E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 115 CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION Vol. 164 WASHINGTON, THURSDAY, MAY 24, 2018 No. 86 Senate The Senate met at 9:30 a.m. and was appoint the Honorable DEAN HELLER, a Sen- to the White House where the Presi- called to order by the Honorable DEAN ator from the State of Nevada, to perform dent will soon sign it into law. HELLER, a Senator from the State of the duties of the Chair. It will bring more options and great- Nevada. ORRIN G. HATCH, er flexibility to veterans who have President pro tempore. f spent years driving long distances to Mr. HELLER thereupon assumed the the nearest VA care facility, only to PRAYER Chair as Acting President pro tempore. face long lines and waiting lists when The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- f they got there. fered the following prayer: RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME It will bring more peace of mind for veterans of all eras and their families Let us pray. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- who have faced uncertainty and limita- Almighty God, Sustainer of human- pore. Under the previous order, the tions as their needs for care have ity, thank You for faithfully providing leadership time is reserved. for all of our needs. When we have evolved. f trusted Your guidance, You have con- This legislation continues, expands, sistently ordered our steps, doing for CONCLUSION OF MORNING and improves the successful Veterans us more than we can ask or imagine. BUSINESS Choice Program that has already Today, give our lawmakers a gen- The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- helped millions of veterans nationwide, erous portion of Your wisdom. Remind pore. Morning business is closed. including more than 23,000 Kentuckians last year alone. them that Your wisdom is pure, peace- f loving, considerate, humble, merciful, Thanks to the stalwart leadership of and impartial. Provide our Senators EXECUTIVE SESSION Chairman ISAKSON and the Veterans’ with power to carry out their respon- Affairs Committee, the hard-and-fast time and distance thresholds that kept sibilities in a way that honors You. EXECUTIVE CALENDAR Lord, as Memorial Day approaches, too many veterans out of the Choice we praise You for all of the sacrifices The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- Program will soon be gone. made for this land we love. pore. Under the previous order, the The providers we trust to provide We pray in Your great Name. Amen. Senate will proceed to executive ses- top-notch care for our heroes will have sion to consider the following nomina- clearer guidelines for prescribing f tions, which the clerk will report. opioids and more tools to attract and PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The legislative clerk read the nomi- retain experienced professionals. nations of Jelena McWilliams, of Ohio, I have heard from Kentucky veterans The Presiding Officer led the Pledge to be Chairperson of the Board of Di- of Allegiance, as follows: exactly what this bill will mean to rectors of the Federal Deposit Insur- them. One wrote: ‘‘Kentucky disabled I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the ance Corporation for a term of five veterans greatly appreciate Congress is United States of America, and to the Repub- years; and Jelena McWilliams, of Ohio, finally taking action to correct defi- lic for which it stands, one nation under God, to be a Member of the Board of Direc- indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. ciencies in the Caregiver Program.’’ tors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Another explained that the legisla- f Corporation for a term of six years. tion ‘‘strikes the right balance to make APPOINTMENT OF ACTING RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY LEADER sure we strengthen the VA system and PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- provide veterans with the best care pore. The majority leader is recog- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The possible.’’ nized. clerk will please read a communication I thank my friend Chairman ISAKSON to the Senate from the President pro SENATE ACCOMPLISHMENTS once more on this achievement. I am Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, we proud the Senate stepped up to the tempore (Mr. HATCH). The legislative clerk read the fol- are in the midst of quite a productive plate and showed America’s veterans lowing letter: week in the Senate. Yesterday, this that, on our watch, a promise made is body did its part in fulfilling an impor- a promise kept. U.S. SENATE, tant promise to our Nation’s veterans. What is more, we have already con- PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE, Washington, DC, May 24, 2018. We passed the VA MISSION Act by a firmed two executive branch nominees To the Senate: wide, bipartisan margin. and will process two more before the Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3, Having already passed the House, end of the week. First up is Jelena of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby this truly landmark bill will now head McWilliams, President Trump’s well- ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. S2889 . VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 May 25, 2018 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A24MY6.000 S24MYPT1 lotter on DSK3G9T082PROD with SENATE S2890 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE May 24, 2018 qualified pick to chair the FDIC Board This all comes on the heels of the com- RUSSIA INVESTIGATION of Directors. pany’s other recent investments, like Second, Madam President, on the This week, we have also seen an im- the new 93,000-square-foot facility in Russia probe, today on Capitol Hill, pressive proposal to reform the way Lansing, MI, and a new 80,000-square- Department of Justice, FBI, and intel- Congress handles workplace claims, es- foot facility in Foley, AL. ligence community officials are sched- pecially claims of harassment. The What is making all this possible? Ac- uled to brief the Members of Congress Democratic leader and I strongly sup- cording to United Technologies’ an- on a few issues related to Special Coun- port this proposal, as do our colleagues nouncement, ‘‘The competitive tax sys- sel Mueller’s investigation into Putin’s Senator BLUNT and Senator KLO- tem resulting from U.S. tax reform is meddling in the 2016 election. BUCHAR. encouraging global companies, such as There will be two briefings—one for a All this comes in addition to two United Technologies, to make long- House Republican partisan who has re- major Senate-passed bills that passed term investments in innovation in lentlessly harassed the Justice Depart- the House this week and are now head- America.’’ ment to reveal sources and methods to ing to the President’s desk to become This announcement is exactly the him for the sole purpose of interfering law: the legislation championed by our kind of headline you would expect to with and denigrating the special coun- colleague Senator JOHNSON, which will see in an America that is growing sel’s investigation. After several re- give terminally ill patients the right to again. It is exactly what you would ex- quests, the Department of Justice will try experimental drugs that are still pect to happen as Republican policies also brief the bipartisan Gang of 8 on making their way through the full continue to get Washington, DC, out of the same information separately later FDA approval process, and the the way of American workers and job in the day. mainstreaming of Dodd-Frank regula- creators, and let them do what they do While we believe no briefing should tions for small lenders and community best—build an economy that is the occur, it is a good thing that the Gang banks, thanks to the leadership of Sen- envy of the rest of the world. of 8 will be briefed. The overwhelming ator CRAPO. This legislation will help Yesterday’s announcement was no fact remains that a separate meeting secure access to credit for middle-class isolated incident. We are hearing an- with a known partisan whose only in- families and small businesses, and the nouncements like this from job cre- tent is to undermine the Mueller inves- President will sign it just a few hours ators, large and small, from national tigation makes no sense and should be from now. employers to Main Street businesses in called off. What is the point of a sepa- There is also important activity un- my State of Kentucky and all across rate briefing if not to cause partisan derway at the committee level. Chair- the country. trouble and create a he said, she said man BARRASSO is leading the Environ- Back in 2013, under the Democrats’ scenario? It is so damaging to the way ment and Public Works Committee policy agenda, more than two-thirds of our officials in the Justice Department through consideration of measures to U.S. manufacturers reported that a have always worked. UNES, the architect improve and expand America’s water- hostile business climate due to taxes Representative N of this sham briefing, no longer de- ways infrastructure. Chairman SHELBY and regulation was a primary obstacle serves the benefit of the doubt. He lost and the Appropriations Committee in their way. That was in 2013. all claims to objectivity long ago with today have already begun their work Today, just 16 months into this uni- his ridiculous, late-night charade at on the annual funding bills. Following fied Republican government, fewer the White House and his conduct on the committee’s robust discussions, I than one in five say that.