota and doug jones from alabama. In joining this esteemed body, both bring a wealth of experience and individual passions. Former Lieutenant Governor tina smith brings with her several years of experience serving at the highest levels of State Government where she focused on Economic Development and expanding access to Rural Broadband and Affordable Health care, issues she will continue to fight for here in the senate. In that work, governor dayton praised her as, quote, extremely intelligent, quick to learn, and always open to hearing others views. She was also dubbed the, quote, velvet hammer by the mayor of minneapolis for her ability to work across the aisle but also get tough when she needs to be. Those are precisely the kinds of qualities that make an effective senator. The people of minnesota are lucky to have senator smith, and we look forward to welcoming her in our next caucus. We also look forward to welcoming senator doug jones, the first democrat from the state of alabama in a quarter century. He, too, represents the very best of public service, the very best of america, the things we aspire to in this country. One story from his biography stands out. As a second year law student, doug jones skipped class to attend the trial of the klansman ringleader of the 1963 bombing of the 16th street baptist church, an event that shook the conscience of our country and helped launch a Mighty Movement for civil rights. That day, a young doug jones was moved by the disposition of justice, but he was left with the impression that other members of the conspiracy had escaped the reach of the law. So 24 years later, when doug jones became the u. S. Attorney for the state of alabama, he pursued charges against two more klan members involved in the bombing, winning their conviction and delivering a longdelayed but righteous justice. With his work, justice rolled down like a mighty stream. Hell continue to fight for civil rights and many other issues here in the senate. I know he cares deeply about the chip program which covers 150,000 young alabamians. I hope we can get that dan for his state and his country very soon. Doug jones was an excellent candidate. Like senator smith, he will make an outstanding senator. She for the state of minnesota. He for the state of alabama. The voices of jones and smith will add to the diversity of energy of our caucus. I predict that both will become influential voices in this historic chamber, and each of their states had great football victories this weekend, i might add. I watched alabama win over clemson. Sorry, lindsey, tim. I watched minnesota, my Favorite Team outside the three new york teams, come in second in the whole n. F. C. And gain a bye as we move to the playoffs. So it was a it was a great day for these two states in a lot of ways this weekend, and its very good so far in 2018 with the swearing in of these two senators. The first half of the 115th congress now, lets talk a little bit about the new direction. Let the induction of these two this afternoon be the beginning of a new direction for the senate in the second half of this congress. The first half of the 115th congress was not a year to be proud of. Partisan legislation emerged from the Majority Leaders Office and was dropped on the floor of the senate sometimes merely hours before we were asked to vote on its final passage. Procedural gimmicks were used to avoid the senates long history of debate and bipartisanship. An economy wracked by unfairness and unequality was made even more unfair, more unequal by the republican majority, which almost delighted in revoking Consumer Protections to help big business, install the procorporate supreme court, drove up Health Care Premiums and passed a tax bill dramatically skewed to the benefit of big corporations and the very wealthy. All in all, 2017 was a great year for wealthy republican donors but a lost year for the middle class and the working men and women of this country. We democrats hope this year is different, focused on the middle class rather than the rich and powerful, focused on helping them in the ways we have done in the last decades, both democratic and republican president s, rather than this trickle down which benefits the few at the top and very few and does not benefit the very many in the middle. These first few weeks, mr. President , we have a chance to start off on the right foot. We have two weeks to negotiate a budget deal that also must address a host of other issues, including chip, Community Health centers, disaster aid, and of course the dreamers. Democrats would also like our country to make a down payment on urging on urgent domestic priorities like combating the opioid epidemic, a scourge that for the first time helped cause our death rate, our Life Expectancy to decline because of a higher death rate from opioids. We want to improve Veterans Health care. They served us. We must serve them. And shore up Pension Plans for millions of hardworking middleclass americans who put money in every month, and because of the stock market crash and sometimes corporate misdeeds arent getting what they put in for. These items are crucial to the middle class. Take opioids, for example. 2016, a record 63,000 this is so sad 63,000 americans died of drug overdoses. Twothirds or more were opioid related. Its a fullfledged epidemic. It strikes the rich, the middle class, and the poor alike. It strikes urban america, suburban america, and Rural America alike. I have had a father cry in my arms because his son had decided to turn himself around and signed up for a treatment program, but the line was so long because the funding is so scarce that the young man died of an overdose before he could enter treatment. The Opioid Crisis is stealing our youth. Weve known about it for years. Its not new. Its heartbreaking about how much we know about it but how little weve done about it. The americans sent us here to do their business. Lets make a Real Investment in this budget deal and how we treat this scourge. Thats the budget deal. The budget is the right place to start. Now, a few years ago we made a promise to hundreds of children hundreds of thousands of children who were brought to the u. S. Through no fault of their own that if they registered with the government, we wouldnt deport them. We said, we want you to be americans. Learn in our schools, work at our companies, serve in our military. 800,000 dreamers came forward and did that, because above all else, they want to be americans. They dont know another country. Now were faced with a deadline. In a few months protections for dreamers will evaporate. Thousands of dreamers are losing protected status a week. Its time that we fix this once and for all. Democrats, including myself, led by our great senator from illinois, a member of our leadership team, senator durbin, have said over and over again, were ready to negotiate a reasonable package of Border Security to pass alongside daca. We believe in Border Security. We want to make it real, not just symbolic, but we believe in it. If our republican colleagues and the president engage in good faith in that negotiation without unreasonable demands like an absurdly expensive, ineffective border wall that publicly many republicans oppose, and privately many more do, i dont doubt we can reach an agreement on daca thats acceptable to both sides, and id like to thank our Senate Pro Tem for his active involvement in this regard as well. In contrast to a year of chaos and ineffectiveness, a year in which little was accomplished, and what was done was done for the wealthy and narrow special interest, i hope this year can be one of bipartisanship, focused on improving the stock of the middle class. They are the ones who are hurting in america. They are the once who need help. This they are the ones who worry about the grand future for this country. We can start with health care, opioids, with Childrens Health insurance and disaster aid, and we can resolve the fate of the dreamers and say to these hardworking kids that america has a place for them too. Later today the four congressional leaders will meet with the budget director Mick Mulvaney to begin these negotiations in ernest, i hope, will work for their success. Finally, a word on National Security. The senate has a role in conducting the nations Foreign Policy. But as head of state, the president of the United States represents our country to the world. That is a very serious, a very sober responsibility. It requires restraint, intelligence, sound judgment, and a respect for the moral authority that comes with the awesome responsibility of being the worlds sole remaining super power. Over the course of the past year, President Trump, unfortunately, has squandered and squandered the moral authority that comes with the presidency of the United States. A moral authority that this country has taken generations to build. That helps us bring a light to the world and helps us economically in every other way as the world has always looked up to america and our ideals. But, unfortunately, that moral authority is declining under President Trumps leadership, and declining rapidly. It may have reached a low point yesterday when President Trump in tweet after tweet after tweet offered a very poor representation of the United States to the world. More than that, President Trumps Foreign Policy by tweet is doing serious damage to the country. Where we have serious issues to address abroad, President Trump seems happy with macho boosts and belligerent threats that get us nowhere. If any one of us were in a classroom that behaved like President Trump has, we would call him out. We dont hear a peep from our republican colleagues, so many of whom are hawks. We have serious issues to address abroad. President trumps Foreign Policy by tweet will not advance our standing in the world. It will not reassure our allies or other nations that it is better to work with us than against us. What it will do, and what it has already done, unfortunately, is unsettle our allies and embolden our adversaries. What it will do is cede leadership to china, which is looking for every opportunity to drive a wedge between our country and other countries around the world. Without a steady and reliable head at the helm, our allies may not trust us to honor our commitments and maintain a steady course. China and russia are rushing to fill the void left by an unsteady United States. President xi of china looked to be the leader in his new years speech where he said that china, not the United States, would be the keerp of the international deeper of the International Order in 2018. If President Trump recklessly threatens other nations and showing leadership on the world stage that can only be seen as pure aisle, the world may look to beijing, not washington for international leadership. Again, i repeat, where are our friends, the republican hawks, who have been so concerned about americas leadership in the world, who decry the fact that president obama had not done enough for this leadership . My dear friend, if he were here, senator john mccain, would typically speak about this. Hopefully he will be back to do so. To the rest of my republican friends, i say this withs isty sincerity, they should please, our republican friends, tell the president , stop tweeting, start leading. Were almost through a calendar cheer of the trump presidency. President trump can no longer be given the benefit of the doubt that comes with learning one of the most toughest jobs in the world. Our republican friends should not give him a pass if they should fail to speak out or take action. Their silence unfortunately, but i have to say it, i feel it sincerely, is explicit in the degradation of the presidency and the power of this country. The American People expect our president to represent the United States with dignity and strength. Thats not what we saw yesterday. Its time we all start speaking out against it. I yield the the house returns tomorrow for the first legislative is this of the second session of the 115th congress. It includes a resolution to support the rights of people of iran for Free Expression and condemning the regime for its crackdown on protests. On thursday, legislation to reauthorize the foreign ,ntelligence surveillance act set to expire on january 19. It is also the dates for federal government funding to run out. The senate is back tomorrow to debate the appointment of Wayne Campbell to be a district judge for tennessee. For the rest of the week, the senate will consider other judicial nominations for judicial courts in tennessee and texas
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