Transcripts For CSPAN2 US Senate 20160607

Best for us, we submit today to your loving providence. Continue to be our refuge and strength, a very present help in the time of trouble. May we never forget that nothing in all creation can separate us from your love. Bless our lawmakers. Fill their hearts with such love for you that no difficulty or hardship will prevent them from obeying your precepts. Help them to remember that those who walk in integrity travel securely. Lord, strengthen their resolve to serve you as they should and in doing so may they become more aware of your continuous presence. We pray in your great name. Amen. The president pro tempore please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to the flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The presiding officer the democratic leader. Mr. Reid thank you, mr. President. The republican nominee for president of our great country continues to attack a federal judge because of his mexican heritage. This is not only wrong, its racist and unamerican. Its also a fundamental attack on the american judiciary system. When issues like this arise the nation should look where . To the senate for leadership. In particular throughout our history, the Senate Judiciary committee has been a bastion of independence and bipartisanship. When federal judges are under assault we should expect the chairman of the Judiciary Committee to rise above politics and condemn racism. But not this judiciary chairman that is now the chairman here in the United States senate. Not the senior United States senator from iowa. Instead of a bold feat of bipartisanship were left with yet another example of how he has become the most partisan judiciary chairman in the history of america. Instead of rising above bipartisanship and condemning trumps racist attack, grassley defended him. His rationale is boggling. Senator grassley said trump must respect the judiciary because over the course of hundreds of lawsuits and years of litigation trump has actually won some cases. Cant make up stuff like this. For example, to quote from a newspaper article quote grassley also suggested trumps propensity for filing lawsuits showed some level of respect for the judicial branch. He must respect the judiciary, grassley said. Ive seen statistics that he won over 400 cases and only lost 30. Close quote. How about that . I find it curious that the chairman doesnt have time to read Merrick Garlands questionnaire or give him a hearing but has time to study donald trump tofs Donald Trumps success rate in the courtroom. He is says a lot a lot and whufm is what senator grassley priorities are. According to an iowa newspaper senator grassley told constituents on friday quote inflammatory rhetoric coming from the Trump Campaign. Im a little disappointed but not surprised. I believe no member of the senate has done more for trump than the chairman of the Senate Judiciary committee. In january many republicans were still trying to distance themselves from donald trump. Senator grassley introduced trump at an Iowa Campaign event. Since then despite pressure from his constituents, senator grassley has done everything in his power to hold open the Supreme Court seat for trump to fill but im surprised grassley has yet to acknowledge these racist attacks on judge curiel because these attacks are beyond the pale. Instead senator grassley chose to further establish himself as a trump cheerleader like the republican leader has done. Last week senator grassley told his constituents, again i quote, hes Building Confidence with me talking about trump. Ive already said im going to vote for him. Id campaign with him. Close quote. But this is not the beginning of senator grassleys campaign for donald trump. Senator grassleys entire chairmanship the past six months has been one big Campaign Push for trump. His committee has become an extension of the Trump Campaign. The republican Judiciary Committee has done everything to focus on boosting trump but has neglected to do its job in the process. Under chairman grassley the committee is reporting out almost no bills, fewer judicial nominations than any time in recent history. Because of this inaction, the senate of the Judiciary Committee, the senate has conducted confirmed fewer judges than decades. We heard how the federal system in our country is in disrepair. Why . Because the Judiciary Committee is not confirming the nominations president obama made. What has the Judiciary Committee done instead . It spent its time carrying out a political hit job on secretary clinton. Secretary grassley wasted countless dollars conducting Opposition Research that he hopes can be used to help trumps candidacy against secretary clinton. It hasnt helped but helped shorten the pocketbook of the American People. Senator grassley has been so desperate to drag secretary clintons name through the mud that he encouraged the f. B. I. To leak an independent review of secretary clintons use of email. At every turn the senior senator from iowa used his committee for partisan purposes that benefit only one person donald trump. There is no better example than the current vacancy on the Supreme Court. Rather than doing his constitutional duty and processing Merrick Garlands nomination, senator grassley took marching orders from donald trump and trump said delay, delay, delay. And thats exactly what the senator from iowa has done. Delay, delay, delay. Chairman grassleys hoping to run out the clock. Hes hoping President Trump gets to nominate the next Supreme Court justice. Thats why last month senator grassley said of trump and i quote i think i would expect a lifetime of people to be nominated by trump to the Supreme Court. Having Donald Trumps latest attack on the judiciary, does he, senator grassley, really believe that trump is the right man to pick nominees to the Supreme Court, or any court . Donald trump said a federal judge should be disqualified from presiding over a case because of his mexican heritage. He said the same would apply if a judge were muslim, even though with the situation dealing with the socalled mexican judge he was born in indiana. Does senator grassley believe that trumps comments were racist . The republican junior senator from nebraska agrees it was racist. This is what he tweeted yesterday and i quote Public Service announcement. Saying someone cant do a specific job because of his or her race is the literally definition of racism. The junior senator from south carolina, also a republican, called trumps remarks quote racially toxic. What does the senior senator from iowa say . Zero. Nothing. Does the chairman of the Judiciary Committee agree with donald trump . Does senator grassley also believe judges should face a religious test . The senior senator from iowa said he trusts Donald Trumps judgment. He said, and i repeat, this is a quote hes Building Confidence with me. Close quote. After everything weve heard from donald trump, all of his vile, unhinged rants, does senator grassley honestly have confidence that donald trump should pick the next Supreme Court justice . I dont trust trump to make that decision. The people of iowa dont and america doesnt. Senator grassley must stop using his committee to do trumps bidding. He must stop using the once proud Judiciary Committee as an extension of the trump political campaign. Instead of continuous delay, delay, delay, senator grassley should give Merrick Garland a hearing and a vote but do it now. Waiting for donald trump to choose the ninth member of the Supreme Court is not the answer. I yield the floor. The presiding officer independence, under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. The clerk will report. The clerk calendar 469, s. 2943, a bill to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2017 for military activities of the department of defense and so forth and for other purposes. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from maine. Mr. King mr. President , at 3 30 in the afternoon on december 23 of last year, about a halfhour before sunset, the lights started to go out in western ukraine. The power started to go out. The operator in one of the ukrainian power plants noticed to his horror that he no longer controlled the kur sore on his computer the cursor on his kpaourpt computer screen. The operator tried frantically to get back into the computer only tpo find he was locked out and the password had been changed. At the same time the call center of this utility in the ukraine was blocked by thousands of fake calls, so the utility itself could not know what was happening in the countryside. The backup generators around western ukraine also went down. Malware was installed on the operating computers and a system called kill disk was installed which wiped the disks and rendered the computers useless. As a final insult, the power in the power control system itself went off and the operators were literally left in the dark. This was the first major cyber attack of a public utility anywhere in the world. It was sophisticated. It was wellplanned. And it was devastating. Within a few minutes, 230,000 people in the country of ukraine were without power. That attack could have occurred in kansas city, in san jose, in new york, or here in washington. Ever since i have served in this body as a member of the Armed Services and intelligence committee, i have heard repeated warnings from every public official involved with intelligence and National Security that an attack on our Critical Infrastructure is not possible. It is likely. How many shots across our bow, how many warning shots do we have to endure . Sony, the o. P. M. , insurance companies, and now the nightmare scenario of an electric grid attack. We can learn something from what happened in the ukraine, and there is a piece of good news and a lesson for us. The attack which left 230,000 people without power only persisted for about six hours. The interesting part of this scenario of this development was that one of the reasons they were able to get the power back on so fast was because the ukrainian grid was not up to modern i hesitate to say standards, but practices in terms of its interconnectedness and its dithtyization. Digitization. There were oldfashioned analogue switches and the most oldfashioned anno log switch of all, a human being that could actually throw breakers and get the system back online. Here in this country, however, were not so lucky and i use that in a sort of backwards way because we have the most advanced grid structure in the world. Were more digital. Were more automated. Were more interconnected. But that makes us more vulnerable. That makes us more vulnerable. We are acy metrical a simplemetry asymmetrical. A lot is being done to work on protecting this country from a devastating cyber attack. But i know of no one who would assert that enough is being done and that we are ahead of this threat. I introduced a bill yesterday along with three cosponsors, all of whom, along with myself, are members of the intelligence committee, where we hear about these threats practically week lymp weekly. Senator risch, hin hin reich, te bill is straightforward. It tasks our Great National labs with working with the utilities over a twoyear period to determine not new Software Patches and new complexity but if we can protect our grid by returning to at least at critical points in the grid, the oldfashionedanalogue switches. It may be that going to the going back to the future, if you will, going back to the past and simplifying some of these critical connection points may be the best protection that we can have. The idea is for the labs to put their best people on this and for the utilities to do the same on a voluntary basis, i might add nothing mandatory about this bill. But to work on finding some solutions that are implementable in the shortrun to protect us from this grave threat. Then therell be a report back and hopefully implementation across the country. Mr. President , im tired of hearing warnings. Its really time for us to act. And this is a pretty straightforward bill that i hope can move through this body at the speed of a cyber attack so that we can then have the defense that we have to have. An attack on our crit icle infrastructure, particularly the electric infrastructure across this country, would in fact be devastating and would involve undoubtedly loss of lives. I do not want to be here on a darkening winter afternoon and see the lights going off across america, the power to hospitals, the power to our transportation system, the power that makes our lives what it is today. This is not an abstract threat. We know from the ukraine that the capability exists to do exactly this and take down the grid. We must act expeditiously and directly to counteract that threat. If we do not do so, we are failing our responsibility to the people of america, to our constituents, and to the United States. So i urge rapid consideration of this bill, and i look forward to its consideration at the energy bill. Three of the four sponsors are also members of the Energy Committee as well as the intelligence committee, and i am a hoping that we can move this rapidly so that we can begin the process of countering what is not an being a tract threat abstract threat but a direct, clear, and present danger to the future of this country. Thank you, mr. President. I yield the floor. The presiding officer the senator from New Hampshire. Mrs. Shaheen mr. President , im here this morning to urge my colleagues to support an amendment that i have offered to the National Defense authorization act to extend the Afghanistan Special immigrant visa program. Also known as the s. I. V. Program. The Program Allows afghans who supported the United States mission in afghanistan and who now face grave threats because of their willingness to help our servicemen and women on on the ground in afghanistan, it would make them eligible to come to the United States. To be eligible, new applicants must demonstrate at least two years of faithful and valuable service. To receive a visa, they must also clear a rigorous screening process that includes an independent verification of their service and then an intensive interagency security review. Now, people may ask, who are these afghans . Let me give you just a few examples of the Extraordinary Service that theyve provided. The first person i want to talk about and i cant use his name for privacy and security reasons but he worked as an interpreter for socom from 2005 to 2016, so is 1 years. He originally applied for a special immigrant visa in 2012 are and continued to work for socom diewrk that during that interim. One of the applicants direct supervisors stated that the applicants brother was murdered by extremists probably taliban due to the applicants wok for the u. S. Government work for the u. S. Government and the applicant himself has been wounded several times while serving. A second individual worked as the head interpreter for a provincial Production Team for years. Because of his service, his children cant go to school and the lives of his family members are in danger. The applicants p. R. T. Commander was one of multiple direct Defense Department super viers to supervisors to submit letters of recommendation on his behalf toafg his loyal and valued service. A third interpreter served the Defense Department from 2008 to 2015. He left work in december following an i. E. D. Attack which robbed him of one eye and his vision in the other. He applied for his special immigrant visa after being wounded and is in the beginning stages of the extensive interagency vetting process. Now clearly the service of these individuals has been critical to our successes in afghanistan and in at least a handful of other cases, s. I. V. Recipients commitment to the u. S. Mission was so strong that they found ways to contribute even after they arrived in the United States. One promptly enlisted in the armed forces and later worked as a cultural advisor to the u. S. Military. Another graduated from Indiana University in georgetown and has worked as an instructor at the defense language institute. A third, who worked as a Senior Advisor in the u. S. Embassy, now serves on the board of a nonprofit working to promote a safe and stable afghanistan. These contributions in afghanistan and beyond help explain why senior u. S. Military officers and diplomats are so supportive of the afghan s. I. V. Program. Here what is the current commander of u. S. Forces in afghanistan, general michel son wrote about the need reauthorize the program. These men and women who have risked their lives and have sacrificed much for the betterment of afghanistan deserve our continued commitment. Failure to adequately demonstrate a shared understanding of their sacrifices and honor our commitment to any afghan who supports the interNational Security Assistance Force and Resolute Support missions could have grave consequences for these individuals and bolster the propaganda of our enemies. Continuing our promise of the American Dream is more than in our national interest. It is a testament to our decency and the longstanding tradition of honoring our allies. Last year general nicholsons predecessor general campbell wrote a similar letter affirming his strongest support for the s. I. V. Program and urging congress to quote ensure that the continuation of the s. I. V. Program remains a prominent part of any future legislation on our efforts in afghanistan, adding that the program is crucial to our ability to protect these those who have helped us so much. Their view is shared by ambassador ryan crocker, who served in afghanistan from 2011 to 2012, recently wrote that taking care of those who took care of us is not just an act of basic decency, it is also in our national interest. American credibility matters. Abandoning these allies would tarnish our reputation and endanger those who are today asking to serve alongside u. S. Forces and diplomats. And i see that my colleague, senator mccain, is on the floor. I know that he remembers, as i do, watching when america pulled out of vietnam, all of those vietnamese holding on to those helicopters that were leaving because they knew what they are fate was going to be once america left that country. That is not something we can allow to happen in future conflicts. When we make a promise to those people who helped us on the ground, we need to abide by that promise. We need to make sure that those people who helped our servicemen and women are able to get to this country that they are not killed by the taliban and other enemies of the United States and afghanistan. And yet, despite these compelling cases, despite the persuasive arguments of our senior military and civilian leaders, the senate ndaa does not currently authorize and extend the s. I. V. Program or allow for additional visas because of the objections of some few in this body. Well, this is particularly problematic because were going to issue all of those unallocated s. I. V. s by the end of this year,even while there are thousands of after gangs at some afghans in the application process. This means that without congressional action, the s. I. V. Program will sunset around december and thousands of afghans who have stood alongside our military and other government personnel are at severe risk. I hope that this body will died that that is unacceptable, that we have got to make sure we support those people who have supported our men and women on the ground who have in fact died to support our men and women on the ground, and im happy to be joining senator mccain, senator jack reed, the chair and rank member of the Armed Services committee, in trying to pass this amendment and make sure that we support those people who supported us. Thank you, mr. President. I yield the floor. Mr. Mccain mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain i note the presence of the majority leader, so ill be very brief. I want to thank the senator from New Hampshire for her continued advocacy for these individual whose literally placed their lives on the line to assist us in combating the forces that we have been struggle against now for these many years. These individuals deserve our thanks. But, more importantly, they deserve the ability to come to the United States of america, according to our military leaders, their lives are in danger. They are the first target of the enemy because they want revenge against those who helped americans. And there is no doubt in the minds of our military leaders that these individuals literally saved the lives of the men and women who are fighting in afghanistan and iraq, and i believe that we should actually have a voice vote, if necessary, much less have any controversy associated with this. The if america is going to seek the assistance of individuals who are willing to help us and then abandon them, then we have a very serious moral problem. I thank the senator from New Hampshire and her continued advocacy. I hope we can get this issue resolved as soon as possible. I yield the floor. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell mr. President , the National Defense authorization act before us is important for our troops, its important for Wounded Warriors and veterans, and its important for National Security. One way it will help keep americans safe is by renewing clear prohibitions on president obamas ability to move dangerous kwadangerous guantanas inure country. Or release them town stable regions like libya, yemen, and somalia. Our country faces the most diverse and complex array of crises since world war ii, as Henry Kissinger last year. But president obama nevertheless seems focused on pursuing a stale Campaign Pledge from 2008. The president would spend his remaining months in Office Working to defeat isil. He should work with us to prepare the next administration for the threats that hes going to leave behind. He should not waste another minute on his myopic guantanamo crusade. Just about every detainee that could feasibly be released from the secure detention facility has already been released. Some have already returned to the fight, just as we feared. Some have even taken more innocent american lives, according to the Obama Administration. But the bottom line, the bottom line is this, the hardcore terrorists who do remain are among the worst of the worst. The worst of the worst. Heres how president obamas own secretary of defense put it. There are people in gitmo who are so dangerous that we cannot transfer them to the custody of another government, no matter how much we trust that government. I cant assure the president that it would be safe to do that. Theres khalid sheik mohammed, the mastermind behind 9 11. He has declared himself the enemy of the United States. Theres the 9 11 coordinator who was planning even more strikes when he was captured. And theres bin ladens former bodyguard who helped with the tkpwopling of the u. S. S. Cole and trained to be a suicide hijacker for what was to be the Southeast Asia portion of the 9 11 attacks. These terrorists are among the worst of the worst. They belong at a secure detention facility, not in facilities here in our own communities, not in unstable countries where theyre liable to rejoin the fight and to take even more innocent life. And have no doubt there are detainees who would almost certainly rejoin terrorist organizations if given that opportunity. Heres what the office of the director of National Intelligence found in a report just this year. Based on trends identified during the past 11 years, we assess that some detainees currently at gitmo will seek to reengage in terrorist or insurgent activities after they are transferred. So look, the next commander in chief, whether democrat or republican, will assume office confronting a complex and varied array of threats. Thats why we must use the remaining months of the Obama Administration as a year of transition to better posture the Incoming Administration and our country. What we should not be doing is making it even more challenging for the next president to meet these threats. Releasing hardcore terrorists was a bad idea when obama was campaigning in 2008. Its an even worse idea today. We live in a complex world with complex threats. The ndaa before us will renew clear prohibitions against administration attempts to transfer these terrorists to the u. S. On its way out the door. We dont need to close a secure detention center. We need to ensure the American People are protected. Passing the legislation before us represents an important step in that direction. It will help position our military to confront the challenges of tomorrow. It will help support the men and women serving in harms way today. I want to thank chairman mccain of the Armed Services committee for his extraordinary work on this very important bill, and i thank senator reed, the ranking member, as well. The presiding officer the assistant democratic leader. Mr. Durbin mr. President , do the math. A federal prisoner held in a federal prison in America Today costs us about 30,000 a year. The most serious and dangerous criminal prisoners held in the federal prison system are put in super max facilities for 86,000 a year. Thats what it costs. Not a single prisoner has ever escaped from a super max facility in the United States. Ever. 30,000 for routine prisoners. 86,000 for the most dangerous. What does it cost us to incarcerate one detainee each year at guantanamo . 5 million a piece. 5 million for each detainee. The budget to keep guantanamo open is about 500 million a year, and we have fewer than 100 detainees there. And theres a request for another 200 million in construction at guantanamo. So when senators come to the floor and say weve got to keep guantanamo open for less, fewer than 100 detainees, you obviously have to ask the question, is there another place where they can be held just as safely, just as securely at considerably less cost . And the answer is obvious. The answer is clear. The super max federal prisons can hold anyone convicted of terrorism, serial murder, heinous crimes, can hold them securely without any fear of escape. And then the argument was made by the senator from kentucky, well, if we are going to put terrorists in prisons across america instead of guantanamo, that is a danger to the community. Really . I represent the state of illinois. We have the marion federal prison in southern illinois. Got a lot of good men and women who work there. You know what were doing . For 30,000 a year we are holding convicted terrorists in the marion federal prison. Ive been a senator for illinois for 20 years. Do you know how many times i received complaints that terrorists were being incarcerated at the marion federal penitentiary . None. Not one. Not one time. So for the symbol of maintaining guantanamo, were going to continue to spend 5 million a year per detainee. And this bill before us, the Defense Authorization bill, will continue that. So if youre looking to save some money, money that taxpayers shouldnt be giving to our government or perhaps should be spent in better ways, lets start with guantanamo. The president s right. If they are a danger to america and the world, they can be safely held in other prisons across the United States at a fraction of the cost of what were spending at guantanamo. Anyone who calls himself a fiscal conservative cannot ignore that obvious argument. Let me say a word, i support senator shaheen, the senator from New Hampshires provisions when it comes to the afghans that have helped us. Its a good provision. These men and women risk their lives for us and for our men and women in uniform. We need to stand by them and allow them to safely come to the United States and be in a position here where they can have peace of mind that theyre not going to be killed because theyre friends of america. I think her provision is a good one. Im anxious to support it. Let me say about the state of play on amendments here. I have an amendment which i consider to be very important. Ive offered it over a week ago, so members have had more than enough time to take a look at it. I will describe it to you in very simple terms instead of going into a long explanation. I certainly have one ready, but its basically this. Within this bill and its a big bill, 2943, the Defense Authorization act, is about 524 billion in spending for our department of defense. I want america to always be safe, always have the best, and i want us to invest in the men and women in our military because we believe in them and their families and our veterans. Theres a provision in this bill, though, that troubles me greatly. It is an effort to eliminate a program known as the congressionally directed medical Research Program. How big is this medical Research Program . Its 1. 3 billion. It is less than. 2 of the total expenditure for the department of defense. Is it important . I think its very important. For 25 years the department of Defense Medical Research has come through with breakthrough findings to eliminate concerns and give hope to members of the military and their families and everyone lives across america. I remember when it started. I was a member of the house of representatives. It was 1992. One group came forward, the Breast Cancer coalition, and they said we need a reliable place to turn for a steady investment in Breast Cancer research. And thats what started the program. Now its true that best cancer is not limited to the military, but it is also true that there is a higher incidence of Breast Cancer among women in our military than among the general population for reasons we still dont understand. So is this an important issue to the military and the rest of america . Of course it is. Over the last 24 or 25 years weve invested more than 3 billion in Breast Cancer research through this program. Has it been worth it . I can tell you it has. Through their research, they developed a drug called herceptin. Department of Defense Medical Research developed this drug herceptin to fight Breast Cancer. One of my colleagues here in the senate told me this morning the life of his wife was saved by this drug herceptin. I was at a press conference a few minutes ago. Another woman said to me my life was saved. I was drying nosed with Breast Cancer. Herceptin saved my life. That was a part of the investment in the Medical Research Center that paid off and i could go on about others that paid off not just for members of the military and their families, but for all of america. What is proposed in this bill is the largest cut in medical Research Since sequestration in congress. We asked the department of defense if the provisions of this bill that are being asked for are put in place, what impact will it have on medical Research Programs in the department of defense, and they said it would effectively eliminate them. This proposal in this bill will swamp medical Research Programs in the department of defense with more red tape than they have ever seen. Let me give you an example. This department of Defense Authorization bill calls for an annual audit of every entity applying for medical Research Grants from the department of defense. The audit requirements are the same as the largest defense contractors in the United States. We have never held other entities other than the largest defense contractors to these standards. It will require audits by the department of defense an additional 2,400 audits a year. How about agency that does the auditing . Do they have extra personnel . Do they have work that needs to be done . It turns out they have 43 billion in existing contracts that have not been audited, and this bill will pile on that 2,400 more audits. What will it do do . It will slow it down any effort to promote medical research and it will dramatically increase the overhead cost for that medical research. Surely there must be some scandal in this program that led to the conclusion that we needed all this red tape, and the answer is no. The close scrutiny and investigation of the institute of medicine and other entities have found that this program over the years has been a good program. Its had some mistakes, but only a hand full. And you look at the thousands of medical grants, Research Grants that have been given. So im going to ask for an opportunity to offer this amendment to strike the provisions which basically kill the department of defense medical Research Program that is directed by congress. We dont earmark what entities are going to get the grants. Its a competitive peerreview process. But i want to make sure this amendment gets a vote. And after that vote, more than happy to move forward with all the amendments on this bill. Its an important bill, and i hope we can pass it at the end of the day. I yield the floor. Mr. Mccain mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain mr. President , let me assure the senator from illinois that we are trying to get the language of the companion amendment to his amendment approved by that side of the aisle so that we can move forward with the senator from illinois amendment and hopefully we can get that language as soon as possible so that we can take up formal debate on his amendment. In the meantime in response to the senator from illinois comments, mr. President , as ive seen the latest polling data, approval of congress is about 14 , Something Like that. Ive not met anyone lately in the 14 that approve of congress. And one of the major reasons, of course, is because they believe that we have wasted their defense dollars by the billions and wasted their taxpayers dollars by the billions. Theres no greater example of that than whats happened with the socalled medical research. Every single one of these dollars probably goes to a worthy cause. Unfortunately, about 90 to 95 of that money has nothing to do with defense. Why would the senator from illinois and so many overwhelmingly take the money thats earmarked for the men and women who are serving with the effects of sequestration causing our leadership in the military to say that were on the ragged edge of our capability to defend the nation, that the commandant of the marine corps and the chief of staff of the army have said we are putting the lives of americans at greater risk because we dont have sufficient funding. So instead were taking 2 billion out of defense money and putting it into programs that have nothing to do with defense. Why is that . Why would Congress Take money from defense and put those moneys into programs that have nothing to do with defense . Mr. President , its called the Willie Sutton syndrome. That is when the famous bank robber was asked why he robs backs robs banks, and he says thats where the money is. We saw the Willie Sutton syndrome begin in 192. In 1992 there was 25 million that were designated for medical research. That was 25 million in 19 2e9d. Today in 1992. Today we now are going to have almost last year the funding has increased by 4,000 from 25 million in 1992 to 1 billion last year. So if youve ever seen a grarveg example of the Willie Sutton syndrome, it has to be this. Is there anyone whos opposed to Breast Cancer research . Is there anyone who is opposed to medical research for so many important challenges to the health of our nation . Of course not. Of course not. But what the senator from illinois and the aappropriators have done year after year after year is exactly this. Okay, here we go. Here we go. Heres theres 200 billion. And here we are here. Reconstructive transplant, genetic studies of food allergies, cooperative epilepsy, chiropractic clinical trial, multiple sclerosis, peer muscular dystrophy, bone marrow failure, on and on multiple sclerosis. All of these are worthy causes. They have nothing to do with the defense of this nation. And thats the problem with this. Now, ill probably lose this vote. Ill probably the senator from illinois will probably succeed because theres so many special interests that are involved here. But dont say this is for the defense of this nation. What its all about is finding money which is from the largest single aappropriations bill to single appropriations bill to put into causes that by all objective observers should be taken out of the health and Human Services account. But, unfortunately, theres not that money in the health and Human Services account, so, guess what . Take it out of defense. Meanwhile, we dont have enough troops trained, we dont have enough to pay for their deployment. In case you missed the stories about the squadron down in south carolina, marines, where theyre robbing parts from planes, where an air force squadron comes back with most of their aircraft not capable of flying, of only two only two of our brigade combat teams are able to be in the first category of readiness only two, because they dont have enough money for training and operations and maintenance. But were going to take billions out and were going to give it to autism, lung cancer, ovarian cancer. All of those are worthy causes, and so now weve got lobby unfortunates from all over the nation lobbyists from all over the nation coming up. Were going to take money out from [fill in the blank] im saying the money should not come out of defense. Im saying that to defend this nation, every single dollar is important to the men and women who are defending this nation and fighting and dying as we speak. So i congratulate the senator from illinois. As every year, just about the money for medical research has gone from up an initial 25 million in 1992 to 1 billion in year, a 4,000 increase. Let rerepeat, let he me repet has nothing to do with the military and its grown 4,000 since 1929. 1992. And now we can talk to all the lobbyist whose come in for these various and very important medical Research Projects and say, we took care of you. Take care of them from where it should come, i say to the senator from illinois, which is not out of defending this nation. The late senator from the state of alaska, ted stevens, under whose leadership the original funding for Breast Cancer was odd added, in 2006 said the money would be going to medical research instead of the needs of the military. During the floor debate on the annual defense appropriations bill, senator stevens had this to say, and i quote, we could not have any more money going out of the defense bill to take care of medical research when medical research is basically a function of the n. I. H. It is not our business. I confess, i am the one im quoting senator stevens now i conferks i am the one who made the first mistake years ago. I am the one to suggested we include some money for Breast Cancer research. It was languishing at the time. Since that time, it has grown to 750 million. In the last bill we had dealing with medical research that had nothing to do with the department of defense. I want to emphasize again, i will support funding for every single one of these projects. I will support it the when it comes out of the right account and not out of the backs of the men and women who are serving this military. In the United States military. It has to stop. It has to stop. So this year the ndaa prohibits the secretary of defense and the Service Secretaries from funding our conducting a medical research and Development Project unless they certify that the project would protect, enhance, our restore the health and safety of members of the armed forces. And it requires the medical Research Projects are open to competition and comply with d. O. D. Cost accounting standards. It doesnt seem to me that that is an outrageous demand, and i know my colleagues are going to come, oh, we need this bone because of [fill in the blank] and, this is vital. Im all for that. But dont take it oust ability of the young out of the ability of the young men and women who are serving in country in uniform. Thats what the senator from illinois amendment does. If this amendment passes, nearly 900 million in the Defense Budget will be used for medical research that is unrelated to defense and does not request and is not requested by the administration. One would think if this is so vital that the administration would request it. They havent r they havent. If this amendment passes and it will, im confident if this amendment passes, 900 million will be taken away from military Service Members and their families. If this amendment passes, 900 million will not be used to provide a full2. 1 pay raise for our troops. It wont be used to halt dangerous reductions in the size of our army and marine corps. It wont be used to buy equipment so that our airmen dont have to steal parts off of airplanes in the boneyard in arizona to keep the oldest, smallest, and least ready air force in our history in the air. Many of the supporters of this amendment, as i said, have opposed lifting arbitrary spending caps on defense. So the senator from illinois, let me get this straight, wants to add nearly d 1 billion in spending for medical research but is also opposed to increasing spending to a level of last year for defense spending. Thats interesting. These caps still in place that we are going to try to fix later on in this bill, the senator wants to take nearly 1 billion of limited defense fund to spend on nondefense needs. So i say to my colleague, the senator from illinois, its not that hes wrong to support medical research. No one it attacking that, because i can garntle you the first thing the senator i can guarantee you the first thing the senator from illinois is going to vai, were going it take away this money from medical research. Were not. I am sea taking it shouldnt come from the backs of the men and women who are serving in nation. Splease, i would ask him not to say that. Because it is not the case. If he wants to add that money into the health and Human Services account, i will support the amendment. I will support it. I will speak in favor of it. It is that he has proposed the wrong amendment to support medical research. Instead of proposing to take away 900 million from our military Service Members, he should be waiting to oppose the long overdue process of shifting the hundreds of millions of dollars of nonmilitary medical Research Spending out of the department of defense and into the aappropriate civilian appropriate civilian departments and agencies of our government. Let me be clear again. This debate is not about the value of this medical research or whether congress should support it. I person who is has reached my age likely has some firsthand experience. Miracles of experience of the miracles of modern medicine. This research does not belong in the department of defense t belongs in civilian departments and agencies of our government i say to my colleagues, the ndaa focuses the departments Research Efforts on medical research that will lead to lifesaving advancements in Battlefield Medicine and new therapies for recovery and rehabilitation of Service Members wounded on the battlefield. Both physically and mentally. This amendment would harm our National Security by reducing the funding available for militaryrelevant medical research that helps protect servicemen and women on the battlefield and for military capabilities they desperately need to perform their missions, and it would it to input Decision Making about medical research in the hands of lobbyists and politicians instead of medical experts where it belongs. So, i say whats happening right now as we speak, phones are ringing off the hook. We need this money for [fill in the blank]. We have to have this money, and i. T. The end of western civilizatiocivilization unless. I support every single one of these programs. Theres not a single one that i wouldnt support funding for. But when you take it away from the men and women who are serving in the military for nonmilitary purposes, i say it is wrong. So i will be glad to have the vote as soon as the other side clears our amendment process, but, again, i ask my colleagues, dont distort this debate by saying were trying to take away this medical research. What we are trying to say here with the bill is that were trying to do everything we can to take every defense dollar and make sure that we help the men and women who are serving in conflicts that are taking place throughout the world. We are not we are not the reason it was adopted by the Armed Services committee against this funding. We are against where it is coming from. So lets so lets do something a little courageous for a change around here. Lets take lets say, no, we wont take it money oust defense. But well take it out of other accounts under which it is the responsibility of the United States congress and. Thats all im asking for. Thats all. But obviously it probably wont happen because every advocate for every one of these programs has now been fired up because theyve been told, theyve been told that were going to take away their money. Were not going it take away their money. We want their money coming from the right place. And i would even support increase in som some of this spending. But it is coming from the wrong place. As i said at the beginning of my remarks, it is the Willie Sutton syndrome, from 2 25 million in 1992 all the way up here, all the way here. Now 1b4,000 case u so im sure that senator after senator will come to the floor, oh, no we cant take away this money from the [fill in the blank]. It is not tairm terrible for us to do this. The right thing to do is not deprive the men and women who are serving in the military of 1 billion that is badly needed for readiness, for operations to keep them safe. And that is what this debate is the really all about. I expect to lose it and i congratulate the lobbyists ahead of time, and i congratulate the senator from illinois ahead of time. But dont be surprised when the American People someday rise up against this process where we aappropriate 1 billion for something under the name National Defense that has nothing to do with National Defense. Mr. President , i yield the floor. Mr. Durbin mr. President . The presiding officer the assistant democratic leader. Mr. Durbin this senator will never apologize for medical research. I stained the National Institutes of health have the primary responsibility for medical research, and im pleased to report were marking up at this moment in subcommittee an increase of more than 5 in funding for that important agency. I thank senator blunt from your side of the aisle, senator murray from our side of the aisle for finding the resources for that. But to argue that because were putting money into National Institutes of health, we can take money away from the department of defense ignores the obvious. We take money away from the department of defense medical Research Program at the expense of men and women in the military, their families and veterans. Look at the example that the senator from arizona used. He said there is spending in here for epilepsy and seizures. Why would that be . Weve got to spend money on our military and their issues. Lets take a look. Since the year 2000, over 300,000 active duty Service Members have experienced an incident of traumatic brain injury. Currently the prevalence of post traumatic epilepsy among members who suffered a brain injury is unknown. There are tpaoup risk factors known to guide Decision Making in treatment of the disease. According to the American Epilepsy Society over 50 of victims, these are military members who have been exposed to traumatic brain injury with head injury from the korean and vietnam wars developed post traumatic epilepsy. For the senator from arizona to point to this as one of the wasteful areas of medical research is to ignore the obvious. 300,000 of our men and women in uniform suffered from traumatic brain injury and we know from past experience many of them end up with post traumatic epilepsy. To argue this medical research and epilepsy and seizures has no application and value to members of the military is to basically ignore the obvious. What we have tried to do in establishing this program is, first, we cannot earmark that any grant be given to any institution. All we can do is suggest to the department of defense areas that we think have relevance to our military. They then have to make the decision. Each and every grant has to pass a threshold requirement that has relevance to the military and their health. It turns out there are many things that are a concern. Would you guess that Prostate Cancer is a major concern in the military as opposed to the rest of our population . You should, because the incidence of Prostate Cancer among those who serve in the military is higher than it is in the general population. Why is that . Is it an exposure to something while they served . Is there something we can do to spare military families from this cancer by doing basic research . Im not going to apologize for that, nor am i going to apologize for the Breast Cancer commitment thats been made by this department of defense medical Research Program. The senator from arizona is correct, groups are coming to us and saying this department of Defense Medical Research is absolutely essential. I just had a press conference with the Breast Cancer coalition. 3 billion have been invested in Breast Cancer research over the past many years. It led to the development of a drug that saved life of Breast Cancer victims, herceptin. To argue this was money not well spent, should have been in another category, lets look beyond that. Lets consider the lives saved not just of men and women across america but of members of families of those who serve our country. The list goes on and on. I could spend the next hour or more going through every single one of them. The senator from arizonas provision in his own bill is designed to eliminate the medical Research Programs at the department of defense. Thats not my conclusion. Its the conclusion of the department of defense. He has put in so much red tape and so many obstacles and added so much overhead and so much delay that he will accomplish his goal in killing off medical research at the department of defense directed by congress. That would be a terrible outcome. A terrible outcome for people who are counting on this research. No apologies. Im for increasing money at the National Institutes of health and increasing money at the department of defense. Its been money well spent and well invested for the men and women in our military. I might add first let me acknowledge my colleague from arizona has a distinguished career, distinguished record serving the United States in our United States navy and we all know his heroic story, what he went through. So i am not questioning his commitment to the military in any way whatsoever but i will tell you Veterans Organizations and others stand by my position on this issue. When we had the press conference earlier it wasnt just the Breast Cancer coalition, the disabled veterans of america were also there asking us to defeat this provision in the bill that would put an end to department of defense medical Research Programs. For the good of these families, all of the members of these families in the military as well as our veterans, let us not walk away from this fundamental research. Mr. Mccain mr. President . P. The presiding officer the senator from the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain i think the senator from illinois and i pretty well ventilated this issue. Once we get an agreement on votes, we can schedule a vote on it, because i think we are very well aware of each others positions. Ive been talking about this issue for quite a period of time as ive watched our defense spending go down and our medical research go up. The senator from illinois argument is that men and women in the military are subject to all of these various Health Challenges ranging from arthritis to vascular malfunctions, et cetera, because theyre americans, because theyre human beings . Yes, we agree that members of the military are subject to all of these needs and earmarked for various illnesses that affect americans. And again, i want to point out and by the way, traumatic brain injury causes a whole lot of things. So to say that epilepsy is the result of traumatic brain injury, theres all kinds of things that are results of traumatic brain injury, and i strongly support funding and so have many others to research on traumatic brain injury. We know the terrible effects of that on our veterans. But somehow to lump, theres at least on this list 50 different diseases and medical challenges connecting that all to defense is a leap of the imagination, is obviously ridiculous. Its ridiculous. So here we have all, pancreatic, parkinsons, all of these, veterans are subject to those, yes. But it is not in the defense bill. It should not be taken out of defense money, particularly in this period of need. So if the disabled American Veterans and every Veterans Organization is told that they will not have funding for these programs, of course they are going to object to this provision in the bill. But if theyre told the truth, and the truth is that they should get this money but it shouldnt be taken out of defense, most of these veterans would like to see it not taken out of defense. They would like to see it taken out of where it belongs. And so as i say, im sure there is press conference after press conference rallying all of these people because theyre being told that they wont get the funding, and i can understand that. That is not what this senator wants and what america should have. And that is the funding taken out of the accounts of which there is the responsibility of the various committees and subcommittees in congress and in the Appropriations Committee. Thats what this is all about. So all i can say is that as i predicted, the senator from illinois raises the issue of all of these things that will lose money. Its not they will lose money. They will get the money if you did the right thing in the Appropriations Committee, which is taking it out of the right accounts, and to stretch the imagine to say that all of these are because of the men and women in the military is at best disingenuous. Mr. Durbin mr. President , i ask for two minutes. The presiding officer the assistant minority leader. Mr. Durbin mr. President , the total amount for department of defense medical Research Programs that we are discussing amounts to less than. 2 of this total budget. Less than. 2 . And the senator from arizona is arguing were wasting money that could otherwise be spent in more valuable ways for our military. We are not wasting money. We are investing in medical Research Programs that serve our military, their families and our veterans, and i will never apologize for that. Yes, these groups are upset because theyve seen the progress that has been made with these investments, coordinating with the n. I. H. And the institute of medicine. Theyve done the right thing. They found cures. They relieved problems and challenges facing our military, their families and the veterans who have served. In terms of whether the senators amendment that he put into the bill already is going to have any negative impact on the department of Defense Medical Research, let me quote the department of defense and what they said about the language from chairman mccain quote these changes would drastically delay the awards risking the timely obligation of funds, significantly increase the effort and costs for both the recipients and the federal government, with the additional Audit Services needed, documentation that recipients would be required to provide, changes to recipients accounting systems, the scientific programs would be severely impacted, massive confusion would follow. Most likely recipients would not want to do business with the department of defense. These issues would lead to the failure of the congressionally directed medical Research Program. If the senator wanted to come and just say put an end to it, it would be bold, it would be breathtaking, but it would be direct and it would be honest. What hes done is to cover it in red tape. Im in favor of research, not red tape. There is no need to kill off these critical medical Research Programs for our military and veterans. I yield the floor. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from West Virginia. Mr. Manchin mr. President mr. Mccain i think i have precedence, mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain i want to say again there are various accounts in the appropriations process that are directly related to the issues that have now been inserted in the department of Defense Authorization bill. That is what this is all about. And thats all its all about. And we can talk about all of the compelling needs and the terrible stories of people who have been afflicted by these various injuries and challenges to their health. But the fact is its coming from the wrong place, and thats what this is all about. Mr. President , i yield the floor. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from West Virginia. Mr. Manchin mr. President , i want to say in listening to both of my colleagues who are passionate about this issue, theyre both right. Theyre both right. If we had a tax plan that was a competitive tax plan that took care of our priorities based on our values, they would both be funded properly. This is what weve got to get to. Weve got to get past picking and choosing and basically taking care of the values we have as americans. So i hope that we can come together on that. But im rising today because weve reached another crisis point in our country. And in 2014 we had almost 19,000 people die to Prescription Drug opioid overdose. This is legal prescriptions. This is by companies that basically developed a product legally. We had the tpra d the f. D. A. Saying its good for us. Basically we have an epidemic on our hands that we believed was going to help us. 16 more people died in 2014 than died in 2013. We lost 200,000 americans since 1999. 200,000. And if thats not an epidemic, i dont know what it is. I really dont know. Unfortunately a major barrier to those suffering opioid addiction, these are opioid addiction, legal Prescription Drugs, is insufficient access to Substance Abuse Treatment Centers. Between 2000 and on, mr. President , 2013, only 22 of those who were suffering from addiction could find treatment. Only 22 . And for so long we kind of put our head in the sands and basically thought this was a crime. It wasnt basically an illness. And an illness, now that weve come to understand, needs treatment. And were way behind the scale on this. In my state of West Virginia, 42,000 West Virginians, including 4,000 youth these are kids younger than 16 years of age sought treatment for illegal abuse but they failed to find it. Think about this. If youre a parent or a grandparent and your kids are begging for help, the only way they can find any help today is to get them arrested, get a felony on them. The judge will send them to drug court. Thats it. Thats their alternative. Well, thats not one i think as americans we should be selling for. The longest longterm facility in West Virginia is 100 beds, recovery point. Run by former addicts. These are people whose basically their lives were destroyed and they got together to say we can save people. Its mentoring, a yearlong program, the greatest Success Stories of anything we have in our state. In 2014 about 15,000 West Virginians got some sort of treatment for drug alcohol abuse treatment. Bro nearly 60,000 people went untreated because they couldnt find it or couldnt afford it. Eight out of ten calls that theyre summoned to is due to drugs, some form of drugs. All of our Young Students here will be able to identify with this and the people that have problems. These people recognize they need help. And theyve been turned away. Myself, of a introduced a piece of legislation with quite a few myself colleagues. I would hope all my colleagues in this body would look at it very seriously, and its called lifeboat. Lifeboat simply says this we need to have a fee on all opiates and the reason for this, in the 1980s we were told this was a drug this was a wonder drug. It will relieve us of pain 24 hours, not addictive at all. That wasnt effective and accurate. What were asking for is one penny, one penny per milligram of opiates, on all opiate prescriptions, just one penny. That one penny will give continuous funding for Treatment Centers around the country. That will bring in about 1. 5 billion to 2 billion a year. I would hope it wouldnt bring in anything. That would mean we wouldnt have addictions as rampant around the country. I ask my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, this is not a tax. It is basically a treatment plan. We have fees that we charge for alcohol, we have a fee for cigarettes, nothing for opiates. It is destroying as many if not more lives. So all this is a commonsense approach forward. And i will say to all my colleagues, there wont be a democrat or republican family that will hold you against trying to find a Treatment Program for a loved one or someone in their family. I come to the floor to read letters from people who have been affected. I have one, in Elementary School i believe in fourth grade, my daughter became a cheerleader. She cheered for the middle school. She cheered for high school as well. She also played volleyball and basketball. She had excellent grades in school. Many friends and a great personality. To say she was wellrounded is pretty accurate. Im not quite sure where things went wrong, how weve ended up where we are today. Today and for several years now my daughter is a drug addict. At one time she was prescribed antidepressant, then nerve pills. She has tried many drugs but her choice is opiates, legal prescription opiates. She is the mother of our first two grandbabies that are now in cuss towed with family members due to her drug use. The home is unfit for the child to be raised in. She is also a sister, a granddaughter, an aunt, and a grendz to so many in our a friend to so many in our family. She has been in and out of jail several tiessments i have lost many nights of sleep waiting for a knock at the door or a phone call to tell me i need to come identify my daughter. I am a lucky one so far. That has not been the case. Others have not been as fortunate as i. She has been homeless and sleeping in her car for almost a year, except for the nights that i could beg her to come home sand stay with us. Her husband has stole from my family, is not allowed on any of our properties. She feels obligated to staying by his side. I dont know why. She has had several seizure episodes that were drugrelated. One time she was at a local grocery store. She was transported by ambulance after her 4yearold daughter screamed for health. A 4yearold daughter screaming for help. She went to a 10day detox that ended up being a waste. She had no place to go to rehab after that. One time she got out of jail and thought she could kick the habit on her own. She couldnt and back to jail she went. Right now she is in a grantfunded longterm facility and if you talk to any people in addiction treatment, it takes a minimum of one year to get them through. She has been there almost a month. I pray for her and those like her on daily basis. Addiction is such a cruel and punishing way of life. It leaves scars inside and out. All im asking for is this lifeboat piece of legislation will give us a lifeboat to give families that are in desperate need. It is into the burtd on people taking burden on people taking normal prescriptions. It is only one penny per milligram on opiates used and consumed in the United States. Thank you, mr. President. I yield the floor. Mr. Mccain mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain for the benefit of my colleagues, werk working on trying to trying to set up a series of a few amendments, including the durbin amendment and others which hopefully well have that resolved here within a halfhour or so so that we can then schedule votes for today. I know my colleagues are aware that tomorrow the first part of the day is with the joint session addressed by the Prime Minister of india, so that even shortens our time. So we want to try to get as many amendments done as we can today. Mr. President , i yield the floor. Mr. Daines mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from montana. Mr. Daines i speak on amendment number 4260 to the National Defense authorization act which would elevate u. S. Cyber command to a combatant command. In 1986, Congress Passed a law elevating and establishing u. S. Special Operations Command to address the rapidly growing need for special operators and to unify our forces. And think about that. Today theyre now leading the effort against isis. Well, theres another force quietly leading a battle against isis, and its on a completely new battlefield. U. S. Cyber command is one of our most important elements in the fight against terrorism today and tomorrow. And i stand here today with eight bipartisan cosponsors to my amendment, including the chairman of the Armed Services committee, and i thank them for their support. This includes senators warner, bennet, murkowski, cardin and blumenthal as well as Senators Gardner an ernst. The commander of Cyber Command recently testified before the Armed Services committee stating that an elevation to a combatant command would allow them to be faster and generating better mission outcomes. At a time when isis is rapidly recruiting online and developing Technology Like selfdriving cars packed full of explosives, the United States needs to ensure that cyber and technology warfare is at the top of our priorities. U. S. Cyber command needs to be able to react quickly and to engage the enemy effectively. Our troops need to be as effective online as they are in the air, on the land, or at sea. And to do all of that we need to elevate them to a combatant command, where theyll be reporting directly to the president of the United States through the secretary of defense. I provided for a plan in this years aappropriations bill to fund this in the future and im committing to enshould ug the elevation of ensuring the elevation of Cyber Command is successful. Because in the long run, we need to ensure that they have increased access to training, to top equipment, and assure other commands are able to integrate the forces successfully. But right now as we debate the ndaa, we need to ensure that we give them the authority defeat our ad adversaries and that meas elevation to a combatant command. The threat of a cyber adak is one of the attack is one of the fast he havegrowing threats facing our nation and we cannot stand by as the department of defense delays to act on this urgent need. So i urge my colleagues to support my amendment number 4260 which will elevate u. S. Cyber command to a combatant imhangdz. Command. Mr. Mccain mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain mr. President , in regards to the previous discussion, i want to point out to my colleagues on this whole issue of 1 billion thats being taken out of defense, the aappropriate subcommittee on the Appropriations Committee and in the authorizing committee is labor, health, and Human Services, education, and related agencies. And certainly, as i mentioned before and taken out of the National Institutes of Health Account for which a lot of money is being already appropriated. So there is an aappropriate vehicle for these expenditures of funds of nearly 1 billion, and it is not the department of defense. Mr. President , i suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Cruz mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from texas. Mr. Cruz mr. President , i ask unanimous consent to vitiate the quorum call. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Cruz mr. President , my home state of texas is strong and resilient. Texans arent people who tire easily, a understand we certainly dont and we certainly dont give up when the going gets tough. But that doesnt mean the state hasnt faced its share of adversity. Over the last few weeks the resolve of our great state has been tested with historic flooding that has taken at least 16 lives across texas. Among those 16 are nine young soldiers at fort hood. Nine soldiers whose truck was overturned while cross ago flooded creek. Their lives were ended in that flooding. Their families v have been torn asun derks not by asungder, not by asunder. Not by combat far away. They expect they understand the threat that enemies abroad might endanger them. But they shouldnt be losing their lives here at home in a sudden an unexpected accident that took the lives of nine soldiers in an instant. Those nine soldiers should be remembered. Specialist ying ming sun, miguel value questions, chris tine faith armstrong, Brandon Austin banner, private first class Zachary Nathaniel fuller, private a zach lee deleone, private eddie lay roron gates, lanett nevment james, and mitchell alengths ander. All of us should remember those soldiers and every one of soldiers and sailors and airmen and marines who risk their lives for us daily. Just yesterday i had the pleasure of meeting again a young lieutenant who i had met in the hospital at fort hood in 2014. He had been hot in the chest with a. 45 in a tragic shooting that occurred, and i must say it was so inspirational to see this young lieutenant healed, mobile, proudly serving his country and energized. Thats the spirit of our armed forces, and we should never forget their commitment to freedom. Heidi and i right now along with millions of americans are lifting up in prayer those texasians who have lost their lives, who have lost their homes, the families that are suffering due to this flooding. And were also lifting up the First Responders who so bravingly bravely risk everything to keep us safe. In particular i want to take a moment of prois praise to the red cross. I had the privilege of speaking yesterday in the c. E. O. Of the red cross to thank them directly for that efforts on the ground helping people who are suffering, helping people who have lost their home, who are struggling. And you know, she and i shared what weve seen in tragedy after tragedy after tragedy. Which is in the face of disaster, in the face of adversity, texans and americans come together. There is a spirit of solidarity, a spirit of unity, that the worst the tragedy, the more we come together and help our friend and neighbor, help our sister and brother. And during these difficult times, texans demonstrate that sharing spirit and we are thankful to the americans across the country who are lifting us up in prayer. As the waters continue to recede and the wreckage is being cleared, my office will continue to work very closely with the local and State Government officials along with the entire texas delegation to help ensure a smooth recovery process, including offering, as i already have, my full support and assistance when Governor Abbott requests federal aid for those afflicted by this disaster. And while texas continues to rebound from these torrential floods, our nation is also flooded with circumstances that require the very same strength and resolve that we face in the face of tragedy. This week the Senate Continues debating the National Defense authorization act. This legislation reflects our nations military and National Security priorities. The decisions we make today will affect not only our lives but those of future generations. We face serious times as a nation. Our Constitutional Rights are under assault. We have economic stagnation. Young people yearning for Employment Opportunities only to find none, and government regulations that crush innovations and abroad and at home, the threat growing each and every day of radical islamic terrorism. In order to best ensure the future of our nation, we must make sure america is secure. The most important constitutionally mandated responsibility of the federal government, the one authority that it must not merely can exercise is to provide for the common defense. And theres no better example of how egregiously weve strayed from our core function than the way in which our spending on defense has been held hostage year after year to the ever increasing appetite for domestic domestic spending by president obama and his political allies. The programs they are forcing on the American People arent necessarily arent necessary to protect our lives and safety, but funding our nations security is necessary and it is in this spirit that ive approached my work on the National Defense authorization act, and i look forward to continuing this debate with colleagues on both sides of the aisle. My goal for the ndaa is simple. We need to make sure our military is strong, our homeland is secure and our interests abroad are protected. The ndaa shouldnt be a vehicle to further an agenda that has nothing to do with actually defending america. On the senate Armed Services committee, i was proud to work with my colleagues, both republicans and democrats, in introducing and getting adopted 12 amendments, 12 amendments that were included in this legislation that covered the range of policy issues from strengthening our ability to protect ourself through Missile Defense to improving our ability to stand with allies, such as the nation of taiwan, to improving our ability to deal with the growing threats from nations like russia and china to prohibiting joint military exercises with cuba, to preventing the transfer of terrorists from guantanamo to nations that are on the state departments watch list. All of those were done working closely with colleagues, republicans and often many democrats, and yet there are still many issues that i believe should be addressed in this legislation, and i want to highlight three of those issues, three amendments that i hope this full body will take up. The first is an amendment to increase spending on israeli Missile Defense. This is an amendment that ive been working very, very closely with the senior senator from south carolina, senator graham. The second is an amendment to stop the Obama Administrations plan to give away the internet to empower our enemies over the internet. And on this i have been working closely with senator lee from utah and senator lankford from oklahoma. And the third amendment i want to address is an amendment to strip the citizenship from any americans who take up arms and join isis or other terrorist organizations waging jihad against the United States of america, and on this ive worked with a number of senators including chairman grassley on the Judiciary Committee. Each of these amendments addresses different policy components of our nations security, but they all share the ultimate objective of ensuring that america remains the strongest nation that the world has ever known. The First Amendment that ive introduced that i would urge this body to take up would increase funding for our cooperative Missile Defense program with israel, to ensure that our ally, our close friend can procure the necessary vital assets and conduct further mutually beneficial research and development efforts. This has been an Ongoing Partnership between israeli and the United States of america, and yet unfortunately the Obama Administration in its request submitted to congress zeroed out procurement for david sling and arrow two and three, vital elements of israeli Missile Defense. This is at a time when the threats are growing, the administration decided zero was the appropriate level. Respectfully i disagree. This amendment would fully Fund Procurement for israeli Missile Defense. Now, much of this Missile Defense is done in Partnership Working closely with american corporations producing jobs here at home, but it is also vital to our National Security as we see a proliferation of threats across the world, the technology of intersecting incoming threats, intersecting incoming missiles before they can take the lives of innocence is all the more important. And its were at a time where the administration has funneled hundreds of millions and headed to billions of dollars to iran and their dispottic regime. The Administration Knows they acknowledge substantial portions of those funds will be used to fund islamic terrorists will be used to fund efforts to murder israelis, to murder americans, and yet nonetheless, it is u. S. Taxpayer dollars and dollars under the control of our government, billions going to the Ayatollah Khamenei who chance and pledges death to america and death to israel. As a result of the fecklessness of our Foreign Policy. Our closest ally remains in a deeply troubled and precarious position. Israel needs to be prepared to defend against hamas. We must not fail in our obligation to stand with israel and it is my hope that when if and when this body takes up this amendment, that we will stand in bipartisan unity, standing with israel against the radical us almostic terrorist who seek to destroy, both them and us and in doing so we will further both israeli National Security and the safety and security of the United States of america. In addition to working to provide for our common defense and protect our sovereignty, ive also introduced an amendment that would safeguard our country in a very different way. Mr. President , ive introduced an amendment that will prohibit the Obama Administration from giving away the internet. This issue doesnt simply threaten our personal liberties. It also has significant National Security ramifications. The Obama Administration is months away from deciding whether or not the United States government will continue to provide oversight over the Core Functions of the internet and continue to protect it from authoritarian regimes who view the internet as a way to increase their influence and suppress the freedom of speech. Just weeks ago, the washington post, hardly conservative thought published an article chinas scary lessons of the work censoring the internet works. We shouldnt take our online freedom for granted. If congress sits idly by and allows the administration to term u. S. Oversight of the internet, we can be certain that authoritarian regimes will work to undermine the new system of internet governance and strengthen the position of their governments at the expense of those who stand for liberty and freedom of speech. This prospect is truly concerning. Given as the proposal submitted by the ser Net Corporation interNet Corporations for the assigned names and numbers also known and ican, ican is a Global Organization and its latest proposal unquestionably decreases the position of the United States while it increases the influence of over 160 foreign governments within ican in critical ways, foreign governments like china, foreign governments like russia. Additionally, this proposal has the potential to expand icans historic core mission by creating a potential gateway to content regulation, and it would only further emboldened icans leadership which has a poor track record of acting in an unaccountable manner and a proven unwillingness to respond to specific questions posed by the United States senate. Relinquishing our control over the internet would be an irreversible decision. We must act affirmatively to protect the internet as well as the operation and security of the dotgov and dotmil top level domains which are vital to our National Security. Mr. President , i would note for whatever reason, the Obama Administration is pursuing the giveaway of the internet in a dogged and ideological manner. It is the same naive foolishness that decades ago led jimmy carter to give away the panama canal. It is this utopian view that even though we built it, we should give it to others whose interests are not our own. We should not have given away the panam panama canal and we sd not be giving away the internet. And if the Obama Administration succeeds in giving away the internet, that is number one, prohibited by the constitution of the United States which specifies that property of the United States government cannot be transferred without the authority of congress, this administration is ignoring that constitutional limitation, is ignoring the law, but if the Obama Administration gives away the internet, that will impact freedom. It will impact speech for you, for your children and your childrens children. And i would note this body, one of the things this body is good at is indonesia, is doing is inertia, is doing nothing. Thats my amendment would say that control of the internet cannot be transferred to anyone else without the affirmative approval of the United States congress. If it is a good idea to give away the internet that we built, that we preserve, that we keep free, that we protect the First Amendment, if its a good idea, and i cant imagine anyone reasonably objecting but if it is a good idea, we ought to debate it on this floor. A decision of that consequence should be decided by congress and not by unaccountable bureaucrats in the Obama Administration so it is my hope that colleagues in this body will come together at the very minimum to say not whether or not the internet should be given away but simply that congress should decide that. There was a time this body was vigorous in protecting its constitutional prerogatives. It is my hope this body will rediscover the imperative of doing so. The third amendment that ive introduced on the ndaa that i want to address is the expatriot terrorist act, a bill i introduced over a year ago and have now filed as an amendment to the ndaa. As we all norad cal islamic terrorists have been waging war against the United States since and indeed well before 9 11 and yet the president cannot bring himself to identify the enemy preferring to use meaningless bureaucratic terms like violent extremists. The president naively believes that refraining from calling the threat what it is, radical islamic terrorism will somehow asage the terrorists and discourage them from making war against us and our allies. But that hasnt stopped isis from promising to strike america over and over and over again. Nor did it dissuade the radical islamic terrorists here in the United States who have committed attacks against americans since this president first took office. The terrorist attack in fort hood which the administration inexplicably tried to categorize as workplace violence. The Boston Marathon bombing, the terrorist attacks on military recruiters in little rock and chattanooga and most recently the horrific attack in san bernardino. The question for us in congress is whether we have given the government every possible tool consistent with the constitution to defeat this threat. I do not believe we have, which is why ive introduced the exparticipate contract terrorist act. Over the years numerous americans like Jose Pa Delia and fhisal ajad have abandoned their country and fellow citizens to go abroad and join radical islamic terrorist groups. Intelligence officials estimate more than 250 americans have tried or succeeded in traveling to syria and iraq to join isis or other terrorist groups in the region. This amendment updates the expatriot statutes so that americans travel abroad and who fight with radical islamic terrorists can relinquish their citizenship. This allows us to preempt any attack, preempt any attempt to reenter the country and launch attacks on americans who otherwise hide behind the privilege of citizenship. In this more and more dangerous world, it would be the height of foolishness for the administration to allow known terrorists, radical islamic terrorists, those affiliated with isis, with al qaeda, with other Islamist Groups to travel back to the United States of america using a passport to carry out jihad and murder innocent americans. This legislation should be bipartisan legislation. This legislation should be legislation that brings all of us together. We might disagree on questions of marginal tax rates as democrats and republicans. We might disagree on a host of policy issues, but when it comes to the simple question should an islamic terrorist intent on killing americans be allowed to use a u. S. Passport to travel freely and come into america, that answer should be no, and that ought to be an issue of great agreement. So today i call upon my colleagues to join me in supporting these amendments, in coming together. Together these amendments strengthen our nation both at home and abroad. We are stronger than the obstacles we face, and by the grace of god, we will succeed. The steaks stakes are too high to quit, and we will stand together and continue to strengthen this exceptional nation, this shining city on a hill that each and every one of us love. I yield the floor. Mr. Mccain mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain the senator from texas has just made a moving commentary. I would hope he would consider in the future voting for the Defense Authorization bill rather than voting against it and standing together. We stood together on the committee with only three votes against the Defense Authorization bill, and he voted against it last year as well. So i would look forward to working with the senator from texas and maybe getting instead of him being one or two in the bipartisan effort of the committee, to be voting for the Defense Authorization bill. And i might tell him also that with his agenda as he described it, i would be much more agreeable to considering that agenda if he would consider voting for the defense of this nation, which is that thick, which we worked for months and months with hearings and meetings and gatherings, and he decides to vote against the authorization bill. So i look forward to working with him and perhaps next time he might consider voting for it rather than being one of three out of some 27 in the committee who voted for it in a bipartisan fashion of which im very proud. I note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from texas. Mr. Cruz i ask unanimous consent to vitiate the quorum call. The presiding officer is there objection . Without objection. Mr. Cruz mr. President , i would briefly respond to my friend from arizona. As he is aware, this ndaa contains one provision that in the history of our country is a a is a radical departure. This ndaa for the First Time Ever would subject women to Selective Service and potentially the draft. Now, was this change done through open debate . Was this change done in front of the American People . Was this change done reflecting their views . No. It was inserted by Committee Staff and the committee draft. It is a radical change that is attempting to be foisted on the American People. Im the father of two daughters. Wirm can do women can do anything they set their mind to, and i see that each and every day, but the idea that we should forcibly conscript young girls into combat to my mind makes little or no sense. It is at a minimum a radical proposition. I could not vote for a bill that did so, particularly that did so without public debate, and i would note in addition to that that in previous years i have joined with senator lee and others in pressing for an amendment that would protect the Constitutional Rights of all americans against unlimited detention of american citizens on american soil. And the chairman is well aware, because i have told him this now four years in a row, that if the senate would take up and pass the amendment protecting the constitutional Due Process Rights of american citizens, the bill of rights actually matters, that i would happily vote for the bill. And yet, the senate has not taken up that amendment, and so i have had no choice but vote no at the end of the day. And i can tell you right now if this bill continues to extend the draft to women, a radical change, much to the astonishment of the voters being foisted on the American People, not just by democrats but by a lot of republicans, and i will have no choice but vote no again this year. But i can say this. I would be thrilled to vote yes. If we focused on the vital responsibilities of protecting this country rather than focusing on extraneous issues. I yield the floor. Mr. Mccain mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from arizona. Mr. Mccain the senator from texas has the unique capability of finding a provision in a bill that thick to base his opposition with a strong moral stand. The fact is that every single leader, military leader in this country, both men and women, members of the military uniform leadership of this country, believe that it is simply fair, since we have opened up all aspects of the military to women in the military, that they would be also registering for Selective Service. I would also point out that every Single Member of the committee that people like senator ayotte, senator shaheen, senator mccaskill, all of the female members of the Committee Also find it a matter of actually equality, equality. And women who i have spoken to in the military overwhelmingly believe that women are not only qualified but are on the same basis as their male counterparts. Every uniform leader of the United States military seemed to have a different opinion from the senator from texas whose military background is not extensive. And so for him to now say i believe it was indefinite detention last time, which obviously is an issue but not in my view the sufficient reason, because it was not included, the bill last year did not address that issue, but because we didnt address the issue to the president to the senator from texas satisfaction, then he votes against the bill. This year its Selective Service. The vote within the committee was overwhelming. The opinion of women in the military and men believe that every one of our military leaders. The senator from texas is entitled to his views, but to think that somehow that that is sufficient reason for him to continue to vote against the bill, even though he does not respect the will of the majority in my view is not sufficient reason to continue to oppose what is a bipartisan bill, overwhelmingly voted for in the committee, and at the end of the day in previous years voted overwhelmingly in favor of the United States senate. So i respect the senator from texas view. Too bad that view is not shared by our military leadership. The ones that have the experience in military in exat with women in combat with women. Mr. President , i suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call a senator mr. President . 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 mr. President , i ask unanimous consent to speak as if in morning business. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Menendez mr. President , i have thought long and hard about giving this speech, and i dont come to the floor lightly, but as the senior latino in this chamber, i felt i had to speak for those who do not recall the past are destined to repeat it. And i dont want to let this opportunity pass without speaking out. The remarks of the Presumptive Republican nominee for president about judge Gonzalo Curiel are taking this nation and the Republican Party down a dark and slippery slope. The road to some of the darkest moments in history have been paved with the rants of petty demagogues against ethnic minorities for centuries, and now again in this century donald trump is echoing those same racist rants, and by doing so threatening to take this nation to a dangerous place. While Donald Trumps racist themes throughout this campaign are a new low for one of americas Major Political parties, they are not unique in history. This is page one on the dark chapters of history. Separate us from them. Tyrants and dictators have incited hatred against ethnic and religious minorities for centuries in order to consolidate power for themselves. Increasingly radical thinking republicans are not blameless in creating the environment that has led to this disaster, that has led to a new mccarthyism that calls out people not for their beliefs but for their ethnicity. We have governed from crisis to crisis over the past eight years not because we cannot find solutions to our problems but because of political decisions to delegitimatize the process and the president. They have fed into the ranks of a petty demagogue and now struggle to find safe ground. They have given quarter to Snake Oil Salesmen and conspiracy theorists, and now we have the head of a major u. S. Political party attacking a federal judge because of his parentage. This isnt a Reality Tv Show or real estate deal. This is an attack on our independent judiciary. Were talking about a president ial candidate tearing the fabric in which we enforce our laws and help citizens protect themselves from injustice. Mr. President , my mother believed in every aspect of her life in being treated fairly. What she did not believe is that being treated fairly meant that she would always get what she wanted, and if she did not get it, that it would be proof that the process of the system were corrupt, unfair and out to get her. To my mother and to me, lashing out when we dont get what we want, as donald trump seems to do so often, can only be described as remarkably childish , thinskinned, surprisingly egocentric and frankly for someone who aspires to lead this nation dangerously undemocratic. If not outright demagoguery, threatening the very safeguards our founders put in place to protect us from those like mr. Trump whose only view of the world seems to be in a mirror. His only response to adversity is to blame someone else and turn people against each other. The fact is leaders dont turn people against each other. They bring them together in common cause. Mr. Trump needs to learn that there is not always someone else to blame for defeat. The fact that you lost doesnt imply fairness unfairness, i should say. It only indicates that you lost, and he should get used to it. Though its a difficult concept for someone raised to believe there would be no losing and if there were, it must be a mistake that can be rectified with power, money, or a lawsuit. Apparently, there trumps mind, if he loses it must be someone elses fault. Its him. Its them. Its those people. He is an american he isnt american. He doesnt have a birth certificate. Hes a muslim. Its all of them. Hes a mexican judge. And i want to build a wall so hes being unfair to me. That attitude may be childish and pathetic in a school yard bully, but in an american president , in a commander in chief to be, its down right dangerous. Mr. President , i have traveled my state and this nation and listened to people who wonder as many of us do how our political dialogue has become so dangerously course and brash and blatantly racist, how we seem to have reduced the greatness of this country to its lowest common denominator. We are talking about electing a president , a man or woman who will hold the nuclear code, who will decide matters of war and peace and whether to send our sons and daughters into harms way. The stakes are too high to allow a meglomaniac to pound his chest over a legitimate decision ordered by a judge confirmed unanimously by this senate. Now, many of my colleagues have tried to distance themselves from the comments of their nominees, but they have not gone in many cases far enough. They have not called him out as they should, politics aside for the threat he poses to this nation if he is elected. Many of my colleagues must recognize as i do that a federal judge born in indiana which is part of these great United States with a mexican family background whose citizens whose parents became u. S. Citizens is not a mexican judge but an american judge, just as a United States senator like this one born in new york, raised in new jersey from a cuban family background is a United States senator and to imply otherwise, to ask that judge curiel recuse himself from a case because of where his parents were born is on its face racist. They need to come to the floor and denounce the comments of their nominee. In fact, all americans should denounce this kind of blatant racism, the tone of the Trump Campaign and the slippery slope that his statements, his actions, his demeanor threaten to send us down. And he doesnt seem to be able to stop himself. Hes doubled down and said that its an its impossible, for example, that a judge of muslim descent might not be able to render a favorable decision in a trump whomever cause because of the candidates policy to ban muslims from entering this country. Anyone who wont stand up and call this blatant racism has decided to put partisan politics ahead of our country. This is how a new mccarthyism comes to america, sold by a reality t shh show host aided and abetted by a Political Party without the courage to stand up to racism in its most cynical form. Mr. President , ive watched this Campaign Like most of my colleagues incredulous at what weve heard, shocked, in disbelief and with a deep concern that the at the level of discourse that has degenerated into name calling and into out and out racism and that my republican colleagues and friends, many are pulling their punches, not going far enough to denounce the racist rants of their nominee. This is not the american political system that i know or grew up with. It is not how we run campaigns and it should make us all feel uncomfortable, but its not good enough simply to be uncomfortable with what the Presumptive Republican nominee says. We cant just turn a deaf ear and a bind eye blind eye to a donald trump and where he threatens to take this nation should he be elected. He cannot wait until its too late. And i believe my colleagues know it but have not yet found a way to articulate it. We as a nation have to face the ugliness of what he has said and what he is no doubt yet to say. We as a people Must Immediately and unconditionally condemn and reject the type of blatant racism weve heard in the last few days. Those who do not stand up to intolerance and hatred only encourage it and so the seeds of bigotry that will ultimately divide us as a nation and a people. I urge all of my republican colleagues and all americans to reject the politics of settling scores and grudges and work towards changing the hateful rhetoric we continue to hear. Were a nation of immigrants, all of us. We all know the reality of what it means to work hard to get an education, build a career, find our way to this chamber or to the federal bench. Many of us grew up in immigrant neighborhoods like judge curiel having to navigate many obstacles, the veiled or not so veiled insults, the finger pointing, the racial stereo tapes always remaining rational and logical enough to take the long view, to see beyond the mirror, beyond ourselves, making the best decisions we can and take what comes, and in doing so become part of the largest no longer a stranger but members of something larger than ourselves. So when donald trump says at a political rally theres my africanamerican, we see only a fellow american, a citizen, one of us, not one of them. Today we are all judge Gonzalo Curiel and today we stand together as one nation, indivisible, no matter how hard someone tries to divide us. I repeat, the road to some of the darkest moments in history have been paid with the rants of petty demagogues against ethnic minorities for century and donald trump is echoing the same racist rants threatening to take this nation to a dangerous place. Lets all of us speak out before its too late. With that, mr. President , i yield the floor. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from south dakota. A senator mr. President , as we enter the final stretch of the Obama Administration, many have begun to analyze the president s tenure and debating would legacy he will leave. Mr. Thune people are asking are we better off and are we safer. Unfortunately, mr. President , the evidence suggests that the answer to both those questions is no. As we look around the world right now, we see more and more unrest and insecurity and the Foreign Policy failures of the president and his administration are partly responsible. Again and again, when its come time for the president to lead, hes chosen instead to sit on the sidelines. And his failure to act has emboldened our enemies and alienated our allies. Take the situation in syria. Mr. President , i have not im not blaming the start of the Syrian Civil War on president obama, but when a red line was drawn and crossed and the president ignored it, we lost our credibility and our ability to influence president assad. And as we retreated from a position of strength, turmoil and unrest in syria erupted, but the president s reluctance to act must have looked familiar to foreign leaders like vladimir putin. It doesnt make the front pages of the papers anymore but we must remember that russia invaded the sovereign country of ukraine and excrimea while the president did nothing. After that its no surprise that russia felt free to involve itself in syria or that it continues to occupy and influence parts of Eastern Ukraine as if it were a colony and not a free nation. Recently weve also seen russian jets buzzing u. S. Navy ships. Mr. President , i can think of a few other president s who would have stood for russias behavior, but this passiveness now defines president obamas approach to Foreign Policy. The now infamous russian reset promoted by president obama and secretary clinton will go down in history as a strategic failure of this administration. In the pacific which was intended to be a key focus of the president s Foreign Policy, china has gone largely unchallenged, especially in the south china sea. The noticeable absence of the United States over the last seven years has led to chinas building an island and standing up and airfield in some of the most disputed waters in the world. An island, mr. President. Can you imagine if a country tried to build an island near the United States and then militarized it. Its no surprise take our allies in Southeast Asia are growing increasingly nervous with the rising military power making such aggressive claims on their doorsteps. And then theres the situation in iraq. During his campaign, the president promised to withdraw u. S. Troops from iraq which he then proceeded to do on a publicly announced timetable. Military planners and Congressional Republicans warned the telegraphing our plans to insurgents would encourage them to bide their time and wait for our troops to leave prf preying upon before preing upon an unprepared iraqi military. But it was evident that president obama and secretary clinton didnt want to see our obligation to the iraqis through. They were more interested in keeping an illadvised Campaign Promise no matter what the cost to security in iraq. The president proceed with his plans to withdraw our troops without pressing form iriraqi Prime Minister mall can i to ensure his station was stable and secure before we withdrew. Everyone knows what happened next. The lack of american troops left a gaping hole in iraqs security and isis rolled in to fill the gap. Once called the j. V. Team by president obama, isis quickly established itself as arguably the most dangerous terrorist organization of the world. From its safe hairve nn iraq, e isis has spread terror into europe destroying peaceful communities and Cultural Relics alike in its pursuit o. My heart especially breaks for the christians and other religious minorities in the region in this time of darkness. Their experience under isis has been one of relentness persecution and suffering. Genocide, mr. President. Isis spread has only made the situation in syria more dire as well as extended terror beyond the middle east to europe. It may have also influenced a mass shooting here in the United States. Mr. President , even the president s supposed leadership triumphs have demonstrated his unwillingness to stand up to our nations enemies. As the days pass, the buyers remorse from the iran deal from democrats continues to grow. The president negotiated a nuclear deal with iran that will not only fail to stop iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, but will actually make it easier for iran to acquire advance Nuclear Weapons down the road. This deal will jeopardize the security of the United States and our allies for many years to come. Deputy to National Security advisor ben rodes has admitted to creating an echo chamber of falsehoods to sell the deal. Weve also learned that a firm that helped push the deal also funded positive media coverage. So not only was this a bad deal that will make it easier for iran to acquire advanced Nuclear Weapons down the road, the administration was disingenuous in how it sold the deal. It pulled a fast one over congress, over the American People, and our partners around the world, all in the name of burnishing the president s legacy not because it was the will of the people. This is another instance of the president s missteps that send troubling signals to our ally nrks this case israel, our closest and most reliable ally in the region. Mr. President , i make these points because its against this backdrop of growing International Instability and lessening u. S. Influence that the senate is now considering the National Defense authorization act. This legislation authorizes the funding necessary to equip our troops with the resources that they need to carry out their missions. As we look beyond the failures of the Obama Administration to the challenges that lie ahead, theres its even more important that when it comes to our military, that we get things right. Mr. President , its not americas strength that tempts our adversaries. It is our weakness. Thats why we need to assure that our military is well equipped and trained to meet the challenges of rising powers through hightech capabilities while also being agile and versatile to combat increased unconventional threats from nonstate actors. We sleep at night in peace and safety because our military stands on watch around the globe. As threats multiply around the world, we must ensure that our military has every resource it needs to confront the dangers facing our nation. We need to support essential forwardlooking weapon systems like the b21 longrange Strategic Bomber and hightech drones to deter and defeat future threats. We must ensure that detainees stay at guantanamo instead of returning to the fight. We must ensure that our troops and their families at home have the support that they need and deserve. Mr. President , this bill will accomplish all that. As we continue to debate the National Defense authorization act, im sure there will be some contentious issues that will come up. But while there may be some disagreement, we need to have this debate, find a consensus and pass this essential legislation without delay. Playing politics with funding for our troops as the president did by vetoing the Defense Authorization bill last summer is unacceptable. I urge my colleagues to join me in advancing this essential legislation to provide for our troops, ensure the safety and defense of america and help restore americas position of strength. Mr. President , i yield the floor. Mr. Wyden mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from oregon. Mr. Thune before the senator from oregon speaks, if i could, i just ask, i have seven unanimous consent requests for committees to meet during todays session of the senate. They have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. I would ask unanimous consent that these requests be agreed to and that these requests be printed in the record. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Wyden mr. President , rural oregonians who have long worried about trains rumbling through our treasured Columbia River gorge had their fears realized last friday when a milelong oil train derailed and caught fire in the heart of one of our states crown jewels, the Columbia River gorge. Our state is rich with breathtaking places, and we believe the Columbia River gorge is right at the top of the list. Local tribes consider the area sacred ground, and it took the breath away from Merriweather Lewis who wrote in his journal of beautiful cascades which fell from a great height over stupendous rocks. In addition to being a haven for wildlife, the gorge is the lifeblood for tens of thousands of residents in the pacific northwest, a critical transportation corridor and a center for Outdoor Recreation and tourism. Those who visit the gorge do so to wind surf and kiteboard and parasail and fish and hike and camp. It boasts the most visited Recreation Site in the pacific northwest, the thundering multenoma falls that Merriweather Lewis wrote about. In this pristine area, planes carrying Flammable Liquids barrel through the gorge on tracks that were built in the first half of the 20th century. And on friday, just a stones throw from our regions lifeblood, the Columbia River, one of those trains fell off the tracks. 16 cars hauling crude oil crashed within view of a Community School in the small town of mosher. Three tank cars caught fire. One car leaked oil. And one experienced what is known as a thermal tear, sending a column of flames shooting into the air. You can see from the photo next to me just how close this fiery rash was to that school. People within a mile of the crash site were evacuated. The evacuation zone included interstate 84 which was closed for 12 hours and at least nearby 100 households. Some of these folks have yet to be able to return to their homes. The sewer system was damaged badly enough that it was taken offline. Firefighters were forced to use so much water to put out the fire that the towns main well was depleted. As a result, residents who remain have been forced to drink bottled and boiled water, and this has all been taking place in the middle of a heat wave at home. Heres the thing about the reality i just described. A lot of oregonians are telling me we got lucky with the Oil Train Accident in mosher, and they are right. This crash has left oregonians wonder what unlucky would have looked like. I can tell you, it doesnt take a lot of imagination. The mosher crash could have been much worse if the train had been going faster and more cars derailed. It could have been worse if the crash had happened on thursday when winds were clocked above 3e had spread to the nearby tree line. If the crash had happened a mile east, it would have been on the edge of the river, causing a potentially catastrophic spill in the middle of a salmon run. If it had happened 60 miles west, it would have been in Downtown Portland or in one of the suburbs. Oregon has been lucky a lot, and at some point, mr. President , that luck is going to run out. What people in small communities in oregon really want to know and what they deserve to know is what happens next. What is Congress Going to do to start fixing the problem . I am here this morning with my friend and colleague from oregon, senator merkley, to talk about what specifically were going to do to get this fixed. More than a year ago, i introduced legislation with senator merkley, senator schumer and five other senators, the Hazardous Materials rail Transportation Safety improvement act. Since then, four more senators have signed off. Among the bills lead sponsors are the International Association of firefighters and the International Association of fire chiefs. Our bill reduces the chance of accidents in the first place by providing funding for communities to relocate segments of track away from highly Populated Areas and for states to conduct more track inspection s. Next it helps communities prepare for a possible accident by paying for training for First Responders before the next action. And the bill provides market incentives to use the safest tank cars to transport Hazardous Materials which lowers the chance of a spill or a fire in the event of an accident. Now, on monday, i talked with Union Pacific c. E. O. Mr. Fritz, and he committed to work with me and the senate sponsors on this legislation. He indicated there were parts of the bill that the company can support, and i think knowing that the company is willing now to follow up is a bit of constructive news and encouraging developments. But much more needs to be done. Yesterday senator merkley and i with our governor, congressman blumenauer, congressman bonamici, we all called for a temporary moratorium on oil train traffic through the Columbia Gorge. Now, yesterday when i talked to the c. E. O. Of Union Pacific, mre Union Pacific will not ship union trains of oil through the gorge until there are three developments. One, the cause of the accident has been determined. Two, Union Pacific ensures that an accident will not happen again, will not happen again, and the company sits down and works out concerns that are obviously of enormous importance to residents of mosier. So these commitments are helpful, and were going to monitor them closely. The company has got to do Everything Possible to help get residents in the town back on their feet. That includes getting the sewage system up and running and getting people back in their homes so they can get about their everyday lives. In my view, it would be hard after a close call, a very close call like the one in mosier on friday for anybody to just walk away and say well, there probably wont be another accident because while the people of mosier work to get back to their normal lives, the threat of another crash is going to linger. Our people are talking about it. Theyre telling the newspapers that theyre nervous, theyre nervous about another one, so the prospect of another accident is going to linger in the minds of folks across my state. Now, it has been clear for years, mr. President , that more needs to be done to protect our communities and prevent the next accidents from occurring. Its tragic that mosier has now joined a long and growing list of both small towns and big cities that have experienced an Oil Train Accident. These include castleton, north dakota, lynchburg, virginia, aliceville, alabama, new augusta, mississippi, lasalle, colorado, galena, illinois, watertown, wisconsin, and philadelphia, pennsylvania. So more needs to be done to ensure that Transportation Systems used to haul crude oil and Flammable Liquids are up to par. I hope members of this body on both sides of the aisle will join me and senator merkley and nine other senators. We have already got over 10 of the senate. I hope they will join us in our effort to protect communities everywhere from the next Oil Train Accident. This has nothing to do with democrats and republicans. What this has to do with is whether were going to take commonsense steps to prevent these accidents and ensure that in particular we do everything we can to have the kind of trains that are not as likely to be part of accidents in the future. My colleague, senator merkley, has been a terrific partner in this effort. We have been talking about how were going to tackle this urgent issue for the people we represent, and he is going to have important remarks about fridays accident in mosier as well, mr. President. With that, i yield the floor and look forward to nor merkleys comments. Mr. Merkley mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from oregon. Mr. Merkley mr. President , i rise today with my friend and colleague, senator wyden, to draw attention to the dangerous Oil Train Derailment that occurred in oregon last friday. And the urgent need to protect communities around our nation with much stronger safety regulations for these rolling explosion hazards. Folks in the Columbia Gorge have experienced a proliferation of trains carrying coal and carrying oil. They have been concerned about the length of the trains and how these trains roll through and divide their communities and the challenge of the coal dust, but there is one concern they have had above everything else, and thats that a train full of explosive bakken crude would derail in their community, and that happened last friday. It is the very scenario that communities have dreaded. This oil train was traveling through the Cascade Mountains along the Columbia Gorge on its way to tacoma, washington. 97 cars with flammable explosive bakken crude, 16 tank cars went off the tracks. One car ruptured. When it ruptured, it spewed oil and the oil created an inferno, and the inferno started to heat up the adjacent cars, and the adjacent cars have pressure relief valves, and as they got hot, they started spewing oil out of these pressure release valves and the fire spread to the three cars, and this happened near the town of mosier, oregon, just 70 miles east of portland. Now, were fortunate, we thank our lucky stars that no one was injured in the incident, but it could have been different. As my colleague from oregon pointed out, the proximity to mosier resulted in an evacuation of over 100 nearby residents and the kindergarten through eighth grade school with over 200 children and an air quality warning for vulnerable residents from the thick plumes of black smoke. We were fortunate. We are happy that no human life was taken, no injury occurred. Lets take a look at what that inferno appeared like. This massive plume of burning bakken crude rising into the a air. And we see here the fire and the adjacent cars. We see the proximity to the Columbia River. There could have been a massive release of oil into the Columbia River as