Nomination for the director of office of management and budget. Live coverage. Senate here on cspan2. The president pro tempore the senate will come to order. The chaplain, dr. Barry black, will lead the senate in prayer. The chaplain let us pray. O god of light, as we approach independence day, we thank you for giving us the gift of true freedom. You have blessed us with freedom from sin, guilt, and shame. You have redeemed us. You have also given us freedom from fear, providing us with peace in the midst of the storms. Today, please guide our lawmakers so that they will fulfill your purposes as they face the challenges of these times. Lord, awaken them to your inescapable presence. Keep them from thinking that you are absent from our world or disinterested in it. Enable them to feel you in their midst, as they grapple with the problems of our time. We pray in your strong name. Amen. The president pro tempore please join me in the pledge. 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 mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from iowa is recognized. Mr. Grassley one minute for morning business. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley the department of defense is the only agency that cant get a clean audit. Sometime around 1990 there was an audit law passed directing departments to get to a point where they could get a clean audit. D. O. D. Is still the only one that hasnt. Sometime around 2010, i believe, we laid down a requirement that the clean audit data ought to be met by 2017. Well, that wasnt met. So for decades d. O. D. Has been saying that theyre almost there. Now they say it will be at least another five years before a clean opinion can be reached. One reason why they havent been able to do that is the outdated mess of hundreds of Financial Management systems. Yet the department of defense still wants to spend almost 200 million on an annual audit. I urge my colleagues to support my amendment to pause the audit effort that is doomed to fail anyway and instead invest that 200 million in updating the department of defense Financial Management system because, until they get the Financial Management systems right, d. O. D. Will never be capable of having a clean audit. I yield. Mr. Mcconnell mr. President . The presiding officer the majority leader is recognized. Mr. Mcconnell before i discuss the legislation before the senate, i need to spend a moment on something broader. Our country needs to confront the democratic partys willingness to threaten our governing institutions themselves. Earlier this year as the senate disposed of the least fair, least thorough, and most rushed impeachment in modern history, i offered a broader warning. I said leaders in the opposite party increasing slay argue that if our increasingly argue that if our institutions dont produce the outcomes they like, our institutions themselves must be broken. No longer do disappointments for democrats mean that democrats need better arguments. Now disappointments for democrats are claimed as proof proof that our country is fundamentally broken or that James Madison messed something up. So while we have farleft mobs attacking statues of our Founding Fathers from coast to coast, we have farleft politicians attacking the institutions those founders left us. Now, step back and look at the landscape of fundamental changes that leading democrats or their close allies are demanding. Amending the First Amendment to restrict its protections, ending the electoral college, packing the Supreme Court with new justices, packing the senate with new states. And to accomplish all this, destroying the senates distinguishing feature that makes radical change hard by design. We have an entire Political Movement that is telling us literally outloud that theyve lost patience with playing by the rules and may well declare war on the rule book itself. A coalition of leftwing special interests are explicitly campaigning for, quote, 51 for 51. They want senators to vandalize the rules to pass legislation with a simple majority and then use that illgotten power to cement a presumed advantage by awarding the district of columbia two senate seats. They want to nuke the senate to pack the senate. This, mr. President , is naked politics. No neutral principle could explain why all these special interests prior prioritized its cause why want the nations 20th most populous city to get two senators to itself while the retroceding with maryland would satisfy their claims more clearly. Why House Democrats wasted floor time on a potentially unconstitutional show vote. Just days after democrats used the filibuster power to block senator scotts Police Reform bill, even colleagues who recently defended this important tradition have now bowed to the pressure to flirt with ending it. On a similar note, mr. President , you may remember that a kind of naked intimidation without modern precedent in modern memory took place a few months ago. The democratic leader stood by the steps of the Supreme Court and directly threatened justices if they ruled the wrong way in the june medical services case. This display aligned with a whole new tradition of Senate Democrats threatening judges. A year ago several wrote justices saying, quote, the court is not well and perhaps the court can heal itself before the public demands it be restructured. In other words, nice Judicial Independence youve got there. It would be a shame if something happened to it. Right on queue, a number of left wing groups are advocating to revive the discredited notion of courtpacking. Now following the Democratic Leaders dismakers the court ruled the way he wanted on that way case. They handed it down on monday of this week. Our colleague took to the floor cracking jokes, giddy giddy he had gotten his way. But just moments later the democratic leader picked right up where he left off impugning and pressuring one justice whose vote he disliked. So, us seekers mr. President , the so you see, mr. President , the accusations of i will legitimacy never end. No amount of rulings the democrats like will never be enough. The respect for an independent judiciary is simply not there. This is about outcomes, not institutionsment. And theres no limit to how far the left the goalpost will move. Well, the subject is not going away. But for today ill leave it there. This weekend, july 4, americans will celebrate our founding. Well celebrate the framers and their traditions and the institutions that they left us. We cannot let radicals tear down their likenesses or their legacies. We must preserve the gunfights and the institutions we celebrate so our grandchildren and their grandchildren can celebrate them as well. Now, mr. President , on an entirely different matter, the Senate Continues to consider the National Defense authorization act. I understand were close to a bipartisan structure for amendments and if our democratic colleagues will let us, i hope we can move forward today. All week ive discussed how this 60th consecutive ndaa will help our nation protect its people, stand with our allies, and keep pace with outer competitors. This legislation has global reach. But as all my colleagues know, the ndaa is also a profoundly local bill for communities in all 50 states. My home state is proud to support three Army Installations and the men and women of the kentucky air and Army National guard. Last fall i hosted defense secretary mark esper in kentucky to speak with the fort knox community. He called for a renewed commitment to supporting our allvolunteer force, including military spouses and their families. The ndaa advances that goal. It will authorize a New Elementary School at fort knox. This construction, paired with progress toward a new middle school at fort campbell, will continue making kentuckys installations a welcoming roam for military families. Home for military families. This comes on the heels of the new fifth corps headquarters. This mission brings more than 600 additional soldiers to kentucky in support of u. S. Operations over in europe. Theyll join fort knoxs already impressive list of significant commands, including the army recruiting, cadet, and Human Resources commands. The fifth corps will find a premier installation made even better by this ndaa. Our bill also authorizes the construction of a new headquarters for the Kentucky National guard. The facility will consolidate the guards operation to a central location. Just recently our citizens, soldiers, and airmen have stepped up to combat covid19. Im glad this legislation will deliver for them. At the Bluegrass Army depot, the ndaa will advance the disposal of legacy chemical weapons. Families in Madison County have lived for generations with these deadly agents practically in their backyards. For years i fought alongside them to support safe and responsible demilitarization. In just the in first year of chemical destruction activities, the depot has already completed a campaign ahead of schedule. An entire type of munition that be completely deleted from the u. S. Stockpile. Our legislation will help us safely consign more of these weapons to the ash heap of history. Now, ive also spoken this week about the growing boldness of our nations adversaries and the evolving threats our Service Members face. The men and women of fort campbell, including the 101st airborne, are among our nations among those our nation turns to first to handle serious challenges. Their recent deployments to europe, afghanistan and to support the covid19 response in new york and new jersey show their importance to our country. Pursuant to the National Defense strategy, this ndaa will encourage new capabilities so elite fighting forces like the 101st are equipped for success under any circumstances. The senate is grateful for the Courageous Service of our armed forces. The Bipartisan Legislation before us honors their sacrifices and authorizes the resources to carry out their missions. Its impact will not be just felt by our adversaries overseas bus by us at home. I would like to thank senator inhofe and Ranking Member reed for their serious work. Lets get this bill moving towards completion. 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, executive office of the president , Russell Vought of virginia to be director of the office of management and budget. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Schumer mr. President. The presiding officer the minority leader is recognized. Mr. Schumer i ask unanimous consent the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer now, mr. President , two numbers sum up the state of america today. Sorry. Two numbers sum up the state of america today. 52,788, the number of confirmed covid19 cases yesterday. And 1. 4 million, the number of unemployment claims filed this week. In the next few months these numbers will be far more important than the job numbers released this morning in determining the longterm health of our economy and the health of this country. The the statistics i mentioned would be harrowing during february, march, april, or may, during the initial surge and rapid spread of the disease. They would have been distressing even then, but here at the beginning of july, six months into the crisis, long after other countries have experienced a rapid decline of covid19, it is stocking that the United States is hitting ever grimmer milestones. There is no doubt that much of the responsibility for this debacle, the covid debacle falls on the shoulders of President Trump who failed to prepare our nation for the initial surge, failed to organize a National Supply chain of p. P. E. , failed to develop a National Strategy for testing and contact tracing, failed to even communicate the depth of the challenge our country faces. Much of this still proves true today. The Washington Post reported this morning that arizona, which has experienced a huge surge in cases, still doesnt have the testing supplies they need because of a National Supply chain failure. Even after 2. 6 million infections and 120,000 american fatalities, the president said yesterday, quote, i think were going to be very good with the coronavirus. I think at some point that its going to sort of just disappear. Can you imagine the bubble this man is in . Only concerned about scratching and stroking his own ego and not about whats going on in the country, so he can just dismiss the seriousness of this, the most Serious Health and economic crisis weve had in decades. Its amazing. So that was what President Trump said yesterday, were going to be very good with the coronavirus, on the same day the United States reported the most new cases of the coronavirus in a single day ever. The president is so eager to declare victory and pat himself on the back and then move on that hes ignoring reality completely. The june jobs report showed modest growth, but we know that conditions have worsened since the survey was completed in the middle of the month. Experts now believe that as much as 10 of the workforce has lost their job permanently. Americans of color counting for a disproportionate share. Again, in terms of the longterm health of the economy, the most concerning and important number is the number of new covid cases. The number of covid cases Health Related is the number one effect on the longterm health of the economy. President trump seems oblivious to that fact that almost everyone who has studied this issue knows. The president s own c. D. C. Director says the number of cases may be ten times higher than reported. Imagine that. We could have 26 Million People infected and likely many, many more to come, but the president assumes that the coronavirus and the economy will just take care of itself. If President Trump reacts to the jobs report like he has reacted to covid and says were in the clear, we dont have to do anything, well soon be in even worse trouble than we are today. Here in the senate, the republican majority has been out to lunch since we passed the cares act way back in march. Its been over three months since the Republican Senate has considered major covid relief legislation. Weekly unemployment claims are measured in the millions. States are shedding Public Service jobs in the tens of thousands. The number of new cases is accelerating in nearly half our states. Still, the republican majority in the words of its majority leader has yet to feel the urgency of acting. Still, the republican leader says we must, quote, assess the conditions in the country before providing relief to our citizens. Just how much more assessment do we need when we remember those two numbers . 52,000 new cases, 1. 4 Million People applying for unemployment. Every day this week, Senate Democrats have come to the floor to plead with our colleagues to take up legislation, to help millions of American Workers and Small Businesses that are struggling right now. Every day this week, Senate Republicans have blocked our requests. Rental assistance blocked. Food assistance blocked. Moratorium on evictions blocked. Resources for schools and nursing homes, state and local governments, Indian Country and elections, blocked, blocked, blocked, blocked, and blocked. Just how long, just how long will this Republican Senate majority prevent the American People from getting the aid they so desperately need . Now republicans are saying we have to do another bill before august. Im glad they are finally talking seriously about a fourth phase of coronavirus legislation, although the need has been obvious for months. But the republican leader at the moment insists that the next bill will, quote, be written in his office. Written in his office . Thats the same oneparty, take it or leave it partisan approach that delayed the cares act and utterly failed on policing reform. Leader mcconnell likes to remind us we need to make a law, not a point. Well, to make a law, leader, you need both parties, you need both chambers of commerce, and you need chambers of congress, and you need the signature of the president. Starting the next phase of covid legislation in the Majority Leaders Office is exactly what you do if you wanted to make a point, not a law. The house of representatives already has a bill that it has passed. It needs to be part of the equation here. In order to make a law, both parties in both chambers should have a seat at the table. Thats how we got the las