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E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 113 CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION Vol. 160 WASHINGTON, THURSDAY, JULY 17, 2014 No. 112 Senate The Senate met at 9:30 a.m. and was SCHEDULE Vegas, here in Washington, DC, some called to order by the President pro Mr. REID. Mr. President, following Senate Republicans are playing a high- tempore (Mr. LEAHY). my remarks and those of the Repub- stakes game of their own with a hu- lican leader, the Senate will proceed to manitarian crisis. But instead of poker PRAYER the consideration of S. 2244—an ex- chips, they are using kids, children. The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- tremely important piece of legislation. Last night the junior Senator from fered the following prayer: There will be 30 minutes for debate on Texas upped the ante and announced Let us pray. the Coburn amendment, 20 minutes on that any legislation to address the hu- Eternal Father, hear and answer our the Vitter amendment, 10 minutes on manitarian crisis in the Rio Grande prayers from Your holy hills. We sleep the Flake amendment, and 30 minutes Valley must also include a termination each night in peace, sustained by Your on the Tester amendment. Any remain- of President Obama’s 2012 Deferred Ac- grace and mercy. Arise, O Lord, and ing time until 12 noon will be for gen- tion for Childhood Arrivals program. In use our lawmakers to fulfill Your pur- eral debate on this legislation. other words, before Republicans help poses. Empower them to make the At 12 noon the Senate will proceed to our Border Patrol agents and all the rough places smooth and the crooked a series of up to five rollcall votes. other personnel who are trying to do places straight. Give them the wisdom Rollcall votes are expected in relation something to handle this humanitarian to commune with You throughout the to the Coburn and Flake amendments; crisis, they want President Obama to day, leaning confidently upon You for however, we expect voice votes on the deport the DREAMers who are already wisdom and striving to be responsible Vitter and Tester amendments. Upon here. They are legitimately here. These stewards of their calling. Keep them disposition of the amendments, the are children. But instead of considering from becoming impatient when any- Senate will proceed to a rollcall vote a thoughtful, compassionate solution thing or anyone causes them to wait. on passage of S. 2244, as amended. to a real-life crisis on our border, rad- Lift the light of Your countenance We expect to reach an agreement to ical Republicans are trying to hold upon us all. vote at 2 p.m. on the motion to invoke these kids ransom. We pray in Your Holy Name. Amen. URBIN speak cloture on Executive Calendar No. 849, I have heard Senator D here on the floor. He visited one of f the nomination of Julie Carnes, of these centers in Chicago on Monday. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Georgia, to be United States circuit There are mothers with little babies judge for the Eleventh Circuit. Sen- The President pro tempore led the there who have been brought, as the ators will be notified when an agree- Pledge of Allegiance, as follows: law requires, to Chicago to try to unite ment is reached. I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the them with their families. United States of America, and to the Repub- (Mr. WALSH assumed the Chair.) We have, as we learned last night in lic for which it stands, one nation under God, BORDER CRISIS a Senators briefing, more than 50,000 of indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Mr. President, the distinguished these children who have arrived at the f President pro tempore of the Senate, border, and we have to do something to RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY who just opened the Senate, has been address that. The people who are re- LEADER for many, many years the chair of the quired by law to take care of these foreign operations subcommittee on children—some of whom are babies—do The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The appropriations. He is the chairman of majority leader is recognized. not have the resources to do it. the Judiciary Committee. I wanted to These are not children sneaking over f note that while he is on the floor. the border. They come to the people in BRING JOBS HOME ACT—MOTION Over the past 2 weeks poker players uniform and say: Here we are. We have TO PROCEED have flocked to Las Vegas because an obligation by law to do something Mr. REID. Mr. President, I now move there is an annual World Series of about it. But it takes a lot of money to to proceed to Calendar No. 453, S. 2569, Poker there. It is on ESPN. I do not take care of this. We cannot do it un- the Bring Jobs Home Act. know how athletic it is, but it is on less we get added resources, and what The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The ESPN, and it draws a lot of attention. the junior Senator from Texas said is clerk will report the motion. Poker is a very important and popular that we are not going to do this unless The assistant legislative clerk read game now—a game of chance, and this we deport all these children who came as follows: tournament—the World Series of here before—the so-called DREAMers. Motion to proceed to Calendar No. 453, S. Poker—is the most prestigious high- Once again, we see there are no sub- 2569, a bill to provide an incentive for busi- stakes tournament in the world, and stantive solutions being offered by to- nesses to bring jobs back to America. 2,400 or 2,500 miles away from Las day’s Republican Party. Instead of ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. S4571 . VerDate Mar 15 2010 01:55 Jul 22, 2014 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\RECORD14\S17JY4.REC S17JY4 bjneal on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with CONG-REC-ONLINE S4572 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE July 17, 2014 doing something about these children bassies together and tell them how In previous years ambassadors were who are at the border, they want to de- much I appreciate what they do for our just approved so quickly. Once in a port hundreds of thousands of these country. They are not all ambassadors, while something controversial would people who are already here. of course. There is one per country—we come up, but it was once in a great President Obama’s deferred action hope. while. As I said, a quarter of U.S. Em- plan, which is widely popular in the To apply to be a Foreign Service offi- bassies in Africa do not have an ambas- country because it is the right thing to cer is hard. You have to have really, sador. We do not have an ambassador do—and, obviously, Republicans want really good grades. You have to pass a in Bosnia. We do not have an ambas- to get rid of it—what this is all about, written examination after having grad- sador in Vietnam—on and on. Can’t we his deferred action plan, is about keep- uated from college and maybe with all agree that it is important that ing families together in America. It graduate work. Some of them are American interests be represented in grants immigration officials discretion Ph.D.s. And then, after you pass a writ- these places? The answer: We cannot in considering the cases of children ten test, you have to pass an oral test. agree. The Republicans do not want who have lived most of their lives as It is very, very difficult. these ambassadorships filled. These are some of the best and Americans, even though they were When can these people who want to brought here illegally. brightest in the world, and their ulti- mate goal—as we had the All-Star play in the ‘‘all-star game’’ be able to Let me give you an example of a play in the ‘‘all-star game’’ and rep- young woman from Las Vegas. Her Game on Tuesday—is to be an all-star, to be able to play—as they did on Tues- resent the interests of this country? name is Astrid Silva. Astrid came to They work in careers that are very dif- the United States as a little, tiny girl day in Major League Baseball—in the ‘‘all-star game.’’ Well, that is what am- ficult. They do not start out as ambas- in a boat across the Rio Grande. Her sadors. Rarely does that happen. mother was with her. She was in her— bassadors are; they are the all stars of I want to get this right—she was in her the diplomatic corps of this country. Each day that goes by more ambas- dress, confirmation dress or whatever Right now, these ambassadors are on sadorships are unfilled. All the ambas- it was. She was just a tiny, little girl. the front lines. They are fighting to de- sador nominees were passed out of She had her rosary beads and a little fend our interests abroad—our security committee unanimously. With rare ex- doll, and she floated across the river. interests, our national interests, and ception they are noncontroversial. I She knows no other country than the our economic interests.

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