Challenging time, fulfilling your purposes through them. Be exalted, o god, above the highest heaven, as you demonstrate your power to make the crooked places straight. Have mercy upon us and protect us for your unfailing love and faithfulness sustain us. Shine your glory over all the earth as we learn to trust you at all times. And, lord, we thank you that senator grassley has had another wonderful birthday. We pray in your strong 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. Grassley madam president. The presiding officer the senator from iowa. Mr. Grassley may i speak for one minute in morning business . The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley since the day i was born, ive celebrated constitution day. Thats because the 39 delegates signed the u. S. Kiewrn on constitution on september 17, which is exactly 146 years before i was born. Its a gift to share my birthday with the historic signing of our nations founding charter. The constitution lends weight to the resilience of our heritage and to the heroes who have fought to defend and protect our borders at home and from the Distant Shores around the world. On this constitution day, its my hope that americans of all ages will reflect upon the blessings of freedoms handed down from one generation to the next and protected by the United States constitution. I yield the floor. Mr. Mcconnell madam president. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell the American People deserve the federal government to spend their money in a considered deliberate fashion, and until very recently weve been on a track to conduct a smooth, regular appropriations process for this year. More than a month ago, leaders in both parties in both chambers and at both end of pennsylvania avenue all agreed to terms that had been negotiated by the speaker of the house and the president s team. It specified topline funding levels and put guardrails around the appropriations process to keep our poison pills and all of our other disagreements. So yesterday to keep us on track i began the process to advance the first set of appropriation bills. The next step is a vote tomorrow to begin consideration of a package of housepassed funding bills that Speaker Pelosi grouped together. They include several of the domestic funding bills along with the legislation to fund the department of defense. There should be no reason for democrats to vote against this first procedural step. As chairman shelby and our Committee Colleagues continue to process senate legislation, proceeding to this floor action will help keep us on track to passing as many of the 12 bills as possible this month before we turn to a temporary continuing resolution. So, madam president , its been distressing to hear troubling signals from the democratic side. We heard they may choose to filibuster the defense funding bill. They may block the very increase in defense funding that they all just agreed to a month ago. Progress on our shared priorities, goodfaith cooperation on areas of disagreement, it seems all of this may be taking a backseat to a familiar litany of partisan stumbling blocks. My democratic colleagues seem eager to block the process with all of the outstanding disagreements with the president. In other words, exactly the kind of partisan approach that we successfully avoided last year and which both sides pledged just last month just a month ago to avoid this time as well. A couple of weeks ago everyone at the table seemed to understand that the world was too dangerous to leave funding vulnerable to poison pill riders or political copouts. I wish democrats would keep bearing that in mind today. So whatever rational my colleagues across the aisle may offer for these new disruptions, lets get one thing straight, holding defense funding hostage for a political gain is a losing strategy, not only for members of this body, not only for the proap appropriations for the appropriations process but for the strength of our nation. As partisanship bogs us down here in washington, moscow and beijing are not exactly slowing down to wait for us. Our two most powerful adversaries are modernizing their forces by the day. In the Current International system, delivering on our promises to americas men and women in uniform is not a simple matter of routine maintenance on equipment. If we like the u. S. Military future to remain the worlds preeminent fighting force, then the stakes are much higher. As russia rattles its sabre and has quite sum marines, submarines, we need to have our own cuttingedge capabilities. We need to update defenses against Cyber Threats so that chinas everbolding meddling will not bring about the cyber hem gi it graves. And we cannot turn our backs in afghanistan, yemen, somalia and beyond we face ongoing terrorist threats. Irans violent aggression highlights the need for vigilance and for strength. All of this is needlessly more difficult if we dont do our job and fund the militarys modernization and readiness. So, madam president , the sakes are too high for us to fail. We cannot afford to abdicate our responsibility to deliver timely funding to the critical priorities of the federal government. Least of all to the men and women in uniform who keep us safe. So i would urge each of my colleagues to engaging in this process, honor the agreement we made just a month ago just a month ago and keep us on track to deliver for our country. The presiding officer under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. Morning business is closed. Under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. The clerk nomination, department of state, john rakolta, jr. , to be ambassador to the United States of america to the United States arab emirates. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call mr. Schumer madam president . The presiding officer the democratic leader. Mr. Schumer are we in a quorum . The presiding officer we are. Mr. Schumer i ask that the quorum be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer as negotiations continue on a continuing resolution to keep the government open past next week, we should be laying the groundwork to process the 12 Appropriations Bills for fiscal year 2020n an ideal world, republicans on the Appropriations Committee would be negotiating with democrats on the Appropriations Committee in good faith to determine allocations and the content of those bills. But republicans, unfortunately, have not chosen to do this. Theyre acting in a totally partisan way. Republicans have chosen to back the president s demand for an additional 12 billion in funding for his border wall, taken from other sources including medical research, opioid treatment, and funding intended for our military, their families, their kids. Mexico, oddly, isnt chipping in a penny. This was all done totally on the republican side, with no consultation of the democrats and certainly no buyin. So of course democrats oppose taking funds from congress for our military to use on the president s border wall. Everyone knows that. In fact, 12 Senate Republicans oppose the very same thing this year. But in typical washington blamegame fashion, the republican leader, mitch mcconnell, has been accusing democrats of threatening to block military funding because we dont want to pass a bill that steals money from the military. Thats right. Democrats are threatening are the ones threatening not vote for this bill because we oppose a republican bill that would shortchange the military. Ive heard some howlers in my day, but thats pretty rich what mcconnell is saying. Leader mcconnell constantly talks about stunts. He doesnt like stunts because they wont be signed or passed into law. This is a stunt, if ive ever seen one. Putting this bill, 12 billion for the wall, no buyin by democrats, for a vote. Itll lose. We know itll lose. Whats the point, leader mcconnell . You say you dont like stunts. You say you dont want to bring bills to the intoer that wont become law. Well this one certainly wont. The fact of the matter is, the republican leader knows well that democrats oppose taking funding away from our troops to use on the president s wall. He knows that members of his own caucus oppose taking money out of their states to spend on the president s border wall, and some have been quite vocal. And yet leader mcconnell is moving forward with the bill all the same knowing that this lacks votes. For him to say that democrats are the ones threatening to block military funding when in fact we oppose a republican bill that would shortchange the military is the height of double talk by the leader, the republican leader. Again, the republican leader is fond of reminding the press he doesnt like to engage in stunts. That the senate is for making laws, not a forum for political theater. But putting this bill on the floor of the senate that everyone knows lacks the votes is the definition of a stunt. Leader mcconnell and i mean this with all due respects it is time to negotiate. Both sides must sit down and have a serious negotiation. Democrats want to work with our republican colleagues, but we knead a willing partner and time is quickly running out to get a bipartisan ppropriations process bipartisan appropriations process back on track. After we returned from the august work period, senators on both sides of the aisle are still waiting to hear what the president proposes to combat the epidemic of gun violence in america. The president s plan will like lip not include universal background checks or even a significant expansion of background checks. If those reports are true, it would be a profound shame. Without changing the loopholes in our background check system, most other would be severely compromised. Background checks must bees base, the foundation of gun safety legislation. If background checks arent included, wed still be allowing guns to fall into the wrong hands convicted catch and release, domestic abusers, the a jude indicated mentally ill. You can have one of these emergency protection orders issued to someone, lets say mr. John smith, but if we dont close these loopholes, mr. John smith can go online the next day and gate new gun because the sell of the gun had no way there was a protection order against him. So without background checks a lot of this other stuff isnt going to do the job. Isnt going to save the most lives that we can. So i hope the president thinks long and hard before releasing a proposal that falls short of making meaningful progress, particularly on background checks. In the past, republican senators, congressmen and candidates were promised action after mass shootings, only to announce support for legislation specifically designed not to offend the n. R. A. Weve seen that before. This is a chance for the president to do Something Different and, frankly, something courage success. It would be a terrible shame, terrible shame, if he squandered that very muchneeded opportunity. If whatever the president announces this week falls short of what the American People are demanding, democrats will continue to press the issue. Later tonight ill join several of my democratic colleagues on the floor for an extended debate on the issue of gun violence. Many of my colleagues have seen their communities torn apart by gun violence. Some by horrific mass shootings. Others by a relentless daily stream. Many of them have worked for years to bring commonsense gun Safety Measures before the senate. Tonight democrats will hold the floor and bring those stories to the senate floor, the stories of families shattered by gun violence, the stories of our constituents who demand that we take action. My republican colleagues, i hope, will listen closely and, more importantly, join democrats in working to pass meaningful legislation. I yield the floor. Mr. Thune madam president . The presiding officer the senator from south dakota. Mr. Thune madam president , i spent a lot of time talking to south Dakota Farmers over the august break. This is one thing on farmers minds now. It is trade, it is markets, it is having place to sell the things we raise and sell. Farmers and ranchers have had a few rough years, low livestock prices, natural disasters and protracted trade disputes have left our agricultural economy trailing behind our economy as a whole. As farmers emphasized to me during august, one of the biggest things we can do help our agricultural economy is to implement trade agreements that benefit American Farmers and ranchers. The United States is currently involved in trade negotiations on multiple fronts, with the european union, with china, with japan, other Asian Pacific countries. Like many farmers and ranchers, i support the president s goal of addressing trade imbalances and securing more favoritable conditions for American Products abroad. But we need to conclude these agreements as long as possible. The longer they drag on, the tougher the situation is for farmers who face retaliatory tariffs. Weve had some recent successes. In august the administration announced a deal to increase u. S. Beef sales to europe. In may, the administration announced a deal with japan to remove all remaining age restrictions on u. S. Beef, giving american ranchers full access to the japanese markets for the first time in more than a decade. But thats just a tiny fraction of what needs to get done on the trade front when it comes to agriculture. And every time i speak with the president and his administration, i emphasize what south Dakota Farmers have told me we need to conclude negotiations on the various trade deals that were working on and we need do it now. We need to open new markets, expand existing ones, and give farmers and ranchers certainty about what those markets are going to look like. While were still in negotiations on a number of agreements, one deal that we dont need to wait for is the United Statesmexicocanada free trade agreement. This agreement has already been fully negotiated by our three countries and congress can take it up at any time. The agreement is a clear wing for our farmers and a clear win for our farmers and graunches. Mexico and canada with the number one and two markets. This agreement will expand access to the critical markets and give farmers certainty about p what these markets will look like long term. Aim particularly pleased with the improvements the agreement makes for u. S. Dairy producers. South dakota has experienced a massive dairy expansion over the past few years, and this agreement will benefit u. S. Dairy producers by substantially expanding Market Access in canada where u. S. Dairy sales have been restricted. The u. S. International trade commission estimates that the agreement will boost u. S. Dairy exports by more than 277 million. The agreement will also expand Market Access for u. S. Poultry and egg producers and willed make it easier for u. S. Producers to export wheat to canada. And of course while ive been talking a will the about farewells, the benefits of the agreement will not be limited to the agricultural industry. Virtually every sector of our economy will benefit from this agreement. From manufacturing to Digital Services to the auto motive industry. It will create 176,000 new u. S. Jobs, grow our economy, and wage and raise wages for workers. Madam president , republicans in the senate are ready to consider the United States, mexico, canada agreement. Were just waiting for House Democrats to stop threatening to oppose the agreement and to show a willingness to put it to an upordown vote in the house of representatives. The administration has made addressing democrats concerns a priority throughout the negotiation process and it seems to me that if you are a democrat who is unhappy with the status quo, voting for usmca is the best way to fix t i am encouraged by the fact that democrats appear to be working with the administration to reach a resolution on this agreement. And i hope, madam president , that they will continue to work with the white house to bring this agreement to a vote in the house of representatives as soon as possible. American farmers and ranchers need the United States, mexico, canada agreement. While it wont be a cureall for all the problems that are facing farm country, it will be a significant step forward. Congress should pass this agreement as soon as possible and allow farmers and ranchers and the rest of the American Economy to start realizing the benefits. Madam president , i yield the floor. Mr. Durbin madam president. The presiding officer the senator from illinois. Mr. Durbin madam president , the Disability Rights Movement is one of the great civil rights cheevment of our time. Achievement of our time and this is the movements rosa park. Marka was a visionary and inspiring leader who helped change chicago and the world when it came to the rights of the disabled, and she was my friend. Sadly she died last week in her adopted hometown of chicago at 66 years of age. In typical marca style she worked up to the few days before her death, trying to bend the arc of history a little more toward justice before she drew her last breath. I was happy to join my colleague senator duckworth in sponsoring a resolution honoring marca life work. I would like to take a moment to remember this amazing woman. While most americans have never heard of marco briso, few lives went untouched. She was a nationally and internationally acclaimed leader in the disabilities right movement. She helped to pass americas disabilities act in 1990, which outlawed discrimination of those with disabilities. She made sure that the a. D. A. Was faithfully implemented. Alon