E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 116 CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION Vol. 165 WASHINGTON, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2019 No. 197 Senate The Senate met at 10 a.m. and was appoint the Honorable CINDY HYDE-SMITH, a Earlier this year, the House Demo- called to order by the Honorable CINDY Senator from the State of Mississippi, to per- crats pushed through what we believe HYDE-SMITH, a Senator from the State form the duties of the Chair. was their first purely party-line NDAA of Mississippi. CHUCK GRASSLEY, that either Chamber has ever passed in President pro tempore. f the 58-year history of the legislation. Mrs. HYDE-SMITH thereupon as- This is the legislation that puts for- PRAYER sumed the Chair as Acting President ward Congress’s priorities for equip- The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- pro tempore. ping, training, and maintaining the fered the following prayer: f greatest fighting forces in the world. It Let us pray. RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME has never been used before as a purely Eternal Father, the center of our joy, partisan weapon—that is, not until this The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- bless our lawmakers with the peace year. Reassuringly, the past few days pore. Under the previous order, the and wisdom needed to lead in our chal- have finally brought an end to bipar- leadership time is reserved. lenging world. Give them eyes to dis- tisan talks and produced a compromise cern and understand the intricate com- f NDAA. The end result should be able to plexity of this turbulent season. Lord, RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY pass both Chambers and earn the Presi- guide our Senators to the right paths. LEADER dent’s signature. Believe me, it will not come a moment too soon. Lead them beside still waters. Restore The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- their souls. Let them lack nothing, for The NDAA authorizes resources to pore. The majority leader is recog- keep crucial military installations— You can keep them whole. Overflow nized. their cups with gentleness, care, and like Fort Campbell, Fort Knox, and the f understanding for the people they rep- Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky— resent. Let them fear no evil and take SENATE LEGISLATIVE AGENDA running smoothly. It is similarly im- portant to facilities in many of our col- courage in adversity, for You continue Mr. MCCONNELL. Madam President, to lead them with Your all-knowing leagues’ home States as well. Nation- as we enter the final weeks of 2019, two ally, of course, it directs readiness ef- right hand. things seem to be true here in Con- forts, prioritizes research and develop- We pray in Your everlasting Name. gress. No. 1, our Democratic col- ment programs, and enacts vital re- Amen. leagues, particularly over in the House, forms at the Pentagon. f seem eager to pour the vast majority of I look forward to sending the final, PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE their time and energy into their 3-year- bipartisan product by the conference long journey to impeach the President committee to the President for his sig- The Presiding Officer led the Pledge the American people elected. As a con- nature soon. In addition to that au- of Allegiance, as follows: sequence, No. 2, Congress has yet to thorizing legislation, Congress, of I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the fulfill a number of its core governing course, needs to actually appropriate United States of America, and to the Repub- responsibilities for this year. funds for our national defense and for lic for which it stands, one nation under God, At this late date, several crucial, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. all other functions of our Federal Gov- must-pass bills remain undone. For ernment. f months, my fellow Republicans and I Just a few months ago, when leaders APPOINTMENT OF ACTING have been stressing the need for pro- on both sides put their names to a bi- PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE ductive, bipartisan cooperation on partisan-bicameral roadmap for the ap- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The these pressing subjects: funding for the propriations process, it looked as clerk will please read a communication Federal Government, Defense appro- though we might keep partisan dis- to the Senate from the President pro priations—the money for our troops— putes out of this process and finish up and the National Defense Authoriza- tempore (Mr. GRASSLEY). the appropriations with time to spare. The legislative clerk read the fol- tion Act. Yet, for months, our calls for Unfortunately, our Democratic col- lowing letter: the Democrats to join us in serious ne- leagues decided that picking fights gotiations have gone largely unan- with the White House was a higher pri- U.S. SENATE, swered as the Democratic leadership ority, and we spent the autumn being PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE, Washington, DC, December 10, 2019. has opted for a different political play- mired in disputes over exactly the To the Senate: book—to obsess over impeachment and kinds of poison pills and Presidential Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3, obstruct this core business that we authorities the Speaker and the Demo- of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby must do every year. cratic leader had previously promised ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. S6909 . VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:43 Dec 11, 2019 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A10DE6.000 S10DEPT1 aiking on DSK30JT082PROD with SENATE S6910 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE December 10, 2019 would be off limits. Yet, as we speak, Mr. MCCONNELL. Madam President, Attorney General Barr had picked him. Chairman SHELBY and appropriators in I suggest the absence of a quorum. He does almost nothing in these sen- both Chambers are trying to bring The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- sitive areas that are not political. But months of near stalemate to a close. pore. The clerk will call the roll. you had some hope. Durham, some Last month, a bipartisan-bicameral The legislative clerk proceeded to said, had a good reputation. Well, yes- agreement was reached on sub- call the roll. terday, Durham’s statement confirmed committee allocations, and talks con- Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I our suspicions that he is not a non- tinue this week on outstanding issues. ask unanimous consent that the order political actor. No prosecutor worth Thanks to the months of delay, we for the quorum call be rescinded. his salt would release a political state- have a long way to go and a very short The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- ment like he did while conducting an time in which to do it. I hope that our pore. Without objection, it is so or- investigation. Because of issuing that Democratic colleagues can finally dered. statement, Durham has lost a great stick to the terms of the budget agree- RECOGNITION OF THE MINORITY LEADER deal of credibility even before he issues ment and keep partisan policy fights The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- his report. No one who is thinking of out of this process. That is the only pore. The Democratic leader is recog- these things down the middle is going way both Chambers will have a chance nized. to think Durham is a dispassionate, of being able to vote on funding bills INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORT nonpolitical observer because he has before the end of this year. Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, already shown himself to be, in a cer- That brings us to the USMCA. For for years, President Trump has specu- tain sense, a henchman of Mr. Barr and the better part of the past year, Presi- lated wildly about a ‘‘deep state’’ con- his political activities. dent Trump’s landmark agreement to spiracy against his Presidency based on To emphasize the broad acceptance of update North American trade policy the claim that the FBI opened an in- the IG report, FBI Director Wray, ap- has been languishing as Speaker vestigation into the President’s cam- pointed by President Trump, embraced PELOSI and the House Democrats have paign with political bias, with the ex- the report. indulged further and further in im- plicit purpose that they were out to get When Director Wray asked whether peachment. There are 176,000 new him. he thought the FBI targeted the Trump Americans jobs that have sat waiting Yesterday, the Department of Justice campaign, he said I do not. And for on ice as the Speaker has offered luke- inspector general released a report that that, not surprising, but still rather, warm assurances month after month puts this conspiracy theory to bed. The again, low, shallow, and disgusting, that her caucus is hoping to be ‘‘on a report conclusively debunks the base- President Trump lashed out this morn- path to yes.’’ This week, at long last, it less conspiracy that the investigation ing at the FBI Director, saying, ‘‘I do into Mr. Trump’s campaign and its ties appears that the House Democrats may not know what the current Director of to Russia originated with political finally be willing to take action for the FBI was reading, but it wasn’t the bias. In fact, the report quotes the FBI American workers and job creators and one given to me.’’ let the House vote on the President’s Deputy General Counsel as saying that President Trump, if you actually deal. I was pleased to hear that U.S. ‘‘the FBI would have been derelict in read the report, you would understand negotiators, led by Robert Lighthizer, our responsibility had we not opened exactly what FBI Director Wray was were to head to Mexico today to final- the case.’’ talking about, and you would under- Let me repeat that from the No.