Transcripts For CSPAN2 U.S. Senate Blocks Paul War Authority

A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from indiana. A senator is there a quorum call . I ask it be lifted. The presiding officer without objection. A senator i rise do to prevent americans from losing their jobs and shipped to other countries. I always fought to protect american works and ensure we have federal policies that benefit our workers in indiana and across the country. Mr. Donnelly in my home state of indiana, our workers are being hit particularly hard by jobs being lost and shipped out of america. Recently more than 300 workers at the carrier plant in indianapolis were laid off and hundreds more are slated to lose their jobs just days before christmas. Theyre not alone. Over 2,000 hoosier jobs have been or are scheduled to be eliminated and outsourced at nine different companies. These are more than just statistics. These are moms and dads, sisters and brothers, husbands and wiv wives. Our friends, our neighbors, folks we go to church with, men and women who get up in the dark and go home in the dark, working hard every single day to take care of those their families, to give everything they have to try to make their company a success. These men and women, as i said, work hard every single day. They make quality products. They support their families. They pay their bills. And theyre working hard to save enough to retire with dignity. And now theyre losing their jobs because those already highly profitable companies, theyd rather squeeze out that last dollar in profits by paying less to foreign workers. Ive met and spent time with hoosier workers whose jobs are being outsourced. Theyre not looking for a handout. They just want an equal shot at a level Playing Field and the opportunity to provide for their families. I met them on the sunday after the announcements were initially made at carrier. I spent time with them, talked to them. One of our young men in a military uniform of our country, standing up and serving our nation, had just been laid off with his job being shipped elsewhere. He and fellow workers have fulfilled their part of the american promise, the promise that if you work hard and you help your company succeed, youll be able to keep your job. Youll earn a decent living. Youll be able to put a roof over your familys head. You can send your kids to school and have an even greater shot at the American Dream than you and then retire with dignity. This is the basic promise of america, the promise of shared success of our workers and our companies. Its now in question. American Companies Need to live up to their part of the bargain as well. And many, many already do. As a u. S. Senator, i have a responsibility to working families, to taxpayers, and to our economy. Its critical our laws and policies encourage businesses to invest in american workers, in american communities, and to penalize those that ship jobs to Foreign Countries. Thats why earlier this year i introduced the sourcing act which is based on three principles. First, federal contracts funded by taxpayers should go to companies that employ american workers. This ensures that federal contracting policy takes into consideration whether companies have outsourced domestic jobs. Second, companies that do send jobs to Foreign Countries should forfeit tax breaks and incentives. Its fundamentally unfair that when companies leave for a foreign country, that they can then write off the moving costs involved and hand a bill to american taxpayers for the very costs of heading out the door. This legislation prohibits companies from receiving tax breaks for outsourcing jobs. Third, federal policy should encourage businesses to invest here at home, in our towns, in our cities not only in indiana but across the country. My legislation creates tax incentives for companies that relocate foreign jobs back to rural or struggling communities. We should encourage job growth in these towns, in these places. When Companies Bring jobs back home, we should support them for helping spur Economic Investment and growth. Ive spoken with President Trump about this several times, even as recently as last night, and he has been very supportive. Today im offering a simple amendment, an amendment that requires companies that are bidding for federal defense contracts to disclose in their proposals whether they have outsourced more than 50 jobs to a foreign country in the previous three years. And it allows Contracting Officers to take into consideration a companys outsourcing practices when awarding federal contracts, just like price, just like quality, just like delivery. It would be one more element so that the people of america can get the very best deal. Put simply, our tax dollars should go to companies that invest in and support american workers. If were going to effectively address the jobs going overseas, the jobs leaving our plants, the workers like the ones at carrier that were laid off, and the devastating impact on families across our country, we need to take action here. We can start with the Senate Passing my amendment. Preventing the outsourcing of these jobs and investing in our workers should be a bipartisan priority. Protecting american jobs and encouraging businesses to invest in the United States shouldnt be any controversy at all. In fact, it should be easy. Theres while theres no single solution to prevent companies from shipping jobs to Foreign Countries, Hardworking Taxpayers deserve to know our policies line up to promote American Economy, the american the American Economy and american workers. Investing in our workers, strengthening our middle class. We call that hoosier common sense. And theres a lot more wisdom in indiana and in other states than there is in washington, d. C. And in indiana this makes sense. I urge my colleagues to support the end outsourcing act when it comes up for a vote. Mr. President , i yield back. I note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call quorum call ms. Baldwin mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from wisconsin. Ms. Baldwin mr. President , i i ask that the quorum call be vitiated. The presiding officer without objection. Ms. Baldwin thank you, mr. President. I rise to speak about an amendment that ive introduced to restore buy america standards that support our workers and our National Defense. My amendment presents an opportunity to work across party lines, to strengthen our National Security and to support the hardworking men and women in wisconsin and across the country. In fact, President Trump supports exactly what my amendment seeks to achieve. In addition, the parliamentarians have confirmed that my amendment is germane postcloture. Given that the president agrees with me and the amendment is germane, i am calling on the Republican Leadership to schedule an upordown vote on my amendment so that senators have a chance to show their support for the workers who help keep america secure. Let me explain what my amendment would d the National Defense authorization act would eliminate a number of important buy america laws for certain critical Defense Components for navy ships and other defense programs. My amendment, entitled the supporting americas defense workers act, would prevent the elimination of these critical buy america protections which give preference to American Companies for government contracts funded with taxpayer dollars. It is a commonsense buy america, hire america policy that supports our domestic Industrial Base and our workers and our national and economic security. Current law requires that certain critical components like valves, air circuit breakers, machine tools, april correspondent chains, propellers, passenger buses, chemical weapons antidotes and photovoltaic devices being supplied by American Companies or certain qualified companies located in closely allied countries like canada. Section 863 of the defense bill would enact harmful sunset provisions on these current requirements, eliminating them entirely at the end of fiscal year 2018 and consequently opening up taxpayerfunded defense contracts to unfairly subsidized foreign competition and placing american jobs at risk. Opening these procurements up to foreign sources would have the additional effect of undercutting American Steel and iron producers because foreign manufacturers of these components do not use u. S. Sourced raw materials. Section 863 would weaken these sectors of the u. S. Defense Industrial Base and jeopardize the stability of companies located in states across this country and manufacturers of those components. This would in turn harm our militarys ability to rely on secure and stable sources of critical Defense Components in an increasingly dynamic Global Security environment. If domestic sources for critical Defense Components exit the market, our military could be forced into relying on countries that dont share our interests, including strategic adversaries like china or russia for parts or supplies. I want to emphasize that my amendment does not add any new requirements or preferences to defense acquisitions. Rather, it maintains the existing requirements that have worked for years to create a secure supply of critical parts for our nations defense. Again, to be clear, my amendment does not force the department of defense or individual services to do anything that they are not already doing. Indeed, d. O. D. And the services have complied with these requirements for years without complaining and without injury, and its important to note that these domestic content requirements can be waived. They can be waived for cost, they can be waived for schedule, or noncompetitive reasons. In other words, government retains the flexibility under these laws. Strengthening our defense Industrial Base should be a bipartisan issue. In fact, as i mentioned earlier, President Trump says he agrees with me. He registered his opposition to section 863 in his statement of Administration Policy which states, and i quote, the administration strongly objects to section 863. The Trump Administration goes on to say that, quote, the existing procurement requirements act as a key guarantor of a strategic supply chain security. They protect d. O. D. s ability to reliably source goods such as chemical weapons antidotes and components for naval vessels, among others, end quote. Eroding buy america requirements also runs counter to two president ial initiatives President Trumps executive order directing the pentagon to strengthen domestic Manufacturing Capabilities and his buy america, hire America Executive order to better enforce current domestic content laws. I believe that we must take steps to ensure that American Products are prioritized when american tax dollars are being spent. Domestic preferences help our Manufacturing Sector and ensure that critical products meet our high standards. This is particularly important when we are talking about Defense Products used to ensure our Service Members are safe and effective. In sum, voting for my amendment means voting not only for a creation of wellpaying american jobs but also for ensuring that the items used by our men and women in the military are of the highest quality and will continue to be available. This amendment is supported by the American Shipbuilding suppliers association, the alliance for american manufacturing. A Strong Defense Industrial Base means a strong and secure america. My amendment has the bipartisan support of President Trump, and i believe that it deserves a vote and the support of all of my colleagues in the senate. I yield back. I observe that a quorum is not present. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call yoark quorum call mr. Blumenthal mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from connecticut. Mr. Blumenthal thank you, mr. President. I ask that the quorum call be lifted. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blumenthal thank you, mr. President. I ask that by unanimous consent my defense fellow, margaret reed, be granted floor privileges for the length of the current debate on the National Defense authorization the. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blumenthal thank you. Mr. President , we have seen the chaos and confusion created by the president s decision on daca that has created a humanitarian crisis in our country. That statement may seem like an exaggeration, but for me its very clearly a statement of fact. I know it because ive seen it. I held an emergency field hearing on monday morning and listened to the stories of dreamers, young people brought to this country, many of them before they could even say their own names let alone know where they were going. And this country has given them education, a place to live, a sense of freedom, and a sense of future and future now is cut short. Theyve been threatened with deportation in just six months. Their employers, their universities, their communities have no idea whether they can stay and continue their lives productively, and importantly to them and to their communities, those work places and schools where they currently give back. They not only live and work here but they give back. Maybe most importantly theres the promise thats been made, the promise that was made to them when they came forward and they provided the United States of america with information some of the most personal information that exists about their Social Security numbers, their birth dates, their addresses, and their family. And the promise to them was that information would never be used against them and that they had a place here for the time that daca guaranteed it. That promise is now about to be broken. Great countries do not break promises. The United States is the greatest country in the history of the world. It should not be breaking promises to innocent young men and women who know only this country, speak only this language, have friends here alone and actually families here. This decision of daca threatens to tear apart families, decimate lives, and create disarray and derail futures. Were a country who is better than this decision. We are and remain a country that keeps its promises. I heard at our hearing from young men and women like carolina portilelo from brazil, brought to the United States when she was 9 and lives in connecticut for nine years. She knew didnt know that applying for a drivers license and applying to school would be out of bounds. Seven years ago she graduated from college with a degree in biology, but she was stuck. She had a diploma but couldnt use it. To fight for others like her she cofounded connecticut students for a dream. That has grown and become a formidable advocate for dreamers. When daca was adopted in 2012, it changed the lives of young people like carolina. It opened a new vista. You could get a new drivers lis and drivers license and a job. She testified she felt independent and free. She was the person she wanted to be and the person that the United States wanted her to be because she was contributing to our great nation. What we know of the dreamers is that there are many, many like carolina and like alaj andra. Alajandra was brought to the United States from mexico at age 1. Her and her family first settled in a small town in colorado and she has recounted in her testimony, difficult memories growing up undocumented. Her younger sister coming home from first grade crying because she had been bullied by other students. She was bullied because she couldnt speak english and her teachers the couldnt understand or help and she remembers her mothers anguish and pain when she heard about this bullying and her sister had encountered the same problems as she did later. When she was 11, her father was deported to mexico, her mother ran into financial problems, the threat of deportation always lingered, and she told us at this hearing about this life story, powerful and moving, but with a seemingly happy ending because she was table to go to wesleyan, one of the best colleges in the country, and major in film studies with a certificate in international relations. President trump has put a target on the backs of these young people and alajandras happy ending will be dashed. It will be a nightmare and tragedy if this order truly goes into effect. President trump has thrown this ticking time bomb into the laps of congress. It has potential real effect on real lives like alajandra and carolina and a thousand like them in connecticut 800,000 around the country people that the president has described as incredible and terrific, people whom he said he loved. So it would be the height of hypocrisy and inhumanity to deport them. It would be unprecedented to have this kind of massive rejection by this country, by plane, by boat, by car, by walking. It would be painful and shocking for america to forc