October 3, 2017 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6273 to keep more of what they earn. Our back home to the United States. The actual disposable income is a very plan will also expand the child tax problem with this is that most other small part of it. If they don’t take credit and make it available to more major world economies have shifted measures to avoid having their family families, and our plan doubles the from a worldwide tax system to a terri- hit by the death tax, the family will standard deduction, which will provide torial tax system. have no choice but to sell off some or significant relief for those who need it In a territorial tax system, taxes are all of their land to pay the govern- the most. Under our plan, a family paid on the money earned where it is ment, which means, in many cases, los- making $24,000 a year will no longer made and only there. You are not taxed ing the family’s farm or ranch. And the owe any Federal income taxes. All of again when you bring money back to same situation faces other types of these measures will provide direct re- your home country. Most American family-owned businesses across the lief to working families. companies’ foreign competitors have country where the value of the estate Just as important for families, how- been operating under a territorial tax is tied up in that business. ever, is the other half of our tax reform system for years. So they pay a lot less Removing the threat of the death tax plan, which involves creating the kind taxes on the money they make abroad for family-owned businesses, farms, of economic environment where hard- than American companies pay. That and ranches would free up resources working Americans can thrive—the leaves American companies at a dis- that these business owners could invest kind of environment where Americans advantage. in their businesses and in our economy have access to good jobs, higher wages, Foreign companies can underbid instead of on complex estate plans, in- and more opportunities. American companies for new business surance, and expensive tax profes- Over the past few weeks, I have come simply because they don’t have to add sionals. to the floor to talk about Republicans’ as much in taxes into the price of their Before I move on, let me just remind tax reform principles and have high- products or services. When foreign everybody that when we talk about the lighted some of the ways our tax re- companies beat out American compa- death tax, we are talking about double form plan will improve the economic nies for new business, it is not just and sometimes triple taxation. The outlook for American families. Last American companies that suffer. It is money the government is taxing has week, I talked about our third prin- American workers. That is why a key already been taxed at least once. It ciple, reforming our Tax Code to keep part of the tax framework that Repub- boggles the mind that some think that those good-paying jobs here at home. licans unveiled last week involves low- a person’s death is justification for tax- This week I would like to spend a few ering our massive corporate tax rate ing his or her income a second or a minutes talking about our fourth prin- and transitioning our tax system from third time. Death should not be a tax- ciple, which is keeping American busi- a worldwide tax system into a terri- able event. When someone dies, they nesses competitive in the global econ- torial tax system. By making Amer- shouldn’t have to see the undertaker omy. ican businesses more competitive in and the IRS at the same time. In order for individual Americans to the global economy, we can improve Our Tax Code is increasingly stran- thrive economically, we need our busi- the playing field for American workers. gling our economy and placing heavy nesses to thrive. Thriving businesses There are a lot of other things we are burdens on hard-working American create jobs, provide opportunities, and going to do to help hard-working fami- families. If we want to improve the they increase wages and invest in lies and American workers, from im- economic situation of American fami- workers. Right now, though, our Tax proving the tax situation for small lies, comprehensive tax reform is es- Code is not helping businesses thrive, businesses to helping family business sential. and it is making it more difficult for owners, farmers, and ranchers like Republicans in the House and the American businesses with an inter- those in my home State of South Da- Senate are continuing to work on the national footprint to compete in the kota by repealing the death tax. final draft of the bill that we will take global economy. Our colleagues on the other side of up later this fall. I look forward to Our Nation has the highest corporate the aisle like to complain about our passing comprehensive tax reform that tax rate in the industrialized world—at plans to repeal the death tax. They will help American families thrive, least 10 percentage points higher than complain that it is not something to that will create greater economic the majority of our international com- really worry about since they claim growth, better paying jobs, higher petitors. It doesn’t take an economist relatively few estates are expected to wages, and bigger paychecks for Amer- to realize that high tax rates leave actually have to pay the tax. Well, I ican workers. businesses with less money to invest, would like them to come and talk to Mr. President, I yield the floor. less money to spend on wages, less some of the farmers and ranchers in f money to create new jobs, less money my State of South Dakota. Some of to devote to research and development these farmers and ranchers are paying RECESS of new products and services, and less tens of thousands of dollars a year in The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under money to put back into new property an effort to avoid having their families the previous order, the Senate stands or equipment for those businesses. This hit by the estate tax when they die. in recess until 2:15 p.m. situation is compounded when an Why? Because they know that without Thereupon, the Senate, at 12:33 p.m., American business has international careful and costly planning, if the Fed- recessed until 2:16 p.m. and reassem- competitors that are paying a lot less eral Government comes around after bled when called to order by the Pre- in taxes than you are. It is no surprise their death demanding a staggering 40 siding Officer (Mr. STRANGE). that U.S. businesses struggling to stay percent of their estate, their children f won’t have the money to pay the gov- competitive in the global economy EXECUTIVE CALENDAR—Continued don’t have a lot of resources to devote ernment without risking the farm or to creating new jobs and increasing the ranch. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- wages. Farming and ranching is a land-rich ator from Massachusetts. On top of our high business tax rates, but cash-poor business. Farmers and LAS VEGAS MASS SHOOTING there is another major problem with ranchers own valuable land, but they Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, a trag- our Tax Code that puts American busi- are only earning cash on the crops they edy took place in Las Vegas this week. nesses at a competitive disadvantage grow or the livestock they raise on It is a tragedy that has affected hun- globally—our outdated worldwide tax that land. So while their overall farm dreds of families. It is a tragedy in system. or ranch may have a substantial value, which each and every one of us sends What does it mean to have a world- the amount of money they have com- our prayers to those who have lost wide tax system? It means that Amer- ing in is relatively small and subject to loved ones. And to those who have fam- ican companies pay U.S. taxes on the the swings in the market from year to ily members who are now hospitalized, profit they make here at home, as well year. Too often, when farmers and we send our prayers to you as well, as on part of the profits they make ranchers die, the vast portion of their with the great hope that a full recov- abroad once they bring that money estate is made up of their land, while ery is in their future.

VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:55 Oct 03, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.011 S03OCPT1 S6274 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE October 3, 2017 This was an unimaginable event that gun. That is going to provide far more every single year. Shouldn’t we be occurred in our country. It is now time protection. It is far more important studying how to stop people from firing for us to talk about this issue. There that the police in a State or in a city guns and give the medical, the sci- are many people who say this is not know that someone has a concealed entific, and the public health commu- the time to talk about it, but the truth weapon. It is critically important for nity the resources they need? is, the only thing the National Rifle police protection. But the National We also need to develop new smart Association wants more than to sell Rifle Association does not want those gun technologies that would improve lots of gun silencers is to put a silencer kinds of protections to remain on the safety and reduce accidental shootings. on the debate about gun safety legisla- books. That is who they are. That is My bill would authorize grants to de- tion. The only thing the NRA wants what they want. velop and personalize handgun tech- more than allowing nationwide con- What should we be debating? We nology to increase efficiency and de- cealed carry laws is to conceal the should be debating background checks. crease costs. If you can use a finger- overwhelming support for background We should be debating whether some- print to operate your iPhone, you checks. The only thing the NRA wants one should be able to buy a gun on should be able to do the same thing more than to stifle smart gun tech- Instagram and turn it into an ‘‘insta- with your gun to make sure that safety nology is to stifle debate on gun vio- gun’’ without background checks. That is ensured, to make sure it is your lence prevention. is what we should be talking about out thumbprint on that gun, that if your So to anyone who says having this here. gun is stolen or lost, no one else would debate now is too soon, it is already Over 90 percent of Americans want be able to use that gun. Does that too late for at least 59 people in Las stronger background checks. Yet the make sense? Well, your thumb can Vegas and hundreds of others who were Republican leadership turns a deaf ear work for your smartphone. Your thumb wounded. We should not wait another to the request of the American people could also work for smart gun tech- day. because the National Rifle Association nology. We need to pass commonsense gun does not want there to be background So this is where we are. We are at safety legislation so that we can hold a checks on people who are buying guns this critical point where some people moment of silence for the National in our country. are saying: Not now. It is inappro- Rifle Association’s stranglehold on More Americans have died from gun priate. We shouldn’t be raising these American politics. That is what must violence in the past 50 years on the issues. end in our country. streets of America than have died in all But what we should be debating is We need a debate on this floor on of our Nation’s wars overseas in our en- what the American people want us to background checks. We need a debate tire history. Let me say that again. debate. Over 90 percent want back- in this Chamber on whether we are More people have died from guns in our ground checks on anyone who buys a going to do research on the relation- own country in the last 50 years than gun in our country to make sure they ship between guns and violence in our all of our soldiers, sailors, Air Force, are qualified, to make sure they do not society. We don’t need to debate the and marines have died going all the have something in their background issue of bringing silencers into our so- way back to 1776. That is how much of that should disqualify them from own- ciety that can be attached to guns and an epidemic this is in our country. It is ing a gun in our country. that would have made it infinitely an epidemic that now kills 33,000 people Our debate here should really be more difficult for the police to find every single year in our country, but about one thing: making the NRA where the shooter was or for people to the Federal Government’s investment stand for ‘‘not relevant anymore’’ in know that they needed to hide or move in researching gun violence is zero. American politics. The task for the Re- to a more secure location. That would Diabetes—76,000 U.S. deaths annu- publican Party is different. It will be not have happened. We would not have ally; they get $170 million at the Cen- whether they will kill these bills that had 59 deaths; we could have had 259 ters for Disease Control. Flu—57,000 would legalize more fully silencers deaths, 559 deaths, or 959 deaths be- deaths a year; they get $187 million for being put on automatic weapons in our cause a silencer would have given less research. Asthma—3,600 deaths a year; country, kill the concealed carry law, notice to all of those people that they they get $29 million for research at the which is moving through the House and should be moving and hiding and pro- Centers for Disease Control. Gun vio- Senate driven by Republicans, and, in- tecting themselves and their loved lence—zero. An epidemic is ravaging stead, debate the kinds of things that ones. our country, and the Republicans will make our country safer, the kinds of On concealed carry, the Republicans not fund research to find this link be- things that poll after poll is showing are moving a bill that allows for some- tween violence and the use of guns in that the American people want us to one to conceal a gun under a law in one our society, to do the research that can do. That is going to be our challenge in State—because that State allows you help us to reduce this carnage on the the days and weeks and months ahead. to conceal a gun, you would be able to streets of our country. And because of This is the time; this is the place. We move into any other State and con- an appropriations rider from the 1990s, are the people who must be conducting tinue to conceal a gun even though the Centers for Disease Control hasn’t this debate to make sure we add an that State’s laws prohibit concealing conducted research into the causes of extra measure of safety that American guns. They want that law to move gun violence and how to prevent it. If families can rely upon. through. 20 young children in Newtown had died I yield back the remainder of my So when the Republicans talk about of Ebola, we would have invested fund- time. debating gun control, what they are ing to study it. If 59 people in Las The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- talking about is lessening the safety Vegas died of Zika, would we study it? ator from Alaska. around these guns, lowering the stand- Absolutely. But our country is suf- Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, my ards that would protect people, and al- fering from an illness, and we have let colleague from Massachusetts has re- lowing for silencers to now be prolifer- it spread because we refuse to write a ferred to the tragedy that we all ating on these assault weapons, these treatment plan. watched unfold late on Sunday evening weapons of war that should not be on The American Medical Association in Las Vegas, NV—the tragedy, the the streets of our country and that supports ending the ban on research. horror, the shock of so many. Alaska have the capacity to kill people with- The American Public Health Associa- has felt the brunt of that tragedy as out people hearing them. tion supports ending the ban on re- well. We lost two Alaskans; at least They say they are needed because we search. More than 141 groups want to one other was injured. Mr. Adrian need to protect people’s hearing when end this ban on researching the link Murfitt from Anchorage, a commercial they are firing assault weapons. Well, between guns and violence in our soci- fisherman, lost his life that evening. it is more important that the police ety. Dorene Anderson, who is a mom and hear the bullets and that the people The bill I have introduced with Rep- self-described hockey promoter, will who might be hit hear the sound of resentative MALONEY gives $10 million not be returning to Alaska with her those bullets as they are leaving the to the Centers for Disease Control family. Rob McIntosh, who is a realtor

VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:55 Oct 03, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.013 S03OCPT1 October 3, 2017 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6275 from the Fairbanks-North Pole area, islands of St. Thomas and St. John as this afternoon, and it is 87 degrees. was also injured. Our prayers are with a category 5 hurricane. One category 5 Over the next couple of days, it will be him and with all of the families. is bad enough, but then to have a sec- 93 degrees. Making sure that folks have Whether they are from Alaska or ond category 5 hurricane hit just 2 power, have an ability to keep fans, to from around the country, the tragedy, weeks later, this time impacting the is- have air conditioning—this is critical. the loss, is just a shocking emotion land of St. Croix, is almost Assessments show significant damage that has been brought to this Nation. unfathomable. to the transmission and distribution It is really horrifying on so many dif- The devastation we have seen in both systems, so, again, a great deal of work ferent levels. I express my condolences the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico can is yet underway there. not only to the families of the Alas- seem overwhelming. Relief operations In the Virgin Islands, 15 percent of kans whom we have lost but to all of for the islands are different from what customers in St. Thomas and 10 per- those who are suffering. you have with the mainland. When you cent of customers in St. Croix have had PUERTO RICO AND U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS recognize how you move to accommo- their power restored. This includes the RECOVERY EFFORT date relief, everything has to be airports and the hospitals. Mr. President, I want to speak on an- brought in by ship or by plane. You On the hospitals, I would note that other matter, and that is the tragedy don’t have the convoys of trucks roll- both the hospitals in the U.S. Virgin related to natural disasters we have ing down the highway from an adjoin- Islands—one in St. Thomas and one in seen visited on our country, the dev- ing State. You don’t have the ability to St. Croix—have sustained heavy dam- astating impacts that Hurricanes Irma take alternative routes to reach the af- age and may need to be replaced. and Maria have had on the U.S. Virgin fected areas. Once goods are delivered Again, long term, moving forward, this Islands and in Puerto Rico, the current to ports, for instance, it is another is critical infrastructure. relief efforts that are underway on challenge, then, to get them from the We do know that in the immediate those islands, and how we might help port for inland distribution. term, the primary relief that Congress in the long term to rebuild, particu- Even under normal operating condi- can provide is through our appropria- larly as it relates to their electric grid tions, moving the amount of containers tions process. We will soon be consid- and their power sector. that have flooded into the territories ering another tranche of disaster relief Mr. President, as the Presiding Offi- would be a challenge, but when you add funds so that those impacted by these cer serves on the Energy and Natural into it the debris, the downed power hurricanes have the food, water, and Resources Committee, I have the honor lines, the washed-out bridges and medicine they need as recovery efforts of being the chairman of that Com- roads, the lack of power, and the driver continue. mittee, and that is the committee of shortages, the challenges become co- Other options, such as making the jurisdiction for our territories. lossal. rum tax cover-over payments perma- Our committee’s history dates back Then you have other limiting factors. nent and increasing or lifting the cap to 1816, when it was then called the You have competition for hotel rooms on community disaster loans may also Committee on Public Lands. The ac- and other lodging as you bring in relief need to be considered as ways to get quisition of Puerto Rico, the Phil- workers to go to the islands while refu- the islands back on their feet. ippines, and Guam in 1898, through the gees who have lost their homes try to Another part of our responsibility, Treaty of Paris, led to the creation of leave. Again, the logistics are almost though, is to look at potential long- the Committee on Insular Affairs in overwhelming; it is a logistical night- term solutions to persistent problems. 1899. The U.S. Virgin Islands were in- mare. In the case of Puerto Rico, it is their cluded in that committee’s jurisdiction Despite these very considerable hur- antiquated electric grid and power gen- following their purchase from Denmark dles, we do see that progress is being eration system. in 1917. made. According to recent reports from I have had many conversations with In 1946, the Committee on Public the Army Corps of Engineers, Federal many colleagues in these past couple of Lands and the Committee on Insular and local response crews have been weeks. I am concerned that current Affairs merged to form the Committee working to reopen the ports and run- disaster recovery rules may mandate on Interior and Insular Affairs. In 1977, ways. In some cases, we have seen that the damaged or destroyed entity the committees were again reorga- sunken ships that need to be removed be restored with similar material, com- nized, leading to the current structure before a port can begin operations pared to its condition prior to the dis- of the Senate Committee on Energy again. aster. What may seem like a good, gen- and Natural Resources. In Puerto Rico, 13 of 16 ports are open eral rule of thumb in some scenarios, Our committee has had the proud dis- or open with restrictions. In the U.S. like this one—I don’t think it makes a tinction of working with the territories Virgin Islands, five of nine ports are lot of sense. Why would we consider for the last 70-plus years. Certainly, open or open with restrictions. spending hundreds of millions of dol- following Hurricanes Irma and Maria, In addition, 15 of 17 priority dams in lars to rebuild what was an inefficient, we are committed to upholding our re- Puerto Rico have already been in- unreliable electric power grid in Puer- sponsibilities to the people of Puerto spected. In the case of Guajataca Dam, to Rico? Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. it is in the process of being reinforced. Making sure that we do right going Perhaps it is because I was born in a The dam’s spillway continues to erode. forward is important for us. I am going territory—I need to actually look this Rainfall has increased the water level to be meeting with officials with the up; it may be that I am the only Mem- in the reservoir. We have seen that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. They ber of Congress or Member in the Sen- debris and the downed power lines need have been tasked by FEMA with re- ate who was actually born in a terri- to be removed to allow helicopters to building Puerto Rico’s electricity grid. tory—but I feel an affinity. One would place 44 concrete barriers within the I am going to meet with the Army not think there is much connection be- spillway channel. In fact, 900 super Corps and the Department of Energy to tween a small island territory like sandbags are on their way. Pumps and see if there is a way to modernize Puer- Puerto Rico and the large landmass piping are being procured to help de- to Rico’s grid during its rebuild, that we have in Alaska, but in many crease the water level. There are a lot whether by administrative or legisla- ways, Alaska is also islanded in the of hands on deck there. tive action. I think we need to look at sense that we are not part of the conti- For electricity, as of October 1, 5 per- different considerations moving for- nental 48. So I do follow with great in- cent of customers in Puerto Rico have ward. terest and care how Puerto Rico and had their power restored. The Puerto There has been a discussion about the U.S. Virgin Islands are included. Rico electric utility expects to have whether it makes more sense to bury With the current focus almost en- power restored to 15 percent of cus- transmission lines rather than rebuild tirely on Puerto Rico right now, it can tomers over the next 2 weeks. towers. We need to look at microgrids seem like a distant memory that only I looked at this aspect of it and rec- and consider whether they should be 2 weeks ago, before Hurricane Maria, ognize that it is still pretty warm in developed to provide power to commu- we had Hurricane Irma, which hit the Puerto Rico. I checked the weather nities throughout the island even if the

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.014 S03OCPT1 S6276 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE October 3, 2017 islandwide grid is down. This is some- Mr. President, I yield the floor. percent cut in funding for navigators thing our committee has been keenly The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- who help vulnerable communities find focused on—the application of ator from Hawaii. and secure coverage. In the past, orga- microgrids and how they might be bet- Ms. HIRONO. Mr. President, I would nizations in Hawaii like We Are Oce- ter utilized. like to start by thanking Senator MUR- ania and the Legal Aid Society have re- I would note on this matter that the KOWSKI for her leadership as chairman ceived navigator grants to help enroll urban area of Mayaguez is currently re- of the Natural Resources Committee, low-income Hawaii residents, COFA ceiving power from the hydro-gas plant on which I also serve, in addressing citizens, individuals with disabilities, that is located within its municipality. some of the long-term needs of Puerto and other underserved communities in It is essentially its own microgrid. But Rico. programs under the ACA. the damaged transmission lines pre- HEALTHCARE Last week, I had the opportunity to vent electricity from moving to other Mr. President, the American people meet with Josie Howard, We Are municipalities across the island. are relieved that the latest version of Oceania’s program director. Josie and There are other considerations, in- TrumpCare went down in defeat last her team navigate a multitude of lan- cluding the role that distributed gen- week. We won this battle because mil- guage and cultural barriers to help eration plays. Can these Federal enti- lions of people made their voices heard, COFA citizens who have been unfairly ties work with the Puerto Rico Elec- but the danger remains. We cannot disqualified from Medicaid to enroll in tric Power Authority, PREPA, to de- grow complacent. the exchange. President Trump’s deter- velop a demonstration project for the The President and his allies in Con- mination to sabotage the ACA under- island that would make the grid more gress are hoping that in our relief, we mines the hard work Josie and organi- efficient, more reliable, reduce the cost will move on and pay attention to zations like We Are Oceania are doing of electricity to consumers? These are other things. With this President, I to expand healthcare access to under- all things that need to be considered. have to say, and this administration, served communities. We had a hearing in the Energy Com- there is always a fresh outrage to con- We need to keep fighting back mittee this morning on energy storage tend with. After his latest failure, the against the President’s sabotage cam- technologies, and it was mentioned President has turned to sabotage and paign, but we can also work together in there that regional technology dem- neglect to accomplish his goal of deny- Congress to improve our Nation’s onstrations might be particularly help- ing millions of people access to healthcare system and renew programs ful for Puerto Rico at this time. healthcare under the Affordable Care that millions of people depend on every I intend to visit Puerto Rico and the Act. year in our country. Virgin Islands with other Members a The danger is real. The President’s On Saturday, Congress allowed fund- few weeks from now. We know Presi- continued threats to eliminate cost- ing for the Community Health Center dent Trump is there today. We are sharing reduction payments that help Fund—CHCF—to lapse without being going to wait until the situation has reduce out-of-pocket costs for con- renewed. CHCs across the country will stabilized just a bit more to allow for sumers under the ACA, for example, be forced to lay off staff, reduce hours these relief efforts to continue. When are already destabilizing health insur- of operations, scale back investments, we have an opportunity to observe the ance in Hawaii and across the country. or even close, denying healthcare cov- situation ourselves, I think it is worth This year, HMSA and Kaiser—two of erage or services to millions of people noting that we will, on the Energy and Hawaii’s largest providers of health in- in need all across the country. Natural Resources Committee, be hold- surance—proposed large rate increases Through the ACA, the CHCF provided ing a hearing on the impacts of Hurri- for customers on the exchange in re- increased funding for community canes Irma and Maria on both Puerto sponse to the uncertainty posed by the health centers across the country to Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and I President’s threats to eliminate the modernize facilities, hire new staff, and anticipate we will be doing that in the cost-sharing payments. These compa- expand services in underrepresented coming weeks. We want to look at not nies have been told to submit two rate communities. If Congress does not only the damage caused and where re- proposals, one if cost-sharing remains renew the program, community health covery efforts stand but also lessons in place and the other if these cost- centers will face a 70-percent cut in learned as well as opportunities mov- sharing provisions are eliminated. their Federal funding, and this will ing forward as to how we can rebuild If the President eliminates cost-shar- have a devastating impact for commu- Puerto Rico’s electric grid to better ing payments, Hawaii residents could nity health centers in Hawaii, like than it was before so it does have a re- see an 8-percent increase in their pre- Malama I Ke Ola in Wailuku on Maui. siliency and it does have a sustain- miums on the individual markets. This Thanks to the CHCF funding and the ability that I think is imperative mov- translates into millions of dollars more ACA’s Medicaid expansion, Malama I ing forward. that Hawaii residents will need to pay. Ke Ola has been able to expand the We recognize that the islands have This is irresponsible, unacceptable, and services it provides to Maui residents faced a real tragedy in this natural dis- completely within the President’s and improve outcomes for thousands of aster, but, from this, can we work power to prevent. people—particularly in the area of quickly to stabilize things in the short Unfortunately, the President isn’t women’s health. term but allow this to be an oppor- the only member of his administration In the years following the passage tunity to think about Puerto Rico’s intent on sabotaging the Affordable and implementation of the ACA, long-term energy future—an energy fu- Care Act. The Secretary of Health and Malama I Ke Ola has worked to expand ture that is more resilient and is more Human Services resigned in disgrace OB–GYN services at the clinic. With in- sustainable. last week, but the work he set in mo- creased funding, the clinic has pur- So our thoughts and prayers are with tion at the Department to make it chased new, high-definition ultrasound all who were impacted by these incred- more difficult for people to sign up for machines, hired new physicians, and ibly powerful storms as they dig out, as insurance continues apace. upgraded its prenatal care facilities. they rebuild, as they restart their The administration has already The center recently signed a new con- lives, and just as we will take care of shortened the open enrollment period tract with the University of Hawaii to the people of Texas and Louisiana and from 90 days to 45 days and proposed provide overnight fetal medical serv- Florida, I want to make sure the people massive cuts for advertising and call ices at the clinic instead of having to of Puerto Rico and the people of the centers during this shortened window. refer patients to large public hospitals U.S. Virgin Islands know we stand To make matters worse, they are tak- on Oahu. Keeping these patients on united with them during these excep- ing healthcare.gov down for so-called Maui not only reduces overall tionally difficult times and that we maintenance at peak times on the healthcare spending but also allows pa- will work with them as partners to weekends so people have even less time tients to stay close to home and their make their islands stronger, more re- to sign up for coverage. families. silient, and better prepared for what- The sabotage doesn’t end there. The If Congress does not renew CHCF ever the future may bring them. administration is also calling for a 40- funding, this program—and hundreds of

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.015 S03OCPT1 October 3, 2017 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6277 others across the State and country— This is the Robin Hood proposal in America, would receive a tax cut of up will be at risk. reverse. The Robin Hood principle in to $52 billion. Congressional inaction has also reverse is that instead of taking from Does anybody for one second think threatened the future of the Children’s the rich to help the poor, this proposal that, at a time when so many of our Health Insurance Program—or CHIP— makes massive cuts in programs des- people are struggling and when we have which provides health insurance to 9 perately needed by the middle class a $20 trillion national debt, we should million low-income children and moth- and working families of our country, be passing legislation that gives the ers across the country and 27,000 in Ha- precisely to give unbelievably large tax wealthiest family in this country up to waii. We should act as soon as possible breaks to the people on top—the people a $52 billion tax break by repealing the to pass a bipartisan reauthorization who least need those tax breaks. estate tax? that Senators HATCH and WYDEN nego- At a time of massive income and But it is not just the Walton family, tiated in the Senate Finance Com- wealth inequality, where we have more of course. This is a budget that says mittee. inequality today than at any time that if you are the second wealthiest It seems as though every day the since the 1920s and more inequality family in America, the Koch brothers— President tweets something new and than almost any major country on and this, by the way, is just coinci- outrageous to distract us from the true Earth, where the very, very rich are be- dental, no doubt. I know it is amazing issues facing our country, whether it is coming much richer and we have 40 how these coincidences take place. The the Mueller investigation or his deci- million people living in poverty and Koch brothers are a family who con- sion to rescind DACA and place hun- tens of millions of middle-class fami- tributed hundreds of millions of dollars dreds of thousands of DACA Dreamers lies are going nowhere in a hurry, this year after year to the Republican at risk for deportation. This is a tactic Republican budget, according to the Party to elect candidates who rep- the President has used to great effect Tax Policy Center, at the end of 10 resent the wealthy and powerful. Just during our many debates on years, would provide 80 percent of the coincidentally, that family would re- healthcare. The President hopes we tax benefits to the top 1 percent. ceive a tax break of up to $38 billion. will be paying more attention to his at- Right now, today, the rich are doing People ask why the Koch brothers tacks on NFL players or demeaning phenomenally well. Everybody under- are contributing hundreds of millions comments about the mayor of San stands that. The middle class is shrink- of dollars every campaign cycle. That Juan instead of his dangerous pro- ing. But according to the nonpartisan is a huge amount of money. That is a posals to take healthcare away from Tax Policy Center, by the end of the huge amount of money for normal fam- millions of people in our country. We decade, nearly 80 percent of the tax ilies, but when you are the second have to keep paying attention and keep benefits in the Republican plan would wealthiest family and you have a tax our eyes on the ball. We have to keep go to the top 1 percent—under this break of $38 billion, contributing a few speaking up and fighting back. plan, this Republican plan. The top million dollars every campaign cycle is Mr. President, I yield the floor. one-tenth of 1 percent, the richest of pocket change and is a good invest- I suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The the rich, would receive a tax break of ment. clerk will call the roll. over $1 million a year. This is a budget that will cut Medi- The assistant bill clerk proceeded to At a time when so many of our fami- care by $450 billion. Right now in this call the roll. lies are struggling to put food on the country, we have millions and millions Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, I ask table, struggling to figure out how to of seniors who are struggling to make unanimous consent that the order for send their kids to college, struggling to ends meet. They can’t afford their pre- the quorum call be rescinded. figure out how to pay for childcare, we scription drugs. They can’t afford to The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. have a Republican tax proposal that keep their homes warm in the winter- HOEVEN). Without objection, it is so or- would provide trillions of dollars in tax time. Yet this Republican budget dered. breaks to the richest people in this would cut Medicare by $450 billion. THE BUDGET country. Now, the Republicans tried, time Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, after This is a budget that would increase after time, despite massive opposition failing to throw 32 million Americans the Federal deficit by $1.5 trillion over from the American people, to repeal off of the health insurance they cur- the next decade. We have heard on the the Affordable Care Act. In every one rently have last week, the Republicans Senate floor my Republican friends of their pieces of legislation, they are continuing their attack against the talking about how worried they are made devastating cuts in Medicaid. working families of our country with about the $20 trillion national debt and Well, they are back again. Ostensibly, one of the most destructive budgets in how high the deficits are. This pro- this is not a healthcare piece of legisla- American history. posal, designed to give tax breaks to tion. It is a budget. It is so-called tax I know the American people today, the wealthiest people in this country, reform. There is $1 trillion of cuts in for very good reason, are preoccupied would increase the Federal deficit by the Medicaid Program. So if you were with the horror of what happened in $1.5 trillion over the next decade, and, worried last week, 2 weeks ago, and 1 Las Vegas, and people are horrified by the way, this is a conservative esti- month ago about what the terrific Re- about what has happened in Puerto mate. There are those who think the publican healthcare bills would do, Rico, but I would beg of the American deficit would go up a lot more than stay worried because this bill will cut people to please pay attention to the that. $1 trillion over 10 years in Medicaid, re- budget proposal and the so-called tax This is a Republican proposal that sulting in at least 15 million Americans reform ideas brought by the Repub- eliminates the estate tax. What is the losing their health insurance. lican leadership in the Senate, as well estate tax? Republicans name it the Can you imagine a set of priorities as in the House. ‘‘death tax,’’ but let us be clear about that says that we are going to throw 15 This proposal would cause dev- what this tax is and who benefits from million people off of health insurance astating economic pain for tens of mil- it. Despite Republican efforts trying to in order to give tens of billions of dol- lions of Americans by, on the one hand, find farmers or ranchers who would lars in tax breaks to the wealthiest giving incredibly large tax breaks for benefit from it, this is not legislation families in this country? Unbelievable. the wealthiest people in the country, designed to help farmers or ranchers. It really is unbelievable. while at the same time making it hard- This is legislation designed to help the This proposal not only adds to the er for our children to get a decent edu- top two-tenths of 1 percent. So 99.8 per- deficit, not only makes massive cuts to cation, harder for the families of this cent of the American people will not Medicare and Medicaid, it also impacts country to get the healthcare they benefit one nickel from the repeal of the American people in many ways. We need, harder for families, literally, to the estate tax. Only the wealthiest of have a program in this country called put food on the table, harder to protect the wealthy will benefit. If this Repub- the Women, Infants, and Children Pro- our environment, and harder for the el- lican proposal to repeal the estate tax gram, and at a time when the United derly to live their retirement years would go through, the Walton family of States has the highest rate of infant with dignity. Walmart, the wealthiest family in mortality of any major country on

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.018 S03OCPT1 S6278 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE October 3, 2017 Earth, what we do to try to deal with breaks. Poll after poll after poll tells saw them. I join all of New Mexico in that issue is provide help to low-in- us that the American people do not thanking him and in mourning his come pregnant women and their babies agree with the Republican leadership passing. after the babies are born. This Repub- when they want to throw millions of Senator Domenici’s math skills and lican budget would make about $6.5 bil- people off of the health insurance they his beginnings in local government lion in cuts to the WIC Program, elimi- have. This is not a budget for the served him well during his 36 years in nating nutrition assistance to over 1.2 American people. This is not a budget the U.S. Senate. Anyone who has million pregnant women, new moms, for economic growth. This is a budget served in city government knows the babies, and toddlers in Vermont and all paid for and fought for by the Koch importance of a budget. Sitting as over this country. brothers and a handful of billionaires chair or ranking member on the Senate Here are the priorities: Tax breaks who will gain very handsomely if this Budget Committee for 22 years, he held for the Walton family, for the Koch budget were to be passed. the Federal Government to the same brothers’ families, who are billionaires, I would remind my Republican col- rigorous, logical standard. He mastered and cuts in programs for low-income, leagues—and this is not a very radical the complexities of the Federal budget pregnant women who want to have idea—that we were elected to the Sen- and served longer in a leadership posi- healthy babies. ate not just to represent a handful of tion on that committee than any other At a time when the cost of childcare billionaires; we were elected to the Senator. He was a budget deficit hawk has skyrocketed all over this country— Senate to do our best for the middle and a realist. He understood that sup- in the State of Vermont, it is a very se- class and working families of our coun- ply-side economics do not work and rious problem; families cannot find af- try. This should not be legislation de- that big tax cuts will not result in fordable childcare—the Republican signed as payback for hundreds of mil- growth leading to a balanced budget. budget eliminates Head Start services lions of dollars in campaign contribu- He went up against his own party, and for 25,000 children each and every year tions. We need to pass legislation that he went up against President Ronald by cutting this program by about $3 protects the interests of working fami- Reagan on the same budget issue. billion. In total, the Republican budget lies and the middle class and lower in- In the 1990s, he worked with Presi- would cut more than $5 trillion from come people. dent Clinton to produce a budget sur- education, healthcare, affordable hous- Thank you, Mr. President. plus for fiscal year 1998—the first sur- ing, childcare, transportation, and (Mr. STRANGE assumed the Chair.) plus in our budget since 1969. His will- other programs the working families of Mr. UDALL. Mr. President, I ask ingness to work with Democrats, his this country desperately rely upon. unanimous consent to speak as in pragmatism, and his stature with his Let’s be clear about something else. morning business. own party made it possible. This is not me talking; Republican The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. On the Budget Committee, he under- economists are saying the same thing. JOHNSON). Without objection, it is so stood how to align New Mexico and na- What is the theory underlying this ordered. tional interests. whole approach of giving tax breaks to REMEMBERING PETE DOMENICI He recognized the potential of our billionaires? The theory is that when Mr. UDALL. Mr. President, I am National Labs—Los Alamos and you give tax breaks to billionaires and joined today by my colleague from New Sandia—and the potential they had for large, multinational corporations, Mexico, Senator HEINRICH. We thought our State. He understood their impor- somehow or another, they are going to we would come to the floor together tance to the national interest. He start using the new revenue they ac- and talk about Senator Domenici, our championed their work for decades. quire to invest in the economy and cre- former colleague who passed away re- Our Labs provide thousands of good ate decent-paying jobs. This is the so- cently. jobs in central and northern New Mex- called trickle-down economic theory, Pietro Vichi Domenici was born to ico, and the breadth and depth of their and this is a theory that Senate Repub- Italian immigrants in Albuquerque, research and scientific contributions to licans and President Trump have em- NM, in 1932. He was a grocer’s son. He our Nation are nothing short of aston- braced with this budget. worked in his parents’ store and at- ishing. Pete Domenici played a critical The fact is that anyone who looks at tended Catholic school. He graduated role in the Labs’ developments. history understands that whole theory from our own University of New Mex- He also had a key appreciation of the is a fraud. It has always been an abys- ico. He pitched in college on the Albu- importance to New Mexico and the Na- mal failure. Since Ronald Reagan and querque Dukes’ farm team, and he tion of our military bases. In 2005, Can- George W. Bush slashed taxes on the taught high school mathematics. He non Air Force Base in southern New wealthy and deregulated Wall Street, went to law school and built a law Mexico was slated to close. This would trillions of dollars in wealth have been practice. He was elected to the U.S. have cost New Mexico lots of jobs and redistributed from the middle class and Senate in 1973 and became New Mexi- would have had a devastating impact working families to a handful of mil- co’s longest serving Senator. on the overall economy of the State. lionaires and billionaires. That is what He was a husband, father, and grand- Senator Domenici, along with the en- trickle-down economics results in—a father. He married Nancy Burke right tire delegation and Governor Richard- transfer of wealth from the middle out of law school, and his beautiful son, worked to secure a different and class to the people on top—and that is wife of 59 years was key to his long and critical mission for Cannon Air Force exactly what this Republican proposal successful career. She is a good friend Base. Today, the 27th Special Oper- will do. of ours, and we spent an hour with her ations Wing is going strong at Cannon. Today we have more wealth inequal- in Albuquerque a little over a week Six thousand men and women are em- ity than at any time since the 1920s. ago. She is still very strong, and she is ployed, and rural Roosevelt and Curry Unbelievably, the top one-tenth of 1 still very focused, as one would expect Counties benefit from the base’s $500 percent now owns almost as much as a mother and grandmother of her million economic impact. wealth as the bottom 90 percent. This children and grandchildren. Senator Domenici’s fingerprints are budget would make a very bad situa- Pete Domenici was a statesman. He not only all over the Budget Com- tion worse, and it would increase the worked across party lines to find prag- mittee but are all over the Energy and level of wealth inequality in America matic solutions for the American peo- Natural Resources Committee—which today. ple. New Mexicans will always remem- he chaired for 4 years in the early As the ranking member of the Budget ber him as one of the strongest fighters 2000s—and the Indian Affairs Com- Committee, I intend to do everything I our State will ever know. mittee, which I am fortunate to sit on can to oppose this absurd set of prior- Senator Domenici and I belonged to today. He helped position the United ities, and when I do that, I am speak- different political parties, and we States to be energy independent ing for the vast majority of the Amer- didn’t always agree on things, but I al- through the Energy Policy Acts of 2005 ican people. Poll after poll after poll ways appreciated that he cared deeply and 2007—the last time we really had tells us that the American people do about the issues, and he put the Nation bipartisan energy acts. He was a strong not think billionaires need more tax and New Mexico’s interests first as he advocate on behalf of Tribes, working

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.020 S03OCPT1 October 3, 2017 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6279 to advance Indian healthcare and re- ‘‘Italian sympathizers.’’ Those of us Republicans and Democrats alike who solve longstanding water rights dis- who were here during the immigration worked with him on issues like the putes, protecting Native art from coun- debates in 2006 remember his budget, energy, national defense, nu- terfeiting, and improving reservation plainspoken and moving speech on the clear deterrence, and mental health roads. floor of the Senate, where he said: parity still point to his dedication to My Uncle Mo talked a lot about the I understand this whole idea of a household bipartisan cooperation and com- importance of being able to disagree with a father who is American and a mother promise. without being disagreeable and to work who is not, but they are living, working, and Although they didn’t always see eye together, if possible. Senator Domenici getting ahead. I understand that they are to eye, Senator Domenici, a Repub- understood that while the delegation just like every other family in America. lican, and Senator Jeff Bingaman, a There is nothing different. They have the was divided by party, it was united in Democrat, who served New Mexico same love, same hope, same will and same alongside him for the vast majority of its love for New Mexico. He knew that aspirations as those of us who were born here New Mexico would be stronger if every- have. his time in the Senate, always made a point of improving the lives of New one worked together. It is partly I couldn’t agree more. Mexicans by working together. It set a thanks to him that our delegation con- Pete Domenici, my good friend, son great example for people like me to tinues a tradition of working together of Italian immigrant grocers, a great watch how the two of them worked to- regardless of party. Senator, a great American, and a great gether. Their spirit of cooperation Senator Domenici’s commitment to New Mexican, thank you for your re- across party lines is still present in our bipartisanship did not end in 2009 with markable contributions. You leave an State’s congressional delegation, and I his Senate tenure; he continued to try exceptional legacy for New Mexico and believe Senator Domenici’s focus on to find solutions that worked for every- for the Nation. putting policy results above party poli- one as a senior fellow at the Bipartisan Mr. President, I yield the floor. Policy Center in Washington. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- tics still resonates today. One of the greatest examples of this The Pete V. Domenici Institute for ator from New Mexico. Public Policy at New Mexico State Mr. HEINRICH. Mr. President, I ask was Senator Domenici’s work alongside University in Las Cruces carries on his unanimous consent to speak as in two progressive Democratic lions of tradition through scholarship. The morning business. the Senate—Paul Wellstone and Ted Senator said: The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without Kennedy—to pass mental health parity legislation. Senators Domenici and It’s time for us to join together and take objection, it is so ordered. these [partisan] issues out of politics. The Mr. HEINRICH. Mr. President, I am Wellstone didn’t agree on many issues, problems we face are so big, people from both really proud to come to the floor today but they found they both had close, sides need to sit down and say, ‘‘We can’t ap- to join my fellow Senator from New personal experience with and a passion proach this the normal way.’’ Some great Mexico, TOM UDALL, to recognize the for mental health parity. Both Sen- leadership is needed. life and service of the longest serving ators had close family members who We could really use that commit- Senator from our incredible State of had experienced the great challenges of ment to bipartisanship in the Senate New Mexico, Senator Pete Domenici. finding a way to pay for mental health halls today. Senator Domenici dedicated his en- treatment. Insurance companies were Senator Domenici was in Washington tire life to the State and to the people not required to cover mental health for many years, but he never was out of he loved. He served our State in the and addiction treatment in those days touch with everyday New Mexicans. Senate for 36 years. His decades of serv- in the same way they covered treat- Whether it was the acequia repairs in ice to New Mexico left a lasting impact ment for so many other illnesses and the Espanola Valley, creating a port of that will continue to be felt in every diseases. Because of that, most insur- entry at Santa Teresa, funding new corner of our State for many years to ance companies simply didn’t cover fighter jets at Kirtland Air Force Base come. Many in New Mexico called him these essential services at all. Starting in the mid-1990s, Senators in Albuquerque, establishing the Saint Pete because of how relentlessly Domenici and Wellstone worked to- Petroglyph National Monument, pro- he fought on the Appropriations and gether with mental health advocates to tecting Valles Caldera, forming the Budget Committees to secure resources advance legislation to finally change Hispanic Cultural Center and Museum for the people of New Mexico. We can in Albuquerque, Pete Domenici identi- that. still see the fruits of his labors at our After Senator Wellstone was killed in fied New Mexico’s needs and came up State’s National Labs, at our military a tragic plane crash, Senator Domenici with solutions. installations, at our colleges and uni- kept up the fight for 6 more years with Pete and Nancy had a special passion versities, and in water systems and a new partner in Senator KENNEDY. The for people who live with mental illness, community centers all over our State. Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici borne from his own family’s experi- That is because, while he worked on Mental Health Parity and Addiction ence. This is an issue that he and I the forefront of major policy debates Equity Act was finally passed in Octo- talked a lot about and that our two here in the Senate, Pete Domenici al- ber of 2008, only a few months before families shared. He worked across the ways put the interests of New Mexico Senator Domenici’s retirement from aisle for many years to achieve parity above all else. the Senate. in insurance coverage between mental Like myself, Senator Domenici’s That is the type of bipartisanship, healthcare and medical services. Any first public service experience came on legacy, and statesmanship on behalf of family who experiences serious mental Albuquerque’s City Council, then the American people that I hope we illness understands that the two should called the City Commission. And, at will all remember for a long, long time be treated the same and that adequate least in my experience, I know that to come. We should all try better to mental healthcare is absolutely nec- working at that local level was an in- keep that spirit alive in the Senate essary. valuable way to learn how to hear from today. In 2008, Congress passed the Paul diverse viewpoints and stakeholders I join all New Mexicans and all Amer- Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental and find ways to build consensus and icans in mourning the passing of Sen- Health Parity and Addiction Equity get the results for your constituents ator Pete Domenici. Our thoughts, our Act. That Federal law means that mil- that you hope to achieve. I have tried deepest condolences, and our prayers lions of persons with mental illness and to bring that approach with me into are with his wife Nancy and all of his substance abuse disorders have better the Senate, and I know that Senator family and loved ones at this time of access to the care they really need. Domenici was, in part, so successful be- great loss, for their family and for the Senator Domenici spoke passionately cause of the skills he learned there. State. I am certain that Senator Do- and personally about mental health. He I am grateful for the example Sen- menici’s legacy will not be forgotten in also did so on immigration. His mother ator Domenici set for all of us here in New Mexico and will not be forgotten originally immigrated to the United this body on how to advance important in the U.S. Senate. States illegally. During World War II, and complex policy goals in Wash- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- she was taken in a raid aimed at ington with civility for our colleagues. ator from Michigan.

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.021 S03OCPT1 S6280 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE October 3, 2017 THE BUDGET AND TAX REFORM but this would be a tax cut of $200,000 ating a majority of the new jobs—as Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, we a year, on average. This is not what I well as making sure families in Amer- need tax reform that helps small busi- was talking about before in our helping ica who are struggling would be able to nesses close these tax loopholes that small businesses and middle-class fami- have a simplified Tax Code and a tax are taking jobs overseas. Instead, we lies and closing tax loopholes that are cut. So I am all for doing a bipartisan need to create those jobs at home. We taking jobs overseas. This is a straight- approach, but that is not what is hap- need tax reform that puts money in the up, trickle-down tax cut that has not pening here. That is not what will be pockets of middle-class families in worked before in creating jobs. It cre- put into the budget resolution tomor- Michigan and all across the country, ates a lot of deficits but not jobs, and row, and, unfortunately, it doesn’t ap- and we need an American budget that people in my State are still waiting for pear that it is what is going to happen shows what we value as Americans. it to trickle down to them. in the Finance Committee. Too often, we think of budgets as Republicans are asking seniors, peo- The other reason for wanting to do sterile numbers on a spreadsheet. In re- ple with disabilities, children, and fam- this in a bipartisan way is that it is the ality, budgets are about people. They ilies to give up healthcare in order to only way to make sure it is permanent. are about the middle-class Cass City fund a huge tax cut for the richest 1 If you use these truncated processes of parents who are sitting down to do percent, which will cost more than $2 reconciliation to try to jam something their taxes and feeling as if it is they, trillion. To me, that sounds like back- through, it is not permanent. I know not the wealthiest 1 percent, who are wards budgeting for sure. from businesses in Michigan, large and carrying the heaviest burden. They are I do not often quote my friend from small, as well as families, that to be about helping small business owners in Kentucky, but Senator PAUL was abso- able to plan, they want to see some Pontiac, MI, family farmers in Cad- lutely right yesterday. He tweeted this: permanent changes, and doing it this illac, and Michigan companies that are This is a GOP tax plan? Possibly 30 percent way is not permanent. creating good-paying jobs. They are of middle-class families get a tax hike? I Second, tax reform needs to help also about ensuring that the most vul- hope the final details are better than this. businesses create jobs right here at nerable among us—our children, senior I do too. I hope that the final details home. Over the last year, I visited citizens, people with disabilities—are are a lot better than this if it is going more than 120 small businesses in valued and protected. to be something that the people of Michigan, and I have seen for myself We cannot consider a budget without Michigan will support and benefit how they are driving my State’s econ- considering people. Will it help middle- from. omy. I also know how challenging it class families thrive? Will it help small Under the Republican plan, a senior can be for them to navigate the com- business owners grow? Will it help pro- citizen in Saginaw, MI, who is making plex Tax Code. The owner of a small tect people who cannot protect them- $20,000 a year would get a tax increase; business shouldn’t have to spend hours selves? Unfortunately, the Republican a married couple with two kids and an with an accountant instead of with her budget and tax plan suggest that we do income of $70,000 in Gaylord, MI, would customers. We can fix that. At the not value people, plain and simple. get a tax increase; and a single mom same time, tax reform needs to pre- There are 47 million Americans who with three kids in Battle Creek, MI, serve important incentives for manu- depend on Medicare—seniors and peo- who works really hard every day in facturers that are creating jobs here in ple with disabilities. Yet the budget juggling and caring for her kids and Michigan and in our country. resolution we will be considering to- who earns $50,000 a year, which never I don’t believe we have an economy morrow in the Budget Committee will seems to stretch far enough, would ac- unless somebody makes something or cut $473 billion from Medicare. For the tually pay $1,000 more in taxes because, somebody grows something. We need to low-income children, parents, seniors under the plan, if you have more than make sure that the tax policy that sup- in nursing homes, and people with dis- one child, you will actually see your ports capital intensive companies re- abilities who depend on Medicaid, in taxes go up because the personal ex- mains intact, and we need to close the that budget resolution, Medicaid would emption for each child will be taken gigantic loopholes that incentivize our be cut by $1 trillion. away. jobs going overseas. We just went through this debate Senator PAUL is right. This is just I have one simple proposal. It is not twice in efforts to gut healthcare, to plain wrong. I do have to give Repub- everything, but it is a symbol of how gut Medicaid, which would take away licans credit, though. They keep up- bad the situation is. I have been trying healthcare from tens of millions of peo- ping the ante. It wasn’t even a week to get it passed now for over 10 years ple. The American people said no, and ago when they were trying to take here, and it keeps getting blocked and the Senate said no—twice. Yet we are healthcare away from people in Michi- filibustered. It is called the Bring Jobs right back again. Here they go again gan and across the country with a plan Home Act. It is very simple. The Tax on the budget resolution, putting for- that would increase costs and reduce Code right now allows a company mov- ward huge—even bigger—cuts in Med- healthcare. Now they are trying to ing overseas to write off all their mov- icaid. This time, it is not just Med- take healthcare away from people who ing costs. So the workers losing their icaid, it is Medicare, which was not in need it most by raising taxes on mid- jobs help pay for the move through the last two proposals that we rejected, dle-income families and cutting Medi- their taxes. The community pays for because they hurt too many people by care, as well as Medicaid. the move through their taxes. It makes taking away their healthcare. We do need tax reform. I would like no sense to do that. My Bring Jobs Now we have a budget resolution very much to see the code simplified, Home Act would stop that and say that that will be coming to the floor of the but any tax proposal needs to meet you don’t get to write off the costs Senate. I am assuming they will have three basic requirements to get my when you are leaving our country. enough votes. They certainly will not support. First, tax reform needs to be However, if you want to come back, if have mine or those of my Democratic bipartisan, rather than coming up with you want to bring jobs home, we are colleagues, but if every Republican in this proposal in the budget resolution happy to let you write off those costs, committee votes for it, we will have on which, once again, just like healthcare, and we will give you an extra 20 per- the floor a budget resolution that will would be jamming something through cent tax credit to bring those jobs cut Medicare by $473 billion and Med- on a partisan vote. It needs to be bipar- home. If you want to leave, you are on icaid by $1 trillion. tisan. It needs to be thoughtful. your own. That is what our Tax Code Why is that being done? It is being Those of us on the Finance Com- should say to businesses that are mov- done to pay for tax cuts for the mittee are thoughtful people. We ing our jobs overseas. wealthiest among us. In fact, 80 per- worked for 2 years in bipartisan work- The third important measure in tax cent of the tax cuts would go to the top ing groups on each section of the Tax reform is that it needs to put money in 1 percent. It would be 80 percent who Code, getting ready to have a thought- the pockets of hard-working families. would receive a cut of about $200,000 a ful discussion and negotiation on real Michigan families are working hard year—a cut. The majority of people in tax reform that would help small busi- every day to make ends meet. For too Michigan do not make $200,000 a year, nesses grow—by the way, they are cre- long, working-class and middle-class

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.024 S03OCPT1 October 3, 2017 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6281 families have watched as all of the ben- There are two things to remember choice but to increase the number of efits seem to flow to the wealthiest about rocket fuel. It is unstable, and, if officers needed to maintain the safety among us over and over and over. Mid- you are not careful, you will get badly of individuals inside courtrooms. This dle-class families are stretched to the burned. means that more U.S. marshals and breaking point, and it is time they get Budgets aren’t about numbers; they sheriffs will be spending their days in a break. are about people. They are about mid- courthouses instead of pursuing violent That is what the President originally dle-class parents wondering why the fugitives or preventing street crime. said. This was going to be a middle- wealthiest get all the breaks and they Even with these increased numbers, class tax cut. Yet, when we run the get the bill. It is about a small business law enforcement officials have ex- numbers, it is just not true. For too owner wondering why she can’t run a pressed concern over the high thresh- many, they are going to see a tax in- bakery without hiring an accountant. old they are now forced to attain in crease. As I said before, 80 percent of It is about seniors on disability won- order to get permission to fit dan- the Republican tax cuts go to the top 1 dering if Medicare and Medicaid will be gerous prisoners with restraints. percent. You can even break that down there for them while they watch the 0.1 By putting these restraints on law more with 0.1 percent, and it is shock- percent get tax breaks and there are enforcement rather than prisoners, this ing that those individuals are going to future generations being stuck with ruling limits the ability of sheriffs and get a million-dollar tax cut. the bill for tax cuts that will not pay U.S. marshals to ensure the safety of When you look at the majority of for themselves. the judges, jurors, lawyers, prisoners, people in Michigan who work hard Budgets are about people, and this victims, and members of the public in- every day and don’t earn $200,000 or budget fails them. It is time to work side these courthouses around the more, and you look at the fact that together across the aisle to do what is country. there would be a tax plan brought for- right, to make sure that the budget This decision also dramatically un- ward that would actually give a tax cut and tax proposals work for everybody, dercuts the ability of the Federal of $200,000 a year, and someone with not just a privileged few, and that they courts to process illegal immigration three children or four children would help companies create jobs here at border crossing cases as part of Oper- actually see their taxes go up—wait a home and focus on policies to benefit ation Streamline, the very successful minute—what is wrong with that pic- our working families. border enforcement program that has ture? I yield the floor. worked so well in some parts of Ari- Unfortunately, this budget and tax I suggest the absence of a quorum. zona. By establishing a zero tolerance proposal falls short in a number of The PRESIDING OFFICER. The approach to illegal border crossings, ways, beyond Medicare and Medicaid clerk will call the roll. Operation Streamline has made a dra- cuts and what is happening in terms of The legislative clerk proceeded to matic difference in the number of ille- families. As I said before, it is far from call the roll. gal border crossings in communities bipartisan. As with healthcare, Demo- Mr. FLAKE. Mr. President, I ask like Tucson and Yuma. crats have been locked out of the proc- unanimous consent that the order for This year, the Operation Streamline ess. Republicans have been meeting in the quorum call be rescinded. Program averaged around 45 individ- secret—no Democrats allowed. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. uals per hearing. Even with these high The Republicans are having to use RUBIO). Without objection, it is so or- caseloads, the program could remain this reconciliation process to force dered. efficient, thanks in part to traditional something that will not be permanent. UNITED STATES V. SANCHEZ-GOMEZ courtroom safety procedures. They There is little reason to believe that Mr. FLAKE. Mr. President, last week could take 40 prisoners at a time and this will help American workers. As I I filed an amicus brief calling on the process them if they were allowed to indicated before, it will not close loop- U.S. Supreme Court to hear and then use the current courtroom practices. holes that are taking jobs overseas. It doesn’t benefit hard-working peo- overturn the ruling of the Ninth Cir- These old policies allow law enforce- ple and working families that are cuit Court of Appeals in United States ment to bring up to 75 individuals into working really hard to make it every v. Sanchez-Gomez. I am proud to have the courtroom at once, but under the year, every week. It does not benefit been supported in this effort by all 15 Ninth Circuit’s decision to relax court- them. sheriffs in my home State of Arizona, room safety protocols, law enforcement The Republican budget and tax pro- as well as the Western States Sheriffs officers are now forced to limit groups posal targets the most vulnerable. It Association and the National Sheriffs’ of prisoners before the court to no isn’t bipartisan. It will not stop Association. more than a handful at a time. This offshoring. It will not benefit the mid- I should mention that this is not a makes it increasingly impractical for dle class. There is one thing that it will partisan issue we are talking about. We judges to hear cases due to the amount do. There is one thing that those who have sheriffs representing both parties of time required for law enforcement to analyze this agree upon. It will explode in Arizona. Every sheriff in Arizona move small numbers of prisoners in the deficit. The independent analysis has supported this amicus—all 15. and out of the courtroom. There simply shows that these proposals would in- This decision by the Ninth Circuit is aren’t the hours in a day. crease the deficit by $2.4 trillion. So just another example of a ruling that is I take the independence of the courts there is $2.4 trillion in lost revenues well outside of the judicial main- very seriously. That is why, when that would go to increasing the deficit. stream. Unfortunately, in this case, every sheriff in my State comes to me Our friends across the aisle scoff at their ruling dramatically undercuts ef- and says that there is a court ruling that. These tax cuts, they say, will pay fective border enforcement, and it cre- that is endangering their deputies and for themselves. Although in our Fi- ates a dangerous situation for law en- the public, I am going to urge that the nance Committee hearing today, when forcement and the public. In this case, decision be overturned by the proper we asked both the Republican and the Ninth Circuit ruled that it violates authority. Democratic experts who were testi- the rights of prisoners for marshals and This makes a difference in Arizona fying, no one said it would pay for the other sheriffs or other courtroom per- for another reason as well. We have a tax cuts—no one. sonnel to employ commonplace, lot of older courthouses. Some of them President Trump said this huge tax thoughtfully crafted courtroom safety are historic courthouses. These build- cut will be rocket fuel for our econ- policies in which prisoners appear be- ings simply aren’t built for today’s omy. But when you look at the 2001 tax fore a judge, fitted with appropriate re- needs in terms of access for prisoners cuts, there was no rocket fuel there. In straints. This is a significant change and the public within these court- the 2003 tax cuts, there was no rocket from common practice, and it conflicts houses. Sometimes they have to go in fuel there. In 2012, the State of Kansas with two other courts of appeals. the same doorways and in the same had tax cuts that almost caused them More troubling, the decision has hallways. If law enforcement and to have to go to a 4-day school week for prompted public safety concerns for courtroom security personnel are not children because of the huge deficits. Arizona and throughout the West. allowed to have standards in terms of There was no rocket fuel there. First, law enforcement will have no prisoner restraint, then you endanger

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.028 S03OCPT1 S6282 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE October 3, 2017 the safety of individuals visiting the mankind has been on the planet only going to have a big effect on the very courthouse and others. You are simply about 800,000 or so years, so 50 million map of my State. unable to process the number of cases goes way back. This is the present Upper Narragan- that we have in Arizona, particularly This acidification is potentially ca- sett Bay, including Providence up here, near the border with regard to immi- lamitous for the ocean ecosystem. Off our capital city, down to Greenwich gration cases. Washington, Oregon, and Northern Bay down here, and Warwick on the I hope that the High Court, the Su- California, 50 percent of pteropods were west side. Over here, we have Bristol preme Court, will grant cert here and measured to have ‘‘severe shell dam- and Warren on the east side of the examine this ruling. It really makes a age,’’ mostly from acidified sea water. image, and it still looks actually very difference in a State like Arizona. If that species collapses, the bottom much like it did when early explorers With that, I yield back the remainder falls out of the oceanic food chain, with first came to Rhode Island in the 1600s. of my time. a cascading effect up to us at the top of And it looked very much like that for The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- the food chain. centuries before, when the ator from Rhode Island. Ocean acidification is causing real Narragansetts and the Wampanoags Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I economic concerns on coasts all around lived here. But as climate change ask unanimous consent to speak for up the country. It is affecting Florida’s raises sea levels, all of this is changing to 15 minutes as in morning business. reefs, for instance. Rhode Island’s rapidly. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without clammers, lobstermen, and aqua- The Coastal Resources Management objection, it is so ordered. culture growers watch with real alarm Council has developed something called CLIMATE CHANGE the damage acidified seas are doing on STORMTOOLS, which is an online sim- Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, America’s northwest coast. Oyster ulation to model sea level rise and this week on an island nation one- hatcheries there experienced signifi- storm surge, so we can see how rising tenth the size of Rhode Island, more cant losses when new hatches were un- sea levels will affect my State. than 60 countries will gather at the able to grow their shells in the acidi- This is the same image as that one. I fourth international Our Ocean Con- fied seawater. Those hatcheries now will put one over the other so that you ference. Catalyzed by then-Secretary of need to buffer ocean water to keep the can see the match. Everything that is State John Kerry, the United States pH at a survivable level for baby clams, blue is land and is now submerged on hosted the premier international ocean oysters, and other shellfish. Well, you these 9-to-12-foot sea level estimates. conference in 2014 and 2016. Secretary can do that for your aquaculture lab, It all has changed quite dramatically. Kerry’s legacy continues with the but you can’t do that for the ocean. So Warwick Neck breaks off and becomes Malta Conference now going on, hosted it bodes well for the future of these Warwick Neck Island. Much of the by the European Union, and that will shellfish. town of Barrington here becomes a new salt lake. This is a bedroom commu- be followed by scheduled conferences in In addition to the CO2 the oceans Indonesia in 2018 and Norway in 2019. have absorbed—30 percent of that— nity with a lot of wealthy people living Nations come to these conferences to they have also absorbed heat. They in very nice homes, and it all goes share ocean conservation achievements have absorbed over 90 percent of the ex- under water. Down here, Bristol and and to pledge future efforts in sustain- cess heat that climate change has Warren become an island, and off of able fisheries, marine debris preven- trapped in our atmosphere, thanks to them, Poppasquash Point becomes two tion, marine protected areas, maritime the operation of the greenhouse gases islands. This continues all around the security, and climate change. At last we have emitted. The oceans, in doing State. The map changes, and we be- come a Rhode Island archipelago. Look count, conference organizers in Malta that, have conferred on us an extraor- at Newport, Little Compton, Tiverton, are anticipating more than 150 separate dinary blessing because without their Providence, Jamestown, Point Judith. pledges from governments, NGOs, and absorbing more than 90 percent of that Flooded areas in my State represent the private sector. Since Secretary heat—forget the 2 degrees Centigrade billions of dollars in losses to Rhode Is- Kerry started it, the Our Ocean Con- cap that we worry about—we would landers. ference has produced hundreds of com- likely be already more than 36 degrees Of course, around the visibly flooded mitments, totaling nearly $10 billion Centigrade hotter. That isn’t just life areas are the less visible areas where and protecting nearly 4 million square changing; that is species-changing var- legal setbacks, flood zones, velocity miles of ocean. Though the oceans iation in our planet. When oceans ab- zones, and other building restrictions cover more than 70 percent of our sorb all of this heat, which is equiva- prevent construction. In those areas Earth, they are often taken for grant- lent to more than a Hiroshima-style that are still above water, it is still ed. Oceans drive our weather, cool our nuclear bomb per second going off, the unbuildable because the property has planet, provide food and income for bil- principle of thermal expansion kicks become uninsurable, unmortgageable, lions of people, and absorb much of our in. As oceans warm, they expand, and or unsellable. That is a pretty hard hit carbon dioxide emissions. as the world warms from the remaining to expect my State to take without ob- So for my 181st ‘‘Time to Wake Up’’ heat, ice melts. So between the two, jection. speech, I will return to the topic of sea levels rise. It is not just Rhode Island; all sorts what we are doing to our oceans. The NOAA, in January, updated global of changes are happening along Amer- oceans provide a hard-to-deny reminder sea level rise estimates based on the ica’s coasts. Up in the Gulf of Maine, of what is happening, thanks to green- latest peer-reviewed scientific lit- ocean waters are warming faster than house gas emissions, climate change erature. Ice sheets and glaciers are nearly any other place on earth. A denial, and America’s legislative paral- melting faster than previously ex- study published in Elementa last ysis. pected, raising global sea level rise es- month found that summer tempera- Physics and chemistry don’t care timates in this century—under the ‘‘we tures in the Gulf of Maine last two about fossil fuel industry propaganda. do nothing on climate change’’ sce- months longer than in the 1980s. It doesn’t affect them at all. Science nario—by around 20 more inches on av- Longer, warmer summers benefit some measures how our carbon pollution erage. species, but others get hurt, including continues to drive unprecedented Apply these findings to the U.S. what little is left of the iconic cod. change in the Earth’s oceans. coast, and the news gets particularly Native villages in Alaska and island The oceans have absorbed about one- harsh for the northeast Atlantic coast, communities in Louisiana and Mary- third of all the excess carbon dioxide including my home State of Rhode Is- land are facing tough decisions about emitted by human activity since the land. Rhode Island’s Coastal Resources abandoning traditional shorelands and Industrial Revolution; that is, around Management Council is now telling us islands and relocating. Around the 600 gigatons of carbon dioxide absorbed that we need to plan for as much as 9 world, entire nations are planning for by the ocean. The effect of absorbing to 12 vertical feet of sea level rise by relocation as the ocean steadily rises all that carbon dioxide is chemical, the end of this century. The refusal of over their island homes. making ocean water more acidic at the the Republican majority to do any- Layered on top of this sea level rise fastest rate in 50 million years. Hu- thing serious about climate change is is the worsening risk of storm surge

VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Oct 04, 2017 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G03OC6.030 S03OCPT1 October 3, 2017 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6283 and flooding from hurricanes and other tries—when dealing with them in fu- The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there storms. The Presiding Officer does not ture trade agreements. objection? need to be told about this. His State We reinforced this piece of the bill Without objection, it is so ordered. has experienced it firsthand. recently in the National Defense Au- Mr. MCCONNELL. For the informa- This satellite image is a snapshot of thorization Act, which we passed just tion of all Senators, we have now this particularly destructive 2017 hurri- last month. locked in the following vote schedule: cane system. From the left to right, we The Save Our Seas Act garnered sup- one vote at 11 tomorrow morning, two see Hurricane Katia, Hurricane Irma— port from environmental NGOs, from votes at 3:15 tomorrow afternoon, three at category 5 strength—and Hurricane corporations, from chemical trade votes at 10 a.m. on Thursday, and one Jose down here. groups, but there is still much more vote at 1:45 on Thursday afternoon. As the recovery efforts continue for work to do. We have abused and ig- This will allow debate time on all of our citizens in Puerto Rico, Florida, nored our oceans for far too long. The the pending nominations and accom- Louisiana, and Texas, and we look at oceans are warning us in every way modate important committee hearings hundreds of billions of dollars in dis- they know how, and we can’t afford to that will be occurring off the floor. ignore those warnings any longer. We aster relief emergency spending, here f in Washington we might want to think must start taking serious action to re- about helping coastal States around spond to what we are doing to our EXECUTIVE CALENDAR the country get serious about pre- oceans. I promise you, anybody who Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I dicting what is coming, shoring up our knows anything about oceans hears ask unanimous consent that the Sen- coastlines, fortifying coastal infra- those alarm bells ringing. It is time for ate proceed to the en bloc consider- structure, and preparing for what cli- us to wake up. ation of the following nominations: Ex- mate change has in store for us. I yield the floor. ecutive Calendar Nos. 351, 352, 353, 354, Climate change is not the only way I suggest the absence of a quorum. and 355. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The we are damaging the oceans. Each The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without clerk will call the roll. objection, it is so ordered. year, around 8 million metric tons of The legislative clerk proceeded to The clerk will report the nomina- plastic waste enters our oceans from call the roll. tions en bloc. land. By 2050, we could see as much Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I plastic in the oceans as fish in the ask unanimous consent that the order The legislative clerk read the nomi- oceans by weight, since plastics do not for the quorum call be rescinded. nations of Halsey B. Frank, of Maine, fully degrade in the ocean. They just The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without to be United States Attorney for the break down into smaller and smaller objection, it is so ordered. District of Maine for the term of four pieces of plastic, and those travel the ORDER OF PROCEDURE years; D. Michael Hurst, Jr., of Mis- globe on ocean currents. Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I sissippi, to be United States Attorney Plastic is now everywhere; on our ask unanimous consent that, notwith- for the Southern District of Mississippi beaches, in our oceans, ingested and standing the provisions of rule XXII, for the term of four years; Jeffrey B. entangling our wildlife. It is even in the cloture vote on the Hargan nomi- Jensen, of Missouri, to be United tapwater, salt, and other foods that we nation occur at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, States Attorney for the Eastern Dis- humans consume. Plastic waste has October 4, and that if cloture is in- trict of Missouri for the term of four been found on remote islands, in deep- voked, the Senate vote on confirmation years; Thomas L. Kirsch II, of Indiana, sea sediments, and in sea ice. at 3:15 p.m. with no intervening action to be United States Attorney for the In an area previously inaccessible to or debate; that if confirmed, the mo- Northern District of Indiana for the researchers due to that sea ice, the tion to reconsider be considered made term of four years; and William J. Pow- Arctic is apparently releasing frozen and laid upon the table and the Presi- ell, of West Virginia, to be United plastic back into the oceans. That is dent be immediately notified of the States Attorney for the Northern Dis- how badly we are polluting our oceans. Senate’s action. trict of West Virginia for the term of An international research expedition I further ask that, upon disposition four years. to the North Pole even found chunks of of the Hargan nomination, the Senate Thereupon, the Senate proceeded to plastic littering that remote region. vote on cloture on the Quarles nomina- consider the nominations en bloc. Thankfully, there is interest in solv- tion, and that if cloture is invoked, the Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I ing our ocean trash problem in the Senate vote on confirmation of the ask unanimous consent that the Sen- Senate. At last year’s Our Ocean Con- nomination at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Oc- ate vote on the nominations en bloc ference, over $1 billion was pledged to tober 5; that if confirmed, the motion with no intervening action or debate; combat marine debris. Additional com- to reconsider be considered made and that if confirmed, the motions to re- mitments are expected this year. Our laid upon the table and the President consider be considered made and laid Senate Oceans Caucus work parallels be immediately notified of the Senate’s upon the table en bloc; that the Presi- work around the world. The Senate action; further, that the time on dent be immediately notified of the Oceans Caucus is a bipartisan group. Wednesday evening be for debate on Senate’s action; that no further mo- There are 36 of us. We have made ma- the Quarles and Cissna nominations, tions be in order; and that any state- rine debris one of our focus areas. concurrently. ments relating to the nominations be In August, by unanimous consent, we I further ask that the cloture vote on printed in the RECORD. passed the Save Our Seas Act, a bipar- the Cissna nomination occur upon dis- The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without tisan bill to reauthorize NOAA’s ma- position of the Quarles nomination, objection, it is so ordered. rine debris program and expand its and that if cloture is invoked, all time The question is, Will the Senate ad- ability to deal with severe marine de- postcloture be considered expired and vise and consent to the Frank, Hurst, bris events, where tsunamis or huge the Senate vote on confirmation with Jensen, Kirsch, and Powell nomina- storms sweep enormous amounts of no intervening action or debate; that if tions en bloc? plastic garbage into the oceans and confirmed, the motion to reconsider be The nominations were confirmed en then ultimately onto our shores. considered made and laid upon the bloc. The bill asks the President to in- table and the President be immediately f crease U.S. international efforts to re- notified of the Senate’s action. duce marine debris, including improv- I further ask that following disposi- EXECUTIVE CALENDAR ing international waste management tion of the Cissna nomination, the Sen- Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I practices and improving research on ate resume consideration of the Ging- ask unanimous consent that the Sen- plastics that will actually biodegrade rich nomination, with a vote on cloture ate proceed to the en bloc consider- in the ocean. It also directs the U.S. at 1:45 p.m. on Thursday; and that if ation of the following nominations: Ex- Trade Representative to start consid- cloture is invoked, the Senate vote on ecutive Calendar Nos. 357 and 358. ering marine plastic debris—much of confirmation at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without which comes from just a few coun- October 16. objection, it is so ordered.

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