Congressional Record United States Th of America PROCEEDINGS and DEBATES of the 116 CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION
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E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 116 CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION Vol. 166 WASHINGTON, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2020 No. 204 Senate The Senate met at 10 a.m. and was tors, the nonprofit industry is hurting CORONAVIRUS called to order by the President pro because of COVID–19. Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, tempore (Mr. GRASSLEY). As part of the CARES Act passed last anyone who has heard me speak about f March, Congress enacted key provi- coronavirus relief going back months sions encouraging charitable giving to PRAYER has heard one central principle: Let’s help support organizations that are deliver right away on all the subjects The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- being called upon more than ever to where everybody agrees and argue over fered the following prayer: help Americans because of the virus the rest later. The solution to this im- Let us pray. pandemic. These charitable giving pro- passe has been in plain sight for a long Holy God, who desires us to prosper visions that are in the CARES Act time now for anybody willing to see it: and experience health, give our Nation apply both to individuals who itemize Agree where we agree, bank that such a harvest of righteousness that their taxes and those who do not progress, make law, take a whole lot of our land will be filled with peace, itemize. pressure off struggling people, and then quietness, and unity. Use our law- Iowa is blessed to have an extensive keep debating the areas where we don’t makers to enable our citizens to live in network of charitable organizations agree. safety, confidence, and peace. that are supported by incredible volun- There is no actual reason why the As our Senators seek to serve You teers who open up their pocketbooks to fates of commonsense policies like a and country, give them the wisdom and support their neighbors in need. This second round of the job-saving Pay- courage to bring harmony from dis- fall, Senator ERNST and I heard from at check Protection Program had to be cord. Lord, be merciful to them as they least 20 nonprofits in the Cedar Rapids linked to the fates of fringe proposals wait with eager expectancy for Your area about the challenges that they like stimulus checks for illegal immi- guidance. face because of the pandemic and nat- grants. There is no reason why the fate May they honor the promises they ural disasters, and also we heard of the of funding for vaccine distribution or make, living lives that reflect the in- successes they have had this year. extending unemployment aid or legal tegrity of Your Kingdom. The work that Iowa nonprofits do is certainties for universities should have We pray in Your great Name. Amen. inspiring and has tremendous impact. been tied to radical ideas like paying f In this season of Thanksgiving, I speak people more not to work than essential PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE on behalf of my own State to thank workers earn on the job. these organizations, their employees, These linkages have been totally ar- The President pro tempore led the and volunteers for the hard work and bitrary, just a political decision that Pledge of Allegiance, as follows: services that they deliver every day of Democratic leaders made many months I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the the year to Iowans in need. back. Democratic leaders have tried to United States of America, and to the Repub- create a narrative where it is taken for I yield the floor. lic for which it stands, one nation under God, granted that the most bipartisan, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. I suggest the absence of a quorum. commonsensical relief policies would The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The live or die with their side’s most out- DAINES). The Senator from Iowa. clerk will call the roll. landish ideas. Well, that just isn’t so. Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I ask The senior assistant legislative clerk They have tried to create a dynamic unanimous consent to speak for 1 proceeded to call the roll. where they move from one made-up minute in morning business. Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I number to a second slightly smaller ar- The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without ask unanimous consent that the order bitrary number and call it a meaning- objection, it is so ordered. for the quorum call be rescinded. ful concession. The truth is simple. f The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without This has always been about policy dif- objection, it is so ordered. ferences. We have two sides with two GIVING TUESDAY different visions for the best way to Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, the f support our Nation through what we Tuesday after Thanksgiving has been hope will be the last chapter of the known as Giving Tuesday. I suppose pandemic. RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY this Giving Tuesday is receiving more That isn’t new. We have disagree- LEADER attention than usual because of the ments all the time. Our system can virus pandemic that we have been in The PRESIDING OFFICER. The ma- handle disagreements, but both sides for the last 12 months. Like many sec- jority leader is recognized. have to be willing to compile their ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. S7191 . VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Dec 04, 2020 Jkt 019060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A03DE6.000 S03DEPT1 dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE S7192 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE December 3, 2020 commonalities and make law here, I promise, our deep differences will The NDAA is one of the most impor- and, up to now, our Democratic col- still be here to debate. Our disagree- tant pieces of legislation that we pass leagues have declined to do that. ments will be right where we left them. here every year. It is the bill that au- Remember, their side said in March But do you know what can’t wait? thorizes funding for our troops and lays this pandemic was ‘‘a tremendous op- What can’t wait are American workers, out our defense priorities. portunity to restructure things to fit American small businesses, K–12 Like the last two NDAAs, this year’s our vision.’’ So when Republicans tried schools, the vulnerable Americans and bill focuses on restoring military readi- to pass commonsense relief measures frontline healthcare workers for whom ness and ensuring that our Nation is in July, in September, and in October, speedy vaccine distribution will lit- prepared to meet threats posed by as well, our Democratic colleagues ac- erally be a life-or-death matter. major powers like Russia and China. tually blocked policies they do not Yesterday, my home State of Ken- In November of 2018, the bipartisan even oppose. tucky experienced yet another dread- National Defense Strategy Commission It has been heartening to see a few ful—dreadful—record-setting day. But released a report warning that our hopeful signs in the past few days. Kentuckians also know that hope is in readiness had eroded to the point that After months of arbitrary attachment sight. Our State’s workers are standing we might struggle to win a war against to sky-high dollar amounts that the by at the UPS Worldport in Louisville a major power like Russia or China, Speaker of the House claimed were es- and the DHL Express American Hub in and the Commission noted that we sential—that it would be an insult to northern Kentucky, key logistics cen- would be especially vulnerable if we settle for a nickel less—those baseless ters that will play crucial roles in were ever called on to fight a war on claims have suddenly evaporated. sending vaccines all around the coun- two fronts. That is at least movement in the try. Over the past 2 years, we have made right direction, but the underlying re- Our people are hurting, but they are real progress on restoring military ality is still with us. There are many ready to finish this fight. Congress readiness, but we still have more work important policies that have strong bi- should not keep them waiting for rein- to do. partisan support. There are many oth- forcements that should have arrived This year’s National Defense Author- ers that do not, and the way to help the literally months ago. ization Act continues our investment country is for our Democratic col- So compromise is within reach. We in ensuring that our military is pre- leagues to finally let the former group know where we agree. We can do this. pared to meet current and future be signed into law while we keep argu- Let me say it again. We can do this, threats in any domain. ing over the rest. and we need to do this. So let’s be Of course, no matter what weapons or The targeted second round of pay- about actually making a law. tanks or planes we have, our greatest check protection that we have been military resource will always be our trying to establish since July would f men and women in uniform, and this help a huge number of small businesses RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME year’s NDAA invests in improving the quality of life for our military mem- survive to the finish line and help huge The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. BAR- bers and their families. The bill sup- numbers of workers to keep their jobs.