Isaacson, and were expecting to break this afternoon so they can attend their caucus meetings. Now live here on the floor of the senate on cspan2. The president pro tempore the senate will come to order. The chaplain, dr. Black, will open the senate in prayer. The chaplain let us pray. Our father, be with us not only in great moments of experience but also during mundane and common tasks. Through the power of your spirit, may our senators mount up with wings like eagles, running without weariness and walking without fainting. Give them the wisdom to be patient with others, ever lenient to their faults and ever prompt to appreciate their virtues. Lord, rule in the hearts of our lawmakers, keeping them from sin and sustaining their loved ones in all of their tomorrows. Surround us all with the shield of your mercy as you provide us with a future and a hope, and blessings too numerous to be stored. We pray in your sovereign name. Amen. The president pro tempore please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance 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. The presiding officer under the previous order the leadership time is reserved. Mr. Grassley madam president. The presiding officer the senator from iowa. Mr. Grassley i would like to address the senate for one minute as if in morning. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley i hope that a lot of americans have been able to watch on television whats going on over in iran right now. I hope that americans have an opportunity to listen to some americans of iranian descent that are commenting on whats going on over there, because recently thousands of iranians have taken to the streets protesting their countrys corrupt regime. Frustrated by a lack of opportunity and frustrated by constant political oppression, these largely young and nonviolent protesters have stood up to say enough is enough. In response to these protesters, we see the regime engaging in a brutal crackdown, and that crackdown is on a scale not seen since the 1979 revolution, and now killing hundreds of civilians within the last few days. The United States is not an enemy of the iranian people. In fact, americans of all backgrounds cant help but sympathize with these brave protesters seeking a more prosperous, more responsible iran and having the iran government give that sort of an environment. We need to tell the iranian leaders that the world is watching. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Mcconnell madam president. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell are we in a quorum call . The presiding officer yes, we are. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell madam president , this week House Democrats are continuing their threeyear long quest to impeach the president and continuing to obstruct urgent Bipartisan Legislation. This has been the democrats strategy for months now, obsessed over impeachment and obstruct everything else. Take the usmca, which would create 176,000 new american jobs. Speaker pelosi has been stalling it for months, constantly saying she is optimistic or getting close or almost there for months. Its been this broken record. I understand this very week while the speaker of the house has apparently flown to madrid to discuss climate change, she keeps offering the same empty rhetoric thats no different than what she was saying ten months ago. American workers have waited and waited and waited. House democrats keep stalling. Or consider the appropriations process. Even after signing a bipartisan agreement to forego poison pills, democrats ignored it and thrust other policy disagreements back into the appropriations process. They voted twice to filibuster funding for our armed forces. Well, last week chairman shelby and chairwoman lowey reached an important agreement to address allocations at the subcommittee level. That was an essential step. It will take a lot of work and cooperation to move the appropriations process forward in the short time ahead of us. Our democratic colleagues will finally need to rediscover that our men and women in uniform are more important that their partisan fights. Speaking of our ormd forces armed forces lets talk about the ndaa. Congress passed an annual authorization defense bill every year since 1961. Every year after some jousting and jostling, congress put aside our extraneous disagreements to fulfill one of our most basic responsibilities and reauthorize our armed forces. But remember democrats new playbook, obsess over impeach ment, obstruct everything else, including apparently even our troops and National Security. So, madam president , imagine being so far left that even the routine annual bill to reauthorize the u. S. Military is some controversial thing. You have to be goaded into supporting. House democrats abandoned longstanding traditions of exrois compromise and larded up the ndaa with policy riders. What appears to be the First Time Ever in either chamber they passed the ndaa on a pure partisan vote. In the senate, by contrast, chairman of inhofe and Ranking Member reed collaborated on a bill that passed the senate 868. 868. We certainly did our part to stick with the annual tradition. Now my colleague, the democratic leader is moving the goalpost and enabling leader pelosi. To travel in the final ndaa, the chairman and Ranking Member with actual jurisdiction need to give bipartisan signoff. This basic test protects the senate, protects our committees, and protects the ndaa from being held hostage for specific partisan ends. Every year dozens, if not hundreds of provisions meet that bar. Those that he dont end up on the are you going to room floor. On the cutting room floor. Thus far, in the senate, chairman inhofe and Ranking Member reed have worked hard to respect those norms. But this year, the speaker of the house and my colleague, the democratic leader, want to scrap this precedent, undermine the committees, and demand special treatment for partisan priorities that have no business being crammed into this essential legislation for our armed forces. Were talking about a new taxpayerfunded benefit for all federal employees. Sweeping changes to u. S. Foreign policy. This is what theyre trying to shoehorn into the ndaa. Its not goodfaith policy making, not when these demands pour in at the 11th hour over mustpass legislation for our service members. So its just political theater, taking precedents precedence over our armed forces. So right on cue, im sure well hear madefortv histrionics about all the new provisions the speaker and democratic leader want to shove into this bill, bypassing hearings, markups, and negotiations between chairmen and Ranking Members. Well probably keep hearing the dishonest myth that republicans are soft on russia, never mind that years ago president obama was mocking, mocking republicans for being too tough on russia. Never mind that this administration has aggressively pursued sanctions, expelled russian operatives, provided lethal defensive weapons to georgia and ukraine, taken major steps to protect our elections, and more. Just more bluster and histrionics to distract from the core fact which is Crystal Clear to the entire country. There is no legislation, no matter how crucial, that democrats will not obstruct in order to pick fights with this president. The very bills the democrats are resisting are essential for our National Defense strategy, for our needed investments in cutting edge weapons, in the European Defense initiative, in modernizing our nuclear force, all critical for competing with, deterring, and defending against russia and china. If democrats divide congress over nondefense issues and kill these bills, they will have played right into our adversaries hands. They will have made this basic National Security requirement far more difficult in the future. Our democrat colleagues must understand that National Security comes before the resistance. The country cannot afford this new tactic. Obsess over impeachment and obstruct everything else. I hope this changes soon. Now, madam president , on a totally different matter, the senate has set aside today to honor our distinguished colleague, the senior senator from georgia, Johnny Isakson. Its been about three months since johnny announced he would retire at the end of december. Since then, i think we have all been taking stock of everything our dear friend has accomplished and everything he means to so many people. I have long said if the senate were to hold a secret ballot popularity contest, Johnny Isakson would win in a bipartisan landslide, quite possibly in a unanimous vote. He commands bipartisan respect and affection to a degree that is truly remarkable. But if you think about it, it makes sense for a man whose personal mantra goes like this. This is what he says. There are only two kinds of people friends and future friends. For most people, that might be a noble aspiration. But unrealistic. But for Johnny Isakson, its a statement of fact. Nobody is an enemy, nobody is a stranger. Just friends and future friends. Thats it. With a motto like that, its no wonder that johnnys first career was a successful stint in real estate. A field in which relationships are everything. It strikes me there are two ways you could thrive in a business where friendships and Connections Matter so much. You could be either good at faking a smile, at feigning interest in others, or you could genuinely love meeting everybody and learning how you might be able to help them. That second kind of person is exactly who ed and julie isakson brought up in atlanta, georgia. Warm, honest, forthright. Incredibly kind. No wonder johnnys neighbors jumped at the chance to hire him to be their state representative. And then their state senator. Then their congressman. And then their United States senator. So his retirement this month will cap a 45year career in Public Service packed with one significant accomplishment after another, one after another. First and foremost, in johnnys long legacy is his work for our nations veterans. He spent six years in the Georgia Air National guard as a young man. And he spent the half century since then as one of fellow veterans best friends at any level of government. Under johnnys chairmanship, the Veterans Affairs committee has passed literally scores of bills. More accountability at the v. A. More education benefits. Better Community Care programs. Better procedures for when veterans appeal a determination. An updated g. I. Bill with no more expiration date. And of course johnnys landmark bill, the v. A. Mission act. Its now law, providing many of the most significant reforms in the history of the v. A. Taking power away from bureaucrats and giving it back to veterans and their doctors. Yet somehow, in the midst of compiling this singular record for our nations veterans, johnny racked up countless more legislative successes that impact literally every american. From securing pension protections to reforming education policy. From regional Infrastructure Projects like the savannah harbor expansion to combating hunger worldwide. One look at the list of laws bearing johnnys fingerprints, and you would be forgiven for thinking he never met a problem he couldnt solve. But alas, every senator sometimes encounters requests from back home that he cannot deliver. Sometimes you have constituents on both sides of an issue. Sometimes the requests might conflict with your principles. Whatever the reason, everybody in office event eventually eventually disappoints somebody. But johnnys staff marvel at the fact that even when georgians come up here to meet with him and unfortunately go away disappointed, they still walk out of the meeting beaming with praise for their senator. Can you believe johnny . Hes the greatest guy ever. What a senator. And these are the people he just said no to. The same traits explain why johnny is just as popular under this dome as he is back home. And i dont mean just his fellow members. Johnny isakson is practically an honorary member of every other members staff and an honorary elevator operator and an honorary Capitol Police officer and an honorary member of chaplain blacks team, and on and on. He knows and values absolutely everybody. I cant count how many times id hear a peal of laughter from my staff and realize Johnny Isakson had stopped by not to see me but chat with my team, ask after their families, make check up on a couple of georgia priorities while he was there. There is one classic story that really distills this mans character. Most people who hung around johnny and his team long enough know the famous tale of the gin and tonic in the laundry room. The gin and tonic in the laundry room. Heres the deal. Back in 2006, johnny was still a new senator. We were tackling some thorny pension issues. And thousands of georgians stood to be affected if things didnt get hammered out. So this freshman senator dives in. He goes toe to toe with big players like ted kennedy and bill young over in the house. He didnt get a seat on the conference committee, but he basically appointed himself an honorary member. Johnny worked it like crazy. He sleuthed out where they would be meeting. He spoke to everyone. And because its johnny were talking about, we know how this ends. He delivered for georgia. Afterwards, the Atlanta Journal constitution wanted to hear how this freshman senator had pulled off this victory. Among other things, the reporter asked how johnny had celebrated. Did he clear out the champagne at some beltway stake house . Beltway steakhouse . Heres what he said. This is a direct quote, madam president. Isakson said that after the vote, he went straight back to his Capitol Hill Area apartment and celebrated by doing his laundry. He didnt want to leave dirty clothes behind for a month. So he said further so i was putting coins in the machine and i had a gin and tonic in the laundry room. This anecdote is almost the perfecten capsulation perfect encapsulation of johnny stacks. Starts with ten as Johnny Isakson. Starts with tenacity and a cando spirit, propelled forward by charisma, smarts, and stubborn patience, and it ends with a win for georgians. And one celebrity cocktail while wrist deep in laundry detergent. But there is one other story that i think reflects this remarkable leader even more speferl. It starts with one name kate coosey. In 2009, johnny was reading his local paper and found an obituary for a woman who had been in africa with the peace corps. She was just 24. Johnny didnt know kate, didnt know her family, but he felt called to tax and spend her funeral. He sat quietly in the very back and listened to her friends, her family, ministers, peace corps colleagues. Unassumingly, he invited the family to stay in touch if there was anything he could ever do. Only later did they relate what wasnt in the obituary. Kate had been murdered in the dark of night after sounding the alarm on child abuse in her village in the african country of benin. Johnny isakson was on the case from that day forward. Not only was he a fixture on the Foreign Relations committee, he was actually Ranking Member on the africa subcommittee, so he put a framed photo of kate on his desk and leapt into action. Senator isakson flew to benin to personally lean on its president. He met with peace corps officials. He built a legislative coalition for reforms to better protect volunteers. And like i said earlier, because this is Johnny Isakson were talking about, we know how the story ends with results. He helped kates parents pursue justice, and just a couple of years after johnny sat down in that pew, the kate coosey peace corps volunteer protection act was law. Now, that is Johnny Isakson in one story. He starts out trying to do good for his neighbors and winds up literally changing the world. Of course, madam president , changing the world can be grueling work. We all know johnnys health has made his Tireless Service more and more challenging in recent months. As much as the other 99 of us hate to hear it, hes decided its time to find new ways to serve that dont involve twice weekly air travel or winding trips through the capitol complex. But we know our friend is not riding off into the sunset or kicking up his heels. I know hes bound and determined to keep putting his expertise and Institutional Knowledge to work on behalf of georgians who need him. I have no doubt hell keep on advocating for georgians with a pen and a phone. More friends across the country than anyone can count up and maybe a few of his eight grandchildren by his side. Sounds like a pretty enviable work arrangement and no doubt johnnys earned it. Hes earned the right to a little less latenight voting and a little more time with his lovely wife diane. So on behalf of all of his colleagues, ill tell johnny to go ahead and relax just a little, maybe find something to drink. But this time around, he should enjoy it on the front porch with diane and leave the laundry till later. Were savoring our last few weeks alongside our good friend here in the senate. Were so lucky to have called him our colleague. The presiding officer morning business is closed. Under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. The clerk nomination, the judiciary, eric ross komitee, of new york, to be United States district judge for the Eastern District of new york. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call a senator madam president. The presiding officer the senator from kansas. A senator i understand that were in a quorum call, i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be lifted. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Moran madam president , good morning. I appreciate being on the floor to speak about something of significance certainly to kansas and to the country. We are awaiting action on usmca, United Statesmexicocanada agreement, the trade agreement that is attempting to replace nafta and an agreement that is of significance, as i say, to the folks back home in my state. For the last two years ive engaged in a campaign to try to elevate the importance to make sure my colleagues, the administration, people here in congress understand how important exports and trade is to the United States economy and in kansas, we are an export state, what we produce, what we manufacture, what we grow in the fields of our state in many, many instances ends up someplace else outside the United States. Ive spoken on the senate floor before, i met with the president , i talked to his cab knit officials, i wrote an open letter to the agricultural groups to engaging in support for usmca approval. Ive had speaking engagingments across the country trying to rally farmers and ranchers, manufacturers and others to fight and preserve our trading relationship with canada and makings. On saturday at home in kansas, i was at a town hall that kicked off their 101st annual meeting to discuss kansas agriculture, the topic of trade and its importance to the product that we grow was the most important, most discussed topic at that town hall meeting. Usmca was signed now over a year ago. Its time for the house to pass this important agreement, and in order for the house to pass it, the speaker needs to bring it up for a vote. Canada and mexico are kansas number one and two export markets. They account for over onethird of exports from our state. And since 2013, unfortunately, farm income at home has fallen by 50 . So net farm income in kansas is down half in the last six years. Many producers are struggling, have struggled to hang on to their operations and when farmers arent doing well, it means the communities they live in and support arent doing well. The question is often, what business will we lose when farmers are not having Financial Success . What young men and women who grew up on a farm or grew up in that small town will perhaps even reluctantly find a job someplace else because the economy is not helpful to them as they start their careers. Usmca will continue to provide dutyfree market be abscess to m commodities while also expanding trade opportunities for Dairy Producers and leveling the Playing Field for the wheat we export to canada. Usmca is important to manufacturers as well. Usmca will protect the integrated north America Supply chain that is critical to manufacturers in our state. Wichita is known as the air capital of the world due to the aerospace and aviation manufacturing, kansas is home to automobile, Farm Equipment and other manufacturers. 25 of kansas manufacturers, mostly small to mediumsized businesses export to canada and mexico. Nearly 25 years ago im sorry. Nearly 25 years after its enactment, the naflt enactment, nafta was due to be modernized and reflect changes in todays economy and usmca will strengthen the rules on intellectual Property Rights and address digital trade issues. It will serve as a template for future trade negotiations, putting the United States in the drivers seat for setting global trade rules and norms. Kansas, as i said, is an export state. If were not exporting the ability to earn a living, to save a family farm, to keep our small manufacturers across the communities that dot our state disappear. The ability to earn a living in kansas depends upon selling food and manufactured goods around the world. We must continue the fight for more trade, not less. And, again, i ask the house of representatives to quickly consider. Please do not let this calendar year come to an end without the nafta replacement in place. Thank you, madam president. The presiding officer the democratic leader. Mr. Schumer thank you, i ask unanimous consent no quorum. Thank you. Okay, well, madam president , as the house of representatives continues toehold hearings as part to hold hearings as part of the impeachment inquiry into President Trump, it is important that we avoid prejudging the case. If impeachment articles are served to the senate, senators must act as judges and jurors, take an oath to do impartial justice and see to it that the senate conducts a fair trial. So ive been hugely disappointed in the partisan conduct of some of my colleagues on the republican side who in their rush to defend the president have attacked career Public Servants and former members of the Armed Services because they didnt like their testimony and then they spread baseless conspiracy theories and use their offices to play defense for the president. The republican chairman of the judiciary committee, for example, has attempted to send the state department on a wild fishing expedition for documents to support an already debunked rightwing conspiracy theory. Meanwhile, the state department is blocking or delaying the production of documents related to several legitimate and ongoing investigations, many of which were requested months ago. I would expect that senator grahams request, outlandish as it is, would go at the back of the line. It would be another total debasement of the process if secretary pompeo were to further politicize the production of documents to congress and say its okay to release the documents that senator graham wants but not the twhawns the House Committee but not the ones that the House Committee wanted. Privilege is privilege. You cant you cant do it to one and not the other. Also its appalling in recent days certain mement on the other side of the aisle members on the other side of the aisle have repeated the lie by Vladimir PutinsIntelligence Service that ukraine was somehow involved in 2016 election interference. I have a simple message for my republican colleagues. Stop spreading putins propaganda. By spreading the false and unsupported narrative that ukraine, not just putin, was responsible for interfering in the 2016 elections, republicans are endangering our democracy and empowering Vladimir Putin at the same time. Even wondering allowed allowed helps putin muddy the waters and help deflect away from his country, which all of the Intelligence Services, i believe 17 of them, agree he interfered in the election. Hes trying to create a diversion. And our republican colleagues are going along. Plunges need to stop republicans need to stop putting the wind into the sails of putins proch ganda. More importantly, republicans need to refute the lie that ukraine had anything to do with election interference in 2016. Now on Election Security and the ndaa. Earlier this year f. B. I. Director wray said the russians, this are his words, President Trumps appointee to run the f. B. I. , mr. Wray. The russians are absolutely intent on trying to interfere with our elections. Thats what he said. In response to a question from a from the senior senator from south dakota, director wray went on to say, my view is that until they stop, they havent been deterred enough. As a remis on the other side of the aisle, director wray is a republican and a trump appointee. It is the testimony of director wray and many other National Security leaders that over the past three years that sorry. Its their testimony that over the past three years that has reinforced our commitment on the democratic side to secure passage of legislation that includes tough mandatory and deterrent sanctions against putin and against any foreign adversary. This wasnt a figment of our imagination. This came from agencies that russia interfered. Its not a radical idea. Its a bipartisan idea. A Bipartisan Legislation introduced by senators van hollen, menendez, rubio, and graham. The legislation needs to be included in the Defense Authorization bill. Defending our democracy is at the core of the nations defense, but at the moment its being blocked by republican leader mcconnell and several Republican Committee chairs. Now im sure leader mcconnell and his colleagues, rather than explain their opposition, will do what they usually do. They try to point their finger of blame at democrats and say were holding up the defense bill. Were not. Thats a timehonored republican tradition to deflect blame. It just doesnt hold water. Just this morning we heard the republican leader claim that democrats are not supporting the defense programs needed to counter russia. This is laughable coming from the other side. When its leader mcconnell who has fought so often to prevent dollars, to protect us from russian interference. Its my republican counterparts are the ones who have green lit the president to treat the Defense Department as a personal piggy bank, including raiding funds from the European Defense initiative, a Program Designed to counter russia to build the president s wall. Democrats are ready to roll up their sleeves and work with our republican colleagues to clear any substantive objections they might have to election interference sanction legislation as well as any other issue they might have about the Defense Authorization bill. But we need to get serious soon about including these provisions. The annual defense bill might be our last chance to pass significant reforms to secure our elections. So leader mcconnell, are you for securing our elections against russia or not . Because if youre for it, you can move this defense bill much more quickly forward. Whats holding it up in good part is leader mcconnells opposition to spending the funds necessary and the legislation and sanctions necessary to stop issue from interfering. Finally, on a happier note, or a bittersweet happy note but a fine note, Johnny Isakson, what a fine man. Members of the chamber today will hold a luggage for johnny hold a lunch for Johnny Isakson retiring before the end of the year. Over the last few months there have been numerous tributes to johnny here on the senate floor. Hes been called a real friend, mentor, more than a colleague, humble and tenacious. They dont come any better. Thats just by democrats. Thats one of the reasons i suggested to leader mcconnell we have a lunch for Johnny Isakson which were having this afternoon. Just like theres good reason to praise Johnny Isakson and the ways democrats did, theres good reason that during his chairmanship isaksons committee passed so many bipartisan bills, 57 to be exact, to help veterans, because he treated everyone democrat, republican, independent, newly elected or Committee Chair with respect. And johnny never let the cynicism of our political times dim his faith in our ability to get something done. He didnt have the loudest voice in the room but it was often the most influential. Thats because he built up years worth of trust. He never doubted his word. He was an honest broker. Whenever a chasm seemed to separate the parties upon a certain issue, isakson was often the one spanning the divide. I know that from experience over and over again. One example, when families in new york struggled to recover from disasters like sandy only to find Flood Insurance rates were crushing them with enormous debt, it was senator isakson whose state suffered its fair of disasters, who worked with my office to find a solution. We made enormous progress together working to strengthen media shield laws, protecting fearless and independent journalism at a time when we need to stand up for a free and open press. And in this most important appropriations process, we worked together to help the widows and children impacted by 9 11 gain access to a special terror victims fund. I want to thank him personally for that and more broadly, i want to thank him for the example he set for many of other senators. There are many fine adjectives that will be used to describe senator isakson, and all of them will be well deserved. But one word used to describe senator isakson is not often found in the halls of congress. Kind. Johnny isakson is one of the kindest, most thoughtful senators ive known in my time here. A true statesman. Thats why i know that independent of any party or politics, everyone will miss johnny. Ill have more to say about our friend at the bipartisan lunch this afternoon. But for now, id like to note for the record senator isaksons many years of faithful service to his beloved state of georgia and his country. We wish him and dianne the very best as he enters the next chapter of his life. I yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call the presiding officer the senator from arkansas. Mr. Cotton i ask consent to end the quorum call. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Cotton the New York Times has recently obtained a secret group of documents from the chinese party. Those documents reveal chilling, terrifying details about beijings campaign to stamp out all dissent and religious diversity in the xinjiang province in northwest china where the party has counted more than one million uighurs and other minorities in reeducation camps. These documents bring to mind George Orwells famous novel 1984 not as the cautionary tale as he meant it, but as an instruction manual for the totalitarian government in beijing. This reign of terror began in 2014 after a string of terror attacks in xinjiang province. But instead of bringing those terrorists to justice, the Chinese Communist party used the attacks as an opportunity to eradicate all dissent, all wrong think from a province of 25 million residents. It would be as if y you tried to turn the state of texas into a concentration camp. These documents reveal a stunning order from general secretary xi jinping who said we must be as harsh as them as show them no mercy. So to beat these terrorists, beijing chose to adopt the tactics of terror. Every uighur and dissenter in the province is suffering as a result every secretary xi tapped one of the most notorious enforcers to execute this mission, a man named chin who climbed the ranks of the communist party first by crushing dissent and religious diversity in the northwestern chinese province of tibet. And the techniques that they perfected in tibet, the Chinese Communist party took to xi that area. They have turned it into a state with ruthless competence. His police rounded up everyone who should be rounded up. Uighurs young and old were loaded on to buses and taken to concentration camps with big concrete walls and razorsharp barbed wire. The police informed anxious relatives that these were schools. Their loved ones were being reeducated. And no, they were not free to leave the school, nor would there be any recess or field trips. A secret manual obtained by western journalists reveals that these facilities operate more like maximum Security Prisons than schools. The manuals very first section deals with preventing escapes with the use of patrols, internal separation, Video Surveillance and double lox on dormitory hallway doors. The manual even advocates for the use of secret forces to infiltrate the detainee population and prevent them from joining forces or planning escape. Beijing now holds, let me say again, more than one Million People in these reeducation camps. Supposedly for reasons of National Security, but the truth is a lot more chilling. The Chinese Communists, like all totalitarians, are paranoid about their own survival, and rightly so as a conspiracy of greedy, powermad princelings with no democratic legitimacy whatsoever. And like all totalitarian rulers, the Chinese Communist party is also a very jealous master. Every attachment, every conviction, every loyalty, whether to ones family, ones culture, even once greater must be sacrificed on the altar of the party. According to the Chinese Communist party, every knee must bow it and every tongue must profess the slogans of xi and mao. That means the uighurs but also hong kongers, timber atance, taiwanese, and others. A paranoid communist power must not limit itself to one power or one people, nor will it ultimately limit itself to its own land. It will extend its tyrannical reach to every corner that it views as its own, creeping ever outward until it commands the deference of all the world, until it deals with the rebellious billions who havent yet learned to love the chinese big brother. The Chinese Communist party is running concentration camps today, but make no mistake, its appetite for expansion is far greater. Its methods of control applicable to anyone anywhere. The free world must confront this threat and act now to avert such a dark and chilling future. Mr. President , i note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Durbin mr. President. The presiding officer the assistant democratic leader. Mr. Durbin i ask unanimous consent the quorum call be suspended. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Durbin a few years ago, a woman who works in my office in chicago actually cleans up the office in the evenings was so excited when she learned that her daughter had been accepted to college. It was a dream come true for a woman who had emigrated to the United States, taken some of the hardest, most menial manual jobs in the hopes that her daughter would one day have a better life. She sat down with my chief of staff in chicago to tell her about the details, and immediately we knew that there was much more to the story. Her daughter had been accepted not just at another college or university. She had been accepted at a forprofit college in the chicagoland area. The forprofit colleges and universities are notorious. The numbers tell the story. Two simple numbers. 9 of High School Graduates go on to forprofit colleges and universities. The university of phoenix, devry, pretty wellknown names. 9 of students go to those schools. But 33 of all the student loan defaults are students from forprofit colleges and universities. Why . Why is this one category of Higher Education so notorious for students starting deeply in debt to the point where they cant pay it back . Well, the reasons are simple and very obvious they overcharge the students and undereducate them. They make promises that are wild and cant be kept. They give them courses of doubtful value and dont tell them that any hours they earn at those forprofit schools cant be transferred to real city colleges, community colleges, and universities. So the students are stuck. At some point, some of them pretty piling on the debt and just basically walk away. All the promises of all the jobs and careers that were supposed to come from this are never going to materialize. It is a classic fraud, and sadly our government is part of that fraud. You see, we accredit those schools. We tell that cleaning lady and her family that these are good schools and universities. The federal government does that. And offers federal loans to these students to go to these schools. Is it any wonder the students and their families think theyre doing the right thing for their future . The federal government gave a stamp of approval. Well, what happens when those schools really reach the end of the road . What happens when those same forprofit colleges and universities go bankrupt . The student is in a terrible position. Deeply in debt with courses that are meaningless with their lives compromised and nowhere to turn. We decided long ago to create an opportunity for these students to get out of this dilemma, one that we shared in by accrediting these schools. Something called the borrower defense which allows these students, if they were defrauded, to discharge their Student Loans and get on with their lives. Today, hundreds of thousands of students who were defrauded by their forprofit colleges are desperately waiting for secretary of Education Betsy Devos to discharge their federal Student Loans under the provision of federal law known as the borrower defense. Congress created the borrower defense provision to ensure students lives are not ruined by the misconduct and deception of these schools. In 2014, forprofit Corinthian Colleges collapsed. It left more than 70,000 students nationwide with worthless credits they couldnt transfer and mounds of student debt. The students had been lured into those corinthian schools with false promises, inflated placement rates, income projections. We know that for a fact. We have the data to show that they were lying to the students about what graduation from corinthian could mean in their lives. And over the last five or six years, nearly every other major forprofit college, nearly every one of them has faced federal and state lawsuits and investigations for predatory practices similar to Corinthian Colleges. The result has been hundreds of thousands of defrauded students across america who are seeking discharges which we say they are entitled to under federal law. Secretary betsy devos has allowed more than 200,000 borrower Defense Applications to pile up at the department. Nearly 11,000 from my own home state. But listen to this, mr. President secretary devos has not approved a single claim for more than a year. 200,000 applications stacking up at the department of education. Not one approved. So who are some of these borrowers that are languishing . What is their story . Let me tell you about do of them. About two of them. One is jessica from tucson, arizona. Jessica attended the Art Institute of tucson from 2009 until 2012. It was owned by a failed forprofit Education Management corporation, edmc. Heart breakingly, jessica says i have experienced unbelievable amounts of stress and depression due to this situation. I have been placed on antidepressants and antianxiety medication over the years and been through therapy. I have selfharmed and contemplated suicide because i felt so trapped and unable to recover and move forward. I have a general feeling of worthlessness because i feel like my potential had been squandered. She went to the Art Institute of tucson, and her experience has led her to this desperate situation. She tried to better herself. Instead of that bright huge, she is left with a mountain of debt and nothing to show for it but deep financial, social, and psychological pain. She says every aspect of my life has been affected. And so, as secretary betsy devoy devos tried to help jessica . No. Secretary devos is making it worse. Jessica submitted her borrower defense application almost four years ago in 2016. She has waited for this period of time to hear anything from the department of education. What is the excuse of that . If someone writes a letter to my office and doesnt get a reply and they come back and say, well, are you going to answer this, durbin . We send a reply. We try to do it promptly with everyone. But how can secretary devos be holding these things up for years while these students see a mountain of debt growing. As she waits, jessicas loans are in forbearance where they can continue to gather interest, meaning that the total amount owed continues to grow. She just won a 4,518 she is just one of 4,518 borrowers from arizona who are stuck waiting for betsy devos to discharge fraudulent loans. I mentioned colorado earlier. About 1,600 borrowers from colorado are waiting for relief. Jonathan from westminister is one of them. He attended devry, studying to be an electronics engineer. He is a father and a husband who is trying to provide more for his family. He took out Student Loans. He currently owes nearly 100,000 in outstanding federal Student Loans from attending devry, twice what he was told his education would cost. Of his debt, jonathan says my credit has been destroyed. I couldnt repay these loans in two lifetimes even if my degree had any valuable to employers. Sadly, it sadly it doesnt. Jonathan said my Student Loans are the millstone around my family. The debt i owe makes my kids not want to attend college at all. Their own dad has an engineering degree and cant get hired anywhere because the school is a scam. Those are the words of jonathan it not only has this fraudulent school taken away his future with piles of debt, in many ways it affects his childrens future. Jonathan applied for a borrow defense three years ago, has been waiting to hear from secretary devos. Her failure to provide him with relief, quote, has caused him to lose faith a that the government will protect students like him. It devos has ignored borrowers and has made it impossible for future borrowers to secure the relief that congress intended by rewriting the rules. In august secretary devos released a new version of the borrow and defense rule that has unreasonable burdens. The department estimates that the devos rule will deny nearly 11 million in relief to borrowers compared to the current role. In september i introduced legislation in september to overturn the devos defense rule. 22 there are 22 cosponsors. I intend to bring to the floor for a vote where it needs a simple majority to pass. At that time my colleagues both sides of the aisle will have a chance, will they stay with devos actions or lack of actions for three or four years, will they help students or stand with young people like jessica and jonathan trying to get their lives back together. Trying to the get congress to implement the one law that passed to help them. Its a choice that seems easy for most american people. A recent opinion poll in the Anchorage Daily News criticized secretary devos for siding with forprofit colleges in denying Student Loan Debt relief to thousands of students. Even in alaska hundreds of borrowers are waiting for borrow defense discharges. Nationally americans agree these defrauded borrowers deserve relief. In 2016, 78 of americans said that students should have their federal Student Loan Debt discharged if their school deceived them. Thats pretty basic, isnt . If you were cheated, you ought to be taken care of. When you break the numbers down by party, 81 of democrats, 71 of republicans, a vast majority supported relief for students. When it comes on the resolution to overturn the devos defense rule denying relief to defrauded borrowers, i hope that my colleagues will stand with the students and the american people. I yield the floor. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from tennessee. Mrs. Blackburn thank you, mr. President. My hope is that each of us in this chamber, and our families, enjoyed a wonderful thanksgiving time, being grateful for all the blessings that we in this country have. I know that i certainly had a wonderful week. I had the opportunity to spend some time across the great state of tennessee and talking with tennesseans about what was on their mind and i will tell you this for as diverse in opinion and experience as tennesseans are, there is one thing in common that i heard repeatedly, and they are through with trying to guess where politicians in washington, d. C. , stand on issues. Im telling you, it is going to be this is something i think all of us need to hear, probably dont want to hear, but our fellow americans, and certainly tennesseans, have no idea what their elected representatives believe. Instead all they see up here is this endless cycle of political in fighting and failed legislation. And you know what, mr. President , they consistently say, we want you to focus on things that are important to us. We want you to focus on things that are important to us important to the country. And i will tell you it is no wonder that our countrys discourse is plagued by what is a marked cynicism for even our most ernest efforts ernest efforts. As i thought about this from the week and the visits that i had kras the state, i across the state, i thought, you know, you need to look no further for an example for where they see this fighting being unnecessary. You look no further than an issue that has become a magnet for division, and that is the issue of protecting life, but more specifically the use of taxpayer dollars to fund the abortion procedure. In poll after after poll after poll, a majority of americans have indicated that they oppose public funding of abortion. And you know the numbers on this are not even close. As early as this summer, selfidentified democrats, that is selfidentified democrats, their support for taxpayerfunded abortion struggled to even break out of single digits. The data is clear. It is convincing. The american taxpayer does not want their tax dollar being used to Fund Abortion procedures. So how is it then that my friends in the minority insist upon loopholes and work arounds that make taxpayers complicit in the slaughter of the unborn . Their cause has been frustrated, of course, by President Trumps aggressively prolife agenda. Last year he proposed the protect life rule which cut taxpayer funding under the title 10 program for any facility that performs abortions or that refers their client to those facilities that perform abortion. This rule closely mirrored my title 10 Abortion Provider prohibition act, that was the first bill ill filed when i came to the senate. Its something that i filed when i first came to the senate. It is very important to me. But this year this bodys liberal factions once again seized the opportunity to undercut the prolife agenda via a legislative trick known around these chambers in capitol as a capitol as a poison pill. You see, mr. President , they found a way to hold hostage millions of dollars attached to the fiscal year 2020 state foreign ops appropriations bill. This was done via an amendment that funnels Family Planning dollars to domestic organizations that support abortions overseas. See what they are doing. Its an amendment that funnels Family Planning dollars to domestic u. S. Organizations, but those organizations are supporting abortions overseas. It also uses obamaera agenda policies to identifying sex, a clear red herring to get people arguing about gender identity so they will not have to argue about the issue of abortion. Mr. President , you could talk this all up to politics were it not for the existence of the bipartisan budget agreement. Both parties agreed to this ahead of our work on appropriations. That agreement included a ban on poison pill riders like the shaheen amendment as well as assurances that any poison pills would be swiftly removed. See, we thought we had taken care of that issue with a bipartisan budget agreement, but, oh, no, here we go. And, yet, in order to and im quoting empower women overseas, end quote, democrats have indicated that they are willing to throw away 847 million for maternal and child health. 100 million for Global Health security programs, 150 million for nutrition assistance and 6. 2 billion for global h. I. V. And aids assistance. They are doing this they are throwing all that money away so they can make a political point. This is an Interesting Development coming from the party that once deployed their support for abortion in only the most extraordinary circumstances, the party of safe legal and rare their terminology has become the party that hedges their bets with infant side and expense over human life. Just across the river in virginia ralph n the governor has talked tennesseans told me that they want to see their representatives speaking up. They want to see women speaking up on behalf of life, of families, and the unborn. They see clearly that if protecting life they see clearly if protecting life is the hallmark of the conservative movement, then destroying life is the hallmark of a more liberal approach. They want us to draw a line in the sand and declare once and for all that loopholes and legislative tricks will no longer be tolerated. Because of them, abortion is not up for a casual discussion. They see how clearly and how easily the left trifles with the lives of children and their repulsed by it. What they want us to do is focus on getting things done that are important to them, and, yes, to tennesseans being able to say the right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness, that is something that has a deep meaning. I yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call mrs. Blackburn mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from tennessee. Mrs. Blackburn i ask that we vitiate the quorum call. The presiding officer without objection. The question is on the nomination. Black brac i ask for the yeas and nays. The presiding officer is there a sufficient second . There appears to be. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote . If not, the yeas are 86, the nays are 4. The nomination is confirmed. Under the previous order, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the president will be immediately notified of the senates actions. 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 the nomination of john l. Sinatra, jr. Of new york to be United States district judge for the Western District of new york, signed by 17 senators. The presiding officer by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. The question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of john l. Sinatra, jr. Of new york to be the United States district judge for the Western District of new york 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 are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote . If not, the ayes are 76, the nays are 16. The motion is agreed to. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, the judiciary. John l. Sinatra, jr. , of new york to be United States district judge for the Western District of new york. Mr. Wicker mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from mississippi. Mr. Wicker mr. President , i ask unanimous consent that following the cloture vote on executive calendar number 353, the time following the recess until 4 30 p. M. Be reserved for tributes to retiring senator isakson. Further, that the time from 4 30 to 5 00 be equally divided between the leaders or their designees on the nomination. And at 5 30 p. M. , the senate vote on the nominations in the order lists, executive calendar 478, 381, 459, 460. If cloture is invoked, the confirmation votes on executive calendar number 353, 478, 381, 459, and 460 occur at 2 00 p. M. On wednesday, december 4. I further ask consent that the mandatory quorum call with respect to the duncan nomination be waived and that the cloture votes on executive calendar number 479, 489, and 386 occur at 11 30 a. M. On wednesday, december 4. And that if cloture is invoked, the confirmation votes occur at a time to be determined by the majority leader in consultation with the democratic leader on thursday, december 5. I further ask consent that with respect to all of the votes ordered in this agreement, the nominations are confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the president be immediately notified of the senates action. The presiding officer is there objection . Without objection. Mr. Wicker mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from mississippi. Mr. Wicker i have six requests for committees to meet during todays session of the senate. They have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. The presiding officer duly noted. Mr. Wicker and, mr. President , i ask unanimous consent that senator feinstein be able to speak for up to ten minutes prior to the scheduled recess. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Wicker thank you, mr. President. Mrs. Feinstein mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from california. Mrs. Feinstein thank you very much, mr. President. I rise today in opposition to the nomination of sarah pick like to the United StatesDistrict Court for the Eastern District of missouri. Ms. Pitlyks record is extremely troubling and raises a number of questions about her ability to be a fair and impartial judge. Ms. Pitlyk was deemed by the American Bar Association to be not qualified, one of only 3 of people reviewed by the bar over the past three years. This is the first that i have had occasion to review in total. A District Court, mr. President , as you well know a district judge court must hit the ground rundsing. Ms. Pitlyks lack of experience would significantly disadvantage the litigants appearing before her. I also want to acknowledge the highly unusual nature of a notqualified rating by the bar. 97 of President Trumps nominees have been rated at least qualified by the American Bar Association. This means that ms. Pitlyk falls into the small minority just 3 of candidates deemed not qualified by the bar association. This shows how rare that rating is. The a. B. A. Has been reviewing the qualifications, as you well know, of judicial nominees since 1989. They know what theyre doing, and those of us on the committee take their evaluations very seriously. Next, i want to discuss ms. Pitlyks record opposing womens reproductive rights and limiting access to health care. Ms. Pitlyk defended a state law banning abortion at six weeks. She opposed the Affordable Care acts coverage for contraception and she defended President Trumps title 10 gag rule. The trump administrations title 10 gag rule prohibits referrals for abortion care and impose ozonerrous construction requirements on abortion clinics, among other things. The rule effectively pushed planned parenthood out of the title 10 program, curtailing access to health care for millions of lowincome women and families. Ms. Pitlyk has also filed multiple legal briefs containing misinformation. Last year she argued without any credible evidence that, quote, racism plays a profound role in the delivery of abortion services, end quote. In another case, ms. Pitlyk claimed, again without evidence, that in vitro fertilization leads to higher rates of birth defects, genetic disorders, and other anomalies. I think its disqualifying for any judicial nominee to make unfounded and unsupported claims, especially in a court of law. Ms. Pitlyk has also made statements in her personal capacity opposing access to health care. Just last year, she called the supreme courts decision upholding the Affordable Care act unprincipled. And earlier this year, she said that the supreme courts Reproductive Health care cases have, quote, gross defects, end quote. She statements and ms. Pitlyks legal work raise serious concerns about her ability to apply the supreme courts important precedents fairly and impartially. I am troubled by her record, her lack of experience, and i urge my colleagues to join me in opposing her nomination. And i ask at this time that an article from politico be made part of the record. The presiding officer without objection. Mrs. Feinstein thank you very much, mr. President. I yield the floor. The presiding officer under the previous order, the senate the previous order, the senate and the senate gaveling out so senators contend a bipartisan lunch honoring georgia senator Johnny Isakson who is retiring. He will deliver his Farewell Speech on the senate floor this afternoon and later more work on judicial nominations today in the senate. Earlier they put to confirm a judge for the Eastern District of new york. Also former National Security adviser susan rice will talk about National Security and her experience serving in the Obama Administration live at 1 20 p. M. Eastern also here on cspan2. The house impeachment inquiry hearings continue on cspan. Today, the House Intelligence Committee will vote in a closeddoor session to send their findings and President Trump to the House Judiciary Committee. Then on wednesday five at 10 a. M. Eastern to House Judiciary Committee led by chair Jerrold Nadler hold a Public Inquiry hearing on the constitutional grounds for president ial impeachment and will hear testimony from law professors. Follow the impeachment inquiry and watch live on cspan3, online at cspan. Org, or listen on the free cspan radio app. Cspans studentcam 2020 competition is in full swing. All across the country middle and High School Students are hard at work creating the short documentaries on issues they most would like the president ial candidates to address in their campaigns. We would love to see your progress. Take us behind the scenes and share your photos using the hashtag studentcam 2024 chance to win additional cash prizes. Still working on an idea . We have resources on our website to help out. Our Getting Started page studentcam. Org has information to guide you through the process of making a documentary. Cspan will award 100,000 in total cash prizes including a in total cash prizes including a 5000 grand prize. All eligible entries must be uploaded and received by midnight january 20, 2020. The best advice i can give is not to be afraid to take your issue seriously. You are never too young to have an opinion so let your voice be heard now. For more information go to our website, studentcam. Org