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, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2019 No. 198 Senate The Senate met at 9:30 a.m. and was appoint the Honorable MARSHA BLACKBURN, a sidered made and laid upon the table called to order by the Honorable MAR- Senator from the State of Tennessee, to per- and the President be immediately noti- SHA BLACKBURN, a Senator from the form the duties of the Chair. fied of the Senate’s action; further, State of Tennessee. CHUCK GRASSLEY, that following the disposition of the President pro tempore. f VanDyke nomination and notwith- Mrs. BLACKBURN thereupon as- standing the provisions of rule XXII, PRAYER sumed the Chair as Acting President the Senate vote on the motions to in- pro tempore. The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- voke cloture on the Sullivan, Hahn, fered the following prayer: f and Skipwith nominations in the order Let us pray. RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME listed; finally, that if cloture is in- Almighty God, we are reminded at voked on the Sullivan, Hahn, and The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- this time of year of the greatness of Skipwith nominations, the confirma- pore. Under the previous order, the Your gift to us in sending Your Son. tion votes occur at a time to be deter- leadership time is reserved. Use us as instruments for His glory. mined by the majority leader, in con- Because of our faith in You, make us f sultation with the Democratic leader, bold as lions in these turbulent times. CONCLUSION OF MORNING on Thursday, December 12. May our lawmakers work together to BUSINESS The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- protect and defend our Constitution, pore. Without objection, it is so or- The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- dered. realizing, as iron sharpens iron, so pore. Morning business is closed. friends sharpen friends. Lord, make our SENATE LEGISLATIVE AGENDA Senators grateful for the fires in our f Mr. MCCONNELL. Madam President, Nation’s history that have tested their EXECUTIVE SESSION it is no secret that Washington Demo- commitment to freedom, providing crats have been itching to impeach them with opportunities to become President Trump since the moment he profiles of courage, serving their gen- EXECUTIVE CALENDAR took the oath of office. Remember the eration with faithfulness. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- Washington Post’s headline on Inau- We pray in Your great Name. Amen. pore. Under the previous order, the guration Day in 2017: ‘‘The campaign to impeach President Trump has begun.’’ f Senate will proceed to executive ses- sion to resume consideration of the fol- That was the Washington Post’s head- PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE lowing nomination, which the clerk line on Inauguration Day in 2017. Just a few months later, in April of The Presiding Officer led the Pledge will report. 2017, one leading House Democrat had of Allegiance, as follows: The legislative clerk read the nomi- already made up her mind. She de- I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the nation of Lawrence VanDyke, of Ne- clared she would ‘‘fight every day until United States of America, and to the Repub- vada, to be United States Circuit Judge he’s impeached.’’ As an aside, this lic for which it stands, one nation under God, for the Ninth Circuit. indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. same senior Democrat is one of the RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY LEADER committee chairwomen whom Speaker f The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- PELOSI asked to help lead the impeach- APPOINTMENT OF ACTING pore. The majority leader is recog- ment process. She was literally stand- PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE nized. ing at the Speaker’s shoulder as she ORDER OF PROCEDURE The PRESIDING OFFICER. The announced yesterday that she will Mr. MCCONNELL. Madam President, clerk will please read a communication bring two articles of impeachment up I ask unanimous consent that fol- to the Senate from the President pro for a vote. Yet she had had her mind lowing the disposition of H.R. 2333, the made up more than 2 years ago, long tempore (Mr. GRASSLEY). Senate proceed to executive session The legislative clerk read the fol- before this supposedly fair inquiry. and resume consideration of the Van- lowing letter: This is sort of emblematic of their Dyke nomination; further, that the whole process. U.S. SENATE, postcloture time on the VanDyke nom- House Democrats announced yester- PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE, Washington, DC, December 11, 2019. ination expire at 4:15 p.m. today and day that they will rush ahead and pre- To the Senate: the Senate vote on the confirmation of pare to send the Senate articles of im- Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3, the nomination; further, if confirmed, peachment based on the least thorough of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby that the motion to reconsider be con- and most unfair impeachment inquiry ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. S6957 . VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:56 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A11DE6.000 S11DEPT1 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with SENATE S6958 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE December 11, 2019 in modern history. Well, the House ference report. Next year, I hope they ments and discourage investment in Democrats’ denigration of their solemn will produce a bipartisan bill from the prescription drug research. duty will not cause the Senate to deni- beginning that will put our national se- Between 2011 and 2018, more than 250 grate ours. If the House continues curity interests first. Now, obviously, new medications were introduced down this destructive road and sends that authorizing legislation should be worldwide. American patients have ac- us articles of impeachment, the Senate paired with the appropriations measure cess to nearly all of them, but that is will take them up in the new year and that will actually fund our service- not the situation for patients in a lot proceed to a fair trial. members’ tools and training and enable of other countries. The chamber of Now, in the meantime, our col- our commanders to actually plan commerce reports that patients in leagues’ obsession with impeachment ahead. France have access to just 50 percent of has left us with a host of important, bi- I am grateful for the hard work by those new drugs. French patients, in partisan legislation that is still unfin- Chairman SHELBY, his counterpart in other words, are missing out on fully ished at this late date. the House, and our subcommittee half of the new drugs that have been For months, Senate Republicans chairs to reboot a stalled appropria- introduced in the past 8 years. have been calling on our Democratic tions process and try to get bills over Why do Americans have such tremen- colleagues to go beyond picking fights the finish line in the short time that dous access to new drugs while other with the White House and actually leg- remains. countries trail behind? Because the islate for the American people. Yet, for To be frank, only a laser focus from U.S. Government doesn’t dictate drug practically the entire autumn, our both parties in both Chambers on get- prices or drug coverage. As statistic Democratic friends’ political calcula- ting results will create a path to pass after statistic demonstrates, when gov- tion seemed to be that these vital appropriations bills this year. There is ernments start imposing price con- pieces of business could wait until the simply not the time left for my Demo- trols, patients’ access to new drugs and eleventh hour because impeachment cratic friends to continue haggling treatments diminishes. was the higher priority—and wait they over the exact kinds of poison pills, Government price controls also dis- have. partisan policy riders, and Presidential courage the medical research and inno- Finally, after weeks of pressure from transfer authorities that the Speaker vation that produce the prescription the Republicans and from hard-work- and the Democratic leader had explic- drug breakthroughs of the future. The ing Americans across the country, itly agreed months ago would be off the United States leads the world in pre- Speaker PELOSI backed down yesterday table. Under the agreement months scription drug innovation, and a big reason for that is because the U.S. Gov- and announced that she will let the ago, these were supposed to be off the ernment doesn’t dictate drug prices. House vote on President Trump’s table. It wasn’t always this way. European USMCA. The Democrats have stalled The White House, Republican leaders investment in drug research used to ex- this agreement for so long that it is in both Chambers, and the Democratic ceed U.S. investment, but that changed now impossible for the USMCA to be- leaders in both Chambers all agreed to when European governments stepped in come law in 2019, especially given all of these parameters—literally pledged in and started imposing price controls. the other urgent things they have writing that these kinds of partisan Today, European investment in drug stalled right alongside it. The Demo- roadblocks would be kept out of the research and development is almost 40 crats have simply run out the clock. process. So if all parties honor what percent lower than U.S. investment, in Assuming the House Democrats send us they agreed to, we should have an op- large part because of European govern- articles of impeachment next week, a portunity to agree on government ments’ price controls.