Congressional coverage here to you can watch that online at cspan. Org. We will take you live now to the senate for where lawmakers will see about extending federal spending past october 30. The chaplain let us pray. Eternal god, sovereign, source of wisdom, hear our prayers. Listen as we lift our hearts to you in our times of distress, answer us quickly. Strengthen our lawmakers. Keep them restless until they find rest in you. Keep them dissatisfied until they find their satisfaction in you. Lord, give them the wisdom to make wise choices that will glorify your name. Help them to keep their hearts and minds responsive to you, enabling them to help make a better nation and world. Remind them that you keep a protective eye on the godly so that they may be surrounded with the shield of your divine favor. May our senators, with faith, expect you to provide them with strength for each task. We pray in your great name. Amen. The president pro tempore please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance. 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 is recognized. Mr. Grassley one minute for morning business. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley i have been working for decades to establish a memorial on the National Mall to those black revolutionary war patriots who fought for the founding of our country. Were close to achieving that goal, which is needed now more than ever. The rationale for the memorial was summarized in congressional testimony in 1985 by its founder, maurice barbosa. Quote, the patriots memorial would serve an educational purpose in that it would remind americans of the rich and meaningful contributions of blacks to the birth of america. It would illuminate the past so that the present generation would better understand the nations history. In that sense, it would serve a retrospective purpose. The patriots memorial would serve a prospective purpose by helping future generations of americans understand what it is that binds us as a nation, end of quote. He then quoted, then representative nancy l. Johnson of the memorials chief proponent in the house of representatives and i quote her and will end with this quote identified by simple physical, ethnic, racial, or religious characteristics. Even our Cultural Heritage is best defined by its rich diversity. What ties us together as a nation is our commitment to individual freedom and to maintain the rights and privileges guaranteed by the constitution to ensure the per pettuation per pettuation of our freedom, end of quote. I yield the floor. Mr. Mcconnell mr. President. The presiding officer the married is recognized. Mr. Mcconnell on saturday evening, President Trump announced his nominee for the Supreme Court, judge Amy Coney Barrett of the u. S. Court of appeals for the seventh circuit. I had the opportunity to meet with judge barrett earlier today. I left our discussion even more convinced that President Trump has nominated exactly the kind of outstanding person whom the American People deserve to have on their highest court. Americans deserve brilliant judges with firstrate legal minds. Judge barrett is that and then some. She attended Notre Dame Law School on full scholarship, graduated number one in her class, and was executive editor of the law review. She secured topflight clerkships on the d. C. Circuit and the Supreme Court, and after a few years in private practice, she returned to academia and built a National Reputation as an awardwinning professor and legal scholar. Judge barrett is brilliant. Americans also deserve judges who are committed to fairness and impartiality to following the facts in every case. They deserve judges who understand that their job is to interpret the text of our laws and constitution as they are written, not as the judge might personally wish they had been written differently. Again, judge barrett passes with flying colors. Her three years of rulings on the seventh circuit are the record of a judge who sets out to do impartial justice under law. Nothing more and nothing less. This nominee could not be more fully qualified to serve on the Supreme Court. Harvard law professor nora feldman is a fierce critic of President Trump. He was one of House Democrats star witnesses in their impeachment. He has known judge barrett professionally for more than 20 years. Despite some philosophical differences, he went out of his way, out of his way this past weekend to write that she is, quote, highly qualified to serve on the Supreme Court. Here is what professor feldman wrote. I know her to be a brilliant and conscientious lawyer who will analyze and decide cases in good faith, applying the juris prudential principles to she is committed. Those are the basic criteria for being a good justice. Barrett meets and exceeds them. And if you believe in an ideal judicial temperament, professor feldman went on, then rest assured barrett has it. Its the same story from everyone, everyone who knows judge barrett well. The dean of the Notre Dame Law School says she is, quote, an absolutely brilliant legal scholar and jurist and one of the most popular teachers we have ever had here. One of her faculty colleagues said, quote, she is a principled, careful judge, admired legal scholar, and amazing teacher. Six young women who studied under nowjudge barrett say she drilled into them the necessity of setting personal beliefs aside when evaluating the answer to a legal question. These objective qskses and credentials are what matter most. Judge barrett deserves to be judged by her record. But a few more things barrett noticed. As our nation continues to honor the trailblazing life of the late justice ginsburg, it seems fitting that President Trump has nominated another brilliant woman who has climbed to the very top of the legal field. Young women who know judge barrett well describe her as not just an excellent teacher but a gracious mentor and an inspiring example of female leadership. And as the only congressional leader not from new york or california, i applaud the president s decision to look to the heartland. If confirmed, judge barrett would be the only Current Supreme Court justice with a law degree from anywhere besides harvard or yale. From anywhere besides harvard or yale. Id say this nominee would bring welcome diversity on multiple fronts. As i predicted last week, the far left is rushing to make this nomination about anything but, anything but judge barretts qualifications. The instant, the instant she was announced, they started with the same unhinged attacks they have recycled for every Supreme Court nomination by every republican president since the 1970s. Remember the far left said Justice Stevens opposed womens rights, that Justice Kennedy would be a disaster for women, that Justice Souter would put the health and lives of americans at risk. Well, saturday went like clock work. The political left took one more look at judge barretts qualifications, gave up on debating the merits, and headed right, right at the same old scare tactics. Our colleague, the democratic leader, informed americans that this 48yearold working mother was going to turn back the clock on womens rights. This 48yearold working mother is going to turn back the clock on womens rights, so said the democratic leader. The junior senator from california said the nominee would harm millions of americans. The junior senator from connecticut said, quote, Amy Coney Barrett would create a humanitarian catastrophe. Well, here we go again. Here we go again. One of the preselected scare tactics is that judge barrett is out to steal Americans Health care coverage. Thats the claim. This mother of seven, including multiple children who were born or adopted facing preexisting condition medical challenges, is just itching to block families like hers from accessing medical care. What a joke. What a joke. When Senate Democrats are trying to attack chief Justice John Roberts long before obamacare even existed, they claimed he had sought to put millions of American Consumers and families at risk of losing coverage. They have been recycling these same attacks since before they even passed a law they now say they are worried about. On this occasion, their entire argument seems to come down to a Technical Analysis judge barrett put forward in a 4yearold academic paper about one part, one part of obamacare which congress has already zeroed out in the meantime. Let me just say that again. The entire argument seems to come down to a Technical Analysis that judge barrett put forward in a 4yearold academic paper about one part, just one part of obamacare, which congress has already zeroed out in the meantime. These hysterical claims collapse under the slightest examination, but sadly they are just beginning. 3 years ago, Senate Democrats bizarre attacks on judge barretts religious faith became a National Embarrassment for their side of the aisle. The senior senator from illinois asked nowjudge barrett do you consider yourself an orthodox catholic . This was actually during a United States Senate Hearing . The senior senator from california told her that, quote, the dogma lives loudly within you, and thats of concern . This was not, mr. President , regretfully an isolated incident. Over the past few years, multiple, multiple Senate Democrats on multiple different occasions have openly suggested that certain kinds of religious beliefs might disqualify citizens from public service. In 2017, the junior senator from vermont, senator sanders, told an executive Branch Nominee that he had made an indefensible, hateful, islamaphobic statement because he had articulated a personal belief that christianity gets things right which islam gets wrong. In 2018, the junior senator from california, who is now asking for americas votes to be Vice President , attacked a different nominee for participating in the knights of columbus. The knights of columbus . This is a massive, massive noncontroversial catholic Mens Association that is known for things like shoveling snow off church sidewalks and hosting pancake breakfasts. Were you aware that the knights of columbus opposed a womans right to choose, senator harris asked, as though it were remotely controversial that a famous Catholic Organization would subscribe to catholic teaching on the right to life . The junior senator for hawaii suggested this nominee would need to quit the organization, quit the knights of columbus to serve as a judge. Youd think the National Backlash to all of this would have taught the political left a lesson, but heres what happened in just the past few days. The associated press, reuters, politico, newsweek, and the Washington Post have all already run major stories on the barrett familys private faith practices, each strongly implied there might be something worrisome or disqualifying if a federal judge were a faithful christian with strong ties to spiritual groups. Politicos contributing editor literally went and period and peered around the physical grounds of a religious facility in south bend so he could report what the youth group had written on their white board. Less than 72 hours in. This is where we are. The elite class is already treating americans of faith like exotic animals on display in a menagerie. Look, i understand the far left had committed to opposing this nominee before she was even named. I understand some politicians had decided to oppose judge barrett before they had even considered her record. But every time, every time they choose to use the nominees personal faith as a political weapon, they will only be reminding millions of americans why it is so essential to have judges just like judge barrett on the bench. Mr. President , in this country, our country, citizens have religious liberty. In this country, our country, there is no religious test for public office. In this country, our country, we have the right to seek the protection of the courts when our free exercise of religion is threatened. That is why we need judges like judge barrett who understand our laws and constitution and will uphold our freedoms accordingly. If the reflexive opponents of judge barretts nomination want to argue otherwise, they will only be proving how much better she understands our constitution than they did. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call mr. Grassley mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from iowa. Mr. Grassley i ask that the calling of the quorum is suspended. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley last week, senator johnson and i released our report about our investigation into potential conflicts of interest with respect to ukraine policy during the Obama Administration. My democratic colleagues have attacked this investigation with unsupported and inaccurate allegations that this investigation is rooted in a foreignsourced influence campaign. Theyve asserted that our oversight activities relating to the Obama Administration are advancing a Russian Disinformation Campaign and have implied that were, quote, wielding that disinformation as a political cudgel. End of quote. Now, nothing could be further from the truth. So i want to explain. My democratic colleagues have publicly insinuated that i received records from a Ukrainian National andrii derakach who has taken influence and enterer to interfere in the election. I have praised the Treasury Department for sanctioning derkach. Ive neither received nor solicited information from derkach. Now, this is probably the third time ive come to the floor of the senate to say this and yet you still keep getting these accusations from my friends on the other side of the aisle. Now, the democrats know that we have neither received this information. Yet they refuse to stop repea repeating their faults their false insi insinuations. And those false insinuations have resulted in russianbased media repeating the democrat disinformation which is exhibit a why the democrats should have never created that false narrative in the first place. In fact, during the course of this investigation, the minority, not the majority of the committee, introduced derkachs disinformation into the committee record. Foreign election interference should have no corner in this country and we must do everything to stop that interference. If only the democrats felt the same about the steele dossier which is a very definition of russian disinformation and election interference. Our investigation is based upon Obama Administration government records and records from a democrat lobby shop blue star strategy. They arent based on any information that we received from a fellow by the name of derkach. So if my democrat colleagues think that those records amount to russian disinformation, then that says more about the previous Obama Administration than it does about the johnsongrassley inquiry. Do you think my democratic colleagues would have attacked an investigation involving donald trump . Donald trump, jr. . Remember, i interviewed the president s son years ago as part of my russian investigati investigation. I didnt hear any complaints about my investigative work at that time. Funny how this has played out, right . My democratic colleagues have jammed up document production, from Government Agencies and engaged in questionable political media efforts. We would have been done with this investigation a long time ago if all that opposition hadnt occurred, but here we are and now the American People can see our work and judge our work for themselves. Id like to remind my democratic colleagues that the first step in this investigation was a letter that i wrote on august 14, 2019. That letter was about an obamaera committee on Foreign Investment in a United States transaction. That transaction gave control over an American Company that made antivibration technologies with military applications to a chinese governmentowned Aviation Company and chinesebased Investment Firm with established ties to the communist chinese government. Reports indicated that a firm formed by hunter biden and chris heinz, the stepson of john kerry, later partnered with a chinesebased firm to purchase the American Company. Also at that time, joe biden was Vice President and john kerry, secretary of state. The state department is an approvable agency on the committee of Foreign Investment. Clearly, this transaction presented conflicts of interest and thats exactly why i wrote the letter of august 2019 to the Treasury Department. My democratic colleagues like to say that we started this investigation as a result of the trump impeachment. Well, the last time i checked, august 14, 2019, was well before the impeachment investigation began. That letter was also sent before congress was notified of the ukrainianrelated whistleblower complaint and before it was made public. No matter how hard the democra s tried to say otherwise, this investigation is rooted in nothing but simply Good Government oversight. That is exactly the type of investigations ive run my entire senate career. Then after the august 2019 letter, news reporting picked up the pace about Hunter Bidens association with burisma, the corrupt ukrainian company, and the fact that his father was in charge of the Obama Administrations anticorruption policy for ukraine. Now, just think about that for a second. Vice President Biden was responsible for carrying an anticorruption message to ukraine on behalf of the United States government. At the same time, his son was making millions of dollars working on the board of a corrupt ukrainian company. To any reasonable observer, thats a very questionable fact pattern that deserves attention and it got a lot of attention besides from grassley and johnson. Documents made public as a result of the freedom of information act and investigative reporting brought very fresh attention, public attention and scrutiny to this fact pattern. Reporting showed additional potential conflicts of interest with respect to Hunter Bidens business dealings all over the world, not just ukraine. Those financial dealings also exposed how hunter biden and his Business Associates sought to benefit financially from their relationship with Vice President biden. As our report shows, hunter biden and his Business Associates had extensive connections to russian or Ukrainian Nationals. Their Business Association also extended to russian nationals. The report also shows that hunter biden, his family members and Business Associates had extensive connections to Chinese Nationals. The records acquired by the Committee Show that hunter biden and his associates and family members were connected to chinese Nationals Associated with the communist party and the Peoples Liberation army. Those connections formed business links which resulted in millions of dollars passing through company after company. Some of those companies were soargted with hunter associated with hunter biden, his Business Partner devon archer and james biden. The records show deep and complex Financial Relationships with Chinese Nationals and how financially fruitful those relationships became. As one example, records show that hunter biden opened a bank account with a Chinese National linked to the communist regime and funded with approximately 100,000. Then he, james biden and sarah biden went on an extravagant global spending spree. Records show that hunter biden via his law firm also sent over a Million Dollars to james bidens consulting firm, the lion hall group. When the bank contacted sarah biden who was associated with the firms bank account, she refused to answer their questions and provide any Additional Information and documentation. According to the records we have on file, the bank submitted the account for closure. Now whats very clear is that hunter biden leveraged his name and his fathers position for financial gain. And his work with Burisma Company is just the tip of the iceberg. These associations and the millions of dollars that passed between and among hunter biden, Archer James Biden and others create criminal financial concerns. Moreover, they create counterintelligence and extortion concerns. The investigation also uncovered that the Obama Administration was well aware of the problems that Hunter Bidens board position caused. State Department Officials testified that his Board Membership created the perception of conflict of interest and was very awkward for all u. S. Officials pushing an anticorruption agenda in ukraine. Secretary of state kerry publicly denied knowing of Hunter Bidens role in the burisma board. Now weve acquired evidence that he did in fact know about that role. The owner of burisma was viewed as a, quote, unquote, odious oligarch by state Department Officials. However, in december 2015 instead of following u. S. Objectives of confronting oligarchs, Vice President bidens staff advised him to avoid commenting on the odious oligarch and instead say, quote, im not going to get into naming names or accusing individuals. End of quote. Well, if youre running an anticorruption agenda in ukraine and you pull your punches when it comes to burisma while your son is on the board, that goes to judgment. And here it looks like very bad judgment and weak leadership. Based on witness testimony, burismas owner allegedly paid 7 million bribe to officials serving under ukraines prosecutor general to shut the case against him. Well, he allegedly paid the bribe in december, 2014. Hunter biden was on the board. And can you believe this . He had been hired to be on the board to assist with what what they call, quoteunquote, Corporate Governance and responsibility. End of quote. Obviously, he wasnt doing his corporate job due diligence. The facts show that the Obama Administration was well aware of the problems that hunter biden being on the burisma boards caused. The facts show that the Obama Administration turned a blind eye to it. Everyone knew about the problems it caused, but nobody wanted to do anything about it. So much for leadership. At its core, the investigation is a Good Government oversight. A Good Government oversight investigation. These are exactly the kind of shady, backroom deals that the American People should know about. So now the facts are out there. The American People can judge this information for themselves. They dont need the people on the other side of the aisle of this institution telling them what went on when they were using disinformation from russia and spreading that disinformation around and trying to say it was attributed to something that we got. As for the next step, senator johnson and i will continue to review the records that we possess, and further records that we hope were able to acquire. I yield the floor and suggest 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 that the quorum be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer well, thank you, mr. President. Now, after Senate Republicans established the principle that the senate shouldnt consider Supreme Court nominations in president ial election years, on saturday, President Trump nominated Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court with less than 40 days left in the president ial election. The senate has never, never confirmed a nominee to the Supreme Court this close to a president ial election. In fact, the election is already under way. But President Trump gets to play by different rules under this republican majority. By nominating judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, President Trump has once again put Americans Health care in the crosshairs. President trump has promised to nominate Supreme Court justices who will, quote, terminate his words our Health Care Law. In judge barrett, President Trump has found the deciding vote. Judge barrett strongly criticized the ruling to uphold the Affordable Care act, claiming that if justices read the law the way she does, they would have, quote, have had to invalidate, unquote, the entire Health Care Law. Let me repeat that. Judge barrett strongly criticized Justice Roberts decision to uphold the Affordable Care act, saying that he, quote, pushed the law beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute, unquote. If Justice Roberts had read the law the way judge barrett does, the Supreme Court would have had to invalidate the entire Affordable Care act. The republican lawsuit against the Affordable Care act, as everyone knows, will be heard one week after the election. Senate republicans are rushing to jam judge barretts confirmation through in time for her to hear arguments in that very case. Not one for subtlety, President Trump tweeted on saturday that our Health Care Law will be replaced, quote, if terminated by the Supreme Court. So the American People should make no mistake. Any vote a vote by any senator for judge Amy Coney Barrett is a vote to strike down the Affordable Care act and eliminate protections for millions of americans with preexisting conditions. Judge barretts record also suggests that if she is confirmed, the reproductive freedom of millions of women would be in grave danger. Should judge Amy Coney Barrett be confirmed, a farright majority on the court could turn back the clock on womens rights and a womans right to choose. Workers rights, voting rights, civil rights, environmental protections, lgbtq rights, and more. The future for Daca Recipients hangs in the balance as well. So this nomination concerns no less than the fundamental rights of the American People. After holding a Supreme Court vacancy open for eight months before a president ial election, President Trump and leader mcconnell are doing what no senate has done before. Shamelessly rushing to fill Justice Ginsburgs seat less than 40 days before a president ial election. Justice ginsburgs dying wish was that she not be replaced until a new president is installed. Republicans are poised not only to ignore her wishes but to replace her with someone who could tear down everything she has built. This reprehensible power grab is a cynical attack on the legitimacy of the court, and i will strongly, strongly, strongly oppose this nomination. The Senate Republican majority has decided, however, that they will stop at nothing, break all the rules, even their own rules to rush this nomination through before the election. But apparently the Senate Majority isnt going to stop at naked hypocrisy. Its also going to engage in manufactured hysterics. For the past few weeks, long before President Trump even nominated judge barrett, Senate Democrats Senate Republicans have been telling everyone who will listen that democrats better not make catholicism an issue in this nomination. Thats their quote. Last week, a member of this chamber took time to write me an entire letter preemptively warning about anticatholic anticatholic attacks against a nominee who hadnt been named yet. Another member of this chamber said, quote, in Chuck Schumers america, only atheists can be Supreme Court justices, unquote. Of course, not a single democrat will make these attacks or make personal religious beliefs an issue. But that doesnt matter to my republican friends. Oh, no. They will try to slander democrats with this imaginary issue anyway because they are desperate for a distracks. Republicans invented this concern because they are so eager to make this nomination about anything other than their disgraceful double standard, anything beside their attempts to take away health care and curtail the fundamental rights of the American People. Honestly, its embarrassing, embarrassing how transparent republicans are being about this manufactured line of attack. They couldnt even wait for a catholic nominee to be chosen. They already stripted the attacks. The senator from tennessee is making wild allegations. The senator from missouri is writing ridiculous letters. My friend from florida is cutting videos decrying the kind of attacks on a persons faith that havent occurred since the political right was implying that our last practicing christian president , president obama, was a secret muslim. Spare us the sanctimony. I dont remember my republican colleagues making a fuss when Peaceful Protesters were teargassed so President Trump could hold a bible upside down in front of a church for a photo op. Look, i understand why certain republicans are resorting to this disgusting tactic. They have no other argument. They cant argue that this nomination must proceed because of some solemn constitutional duty because they argued the exact opposite position four years ago. And they certainly cant argue the merits of judge barretts position on the Affordable Care act because they know its dreadfully unpopular with the American People. No wonder, no wonder republicans are so desperate to talk about literally anything else. On another matter, covid19. Yesterday, the house of representatives unveiled legislation to provide 2. 2 trillion in emergency funding to help the American People in the fight against covid19. The proposal includes a number of crucial provisions that families, businesses, local leaders, and hospitals desperate ly need, including 600 in weekly emergency unemployment insurance, funding for our schools, support for state and local governments, assistance for renters and homeowners, Additional Resources for testing and contact tracing, and measures to strengthen the post office and complete the census. It includes important aid for transit systems, aid vital to our nations economy. It includes crucial support for economic drivers like restaurants, music venues, independent theaters, and more that we have named in our save the stages act save our stages act. It includes critical workplace standards and protections for our workers. Is this new bill everything that democrats want . No. But its an honest attempt to provide the relief our country needs and reach an agreement by moving closer to our republican colleagues who want to provide much less relief if they want to provide any at all. Once again, the bill demonstrates the willingness on the part of democrats to compromise. Covid19 remains the number one issue in america. Weekly unemployment claims are still through the roof. Schools are struggling to adapt. Over 200,000 americans have died. We are a long way from putting this crisis in the rearview mirror. But none of this seems to concern the republican majority in the senate. As countless businesses are going under, as thousands continue to get sick, as millions of americans are waiting for the senate to do its job, leader mcconnell and Senate Republicans are moving at a lightning pace to jam through a Supreme Court nominee. A nominee that could Rip Health Care away from tens of millions of americans in the middle of a pandemic. Leader mcconnell chose to put the senate on pause for four months while covid19 devastated our country. Now leader mcconnell has the senate on fast forward to rush through a partisan nomination to the Supreme Court. Goes to show you the priorities on the other side of the aisle. One final matter, over the weekend the New York Times reported President Trump paid in income taxes in 2016 and nothing in 10 of the prior 15 years largely because he reported losing more money than he made. No new yorker was at all surprised by this report. All the hallmarks of President Trumps career before and after politics are there. Hyperbole, fraud, avoiding responsibility, pursuing selfish interests above all else. Thats interrupt in a nut thats President Trump in a nutshell. The documents obtained by New York Times show a long history of President Trumps egregious tax avoidance and potentially criminal activity and including the astounding figure that the president owes nearly 500 million 500 million in personal obligations. Who does he owe that money to . 500 million is not chump change. Who does the president owe 500 million to . If President Trump wants another fouryear term as president , the people have to know who President Trump is so deeply indebted to. These documents reveal that President Trump was an abject failure in business and a serial tax cheat. We have already heard the president claim the reporting in the New York Times is fake. Well, President Trump, put your tax returns where your mouth is. I yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call a senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from wyoming. Mr. Enzi mr. President , id ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be vitiated. The presiding officer without objection, sir. Under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. Morning business is closed. Under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of h. R. 8337, which the clerk will report. The clerk calendar number 552, h. R. 8337, an act making continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2021, and for other purposes. The presiding officer the senator from wyoming. Mr. Enzi mr. President , i ask unanimous consent to spend a few minutes as though in morning business. The presiding officer without objection, sir. Mr. Enzi thank you. I thought id deliver a little good news. Its a little hard to get good news these days, but i ran across some. I want to tell you about a man named dr. Ondavid around dr. John david arnold, who started out Teaching School in arizona. He had a little blue bus that he ripped out the seats and put in desks. And he used that blue bus to follow the Migrant Workers as they worked, teaching the migrant kids. He came up with an idea. As technology advanced. He said, if i gave the kids a computer, i could handle a whole lot more kids and they could use the phone to send their assignments in and did and hd that. So Remote Learnings been around for a long time. Probably 40 years. And one of the benefits that he found was that the parents benefited from it too. The patients of the these Migrant Workers learned along with their kids. So that program grew. And then he came up with another problem that he saw a solution for, and thats that there were a lot of in phoenix there were a lot of High School Dropouts and some kids being expelled, and there werent good results from that. So he thought maybe he could start a school for these kids and he would only take a student that had dropped out or been expelled if they would sign a contract. They and their parents had to sign a contract before they could become students. And that contract had to say, of course, theyd behave, do their work and but their goal was for a job after they got out of high school. And then he trained them for that. And it was also a successful occasional endeavor that educational endeavor that goes on today. But theres been a lot of graduates of that. And today there are students helping students. A lot of students who graduated from that want to work with their hands and he helped a lot of mechanics and he helped them to get garages and those kids who graduate go into competition with them and they will have the same kind of start that they had. Now the students in the school and the graduates are inventing against covid. Now, this isnt their first crisis. They were there after katrina, and they are still there doing work. But on covid theyve been providing food, clothing, medical supplies. They are still doing the job training. Theyve been working on some Mental Health problems. Theyve helped with utilities, they helped with rent, and they helped with group homes. Now where is this happening . Not just in arizona, not just in phoenix where it all started. Its happening in much of arizona, a lot of new mexico. Its working with the apaches and the nava who hes, its navajos and its working in africa. His School Expanded to africa. They are in ghana, cameroon and nigeria. There are some good things happening in this world. People watching out for other people. And it isnt government that has all the solutions, its people caring about people. And i congratulate dr. John david arnold and his efforts following the blue bus and through these other iterations of education and hope that hes helping others with more on the Remote Learning because thats where america is at the moment. So i thank you for the time. I yield the floor, and i suggest 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 call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer thank you, mr. President. Now, i move to proceed to calendar 551, s. 4643, a bill to protect hundreds of millions of people of the United States and prevent efforts and prevent efforts of the department of justice to advocate courts to strike down the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act. The presiding officer the clerk will report the motion. The clerk the clerk motion to proceed toll 4653, a bill to prevent efforts of the department of justice to advocate courts to strike down the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act. The presiding officer the clerk will report the motion. The clerk cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22, do hereby bring to a close debate on the motion to proceed to calendar 551, s. 4653, a bill to protect the health care of millions of people of the United States and prevent the department of justice to strike down the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act, signed by 19 senators fools. As follows mr. Schumer i suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Schumer i suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call mr. Menendez mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from new jersey. Mr. Menendez i ask that the quorum call be vitiated. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Menendez mr. President , the New York Times latest reporting tells us everything we need to know about why President Trump has worked so hard to conceal his tax returns from the American People. The president is a liar, a cheat, and a fraud. For years, he marketed himself as a selfmade successful businessman, but its all an illusion like the wizard of oz behind the curtain, he is just a small, petty fraud. He made millions playing a billionaire businessman on tv, but in real life, donald trump was racking up huge losses and debts that he then used to get out of paying his fair share of federal taxes. Call it tax avoidance, call it tax evasion, call it whatever you want. The bottom line is that trump is no business genius. Hes a con artist who thinks that the rules dont apply to him. The president managed to avoid paying any federal income tax, any federal income tax for 11 of 18 years, from 2000 to 2017. And then only paid 750 in 2016 and 2017. When i first read that in the New York Times, i thought there must have been a typo. Surely there were zeros missing, but i was wrong. The page read right. Our selfproclaimed billionaire president paid just 750 in federal income taxes. 750. Thats a heck of a lot less than what essential workers supporting america throughout this pandemic pay in taxes. Like the grocery clerk in newark, new jersey, who makes 11 an hour but owes about 1,060 in federal taxes, 300 more than donald trump. Or how about the nurse in hackensack, new jersey, working nights to save patients with covid19, making 60,000 a year . She owes about 6,200 in federal income taxes, more than eight times what the president paid. Most people would agree thats a problem with our economy, mr. President. Americans are working harder than ever for less. They are drowning in skyrocketing health care, housing, child care, and tuition bills, and at the end of the day, many middleclass new jersey families still find themselves owing money to uncle sam. Meanwhile, for rich people like donald trump, the tax rate is the lowest it has been in decades, and you can write off fancy haircuts and consulting fees paid to your own daughter, and all the losses you racked up running your business into the ground. I have to say there is no surprise to most new jerseyans. We watched in horror as donald trump ran his Atlantic City casinos into the ground, scamming hardworking contractors out of their pay and costing the local economy thousands of jobs. Donald trump was like a reverse king midas. Everything he touched went bankrupt. And then after his string of bankruptcies and broken promises to workers, trump turned around and got a 72. 9 million bailout from the i. R. S. You heard me right. 72. 9 million bailout from the i. R. S. Now, most people i know think its a good year when they get 400 or 500 back from the federal government. This scam artist got off with 72. 9 million. And yet donald trump isnt swimming in cash. Hes drowning in debt. The president is on the hook for approximately 421 million in loans, more than 300 million of that coming due in the next four years. To get out of the debt, the president is doing everything he can to profit off the presidency. Over the last four years, he has continued to make money off Foreign Investments, raking cash from special interests and foreign officials at his washington hotel, and charged the federal government millions for the use of his properties. He could go anywhere. He could go to camp david. No. He goes to his properties where millions, secret service and other entities that protect the president and help the president whenever he leaves washington, but it is always at his properties. Despite all this revenue, trump is still badly in debt, and its no surprise Intelligence Experts are concerned about whos holding it. They worry about the president s personal exposure to foreign creditors and what that might mean for National Security. Anyone else in that much debt to foreign entities would have their security clearances immediately revoked. Is this why trump refuses to punish putin for putting bounties on the heads of u. S. Soldiers . Is this why he applauds dictators like erdogan and sells out American Allies like the kurds . Is this why he applauds murderous dictators like philippine president for doing, quoteunquote, an unbelievable job. The bottom line is this who does donald trump owe those hundreds of millions of dollars to . And how much do they know about him . And how deep are they in to him . For years, the president has fought to keep americans in the dark. Well, now we know why. He is a liar, a fraud, and a failed businessman so deep in the red, hes a potential National Security liability. So let me close by quoting President Donald Trump in his own book, the art of the deal. He said, quote, you cant con people, at least not for long. You can create excitement. You can do wonderful promotion, get all kinds of press, and you can throw in a little hyperbole, but if you dont deliver the goods, people will eventually catch on. Mr. President , i only hope the American People are catching on. With that, i yield the floor and i observe the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call the presiding officer without objection. The clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. The clerk cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22, do hereby bring to a close debate on calendar number h. R. 8337, an act making appropriations for fiscal year 2021, and for other purposes. The presiding officer by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. Is it the sense of the senate, an act making appropriations for fiscal year 2021 shall be brought to close, the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote the presiding officer on this vote the yeas are 82, the nays are 6. Threefifths of the senate duly chosen and sworn having voted in the affirmative, the motion is agreed to. Mr. Durbin madam president. The presiding officer the senator from illinois. Mr. Durbin i ask the senate come to order, please. The presiding officer the senate will be in order. The senator from illinois. Mr. Durbin thank you, madam president. Madam president , the choice of the presiding officer the senate will be in order. Please take your conversations off the floor. The senator from illinois. Mr. Durbin thank you very much, madam president. Madam president , the selection of a person to fill a Supreme Court vacancy is an historic moment in washington. This is the seventh time i will be in a position to at least meet someone who is aspiring to that position. And i have had opportunities with each one of them to ask some questions before the formal hearing. I hope i have the same opportunity with the current nominee, judge Amy Coney Barrett. What is different about this particular moment is the fact this we know that there is an issue at stake here and one that is likely to be decided almost immediately by the new Supreme Court justice. Its the only explanation i can find, perhaps one other, the only two explanations i can find as to why there is this hurry to fill this vacancy. You see, it was four years ago when there was a vacancy on the Supreme Court with antonin scalias death, and that occurred in the february before the election, that senator mcconnell, then the Republican Senate leader, argued there was no need to hurry. Why hurry about it . Leave the vacancy on the Supreme Court. Wait until after the next president ial election. Let the American People decide who will be filling that vacancy. He made that argument despite the Clear History in this chamber that did not support him, and he won the support of his position by every republican senator. He went so far as to say that if president obama in his last year in office nominated someone to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, they wouldnt give that person a hearing. Well, president obama in his last year of his presidency nominated Merrick Garland, a person who was widely respected as the chief judge in the d. C. Circuit court, the Second Highest Court in the land by some measure, and Merrick Garland came to capitol hill in the hopes that he would get his day in court, so to speak, in the senate. But senator mcconnell said no way. Words out, republican senators. Dont meet with him. A couple broke his rule and met with him anyway, but the word was out not to even give him the courtesy of a meeting four years ago. And so Merrick Garland never had his day before the Senate Judiciary committee, and his nomination departed with the presidency of barack obama. Senator mcconnell had prevailed. His new theory on how the senate should treat the Supreme Court vacancies prevailed. Every one of his soldiers on the republican side marched in lockstep with his theory. Well, guess what happened four years later. An incumbent president had a late vacancy on the Supreme Court with the untimely death of ruth bader ginsburg. Just a little over a week and a half ago. And the obvious question to senator mcconnell is will you be consistent now and say that that vacancy should not be filled until a new president is elected, and that president should have the option to fill it . And senator mcconnell said of course not. Its not to my political advantage. He didnt add those words. I did. Not to my political advantage. Im going to change this hardandfast rule of four years ago, and im going to ask all of my republican senators to march before a camera and a microphone and to look down at their shoes and say the position they took four years ago they are abandoning today, and all but two of them did it. All but two of them walked away from their pledge that they were under the old mcconnell rule. That mcconnell rule was stated in just a few words. Heres what senator mcconnell said four years ago. The American People should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president. The mcconnell rule was thrown out just a few days ago. Why . Because it was to senator mcconnells political advantage to fill this vacancy and to the president s, and not to wait for the outcome on the november 3 election. So whats the issue . What would cause senator mcconnell to change so quickly and to ask all of his loyal republican senators to go through the embarrassment of recanting the position they took publicly four years ago . What is the big deal, senator mcconnell . Well, it turns out we know what the big deal is. Its the Affordable Care act. To paraphrase the senator from arkansas, dale bumpers, the republicans and President Trump haid the Affordable Care act like hate the Affordable Care act like the devil hates holy water. They have tried every imaginable way to eliminate it, to change it, to water it down, to discourage it. 50 different votes in the house of representatives to eliminate the Affordable Care act, and were it not for the democrats in the senate, they might have had some luck at doing that. But it didnt work. And so they tried it on the senate floor under reconciliation. They thought heres our chance. We just need a majority. We should be able to pull this one off, and we had this historic moment just two years ago when at 2 30 in the morning john mccain came through those doors and with his no vote and the vote of two other republican senators saved the Affordable Care act. Imagine the frustration of Mitch Mcconnell. Here was his moment to finally drive that dagger deep in the heart of the Affordable Care act, and john mccain voted no. What was he going to do to get this job done . Well, it turns out he figured hed get it done across the street in the United States Supreme Court, so 14 republican state attorneys general filed a lawsuit to eliminate the Affordable Care act, and then the Trump Administration said were on board, too. Lets get rid of it completely. And off they went through the long, treacherous journey in the courts all the way, all the way up to the Supreme Court across the street. And guess when the argument is scheduled to be heard. Seven days after the election. So you wonder why there is such a hurry to put another Supreme Court justice on the court who also opposes the Affordable Care act . And make no mistake, President Trump made that one of the conditions of employment for anyone he would name to the Supreme Court. You have to be ready to march right in there and put an end to it. So if we can vote under senator mcconnells timetable on or before the election, november 3, the new Supreme Court justice sworn in in her black robe ascends to the bench in the Supreme Court on november 10, listens to the oral argument on the Affordable Care act, and then a few weeks or months later puts an end to it. Thats why were in such a hurry. Because if that Supreme Court vacancy is not filled by november 10, then whatever is chosen, they whatever person is chosen, they could not vote on the actual outcome of the case in the spring. Thats what this is all about. As someone told me long ago in this business of politics, theres always a good reason and theres always a real reason. The real reason for the mad dash of the Senate Judiciary committee to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, the real reason why the republican senators rushed to march in lockstep that what they pledged four years ago Means Nothing today, the real reason is to put an end to the Affordable Care act. Let me tell you a story about the Affordable Care act. I voted for it. Im proud of it. 40 Million People have protection and protections for people all across america. Let me discuss one of the protections the Affordable Care act that will go away and be eliminated if President Trump, the Republican Attorney general, and the republican senators who are supporting Mitch Mcconnell have their way. Heres one of the provisions of the law. Heres the story. A couple of years ago tom, from palatine, illinois, suburbs of chicago, wrote to me about the Affordable Care act. At the age of 30 ill show a picture here. I hope this will stay up here. I think it will. Ill hold it. At the age of 30, tom, married with dreams of fatherhood was diagnosed with cancer, a tumor in his chest. He underwent 20 rounds of chemo and major surgery to remove the tumor. Thankfully after that, he was cancer free. Theres tom in his better days racing to wrigley and there he is fighting his way through cancer in a hospital bed. How much did it cost him for all of that care . 2 million. 2 million was the bill. Now, before the Affordable Care act, Insurance Companies imposed arbitrary annual and lifetime limits on how much they would actually reimburse a patient for medical bills. If you passed that limit, you were on the hook personally. Thats why for years medical debt was the leading cause of bernanke in america of bankruptcy in america. A fellow like tom racing along here, looking as healthy and fit as possible, ends up with a cancer diagnosis and goes through months and months of therapy and a bill of 2 million. And the Insurance Company said its all yours. Theres a limit in your policy. That was the way it used to be before the Affordable Care act. The Affordable Care act put an end to those lits. Andout limits. And without those protections, tom wrote to me, he would have most likely kept his coverage and be bankrupt. Thousands of other americans would be there with him without the Affordable Care act. Although tom wants to continue to work and contribute to society, he said hes scared to death, hes terrified in his words, that protections for preexisting conditions would be ended. You see, tom, having defeated surgery and declared this great victory and im sure his friends and family couldnt be happier, is now branded by the Insurance Companies as man with a preexisting condition. In the old days, before the Affordable Care act, good luck, tom. Good luck because if you had a preexisting condition, and almost anything would count, acne, asthma, being a woman who might get pregnant, on and on and on, you were subjected to higher premiums and maybe no insurance at all. Those were the days before the Affordable Care act. And now President Trump, the republicans attorneys generals and the republicans in the senate are dutybound to dutybound to send a new Supreme Court justice in to put an end to that protection, to put an end to the Affordable Care act. They are so determined to get rid of obamacare at any cost they could care less about tom and people just like him with these lifetime limits. If the Affordable Care act is struck down, insurers could once again deny coverage to millions of americans with preexisting conditions. That isnt all. The Affordable Care act also made it clear that if youre a family with a son or daughter who goes to college, comes out of school looking for a job, maybe taking that gap year, maybe taking an intern shipship internship, but not likely to have health insurance. The Affordable Care act says, dont worry, until that young man or woman in your household reaches the age of 26, they did stay on your health insurance. A provision of the Affordable Care act, a provision that many i had a daughter who needed health insurance. She assured that she didnt need it. That is scary talk. But with the Affordable Care act, we would have been able to keep our young daughter under that policy, our family policy for a period of time. The republicans want that to go away, go away with the Affordable Care act. And you say to yourself, well, clearly, durbin, youre not telling the whole story. Youre not telling us what the republican plan is to replace the Affordable Care act, and its true. Guilty as charged. I am not describing to you the republican alternative to the Affordable Care act because it doesnt exist. It does not exist. Thats why john mccain and two our republican senators said, you cant eliminate the Affordable Care act unless you have a replacement thats as good or better otherwise too Many American families will lose their insurance and lose their protection. So we had a hearing a few weeks ago and i asked the leaders in the Health Community on the Trump Administration a basic question, what have you heard about the republican substitute for the Affordable Care act. President trump has told us over and over and over again that its just a week or two away. So what have you heard about preparing this . And they said, nothing. Weve heard nothing. There is no republican substitute for the Affordable Care act. They are just dutybound to eliminate obamacare. And the consequences, sadly, would be awful. Thats what this is about. So if you think i dont want to tune into this whole debate about a new Supreme Court justice from indiana, i dont want to hear all these arts because what arguments because what difference does it make to me . If you are that person in america, i would say, take a look at what were really facing, an effort to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court in a timely way to eliminate the Affordable Care act. That is what this is all all about. And then the president tossed in another issue. How about this. The first president in the history of the United States to publicly declare he would not accept the outcome of an election. How about that . That is nothing short of you a constitutional outrage that any president would say that. And its no surprise with this president because when he was a candidate he said basically the same thing. If it doesnt turn out that i win, then im not sure im going to want to live by the results. And he makes up these contrived arguments about paper ballots and how fraudulent they are. There are five dates, five states in america that use mailin ballots exclusively. They include, of course, the state of oregon, might have been one of the first. They include utah, hawaii. Other states do it. How much fraud there . Almost none. That doesnt stop the president from claiming that mailin ballot is fraudulent. How does the president vote . A mailin ballot. What hypocrisy. Now he says he wants that Supreme Court vacancy filled. Do it now because i need nine justices sitting on that Supreme Court if theres any election contest to follow. Well, its pretty obvious what this is all about. The president needs a sure vote on the Supreme Court. What a shame that weve reached this point. That weve denigrated the United States senate to the point that we change the rules at our convenience. That we reached the point where we are prepared to eliminate protections for 20 million americans with nothing to replace it and that weve reached a point where a president is so brazen as to say he wants to fill that spot on the Supreme Court just in case he runs into an election contest. You would think there would be a bipartisan chorus of outrage of that statement by the president. Not so. There may have been others and i will scour the records to make sure, but two republicans stepped up and said what the president , his Public Statement on not abiding by election returns was terrible. Who were those two . Senator mitt romney here, the only republican senator i know. If there are more, i will come back and correct the record. I heard him clearly say this is intolerable and then the republican governor of massachusetts. I watched that press conference. He wasnt just declarative, he was upset to think any president of either party would make that kind of statement. Thats what were up against. In two weeks they want to hold a hearing in the Senate Judiciary committee on this nominee, judge barrett and they want the nomination before the president has any election contest. What a point weve reached in this country. The silence of republicans across the nation is deafening. They ignore the obvious. You cant have a viable trustworthy democracy if you dont have viable trustworthy elections. And in order to have that happen, you need president s of both Political Parties who are committed to fairness, committed to honesty, and committed to our constitution. Sadly at this moment in time we do not have a president who is and there are too many in his own Political Party who stand back in the shadows in silence, reyou counting recanting on pledges they made four years ago doing what is necessary to win the favor of this president. I hope another day will come soon with different leadership and a different view of this country. Im genuinely concerned about what we face on november 3 and the days that follow. But ive never given up on america and i never will. I believe this democracy will prevail. I hope that after hes gone, some republicans will step forward and say, its time to create a party not in his image. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call quorum call quorum call the presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it recess until 12 noon, wednesday, september 30. Further, following the prayer and pledge, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day. Further, following leader me marks the senate consider h. R. 3387. All time during the recess of the senate and leader remarks count postcloture on h. R. 3387. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell if theres no business to come before the senate. I ask that it stand in recess under the previous order. The presiding officer the Senate Stands in recess until 12 Senate Stands in recess until 12 the senate gobbling out for the day, to work on government funding until december 11. Bending to spires john expires at midnight tomorrow. They hope to have a final vote before then. When the senate read turns you can watch live coverage right here in cspan2. Spinning live look at the venue in cleveland where the first president ial debate between President Donald Trump and former Vice President joe biden is being held tonight. Case western reserve university in the Cleveland Clinic or cohosting the debates. Watch live come on interrupted coverage on cspan tonight at 9 00 p. M. Eastern. Spinning another perspective from theer constitutional accountability center. She serves as our president , good morning to you. Statement good morning. Host for those who may not know your organization, a little about it please. Sweetie we are Public Interest law firm and Action Center that works in the courts with congress. Talks to the public of the promises the constitution and you can check us out at the u. S. Constitution. Org. To infer the perspective you take when you consider somebody like amy coni barrett
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