economy. he has already instituted proposals and rules that would benefit public safety. i hope mr. pai will also continue to hold the f.c.c. to the highest standards of transparency. his decision to make proposals and orders accessible to the public prior to the commission's vote on them was a positive action. the f.c.c. will continue to be in good hands with mr. pai as chairman, and when the senate votes later on today to move this nomion along, i urge my colleagues to vot yes and eventually to vote yes for his confirmation. thank you, mr. president. and i note that the staff is about to make a suggestion. mr. wicker: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the provisions of rule 22, at 12:15 p.m., all postcloture time be considered expired on the erickson nomination, and that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the president be immediately notified of the senate's action. further, that the senate then resume consideration of the pai nomination, and the time until 1:45 be equally divided prior to a cloture vote on the nomination. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. wicker: and, mr. president, i have six requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. the presiding officer: duly noted. mr. wicker: and now, mrpresiden i note the absence of a quorum. the priding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from massachusetts. mr. markey: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum be rescinded. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. markey: thank you, mr. president, very much. today we begin debate on a position in our government that impathe daily lives of every single american. if you use a telephone to connect to the internet, watch television, pay a big cable company to do all of those things, then you need to know who ajit pai is. president trump has nominated ajit pai to be the chairman of the federal communications commission, and while ajit pai has devoted many years to public service, i cannot support his nomination. under mr. pai's short tenure, he has made the f.c.c. stand for forgetting consumers and competition. now, let's take a look at who is getting a piece of the f.c.c. pie under chairman pai. it is american consumers on the one hand versus big corporations on the other hand. so let's just start. let's take a peace of this pie and determine who is getting that first slice of what is going on at the f.c.c. let's look at net neutrality. net neutrality is the basic principle that says that all internet traffic is treated equal. net neutrality ensures that providers do not block or slow down or center o prioritize internet traffic. but if ajit pai gets his way, a handful of big broadband companies will serve as gatekeepers to the internet. fewer voices, less choice, no competition, but more profits for the big broadband companies. that's the pai formula. yet it's today's net neutrality rules that ensure that those were the best ideas. not merely the best funded ideas can thrive in the 21st century economy. it's net neutrality that has been the internet's chief governing principle since its inception. consider that today essentially every company is an internet company. in 2016, almost half of the venture capital funds invested in this country went towards internet-specific and software companies. that's $25 billion of inte., half of all venture -- of investment, half of all venture capital in america went towards internet-specific and software companies. half of all venture capital. and to meet america's insatiable demand for broadband internet, u.s. broadband and telecommunications companies, the big companies, invested more than $87 billion in capital expenditures in 2015. that's the highest rate of annual investment in the last ten years. so we have hit a sweet spot. investment in broadband and wireless technologies is very high. b creation, very high. venture capital investment in online start-ups, very high. that's why more than 22 million americans wrote to the federal communications commission to make their voices heard about net neutrality. they don't want it repealed. yet, chairman pai's proposal would decimate the f.c.c.'s open internet order. chairman pai said, quote, we need to fire up the weed whacker through net neutrality rules. do we need a leader at the f.e.c. f.e.c. -- at the federal communications commission who will have consumers pay more. so the first slice of this pie, killing net neutrality goes to the big corporations and the loser, the consumers. so let's go to the next slice of the f.c.c. pie. let's see where that goes as these decisions are being made. the next issue is, in fact, broadband privacy. chairman pai has actively supported efforts to allow broadband providers to use, share -- use and share your information without consumer consent. in 2016 chairman pai voted against commonsense broadband privacy protections that gave consumers meaningful control over their sensitive information many when he assumed the f.c.c. chairmanship, ajit pai stopped data security protections which would have ensured broadband providers better protect the information they collect about their users. can you imagine that? chairman pai stopped protections that would improve data security. so i have 143 million reasons why that was a bad idea. just this month equifax was subject to a cyber attack that gave out information about 143 million consumers. the american public wants more protection, not less. what does chairman pai do? well, effectively eliminates the data security protections consumers need to pro it can't their sensitive information, and that is just plain wrong. and just a few weeks later mr. pai supported congressional republicans' efforts to rescind the federal communications commission broadband privacy protections. now your broadband provider can relentlessly collect your sensitive web browsing history without your consent. now, you may under -- you may wonder why he would undermine the efforts to spo the privacy of american consumers. well, the answer is simple. he wants that slice of the pie to go to the biggest corporations. and how do they use it? well, they then take that data, your personal data, the information you put online, and they sell it without your permission to make money for the big corporations. so, once again, rather than consumers, the big corporations get the benefit of that decision at the federal communications commission. so let's take a look at the next issue. the next issue goes to the question of mergers, the mergers of big telecommunications companies. the sinclair deal has led to a proposal to merge with tribune media, granting one company an unprecedent market power over 200 broadcast stations around the country. in order to help sinclair, ajit pai reinstated what most consider an antiquated rule, the u.h.f. discount. this merger would allow sinclair to reach into 72% of american households, but with the discount, the f.c.c. counts it's only 45%. so putting this discount back on the books is chair pai's first step to help sinclair stay within the national ownership cap of 39%. what will be the impact of this massive telecommunication mega merger, less local news, sports, and weather that americans count on today and it will lead to the continued squeezing out of independent programmers and it will mean higher prices for consumers. and what signal does approving this merger reveal? well, that the fc and a -- f.c.c. and ajit pai put out the welcome mat for the consolidation for other communication companies. so this third slice, once again, goes to corporations and not to consumers because they are left out in the cold. so let's look at the fourth slice and see what happens with that at the federal communications commission under ajit pai's nomination of being approved here on the floor of the united states senate. the next slice is one that deals with the education rate or the e-rate. e-rate has proven essential, linking up schools and libraries to the internet. we went from a country in 1996 where only 42% of k through 12 had access to our internet through near ubiquitous deployment today. e-rate demock triezs access. over $44 billion to date has been committed nationwide, but, again, ajit pai does not take that perspective. at his confirmation hearing in july i explicitly asked him whether he would commit to preserve the success of the bipartisan program and protect the funding level. he would not make this commitment to maintain current funding for e-rate. students and library users around the country will not be able to afford this slice of the pie because, once again, consumers lose and corporations will win. and now we go to the final slice of the communication's pie at the f.c.c. a household with no access to basic telecommunication services could lose educational and employment opportunities as well as emergency services. that's why the f.c.c.'s lifeline program is truly a life for millions of americans who are able to connect to the world. in massachusetts alone more than 180,000 low-income constituents rely on this. the value of this universal service has always been a bedrock of our telecommunication policy. yet, one of ajit pai's first actions as f.c.c. chairman was to underline lifeline and make it more difficult for low-income people to access affordable broadband. i was dismayed by his decision to revoke the lifeline broadband providers just weeks after they were approved. mr. pai's action did nothing but unfairly punish low-income consumers by limiting choice. so the final slice, again, goes to the federal communication supporting corporations and not supporting consumers. so that is the pie, the f.c.c. pie as it is put together on net neutrality, on mergers, on e-rate, on lifeline, it's all the same. f.c.c. winds up standing for forgetting consumers and competition. that's the era we are now in and it will only intensify as each day, week, and month goes by. and so that i why i am recommending a no vote on ajit pai as the chairman of the federal communications commission. it's which side are we going to be on, consumers or corporations? are we going to side with innovators? are we going to side with those who are trying to continue to take these platforms of dynamic change in our society for consumers, for entrepreneurs or are we going to allow for a closing this resolution? this is the era we live in this the 21st century and this is the choice people must make, which direction are we going into? i urge a no vote on ajit pai's nomination. of all the things we are going to do this year, this is at -- near the top of the list. this is the organizing principle of our lives here in the united states and around the planet and we have to make sure we are heading in the right direction, more openness, more competition, more consumer protection, more privacy protection, more access in libraries and schools through these technologies, not less and less and less and less. it is the wrong direction to head in. i urge a no vote, and, mr. president, i yield back the balance of my time and i question the prence of a orum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call theoll. quorum call: quorum call: mr. mcconnell: madam president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: are we in a quorum call? the presiding officer: we are. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: the people of puerto rico and the virgin islands have been hit especially hard by powerful hurricanes. as i said earlier this week, the senate will continue to work with fema, the department of defense, and the rest of the administration to help in the recovery, just as we have in texas, florida, and across the southeast. and we're eager to hear more soon about what additional resources will be necessary. the american people are stepping up too, just as they always do, and so are the brave men and women of our military. this week 70 soldiers and 8 aircraft from kentucky's 10st airborne combat aviation brigade went from fort campbell to puerto rico. these soldiers will join the larker joint -- larger joint force element which includes medical support teams, medevac aircraft and elements from the army corps of engineers. kentucky is similarly proud of the men and women of its air and army national guard who worked to provide relief in the virgin islands, puerto rico, as well asing to recent reports, their efforts have helped save more than 300 lives in the wake of hurricane harvey. we're all proud of their efforts, but we should not forget the disasters of these proportions typically require a response from nearly every arm of the federal government. the f.a.a. plays a critical role as well. as we all know, the f.a.a.'s authority to collect and spend money from the aviation trust fund is set to expire september 30, this week. these are the resources that fund repairs and replacement parts for our air traffic control system. even absent a crisis, it would be irresponsible to let this lapse. we've read in recent days that air traffic in and out of puerto rico has been limited because of damage done to radar, naval gaitional aids and -- navigational aids and other equipment. it is reported air traffic control capacity is only about 20% of normal. this critical air safety equipment needs repair. the f.a.a. reports that failure to act on the reauthorization would leave them without sufficient funding in the accounts necessary for replacement parts, equipment, and supplies. it would only have enough funding to cover salary costs for these workers for about one week. these american territories are suffering. what the need right now is aid and assistance from the air, not a manufactured crisis from washington on top of everything else. the house of representatives will soon pass legislation that reauthorizes the f.a.a. it will help open up the airspace to that aid so it can get to where it's needed most. and the house bill goes further by authorizing tax relief for individuals and businesses affected by the recent hurricanes in puerto rico and the virgin islands and texas and florida as well. because these disaster victims won't suffer a tax bill on top of all their other losses, we need to pass that legislation here in the senate without further delay. on another matter, the senate is considering two qualified nominees today. one is the sitting chairman of the f.c.c., ajit pai. chairman pai has led a fascinating life, one punctuated by hard work and success. he had his beginnings in buffalo. he traced a line through canada. it unfolded in a small town of parsons kansas, where chairman pai grew up with his parents, first-generation immigrants from southern india. he was on to harvard after that and then the university of chicago for his law degree pai's resume prior to his employment with the f.c.c. isressive. he worked for a federal judge, worked in the justice department titrust and legal policy divisions. he gained practical experience in the private sector. he served here in the senate as committee staff. he even won a marshal fellowship. he also worked in several positions within the f.c.c. itself. when president obama nominated pai to serve as an f.c.c. commissioner back in then, -- 2011 the senate confirmed him on a voice vote. when the senate considers his nomination again today i hope senators will come together to give him strong support one more time. after all, it's no wonder why president trump chose to elevate him to f.c.c. chairman earlier this year. he understands the communication industry from nearly every angle, consider his impressive resume. he understands the needs of rural communities in states like kentucky, thanks to his own rural background. and his dedication bringing more openness and accountability to an agency that is too often known for secrecy is commendable. the same can be said of his advocacy for americans' first amendment rights. i look forward to advancing and then confirming his nomination to a new term. on one other nominee we'll be considering today, district judge ralph erickson of north dakota is the nominee before us to fill a vacant seat on the eighth circuit. he's carly qualified. he deeply respects the rule of la he was confirmed by the senate to his district judgeship by a voice vote and hen joyce the support of -- he enjoys the support of republican senator hogan and democratic senator heitkamp. when his nomination came before the judiciary committee recently, every single member of the committee voted to approve him. every single republican, every single democrat, this includes the committee's top democrat, senator feinstein and the democratic leadership's second ranking officer, senator durbin. you'd think this nomination would be about as noncontroversial as it gets. you'd be right. and yet democrats still chose to erect another pointless procedural hurdle before we can actually confirm him. and will probably do so overwhelmingly given the senate voted 95-1 on this pointless cloture motion. 95-1. a pointless cloture motion on a nominee nobody opposes. up until now our friends across the aisle have thrown up one unnecessary procedural hurdle after the next on even the most uncontroversial of nominees. as i've noted before, the opposition they've shown to these nominees most of the time seems to have little to do with the nominees themselves nor whether or not democrats even support them. colleagues actually do support the nominees just as they do now, this has really got to stop. it's time to end these silly games. time to confirm judge erickson, a dedicated jurist who is going to make a great addition to the eighth circuit. a senator: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from west virginia. mr. manchin: i rise today to honor a proud educator, a dedicated public servant, a beloved native in my home state of west virginia, and my very, very dear friend, mary joe brown. words cannot express my gratitude for mary joe's service and friendship. since my days as governor mary joe has gone beyond and above to uphold the standards not only of professionalism, loyalty and dedication but what it means to be a west virginian. mary joe has always had a passion for the noble profession of education. she worked for berkeley county schools as a teacher, a library media specialist, director of public affairs and finally as principal of an elementary school where we first became acquainted. upon her retirement from berkeley county schools when i was a newly elected governor in 2005, i invited mary joe to work with me as my regional coordinator, a role she kept through my entire time as governor a now as u.s. senator. her warm personality and sense of humor surely has a way of making you feel at ease and laughing quite frequently at not only her but yourself. i heard many times from members of the eastern pan handle community that p when she is out meeting with elected officials, business owners and fellow west virginians, she provides every confidence that their voices are being heard, and i can assure you they are. she gets in contact with me immediately. when mary joe brown is as if given a task she doesn't take no for an answer. she is the most tenacious person i have ever met. she gives each project or challenge all because it is for the good of her community and our state and her hometown. it would be difficult to find anyone as knowledgeable or dedicated to our home state as mary jo, among her many contributions to the eastern pan handle together with her loving husband, walter, they founded the walter and mary jo ziler brown fund in 2006 to help eastern pan handle students study animal husbandry and veterinary medicine. we bonded and we share the common goal of helping the rest of the country discover all that our great state of west virginia has to offer. now that she's retiring after a long career in teaching, public service and more than a decade of federal service, i know that mary jo will carry the same passion for the eastern pan handle and for wt virginia that she always has and will continue to make a difference wherever she may be and wherever she goes and always to the state of west virginia and her community. madam president, it is my greatest honor to extend her and walter my very, very best wishes in the days and the years ahead. thank you, mary jo and god bless you for everything you've done for me, our office and most importantly for our state of west virginia and the eastern pan handle. god bless you. thank you. madam president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from north dakota. mr. hoeven: madam president, i ask for consent to complete my remarks. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. hoeven: madam president, i'm honored to come to the floor today to express my support for the president's nominee to the u.s. court of appeals to the eighth circuit, judge ralph erickson. judge erickson is a long time north dakotan, a tremendous public servant in his current capacity as federal district court judge in fargo, north dakota. he made our state proud and i'm confident he will be an excellent addition to the eighth circuit judge. he has a distinguished legal career which spans over two decades. after working in private practice for ten years, he served as a magistrate judge. and then as a state district judge for the east central judicial district court. in 2003, judge erickson was nominated by president george w. bush to the u.s. district court for the district of north dakota and was quickly confirmed by the senate unanimously. unanimously. throughout his tenure judge erickson demonstrated a deep respect for the constitution and the rule of law. his judicial experience ranges from overseeing routine civil case to cases involving extreme criminal violence. throughout all these cases judge erickson practiced a measured and prudential legal approach that is necessary for a position on the second-highest court in the united states. judge erickson has also proven to be a champion for indian country. he serves as the chair of the tribal issues advisory group on the united states sentencing commission where he works to preserve tribal sovereignty. as chairman of the senate committee on indian affairs, i believe judge erickson's expertise on this issue will be a valuable asset to the eighth circuit court. madam president, part of our duty as senators is to evaluate the qualifications of the president's appointees and to vote on their nominations accordingly. it is a responsibility that i take very seriously, and i have no doubt that if confirmed, judge erickson will be an excellent circuit judge. i'm honored to be here to support his nomination and to urge my colleagues to vote yes. i would also like to note that in the gallery today, madam president, we have his daughter elizabeth joining us. and i think it's wonderful that she could be here to see her father's confirmation vote. she is sophomore at catholic university and just an outstanding young person and no doubt she is extremely proud of her father today. so it's wonderful to welcome her here for this momentous occasion. and with that, madam president, i ask for the yeas and the nays. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. under the previous order, all time having been expired, the question occurs on the erickson nominaon the yeas and nays were ordered and the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? seeing none, the yeas are 95, the nays are 1. the nomination is confirmed. under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table. and the president will be immediately notified of the senate's action. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of the pai nomination, which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, federal communications commission,ajit pai to be a member. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the time until 1:45 p.m. will be equally divided. mr. nelson: madamresident? the presiding officer: the senator from florida. mr. nelson: madam president, i want to speak on the renomination of ajit pai to serve as chairman of the f.c.c., the federal communications commission, to serve for a term of five years. under the previous administration, the f.c.c. always had the consumer's back. back then that administration's f.c.c. strengthened consumer protections, it furthered competition, it protected public safety, and it pushed forward to ensure universal service for all americans. ultimately, the success or failure of the f.c.c. rise and rest not on the fulfillment of special interest wishlist but on how those who are least able to protect themselves have been treated and whether their first amendment rights, including those of journalists, are vigorously protected. chairman pai has been a vocal and eessively partisannd often hostile opponent of pro-consumer steps taken by his colleagues on the f.c.c., and we've seen that time after time in the previous administration. and since becoming chairman of the f.c.c. this year, he has systematically undercut much of the work done over the past eight years. i want to give you several examples. he has acted to prevent millions of broadband subscribers from receiving key information about rates, terms, and conditions of their service. this is called disclosure. he has threatened the expansion of broadband into the homes of low-income americans by limiting the effectiveness of the new lifeline program reforms. if that were not enough, he has proposed sweeping limits on the ability of states and localities to review and approve the installation of certain types of wireless equipment. furthermore, he has supported the moves by the g.o.p. congress eliminate commonsense privacy rules for broadband services. and if all of that were not enough, he has eliminated several media ownership rules, paving the way for a massive consolidation among tv and radio broadcast stations. continuing, he has acted as if the way to improve broadband in rural america is to lower standards and saddle our most remote communities with slower speed or worse service. he has also opposed widely supported updates to the e-rate program, which brings broadband to schools and libraries in every state in the nation, and left that critical program's budget in the american schoolchildren, left it in a dial-up era. that's not what we want for our students. furthermore, he has curtailed rules designed to help small businesses, schools, libraries, and hospitals to find competitive options for high-capacity telecommunication services. and what that's going to do is likely raise the cost of these services and potentially harm their quality. and the list that i just gave does not include the elephant in the room: chairman pai's planned elimination of the f.c.c.'s net neutrality protections. now this senator has been very clear that i oppose the effort to revoke these essential consumer protections on the internet. i think chairman pai's proposed course, i think it's shortsighted, especially when his preferred approach seems to be the abandonment of the f.c.c.'s oversight on the action of broadband providers. these are actions that directly impact on the lives of millions of americans. in march i sent to chairman pai my deeply held concerns about some of these actions, and i expressed my sincere hope that his early moves were not a sign of things to come. but, unfortunately, my concerns have only been heightened by his record over the months since that conversation. at the end of the day, the f.c.c. has a responsibility to put the public interest ahead of the powerful special interests, just as it has been under the leadership of the past chairman and chairwomen, congress expects the current f.c.c. to uphold the laws that the congress has passed and to enforce the regulations properly adopted by the agency. a vast majority of the actions of chairman pai have served to eliminate competitive protections to threaten dangerous industry consolidation, to make the internet less free and less op open, and to weaken consumer protections for those most vulnerable. ultimately, we need an f.c.c. chairman who has the consumers' backs. we need an f.c.c. chairman who's not frayed to use the robust statutory authority that congress has given to the f.c.c. to protect consumers. based on his record, i have serious and long-standing concerns about whether chairman pai really does have the consumers' backs. as a result, i will oppose this nomination. madam president, i yield the floor. a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. moran: it is nice to see the ranking member of the commerce committee on the floor today, and i appreciate he and i sharing a particular view about the privatizion of air traffic control. and today we're going to presumably pass a six-month extension for the federal aviation administration. it was passed by the house earlier today, and once again we're in a position in which, in my view, we shouldn't be in. we ought to be passing a long-term authorization of the federal aviation administration. last year we did so. the senate with 95 votes, we passed a four-year f.a.a. bill. it was the kind of meaningful bipartisan accomplishment that is too rare in congress today. i supported that bill, but, unfortunately, when it was sent to the house and it came time to meet that last year's deadline, we were ultimately forced to pass a short-term extension, which i opposed. our ongoing efforts to pass a long-term bill, republicans and democrats in both chambers of congress have found common ground and consensus among the entire aviation community on a wide, wide range of important issues. i'm talking about reforms to strengthen the contract tower progm, one of the most and overwhelmingly popular and successful f.a.a. programs that matters a lot to the state of kansas and communities in the statstate of nebraska as well, e home of the president of the senate. i'm hoping -- i'm talking about streamlining aircraft certification process that allows the if a to focus its -- the f.a.a. to focus its resources else where while generating job security in the aviation manufacturing sector. but because, once again, congress refuses to set aside the perpetually controversial proposal to privatize our nation's air traffic control, we're left again with a short-term extension. it is another one of those take-it-or-leave-it moments that is occurring here at this 11th hour in advance of september the 30th. we know that in the senate that this proposal for privatization will never have the votes to pass. yet we keep considering short-term extensions that are damaging to the aviation community, particularly to airports that need certainty in planning their infrastructure projects. and they will be first and foremost to improve the safety for our air travelers. a six-month extension, in my view, is too short to provide the certainty that is needed. the grant process at the department of transportation will be ongoing, but no airport can plan based upon whether or not the f.a.a. is going to be authorized six months from now. i've come to the floor numerous times before to talk about kansas is a special place when this comes to when it comes to aviation. kansans have built three out of every four aircraft since the wrht brothers fst glue at kitty hawk. many kansans earn a living creating our aircraft. these aviation businesses and their employees depend upon our ability to compete in a global marketplace and an ability which is significantly damaged when we are putting off passage of a long-term reauthorization bill, not just once but year after year. while general aviation manufacturing is our state's largest industry, it's not just those manufacturers and their employees who are -- who understand the problems and ramifications with privatization of air traffic control. i often have said on the floor that i think at times i get categorized as a senator from kansas, a state that manufacturers lots of airplanes and my views are solely related to the airplane manufacturing sector. and i certainly bring that perspective to congress, and i speak often and work often on behalf of the manufacturing of aircraft. but any of us who represent airports and communities that are not the largest in the country ought to oppose the privatization of air traffic control. this is not the traditional rural versus urban argument that occurs sometimes around here. this is not about little towns versus everybody else. this is about everyone except for the largest cities with the largest airports and the most numerous travelers. so this is not about just garden city, kansas, or manhattan, my hometown, hayes, my former hometown. this is about wichita, topeka, it's about kansas city, all but the absolute largest airports would be damaged by the privatization of air traffic control. we've said this many times. it's important to the manufacturers, but it's important to the survival of communities that i represent and that all of my colleagues represent across the country. everywhere i go in kansas, i'm reminded why a.t.c. privatization is a bad idea. the idea that we would allow a 13-member private board to make decisions about the futures of airports and air transportation across the country is troublesome. moreover, even our major providers of aircraft and avionics equipment that reside in kansas, those businesses that create thousands of jobs in my state, they are perhaps even more outspoken against the privatization than anyone. these businesses know that privatization of the nation's most complex air system is a solution without a problem that will ultimately create lots of problems. lots of unintended consequences. americans expect leadership from their elected officials in washington at a time when partisan dysfunction puts up constant barriers in the legislative process, we should be doing everything we can to find common ground and pass legislation that will have immediate positive impacts on our economy. and so much of the f.a.a. reauthorization last year and again this year refound that common ground, except for this one divisive issue that we know ultimately will not become law. it stands, it impedes the opportunity to do what, without almost any exception, members of the house and senate have agreed to. true faz reform will -- f.a.a. reform will dramatically reduce the ability of american manufacturers and businesses to create jobs. this teamster extension represents yet another regrettable missed opportunity to do just that. mr. president, i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from alaska. mr. sullivan: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, every week, i have been coming down to the floor to talk about my state, what i think makes it the greatest state in the country, in the world, and we like to celebrate and recognize somebody in alaska who is making a difference for their community, for the state, for the country, and we like to call these extraordinary alaskan individuals our alaskan of the week. now, like many of us here in the senate, i spent a lot of time recently in august traveling throughout my home state and everywhere met strong, generous, versatile alaskans, many of whom survive in some of the harshest conditions on the planet but still have time for their communities and their families and their neighbors. but, like in many places in the country, i also saw the scourge of addiction. that's tring apart communities and tearing apartamilie and we've all heard how addiction often is passed down through generations. there are many in alaska, many throughout the country who are determined to break this intergenerational cycle of addiction, and many who are succeeding. we don't always hear about them, but they are many. so, mr. president, this afternoon, i'd like to introduce you to 81-year-old roseanne kimpton o'our alaskan -- our alaskan of the week, who is doing that and a lot more. roseanne and her husband moved to washington in 1958 and they immediately settled in. they ran businesses together, a small retail store. they got into construction and contracting. they raised two children. they were a team. about ten years ago, they moved to a large plot of land in wasilla, alaska. over 50 acres, to spend time in retirement. and they made plans, gardening, traveling around the world. but it didn't take long for roseanne to recognize that something was wrong, very wrong in her family. particularly with what was happening to her great grandchildren, luke and amanda. they were living in a situation that was harmful to them, and they needed help. now, at this point, roseanne's husband was also suffering from his own illness, cancer, but the two of them took luke and amanda in and adopted them. it was the only way to make sure they were safe, roseanne said. and when a kid needs to be taken care of, and when a mommy and daddy can't, you do it, she said. i couldn't just live with myself knowing that they were in danger and i did nothing. this is roseanne about her two great-grandkids. that was ten years ago. roseanne, now a widow, lives with amanda and luke on that big plot of land in ross i will a. amanda is a senior in high school and luke is in eighth grade, and they are great kids. in fact, i just had the opportunity to visit with them in my office yesterday. amanda loves geometry. she plays drums and dances with the intertribal drum group in anchorage. and luke's dream, his big dream, is to join the navy, which i think is great. the three of them volunteer in their community, helping foster kids. amanda makes blankets for the foster kids. and every sunday, they drive over 100 miles t attendee manuel presbyterian church in anchorage, which is like a second home to all of them. in addition to all this, roseanne is the area volunteer coordinator for volunteers of america grand families, a grandparent support group. and once a month, she has a picnic for her fellow grandparents and other parents who have adopted kids. the kids play games, eat hamburgers, hot dogs. the adults sit around the campfire, share stories, and encourage one another on all the work they're doing. she is in constant contact with about 25 families, and whenever she spots someone she thinks might need help with their kids, with their grandkids or their great-grandkids, she gives them her card. i'm not a shy person, she said. i'll talk to anyone who looks like they're struggling, and i'm particularly good at spotting grandparents who are raising kids, grandparents who are raising kids throughout our great nation. mr. president, as the opioid crisis is hitting alaska just like it's hitting so many other states, she's seeing more and more grandparents stepping in. it's a plague, she said, but the most important thing is to help the children as early as possible, and to do what we can to make sure they don't carry on this plague. mr. president, rozann kimpton is here right now in d.c. as i mentioned, i had a great meeting with her yesterday, to attend a great banquet where her efforts are recognized. she is the 2017 recipient of the alaskan angels in adoption award and will be recognized by the congressional coalition on adoption. rozann, thank you for your award, for all your hard work for alaska. congratulations on your award, and congratulations on being our alaskan of the week. mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that my following remarks appear in a separate section of the "congressional record." the presiding officer: without objection. mr. sullivan: mr. president, another issue i have been coming down to talk about on the senate floor for the past couple of years is an issue that i don't think we focus on enough here in the congress, here in the senate, and that's the key issue of economic growth, american economic growth. with the exception of national security, strong, robust economic growth is probably the most important issue we can be focused on in this body. we certainly have many challenges in this country, but so many of them are made easier when the american economy is strong, when job opportunities are plentiful, and optimism in the future because of that strong economic growth is high. so how have we been doing? how have we been doing over the past decade? well, i want everybody to take a look at this chart. the answer is not very well. not very well at all. so this chart right here shows the gross domestic product, g.d.p., dickey -- decade after decade through different administrations, democrat and republican, over the last several decades. so if you take a look here, kennedy, johnson, nixon, ford, carter, reagan, clinton, bush 41 and 43 and president obama, you see where levels have been. you see that over the years, over the decades, the average economic growth is about right here, about 4%. 4%. you know, there has been a lot of talk about what has made america great, what makes america great. this is what makes america gre c growth decade after decade. that's the key. so what happened over the past decade right here? mr. president, take a look here. ride here. this redline, that's 3%. that's not the traditional levels. traditional levels over 200-plus years of american history is closer to 4%, but 3% g.d.p. growth is considered okay. not bad, not great, but pretty good, pretty good. something we should all aspire to, something we should hit. well, if you look at this chart, in the last decade, never hit it. not even 3% g.d.p. growth. more like 1.5%, 2%. as a matter of fact, president obama was the first president in american history to never hit 3% g.d.p. growth for a year. now, i know what you might be thinking. it seems to be a pretty important issue, right? economic growth, last decade, not even hitting 3%. how come the press wasn't writing about that? you didn't hear many stories in the press about this. really important issue. a decade of lost economic growth, and yet many of us come down here, talk about this critical issue, and there's a yawn in the press gallery. no interest. hard to understand why. one theory i have, if you look at our country more broadly, these are the numbers. very, very weak growth. but person places of the country over the last ten years have actually done really well. like especially this city, washington, d.c. growing real strong. probably 5%, 6% growth. some other places, some of the coastal big cities, new york, san francisco, boston, all doing well. way higher than 3%. growing strongly. so the press in my view is probably not that interested in this number because in places like washington, everything seems to be going great. but it wasn't going great. think about this. if washington or l.a. or new york or san francisco are growing at 3% or 4% growth yet the country is at 1.5%, 2%, there are areas in the country actually shrinking, not growing at all, and that's a problem. mr. president, these charts talk about economic growth, g.d.p. you know, it can sound a little bit wonky. but really g.d.p. is a marker for the health of our economy, it's an indicator for the american progress, it's a proxy for the american dream and the future. as this chart shows, we've had a sick economy over the last 10 years, a lost decade of economic growth. and the press hasn't written much about it, and when they have, they typically bought the line of the previous administration saying, hey, look, we know the traditional levels of economic growth are, boy, close to 4%. boy, look at clinton, look at reagan, 4.5%, 5%, 6%. we know that's the case, 3% is okay. but we know that hasn't been that way. the press has bought the line that that's the new normal. we can't hit 3% anymore. we certainly can't hit 4% anymore. 1.5%, 2% is america hitting on all cylinders. well, i believe that's a surrender. i believe dumbing down our expectations for economic growth is a retreat from the american dream. and as you know, mr. president, the american people aren't buying this. they are not buying the dumbing down. they are not saying, oh, yeah, we can live with this 1.5% growth, sure, no problem. they are wise and they weren't buying the dumbing down. you know, we all saw the book recently put out by former senator and secretary of state hillary clinton. and her book was entitled "what happened? " mr. president, this is what happened. our citizens saw the american dream slipping away after a lost decade of economic growth and they weren't ready to surnder to the n normal. so what do we need to focus on here in the senate? we have to start moving beyond this. we have to. we need policies that are going to focus on reigniting growth, the growth that democrats and republicans have supported for decades. what are those? i think there's a lot of agreement, infrastructure, less burdensome regulations, energy. america has enormous supplies of energy that we can take advantage of, and, yes, the issue we're starting to debate now in the senate, tax reform. and as we debate this in work in a bipartisan way. because i've heard a lot of my colleagues say we do need to undertake tax reform. we need to keep asking ourselves on all of these policies what it will do to reignite growth, to reignite the american dream, to allow hardworking american families to keep more of their paychecks and to return the optimism that comes with a robust economy, not just along the coast of america but throughout the entire country, and get back to that optimism and growth. so, mr. president, that's what i'm going to be doing as we undertake this debate on tax reform. the trump administration is off to an okay start, first-quarter, again, kind of a hangover from the obama years, 1.2%, not good at all. last quarter, second quarter, 3.1%, hit above 3%, which is what the president says his policies are meant to do. as long as they are focused on that, i'm certainly will be somebody who will support those kind of pro-growth policies and i think it's imperative -- imperative, whether it's tax reform, infrastructure, energy reform that we come together in this body and make sure and work together so the next decade of growth in america is not -- does not look like this last one. it gets out over 3%, gets us back to traditional levels of growth. mr. president, i don't think there's anything more important we could be doing in the senate than getting back to those important levels of growth for our country and our citizens. mr. president, unanimous consent that the -- i ask unanimous consent that the following statement appear in a separate place in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr.sullivan: finally, mr. president, i'd like to say a few words about some of my staff who have done a great job serving alaskans who are leaving my office soon and i'm going to miss quite a lot. one is right down here right now. he's probably going to be a little embarrassed that i'm talking about him on the senate floor, tyler roberts, who has been a legislative assistant of mine handling budget, health care, tax. he has been with me since the beginning, 2 naf naf years ago, -- two and a half years ago and he has worked long hours serving the great people of our state and set the tone in our office of hard work, diligent work, good natured and we will miss him very much. i would also like to recognize michael sutco. from educating alaskans as to what we do in d.c. to creating awesome graphics like this. miesm has been an -- michael has been an invaluable member of the team. if you see one of my photo montages on facebook, and you think it's well done, which we do, you can thank michael. we call them sucup specials. he has worked tirelessly for me, alaska, our home state, and he will bring the same amount of integrity to all he does in the next phase of his career. thank you to all my staff. mr. president, i yield the floor. i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: mr. mcconnell: mr. president, are we in a quorum call. the presiding officer: we are. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of h.r. 3823. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: h.r. 3823, an act to amend code to extend authorizations for the airport improvement program and so forth and for purposes. the presiding officer: there is objection to proceeding to the measure? without objection. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent that the cassidy amendment at the desk be agreed to and the bill as amended be considered read a third time. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i know of no further debate on the bill. the presiding officer: if there's no further debate, the question is on passage of the bill as amended. all those in favor say aye. all those opposed say no. the ayes appear to have it. the ayes do have it. the bill, as amended, a passed. mr. mcconnell: i ask unanimous consent the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection. the clerk will call the roll. mr. mcconnell: i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: quorum call: mr. blumenthal: mr. president. mr. blumenthal: mr. president, i ask that the quorum call be lifted. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. blumenthal: i am here for the third time in as many days to talkbout this natios response to a humanitarian crisis affecting millions of americans. the people of puerto rico and the virgin

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