Work they will do. May they seek in all their labors to please and glorify you as you fill them with your grace. May they not become weary in doing what is right, knowing that in due season they will reap if they faint not. Lord, let your peace flood their hearts and help them to realize that it is by your permission that they will breathe their next breath. May they permit lifes problems to make them more dependent on your guidance and strength. We pray in your holy name. Amen. The president pro tempore please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to our flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Mr. Mcconnell mr. President. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell weve been debating obamacares fail use and failures and what to do about them for so many years now. Weve heard so many distress stories from constituents who have been hurt. Thankfully the senate will have a chance to turn the page on the failed law. The entire Senate Conference has been engaged on moving on obamacare for some time. Weve had many productive discussions on the way forward. Were united in our belief that the American People deserve better than obamacares unsustainable status quo. While its disappointing that our democratic colleagues decided early on they didnt want to work seriously with us on solution, Senate Republicans remain focused on the following stabilizing Insurance Markets which are collapsing under obamacare, improving the affordability of Health Insurance, which is spiking under obamacare, freeing americans from obamacares mandates, which forced them to buy insurance they dont want, strengthening medicaid for those who need it the most, and preserving access to care for patients with preexisting conditions. Insurance markets are collapsing under obamacare, we want to stabilize them. Obamacares champions said the law would bring more health care choices, but for far too many, its just the opposite just the opposite has occurred. In the years since obamacares passage, we read story after story about coops collapsing, insurers fleeing, families losing the plans they like, and trusted doctors and hospitals slipping out of reach. Today obamacare is nearing full collapse. Americans in nearly every one of two counties could find themselves with one of two options with obamacare next year. Which is really not a choice at all. Or worse, find themselves without any option at all. The longterm obamacare trend is we have to act and we are. Costs are spiking under obamacare, we want to improve affordability. Obamacares champions said the law would be more affordable, but for too many just the opposite has occurred. In the years since obamacares passage, we received so many calls and letters from families hit with soaring costs and skyrocketing premiums. A report shows premiums in the individual market rose by 500 since the law was fully implemented in 2013. Today the situation continues to spiral out of control. Americans in states across the country could find themselves facing more doubledigit premium increases next year, as high as 30 . We learned just yesterday in Washington State, 32 in North Carolina, 40 in maine. Another recent report showed that nearly two million americans who selected obamacare canceled their coverage. The most common reasons they cited for doing so, it was too expensive. This is not sustainable the we have sustainable. We have to act and we are. Americans are being forced to buy insurance they dont want under obamacare. We want to free them from that mandate. When obamacares champions pushed it on people, families were forced into onerous plans they didnt like or couldnt afford. In the years since obamacares passage, we heard from americans who decided it was simply more affordable for them to take their chances, pay the fine and go without insurance all together. Today obamacares collapse is making the situation even more unfair. Insurance markets are collapsing, leaving americans with fewer options, health costs are spiking, making many of the remaining options even more expensive. That means americans could be left trapped, forced by law to purchase obamacare insurance but left without the means to do so. This longterm obamacare trend is not sustainable. We have to act, and we are. These are just a few of the major areas that the Senate Republicans are focused on as we move away from obamacare. In doing so, we will also work towards strengthening medicaid and preserving access to care for patients with preexisting conditions, two areas of concern for many across the nation. I regret that democrats announced early on that they did not want to be part of a bipartisan process to move past the failures of this law. The obamacare law is collapsing all around us. It will continue to hurt even more americans if we allow the unsustainable status quo to continue. So we have a responsibility to act and Senate Republicans are, working to the, guided by the principles i mentioned, an acting on and acting on behalf of americans that deserve better than the status quo, better than the continued pained continued pain of obamacare. The presiding officer under the previous order, the previous time is reserved. Morning business is closed. The senate will proceed to executive consideration of the nomination which the clerk will report. The clerk nomination, segal mandekrk. The presiding officer the time until 11 00 a. M. Will be equally divided between the two leaderses or designees. Mr. Mcconnell i suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call the presiding officer the majority whip. Mr. Cornyn mr. President , i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be rescinded. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Cornyn mr. President , we continue to make progress on legislation to clean up the mess left by the meltdown of obamacare, at least insofar as it affects the lives of millions of people who buy their insurance on the individual markets. These are individuals and Small Businesses that dont have the benefit of Large EmployerHealth Care Plans and theyve been devastated by obamacare. This is a rescue mission. Obamacare is collapsing for millions of people and we have to act in the interest of countless families and Small Businesses who are suffering tremendous harm. Ive told the stories myself. Others have likewise told the stories. Weve seen thoars reported in the need those reported in the media. For many people, Health Care Costs, their insurance premiums are skyrocketing. We also know because of the distortion of the Insurance Markets, that Many Insurance Companies are simply pulling out of counties and states around the country so people have no choices when it comes to purchasing their health care on the exchanges. And, of course, many people continue to lose access to their doctors. We need to contrast this with what was promised when obamacare was passed, and i know it sounds repetitive, but im afraid if we lose sight of what the promises were with obamacare, we cant actually calculate the tremendous harm and deception that was involved on delivering on that promise. President obama said if you like your policy, you could keep it. Not true. He said if you like your doctor, you could keep your doctor, also not true. He also said that for a family of four, you would see an average decrease in your premiums of 2,500 a year also not true. Well, what is the response of our democratic friends . We saw last night they took to the senate floor and they gave impassioned speeches. First of all, they criticized the republicans for coming forward to try to rescue people who were being hurt by the failures of obamacare. So they criticized us for that and then they said, well, its a secret bill, after they have rejected every request for them to work with us on a bipartisan basis to rescue the American People who are being hurt by the failures of obamacare. They rejected that. So what did they do . They came to the senate floor and they said they hate the bill that they havent seen yet, and then they said oh, its secret. So i guess it should be one or the other. Either they hate it because they know whats in it or secret, it cant be both. But the fact is we are working hard to meet our own internal deadline because we want to make sure that the people who will be hurt in 2018 when the Insurance Companies raise their premiums by double digits, which they are in the process of getting those approved. It occurs in the julyaugust time frame. Insurance companies have to calculate whats the premium they have to charge, and then they have to go to the state regulators and get approval for that premium increase. And what were being told is the 105 increase in premiums on the exchanges since 2013 thats right, 105 increase, its going to go up 20 or more next year unless we come to the rescue of those being harmed by obamacare. So we would ask our democratic colleagues please dont wear yourself out doing something thats going to accomplish nothing. Channel all that energy and all that passion into trying to do something that will actually help the people being hurt today by the failures of obamacare. They went even further. They said well, they may decide just to obstruct the senates business on other matters that arent Health Care Related until they can get to see the bill, which they will get to see soon, as soon as we get to see the final product. We get it scored by the congressional budget office, and then well have literally a votearama where there will be an opportunity to debate in a fulsome and comprehensive sort of way, an opportunity to offer dozens if not hundreds of amendments to the bill, and well vote. Well vote. Thats what we do. So theres nothing happening in secret here in the here. In the fullness of time, well all see the product that we have been working on. As a result of their refusal to work with us, we have been working on it the best we can to try to accomplish Something Better than the failed status quo of obamacare. Well, were told that they may obstruct the senates other business, including committee work. Thats unrelated to the health care debate, but i guess just in their lashing out, trying to find some ways they can make life a little more difficult here in the senate for our accomplishing other important work as well. Well, i happen to serve on the Senate Intelligence committee. One of the things that we are doing is a comprehensive investigation of the russian active measures that they undertook during the last election. Weve got a Committee Meeting this afternoon. Are democrats really going to obstruct the Senate Intelligence committees work in conducting completing its investigation into russian activities in the 2016 election . Are they really going to do that . It strikes me as nuts. And on thursday, for example, we also have a judiciary Committee Meeting scheduled to consider a critically important bill i have introduced with my colleague from minnesota, senator klobuchar, to help fight Human Trafficking. Human trafficking. Are democrats going to obstruct our ability to conduct our business and block our consideration of bills involving Human Trafficking and providing relief for the victims . This bill reauthorizes key programs and senators survivors, and it provides Additional Resources to federal, state, and local Law Enforcement officials on the front lines of fighting this heinous crime. Will the democratic leader from new york jeopardize the committees ability to actually consider and pass this law . Does he plan to block a member of his own Political Party from advancing her bill to fight Human Trafficking as well . Well, this strikes me as wrong for a number of reasons, and i think it would actually be appalling if our democratic colleagues, out of their frustration, frankly, borne out of their failure to do their job and work with us to find a solution to the meltdown of obamacare, for them to lash out in a way that affected victims of Human Trafficking and affected the senates ability to conduct its investigation into the russian activities involved in our elections. Now is not the time to grandstand and make damaging symbolic gestures like this, because while our democratic colleagues talked a lot last week, we didnt hear anything from them about the current realities of obamacare and how it has failed the American People. They seem to be whistling by the graveyard. We didnt hear anything about rising costs or lacking choices. I talked to one of my democratic colleagues this morning. He told me his own son was looking at 7,500 premiums a year and a 5,000 deductible. This friend, a democrat and i wont reveal his name because i dont think it would be appropriate to do so told me his own son had to spend 12,500 out of pocket before his insurance actually kicked in. Thats a disaster, not just for his son but for millions of people negatively affected by obamacare. Yet our friends across the aisle want to flail about, threaten to block trafficking legislation or an investigation into the russian involvement in the election. The only thing they havent done is offer a constructive alternative. Thats the only thing they havent done. They have tried about everything else. And you know why, of course. Because we know what the alternative is. Basically, they did obamacare all by themselves. I remember, i was here on the senate floor in 2010, on christmas eve. I think it was about 7 30 in the morning when we had the vote out of the senate that passed obamacare. It was pure partyline vote. So the democrats have had it all to themselves to design a Health Care System that they thought america should have. And its failed time and time again. But you know what their current proposal is right now . Well, its a single payer option that puts our country even more in debt and we know it doesnt work. The reason we know it doesnt work is because it will no doubt emulate things like the British NationalHealth Service which has resulted in twotiered health care, health care for people who cant otherwise afford to pay out of their pocket to get Better Health care with all of the problems of governmentrun health care added to it. The far left elements of the Democratic Party want a plan that goes even further than obamacare. That, i believe, could be ultimately their goal, one that would increase Government Spending on health care by 518. 9 billion just this year, ballooning to 6. 6 trillion between 2017 and 2026, according to the urban institute. And take a look at the state of california where a similar proposal of a singlepayer system was pushed at the state level there, enacting a singlepayer system that would add 400 billion each year to the california state budget. I think thats roughly double the amount of the whole budget for the state of california. 400 billion each year. So it strikes me that at least one conclusion you might draw from this is that our democratic friends, rather than trying to work in a bipartisan way with us to save people who are being hurt from the failures of what obamacare of obamacare, that their solution is lets throw more money at it. Lets throw more money at it. Well, thats not going to work. What it will do, it will add to our National Debt without solving the health care problem, and it will further burden future generations who will have to pay that money back at some point. We already have about 20 trillion of National Debt. These young people up here serving as pages, you know, are going to have to deal with that, i guess, unless we have the courage to do it ourselves. That strikes me as profoundly immoral. For us to spend the money today and say, well, our kids and grandkids are going to have to pay it back later. Thats immoral. Well, if we thought obamacare crushed any semblance of come petition in the health care marketplace, the singlepayer plan from our friend, senator Bernie Sanders from vermont, who is the chief spokesman for the democrats in the senate on what an alternative might look like, senator sanders plan removes competition completely because its a government takeover. It takes away even more authority from state and local governments, and it takes away choices from individuals. Forget if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. If you like your plan, you can keep your plan. Forget all of that because its the opposite of what American Families have repeatedly asked for. But this is what the extreme factions in the Democratic Party want. They want to expand government, they want even the larger takeover of health care, and they want to simply throw more money at it, as if we arent spending enough money already. Throwing more money at the problem certainly wont fix it, and i suggest it will make things only worse. So we need to be realistic about what it will take to rework our Health Care System and put patients first. Now, i am under no illusion that what republicans are going to be able to come up with on our own, given the constraints of the fact the democrats wont work with us at all and appear not to be in the business of lifting a finger to help the millions of people being hurt. Im not under the illusion that what we are going to be able to come up with, and its an interim step, is going to be perfect. No legislation ever is. But i think were obligateed were obligated to do our best. And the fact that our democratic friends wont help at all then makes it a lot harder, but i dont think we can say its too hard, we cant do it, we give up. Mr. President , we are committed on this side of the aisle and would invite our colleagues on that side of the aisle to work with us to fix the problems caused by obamacare and implement Real Health Care reforms that will work. First of all, we need to stabilize the market. I mentioned this earlier, and rescue millions of folks who are losing all of their access to coverage because Insurance Companies are simply quitting, because theyre bleeding money because they cant charge a high enough premium that somebody will actually pay so they will so they leave the market. In texas alone, there are dozens of counties that soanl have one insurance marketplace option, and if we do nothing, i fear there will be none, no choices. Well, when theres only one choice, the economic backlash is pretty simple. There is no competition to drive down costs and improve quality of coverage. I think this is really in some ways a test of our convictions. If you really do believe that competition in the marketplace improves quality and costs for the consumer, as i do, then going to a singlepayer system or trying to repair obamacare is the opposite of what we should do. We need to return the market to a competitive one so families can have the ability to make choices about their health care, what suits their needs, not what governments going to force you to buy, and if you dont buy the governmentapproved plan, theyre going to punish you by fining you. Thats what the status quo is like under obamacare. But obamacare is so bad that currently we have almost 30 Million People who still are uninsured. About 6. 5 million of them simply pay the penalty, i think its 695 a year now, instead of buying the governmentapproved health care plan. They figure paying the penalty is better than buying the insurance for them. And then there are others, millions more, who simply opt out because they because of hardship. So if the goal of obamacare was universal coverage, its failed that goal as well. So we need to stabilize the markets. Secondly, we need to address obamacares skyrocketing premium increases. We all know that if obamacare stays in place, premiums stand only to rise for consumers. Thats something i think our friends across the aisle are missing as well. Doing nothing is not an option because people are going to be even more priced out of the marketplace, assuming they can find an Insurance Company to sell them health care. In texas, the houston area insurers asked for a 16 annual rate hike over its 2018 obamacare coverage. A 16 over this year opposed to next year. Thats what doing nothing will do. It might even need a greater increase just to cover its costs. Private businesses cant actually operate in the red like the federal government does. Private businesses cant just print more money or run up 20 trillion in debt. So when they cant make money, they simply have to raise premiums or they have to quit the market. The third thing we need to do do remember the first thing i said is stabilize the market. Second is attack premiums to bring them down. The third thing we need to do is make sure we continue to protect american citizens from preexisting conditions. This is something i think everybody believes needs to happen without regard to political or ideological affiliation. No one should be denied basic health care because they have a preexisting condition. And we want to preserve those protections. Thats the third goal. The fourth goal is to make medicaid, which is the medical safety net for millions of people, make it sustainable into the future. Right now we know its not sustainable like our other entitlement programs, and the way we want to do that is by giving states more flexibility. We want to make sure that those who rely on the program dont have the rug pulled out from under them. And we want to make sure that it continues to grow year after year, but at a sustainable rate. Right now theres no cap, no rate of increase provided. So its an unlimited entitlement. And one of the suggestions from the house bill is to take it and grow it each year at the rate of Consumer Price index for medical costs thats medical inflation plus 1 . In other words, more money would be spent next year than this year. Even more money than next year will be spent the following year and so on. But it will be done at a sustainable rate. And finally, we want to free the American People from the onerous obamacare mandates that require them to purchase insurance they dont want and cant afford. It shouldnt be a surprise to anybody that if you take the penalty away and dont force the American People to buy insurance they dont want that many of them, the younger, healthy ones, particular will decide not to buy it. Thats called freedom of choice. Thats not what obamacare did. Obamacare forced people to buy something they didnt want and penalized them if they didnt. So many people will choose not to purchase it and decide to handle their health care in other ways. Perhaps at the emergency room, where under federal law everybody who comes in as a medical emergency is entitled to be treated. Its not what i would tell my daughters. Its not what i would recommend for anybody. But if somebody wants to make that choice, its certainly their right. So, mr. President , i would just conclude by observing that its shameful that members on the other side of the aisle sit on their hands and do nothing to fix a law that continues to hurt American Families. We know that regardless of who won the last election, whether it was Hillary Clinton or whether it was donald trump, we would have to take steps to address this failed law. So i would implore our democratic friends to listen to their own stories, which some have recounted to me in confidence, so i wont repeat their names here. But they know this is a problem. Theyve heard from their constituents just like we have. And so we would implore them to work with us to try to help us help our constituents. Thats what i thought we were here for. Americans are ready for Health Care Reform that actually works works, and its our responsibility to do our very best to provide that to them. And thats what we intend to do. Mr. President , i yield the floor. And i note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Schumer mr. President. The presiding officer the democratic leader. Mr. Schumer i ask unanimous consent the quorum be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer mr. President , i listened to the majority leader this morning saying that obamacare was collapsing and republicans are on a rescue mission. Honestly, the gall it must take to say that after republicans and President Trump have spent all year sabotaging the marketplace, that obamacare is collapsing, theyve threatened to stop critical costsharing payments which help keep deductibles and premiums down, hurting millions of people and selling uncertainty in the sowing uncertainty in the market. Theres an easy way to fix it. Instead of crying crocodile tears republicans should guarantee the costsharing payments shall be made. Thats not just democrats saying it. Thats the insurers. Listen to the insurers. What do they want to keep premiums down and prevent them from leaving the exchanges . They want costsharing, which our republican colleagues refuse to do and then in a cynical ploy try to blame obamacare. Listen to ahip. Thats the nations largest trade group of insurers. Its nonpartisan. Its a business group. Listen to what they said about the uncertainty about costsharing payments. They said it was, quote, the singlemost destabilizing factor in the individual market. A series of Insurance Companies blue cross, blue shield, anthem have said explicitly that uncertainty caused by President Trump and republicans about cost sharing is causing them to pull out of certain markets. So this idea, this cynical ploy, after sabotaging the bill, then blaming someone else other than themselves is pitiful. The house bill, of course, was so bad trumpcare was so bad that our republican friends are trying to switch the blame to obamacare. Its not true, and it wont work. Now, mr. President , last night democrats held the floor well into the night to discuss the republican plan to pass a Health Care Bill that no one in america has seen in just two short weeks. Without holding a single Committee Hearing or robust debate on the floor, they want to bring the bill to the floor, rush it in the dark of night for a simple reason. They are ashamed of their bill. They dont want anybody to see it. Least of all, the public. Last evening i asked the majority leader if the minority would have more than ten hours to debate and amend the final bill. He replied, there will be ample opportunity to debate and amend the bill. So i asked again, will we get more than ten hours, which is the maximum the rules allow us under reconciliation. He could only reply, there will be ample time. I have a feeling the majority leader and i disagree on the definition of ample. Because ten hours of debate timf debate time on an issue this important is a sham. Its a farce. Wed have to read the bill, prepare amendments, consider its consequences all in ten hours. This is a bill that affects a sixth of our economy, millions of americans. For them, its life and death, and were supposed to rush it through. The Affordable Care act, for the sake of comparison, was debated for 25 consecutive days of Senate Session and 169 accumulative hours of debate time. And that was after a robust hearing and committee process. Yesterday the majority leader basically confirmed that we democrats might only have ten hours total. No Committee Hearings, no committee markups, no airing the bill. Ten hours of debate. Can you believe it . This is supposed to be a democracy where we debate the greatest issues of our time. Id ask another question of the majority leader, and i ask him now. I hope hell answer it. Will our ten hours of debate time be on the house bill or will they be on the new senate bill that hes crafting behind closed doors . Will he let us debate the full ten hours on the new senate bill . Hardly enough. Or is he being even more cynical and doing the ten hours of debate on the existing house bill and then putting a substitute in the senate bill theyve written behind closed doors and have no debate on that . With everything terrible thats happening, that could make it even worse. So im asking the majority leader to publicly state what his plan is in that regard. Ive never heard of a more radical or a more reckless process in my entire career in politics. Ten hours of total debate on a bill that would affect onesixth of the American Economy and millions of americans. If the senate bill, like the house bill, results in 23 million fewer americans with insurance 23 million americans losing their insurancf debate time would represent 2. 3 million americans losing their insurance. Each minute of debate time would represent 40,000 americans losing their insurance. One minute and 40,000 peoples lives are changed. 40,000 people dont have the coverage they need. It boggles the mind that the republican leader is moving forward this way, without letting anyone but members of the Republican Senate caucus see the bill. And even many of them have said they havent seen it. Theres only one possible reason why my friends on the other side are going along with this process. Only one reason they are ashamed of the bill they are writing. If they were proud of the bill, theyd announce it. They would have brass bands going down main street america saying look at our great bill. They cant even whisper with a its about, theyre so, so ashamed of it. Thats why theyre hiding it. They must be ashamed that are just like the house bill, the Senate Trumpcare bill will put insurance out of reach for millions of americans just to put another tax break into the pockets of the very, very wealthy. You know, President Trump likes to end many of his tweets with one word, almost like punctuation, sad, he also has a word to sum up trumpcare as well mean. Last week while in the white house at a lunch with republican senators, the president reportedly told them that he thought the housepassed Health Care Bill was mean. Thats what President Trump said. For once on the subject of health care, i find myself agreeing with the president. His Health Care Bill is mean. Cutting medicaid to the bone is mean. Cutting treatment for opioid abuse is mean. Cutting support for families with someone in a nursing home is mean. Allowing insurers to once again discriminate against americans with preexisting conditions is mean. Charging Older Americans five times or more for their Health Insurance is mean. Passing a law that would cause millions of americans to lose their Health Insurance in order to give a tax break to the wealthiest among us is pretty much the textbook definition of a mean bill a mean bill, and even the president thinks so. But just like the republicans in the senate President Trump doesnt want the American People to know what he really thinks of their health care plan. Thats why he said it was mean behind closed doors at the white house while in public a few weeks earlier he said, its a great plan. Very, very incredibly well crafted. Those are his words. Same bill. Same bill. Out to the public, great bill, great plan. Behind closed doors, what it really is mean. All the plaws that the president all the applause that the president gave to the the pre didnt say take up and pass the house bill. He didnt say it was a great plan or that it was very, very incredibly well crafted. He said it was mean. My republican friends ought to take this so heart. Even President Trump thinks what republicans are doing on health care is a cruelty to the American People. As we on this side of the aisle have said before, theres a better way. Republicans shouldnt feel like this mean bill cooked up in secret is their own option. Ive invited my republican friends to meet in the Old Senate Chamber to discuss a bipartisan way forward on health care. The republican leader seems to have foreclosed that option, but the invitation remains and the sentiment remains. Democrats are democrats are willing to work with our republican friends on improving our Health Care System. We have significant disagreements, sure, but republicans havent even tried to sit down with us and hash them out. Weed like to try we would like to try. But if the republicans continue down this path, ignoring the principles of transparency and the open debate that define this legislative body, we democrats will continue to do everything we can to shine a light on what our republican friends are doing. Thank you. I yield the floor, mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from idaho. Mr. Crapo i ask unanimous consent to speak for five minutes. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Crapo thank you, mr. President. I rise today in support of ms. Sigal man delker to be under secretary for terrorism and financial crimes. Members of the Banking Committee were moved by her heartfelt story of her parents escape from the holocaust. As her father proudly sat behind her, she explained to the committee how as Holocaust Survivors who narrowly avoided death, her parents raised her to never take for granted our safety, security, or freedom. It was this that motivated ms. Mandelker to Public Service where she had a successful career at the departments of justice and Homeland Security before joining the private sector. Like many americans, she was compelled to action following 9 11 and joined to serve in justices Counter Terrorism and National Security missions. It was obvious that she would be a strong leader to defend our nation against terrorism and illicit finance threats. She received bipartisan support from the Banking Committee in a 167 vote, advancing her nomination. Also, with bipartisan support, just last week the senate voted on the iran sanctions bill and our russia sanctions amendment, part of ms. Mandelkers job as undersecretary would be directly overseeing sanctions policy on iran, russia, north korea, syria, and some 25 other programs. In fact, when asked what her Top Priorities would be in assuming office, she noted that first and foremost she will focus on the areas posing the greatest threats, those being north korea, iran, isis, syria, and russia. She also affirmed that she would work closely with the Banking Committee and congress in carrying out other duties. I dont need to stress the importance of passing ms. Mandelkers nomination so treasury can carry out this important mission, especially given that the senate voted on our sanctions package was so strong. The two leaders and many senators of both parties were able to Work Together to pass this important comprehensive sanctions legislation as they will to ensure this nomination. Given her strong qualifications and bipartisan support from this committee of jurisdiction, i urge my colleagues to support her nomination. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Mr. President , i yield the floor. The presiding officer under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of the long nomination, which the clerk will report. The clerk nomination, department of Homeland Security, brock long of North Carolina to be administrator of the federal Emergency Management agency. The presiding officer under the previous order, the question occurs on the long nomination. Is there a sufficient second . There appears to be. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or wishing to change their vote . If not, the vote on the nomination is 95 yeas, 4 nays and the nomination is confirmed. Under the previous order, the motion could i have order, please. Under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table and the president will be immediately notified of the senates action. The clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. The clerk we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22, do hereby bring to a close debate on on the nomination of Sigal Mandelker to be under secretary for terrorism and financial crimes. The presiding officer can i have order, please. By unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. The question is, is it the sense of the senate that the debate on the nomination of sigal man delker of new york shall shall be brought to a close . The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rules. The clerk will call the roll. Snool vote vote the presiding officer is there any senator wishing to vote or to change their vote . If not, the ayes are 94, the nays are 5. The motion is agreed to. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from eerk. From arkansas. Mr. Cotton i ask unanimous consent that the Senate Recess from 12 30 until 2 15 p. M. For the Weekly Conference meetings and that the time during recess count postcloture. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Cotton last year, a woman named Carol Denise Richardson was released from federal prison after president obama granted her clemency. She had been serving a life sentence for possessing and intending to distribute 50 or more grams of cocaine, on top of having an lor lengthy criminal record, but she hadnt done anything specifically violent, so theoretically, we should have been able to release her early and see good results, at least according to advocates of criminal leniency. But unfortunately, nothing good has come from this decision. Now less than a year later, Carol Richardson is going back to be prison. As part of her release, she was put on a tenyear probation, which meant she had to check in regularly with her probation officers. But she didnt. She didnt tell them she had left her job. She didnt tell them she had moved. She didnt even tell them she had been arrested. Now, her latest offense, i should say, falls somewhere short of heinous. She was arrested in pasadena, texas, for stealing 60 worth of laundry detergent so she could buy drugs. From everything ive read in the news, it seems clear that Carol Richardson is not a serious violent menace to society. But its also clear that she was not prepared to reenter society. She still hadnt kicked her drug habit. She still couldnt keep and hold a steady job. She still couldnt meet the most basic requirements of citizenship and basic adulthood. But the real question is why would she be ready . Why would we expect that of her . She never went through the rehab that could have given her a Second Chance at life. Instead we threw her in the deep end and watched her sink. Thats why i think this story is worth mentioning because i believe it should give pause to every advocate of criminal leniency. They like to argue that taking people out of prison both heals communities and saves money. But who was better off once Carol Richardson was released . Not her community. She committed a crime within months. Not the taxpayers. Theyre still paying for prison costs. And heres the thing. Neither was she. Shes back in prison yet again. But sometimes the consequences are worse than this sad story. Theyre horrifying. Last year a man named Wendell Callahan brutally killed his exgirlfriend and her two young daughters. A frantic 911 call from the scene said the two girls throats had been slit. These murders were an atrocity and they were completely avoidable. Wendell callahan walked out of federal prison in august 2014 after his sentence had been reduced in accordance with the revisions to the sentencing guidelines made by the sentencing commission. Callahans original sentence should have kept him in jail until 2018. If he had been in jail instead of on the streets, a young family would be alive today. With the richardson case on one hand and the callahan case on the other hand case shows is two things. First, if were going to reform the criminal justice system, we shouldnt focus on merely reducing sentences. That doesnt do all that much to help our society. Instead, we should focus on rehabilitating people while theyre in prison, whatever the length of their sentence. They need serious help. If they can ever hope to redeem themselves and once theyre out of jail, stay out for good. And we should give them that help not only because its good for them though it is but because its good for us as a society. This is why i support real reform that will make our prisons safer for inmates and correction officers alike and take real steps to help inmates leave their lives of crime behind once and for all. The second lesson is this we need to know far more than we do about how many people we release early from prison go back to a life of crime. What types of crimes do they commit . How many murders . How many robberies . How many drug arrests . Those numbers can be small or they can be large. But we need to know them to understand the full scope of our problem. And having that information will help the president decide each case as he considers when and how to use his pardon power. But today the federal government doesnt even compile these data. That is why i, along with senators hatch, sessions and perdue, introduced a bill last year to require the government collect and report on these numbers. Unfortunately, the bill did not pass into law. So i want to announce today that i intend to reintroduce the bill with a renewed sense of urgency. This is just one story, after all. We dont know how many people granted clemency are returning to crime. But its all the more reason to start collecting more data. We need to thoroughly evaluate cold, hard evidence before we make any sweeping changes to our criminal laws. Carol richardsons story should warn us the perils of letting ideology get the better of common sense. We owe it to our neighbors to keep their families safe, and we owe it to the Carol Richardsons of the world to give them a real and honest chance at life once they complete their sentence. Mr. President , i yield the floor. Mr. Udall mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from oregon. Mr. Merkley mr. President , on may 4 of this year there was a party at the white house, a celebration, a celebration that the house had passed trumpcare. The president wanted to invite people over and say what a great job they had done and what a great bill they had passed. He called it a, quote, great plan, and he said the house plan was very, very, incredibly wellcrafted. That was may 4, a party at the white house, a celebration. But what a difference a month can make. A week ago, on tuesday, june 13, the president had another gathering, and at this gathering he said that bill from the house was mean. And he went on to use a very derogatory phrase to describe it. So what happened between may 4 and june 13 . Did the bill change in some way . Absolutely not. It had already been passed out of the house. Apparently what happened is someone explained to the president what was in it, and he said, terrible, we cant do that. Its a mean bill. And used other vivid language to say just how bad it was. What exactly what feature of the Trumpcare Bill did the president get briefed on that made him say that it was mean . It certainly is a meanspirited bill. It certainly is a hardhearted bill. It certainly is destructive to the quality of life of millions and millions of americans. So which aspect of the bill was he referring to . I asked that question to the secretary of health and Human Services, tom price, when he came to the senate for a hearing last week. I asked the secretary if he shared the president s opinion that the Trumpcare Bill was a mean bill. He didnt have an answer to that. He wouldnt say whether as a leader in the administrator on health care he shared the president s opinion. I asked whether he thought the president thought it was a meanspirited bill because it ripped health care from 23 million americans. The secretary of health care didnt answer. I asked whether it was mean because it eliminated essential Health Benefits like Emergency Care and rehabilitating services and Mental Health and Addiction Treatment and coverage, maternity coverage for women having a child. The secretary again refused to answer. And he proceeded to say things like, well, i wasnt in the meeting and that he hadnt talked to the president about why the president didnt like the bill. You would think that the secretary of health and Human Services, upon hearing that the president thought the bill he advocated for was terrible would actually go to him and say what is it you thought was so terrible . That might inform the conversations here in the senate. But he said he hadnt talked to the president about it. The secretary of health and Human Services didnt want to know why the president disliked this bill. I asked if the president thought that this was a mean bill because it has vast premium increases for Older Americans. An individual in their mid60s, prior to the age for medicare, 64 years old earning 26,500, how much would they pay under current law and how much would they pay under trumpcare . Under current law, the answer is about 140 a month. And under trumpcare from the house, the answer is 1,200 a month, an eightfold increase. How can anyone earning a little over 2,000 a month spend 1,200 a month on Health Insurance . Its an impossible situation. So, of course, those americans in that situation would not be able to buy Health Insurance, would not be able to Access Health care. Is that why the president thought it was mean . Did the president get briefed on the damage it will do to our Older Americans . Or was the president concerned about the impact on our Older Americans who need to have care in a nursing home . Is the president finally aware that medicaid pays for more than six out of ten individuals who are in a nursing home because they need a level of care that cant be provided in the home . I went and visited a nursing home over the weekend in urban oregon and then visited one in rural oregon, in klamath county. And in klamath county, they told me that almost 100 of their citizens in longterm care are paid for by medicaid. Nationally its a little more than six out of ten, but in this Rural Community almost 100 . And i thought about the residents there and what happens to them under this bill when medicaid is slashed massively and 23 million folks lose access to it. What happens to them . One woman, debra, she said, senator, medicaid pays for my bill. And if it doesnt exist for me, if its taken away, im on the street, and thats a problem because i cant walk. So picture an older american, a senior american who needs an intensive level of care that cant be provided in the home, being thrown out into the street in a wheelchair, unable to walk. And, by the way, no support structure. Because in order to qualify for medicaid to pay your bill, you have to have spent down all your own resources. So it isnt like somebody has a backup plan. Maybe if you have family members who will take them in and provide an intensive level of care, maybe a few will have friends who will take them in and provide an intensive level of care. But for the vast majority, that support structure isnt there, and that means theyre going out on the street. Is that why the president said it was mean . Was it because the bill said states can charge more, allow Insurance Companies to charge more for individuals with preexisting conditions . Thats certainly a huge problem. Community pricing has given access to everyone in america regardless of preexisting condition, insurance at the same price. But, unfortunately, trumpcare changes that. I think we need to recognize that now here in the senate, 13 senators are working to craft a Senate Version of trumpcare, and theyre terrified, terrified of the public seeing their bill. Its a vampire bill. Its afraid of the sunlight, the sunlight of public commentary, input, even a public discussion from exerts. Experts. Theyre afraid of their citizens, afraid of the expert commentary and want to hide it to the last second to try it bring it to the floor a week from thursday and try to pass it in a moments time. I was fascinated our secretary of health, after there were more than 100 hearings and round tables and walkthroughs of the Health Care Bill in 2009, after consideration of more than 300 amendments here in the senate, after more than 100 republican amendments were adopted and minority amendments were adopted, after more than 25 days of debate here on the senate floor, complained that the bill and process were not transparent. If that wasnt transparent, how do you score the transparency of a bill where theres been zero Committee Meetings, zero chance for legislators to weigh in, zero chance for public input by experts, zero chance for the citizens of the United States to see this bill and share their feelings, zero chance for us to go back to our own states and have town halls and ask for input . Well, you give it an f. Its a process completely out of sync with the responsibilities that every senator took when they took the oath of office to be a member of the legislative body. Not a secret body. A legislative body, which implies deliberation in committee and deliberation on the floor and deliberation with your constituents back home. There was a phrase for the senate, probably not merited in fact, im sure no longer merited that the senate was the worlds greatest deliberative body. But crafting legislation in secret that affects the quality of life of millions and millions of americans, with no deliberation, thats not a legislative process. Thats not what was envisioned under our constitution, our we, the people constitution. It wasnt a we, the secret group of powerful folks accommodating powerful special interests, government by and for the powerful. That wasnt the introduction to our constitution. Perhaps they might read the first three words of the constitution. Perhaps folks may look at why we have this floor to debate issues. Because that is what a system of government of, by, and for the people is all about. In my home state the elimination of Medicaid Expansion that is the Oregon Health plan expansion would throw 400,000 people off health care. Stretching that timeline from a couple of years to seven years doesnt change the fact that 400,000 people Lose Health Care. That is mean spirited. That is hard hearted. That is Terrible Health care policy. It is not just those individuals who are affected. The uncompensated care rate has dropped enormously in oregon from 15 to 5 . The result is that theres much more income to our clinics and to our hospitals. The result of that is Better Health care for everyone everyone in our rural communities, everyone in our urban communities, but nonetheless, the majority persists in wanting to destroy this improvement. Im hearing from people like elizabeth from portland to say the Oregon Health plan saved her life. Oregon health plan, medicaid, saved her light. She was in school. Her life. She was in school. She had problems that were getting worse because of stress. She didnt have a job or insurance and things were getting bad and then the Affordable Care act and it extended coverage and she was able to get on to it. Since then she has gotten her Health Problems under control, finished school and was able to get a job. In elizabeths own words, quote, im once again contributing to society ssm she said, i just society. She said, i just need a little bit of time and help and im back on my feet. Isnt it the right thing to provide Pa Foundation provide a foundation so every single american can have Quality Health care so that when they get sick it will help them get back on their feet. What is your value . Is your value that every american should have access to Affordable Access . Thats my value. Thats what im fighting for. What are you fighting for . Are you fighting to destroy medicaid medicaid is that what you are doing, making it hard, terrible, painful, for millions of americans. Is that your value . Well, if so, then keep up request this secret plan to destroy health care for millions of americans. But if you value your constituents and quality of life if you value their peace of mind, then put a stop to this abomination, this antidemocratic process. Insist insist that there is at least a month of consideration of bail so that citizens can weigh in, so experts can weigh in, so a committee can deliberate. Insist on that. We just need three members of the Majority Party to believe in the responsibility of this chamber to hold a public debate and insist that they will not vote to proceed to the bill unless we have at least a month of opportunity. Thats only oneninth of what we had in 2009, its only a fraction of the Committee Meetings, roundtables and walk thriews in 2009. It walk throughs in 2009. It would only be a fraction of the time here on the senate floor that we had in 2009. Dont you believe you should have at least a fraction of the public deliberation we had just eight years ago before jamming this through and destroying health care for millions of americans . What does peace of mind mean to you . Ill tell you what it means to my constituents. It means that when their loved one gets sick, their loved one will get the care they need. It means when their loved one gets sick, they wont go bankrupt. Thats the peace of mind were talking about. Thats the peace of mind that is so profoundly disturbed when yo have a secret Group Meeting with powerful special interests and has a bill and afraid to show it to the public of the United States of americans. I would never want to vote on such a major bill without being able to hear what my citizens in oregon think. I dont think any member of this group this senate should agree to vote on a bill vote on a bill with no deliberation and no public hearing. So we need three champions just three out of 52. It should be 52 out of 52 who insist on a quality public process. Weve heard the comments in the hallways, many members of the majority dislike the fact that theres a secret process that their majority leader is insisting on. Weve heard that they dont like it, its not right, but, you know what . Every member here has a chance to say no to this secret operation, this secret committee of 13 and the lastsecond presentation of such bail on the floor. The issue of the changes in Health Care Without public deliberation terrifies folks like deborah from hillsborough in oregon. She was diagnosed with chrons disease. She does a lot of things right. She doesnt smoke. She exercises. She follows her doctors recommended diet. Other than her regular medication, she lives a normal, healthy life. Shes looking forward to retiring in the near future with her husband. They have been working hard their whole life. They have been saving up for it. It is so close they can almost taste it, but its a dream that could be shattered by the Republican Health care plan the trumpcare plan being concocted secretly by 13 members of this body. As she says, and i quote, without affordable coverage for preexisting conditions, i cannot even switch jobs easily. If medicare is reduced or eliminated, as the g. O. P. Is trying to do, i may never be able to retire. We should not now or ever eliminate coverage for preexisting conditions or price it so no one can ever afford it. Shes worried that the changes she referred to, medicare referring to the changes in medicaid, the Oregon Health plan, will ruin her ability to retire, her ability to Access Health care. I dont know exactly what the president was briefed on that made him call trumpcare mean and then speak very derrogatory in a very derrogatory fashion about that bill from the house. I dont know exactly what he learned. I dont know if it was because he learned that folks on longterm care could lose that longterm care and medicaid pays for more on six out of ten americans who are longterm care. I dont know if it was because he learned about preexisting conditions. I dont know if it is because that it would throw 23 Million People out of the Health Care System. I dont know if he learned that if this would have devastating consequences for those in the rural areas. Whatever he meant, he was right he was right to make that transition from a month earlier when he held a celebration at the white house because this terrific, wonderful bill had been passed by the house, and when he sobered up and discovered that it was a meanspirited, hardhearted bill. But for all of these reasons, no health care should be crafted an jammed through without a liberation no significant bill affecting the lives of americans should be pushed through in this manner. Americans deserve better. They expect more from this chamber than such a secret, callous, poorly informed process. They dont like that powerful special interests are meeting with senators in those private 13 to develop a plan because here is what they heard they know that this bill gives huge tax breaks to powerful parts of the industry, that it gives huge amounts of money away to those who make medical equipment and huge amounts of money away to Insurance HealthInsurance Companies. Meanwhile, its stripping health care for millions of americans. They know also it gives a tax break a massive tax break to the richest americans. So here we are with the bill that trump has called mean, giving away the treasury to powerful special interest, meeting in private with my colleagues, giving away the treasury to the richest americans while on the other hand luring the boom to seniors, lowering the boom on struggling families, lowering the boom on those who will Lose Health Care and lowering the boom on the clinics and hospitals that provide health care for everyone. Thats what they see, special favors for the powerful, thrown in the street for working and struggling families. That is morally wrong. That is wrong from a policy point of trying to improve the quality of life of americans and its why every senator here should absolutely say no to moving to this bill on the floor without a full month at least for Committee Deliberation and for the citizens of the United States to weigh in. Thats the difference between what happens in a dictatorship with no deliberation and a democratic republic with a legislative process that values deliberation and openness. Thats the difference. Which model do my colleagues support . Lets fight for the we the people vision of our constitution and lets fight for Quality Health care for every american and lets say no to moving to any bill that hasnt had public deliberation at least a full month of deliberation in this chamber. Thank you, mr. President. I note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call mrs. Murray mr. President , i ask unanimous consent the quorum call be lifted. The presiding officer without objection. Mrs. Murray i ask unanimous consent to speak for six minutes. The presiding officer without objection. Mrs. Murray thank you. Thank you, mr. President. I want to thank all of my colleagues for their comments today on the damage trumpcare would do. Democrats, patients, families have been fighting back against trumpcare and republican efforts to jam it through congress for months. So i want to take a moment and recall some of the promises President Trump and republicans made at the very beginning of this process because there truly is a grand canyon between President Trumps promises and the Trumpcare Bill he has now admitted himself is mean. Mr. President , at the start, President Trump promised to provide insurance for everybody that was both cheaper and higher quality. When trumpcare was introduced in the house, secretary price said no one would be worse off financially, quote, under the law. And when speaker ryan was asked whether millions of people would lose their Insurance Coverage under trumpcare, he said no. Families were told again and again that trumpcare would lower costs and keep people covered, but, mr. President , as we know, trumpcare would do the exact opposite. It will raise Health Care Costs for people across the country astronomically for those with preexisting conditions and for seniors who could pay as much as 850 more in premiums. Medicaid would be gutted. Women and men would be unable to get care from the providers they trust and choose at planned parenthood. New mothers would pay as much as a thousand dollars more a month just to get maternity care. A month. Tens of millions of people would see their Health Care Coverage taken away. I could continue, and i want to be clear those facts came from the nonpartisan independent congressional budget office. But unfortunately and unsurprisingly, when trumpcare passed the house, President Trump ignored those facts and doubled down on his broken promises. He championed trumpcare, calling it the very, very well crafted. He promised to get trumpcare through the senate, predicting that it would be an unbelievable victory. And his secretary of health and Human Services even called this bill a plan that would take away Health Care Coverage from 23 Million People a victory for the American People. Which people, mr. President . Maybe President Trump. Maybe special interests who are going to get these massive tax breaks. But not the hundreds of thousands of people in Washington State who are rightly scared of trumpcare or millions more across the country. Mr. President , democrats have come to the senate floor with story after story about how our constituents would suffer under this legislation. Workers who would not be able to make ends meet between jobs without losing Health Insurance. Seniors who know they will go bankrupt if trumpcare becomes law. Moms who stay up at night worrying about whether their child with a preexisting condition would be priced out of coverage. Patients fighting for their lives who are afraid that trumpcare will kill them and who are literally begging congress not to do this. Mr. President , to these patients and families, President Trumps decision to finally admit the incredibly obvious, that trumpcare is mean, doesnt begin to cover it. To them, that bill is a gut punch. It is the bottom dropping out. It could be a death sentence, and this is especially true because as hard as Senate Republicans have tried to keep their version of trumpcare secret behind closed doors and in back rooms, as often as some have made promises just like those of President Trump and House Republicans were making to try to reassure their constituents somehow that the Senate Version of trumpcare would be somehow less mean, the truth is we know the Senate Version of trumpcare will be just as damaging. Senate Republican Leaders have already admitted that they expect their Trumpcare Bill to mirror 80 of the house. We have house conservatives writing letters to Senate Republicans, making their demands even meaner, that many Senate Republicans want. And we all have a good idea how this is going to end up. Mr. President , mean doesnt even begin to cover what trumpcare would do to my constituents in washington and to people across the country, but its a start. I havent said this often, but i hope Senate Republicans listen to President Trump. This is a man who knows about mean, from making fun of a reporter with disabilities to belittling our friend, the junior senator from florida, to even impugning the senior senator from arizona, a war hero. When President Trump says something is mean, that certainly means something. So, mr. President , i hope they think about why he had to make that comment. They realize just how hard it will be to defend this truly appalling legislation, especially after it has been jammed through congress, hidden from patients, hidden from families, without seeing the light of day, and then i hope they do what you tell preschoolers to do when they do something mean apologize and make sure to do better next time. In Senate Republicans case, that means dropping this effort to undermine Families Health care once and for all and then joining with us to continue fixing health care for the people we serve by making health care more affordable, getting more families covered and maintaining quality of care. Democrats have ideas. We are at the table. We are ready to get to work with you as soon as republicans are. It is not too late to make the right choice. The wrong choice is far more than mean. And if my republican colleagues do continue down this deeply harmful path, they should know they will own every bit of the hurt they cause, and they will be held fully accountable. Thank you, mr. President. I yield the floor. The presiding officer under the previous order, the Senate Previous order, the senate the text of their healthcare replacement proposal will be published this coming thursday following and all republican senators meeting tomorrow. You can see the senate live when the return at 2 15 p. M. Eastern. House speaker paul ryans speech on trade policy will start at about 12 45 p. M. Eastern. Were planning to bring you that live on cspan two. Until then some of last evenings speeches by democrats on Republican Health care law replacement. He madam president . The American People have spent the last several weeks hearing