Heavens that bring blessings to our earthly pilgrimage. Today, guide our lawmakers with your glorious wisdom. In the greatness of your majesty, fulfill your purposes for their lives as you order their steps. Show them such unfailing love that they will walk before you in wholehearted devotion. Lord, place your Healing Hands upon our nation and world, delivering us from this Global Health crisis. We pray in your powerful 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. Mr. Grassley madam president. The presiding officer the senator from iowa. Mr. Grassley permission to speak in morning business for 90 seconds. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley my iowa offices are located in cedar rapids, council bluffs, davenport, doims, sioux city and waterloo. My state staff serves as my eyes and ears in communities from one side of the state to the other. So from the mississippi to the missouri rivers, i expect my staff and they do have their fingers on the pulse of iowans. And this pandemic is no exception. Theyre working tirelessly to trouble shoot problems iowans are facing related to the Public Health emergencies and the economic fallout. No matter the concern, the problem, or circumstances thats affecting a farm, a business, school or local hospital, my staff is on the ground ready to help. So in the early weeks of the pandemic, they helped trouble shoot for iowans who were overseas to get back home to the United States. One example, in peru, several young people stranded and wanted to come home. Didnt get home very fast but theyre home now. Since Congress Passed the cares act, my staff have answered countless questions from iowans about the Paycheck Protection Program, Economic Injury disaster loans, and Economic Impact payments. Whatever the question or red tape may be, my staff goes the extra mile to serve iowans. They do whatever it takes to track down an answer and help make government work for the people as the government should work for the people. As always, theyre in the trenches during this pandemic, working to help iowans get through this and get through it together. I yield the floor. The presiding officer under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. Morning business is closed. Under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of the veto message on s. J. Resolution 68 which the clerk will report. The clerk veto message to accompany s. J. Res. 68 a joint resolution to remove United States armed forces against the hostilities of the republic of iran that have not been authorized by congress. Of mr. Mcconnell madam president. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell the United States is battling the worst pandemic in 100 years. Our nation has poured unprecedented resources into defending Americans Health and blunting the damage to our economy. The senate will continue to work on this front. Well find more ways to keep strengthening our Health Care Response and pivot the nation toward recovery. That will include strong Legal Protections to defend health care workers, Small Businesses, and other institutions against the trial lawyer feeding frenzy as they work hard to keep serving their neighbors, but, madam president , amid the pandemic, we cannot lose sight of the other threats we still face as well. The challenges that we face before covid19 began to spread from wuhan, china, are still with us today alongside this awful disease. There are terrorist cells, hostile Foreign Service authorities and those and the world who would love nothing more than for us to apply socials to our presence the on the world stage as well. Iran has not let popular unrest, a mismanaged economy or even covid19 slow their aggressive meddling from yemen to the mediterranean. Tehran and its proxies are still undermining the sovereignty of iraq and lebanon, aiding and abetting assads mass murder in syria, sowing regional unrest, threatening israel, and targeting american troops in our interest. A regime that chooses to spend its scant resources on exporting violence or a socalled Space Program does not need relief from sanctions. We must maintain the measure of deterrence we restored with the decisive strike on soleimani. That starts today with upholding the president s rightful veto of a misguided war powers resolution. Meanwhile an apparent repudiation of the trump administrations efforts to help end the civil war in afghanistan, taliban attacks against the countrys government and its people have actually spiked. And isis, al qaeda, and other terrorists continue to operate from afghan territory. Over in moscow, putins regime continues to threaten american interests along with interNational Security, from bullying incursions in these states that used to rule to influence peddling and mercenary adventurism and a power vacuum in syria and libya to spreading information and undermining democracies all across the globe. And russian intelligence is not alone in targeting america. Chinas efforts to steal government industry secrets are unmatched. Countering these kinds of hostile activities is the key job of our intelligence community, so is stopping terrorist attacks against our homeland. So next week the senate will turn back to reauthorizing the critical authorities in the foreign Intelligence Surveillance act. The housepassed legislation well take up is not a blanket reauthorization of fisa. Its a careful update designed to provide greater accountability for the ways these authorities are exercised. It will increase transparency in the fisa process and respond to the shameful abuses of 2016 while preserving the toolbox that professionals use to defend us. I hope the senate will pass it next week free of amendments that would jeopardize important tools that keep america safe. And then, madam president , there is the matter of the peoples republic of china. This coronavirus pandemic originated in china. Whether the virus escaped from a lab or was transmitted at a socalled wet market, we do not yet know for sure. The Chinese Communist party leads probably do know Party Leaders probably do know and they owe it to all the nations suffering from this virus to be truthful and to be transparent. The world deserves the facts, all of the facts. Heres one fact we do know, the virus spread was exacerbated by chinas unconscionable efforts to cover it up. The communist party reprimanded and threatened to jail the doctor, the heroic whistleblower, who tried to warn the world about covid19 and later died from it. Within hours of his death, by the way, the wave of outrage over c. C. P. s treatment of dr. Li spread on chinese social media until the government censored that as well. At the peak of the outbreak the Chinese Communist party was reportedly wielding its own people inside their own houses, welding them inside their own houses. And today you Better Believe the party come comisars are training sights on the activists and lawyers who dare to seek the truth. Outside the borders, chinas leaders seem to think they can either charm, cajole, or threaten the world into submission. They supposedly donated medical supplies to Foreign Countries that quickly proved faulty and unusable. They threatened to boycott australian beef. They even threatened to cut off pharmaceutical exports to the u. S. So that we would, quote, plunge into the mighty sea of coronavirus, end quote. Its galling but not surprising. This is the same authoritarian regime that brutalized the uighur people in modernday gulags, that have spent years of cheating its way through International Commerce and stealing industrial secrets. Now it is exploiting the Global Pandemic that it helped exacerbate to further its crackdown on hong kong. A few weeks ago the government arrested peaceful democracy activists including my old friend of almost three decades, martin lee. I suppose they thought the rest of the world might be too distracted to notice. They were mistaken. Madam president , alongside our friends and partners around the world, the United States is going to be asking tough questions about our relationship with the Chinese Communist party. I expect the senate will soon look to pass senator rubios uighur human rights policy act, a bipartisan bill that will bring more attention to the plight of this mistreated minority, and i urge the president to use targeted sanctions against those responsible for their repression. And while we and our allies already saw the risks from letting critical supply chains become too dependent on china, the Chinese Communist partys recent behavior hammered this home. Im confident we in washington will be examining these strategic vulnerabilities as well. Well be looking for the best ways to strengthen our dynamic and Innovative Private sector, keep america on the cutting edge, and work closely with friends who share our values and interests to build a fairer, more Resilient International market. Notice, madam president , that china is not retrenching or drawing back within its borders. Quite the opposite. So we want to preserve a world built on our Democratic Values and principles, if we want to protect american workers, american interests and American National security. All of these things will take more Global Leadership and more coordination with our allies, not less. Tomorrow, may 8, is the 75th anniversary of v. E. Day. If we ever needed a reminder that americas strength is a force for good in the world, there it is. Thanks to the tireless work of our colleague, senator pat roberts, tomorrow is meant to be the dedication of the new eisenhower memorial. Its been postponed due to the virus. It almost seems fitting that 75 years after world war ii, a celebration of president eisenhower would be delayed by a Global Crisis that will take american strength and American Leadership to resolve. He certainly knew something about that kind of a situation. Now, as then, the American People do not want to retreat from the world, and they do not want to see us slide into second place. They want us to be smart and strong and safe, and they want the United States of america to lead. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Schumer madam president. The presiding officer the democratic leader. Mr. Schumer i ask unanimous consent the quorum be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer now, madam president , tomorrow the bureau of labor statistics will publish its monthly jobs report for april. Some experts are projecting that it could show well over 20 million job losses in the past four weeks. The preliminary report today suggests that will be over 30 million newly unemployed americans over the past seven weeks. Thats a tenth, one out of ten people losing their job. A tenth of our population. We are looking at what seems to be the worst economic crisis since the great depression. Small businesses have shuttered. Some larger businesses have filed for bankruptcy. Millions of workers, through no fault of their own, are being laid off or furloughed or losing their paychecks. They are worried about keeping their homes, feeding their kids, accessing health care. Once this crisis is over, we cant snap our fingers and have everything return to normal. 20 million to 30 million newly employed americans newly unemployed americans wont immediately return to their old jobs. Hopefully, many can, but many jobs just wont be there. The disease has washed over our nation like a flood. Once the waters have receded, there will be a great deal of damage left in its wake. We need a big, bold answer to this. We need to marshall a broader spirit of action. The American People need an active and engaged and forceful government to lift them up and carry them through these dark times. Speaker pelosi and i are working on a big, bold plan that will deal with the magnitude of the problem. So i am appalled today that republican congressional leaders and President Trump are saying that we should delay more assistance to the American People. A week ago, the republican leader, leader mcconnell, said, quote, we need to push the pause button. Tell that to someone whos losing his job. Tell that to someone who has worked so hard to create a Small Business over decades and sees it falling apart. Tell that to the family who has a member thats sick with covid or Something Else and cant get Adequate Health care. To say that we should wait and see whats happening, as leader mcconnell has said, that maybe we dont need to do anything more is ignoring whats going on around us. Over 30 million unemployed and certain Republican Leaders are saying lets hit the pause button on future government support. The republican leader of this chamber called us back into session, despite the obvious health risks, not to consider new relief or respond to the covid pandemic, but to process nominations. He has been coming to the floor, drawing red lines in the sand, pledging not to support another emergency relief bill unless it extends legal immunity to big corporations. Today he gave a very long speech on National Security. Now, thats very important, but the number one immediate crisis facing us is covid. And this speaks as sort of a metaphor for what Senate Republicans are doing this week on covid, virtually nothing. Senator cardin and i and senator shaheen went to the floor and simply asked for a simple bill to pass that would require accountability and in p. P. P. , and it was blocked by the majority. So this is just amazing. There has been large support in congress to stabilize the big financial markets, support larger industries, and keep Capital Markets from crashing. There will be 4 trillion available when the fed and treasury are through with it. We must do the same if not more for average people. Workers, families. The contrast is glaring. The contrast is glaring. Larger Companies Know they have a floor, the big markets know they have a floor. An unemployed worker has no floor until we do things for them like we did with pandemic Unemployment Insurance. There are many more people, average americans, who need the same kind of health, a greater degree of help, a different kind of help, and many of these average folks are in worse shape. Democrats have strived to make as much of our congressional relief effort flow to workers and average American Families as much as possible. Its still not enough. State and local governments, that means teachers and firefighters and Police Officers and bus drivers who might be laid off still need help. Our essential workers deserve hazard pay. Minorityowned and womenowned businesses still need more access to lending. Renters and homeowners need relief. And millions of working people need enhanced nutrition benefits. Thousands and thousands of people are overwhelming our local food banks. But now that assistance to Big Industries has gone out the door, Republican Leaders are saying lets wait and see. The unemployed worker doesnt want to wait and see. The Small Business that might go under doesnt want to wait and see. The mom or dad who needs to feed their hungry children does not want to wait and see. Like our Republican Leaders seem to be. Now is not the time to wait and see. Nows the time to move forward. Our history is replete with examples of what happens when the federal government doesnt rise to the occasion in a time of National Emergency. In the early days of the great depression, president Herbert Hoover was reluctant to use Natural Resources to combat a national crisis. His failure to act contributed to the length and severity of the depression. If our republican colleagues if President Trump responds with the same timidity as president hoover did, i fear the nation would suffer the same consequences as it did in the past. And many economists agree. If we do nothing more, like some of our republican colleagues seem to feel we should, a good number of economists believe we will have our second great depression. Unless we do something. If President Trump, leader mcconnell, leader say lets wait and see. Republicans werent worried about the deficit when they spent billions to keep their businesses from folding, but all of a sudden are worried about it when were talking about families keeping roofs over their head and putting the food on the table we need a fourth congressional relief bill. That mirrors the size and ambition of our previous relief efforts. Working people, truly Small Businesses are taking the blunt effects of this crisis on the chin, and we cannot, cannot and must not leave them behind. Now, there are plenty of things the federal government can do in the interim, even before another round of legislation in congress. I want to mention one idea this morning. There are many more. Several big publicly traded companies that have received Small Business loans have started sheepishly returning the money to the Treasury Department. Rightly so. Many have much greater access to other capital than true Small Businesses, and they shouldnt crowd out the lending of those Small Businesses that truly need it. Secretary mnuchin has told me that roughly 10 billion in loans have been paid off or returned by these large companies. 10 billion happens to be the same amount we asked the Treasury Department to set aside for lending to minority did he pos it incident deposit institutions. I would like to ask that the money being set aside by big publicly traded companies in the p. P. P. For loans to businesses that are truly small. The very Small Businesses with under ten employees and other underserved rural, minorityowned and womenowned businesses. Too many Big Companies rushed in to secure early lending in the early days of the p. P. P. Program, while smaller businesses were shut out. They should have put out stronger guidance to the banks in the early days. Something i believe they were trying they are trying to correct now. We can begin to right those disparities if treasury would simply redirect redirect the return loans to truly small and underserved businesses using communitybased lenders. I hope secretary mnuchin will agree to. Another issue that cannot wait for another bill, of course, is testing. Testing is the key to finely defeating this disease and its the key to safely reopening the country. President trump promised on march 6, his words, anybody that wants a test can get a test. That was President Trump two months ago. Its still not even close to being true. President trump seems to think by saying something it happens. By saying its a hoax, he thinks it was a hoax. By saying its going to go away, he thinks it will go away. This covid virus does not listen to President Trumps cheery and false words. Unfortunately. President trump, when it comes to testing, what is the plan . Where railroad the tests . Countries like south korea and germany, new zealand and australia were able to flatten the curve much more quickly than we have by rigorously testing their population, contract cases and isolating cases. As the coronavirus spread, the u. S. Lagged far behind the other countries. Some experts believe we need to have two million tests a day. Today were testing for less than 300,000. For the administration to pressure states and businesses to reopen without a plan for a dramatic increase in testing is like sending them out of the door with a blind followed on. Its blindfold on, its dangerous. Congress has required the administration to have a strategy by may 4. Instead of Wasting Energy and lashing out at supposed enemies, the president should roll up his sleeves and get to work on testing. The patience of the American People is wearing very, very thin. I yield the floor. I note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Mr. Durbin madam president. The presiding officer the senator from illinois. Mr. Durbin i ask consent the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Durbin madam president , we live in ar dangerous a dangerous world. The republican came to the floor and spoke about Foreign Policy. Later on today we will address the veto override on the war powers act, a measure which i cosponsored. It might surprise some people that were in the area on Foreign Policy on the Senate Agenda this week because in this dangerous world that we live in, we all know the first thing you look for is the danger at the doorstep and our danger is, of course, a National Emergency, as President Trump as characterized it, a Public Health crisis, the covid19 coronavirus threat to the United States and all of our families. Many of us who came back to washington this week were weary because we had been warned to stay in our homes as long as possible, stay out of circulation, not to gather in workplaces unless absolutely necessary, and all of us thought if we were going to return, we hoped the priority would be this looming crisis in america, this Public Health crisis, but, sadly, as we bring this weeks legislative activity to a close, little, if anything, has been said or done on the senate floor or in committee to address the judiciary of the moment. What are we going to do to protect americans and their families . Senator mcconnell brought us back for a hearing for one of his favorite judges, a federal judge in kentucky, a young man who was an intern in his office, and he is now trying to promote him to the secondhighest court in the land. In the ordinary course of business this would not be unusual. It might have drawn some questions because of the qualification of this individual. But attention has been given to it as people compare it to the real issues that we should be facing. You think about the issues before us, one of them is very imminent. Across the street from the United States senate is the Supreme Court building. Pending before the Supreme Court at this moment is a lawsuit brought by President Trump and republican attorneys general from across the United States to abolish the Affordable Care act. To abolish an Affordable Care act that provides Health Insurance for 20 million americans and also provides protections in the Health Insurance policies for another 135 million americans. A law which basically says, if you have a preexisting condition, you cant be denied insurance coverage. At this moment in our history, at this moment as we face this health crisis, it is unimaginable that the republican position is to eliminate Health Insurance protection for 20 million americans and to lessen the protections in Health Insurance policies for 135 million more. So far 1. 2 million americans have been diagnosed as infected with the covid19 virus. Sadly, some 70,000 americans have died. Whats going to happen in the days and months and years ahead if the republicans have their way and if preexisting conditions return to Health Insurance . Will there be a day when you or your spouse or your parent or your children will be asked if you were ever diagnosed positive for covid19 . Will this be a disqualification in the future if we dont have the protection when it comes to preexisting conditions . Thats not out of the realm of possibility. How can the republicans be thinking that this is the right moment in history to abolish the Affordable Care act and the Health Insurance that 20 million americans count on and 135 million americans in their own Health Insurance plans take advantage of . It is exactly the wrong moment. There was an effort to abolish this Affordable Care act, they like to call it obamacare on the floor of the senate in the last two years and i still remember when john john mccain, the late senator from arizona, came to the floor in the early hours, gave a motion for a novote and that was the end of the story when the republican abolition effort ended with that voted. You would think they learned that lesson when senator mccain and other republicans said we cannot eliminate this without something to replace it. They didnt then and they dont now. Attorney general barr warned the white house not to go forward with this lawsuit pending in the Supreme Court. He understood it was unwise from a policy viewpoint, it was unwise politically. Imagine, if you will, in the weeks and months ahead, should this Roberts Court decide to abolish the Affordable Care act in the midst of this Public Health crisis. I cant think of anything more catastrophic when it comes to these 20 million families and their Health Insurance protection and the 100 million plus who count on this protection against discrimination for preexisting conditions. Thats the reality of what we face, but its not the only reality. A decision was made this week which is almost impossible to understand. There was a telephone Conference Call involving leaders from all around the world. And these leaders came together to discuss something were all praying for, the discovery of a vaccine that will protect us from this coronavirus. They wanted money pledged, some 8 billion. Norway pledged 1 billion, the European Union pledged 1 billion. And when they went around the table, there was a chair that was empty. The United States of america wasnt at the conference. The president made a conscience decision that we would not engage in this conversation about the discovery of this lifesaving vaccine. Why . What was he possibly thinking . This notion of america first, which we hear over and over again has some value, of course, but when it comes to a Global Pandemic, when it comes to a global challenge, when it comes to the fact that over 90 countries around the world are searching for that vaccine, when it comes to the fact that most of us dont really care where it is found as long as it is found and the sooner the better, and that we have access to it for americans, as well as everyone else, thats the bottom line. It isnt about america being first and only when it comes to the vaccine. Even the Senate Republican leader said this morning, we cant retreat from the world. Its so appropriate to this global vaccine conference. Two americans were involved in this conference in this virtual Conference Call, bill and melinda gates. We know his background, his Great Success at microsoft and his commitment with his wife ever since for Global Health issues. They were at the table speaking for the United States and i want to personally thank them for being there. But we should have been there as well. The president of the United States should have been on the Conference Call. He saud have said the United States will help find this vaccine, we will be at the table when we talk about producing it in quantity so it makes a difference for everyone in the world, including the United States, and we will be here when we apportion those vaccine doses so we make sure that americans have their fair share and we can protect our own country. You want to reopen the economy, mr. President . You want to liberate america from the c. D. C. Suggestion that we shelter in place . You want to liberate us truly, then join in this conference and this conversation among leaders across the world to find this vaccine. I hope we can finder it in the United States. We have i hope we can find it in the United States, we have a lot of talented people searching. But if another country finds it, lets applaud that. If its an effective, safe vaccine that protects us, let us applaud whatever country finds it, including the United States of course. But if its found in another country, were not going to be part of the conversation as long as this president folds his arm, juts out his chin and says im sorry, the who, World Health Organization is at the table and we want no part of them so were staying away. Pride cometh before the fall, mr. President. You cant expect the American People to fall with you because of your own source of pride. We should deal with the reality of what we face in this world. Let me say a world about the state and local governments because as we consider the next round of legislation to help this economy, we certainly want to make certain that Unemployment Insurance would be available for the millions of americans, over 30 million americans who are unemployed. The current round of Unemployment Insurance is set to expire around the first of july. We want to make certain that Small Businesses that are receiving forgivable loans, so that they can be poised and ready to reopen, go into business, put people back to work, thats supposed to end around the end of june. I pray that this whole controversy and this crisis is behind us by then, but we know better. We know it will take some time to get the economy back in gear. Lets make sure that we renew our commitment to the people of this country, the families of this country, the families in this country, but dont forget the others counting on us. Dont forget the First Responders. How often have we stood up and responded and praised police, firefighters, paramedics, medical professionals and nurses who have stepped up in the midst of this crisis and showed extraordinary courage, some giving their lives in the process. Well, part of their future depends on us in the next bill. Are we going to stand up to make sure that state and local governments which have been hard hit by this crisis as well when it comes to their own revenue, will get a helping hand . God forbid we reach a point where because of the shortcomings of state and local revenue we have to lay off police, firefighters, health care workers, teachers. Is that what we want to do at this moment . A few a few weeks ago, rather, when he was asked, senator mcconnell said we should consider bankruptcy. Bankruptcy for state and local governments that cant pay their bills. What a disaster that would be. You want to see america cart wheel into a recession leading to a depression, bankruptcies from one end of america to the other by state and local governments would do just that. And the damage it would do to First Responders that have to be laid off as a result of it, the police and the fire and the teachers is incalculable. We cant let that happen to america. A bankrupt america is an america headed for a depression. When senator mcconnell suggested that, i thought to myself, he hasnt thought this through. He cannot be saying that to the teachers in kentucky and the police and the fighters and the medical professionals who count so much on our support. Madam president , at this point there are things we can do and must do. My checklist would include hazard pay for those that i mentioned, including the health care workers. Most importantly, a dramatic increase in testing. We have about onethird of the test kits we need to put america back to work. We look at situations like the ones facing us in the Meat Processing facilities. It created a real hardship on consumers across america, but dont forget the producers of livestock in south dakota and illinois and in tennessee. They are producing the pork and beef that would be headed to the processing plants and the plants are closed down. A downturn in demand for sure, but also working conditions which need to be addressed directly so that theres safety in the workplace for all american workers. When the Senate Republican leader comes to the floor and talks about we dont want anybody held responsible or liable for their conduct or misconduct during the course of this, i think hes not thinking through clearly what hes talking about. In this situation, we certainly wouldnt want to deny to nurses who are seeking protection with protective equipment masks and gloves and gowns you wouldnt want to deny them a day in court if necessary. You wouldnt want to say to workers who are in a dangerous situation in the workplace they couldnt collect workmans compensation if injured or sick. When i hear the republican leader talk about covid19 lawsuits, the lawsuits i just described both relate to covid19 and both call for simple fairness when it comes to protecting workers and families over large corporations. The Senate Leader has come to the floor so many times and saie lawyers in america. Thats the fight we want to pick . Its time for us to come together and not make that a red line against continued cooperation. Madam president , i stand here today in the hopes we will come back into session, if we do next week, and truly address the covid19. We have wasted a we could be doing so much more. I hope the Senate Republican leader who sets the agenda for the senate will go home to kentucky, and as he goes home to kentucky and talks to the families there, and i will in illinois, we both come back with the realization that the number one priority in this dangerous world is the danger at our doorstep. Let us get this under control. Protect the families and individuals across america so that we can resume the path to greatness that this country has been on since its beginning. I yield the floor. Mr. Thune madam president. The presiding officer the senator from south dakota. Mr. Thune madam president , a number of our democratic colleagues have come to the floor and spoken here or elsewhere about the importance of providing assistance to state and local governments, and that if that doesnt happen that theyre there are going to be Police Officers, First Responders and people who have essential jobs that we rely on every single day and for whom were so grateful, that wouldnt be able to get paid. I would just point out that already as part of the Coronavirus Relief measures that congress has passed, there was 150 billion sent to state and local governments, much of which has yet to be spent. And, frankly, much of which we dont know what the actual need is out there until we have a better sense for what the revenue loss is to a lot of our state and local governments. Clearly they are sounding the alarm and are justifiably worried about what happens if the downturn in the economy continues and what that might mean to their revenues. And so they are looking to washington, d. C. For assistance, and i think that as i said earlier, in the cares package there was 150 billion that went out to state and local governments. And there have been concerns about how those funds can be used. They were stipulated they had to be used for covidrelated expenses, and many state and local leaders were concerned that that did not give them the flexibility that they needed to meet other types of needs. The Treasury Department has in the past few days, madam president , come out with an interpretation that would allow those dollars, the 150 billion already appropriated, to be used to pay firefighters, to pay police, to pay First Responders, to help with Unemployment Insurance accounts at the state level, to help with Health Care Costs for people who Lose Health Care at the state level, and a range of other things to dramatically broaden the eligibility of uses for the dollars that have already been allocated to state and local governments. And so i think its important for us to make sure as we look at any additional assistance that we might provide to determine how well the dollars that are already out there have been used and to in fact see what the actual means are before we add to that. We had a number of pronouncements around here. The speaker of the house, Speaker Pelosi has come out and said we need 1 trillion in addition for state and local governments. Its hard to see how you can make a Statement Like that not knowing what the 150 billion has been used for or whether it has been used at all. The fact that we have 150 billion in the pipeline, the eligibility and uses of which have been dramatically broadened by the Treasury Department to enable states to use it for all the very things that many of the democrats have been coming down here and saying if we dont help state and local governments, dont pay essential workers, that flatout isnt true. Those dollars can be used for that purpose. It makes sense for us as policymakerses as custodians and stewards of the peoples tax dollars to ensure that the tax dollars that weve already put out there are having a desired effect and to figure out whats working and whats not working and to figure out, frankly, madam president , what the actual need is before we send more money out. And, by the way, more money that is all borrowed. Every dollar of the 2. 8 trillion that weve already distributed, and all for good reasons and everybody here was supportive and agreed that we needed to do it. We needed a dramatic, bold response to an extraordinary circumstance. And so that was done. But every one of those dollars was borrowed. And any dollar we put out Going Forward will be borrowed, which means at some point somebody has to pay for it. And its going to be our children and our grandchildren. Theres an argument being made that Interest Rates are low, this is a good time to borrow. You want to borrow when Interest Rates are low if you have to borrow. If we continue to borrow there is a point when Interest Rates by virtue of supply and demand will start to go up and when ney do you will see a dramatic increase in terms of dollars we have to use here just to pay the interest on the debt, which if Interest Rates ever normalize would be north of about 1 trillion a year and represent literally about 28 of all federal spending. So point one, every dollar we spend is a borrowed dollar. Point two, its important, i think, for us to have, to see what the needs are to be able to put money out there. Point three, theres already 150 billion in the pipeline to state and local governments to help with many of the things that the democrats have been complaining about. And point four, madam president , it seems to me at least that we ought to have a discussion about whether or not weve done already is working before we decide to added to it and to see if we are getting a good return on the tax dollars that have put out there. I dont think theres any resistance here to giving states more flexibility with those dollars. There is no, i dont think, resistance to doing everything and anything we have to to get through this crisis. I think our members are prepared for that to make the necessary votes and to do whats necessary fo get through it. Remember also there is no amount of money in washington,d. C. , that can substitute for a dynamic, vibrant, active economy where jobs are being created, investments are being made. Thats how you ultimately start to get things back on track in this country. As we get ahead of the Health Emergency and of course obviously this week we celebrate nurses week and im so grateful for the many contributions theyre making not only during the pandemic, but year round and the people who are on the front lines of this emergency to ensure were doing everything we can to support them to beat this Health Emergency. And when we do, as the economy starts to open up, thats where well see the jobs come back. Thats where well see the growth come back, and thats where well see the standard of living and the quality of life in this country that people have lost over the past few months start to return. Thats the best way to get things back on track here. Madam president , i want to just make some comments this morning about another area of our economy, and note that it has been an incredibly tough couple of months for american businesses and american workers. Virtually every sector of our economy is suffering as a result of the coronavirus. And the ag industry is no exception. Farmers and ranchers have taken a huge hit. The coronavirus has caused significant market volatility, sending many commodity futures prices complumenting. Reap reduced capacity at meatpacking plants diminished the demand for livestock. This aggravated an already difficult situation for farmers and ranchers. Unlike the majority of the economying, the agricultural economy has been struggling for awhile. Low prices, extended trade disputes, and natural disasters have meant a tough few years for farmers and ranchers before the coronavirus hit. Now theyre suffering more. Agriculture is the lifeblood in my state of south dakota. Supporting farmers and ranchers is one of my Top Priorities. I fought to get agriculture relief money included in the coronavirus aid relief and Economic Security act or the cares act which was signed into law in late march. The final bill included 14 billion to replenish the Credit Commodity Corporation to allow the department of agriculture to provide income and price support for farmers and ranchers plus an additional 9. 5 billion in Emergency Support for Agricultural Producers affected by the pandemic. Days after the bill passed, i led a Bipartisan Group of senators and representatives in a letter to agriculture secretary sunny perdue urging him to use a portion of the funds to provide support for hardhit cattle producers. I am pleased that in mid april, the u. S. Department of agriculture announced that it would issue 16 billion worth of payments to ag producers affected by the virus. Mr. President , those payments are expected to reach farmers and ranchers in late may or early june. I have been monitoring the progress of this relief, and i will continue urging the usda to issue these payments as soon as possible. Agricultural producers can also take advantage of the Paycheck Protection Program included in the cares act. This Program Provides forgivable loans to Small Businesses, including selfemployed producers to help them cover payroll costs during this difficult time. 75 of the loans must be used for worker salaries and benefits, including the salaries of selfemployed workers, while the remaining amount can be used for other qualifying expenses like mortgage, interest, rent and utilities. The loan can be forgiven completely as long as borrowers follow the requirement that at least 75 of the loan be used to cover worker salaries and benefits and the remainder is spent on other qualifying expenses. And as of this week, farmers and ranchers can now take advantage of the Small Business administrations Economic Injury disaster loan program, thanks to legislation Congress Passed two weeks ago. Mr. President , im continuing to monitor the Cattle Market. Livestock producers have taken a dramatic hit on the prices that they are getting for their cattle. At the same time, however, the price of packaged meat has risen and meatpackers are seeing record profit margins. This raises real concerns about potential instances of price manipulation and other unfair practices within the beef industry, especially considering that four meatpacking Companies Control more than 80 of the beef supply in the United States. In march, i called secretary perdue to urge the department of agriculture to take action to ensure the integrity of the Cattle Market during the coronavirus pandemic. I followed it up with a letter requesting that the agriculture departments packers and Stockyards Division look into the volatility in the Cattle Market and that secretary perdu, i should say, has agreed to investigate. I also sent a letter to attorney general william barr requesting an investigation into potential price manipulation or other anticompetitive activities in the beef market. Our pork industry, mr. President , is also struggling due to the coronavirus pandemic. The temporary closure of the smithfield plant in sioux falls created significant challenges for the 550 independent pork producers from south dakota and surrounding states and for our nations food supply system. In the wake of the smithfield plant closure announcement, i wrote a letter to secretary perdue requesting Financial Assistance for pork producers, and i have been closely monitoring the situation. Im pleased that the smithfield plant is in compliance with centers for Disease Control and prevention and Occupational Safety and Health Administration guidance and will gradually resume operations starting today. Mr. President , no discussion of the challenges facing farmers right now would be complete without discussing biofuels. Ethanol, biodiesel producers buy up a significant amount of american corn and soy which adds value to each bushel. As demand for fuel has decreased as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, ethanol and biodiesel operations have come offline and are no longer buying up their normal amounts of corn and soybean oil. This has significantly diminished a crucial market for our farmers. There has rightfully been a lot of focus on the oil and Gas Companies that are facing a record loss in demand because of the coronavirus and because of an equally difficult oversupply problem driven by the saudirussian price war. Hardworking americans at these companies who have helped usher in our modern Energy Renaissance are now in limbo and Congress Needs to make sure we preserve our Energy Dominance and security. But its important to recognize that the ethanol industry, which provides over 10 of the nations gallon content, the cleanest 10 , i might add, is a part of that. Biofuels, too, have been a key part of americas Energy Renaissance and have also been hit hard by the sudden drop in demand which has been a devastating blow for workers in the industry and for the farmers who supply them. Half, mr. President , half of the nations capacity has been idled. More than 70 plants have closed, and just as many have idled, directly harming their local economies and again drying up that essential market for our farmers. This has brought a new problem. Many americans may not know it, but a substantial quantity of foodgrade carbon dioxide, the co2 used in carbonated beverages or to quickly chill Meat Products is an ethanol byproduct. This means that not only is ethanol part of our Energy Security and a foundation of our ag economy, it also plays an Important Role in our food supply. The 54 is already straining our Meat Processing industry. We should not allow a co2 shortage to deepen the problem. Mr. President , as Congress Addresses the numerous challenges facing farmers and energy producers, we must make sure that ethanol relief is a part of that discussion. Whether its through direct support or by advancing longstalled corn fiber applications at the Environmental Protection agency, we need to make sure that this American Energy success support survives these challenging times. Mr. President , as we move forward, i will continue talking to farmers and ranchers about their needs and what we can do to help them get through these difficult times. Supporting our nations farmers and ranchers will always be, always be one of my Top Priorities here in congress. The Coronavirus Crisis has reminded us all just how much we depend on our Agricultural Producers, and im grateful every day for the work they do to feed our nation. Mr. President , i will continue to do everything i can to strengthen our agricultural economy and to help our nations farmers and ranchers thrive. Mr. President , i yield the floor. Mr. Merkley mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from oregon. Mr. Merkley mr. President , i rise to address the debate were having today over whether to override the president s veto of the kaine resolution that reminds the president of the United States about the fundamentals of the constitution. About article 1, section 8 of the constitution that gives the enumerated powers of congress and says congress and congress alone has the power to declare war. No decision is tougher, more important than the decision to go to war. Thats why the Founding Fathers never intended for a Single Person to be able to make that decision. They explicitly, after intense debate and consideration, gave that power solely to congress, the Peoples Branch of our government. They didnt want anyone, any one individual, even the president of the United States, to be able to drag our nation to war for personal or political reasons or for misjudgments, inadequately vetted with the wisdom of the leaders of the country. Since President Trump came into office, we have come within a hairs breath of war with iran on more than one occasion because of his words and his actions. Its why back in february and march, the senate and then the house debated this resolution, reinstructing the president on the fundamentals of the constitution, reminding him that he does not have the power to take us to war in iran. It instructed him that any hostilities with iran need to come in accordance with the constitution. So the president of the United States has responded to our clear declaration of the essence of the constitution by tossing it aside, by vetoing that resolution, and so here we are debating whether to override that veto. The Founding Fathers were adamant about not having anything resembling a king in the new country they were building. The president was given the power to lead the Nations Armed forces as commander in chief, but article 1, section 8 of the constitution stated that Congress Shall have the power to declare war. If there is any real doubt about the founders intent, well, lets return to the comments they made at the time. James madison, father of the constitution, said this the constitution supposes what the history of all governments demonstrates, that the executive is the branch of power most interested in war and most prone to it. It has accordingly with studied care vested the question of war to the legislature. But he continued the power to declare war, including the power of judging the causes of war, is fully and exclusively vested in the legislature. The executive has no right in any case to decide the question whether there is or not cause for declaring war. And how about george washington, commander of our forces in the revolution, first president of the United States, father of our nation. He said this the constitution vests the power of declaring war in congress. Therefore, no offensive expedition of reforms can be undertaken until after they shall have deliberated upon the subject and authorized such as a measure, referring to congress. Or how about george mason of virginia . George mason remarked that he was, quote, against giving the power of war to the executive because the president is not safely to be trusted with it. There is more. How about thomas jefferson, one of the most Brilliant Minds our country has ever produced. He said this we have already given in example one effectual check to the dog of war by transferring the power of letting him, the dog of war, loose from the executive to the legislative body. And jefferson didnt just believe that this were important words in the constitution. When he was president and when he was being pressured over a dispute with spain over the boundaries of louisiana and florida, he wrote to congress stating considering that congress alone is constitutionally invested with the power of changing our condition from peace to war, i have thought it my disiewt to await their authority for use of force in any degree. Or how about Alexander Hamilton who Many Americans have been hearing so much about with the play hamilton having been such a hit over the last few years. What did hamilton say about this . He said the Congress Shall have the power to declare war, the plain meaning of which is that it is the peculiar and exclusive duty of congress to change that state into a state of war. Abraham lincoln was not a founding father, but he understood absolutely what the founders were talking about, and he said this the provision of the constitution giving the warmaking power to congress was dictated by the following reasons. Kings had always been involved in impoverishing their people in war, pretending generally, not always, that the good of the people was the object. This our convention understood to be the most oppressive of all kingly oppressions, and they resolved to frame the constitution so that no one man should hold the power of bringing this oppression up on us. But were in a day and age where we have a president who does not respect the words of the constitution, does not respect the vision of our founders, does not understand the wisdom that the issue of war and the associated huge toll in blood and huge toll in treasure is absolutely too important a decision to be vested in a Single Person, that it must be a product, a decision to go to war, it must be a product of the considered debate of the u. S. Senate and the u. S. House of representatives. That is why we proceeded to pass the resolution here in february and march down the hall, because the president has been beating the drums of war since he came into office. He started by tearing up the Iran Nuclear Agreement after the u. S. Had led the world in creating an effective strategy to end the Nuclear Programs of iran. He followed it with an economic war against iran that has inflicted great suffering on the people of that nation. And then so many other escalatory provocations and responses that without the considered response of congress to remind him that he does not have the power to go to war could take us into another middle east war, and we here in the senate must not allow that to happen. We saw the consequences of the last middle east war in the toll of the blood of our sons and daughters and of our national treasure. We saw that toll, and we must not allow a war to occur because of a president who disregards the constitution of the United States. The resolution that the senate and house passed, the kaine resolution, says congress hereby directs the president to terminate the u. S. Armed forces for who are tilts against Islamic Republic of iran or any part of its government or military unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of law or a specific authorization for the use of military force against iran. That, by the way, is exactly consistent with the war powers resolution, which is the law of the United States of america. That notes that the power the president as commander in chief to involve the United States in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances are exercised only pursuant to a declaration of war or a specific statutory authorization or National Emergency created by an attack upon the United States, its territories, possessions, or armed forces. Thats the law of the United States of america backing up the constitution of the United States of america, founded on the wisdom of the founders, as you heard one after another all conveying that same message. But what was the president s response . The president s response in his veto message said the resolution is insulting. Is it insulting to fight for our constitution to be followed . No, mr. President. Its the responsibility of every member here to fight for the constitution to be followed and the most important issue we ever consider on the floor of the senate is the issue of whether or not were going to war. Its not insulting, its essential essential to remind this president that the wisdom of the constitution stands today as it has for more than 200 years. The president also cited authorities he has under the 2002 authorization for the use of military force. Well, lets see what that authorization actually said. And it said this. The president s authorized to use the armed forces of the United States to be necessary as he determines to be necessary and appropriate to defend the National Security of the United States against a continuing threat posed by iraq and to enforce all relevant u. N. Security Council Resolutions regarding iraq. Now, i know people get confused about iraq and iran, but, mr. President , and im speaking to the president of the United States, please get out a map and understand that iraq is not iran. That this does not give you authority to go to war against iran. The president also cites article 2 of the constitution, and he goes on at some length in his veto message saying what unlimited powers this gives him. Well, mr. President , and again, im speaking to the president of the United States, that is not what is written in the constitution. That is not what is embodied in the war powers resolution. That is not what our law and International Law provides as a basis for going to war that the president has sole power. It is absolutely contrary to the complete history and founding of this United States of america giving the power of war to this body and the house that is down the hall. In fact, International Law and u. S. Law refer to issues like forests being force being used necessary and proportionate and the president being able to act when there is an imminent threat, and the president takes a shot at this in his trump veto message referring to the fact that he has powers that go far beyond an imminent attack, responding to an imminent attack under article 2 of the constitution. In other words, the president of the United States is saying his powers are unlimited, as hes asserted in so many other arenas, his powers are unlimited to go to war. No, mr. President , they are not. And a bipartisan majority of this senate has said. That a bipartisan of the house has said that. And even if your veto stands and we cannot override it today, it is the constitution of the United States that says that. And that should be the final point that today when we vote, lets vote with the constitution of the United States. Lets vote with the founders who so explicitly gave that power to this chamber and the chamber down the hall. Lets vote to say that the wisdom that has stand for more than 200 years should be the wisdom that prevails today when we override the veto of the president of the United States. Thank you, mr. President. Mr. Cornyn mr. President. The presiding officer the recognize the senator from texas. Mr. Cornyn mr. President , the coronavirus has challenged our country, indeed the entire planet, unlike few crises before, certainly in my life time. I was part of the postworld war ii generation, and do out in no doubt world war presented the preeminent crisis within memory, but it was, i think, 1917 and 1918 when the great influenza hit the planet and tens of millions of people died in that. But when this virus began spreading, it became clear it would put a clear strain on hospitals and providers, as businesses closed their doors and employees lost their jobs, it was obvious it would take a toll on our economy, an incredible economy we had in this country. Its like it fell off a fell off a cliff. And the combination of new stresses brought on this virus by this virus has led to a range of lesser known but no less severe consequences. Earlier this week i spoke about the impact of the coronavirus on our countrys Mental Health. As our lives have been flipped upside down, Many Americans are facing financial struggles, isolation, and anxiety. For those who have children at home, the challenges are compounded even further. A recent poll by the Kaiser Family foundation disclosed that nearly half of the american half of americans polled reported that the coronavirus is having a negative impact on their Mental Health. Thats up from onethird in march. And its not surprising. So when we talk about the resources that we need to overcome this crisis, the relationship between the coronavirus and americas Mental Health cannot be ignored. Beyond the silent impact these stresses are having on individuals, they can quickly lead to violence in relationships. Weve learned that in a time of crisis the frequency and severity of Domestic Violence incidents are likely to increase. Texas experienced the heartbreaking reality post Hurricane Harvey and were seeing it again now. Last month i participated in a virtual roundtable with representatives from the Texas Council on Family Violence and the Texas Association against Sexual Assault, and more than a dozen organizations across my state that support survivors of Domestic Violence. We discussed these stresses and how they are impacting victims and the barriers that are being created that make it harder for these organizations and people of goodwill to provide support. One of these representatives was the c. E. O. Of the houston area Womens Center, emily whitehurst. Houston is the hardesthit area in our state with about 7,000 cases in Harris County alone. Emily said that in the early stages of the virus spreading they werent sure they would see an increase in calls given that stay at home orders meant that people would be isolated with their abusers, but they soon found out the answer. In early april the houston area Womens Center saw a 40 increase in the daily calls to their hotline. And compared to the same time last year, nearly 50 increase in requests for shelter. Many of these organizations are already operating on a tight budget and working to make sure every dollar goes as far as possible. As the need goes up, the organizations that support survivors are trying to do more and more with less and less. I was able to discuss the provisions of the cares act that we passed on march 25, i believe it was, and that was signed into law shortly thereafter and the provisions we made to try to offer some assistance. For example, it provided 45 million for programs funded by the Family Violence prevention and services act. These support a range of services, such as emergency housing for Domestic Violence survivors and their children. At a time when victims are isolated with their abuser and cut off from support that they may otherwise have, these services are essential. Our legislation also sent more funding to the national Domestic Violence hotline which is based in austin, texas, so it can continue to provide support and resources to victims as the need expands. As good as this funding was, it was nothing but a start and our efforts cannot end there. One of the big needs that i discussed on my virtual Virtual Meeting with various these organizations was the flexibility for funding. Organizations are required to match federal funds they receive with state or privately raised dollars, but during this time of increased need that administrative barrier turned into a major roadblock. In order to provide immediate relief so these groups could continue their lifesaving work, last month governor greg abbott, the governor of texas waived this requirement of a match. This gives the organization the ability to use the funding that they have for other purposes to fulfill their greatest needs. Right now one of the most urgent needs is access to safe housing. If you think about it, if youre stuck in an apartment with somebody who is has abused you in the past, perhaps the danger is greater because theres no money coming in the front door and maybe increased alcohol abuse. Its easy to see how the biggest need would be a safe place to go. So victims cant move on from their abusers without a safe alternative to turn to so its important we make access to shelter and housing as easy as possible. Even before the coronavirus outbreak, i introduced a bipartisan bill called the heals act to help improve victims access to housing and the services they need. It prioritizes funding for transitional housing and increases the length of stay and flexibility in that housing for victims to get back on their feet. It also drebts the department of housing directs the department of housing and urban development on how better to plan to support the victims of Domestic Violence. As the Senate Considers response to the coronavirus we cannot lose sight of the lesser issues of the pandemic. We need top continue to support and prioritize resources for survivors and one of and one of the most critical ways we can do that is by taking action on another piece of legislation called the violence against womens act. For more than 25 years, vawa, as it is known, has been at the forefront to support victims of violence and Sexual Assault and it had remained high at the top of the political fray. There were certainly some disagreements, thats normal, but we were able to pull together and reach a compromise. Unfortunately that did not prove to be the case this time. When the time came to once again reauthorize the violence against women act last year, our friends across the aisle attempted to use this mustpass piece of legislation to score some political points. Amid the gamesmanship, vawa expired. As someone who has been long interested in victims rights, im an Ardent Supporter of our efforts to reauthorize the violence against women act, and i constantly fought to not only continue but to strengthen this program. Thats why im proud tro have cosponsored the reauthorization bill introduced by our friend and colleague senator ernst from iowa which would provide greater funding and stability for this program at a time when both are desperately needed. The violence against women act has guided our nations effort to confront Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault for more than a quarter of a century and the Current Crisis has highlighted the need for additional support. Im proud of the fact that despite some of the normal dustups and squabbles and disagreements here, weve largely been able to act as one, with passing legislation unanimous whoer in the senate, the here in the senate, the cares act, pass other legislation to provide aid to Small Businesses by unanimous consent. I would hope the spirit that moved us to act in unison before in response to this coronavirus would cause us to do the same when it comes to reauthorizing the violence against women act. There is a time for politics. There is a time for policy debates and differences. But when this comes to reauthorizing the violence against women act, this is not that time. And i can only hope that all of our colleagues will respond to the better angels of our nature, particularly in this time of crisis when theres some people in danger of Domestic Violence that we could pass the violence against women act reauthorization as soon as possible. I think theres more we can do and should be doing to support victims of Domestic Violence, and i know our colleagues across the aisle feel the same way. This should be a nonpartisan endeavor. Our efforts to strengthen our nations response to the coronavirus and support those harmed in its wake as we are doing that, we cannot allow victims of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault to be left behind. Mr. President , i yield the floor, and i would note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call mr. Roberts mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from kansas. Mr. Roberts mr. President , i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be dispensed. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Roberts thank you, sir. Mr. President , 75 years ago the scene across america and europe was quite different than what we see today. Thousands of people are waving flags, dancing, hugging, kissing in the streets, all covered in confetti. In the Early Morning hours of may 7, 1945, in the small town of remes, france, the supreme allied commander, Dwight David Eisenhower, signed nazi germanys surrender and sent a cable to washington and to london stating that the mission of the allied forces was fulfilled. Thus ending the National Pandemic of tyranny and genocide. The surrender took effect on may 8, and for the First Time Since 1941, the u. S. Capitol was bathed again in light. Most military historians now agree, it was eisenhowers unique skill and persuasion that enabled the allied effort to be successful. As Winston Churchill said, there is only one thing worse than fighting with allies, and that is fighting without them. Simply put, ike led the effort for western democracy and freedom and later as president in 1953 america experienced eight years of peace and prosperity. Tomorrow on the 75th anniversary of the victory of europe, what we call victory in europe day, v. E. Day, the Eisenhower Memorial Commission was set to commemorate the longawaited president ial memorial to Dwight David Eisenhower right on the mall in our nations capital. Just two blocks away. Eisenhower once said, plans may end up as worthless, but planning is everything. How right he was. The commission has set aside our plans for the dedication and is now planning a worthy ceremony in the fall, and there is precedent for this delay. Just as america is pulling together to fight to defeat the covid19 virus, the Eisenhower Administration was working with the public and the private sector until a vaccine was developed by dr. Salk and disseminated all throughout our country. Shortly after, an oral and more effective vaccine was developed by dr. Albert savin. Today polio is virtually eradicated and today we face the same challenge. The eisenhower memorial, which pays tribute to ikes leadership as both the supreme allied commander and the 34th president of the United States, is located on the National Mall not only honoring an extraordinary man but will also be a symbol for all generations on the promise of america and what our values make possible within our nation and all over the world. Now i can personally attest to the impact that eisenhower had on my life. My dad, wes roberts, was the citizens for ike chairman for the 1952 campaign and instrumental in the first ballot victory over senator robert a. Taft of ohio. He later my dad became National Chairman of the republican party. So at 16 years old, i was a wide eyed sergeant at arms during the chicago convention. Pardon me, convention. And later attended ikes inaugural ceremonies in washington. I met him both times. When ike came into a room, even if you had your back to him, you knew he was there. He had a rudd did i complexion and a great and wonderful smile. Everyone he met liked eke. As my lapel button indicates, we still like ike. I have now come full sickle serving as the chairman of the full circle serving as the chairman of the eisenhower commission. I know there will be dancing in the streets again, and we will be able to live our lives freely and safely, just as ike and the greatest generation fought to secure. And we will dedicate the memorial to kansas favorite son and one of our greatest president s. After all, ike never gave up, and neither will we. I yield the floor. And upon careful inspection, i note that a quorum is not present. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call quorum call the presiding officer the senator from new jersey. Mr. Menendez i ask that the quorum call be vitiated. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Menendez i rise to override the president s veto of s. J. Res. 68, which requires the removal of u. S. Troops from hostilities against iran that congress may not have authorized. It seems like ages ago that we were truly on the brink of a potentially devastating, costly, and unnecessary war against iran, but exactly just a few months ago. Now, make no mistake, even as iranians have suffered the worst outbreak of covid19 in the middle east, weve witnessed iran continue its support for terrorism, harassment of naval vessels and malfeasance throughout the region. Indeed, it may seem like iran may be principally responsible for spreading covid19 throughout the region. I dont think theres any question about irans maligned activity. I shed no tears for ka qasem soleimani. This body has a constitutional prerogative to declare war, to make a decision about whether or not to send our sons and daughters into battlefields, and we have the responsibility to ensure that the executive is effectively deploying every diplomatic tool it will can before rushing recklessly into battle, particularly one without clearly defined outcomes or clarity of purpose. We must exercise our check over the executive, particularly when it comes to the life and death of americans. Yet, this administration continues to test the strength of our systems of checks and balances. We saw it with this strike against soleimani. And then it played out several times last year regarding arm sales. This is not the first time the president faced a vote to override his veto. Last year the house and senate made overwhelmingly clear that we had concerns about sales of certain weapons to saudi arabia following its Disastrous Campaign in yemen and the murder of khashoggi. Congress will continue to assert our prerogative when it comes to Foreign Policy and war making. So as i can earlier this year, i stand in strong support of s. J. Res. 68. This body must assert its constitutional and congressional prerogative. Of course the president has the right to take action to defend against imminent threats to the homeland and to americans abroad. No one disputes that. No one. And while the president has the right to take action to protect americans from truly imminent threats and dangers and we must stand in support of our allies and partners, it is our responsibility to ensure that he is taking the right actions to protect americans and our interest. The president does not have the authority to undertake any kind of military action he likes, nor does he have the prerogative to sell weapons to any country he likes absent congressional consultation and approval. Unfortunately, as has become a pattern with this administration, the legal rationale is offered for these attacks stretches the bound of credulity. Following briefings from the administration, i found no compelling evidence as to what was the imminent threat or clear and present danger to americans. In fact, following the death of soleimani, we saw more attacks on American Assets and interests. Just a few weeks ago iran was harassing our ships in the arabian gulf and iran claims to have launched a military satellite into orbit. It does not sound like the administrations actions have meaningfully restored deterrence against any kind of iranian maligned activity. Additionally, let me reiterate the idea that somehow the administration has of the authority under the 2002 2002aumf to attack soleimani simply because he was in iraq is completely ludicrous. As someone who voted against the war in iraq when i was in the house of representatives during the debate over whether to authorize military action, i can assure you that it was not its intention of that 2002 authorization for the use of military force, and it does not comport with the history, the use, or the plain reading of the text. So, colleagues, i urge you to stand up for our congressional prerogatives, our congressional responsibilities, our Constitutional Responsibilities to make clear to the president that we are a coequal branch of government that will hold the executive accountable. I want to thank senator kaine for his dedication to this issue and to defending our constitutional rights. And with that, madam president , i yield back. Mr. Alexander madam president. The presiding officer the senator from tennessee. Mr. Alexander thank you, madam president. Madam president , i want to report on an important hearing that the Senate Health committee completed. Senator murray and i organized. We heard from francis collins, the distinguished scientists at the National Institutes of health about his new program funded by congress to spend 1. 5 billion or 2. 5 billion if you include the money given to barta, for new technology to create tens of millions of rapid diagnostic tests for covid19. I would like to ask consent to include in the record my Opening Statement at that hearing. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Alexander and i would like to include in the record a speech made by the former majority leader of the senate, bill frist, in 2005 which reminds us that weve been working on these programs for a long time. Senator frists speech about which was made at a time when we were dealing with 9 11 and before ebola but sars and other viruses, he predicted exactly what is happening that well have a virus this year and well have another one and well have another one. And since that time over the last 20 years, weve had three president s a bush, obama and trump seven congresses who created seven big laws, created a stockpile, assistant secretary for preparedness, spent the last five years with record investments in the National Institutes of health. Were in a situation where on march 1 the New York Times reported that the most experts agree, the times reported on its front page the United States is better prepared than any state, any country to deal with this epidemic, yet we were not as prepared as we would like to have been. We had a hearing today, one, to focus on this shark tank, as senator blunt and i like to call it, where dr. Collins is inviting the best ideas around the country for new technologies. Thats not to say we havent been testing. The United States, according to Johns Hopkins and President Trump, has tested four million i mean seven million americans, more than any country. More per capita, for example, than south korea, whom we often admire for the way its dealt with covid19. Were testing a lot of people. But if we want to go back to work and we want to go back to school, were going to need to have quick, reliable tests for everybody in the nursing home, everybody in the meatpacking plant, everybody maybe on a college campus, everybody in a grade at school. Were going to have such widespread testing that people are willing to come out of their homes and go back to work. Thats one reason we need the testing. The second reason we need the testing is because it helps contain the disease. We know how to stop the spread of the disease, if every single one of us stayed in our room, it wouldnt spread. And weve come pretty close to doing that for the past five weeks and nearly destroyed our economy in the process but we had to do it. The other way to do it is to have enough tests to identify the people who are sick. We dont know exactly how many that is. I would guess, and im no scientist, but just from the scientists i talked to, im guessing tennessee, its three, five, seven percent of us might have this virus. And maybe half of us or some of us have symptoms and the rest of us dont. What we need to do is identify who those people are and quarantine them for two weeks or help them in the hospital. And then the rest of us could go back to school and back to work. We cant do that without tens of millions of more tests even though we are testing more people than any other country in the world. So thats what were talking about. Were so fortunate to have dr. Francis collins who headed the human genome project to lead that effort. Hes been at the National Institutes of health for 27 years. Hes led it during president obamas time and during President Trumps time. Hes invited the best ideas from around the country and gotten more than 1,000 proposals. Theyre going to put them in what we call a shark tamping shark tank because there is a Reality Television show where entrepreneurs fight to see who can win. All we need is one or two or three winners of the sharks swimming around in this tank, and then barda, our other agency thats involved can go to work with manufacturers and begin to produce these tests. How quickly . We dont know. We shouldnt predict things we dont know. But our goal is to produce millions of more tests by august. When 100,000 Public Schools want to open and 5,000 colleges want to open. First by accelerating all the known technologies. And, second, by finding some mighty white shark in this shark tank that produces a new technology. Now these technologies, theres a lot of talk about antigen tests. Theres one proposal that would have you take a simple nose swag that goes back into your throat, but a simple nose swab, maybe even saliva. You take a picture of it with your cell phone. If its positive it tells you and sends that to your doctor. That simple, simple as a pregnancy test. That would be a screening test. You might need to take a second test to confirm it because some of these screening tests arent 100 . So we had a very good hearing. We heard from dr. Collins. We have exactly the right person. We have good cooperation with barda, the agency thats done so much good work. Im looking forward to the results. I would say to my colleagues, we have another hearing scheduled. Were doing our job of oversight. On next tuesday senator murray and i have scheduled a hearing on safely back to school and back to work. That will feature dr. Fauci, whos become something of a Television Personality over the last three or four weeks, but hes appeared before our Committee Many times. Dr. Redfield, head of the centers for Disease Control. Dr. Hahn, head of the food and drug administration, that has to approve the safety and effectiveness of all these ideas. And then admiral giroir, who is coordinating testing. Dr. Collins also said that were making Great Strides in treatments and vaccines. Congress has appropriated 3 billion. I see my friend from oklahoma here so ill come to a conclusion so he can have his time. Congress has appropriated 3 trillion, but the most of important money weve appropriated goes for tests, treatments, and vaccines. Dr. Collins is leading the accelerated effort with nearly 1,000 proposals now that were set up in record time, sort of a minimanhattan mini Manhattan Project to find a new way to create rapid tests and then work with barda and manufacturers to create tens of millions of them so we can go back to school in august and millions more so we can get ready for the flu season. Theyre promising treatments, medicines that will be ready by the summertime. As senator kennedy from louisiana observed what bothers people about these diseases is they might die from it, there is no medicine to treat it. There is one now approved by the f. D. A. And should be more by the summer. Finally the administration set a very aggressive goal. The only thing that will really put us back to anything approaching normal, which is a vaccine. And their goal is that we would produce 100 million doses by september and 300 million by the end of the year, which is much more rapid than we have ever done that before. And i have no idea whether it is possible, but i like the idea of the goal. So the shark tank for the tests, the acceleration of treatments for the summer, the warp speed vaccination, all in a country that has everybody working hard on the problem. Yes, there was a bump in the c. D. C. Test to start with, but today we have tested seven million people, more than any other country. I think its important for the American People to know that on tests, treatments, and vaccines, were all working as hard as we can. I thank the president. I yield the floor. Mr. Lankford mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from oklahoma. Mr. Lankford today i rise to pause and remember march 28, 2020. Its the day that oklahomans and the nation lost a patriot and a friend to many. I stand here at this desk that i have used for the past five years. But before it was my desk, it was the desk of dr. Tom coburn. A few days after we gaveled out in march, dr. Coburn took his first breath in heaven where he was finally cancerfree, finally painfree, living in the presence of jesus where theres no government waste and no inefficiency, with theres no conflicts, and liberty is absolutely eternal. We will miss his sage advice, his blunt perspective, and his steadfast wisdom. Dr. Coburn served in this chamber for ten years, from 2005 to 2015. But he also served in the house of representatives for six years, from 1995 to 2001. The one title he carried in both of those chambers was doctor. And that was his preferred term. Thomas allen coburn was born in casper, wyoming, march 14, 1948. Dr. Coburn graduated from Central High School in 1966. In 1968, he married carolyn dent, the 1967 miss oklahoma, carolyn denton. They had three daughters and nine grandchildren. At Oklahoma State university, dr. Coburn was an honor student, president of the student business council, graduated in 1970 with a bachelors degree in accounting. After the Family Business was sold that he worked at, he attended medical school at the university of oklahoma, received his medical degree with honors in 1983. Interned at Saint Anthonys hospital in Oklahoma City and in 1986 he founded the muskogee family medical practice which is still in operation today. Hissing victory over his victory over melanoma as a young man inspired him to become a physician. He stated he wanted to give back because he had been given to. Unfortunately that battle with melanoma when he was a young man was not his last battle with cancer. As a physician, his dedication to his patients was inexhaustible. Over his career he delivered 4,000 babies and would often see 30 patients a day in his office. After his election to the house of representatives in 1994, he would fly from washington d. C. , every week hed fly home so that he could continue to see his patients on weekends, a schedule he maintained for the entire six years he spent in the house. He was a doctor all the time. He it was not uncommon for him o be in a conversation with someone who right in the middle of the conversation he would ask them how theyre feeling because he picked up something in their demeanor that he thought was a little bit wrong. Dr. Coburn was a deacon and a sunday schoolteacher. And in all the story that ive told you, if youre looking for some element of politics in the background, you wont find it until 1994. His decision to run for congress in 1994 was a long shot. He narrowly won becoming the first republican to represent oklahomas second Congressional District in 73 years. He went to congress as a man on a mission. He was determined to help solve the nations problems. His focus was not oklahoma. It was the nation. I remember asking him privately before i started serving in the house of representatives how he made a difference. His answer was there are two people that make a difference in congress. The person who studies and the committee chairman. Study more than anyone else. Know the issue, and you can get it done. His tenacity on every issue was legendary. Politico once summarized it well saying a typical bill moving through the senate has a number of institutional hurdles to clear. Subcommittee, committee, leadership, and coburn. Its that last one you wont find in the textbook. His staff are wholly devoted to the cause not necessarily because of him but because of the mission. One of his former staffers wrote this after dr. Coburn passed. He said we blocked a lot of bills. We offered a lot of amendments. We lost a lot of votes. We highlighted a lot of wasteful spending, and we irked a lot of people. And over time we started changing how business was done. Bills that added new spending couldnt pass without offsets. Program duplication became part of the lexicon. The practice of earmarking went away. People started paying attention to government waste. Dr. Coburns annual waste book became one of the more high profile reports coming out of washington each year. Over the years dr. Coburn and his team highlighted trillions in questionable spending on lowpriority items that taxpayers were unwittingly paying for. Any spending that proved to be classic spending wastefulness, due public us it, fraudulent or ineffective likely made the list each year. The waste book became a rallying cry for taxpayers frustrated by washingtons spending habits. Phrases that are common in american political conversations today like the bridge to nowhere, shrimp on a treadmill, term limits, earmarks, were all battles that he fought to win. In 2010, in a fight over the debt limit increase, dr. Coburn created an annual report in that decision from the Government Accountability office on government duplication. It seemed like just another government report, but that report, that report that he passed in 2010 has saved taxpayers 262 billion so far. Dr. Coburn and his team were in the fights worth fighting. But they were battling on the Playing Field of ideas and policy proposals, not against people. In a town that wants to label everything left versus right, liberal versus conservative, drt have any criteria to meet those who joined him in the fight. They were willing to pull together any ally. He didnt have to agree on everything, but as long as you agreed on a couple of things in front of you, thats what mattered. The friendships that were forged in the fight were genuine, true, and certainly unique. He was the chief sponsor of president obamas u. S. A. Spending. Gov to increase transparency in government spending. He was a champion for h. I. V. And aids patients and medical research to save lives. He was a tenacious fighter for Social Security disability fraud, eventually exposing a billiondollar Social Security scam in West Virginia run by a lawyer named eric kahn, a kentucky lawyer who filed thousands of bogus disability applications. He was a master of senate rules. His clay pij pigeon amendment is legendary in senate procedure. He was one of the unlikeliest members to vote for tarp in 2008. It was probably one of the hardest votes that he took, but when he looked at the facts in front of him, he saw it was the right thing to do. That was ultimately what it boiled down to. He was willing to do the right thing no matter what the cost. He opposed what needed opposition, but he would prefer to argue in private to resolve an issue rather than in public although he was clearly not afraid to argue in public. After years of serving families as their physician, a task he continued on weekends even when he was in the house of representatives, the Senate Ethics committee ruled that dr. Coburn was violating conflict of interest rules by holding an outside job and prohibited him from practicing medicine as a senator. Dr. Coburn then just stopped taking payment and did his work as a physician pro bono, and the Ethics Committee also rejected that plan and prohibited him from working pro bono even as a physician. Ironically, i am now the chairman of ethics for the senate, and the last time i visited with dr. Coburn at his house in february, in the middle of our long, great conversation, he said to me since youre the chairman of ethics, why dont you get that rule changed and allow doctors to still Practice Medicine while they are in the senate. Thats wrong. That needs to be fixed. Even in the end, he was still working to right what was wrong. Many people know that when dr. Coburn left the senate, he spent his time trying to fix congress, still working on term limits and a balanced budget amendment. If you have not seen it, you should read some of the things his former staff wrote about dry a few weeks ago. Any senator in this chamber could only wish that our staff looked up to us as much as his staff looked up to him. I thought the best way to honor dr. Coburn today, though, was to remind this body of what dr. Coburn said as he walked out of this body, his Farewell Speech. Among the many things he said, he challenged the senate and senators by saying this the senate was designed uniquely to force compromise. Not to force gridlock, to force compromise. One senator had the power to stop everything for the first 100 years because it didnt but it didnt because compromise was the goal. Our founders understood there were many differences between the states in size, in geography, economy, and opinions. They united the states as one country based upon the premise that many are more powerful than the one. As senators, we have to follow this example. Then he said this i have not always done that. I admit that freely to you. But i should have. As senators, we must follow the example stand for our principles, but working to find those areas of agreement where compromise can be found to unite and move our country forward. Not all the powers of the senators are exercised on the senate floor. Each member of the senate has a unique role to participate and practice oversight, to hold the government accountable. Thats part of our duties except most often that is the part of our duties that is most ignored. True debates about National Priorities would come about if we did effective oversight. It is the senate, once hailed as the worlds greatest deliberative body, where these differences should be argued. Our differences should be resolved through civil discourse so they are not settled in the streets. Just as the constitution provides for a majority rule in our democracy while protecting the rights of the individual, the senate must return to the principles to bring trust of the electorate, and it can. The theme of his whole Farewell Speech centered around this one statement. We do not have one problem we cannot solve. There is nothing too big for us. They are all solvable. On this national day of prayer, i believe its entirely appropriate that we pray for dr, and former staff who will miss his friendship and his counsel. So will our nation. I pray that carolyn, their daughters and their families cherish the memories of a husband, dad, and grandfather. Our state and our nation will be forever grateful for your sacrifice. I pray that the tasks dr. Coburn began would be completed for the sake of our liberty and of our future, and i pray that this body would take up the challenge he left on this floor to solve the hard problems. The hard problems we face as a nation together. I yield the floor. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator for virginia. Mr. Kaine mr. President , i first ask unanimous consent to add my colleague, senator brown, of ohio, as a cosponsor to Senate Joint Resolution 68. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Kaine thank you, mr. President. I rise to speak about President Trumps veto of Senate Joint Resolution 68, a veto that he communicated to the senate by a statement yesterday afternoon. We debated this at length in february, so there is no need to spend too much time on the substance. I was proud of the resolution, cosponsoring it in a bipartisan way, to assert the importance of the senate. I very much appreciated hearing my colleague from oklahoma talk about the importance of the senate. The debate that we had in february about s. J. Res. 68 was about the importance of congress in one of the most important responsibilities we have, whether or not the nation would go to war. We specified in that resolution that except to defend the nation against attack or imminent attack, the United States would not be engaged in war with the government of iran, absent a congressional vote. It passed this body by a healthy bipartisan margin and also passed the house by a bipartisan margin. The president has vetoed s. J. Res. 68, and the next vote at 1 30 will be on whether to override the veto. I know what the votes will be because we have already voted on this once. But i wanted to just focus for a minute on the president s veto statement which i think is instructive. When he vetoed s. J. Res. 68, this was his primary reason, the first thing he said. This was a very insulting resolution introduced by democrats as part of a strategy to win an election on november 3 by dividing the republican party. The few republicans who voted for it played right into their hands. What i find so notable about that statement is that the president could not see congress expressing an opinion about war through any lens other than himself and his reelection on november 3. As everyone in this chamber knows, the bill was not a partisan bill. It was introduced with an even number of bipartisan senators. It was not part of a strategy to hurt President Trump. I have advocated these same positions, as have other members of this body under president s who were both democratic and republican. The republican senators and Democratic Senators who voted for it, and those who voted against it, had particular views about the allocation of constitutional war powers, but in no way was this partisan, in no way was it part of a strategy deal with the november 3 election, and for President Trump to look at a matter of war and peace and constitutional obligations of congress through the lens of the november election, frankly shocked me. The president later in the statement said, quote, the United States is not engaged in the use of force against iran. Lets be clear. The u. S. Military engaged in a military action that wiped out irans top military commander. If any other nation did that to our secretary of defense or chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, would we call that a use of force against the United States . Of course we would. So to say that the strike against general soleimani, you might thing it was a great thing that the president advocated for it. No one is sad that general soleimani does not exist but rather than justifying it as a jestity, the president says it was not a use of force against iran. The president goes on to say to to say the strike was justified by the law. He debates about that. But also citing the iraq war resolution of 2002. I had not heard anyone assert that as a justification for killing an iranian leader. That resolution, which is now essentially dead letter, was designed to topple the government of saddam hussein, and to use that as a resolution to attack members of the iranian government is a stretch. Finally, the president says we live in a hostile world of evolving threats, and the constitution recognizes that the president must be able to anticipate our adversaries next moves and take swift and decisive action. He concludes congress should not have passed this resolution. Mr. President , you cannot tell the article 1 branch how to do its job. We cant tell the article 2 branch how to do its job, but for the president to say it is insulting for congress to take up matters of war and peace and that we should not have passed the resolution to me demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of the importance of the article and branch. Were not an article 2. 5 branch. Were not required to play mother may i with the president. We have our own independent responsibilities that we swear to uphold. S. J. Res. 68, in my view, was a great example of coming together in a bipartisan pay to uphold those responsibilities. I urge my colleagues to vote to override President Trumps veto of the resolution. Thank you, mr. President. I yield the floor. Mr. Inhofe mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from oklahoma. Mr. Inhofe mr. President , this is one of the rare places where you can be in an institution with someone you dearly love and yet disagree with so strongly, and thats the relationship that we have. I have a lot of respect for my friend from virginia, but i think this has been twisted around in a way to make the president look bad. In his heart, he knew what he was doing at the time. You know, we have got to keep in mind and i would even suggest that this is probably the boldest defense policy decision of his presidency to date. He authorized an air strike against the leader of the force, soleimani. I still believe it is his responsibilities under the articles of the constitution. Lets remember who soleimani was. It has been a while and a lot has happened since then. He was a terrorist. He was responsible for the training and funding of militias across the middle east and the very militias that had targeted american personnel facilities and partners for decades. He was a monster. Nothing less. Some people out there want to believe that his action was a rush to war. Nothing could be further from the truth, but instead of looking at the facts, they pushed ahead with a war hours resolution that instead of making more war less likely, it made it more likely. Let me tell you how. The resolution was shortsighted and dangerous in february, but the four months since then have only confirmed it was not necessary, were clearly not at war. Not only that, but an air strike is not war. Defending american lives is not war. The president has made it clear that he doesnt desire war. We all know that. Nobody here wants a war. At the same time nobody wants a policy that would america vulnerable to irans regime. If we do that. If we tie the president s hands so he cannot defend americans lives, we leave ourselves more vulnerable and make war infinitely more likely and accordingly we must all vote to sustain the president s veto. I yield the floor. And the presiding officer the question is, shall the joint resolution pass the objections of the president of the United States to the contrary notwithstanding, the yeas and nays are required. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote
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