U. S. Senate while the chamber continues debate on an economic a package, negotiations are ongoing but it is possible senators could vote as early as monday on the deal. Live to the senate here on cspan2. The presiding officer the senate will come to order. The chaplain dr. Barry black will lead the senate in prayer. The chaplain let us pray. Eternal lord, you are worthy of our praise. Save us from the forces that threaten our nation and world. Lord, inspire our lawmakers even though the earth seems to tremble and the mountains seem to shake. May our senators always embrace your divine principles and live blameless lives. Give them the wisdom to labor with integrity and to seek your divine approval. Illuminate the darkness that inevitably comes and lead them to your desired destination. Empower us all almighty god, with a faith that will keep us surefooted even in slippery places. We pray in your great name. Amen. The presiding officer please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to the 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. The presiding officer the clerk will read a communication to the senate. The clerk washington d. C. , friday, march 20, 2020. To the senate under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable john kennedy, a senator from the state of louisiana, to perform the duties of the chair. Signed chuck grassley, president pro tempore. Mr. Grassley mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from iowa. Mr. Grassley i ask to speak in morning business for three minutes. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley on september 11, america was attacked by evil. Thousands of our countrymen were murdered by terrorists. In an instant the nation was gripped with fear and anxiety, and as our buildings burned, we mourned the loss of our fellow americans. But as we mourned, we also became very united as a country. We came together and stood as one against a common enemy. That unity laid foundation for our victory and helped our military men and women deliver justice to those who sought to destroy us. Now we confirm a similar challenge confront a similar challenge. Unlike the 9 11 attacks, our enemy today is faceless. We cant see it or hear that enemy. We cant send our armed forces to hunt it down and to protect it, but much like our response to the terrorist attacks nearly 20 years ago, we must unite as a country. The threat we face is perhaps the greatest since world war ii, so much like our response to the terrorist attacks 20 years ago, we will be united. Never before have we shuttered so much of our country, businesses closing, restaurants particularly, all kinds of stay at home, in other words. Never before has our society changed so much, seemingly overnight. The coronavirus issue could prove as deadly as any war in recent history, and that is why its everyones responsibility to do their part. In congress weve already passed legislation to provide emergency relief, and our job isnt done yet. Further unprecedented economic and Public Health support is on the way. What we do in washington and state capitols across our country is only one part of that solution. Its a civic duty of every community, every family, every individual to enlist in this fight. Make no mistakes. Our nation is at war. A war on our own soil. This war and this enemy arent like anything that we fought before. Our strategy and tactics will be different, but the stakes are just as high. This war wont be waged on foreign lands with tanks or guns or troops. It will be waged right here in hospitals, in Public Places and in homes and with personal responsibility, personal sacrifice, and patience on the part of our people. It is on every american to exercise these values. Do not gather in large groups. Dont hoard crucial goods. Keep your distance from those you must be near. Protect yourself and others by washing your hands, covering your cough and knees, and clean and sneeze, and cleaning commonly used surfaces. Work from home if you can. Check on your neighbors. Call your relatives. Offer to help each other, especially the most vulnerable. Were all in this together. Much as we did before, we must shed party labels and put aside partisan politics. We must ban together and hold on to our national identity, our families, and most importantly our faith. Throughout history americans have risen to the occasion when confronted with crises. Im confident this time will be no different. Its up to each and every american to fight to spread the spread of this deadly virus. Countless lives depend on it. The days and months ahead will be tough for everyone but just like postworld war ii, a safer, a healthier, and a more prosperous United States of america is just around the corner. I yield the floor. Mr. Mcconnell mr. President . The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell yesterday i introduced the coronavirus aid relief and Economic Security act. Senate republicans bold proposal to continue combating this Health Crisis and the economic crisis it is causing. And i called on our democratic counterparts to join us immediately at the table for urgent discussions so that the senate can deliver major relief to the American People as soon as humanly possible. Im glad to say that talks are already well under way. Earlier this morning, a number of our Committee Chairmen began indepth bipartisan talks with their democratic counterparts. We were joined by representatives from the administration and those talks continue right now as we speak. Here are the next steps. These memberlevel discussions will proceed with the goal of reaching agreements on each of four components of the legislation by the end of today. By the end of the day, agreements on each of these four components. This would allow the first procedural vote to occur before the end of the day tomorrow. And that would allow a bipartisan package focused on immediate challenges to pass the senate monday. The nation needs and expectations are perfectly clear. Workers, families, Small Businesses, and the foundations of our economy itself need swift action. And in the senate swift means bipartisan. The senate rose to the occasion earlier this month. We united across party lines to pass billions in quick funding to support the medical response. And we did it again just this week. We passed the more modest proposal that came over from the Democratic House quickly and in a bipartisan fashion. Now our nation needs a major next step, and we need it fast. Thats why Senate Republicans produced a bold initial proposal to give shape and structure to these discussions. First, our cares act would deliver direct financial help as quickly as possible to the American People. Senate republicans want to put cash in americans hands. For americans whove lost work, this would be the quickest possible first wave of government assistance to supplement Unemployment Insurance and help with bills and immediate needs. For our nations seniors, this would supplement Social Security and provide further relief for those who are at heightened risk and have had to change their routines literally overnight. And for Americans Still working, this infusion of money would provide a little more certainty in this very uncertain moment. And the opportunity to invest in local economies where possible. Second, our proposal would provide the quickest possible access to desperately needed liquidity for Small Businesses all across our country. Our proposal would use existing channels and Small Business existing lending relationships to provide hundreds of billions of dollars in emergency capital. A significant cash infusion as fast as possible so that more Small Businesses can hold on to their workers, weather this disruption, and come out on the other side instead of having to resort to layoffs or shutdowns right away. No tangled new bureaucracies, no delaying this urgent aid while we try to redesign complex programs from the ground up. Just the most direct path, the most direct path to the cash that Small Businesses need to keep making payroll while in many cases the government itself is chasing away their customers for the sake of Public Health. This straightforward approach is already earning support. A coalition of Small Business advocates has already written to express their hope that, quote, both republicans and democrats can come together to pass this. Third, our bill recognizes that big structural National Crisis requires a big structural response. Let me say that again. Our bill recognizes that a big structural National Crisis requires a big structural response. We want to empower the Treasury Department to engage in targeted lending, not bailouts but loans to key sectors and industries which this pandemic is hurting. Again we want to preserve employeremployee relationships wherever we can. We have to fight to protect jobs and we need to recognize that our nation will need industries to come back online quickly on the other side of the crisis. Fourth, and this is crucial, our legislation will continue to push surged resources to the front lines of the medical battle against the virus itself. We want to expand access to testing and treatment to further encourage and speed up research on therapeutics and eventually vaccines. To continue to fund the hospitals and Health Centers that are treating patients and we want to expand Health Care Workers access to critical equipment and supplies, including including respirator masks. These are the four big things our bill seeks to do. As we speak at this very moment, senators on both sides are discussing the details and exchanging suggestions on all four of the pillars that ive just outlined. So once again, mr. President , this will not be the first bill we pass to combat this crisis or the second. And i do not expect it will be the last. This legislation does not need to contain every piece of Ongoing National effort. In fact, that would be impossible. But everyone everyone from Public Health experts to economists to working families of this country, everyone has made it clear we need to deliver relief and we need to deliver it now. We need to go big. We need to minimize new complexity. And we need to move swiftly. We need to push immediate relief to americans. We need to keep americans employed as much as possible and help job creators literally stay afloat. And we need to continue taking action to stand with medical professionals and protect our nations health. Laidoff workers cannot wait. Struggling main street businesses cannot wait. Our hospitals and Health Centers cannot wait. So as i said, i hope these memberlevel discussions will be able to produce agreements in principle on all four components by the end of the day today. In fact, they must Reach Agreement by the end of the day today. That would leave tomorrow for drafting legislative text and for the first procedural vote. And that should allow a bipartisan package focused on immediate challenges to pass the senate on monday. The crisis is moving fast. The senate is here. We are working, and we are going to deliver. The presiding officer under the previous order, leadership time is reserved. Under the previous order, the senate will be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. A senator mr. President. Mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from wyoming. Mr. Enzi thank you, mr. President. I want to oasht myself with the remarks i want to associate myself with the remarks of the leader and thank him for the task forces who pulled together, who are now working across the aisle to come up with this package that we should be able to start working on today or tomorrow. I appreciate his comments that were going to work through the weekend. This is unusual for the senate and for the house. But the senate is here, the senate is working, and were trying to come up with solutions that will keep america moving. I particularly want to talk about one piece of the package because ive been getting calls from Small Businesses. Small businesses that are saying weve been shut down. Weve been told that we cant do anything with our business right now. Thats not all businesses. I do know the Grocery Stores are doing very well, probably having their best year ever. That will tail off a little later in the year when people are oversupplied, but right now Grocery Stores are probably doing well. Every other part of the economy is doing poorly, whether its restaurants or shoe stores or i think i saw where they even got permission now to deliver liquor. Before you had to buy it from the store. You couldnt get it delivered to your house. As a concession of the definitey were having to keep from shutting down every business, that concession has been made in some places now. But my point is that Small Business employs most of the people in this country, and Small Business is the one thats having difficulty right now. Big businesses always have a little bit of leeway, a little bit more of a forward plan. And because of their size, they have more flexibility. A Small Business does not have that. And whats been brought to my attention this last week are people who have payroll coming up, and they said now weve been kind of shut down shut down by the government they like to say, but its shut down by the virus actually. The virus is whats creating this panic, and in order to keep people well weve suggested all these Different Things that people ought to be doing, and i hope theyre following that. But for Small Business, this is disastrous. If theyre not selling anything, theyve got no cash to pay their employees. If theyre not selling anything, they dont need the employees. If they dont need the employees and they fire the employees, then they go to unemployment, and the unemployment lines are long. Thats not where we want people. We want people, particularly ones that are trained for a particular job, to be available for that job the minute that job is available again. And one of these packages takes care of that situation. One package will provide for loans to Small Businesses provided they keep their people on. Now remember, these people arent producing anything, so theres no revenue coming in to pay that loan off. It also provides, provided they keep their employees and when the thing is over, they still have their employees, the payroll part of that and any immediate thing there are other things they absolutely have to pay. They have to pay their rent, or if somebody else has a financial problem. They have to pay for the electricity, the heat, and all the regular things a business has to pay for besides employees. But provided theyve kept those employees on, those direct costs will be forgiven. So thats encouragement for every Small Business out there to relax a little bit. I always say that the definition of a Small Business is when the owner wakes up in the middle of the night and says tomorrows payroll. How am i going to make payroll . And believe you me, that happens to those Small Business men out there. You have a bad week, so who doesnt get paid . The owner doesnt get paid. Hes got to pay those people and he does pay those people because he wants those people around. And thats the crisis that were facing. How do we keep those people around so that when the business comes back, theyre available. The business can go forward as it did in the past, and this package will do that. I only wish that there was some way we could do it faster than monday. Dont hold your breath, monday is you know, were talking about congress. That doesnt mean things will get done by monday. They ought to be done today. But monday looks like the earliest possible time that they can get done. So the message that im giving is Small Business men, hang on. Hang on a little bit longer. If this passes, you will be able to keep your employees. Their employees will be paid. Thats important. Thats the way to get money out into the economy pay employees. And let them keep their Health Insurance that way. If they go into unemployment, they lose their Health Insurance. We dont want that to happen either. So this is a solution that needs to happen right away for the employees as well as the employers who i had a call from one this week that said ive got to declare bankruptcy. If you do something, will i not be eligible because i declared bankruptcy . Its a reorganization bankruptcy, but i need to reorganize so i can find the cash to pay my employees. Im pretty sure that the bill has a stipulation in it that if you declare bankruptcy after march 1 that youll be eligible for this plan. And be able to keep your business going. Not in a comfortable situation because none of us know when this is all going to be over. None of us know what the residual effects are going to be on the Business World. But we do need to have a vibrant Business World out there providing for the needs of people. Weve really become reliant on others. Hardly any of us produce our own food anymore. Hardly any of