Transcripts For CSPAN2 U.S. Senate U.S. Senate 20240712

The vote 11 40 eastern, a final vote around 1 30 this afternoon. Now, live coverage of the u. S. Senate here on cspan2. The chaplain lord god, in these difficult and challenging times, remind us that the earth belongs to you, and you have not abandoned it unite us with the understanding that you are our father, and we are all members of the human family. We pray for all who have been impacted by the pain of this us to crisis season. Use our senators to make the weak strong, the sick healthy, and the broken whole. Lord, surround those who have been shaken by anguish with your divine presence and peace. We pray in your loving name. Amen. The presiding officer please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The presiding officer the clerk will read a communication to the senate. The clerk washington, d. C. , june 4, 2020. To the senate under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable cindy hydesmith, a senator from the state of mississippi, to perform the duties of the chair. Signed chuck grassley, president pro tempore. Mr. Mcconnell madam president . The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell yesterday opening the Senate Passed a few targeted changes so that senator collins and senator rubios historic Paycheck Protection Program will continue to protect American Workers and Small Businesses through this pandemic. Back in march, the Senate Leaders handdesigned this plan to push unprecedented assistance to working families and main street businesses. Once again in april they led the charge to refill their popular and Successful Program with more money so it could help even more americans. And in the weeks since, our colleagues have continued to track the programs operation and recommend further tweaks where necessary. In recent days, both senator collins and senator rubio helped strengthen and improve the houseproposed p. P. P. Modifications before they actually passed the bill and sent it over to us. And i know the senators from maine and florida have identified other technical changes that i Hope Congress will address. Talk about legislation making a difference, thanks to senator collins, chairman rubio, and our other colleagues who help make this program a success, the p. P. P. Has delivered more than half a trillion dollars in relief and has literally saved tens of millions of american jobs. So as we continue to stay nimble and continue our efforts, i just had to thank and recognize the architects of this historic program, the senior senators from maine and florida, for helping soften the blow of this pandemic for so Many American families. Now, madam president , on an entirely different matter, today marks the 31st anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre in beijing. Because of chinas censorship and disinformation, we still do not know how many brave Chinese People were killed by their own government on june 4, 1989. Conservative estimates say hundreds, others say thousands. A burst of violence against peaceful democracy protesters, weeks of arrest, roundups, and execution, and then, madam president , total silence. Never since have Chinese People been able to freely and openly remember the atrocity. Never outside the oasis of hong kong has a single formal gathering of on chinese soil been permitted to commemorate the victims. Not even that oasis of freedom is at risk. We learned this week that under new pressure from beijing, hong kong is refusing to permit the annual candlelight vigil for the first time ever. This year the Chinese Communist party wants no candles lit, even in hong kong. Just more darkness. 31 years ago brave chinese flooded that Public Square and others across their nation in the fervent hope that economic liberalization would also lead to a less authoritarian, more open society. What they got were bodies littering the ground. A shocked world sanctioned the p. R. C. , but as time passed, the world relaxed somewhat and returned to a strategy of welcoming china into the global Public Square, bringing the p. R. C. And International Institutions in the hope that an included china would actually play by the rules. Time and again, those hopes have been dashed. The last few months have been their own tidy case study in what kind of global after the socalled peoples republic has chosen to be. Their response to the coronavirus pandemic that started in their own country was to silence their own doctors, cannabissen their own people, shut down Important Research and lie to the restedst rest of the world while hoarding supplies for themselves. The c. C. P. s selfishness and failures fueled a worldwide catastrophe. And ever since, theyve tried to use that catastrophe as a smoke screen for other aggression. While they thought the rest of the world was distracted, china has cracked down on hong kong, conducted provocative military exercises near taiwan, expanded their bullying in the south china sea, pressured the philippines, and literally initiated physical fighting with india in the himalayas. Oh, and according to press reports, they also found the time to mount online disinformation campaigns to hurt america and divide us among ourselves. Bad actors linked to beijing have reportedly flooded twitter to exploit the death of george floyd and increase hostility among americans. Even in official channels, c. C. P. Leaders mock america and say our society is no better than their tyranny. Now as an aside, madam president , some democrats here in washington seem to have swallowed the chinese propaganda and set out to amplify it themselves, including from right here on the senate floor. Yesterday right here in the Senate Chamber the democratic leader explicitly compared american men and women in uniform to the chinese murderers who committed the massacre in Tiananmen Square. Leader schumer said that when he saw images of american men and women in uniform standing near the recently defaced Lincoln Memorial appeared protecting the right to peaceful protest, quote, you cannot help but think of Tiananmen Square. Thats what he said. Well, i am esure beijing was im sure beijing was thrilled with this. Giftwrapped with the compliments of the Democratic Party delivered just in time for this blood did i anniversary. Bloody anniversary. Imagine being so consumed by partisanship that you deliberately link the brave american men and women to stop violence, defend against violent rye s to the chinese butchers butchers who gunned down crowds of peaceful dissenters who were begging for the same rights our military defends. In america, the police help peaceful marchers march. Over there, they gun them down. If anyone is having trouble distinguishing these things, the problem is not with our nation; it is with them. Now, madam president , these recent examples of chinese hostility are just symptoms of a fundamental problem that has come into focus. Decades ago, the United States and the rest of the world made a calculated bet that welcoming china into the fold would cause them to mend their ways. 20 years ago president clinton argued for admitting china into the w. T. O. Because, quote, economic innovation and political empowerment will inevitably go hand in hand. Many smart people made that wager. President s in both parties. But we should never use words like inevitable. President clinton also said china has been trying to crack down on the internet. Good luck. Back in the year 2000, the transcript says that was greeted with laughter. Well, no one is laughing now. Chinas leaders have pounced on every inch of economic space in the world that the world has afforded them and then some. Theyve cheated on trade, stolen foreign technology, theyve executed on longterm plans to dominate key global industries, theyve weaponized foreign aid to bring developing countries under their thrall. So the chinese economy has leapt forward. The Chinese People enjoy greater prosperity which they sorely needed after decades of communist mismanagement. But all of this money and innovation have not brought the people anymore freedom. Theyve given c. C. P. Elites better hightech tools to oppress their own people and more leverage to undermine the International System. Rather than importing liberty into china, this economic integration seems to have been rather more successful at exporting their authoritarian preferences to the rest of us. Right here in the United States, weve seen hollywood make a gross habit of selfcentering films to avoid offending the Chinese Communist party. Weve seen the nba prioritize its profits and throw an employ under the bus who spoke out for hong kong. The same elites, institutions, and businesses that feel totally free to critique our own society and rightly so increasingly walk on eggshells around president xi and his cronies. And free speech is hardly the only front where china poses an international threat. A recent major report from an interagency Traffic Force found that chinas targeting of our Industrial Base is a Significant National security vulnerability for the United States. And many other nations are awakening to the same reality. Back in march, a c. C. P. Controlled newspaper threatened to cut off pharmaceutical exports to the u. S. And plunge americans into the mighty sea of coronavirus if we did not play more nicely play more nicely with beijing. One month later, chinese officials threatened to boycott of australia because our australian end friends wanted to investigate the origins of the pandemic. Earlier in year, the director of the f. B. I. Explained that chinas conspiracies make the contract c. P. The greatest longterm threat to americas information security, intellectual prospect and by extension our economic vitality. And once again, our allies and partners are being victimized by the very same tactics. One outside report found the United States is losing between 400 billion and 600 billion per year in intellectual property theft as a matter of provable losses. Provable losses. And that figure does not account for secondorder losses such as jobs and infrastructure. So lets put that in perspective. Congress has been working hard on the huge historic Paycheck Protection Program. It pushed out half a trillion dollars for American Workers. Well, by this estimate, china reaches into our country and steals the equivalent of that entire Program Every single year. China does not play by the rules, not in hong kong, not in the w. H. O. , not in the w. T. O. , not in international trade. Year after year on issue over issue, they have chosen the path of aggression. So there will be consequences. Just this week, the u. K. Has reportedly backed away from plans to work with huawei and Prime Minister Boris Johnson is impressively prepared to offer visas so that hong kongers can take refuge in the United Kingdom instead. In japan, Prime Minister abayan taking major steps to strengthen japan and check chinas economic aggression. Well, its a good thing, too, because defending americas security, americas interests, american prosperity, and the International System cannot be a go it alone operation. There will be steps the United States will take on our own, but just as the entire preworld stands united today to remember Tiananmen Square, so we will need to stand together to prevent the worlds Public Square from heading towards similar domination by china. We will need to keep our friends and partners close. China can try to repress their own people, but the United States of america will never fall silent. We will never go dark. We will keep the candles lit. We will protect our people and their bright future. The presiding officer under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. Morning business is closed. Under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. The clerk nomination, broadcasting board of governors, michael pack of maryland to be chief executive officer. Provided i notice the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call mr. Schumer madam president. The presiding officer the democratic leader. Mr. Schumer i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer now, madam president , a short time ago, in con junction with the Memorial Service being held today in minnesota for george floyd, i joined the rest of the Democratic Caucus to recognize a moment of silence in his memory as well as the memory of breonna taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and the unimaginable number of black americans who have lived their lives who have had their lives ended in police custody. Standing near the statue of frederick douglass, a black american who fought his whole life for racial equality, the moment of silence lasted 8 minutes and 46 seconds, the length of time that the white Police Officer in minneapolis pressed his neon George Floyds neck. Standing there in silence, you feel the horrifying length of George Floyds final nine minutes. You cannot help but imagine his horror and fear, knowing that his trauma and the trauma of his family and his friends has been felt by so many black families and black communities across the country and across the centuries. Of course a moment of silence, a moment of solidarity is no substitute for real action. That is why Senate Democrats are working with our house colleagues on policing reform legislation. That is why we are demanding that republican majority leader commit to addressing this issue on the floor of the senate. Leader mcconnell, why dont you admit that we have to do something here and not just say, well, maybe well take a look at it as you did on gun control after the violent shootings and then did nothing . Make a commitment here and now to the American People that we will put on the floor, that you will put on the floor Police Reform and Racial Justice legislation this month. Will our republican colleagues ever join us in this effort . I know these issues arent easy, but we cant begin to make progress if the republican leader and the republican majority wont even let us try or address these issues in a legislative manner. The republican leader has said, quote, the coin of the realm in the senate is floor time. What are you going to devote time to . Well, its been five weeks since leader mcconnell called the senate back into session, during the height of the pandemic. The republican majority has yet to put a single bill on the floor of the senate related to covid19. We passed a muchneeded extension of p. P. P. Reform last night, a very popular and bipartisan program, only after democrats forced action here on the floor. I dont believe our republican majority would have done anything. We announced we would u. C. The bill, and we did, and it was blocked. And then of course faced with the public pressure of moving, leader mcconnell came on the floor late last night, late last evening and moved the bill. But make no mistake about it, without the pressure that we democrats placed on the republican majority to make these changes, it would certainly have been further delayed and might never have happened. Now leader mcconnell has said that another emergency relief bill was likely before july 4, but then on tuesday, when listing his priorities for the june session, leader mcconnell did not mention covid legislation. Republican senators are starting to say that another relief bill might, might come in late july. Shocking. This past week, just today it was announced nearly two million more americans filed for unemployment, bringing the total since the start of the pandemic to over 42 million. The monthly jobs report tomorrow is expected to report over 20 unemployment, and we should wait . As people are losing their jobs, as parents are not sure they can feed their kids or stay in their homes, as Small Businesses, where people put blood, sweat, and tears over the years and even decades to build them are collapsing, and we should wait . Why . Because maybe some rightwing ideologues or some of the very big leaders of the Republican Party and benefactors dont like spending money on anything. I dont know if thats the reason. I hope it isnt. But we cant wait. We cant wait. The economic disaster, as with so many issues in society, will disproportionately affect black americans. 109,000 fellow americans have died. More are dying every day, every single day. But Senate Republicans want to wait until late july to maybe, maybe do another relief bill. The coin of the realm in the senate is floor time. Leader mcconnell, every senate republican, what are you going to devote time to. Today, toward the end of the more tumultuous weeks in recent memory, Senate Republicans are holding sessions in the judiciary and Homeland Security committees related to President Trumps favorite conspiracy theories about the 2016 election. Im not making this up. Thats what theyre doing, American People. Not talking about covid, not talking about Racial Justice, but focusing on some russian russianoriginated theory that has been discredited by our intelligence agencies. Thats what the Republican Senate is doing. No wonder theyre in trouble. The American People are looking for some kind of real help, some kind of real discussion. And were talking about the, republicans are talking about conspiracy theories. And then the Senate Judiciary committee is about to approve another rightwing judge, a mcconnell protege, justin walker. Seriously. At least if you look at the record in history of justin walker, the chances of him being for, strengthening Voting Rights and antidiscrimination legislation is very, very tiny. And yes, sir they move forward on him. And yet they move forward on him. Up to 100 subpoenas will be approved, unprecedented in modern history. In the midst of national crises, Senate Republicans are trying to use the senate to do Opposition Research for the president s reelection campaign. Seriously . The republican majority will approve up to 100 subpoenas to chase the president s wild conspiracy theories but has not put one bill on jobs, one bill on testing, one bill on employment on the floor of the senate since leader mcconnell called us back, and they wont even commit to a debate on Law Enforcement reform. You might think that an economic crisis, a Public Health emergency on top of a searing reminder of Racial Injustice might have put the conspiracy caucus on pause but, no, no such luck. The American People should call their republican senators. They should demand action. The Republican Senate is failing to meet this important moment, and the republican president isnt doing any better. In a week marred by unacceptable violence and rioting in sam places, the president and rioting in some places, the president has conducted appalling attacks on the Constitutional Rights of protesters on his front porch. I am heartbroken by stories of Peaceful Protesters who have been injured when the protests turned ugly. Im heartbroken by reports of Police Officers who were doing their job the right way, striving to keep the peace, who have been gravely injured. Three of new yorks finest were injured yesterday while assigned to prevent looting. A new york state trooper in buffalo was run over the other night. I wish new york state trooper Ron Ensminger a speedy and full recovery and i thank them for their service and commitment to public safety. But let me state once again unequivocally that the cause of justice and change sought by protesters in and beyond is undermined by lawlessness and violence. But President Trump, however, seems too incapable of acknowledging the fact that the that overwhelming number of peace protesters are peaceful and are simply advocating change. He seems incapable of turning the temperature down to prevent more violence. Quite the opposite. The president wants americans to falsely believe that all the people who are protesting for a good cause equality and Racial Justice are violent. Nothing could be further from the truth. The overwhelming majority are doing what our Founding Fathers did protesting to make this nation a better nation. They should be praised, not vilified. In a week marred by unacceptable rioting in some places, the president advocates attacks on the Constitutional Rights on his front porch . My goodness my goodness. Earlier this week, americans watched federal officers under the direction of the president and the attorney general use gas and rubber bullets to disperse a proud of Peaceful Protesters in the park. The Lincoln Memorial was blocked off by rows of camouflage officers. There are reports right now that troops from fort drum and fort bragg are camped outside washington, d. C. I would ask the leaders of our military if these reports are true, what are they doing there and what are their orders . The leader a few nines ago mentioned Tiananmen Square. Of course no one believes that we are china or like china. Of course not. Were a democracy and were proud of it. And most of us love and praise the right for peaceful protest. But i would remind the republican leader, when any president , particularly an overreaching one like this, steps over the line, if good people dont raise their voices, that is the way too erode democracy, which china does not have. Where is leader mcconnells voice . Instead of spinning these crazy theories, why doesnt he just speak out against what the president did monday night . Why did he block our resolution, our simple resolution, which called for only three things one, praise the protesters, condemn violence, and, three, condemn the president for what he did. Our Nations Capital is being patrolled by federal officers, commanded by President Trump and attorney general barr who refuse to identify who they are and where they come from. What is President Trump doing to this democracy . To the rule of law, the primacy of the constitution, and where are the Republican Senate voices leader mcconnell and everyone else here condemning it what he did . Again, democracy will be eroded if we dont stand up for it, if were afraid to speak out, afraid to tell President Trump hes overreaching and done bad, bad things when he does them. And im not the only one who feels this way. Weve had statement after statement from americans of all political stripes. I read george will, for instance, the other day. He is a conservative, and he cares about america. Hes got some principle. Then the most remarkable of all issued by President Trumps former secretary of defense. I want to read some of what former secretary mattis said. Quote, when i joined the military some 50 years ago, i swore an oath to support and defend the constitution. Never did i dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered under any circumstance to violate the Constitutional Rights of their fellow citizens, much less provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander in chief with military leadership standing alongside. We know that we are better than the abuse of executive authority that we witnessed in lafayette square. Mattis kins, donald trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American People, does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership. We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens, to past generations that bled to defend our promise, and to our children, unquote. That was President Trumps former secretary of defense james mattis. Like all former members of the military, i know that secretary mattis strives to avoid political statements. Hes assiduously avoided them so far. But it was the searing it was a searing indictment of President Trumps failures that secretary that importuned secretary mattis to speak out so strongly about the president s divisiveness, immaturity, and abuse of power. And make no mistake about it, general mattis comments were a shot across the bow to our military leaders dont let the president push you into doing things you know that are wrong, that should not be done, and that could very well violate the constitution. I yield the floor. Mr. Thune mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from north dakota. Mr. Thune responding to the coronavirus continues to be one of our Top Priorities here in congress. I think its evidence that yesterday the senate moved a bill across the floor of the senate that will be on its way now to the president s desk for his signature, previously paled by the house, that makes some modifications to the p. P. P. Program, things that were sought by both sides, improvements that enable that program to be used with greater flexibility, extending the amount of time in which those dollars that have been received can be used and allowing some greater flexibility in how theyre used. And so i think that is evidence again that this body and both democrats and republicans working together can get things done for the American People that address the very direct needs and challenges that they face right now as a result of the coronavirus. And i credit the authors of that, senators collins and rubio, on our side along with their democrat counterparts in working together to structure a program that has not only helped many businesses stay in business millions of businesses stay in business, but have kept tens of millions of people in this country embroid at a time when we employed at a time when we desperately need to keep those jobs. So again i think evidence, mr. President , of this bodys and our senate majoritys focus on the coronavirus and things that we can do to help assist those who have been most harmed economically by that as well as addressing the very real Health Emergency that we need to continue to focus on in terms of finding those therapeutics and vaccines that will enable the American People to have confidence once again that they can go out. And thats what i want to speak to today, mr. President , is just the evidence that were seeing that the economy around the country is starting to reopen. Theres still a lot of work, obviously, that has to be done to defeat the virus and help our economy and the American People recover. And as i mentioned, we have spent the past few weeks focused on monitoring the implementation deficit 2. 4 trillion in aid that congress has provided. Our committees are hard at work conducting coronavirus oversight and looking ahead to what Else Congress may need to do to combat the virus and to get our economy going again. We are looking at what more Funding Congress may need to provide and what congress can do that doesnt involve a lot of new spending. As i said, congress has already provided a 2. 5 trillion to fight the coronavirus and we will absolutely provide more, if needed. But, we need to remember, mr. President , that every dollar that weve provided is borrowed money that our children and grandchildren will have to repay. Our debt was already very large compared to the size of our economy, even before before this years coronavirusrelated borrowing. And thats a very concerning reality. The truth is, we cant just keep borrowing and borrowing ever greater sums without suffering real economic consequences. And so while we may need to borrow more money to meet our needs before this crisis is over, it is crucial that we keep that borrowing as low as possible and only spend that which is absolutely necessary. And thats why, mr. President , the senate is so focused on conducting oversight of the money that weve already provided. Seeing how and where those funds are used will give us a better sense of where weve spent sufficiently and where more may be needed. Were also, as i said, looking at what we can do to help families and businesses that does not involve spending a lot of taxpayer dollars. While my friends across the aisle generally seem to regard money or a new Government Program as the solution to every problem, the truth is there are a lot of things that congress can do without spending trillions of taxpayer dollars or setting up new government bureaucracies. Everything from making permanent reforms to make telehealth more accessible to shielding responsible businesses from frivolous litigation. Mr. President , i have three tax bills that ive introduced this congress that would help americans during and after the pandemic. One of these bills is my mobile workforce state income tax simplifying act which i introduced along with sherrod brown. In our economy, substantial numbers of workers travel to different states for temporary work assignments on a regular basis. And they end up subject to a bewildering variety of state laws governing state income tax. Our legislation would simplify things for both workers and employers by creating an acrosstheboard tax standard for mobile employees who the spent a short period of time working across state lines. It would ensure that states receive fair tax payments while making life easier for the workers. While this legislation is good tax policy generally, weve needed clear rules of the road for outofstate workers for a while. It has particular relevance in the age of coronavirus. The governor of new york has made it clear that hes looking to cash in on the pandemic by subjecting doctors and nurses who cross state lines to voluntarily work in new york to new yorks income tax. We need to make sure that medical professionals who travel to other states to help fight the coronavirus arent rewarded with big tax bills. Another tax bill i introduced last year that has particular relevance in the age of coronavirus is my new economy works to guarantee independence and growth act. We always have an acronym around here. Its called the new gig act. The last decade we have seen the rise of the gig economy. Services provided by individuals through websites like postmates, and many others. A lot of us have relied on these workers during the pandemic to provide food and grocery delivery, but these gig economy arrangements stretch the boundaries of current tax law. During the pandemic, companies who have wanted to provide additional benefits to workers from personal protective equipment to Financial Assistance have hesitated to do so for fear that their actions would accidentally reclassify their workers from independent contractors to employees. That would mean the end of this kind of work for a lot of people who rely on it for the income and flexibility that it provides. My new gig act updates our tax law to provide clear guidance on the classification of this new generation of workers. It will ensure that lift drivers, postmates, taskers, and others are treated as independent contractors for purposes of tax law if they meet a set of objective criteria. My bill will allow companies to provide support to workers to help them stay safe during the pandemic without jeopardizing these individuals status as independent contractors, and it will ensure that the valuable services that these individuals provide will remain available to the americans who are increasingly reliant on them. In addition to the new gig act, i also introduced the Digital Goods and Services Tax Fairness act last month. This legislation which i introduced along with senator wyden is designed to prevent consumers from being faced with multiple taxes for downloading digital products. Over the past few months, i imagine a lot of americans have purchased new books to read on their kindle or a new Television Series to watch, but what Many Americans dont know is that right now, a digital purchase of a book or Television Series could hypothetically be taxed in up to three states, depending on the circumstances of the purchase. And with states likely looking to find new revenue in the wake of declining receipts during the pandemic, there is a real danger that americans could see multiple states worth of taxes on their digital purchases. The Digital Goods and Services Tax Fairness act would provide rules of the road for taxing Digital Goods and services and ensure that digital purchases could only be taxed in one state, the state in which the consumer resides. It would also prohibit states and local governments from taxing Digital Goods at higher rates than tangible goods. In other words, under our bill, that season of of the office t you want to buy digitally couldnt be taxed at a higher rate than if you were purchasing the season on d. V. D. Mr. President , these tax bills are just some of the ideas that republicans are putting forward that would help americans without spending trillions of additional taxpayer dollars. Im working on multiple other measures to help americans in the wake of the coronavirus. For example, the cares act, our largest Coronavirus Response bill to date, included a temporary version of legislation i introduced with senator warner that would allow employers to contribute up to 5,250 tax free to help pay down their employees student loans. This is a win for employees who can receive help with burdensome loan payments during a time when most americans finances are stretched thin, and its a win for employers who have a new benefit to offer to help attract talented employees as they seek to build their businesses back up after the past few months of covidrelated challenges. Mr. President , im hoping that we can make this legislation permanent before the end of the year. As i said earlier, if we need to provide additional coronavirus funding, we will, but we need to make sure we are only providing what is genuinely necessary, because todays Young Workers and our children and grandchildren will be paying the price for the debt that were amassing. I am committed to supporting legislation that will help americans get through this crisis while minimizing the burden on future generations. My tax bills are one example of this kind of legislation. I look forward to working with my colleagues to advance them here in the United States senate. Mr. President , i yield the floor. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from washington. Ms. Cantwell mr. President , i come to the floor today after my colleagues have held a moment of silence for the passing of george floyd. His family should not be preparing for his funeral today. All americans, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, or sexual orientation, deserve to have equal protection under the law. It is time that we not just speak out about injustice. Its time that we pass new federal laws to protect the Civil Liberties of United States citizens and protect them from these injustices. What is our role here in the United States senate . I believe it comes to passing new laws for those federal protections. The u. S. Attorney general is the top Law Enforcement of our country. He directs and supervises u. S. Attorneys that prosecute federal crimes. The attorney general is supposed to make sure that citizens in our country have that equal protection of the law. He is supposed to uphold the Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable seizure and Civil Rights Act that protect excessive use of force by police. It is not about calling out the military. It is about protecting the Civil Liberties of our u. S. Citizens. He is supposed to enforce u. S. Code 18242 which prohibits the deprivation of rights under the color of law. It criminalizes abuse by police. The u. S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division is supposed to step in when Police Departments have serious abuses. The Civil Rights Division is responsible for enforcing federal prohibitions on patterns or practices of policing that violate the constitution or other federal laws. It conducts investigations of allegations of systemic Police Misconduct and reaches comprehensive agreements on reforms that are needed to restore effective policing and trust with communities. If it cannot reach an agreement, the division will bring federal lawsuits to compel the needed reforms. Yes, we have something to do here in washington. Throughout the history, the Civil Rights Division has played a major role in a number of critical cases, including the prosecution and murders of medgar evers and dr. Martin luther king. Yes, we have something to do here in washington. The Obama Administration made policing reform a priority. The Civil Rights Division was active in helping oversee pattern and practices of Police Department abuses and entered numerous Consent Decrees with seattle, with new orleans, on ferguson, with baltimore, and with cleveland. Why . Because we had cases that needed that federal oversight. We saw that there was use of force across the country, including even in my home state, that we needed to address. In 2006, auto zem, a man with development disabilities, was wrongfully accused of stealing money from an a. T. M. Mr. Zimm was improperly hogtied by police, placed on his stomach, and he died from lack of oxygen to his brain. In such a case, unbelievable, as he was dying, he said i was just on my way to get a snicker bar. It breaks my heart that somebody with mental disabilities was treated this way. His death was ruled a homicide. Im sorry. There was a federal indictment in this case, and the Police Officer was found guilty of excessive use of force, lying to investigators about the confrontation, and as a result, a civil case, the Spokane Police were required to receive special training on interaction with mentally ill suspects and detainees. In 2010, john t. Williams, a native american, be a seventh generation wood carver who used his knife to make street art was fatally shot seven times in the back by seattle police. He had hearing difficulties and Mental Health challenges. Literally, he was just carving in one spot and decided to move across the street to another spot. When he didnt respond to the officer, he was shot and killed. The officer who killed mr. Williams wasnt charged, but the u. S. Department of justice did investigate and found that there was a pattern and practice of abuse by seattle police. The u. S. Department of justice and seattle agreed on a Consent Decree which required a number of reforms. And now just recently, an African American named manual ellis died from respiratory due to physical restraint by a tacoma Police Officer. This just happened in march of 2020. Meth and an enlarged heart contributed to his death, but the county medical examiner ruled his death a homicide and his case is under investigation. All of these issues in the state of washington led our citizenry to have a debate about this. In 2018, 62 of washington voters approved a Ballot Initiative 940. It required deescalation. It required Mental Health training for Police Officers to understand how to help and deal with the public. It mandated first aid to a victim of deadly force, and it required an outside investigation into the use of that deadly force. It also removed a requirement that prosecutors prove malice to hold officers criminally liable for the use of deadly force. And that continues to need improvement in our state. These were steps in the right direction, but these events of the last several weeks have showed us it is not time to step back from this issue. It is time to pass new federal legislation. Under the Trump Administration, attorney general barr, the u. S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, Police Practices group has been reduced to half. It has not opened a major pattern or practicalities investigation of Police Departments violation of civil and Constitutional Rights. President trump and his administration have pulled back from the department of justice is an important oversight role. At a time that we can see we need more of a federal role, not less. In november, 2018, thenattorney general Jeff Sessions charged the department of justice to make it even harder for the department to perform its oversight role of our plppedz. He made it harder for the department of justice to reach dissent decrees with state and city governments and limited the reforms that they could require. The Trump Administration has shown that it isnt interested in the Community Policing programs that have shown success in the past. There are numbers that statistically show the better investment in Community Policing it helps us lower the crime rate. In 2017, the Trump Administration led the u. S. Department of justice to significantly scale back on the obamaera program called colorado be Collaborative Reform Initiative which provided support to improve trust between police and communities, and under the Trump Administration, it no longer supports these Consent Decrees which have been so helpful in holding local cities and Police Departments accountable for civil rights abuses. The Trump Administration tried to defund the office of Community Policing and services program. Thank god our colleagues have refused that. This provides important federal funding to help hire Community Policing and officers and to provide technical assistance. I think this stands in stark contrast to president obama who requested that the cops program be fully funded each year of his budget request. But all of this brings us to where we are today. What the citizenry of the United States of america is telling us is we need better laws on the books. I believe we need to act here. The death of george floyd has shown us that there is a clarion call and a need for more federal clarity. I believe in these things. I believe that we should have a prohibition on choke holds and knee restraints that cut off oxygen to the brain. I believe that we should, just like the state of washington, provide for more federal support for deescalation training. I believe that establishing a standard for the use of body cameras and when they should be mandatory, because i think they should be, and making sure that what happens to the video is available and that the public knows and understands what is happening. I believe in requiring an independent investigation just like we did under federal statute. And by the way, that initiative that was voted on with some of these provisions in them in the state of washington received 60 approval from the washingtonians of our state. Why . Because they believe these things are essential. So just like the duckworth bill provides for an independent investigation when deadly force has been used, we should be making this the federal law of the land. And we need to provide more support for Community Policing and not just the dollars but accountability for when and how the dollars are used so the Community Knows exactly what is going on with the federal dollars for Community Policing. And we need to require the attorney general and assistant attorney general who lead the u. S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division to identify pattern and practical practices of abuse in Police Departments. I suggest a federal audit, audit every year where they are producing practices and patterns and give us the information so that we in congress can also help in holding those accountable for not meeting the federal standards of upholding citizenry civil rights. And we need to create a clear federal standard on the use of deadly force like the Washington State voters did when they passed legislation. Whether we do it like the washington voters and ending the defense on malice or whether we do it like my colleague, senators booker, harris or marquee have suggested, lets or markey have suggested, lets have that debate. Lets get these issues. I mentioned seven of them. Lets get them out of here. Im asking colleagues on this side of the aisle, lets engage on this federal debate and show the citizenry of america that we hear them. Lets not also just be deaf to the plight and fate that our officers are dealing with every day on the streets of america. We need more funding to help our Police Departments. We definitely in some cases need additional pay. But for this, we also need to deal with our housing crisis, our Mental Health crisis, our opioid addiction crisis. So many of our men and women in blue are policing our streets not for crimes but for dealing with a population that is living on the streets. We need to do better here than to shortchange them and to not help, not to help correct these situations that have now become daytoday tasks in what has never been part of a Law Enforcement effort. So i ask my colleagues, lets put our differences aside to get real action on these. The federal role of civil Rights Enforcement is a federal role. Lets take that role seriously. Lets respond to the death and do something about it. I know that the best way to honor george floyd today would be to pass the laws that help protect the citizenry of our state. We are a great country, and we can do better by meeting this challenge. I thank the president , and i yield the floor. Mr. Cornyn mr. President , id ask unanimous consent to complete my remarks before the vote. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Cornyn mr. President , yesterday the Senate Judiciary Committee Held our first oversight hearing to learn more about the origins and evolution of the counterintelligence investigation known as crossfire hurricane opened in july of 2016 against a president ial candidate and his campaign team. I asked rod rosenstein, the former Deputy Attorney general, if he knew of a precedent for active f. B. I. Investigations against both nominees of the Major Political parties for president ial campaign, and he said no. There is no precedent. The f. B. I. Is not supposed to be involved in our elections and in our politics. Yet, you recall what happened on july 5, 2016. Director james comey held another unprecedented event, a press conference at which he said that no reasonable prosecutor would prosecute secretary Hillary Clinton for a crime, but then proceeded to detail derogatory information, information that was not his to release but was supposed to be part of a confidential, confidential investigation. Under our system of justice, the f. B. I. Is supposed to investigate crime and then the department of justice makes the charging decision. And thats when things become public. But when the f. B. I. Decides theres not enough evidence to support charging, they dont hold a press conference and disparage the character and reputation of the person theyre investigating. Now i dont know whether director comey had an impact on the 2016 election, but i do know what he did was wrong. And Deputy Attorney general rosenstein yesterday confirmed his memo to thenattorney general Jeff Sessions which was then attached to Jeff Sessions letter to the president recommending that director comey be terminated as f. B. I. Director. And the reason was not because he made a mistake, but because he failed to see the error of his ways and was likely to repeat it again. The Deputy Attorney general is supposed to be the supervisor for the f. B. I. And while the chain of command is pretty clear in criminal cases, in this species of investigation known as counterintelligence which is not primarily to investigate crimes but to investigate security threats to the United States, there was no chain of command. The f. B. I. Was running rogue under director comey along with some of the things weve learned about with director mccabe, peter strzok, lisa page and others. So its really important that we not only make sure we understand what happened that was unprecedented that negatively affected Hillary Clintons campaign but also donald trump and his campaign. And that investigation continued long after he became president , resulted in the appointment of a special counsel who ended up with a, no evidence to charge the president with any crime. We cant have the f. B. I. Interfering with our elections. Yes, they need to investigate counterintelligence threats to the United States. They need to investigate crimes. But they should not be primary actors in that process, in the public process by which we elect president s. They need to stay in their particular lane and not become a partisan in effect, effecting the outcome of president ial elections. So all of which is to say that the investigation the Judiciary Committee began yesterday is very, very important because one thing we must make sure, that this never happens again. And the only way we can make sure it never happens again is to make very clear what did happen and where the train went off the rails. You know, the last three and a half years have been primarily occupied with this socalled investigation into President Trump and his campaign. Then the appointment of special counsel, two years of director muellers investigation as special counsel, and then we followed that with impeachment. Think of all the opportunity costs associated with that. Time we could have and should have spent on doing things which would impact the quality of life of the American People, improving access to health care, creating economic opportunity, enhancing our National Security, things that we werent doing because we were preoccupied with these bogus investigations and the media leaks by people who knew better. Adam schiff in the House Permanent Select Committee on intelligence took a lot of sworn testimony during their, quote, investigation. Now that its been declassified, we know that none of the witnesses, mainly obamaera officials, knew of any evidence of coordination, cooperation, or collusion with russian authorities. None of them. And yet, adam schiff and others on the House Permanent Select Committee on intelligence had the temerity to go to the microphones and say there was rampant collusion, conspiracy, and collaboration. Just bald faced lies. Of course the American People didnt know that. We didnt know that because they then, those allegations were reported in the press, led into this narrative which has so dominated us the last three and a half years only to find that theres no basis for it. Well, suffice it to say that the investigations that are being conducted by the Judiciary Committee and on the, by the House Government Affairs and hiewrpt Homeland Security and goflt Governmental Affairs committee i think are very important. We know the facts will come out and i think deputy barr has secretary barr has deputized to see if there are crimes because there needs to be accountability. Well, mr. President , let me, maybe on a happier note, talk about another event. We need a little good news, a little hope, a little optimism in america these days. Last weekend americas Space Program made history with the successful spacex crew dragon launch. It was nearly a decade ago since american astronauts on american rockets were launched into space from american soil. We were literally captive of the russians in providing the rockets or the ride we needed in order to get to the International Space station, until last weekend. But thats not the only time, only reason why this launch was so significant. It marked the first time that our astronauts launched in a commercially built and operated spacecraft. And i must say it looked pretty slick to me. As we worked to ensure our country remains a leader in human space flight, partnerships between public and private sector are going to continue to be very important. Thats why nasa established a commercial crew program to link the Brilliant Minds at nasa with those Innovative Companies like spacex. And this launch gave us just a glimpse of how those partnerships will lead us in the future. Now i remember the launch of apollo 11 mission almost 51 years ago. And i remember seeing the photos of astronauts in the command mod ule. They wore bulky space suits and there are many dials and buttons. To be honest, not much did change over the last several decades. Even the last launch on american soil in 2011 on the shuttle atlantis, it looked pretty similar. But what americans saw on saturday was a glimpse of the future. Astronauts were outfitted in custom designed and fitted spacesuits and seated in front of a sleek touch screen. It looked like the console of a tesla to me. But im sure it was more sophisticated than that. After the two astronauts arrived at the International Space station, binkin referred to the dragon as a slick vehicle. Things dont just look like theyre made for the future. They were designed to work better, last longer and be safer. The falcon 9 rocket was made with reusable parts to bring down the cost of human space flight. As we return american astronauts to the moon and eventually to mars, this commercial launch marks a new era of Space Exploration and gives us hope and excitement at a time when both of those are desperately needed. I want to thank and commend the countless men and women who have made this mission possible, especially my fellow texans at Johnson Space center, the center of human space flight for nasa. And then of course elon musk who founded spacex, said this launch is the result of roughly 100,000 peoples efforts when you add up all the suppliers and everybody involved. And when you combine that with the work of the brave and brilliant astronauts, physicists, engineers, mathematicians and scientists of all stripe who have helped us meet our space explosion goals over the years, its clear that americas Space Programs best days are ahead. When the final nasa Space Shuttle crew departed the space station in 2011, they left behind a small American Flag with instructions that it be brought back to earth by the next crew launched from the United States. Finally almost a decade later its been united with the astronauts who will carry it home. So on behalf of a proud nation, congratulations to astronauts doug binkin and doug hurly, to everyone at the National Spatial administration and spacex on successfully capturing that flag. We welcome you home in the coming monthings so we can months so we can finally say to you, mission accomplished. Mr. President , i yield the floor. The presiding officer the senator from new jersey. Mr. Menendez i ask that my remarks be concluded in full before the cloture vote. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Menendez mr. President , i rise to oppose the nomination of michael pack to be the chief executive officer for global media. Before i get to the specifics of the pack nomination, i need to say a few things about the moment we are in and how we got here. We are facing two devastating crises. Over two the scale and speed of the tragedy is almost impossible to comprehend. And we certainly stand with all of our families who have lost loved ones and cherish their memories. Unlike covid19, the second crisis s one of our own making, over centuries of injustice where African Americans have not been treated like every american deserves to be treated, like every person in the world has the right to be treated. No, mr. President , all too often theyve been treated like george floyd with a knee on their neck as they gasp and choke, i cant breathe. And as a result our country has erupted with protests and these grievances have been met with the deplorable tactics of dictators around the world. Im shaken to have to say this. Im shaken to the core that President Trump, with the assistance of his attorney general, used violence against Peaceful Protesters, people exercising their First Amendment rights all for a photoop with a bible. Thats not right. It is not acceptable. And that is not america. Mr. President , this body has to act. We have to act quickly and effectively to address these twin crises. That moment calls for leadership at every level. We all know this but we are not doing it. Why not . The answer is because President Trump and the republican majority in this body are focused elsewhere. While our country is suffering perhaps like never before, their focus on domestic political errands, and it is corrosive to this body, to our country and to the constitution. I need to say a few words about what is and what is not happening in the committee on Foreign Relations because it bears directly on how and why michael pack is getting a vote on the senate floor today. The Foreign Relations committee has helped shape our collective response to some of the countrys greatest challenges, from vietnam to september 11, to afghanistan, and we ought to be rising to the challenges of our time and shaping the International Response to covid19. Yet, tragically, we have not held one public hearing on covid, and the committee has not debated or voted on a single covidrelated bill or amendment despite being months into the crisis. This is something that i know that the democratic members of the senate Foreign Relations committee came together and put a bill, offered it as part of an effort to be bipartisan to begin to address the crisis because we understand that viruses and diseases know no borders. Mr. President , until the current chairman and for as long as anyone can remember, the committee operated as comity. It means that we found a way to Work Together to achieve a process that worked for all members, majority and minority alike even if we didnt always agree on the substance. Had the chairman engaged to our tradition of comity, we would have had a meeting on covid, the crisis at hand, and not mr. Pack, a blatantly flawed nominee. Now, i know that comity sounds awfully quaint in the polarized times that we live in, but it worked. It worked for the members, for the committee and for the country. It was the force that bound us together, the force to which we found Common Ground to advance the national interest. Im sad to report that the michael pack nomination was the nail in the coffin for comity. The chairman ignored the request of every member of the committees minority, a simple request, lets not vote on michael pack until we have collectively worked through all of the serious background problems that exist. And that letter that was sent to the chairman did not even get responded to prior to ramming pack through the committee. That silence and the actions that have been taken have changed the committee, and i believe the senate for the worse. Now, i dont have the time or inclination to go through every violation of the rules and norms that mar the Committee Process on michael pack, but there is one violation that i have to speak to, one that is so serious and so corrosive that it needs to be documented and should never be repeated. Im speaking about the chairmans refusal to allow a video live stream of the committees debate and vote on mr. Pack. Yes, mr. President , the chairman intentionally deprived the public of the opportunity to watch this unfortunate episode unfold as it did. This was shameful. It violated the rules. It sends the wrong message to every american and every person around the world. This committee is a beacon of light to the world for those who are oppressed for transparency, for open government, for rule of law, for a free press. Well, we shut out the nation and the world. The first time in my years of being on the committee since i got to the senate ive been on the committee. Im the longestserving member of the committee on either side of the aisle. Never have we done that. That is a message that we are weak. A message that we are ashamed, a message that has no place in our democracy. Now, let me turn to mr. Pack. If confirmed, mr. Pack will oversee the voice of america, radio free europe, radio free asia and the middle east broadcasting network. It is absolutely critical that any person in this position maintain a strong firewall between the work of its networks and grantees and political interference and interference from the white house or any others. People from around the world have come to view the products from all of the networks and grantees as reliable and trustworthy news sources. As this pandemic has highlighted, people crave reliable, independent, and credible journalism. Et networks of the u. S. A. G. M. Are sometimes the only independent journalism a country can rely on and bring a free and open media to closed societies. The agency in the past has made some serious missteps and we have worked with congress to help address them. But, sadly, mr. President , the debate over mr. Pack has not even ripened to as discussion of his qualifications, we are dealing with the nominees serious background problems despite the efforts to engage mr. Risch, the white house, and mr. Pack himself on these matters. The central issue with mr. Pack is the way that he used perhaps abused his Nonprofit Organization Public Media Lab and his refiewcial to come refusal to come clean about it. As you can see from this chart, mr. Pack is both the president s of both Public Media Lab and his forprofit company, manafold productions and where his wife, gina pack, is his sole other employee. He created and controls both organizations. Since creating Public Media Lab in 2008, mr. Pack has used it to raise more than 4 million from private foundations. Some of those grants were earmarked to make specific films like others like a 250,000 grant from the Charles Koch Foundation were for, quote, general operating support for Public Media Lab. As you can see from this next chart, mr. Pack transferred 100 100 of the tax exempts Public Media Lab received to his forprofit company manafold. No grants were given to any other organization, none. The i. R. S. Would probably call that operating a nonprofit for private benefit, but ill get to that in a minute. Some of that grant money was used to make films, but based on mr. Packs financial disclosures, its possible that up to 75 of it, millions of dollars, went straight to mr. Pack and his wife gina. What you see on this chart, as was suggested in the debate the other day, is not normal. It is not normal. It is this is not the standard. This is not how it is done in the industry. And that is why the office of the attorney general for the District Of Columbia where Public Media Lab is incorporated is now investigating mr. Packs nonprofit for possibly breaking the law. The question they are asking is whether mr. Pack used donations to the nonprofit for his own enrichment to line his own pockets. And from my understanding this kind of behavior would normally raise some yellow flags at the i. R. S. As well and they would be curious as to why a nonprofit seemed to be operating for the sole benefit of its creator. But the yellow flag never went up at the i. R. S. Because for many years after he created Public Media Lab, mr. Pack never disclosed that it was doing business with his company, with himself. The i. R. S. Asked non ask nonprofits two key questions to determine if a situation of private benefit might exist. And for many, many years mr. Pack falsely told the i. R. S. There was no relationship. When the i. R. S. Asked mr. Pack, under penalty of perjury, whether Public Media Lab provided grants to any entity controlled by an officer of the nonprofit, he said no year after year. But the true answer was yes. The i. R. S. Also asked mr. Pack, again under penalty of perjury, whether Public Media Lab conducted business with any entity that it shared officers or directors with. Again and again year after year mr. Pack said no, but the true answer was yes. Had mr. Pack told the i. R. S. The truth, he would have had to make additional disclosures that might have raised that yellow flag but the i. R. S. Was left in the dark by mr. Packs false statements. Now, when the committee confronted mr. Pack last year with these false statements, he claimed that they were, quote, oversights and that he did not need to amend his filings because his false statements were unintentional. But then he turned around and made false statements to the committee about his taxes. Mr. President , unfortunately given the false statements to the i. R. S. Year after year and then to the committee, we have to be concerned that mr. Pack has a problem with the truth. Mr. Pack needs to come clean with the senate and he needs to come clean with the i. R. S. He needs to tell the i. R. S. Whats on this chart, how much grant money he transferred from Public Media Lab to manifold and that he sent it from himself to himself. So just lets review what we learned from these charts. First, mr. Pack may have conducted unlawful expenditures with his nonprofit and operated it for private gain. Second, the i. R. S. And the senate dont know the full truth because mr. Pack has made false statements and refused to provide documentation. Third, mr. Packs nonprofit is now under investigation by the office of the attorney general for the District Of Columbia for the very issues that i have been seeking answers from him for nine months nine months. As my friend, senator merkley, so eloquently noted yesterday, nominees need to tell the truth to congress and the executive branch. And if theres been a mistake, the nominee needs to fix it. These are the most basic requirements for all nominees that come before the senate and the absolute minimum standard we use to ask them to meet. We live in an era where the extraordinary quickly becomes routine, but even by that metric, mr. Packs path to this floor has been a disgrace. If advice and consent means anything, at rock bottom it means ensuring that the people we confirm are suitable for public service. And if they are not, we should not move forward. Now, i am aware of the pressure that some of my colleagues face as a result of this nomination. I know that the president has publicly trashed voice of america, calling it the voice of the soviet union, which i hasten to say is dangerous nonsense, and i novello know that the president has spoken publicly and privately for his intense desire to confirm mr. Pack come what may. The objections i have been raising for months are not political or partisan in nature. They go to the most basic and critical question is michael pack fit to serve . Should he be confirmed while he is under investigation and after having been dishonest with the senate and the i. R. S. . Given his alleged use of a small nonprofit for selfenrichment, can we trust that he will not use the massive resources of the u. S. Government to line his own pockets . So, colleagues, i implore to you consider these questions. Please put aside whatever pressure, whatever threats the president has made and consider the dangerous precedent we are setting here today. If mr. Pack is confirmed, the new bar for advice and consent is now set below that of a nominee who is under open investigation by Law Enforcement and who blatantly provided congress and the executive branch false information. This institution has been called the worlds greatest deliberative body. The history of this body guides us, and we make our decisions not just based on the immediate needs of the present but on the example we will set for the future. I ask my colleagues who may be inclined to support mr. Packs nomination today, are you comfortable with this precedent . The answer should be obvious, and i pray this body has the courage to get there. Let us turn away from michael pack and let us focus on healing the wounds of our nation and our democracy. With that, mr. President , i yield the floor. The presiding officer the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. The clerk cloture motion we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of michael pack of maryland to be chief executive officer of the broadcasting board of governors, signed by 16 senators. The presiding officer by unanimous consent, the manned trid quorum call has been waived. The question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of michael pack of maryland to be chief executive officer of the broadcasting board governors shall be brought to a close. The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or wishing to change their vote . Seeing none, the ayes are 53, the nays are 39, and the motion is agreed to. Mr. Cotton madam president. The presiding officer the senator from arkansas. Mr. Cotton today is the 31st anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre when thousands of peaceful students asking for their freedom were gunned down by Chinese Communist tanks and troops. Because of beijings relentless censorship and control over information, we still have never learned the true death toll of that dark day. But its certain that thousands of Peaceful Protesters were murdered in the streets. Beijings savagery was exposed during that massacre, reminding the west that this was the same unreconstructed communist party that killed millions, tens of millions of its own people without batting an eye during maos cultural revolution and the great leap forward. A tiger never changes its stripes. Now the Chinese Communist party is threatening another atrocity in hong kong, a city whose traditions and freedoms it once promised to respect, but that it secretly and increasingly openly loathes as a gleaming repudiation of chinese communism. Last year, an extradition bill that could have allowed hong kong residents to be disappeared to Mainland China sparked mass protests. Hong kong residents flooded the streets to display their disapproval and protect their freedoms. These were not anarchists trying to tear down the law as Chinese Communists shrill organs called. They were fighting to preserve the rule of law they love so much against a communist power that knows no law above itself. They are fighting for the very same freedoms that we enjoy in the United States, freedom of religion, speech, and assembly, private property. They won the battle officer that extradition bill but the war for hong kongers freedom isnt over. While the world has been distracted by the coronavirus pandemic and other upheavals, the Chinese Communist party enactedded what it calls a National Security law, but what is in reality an attempt to ex extinguish hong kong freedom, allowing them to take action against their freedom including those who protested last year. They now face the possibility of losing their freedom and possibly their lives. Political dissidents risk being jailed arbitrarily or worse. Hundreds of thousands of muslim, christians, and sheiks risk being driven underground or perhaps in a gulag of concentration camps like the uighurs. The free world cannot stand by while the Chinese Communist party sets fryer to the ventilator ecial laws and freedoms of hong kong. They are looking to revoke hong kongs status which allows them to get rich while denying the very freedoms more than one billion of their subjects on the main lane. Mainland and the United Kingdom announced it will extend visas to three million hong kongers, many of whom took part in last years prodemocracy protests sthoa can escape the Chinese Communist party. I highly commend Boris Johnson for striking this bold blow for freedom, but the United States can also do more. Today i call upon the administration to fryer advertise the administration of persecuted hong kongers to the United States through the u. S. Refugee admissions program. In coordination with our allies, this action could save these brave hong kongers from a fate under communist rule. While it has been abused in recent years it has always served the noble purpose of allowing those who are truly oppressed by their governments to immigrate safely to the free world. And now it can be used again in this worthy cause to help noble hong kongers flee the grasp of the Chinese Communist party before its too late. Madam president , i yield the floor. A senator madam president. The presiding officer the senator from north dakota. A senator are we in a quorum call . The presiding officer no. Mr. Hoeven i rise to honor grand forks Police Officer cody hote. Both senator cramer and myself are here. We attended his funeral and today we are here to honor his service and honor his life. Officer holte is a minnesota native, 2010 graduate of Norman County West High School and 2015 graduate of University State in moorhead. Officer holte led a life of service dedicating himself to his community, state, and nation by always putting the people he served first. Not only was officer holte an exceptional Police Officer, he served as a First Lieutenant in the north Dakota Army National guard. For ten years i was the governor of north dakota and i cannot tell you how much we relied then and now on our national guard. And as you can see cody was a First Lieutenant in the national guard. Here he is in his guard uniform and his Incredible Service as a Police Officer in grand forks. Lieutenant holte enlisted in the army reserve in 2010 and in 2015, he was commissioned into the north Dakota Army National guard. He was last assigned to lisbon, north dakota where he prepared his unit for upcoming missions. As an officer and First Lieutenant in the national guard, he served our nation on multiple fronts. Through his leadership, courage, and work ethic, he displayed the very best the state of north dakota has to offer while also helping to hen sure our safety and security. You realize how important that is today not only here at home but abroad, and heres somebody who served in both capacities. What a life of service. My wife and i extend our deepest condolences to the holte family, especially his wife amanda, his son gunner, parents brett and tracy, sister alexis and twin brother brady who is also a Police Officer and also served in the military. He served with regular army, and now his brother brady serves with the fargo p. D. Twin brothers who served in the military, both serving as Police Officers, one in grand forks and one in fargo. And they were very close, as you can imagine. Last thursday north dakota lost one of its finest. Because of this, we must honor his memory, in part by remembering those who served as he did and never forgetting the burden his loved ones bear on our behalf. They sacrifice too. With that, mr. President , i want to yield the floor to senator cramer who had the good fortune to know the family personally and had a long relationship with the family and i welcome and look forward to his remarks about cody holte, somebody who was truly an exceptional person and whose life epitomized service. We pray for gods blessing on him and his entire family. With that, i yield the floor. Mr. Cramer madam president. The presiding officer the senator from north dakota. Mr. Cramer thank you, madam president. I thank senator hoeven for his words and i associate myself with everything he said about officer holte. Hes right, it was an appropriate celebration of officer holtes life along with the governor and a whole bunch of other friends, family, members of Law Enforcement, community leaders, and even strangers who came to provide that heros celebration that cody earned. Interesting thing about what cody went into. He and a fellow officer from the grand forks Police Department were called to a scene where shots had been fired and a Deputy Sheriff had been hit by somebody who was served an eviction notice signed by a judge, somebody who was very well armed with an ak47, he shot 71 rounds before doing the damage he had done and before he was stopped. Cody didnt run from the fire but to it. Saved lives by giving up his own. Its what heros do. Its what all men and women in Law Enforcement do who ware the badge are prepared wear the badge are prepared to do. We live in an interesting time. It was ironic that we in north dakota, along the red river in grand forks, up the interstate from minneapolis, are paying tribute to a hero and yet that hero doesnt seem to get the same attention that a criminal gets. That hero and his brothers and sisters who wear the badge dont seem to be as respected by our media criminals are. In fact, the restrictions and the restraint that our heros exercise in carrying out their duties, the vast majority of them is really rarely, if ever, highlighted. And, yet, we celebrate the life of cody holte, 29 years old, father of a 10monthold son, husband to mandy. And its just really important that we stand in this chamber today and give cody the respect and the honor that he earned here in these hallowed halls and tell his story to a nation that is intrigued and fixated in many respects on those that cody protects us from, and it was a great honor to be there with his family, with hundreds, thousands, perhaps, other Law Enforcement officers to pay tribute to a real hero. But i think its important to note that this hero was also a real person. I thought that his chief of police gave an absolute marvelous speech, and i want to just reiterate a couple of things that the grand forks chief of police said about about cody at the funeral. Chief mark nelson said that he and cody had formed a close bond in part by, what . Sharing baby photos. The chief of his grandchild and cody of his son gunner. He recalled that he recalled holte as a friend to all. Now who doesnt want a cop whos a friend to all with a grin that could brighten anyones day. But more importantly he said cody was a cops cop, whose heart was bigger than courage and who had an unwavering dedication to protecting and serving his community. He said when holte was on duty, there was never any need to worry. So we pay tribute today to this hero but we are reminded that he was also a husband to mandy, a father to gunner. He was he was a son to brett and tracy. And i know brett and tracy very well. Ive known brett nearly all my life. Hes a brother to brady and alexis, as senator hoeven said. Brady, his twin brother, a Police Officer in fargo, just an hour down the interstate from grand forks. Britt and brett and tracy are raising heroes, but today they mourn the death of a son. And i know something of that, as you know, and its been an interesting experience for my wife and i to share the journey of the loss of our son a couple of years ago with brett and tracy and i want them to know how much we love them. That the valley, as deep as it is, youre not a loan, as king david walked in the shadow of the valley of the death with the confidence that god was was him, but in addition to god theres a whole bunch of people who are holding them up in prayer, that have their backs in love, hugs, whatever is needed and likewise, mandy, as the wife of a fallen hero, has all of the brothers and sisters who wear the badge as part of her extended family. Its an incredible group. But cody was, in addition to a hero, these things, these very personal things. I thought that the eulogy provided by his uncle, anthony carter, was exceptional. And anthony reminded us that as did other speakers, but particularly anthony that when cody swore an oath three years ago to protect the city of grand forks, he likely knew there would be challenging days which is why he wore a quote, i can do all things because of christ. Cody had left for him a legacy of faith, and i know that to be true. I know that to be true because i know the holtes so well. In fact, his grandpa pete was in my very first tv ad for congress in 1996. It was a losing cause but pete was in the ad. His grandma sue was my moms very best friend. They were prayer partners. They did bible study together. They ministered together. They might have gossiped a little, but they were forgiven. And sue and pete left for brett and his sisters a legacy of faith and brett left for brady, cody and alexis a legacy of faith. And it is that legacy of faith in a risen lord and in a father who knows the grief of losing a son who died for freedom too, you see, that faith is what sustains them today. But its really important that we as national leaders, as community leaders, as local leaders, as family members stand in this valley with the family, and thats what were doing today in addition to paying honor. And finally, madam president , to codys brothers and sisters who wear the badge, it seems like the world is upside down. It feels like the country is on fire. And, yes, there is the occasional criminal Police Officer who does something really awful, and that person needs to be brought to justice. And in minnesota thats happening. But the heroes are far, far, far outnumber the criminals in our police force. And i think its important as we pay tribute to a fallen hero that those that are still out there protecting us as we stand in this building expressing our views and stand in the gap throughout our country, throughout the communities, that protect the rights of people to assemble and express themselves peacefully, that they know were in their corner, that we have their backs, that we honor them along with cody today. We respect them and we hold them up because we love them, because we love them for what they do for us. We ask, i ask their forgiveness for taking them for granted and for not expressing the gratitude often enough. But codys short 29 years of life, his last three years as a Police Officer, his several years as a member of the north Dakota National guard, his testimony in his life and now in his death reminds us never take for granted our own safety and security. Say thank you to a Police Officer in honor of cody who i know is okay. I know that hes okay today, and i hope hes with his grandpa pete and his grandma sue somewhere. I hope that my son isaac bumps into him. We had a we lived next door to the holtes when those kids were growing up. I stand with confidence that hes okay, but i continue to pray for those of us left behind, especially his family, especially his young son, beautiful wife and mom and dad and brother and sister, that they too are confident that theyll be okay. But that while were in this valley, theyre not alone. I yield the floor. A senator madam president. The presiding officer the senator from maryland. Mr. Cardin madam president , i take this time as the ranking democrat on the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee of the United States senate to update my colleagues on the implementation of the cares act. I think all of us know that the cares act contained major new provisions to help Small Businesses, and i was proud to be part of a Bipartisan Working Group with senator rubio and senator shaheen and nor collins that helped craft three new programs to help Small Businesses as a result of covid19. We recognize the importance of Small Businesses to our economy, to job growth, to innovation, but we also recognize that Small Businesses are more vulnerable to an economic downturn. They dont have the resiliency, they dont have the deep pockets, they dont have the liquidity that Larger Companies have. And if were going to get our economy back on track, we have to preserve Small Businesses and their workforce. So we suggested, and the Congress Passed three new programs to help Small Businesses. The Paycheck Protection Program, the Economic Injury disaster loan grant program, and a Loan Forgiveness Program for existing and new loans taken out under 7a504 or microloans. We recognize that all three of these tools were important. Theythey were not exclusive. They Work Together. P. P. P. Provides help to keep a payroll together, by eight weeks of payroll. The eidl loan Program Provides working capital for Small Businesses. And the grant Program Provides immediate cash. And the Forgiveness Program allows a business to be able to get through these next six months without the burdens of having to pay their loans. All that Work Together to keep Small Businesses viable in our community. So let me first talk about the Paycheck Protection Program because that certainly has gotten the most attention. It provided eight weeks of payroll relief plus other expenses for Small Businesses in this country. It has been very, very popular. In fact, the original amount of money that we authorized for loans, about 349 billion, was quickly used up, and we authorized an additional 310 billion of loan authority. There have been 4. 4 million loans issued under the p. P. P. Program for a total of 510 billion. These loans were issued rather quickly considering the standing up of a new program and the volume of interest. So i want to acknowledge the hard work of the Small Business administration and their workers as well as treasury in standing up this program and getting the money out quickly to save many, many Small Businesses in our community. When we passed the p. P. P. Program, we would have hoped that eight weeks later our economy would be in a position where Small Businesses and large number would not need additional help or that the programs parameters were adequate. Well, that was not the case. And yesterday this chamber acted in a responsible way in legislation that senator rubio and i and others along with house colleagues had recommended to our colleagues that would give Small Businesses that have existing p. P. P. Loans the discretion to use those funds over a 24week period rather than an 8week period, recognizing that many of these businesses cannot get up to full payroll during this eightweek period. We also gave flexibility on the allocation of the funds. Even with these changes there have been major challenges in bringing forward the p. P. P. Program. First and foremost, we found, as we had unfortunately thought might happen, that the underserved and underbanked community would have a much more difficult time until getting access to 7a loans under the p. P. P. Program. And, quite frankly, we put language in the cares act so that s. B. A. Would give special attention to the underserved, underbanked community. And, quite frankly, the s. B. A. Did not follow our direction. The s. B. A. I. G. Said that the Small Business administration did not fully align with congressional intent to help the underserved and rural markets. So we responded. When we replenished the p. P. P. Funds, we allocated a certain amount of those funds directly to smaller lending institutions, recognizing that they have greater contact with the underserved communities. And it did help. And then at our request, treasury is, has now allocated n additional 10 billion through the Community Development finance institutions that have better ties to the underserved community. Each one of these steps helped, allocating funds to small lenders, allocating funds to cdfi will help us get to Small Businesses, get to women minnesota owned businesses womenowned businesses, will help us get to the smaller of the Small Businesses, will help us get to rural Small Businesses. But we need to do more, and thats why ive authored legislation with senator booker. We have put out a plan on what needs to be done through a discussion document, and it recognizes that we have to provide greater help for businesses in underserved communities for startup capital, for technical training, and for mentorship. All that will help so that we come out of covid19, when we have the next economic downturn, we have the Financial Institutions and knowledge in all of our communities to take advantage of the tools that we make available in a timely way. On our oversight hearing yesterday, we had our first oversight hearing in regards to covid19 and the tools of the Small Business administration, that hearing where outside public witnesses, privatesector witnesses. Next week well have the secretary of the treasury as well as the s. B. A. Administrator before us. But what we heard from one of our witnesses yesterday, connie evans of the association for enterprise opportunities, she said, talking about covid19, its economic consequences are projected to erase decades of minority Enterprise Growth in underserved markets. She continued, to prevent this, we believe policymakers must acknowledge the existing disparities in our Small Business ecosystem and take the necessary steps to create equitable legislation to ensure that vulnerable businesses survive and thrive in the years ahead. I couldnt agree more. Thats why senator booker and i have issued our discussion document that includes many ways that we can bring about systematic changes to really help in the underserved communities. We saw tragically two weeks ago, or close to two weeks ago the tragic death in minnesota, and weve all talked about how were going to help to make sure this country gives equal opportunity to all of our citizens including in our criminal justice system. We also need to recognize that if were going to deal with the wealth gap in america, we have to deal with entrepreneurship, and this is one way we can do it by building up these types of opportunities. Theres some good news in my state of maryland that i want to share with my colleagues. Maryland had a very active Womens Business Center. As you know, our Resource Partners are critically important to help underserved and underbanked communities. Womenowned businesses are clearly in that category. We have a very effective Womens Business Center thats headquartered in rockville that helps serve montgomery and Prince Georges County and frederick. Theyre doing a great job on behalf of womenowned businesses. But maryland is a big state and we needed more help. So i want to thank the Small Business administration in the announcement of two additional Small Business centers in the state of maryland. One will be in baltimore. It will be housed at morgan state university, an historic hbcu. It will provide, i think, tremendous help for womenowned businesses and minority womenowned businesses. Then we also are opening up a center in salsbury on the Eastern Shore of maryland in rural maryland to help womenowned businesses. This is important to close the gap in our community. Resource partners are a critical need. So as we applaud the work weve done with the p. M. With the p. P. P. Program, we recognize we need to improve it. Lets also recognize we need to ensure there is a fair opportunity for all businesses to qualify. But were also going to need additional help for Small Businesses, initial to the p. P. P. In addition to the p. P. P. Initial grant, there will need to be a second ground. When we passed this program, we thought eight weeks would be enough. But we know eight weeks, for some of the original Small Business loans taken out under the p. P. P. Program, within the next two weeks that eightweek period will expire, and we know that businesses are not yet open at full capacity. Restaurants cannot open at full capacity. Catering establishments cannot open at full capacity. Health clubs cannot open at full capacity. Entertainment centers cannot open at full capacity, we know that. Museums are still very much hurt. Were going to need additional help. We heard yesterday from joe shamus, a Small Business owner whose company was helped by the p. P. P. Loan, and he told us there will be additional need for bridge funding for Small Businesses experiencing unanticipated costs during the phasein reopening. I agree with mr. Shamus. I think were going to have to do more to help the Small Businesses in our community, so ive been working with senator shaheen and senator coons and others to say on the second round lets try to target the relief to those companies that really need it. The first round, get the money out quickly, and we were very successful in doing that. Minimum amount of underwriting requirements by the Small Businesses or the banks. We got the money out quickly. On the second round, we need to be more discerning. We need to focus those funds on those semiautomatics that really need it, those in the underserved communities, the smaller of the Small Businesses. We heard that yesterday during our oversight hearing. And those businesses that have had a dramatic loss in revenue. If we do that the resources are there. We can help these Small Businesses survive and we can do it in a way that can keep our economy going. We need to do that immediately. We shouldnt wait two or weeks, after the program for many Small Businesses have already ended. We need to provide the help as soon as possible. Thats another reason why its important that we take up the next stimulus package during this work period and not wait until businesses have to lay off their workers and maybe not be able to reopen. But that the p. P. P. Was only one of three tools. The second tool that we provided was a new initiative under the eidl program for grants. Immediate cash which Small Businesses need during a disaster cash. The proposal would allow for a 10,000 grant to be made, and we anticipated that that grant would be made within three days. We put that in the statute. Now, as complimentary i have about s. B. A. Starting up the p. P. P. Program, i am extremely disappointed in the manner in which the eidl program has been handled. They did not get the money out quickly. They did not get 10,000 out. Instead, the average grant is between 4,000 and 5,000 t and theres 10 billion still left in the coffers that could have gotten out to Small Businesses who desperately needed the cash. And they didnt do it within the time period that congress anticipated. And the loan program, the existing loan program this existed before covid19 where s. B. A. Issues loans before a disaster, Economic Injury disaster loans. It provides the working capital, it works with p. P. P. P. P. P. Is not enough help for Small Business to get the working capital and inventory that they need. They have been very slow, the s. B. A. , inest going the owns in getting the loans out. Now theyve closed the window for nonagricultural Small Businesses. Why . I have no idea. And they seem to be limiting loans to 150,000 although the law provides for a 2 million cap. Why are they doing that . If the programs are going to Work Together, they have to implement this program. Congress specifically intended covid19 to be disaster cover. Well, we are disappointed that we havent had greater success in the eidl program because weigh know it works so much closer for with the p. P. P. Program and its particularly useful for smaller Small Businesses and those that are more vulnerable. Let me, if i might we had a witness yesterday, nick rudolph of maryland capital enterprises, who testified and said, the eidl loan is particularly impactful product because its low interest, longterm, easied credit requirements and the fact that collateral is not required. In a perfect world, all would receive the full grant regardless of the number of employees. Mr. Rudolph is saying they limited the grant to 1,000 per worker. Therefore, if you had ten or more workers, youre not able to get the full advantage of the 10,000. We hope that that would be corrected. Now, there is a third tool and that is the loan forgiveness for existing 7a and 504 loans and microloans and loans taken out during the sixmonth period after the adoption of the bill, through the end of the year. So this gives six months of debt relief for loans that can really help Small Businesses. I would like to tell you how thats working, but i dont have a lot of numbers 0en that. Which leads me to the need for data. If were going to kaye carry out our oversight if were going to be carry out our oversight function, we need to know how the programs are working today and we havent gotten the information we need. Earlier i offered a letter with senator schumer and wyden 0 asking the s. B. A. And treasury to make that information available. Most recently i joined senator rubio in a similar request asking the Small Business administration and the treasury to make this information available. Ive introduced legislation with senator shaheen on this issue. Would end to get that data if were going to do our oversight. This week we had the privatesector witnesses. Next were were going to have the administrator of the s. B. A. And secretary mnuchin, secretary of the treasury, to ask specifically about these points, very, very important hearing. Madam president , in closing, pleat me say that we got to continue to Work Together as we have in the past to help americas Small Businesses. They are the literally the Growth Engine of our economy. They are the innovators of our economy and the most vulnerable. The cares act provided incredibly important help, but were going to have to pay additional attention to help our Small Businesses. So lets continue this bipartisan effort to not only help Small Businesses but to help our economy and to help our country. In doing that, we will truly perform as we should during this national emergency. So i look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to Pay Attention to what weve already done for Small Businesses and give them the additional attention that they need. Mr. Wyden before he leaves the floors i want to tell my colleague that it has been a letter to team up with him. We know that it has been needlessly challenging looking back at the experience and im just glad my colleague is is going to prosecute the case until there is justice for these Small Businesses. Madam president , the senate nears a vote on the nomination of michael pack to head up the u. S. Agency for global media. This is typically a job that doesnt get a whole lot of attention here on the senate floor. This time i believe it should. This is yet another Trump Nominee who appears to be covering up a whole array of sketchy financial wheeling and selfdealing and apparently my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are just looking the other way, not interested. So heres the short version of the story. For more than a decade, mr. Pack ran two entities, a nonprofit Film Organization and a forprofit production company. His nonprofit raised millions of dollars under its taxexempt status, and it pumped that money into his forprofit production company, nowhere else. At a minimum, this looks to me like a serious, flagrant abuse of a taxpayer subsidy. Mr. Pack made false statements about this arrangement to the i. R. S. So as the ranking democrat on the finance committee, i care greatly about that matter, if one were to looking at nothing else. When he was first nominated in the previous congress, mr. Pack got caught in these false statements by staff on the Foreign Relations committee. When he was renominated in this congress and submitted new paperwork, he made false statements about having made false statements. Truly astounding, mr. President. Now, there are a host of Unanswered Questions about mr. Packs murky financial dealings. Fortunately, senator menendez is still trying to get to the bottom of them. Now, mr. Menendez, chairman menendez, ranking democrat on the committee menendez, is doing his job by the book. Hes doing his job. Hes been in communication with the administration when it comes to the vetting process for the nominees and every step along the way has tried to do responsible vetting. Furthermore, the financial web of mr. Packs is under investigation by the attorney general of the District Of Columbia. Why not wait to get the results of that investigation . Why rush to confirm a nominee before all the facts are before the senate . This is a question over whether a nominee broke the law and ripped off taxpayers. When democrats on the Senate Committee of jurisdiction tried to investigate it, mr. Pack eventually told everybody to just go pound sand. So once again we have a Trump Nominee making a mockery of the senates constitutional responsibilities. And as far as i can tell, the senate is just going to do nothing about it. So for my last few minutes, mr. Chairman, i just want to remind colleagues of the way things used to be. The way it used to be is both sides of the senate took advise and consent seriously. For example, in 2009, before the bodys president s with a on the committee, underchairman baucus and chairman grassley held up one nominee and wrote an exhaustive 12page memo over a matter of 53 in local tax late fees and some sloppy paperwork. Another 2009 nomination, ron kirk for the u. S. Trade representative, was held up for months over a tax matter involving some basketball tickets and a television he donated to his local ymca. In 2010, another nominee was grilled in his hearing before the finance committee over a tax debt of 800. Senators on both sides of the aisle, mr. President both sides of the aisle always tried to do a thorough vetting and tried to work on it together. In all three of these cases, which i remember as a member of the finance committee, the nominees answered the senates questions, paid what they owed, and that was that. The senate did its job and it was the right thing to do. So i think as we move to the vote, we also ought to Start Talking about here in the senate we ought to Start Talking about one question, and that is, what has changed here in the senate about the vetting provides of these vetting process of these nominees . What happened to the oldfashioned bipartisan consent to fully vet nominees . The majority has just rubberstamped and rubberstamped and rubberstamped some more Trump Nominees who show a blatant disregard and disdain for the oversight process that historically has been central to the bipartisan work of this body. Now, the president might be totally indifferent to the role and duties of the senate, but i dont see any reason why senators here, democrats or republicans, have to agree with that. It undermines the role of this senate and the congress as a coequal branch of government. And the precedent of a bipartisan vetting process simply cannot withstand it. Its been said here before that the federal government doesnt need anybody so badly that that person should get a special set of rules. That, regrettably, is the way it seems to be for this nominee, a nominee whose finances are currently under investigation and apparently with the majoritys support is going to get confirmed because the majority has decided to essentially set aside years and years of bipartisan work, responsible work to thoroughly investigate and vet those who are nominated to serve in our government. Im going to oppose this nomination, and i hope my colleagues will think about what is really at issue here, and that is, is the senate because what goes around comes around. Is the senate going to get serious about the way matters used to be handled, particularly on the Senate Finance committee, since we have a member of our committee in the chair. The Senate Finance committee did it right, did it right for years, by the book, a bipartisan book. Thats not being used here and in fact its being tossed out the window. I think the senate is is going to regret it and i urge my colleagues to oppose the nominee, and i yield back. Mr. President , i note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call the presiding officer the senator from colorado. Without objection. The presiding officer the senator from idaho. Mr. Risch id like three minutes to close the debate on michael pack. The presiding officer is there objection . Without objection. Mr. Risch mr. President and fellow senators, were about to do the final vote on michael pack. This man is uniquely qualified to hold this position. Hes done an outstanding job. Everyone should look at the most recent documentary he did on the supreme court. It was just outstanding. Theres been a political fight over him for two years and one day. Today is the moment of truth. Its time to vote on mr. Pack. Debate is closed. I yield the floor. The presiding officer under the previous order, all postcloture time is expired. The question is on the nomination. Is there a sufficient second . There appears to be. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote