[Pages S6728-S6734]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           EXECUTIVE SESSION

                                 ______
                                 

                           EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I move to proceed to executive 
session to consider Calendar No. 489.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion.
  The motion was agreed to.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the nomination.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read the nomination of Sherri 
A. Lydon, of South Carolina, to be United States District Judge for the 
District of South Carolina.


                             Cloture Motion

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The cloture motion having been presented under 
rule XXII, the Chair directs the clerk to read the motion.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

                             Cloture Motion

       We, the undersigned Senators, in accordance with the 
     provisions of rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, 
     do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination 
     of Sherri A. Lydon, of South Carolina, to be United States 
     District Judge for the District of South Carolina.
         Steve Daines, Roy Blunt, John Thune, Richard Burr, John 
           Cornyn, Chuck Grassley, Tom Cotton, Rick Scott, Mike 
           Crapo, Shelley Moore Capito, John Boozman, Roger F. 
           Wicker, Cindy Hyde-Smith, David Perdue, Mike Rounds, 
           John Hoeven, Mitch McConnell.

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
mandatory quorum calls for the cloture motions be waived.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority whip.


                               Hong Kong

  Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I would like to comment on the Hong Kong 
legislation that we passed this week. Tuesday night, the Senate 
unanimously passed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, led by 
Senators Rubio and Cardin, Foreign Relations Chairman Risch, and 
Ranking Member Menendez, and a supporting cast of colleagues. This bill 
is intended to spur Hong Kong officials and pro-Beijing constituencies 
to protect Hong Kong's autonomy and its special relationship with the 
United States and to hold those committing human rights violations in 
Hong Kong accountable. It builds on the 1992 United States-Hong Kong 
Policy Act, which asserts that the United States has a ``strong 
interest in the continued vitality, prosperity, and stability of Hong 
Kong.'' I am grateful for the leadership of the Senators who worked to 
advance this bill.
  The issue at hand is Hong Kong's right to an independent judicial 
system and its unique status in a one-country, two-system construct. 
The bill that spurred the June protests in Hong Kong--a bill pushed by 
the communist Chinese central government that sought to impose 
extraditions from Hong Kong to mainland China--would have directly 
undercut this judicial independence. This bill has been withdrawn, but 
a number of other grievances have boiled over into protests.
  Hong Kong's autonomy is under attack, and China is posturing to 
``mainlandize'' their economy. Recent educational reforms seek to 
undermine Hong Kong's culture and traditions through compulsory 
Mandarin classes instead of the Cantonese that most Hongkongers speak. 
The Chinese Government will say that westerners have the wrong 
impression of what is going on there, that this is strictly an internal 
matter. We beg to differ. There are more than 85,000 American citizens 
in Hong Kong. Moreover, the human rights of the people of Hong Kong are 
directly tied to U.S. interests in Hong Kong and Hong Kong's economic 
prosperity.
  China has threatened repercussions if the Hong Kong Human Rights and 
Democracy Act is enacted. I imagine China is fearful that attention to 
human rights abuses in Hong Kong will draw increased attention to other 
human rights abuses in China, such as the estimated 1.5 million Muslim 
Uighurs in forced detention in one of China's western provinces.
  Papers leaked this week from the government of the Communist Party 
and General Secretary Xi detail the coercive ``reeducation'' that goes 
on in these internment camps. Christians in China also face regular 
persecution and imprisonment for following their faith and living out 
their beliefs. The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act will help 
shed increased light on Beijing's aggression and on human rights abuses 
in Hong Kong.
  Last night, the House sent this Senate bill to the President's desk 
with a resounding 417-to-1 vote--a clear statement that Congress stands 
with Hong Kong.


                              Thanksgiving

  Madam President, a week from today, we will be celebrating 
Thanksgiving. Like every Thanksgiving, I will be home in South Dakota 
celebrating with my family: My wife, my daughters, my sons-in-law, and 
my four--soon to be five--grandchildren. I will be taking on my 
traditional job of carving the turkey and helping with the dishes 
afterward. I am looking forward to a lot of good pie--apple pie a la 
mode, pumpkin, with a lot of whipped cream, and my favorite is anything 
in the creamed-pie family.
  I am looking forward to spending time outdoors. My daughters and I 
traditionally go on a trail run Thanksgiving morning. It is a good way 
to work up an appetite for all that pie. We all enjoy throwing around a 
football before or after the meal. South Dakotans are pretty resilient 
when it comes to being out in the cold. As long as we don't have tons 
of snow, we like to get outdoors on Thanksgiving.
  Like many South Dakotans, I love to squeeze in a little pheasant 
hunting over Thanksgiving, whenever I can.
  Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I love sitting down with 
my whole family--and extended family--and getting to spend time in 
South Dakota outdoors before winter really hits us.
  Thanksgiving has a long tradition in this country. Long before the 
United States was a nation, various Colonies were celebrating days of 
thanksgiving. Our current celebration of Thanksgiving can be traced to 
Abraham Lincoln, who issued a proclamation in 1863 inviting a national 
celebration of Thanksgiving on the last Thursday in November.
  In 1941, Congress codified the Thanksgiving holiday and permanently 
set the date as the fourth Thursday in November. I don't think it is 
too surprising that the celebration of Thanksgiving is a recurring part 
of our history. On Thanksgiving in my family, typically, we go around 
the table and say what we are thankful for. In this country, that is a 
pretty long list, including the tremendous natural riches of this 
country, from great rivers to magnificent mountains, to our wide-open 
access to the sea, and the tremendous freedoms that we enjoy. And in 
the 21st century, we enjoy freedom of religion, of speech, of the 
press, and other freedoms, like the freedom from unreasonable searches 
and seizures, or excessive fines or cruel and unusual punishments. All 
of these freedoms that we so often take for granted are still unknown 
to too many people across the world.
  The United States is not perfect, and we don't always get it right, 
but we enjoy tremendous blessings in this country. It is important not 
to take them for granted. Thanksgiving gives us a chance to pause and 
reflect on all that we have been given.
  I am grateful to God for so many blessings this year. I am thankful 
for the great blessing of my family--my dad, Harold, a World War II 
aviator who will turn 100 next month; my brothers and sister; my wife 
Kimberly, the best thing in my life; my beautiful daughters and my 
sons-in-law; and our grandchildren, pretty much the most amazing 
grandchildren ever, in my own unbiased opinion.

[[Page S6729]]

  I am thankful for the great State of South Dakota, for our fresh air 
and wide-open spaces, from the prairies of farm country to the rugged 
terrain of the Black Hills.
  South Dakotans are a resilient, kind, and gracious people, and I am 
thankful every day that I am lucky enough to call South Dakota home.
  I am also tremendously grateful for the work I get to do. Getting to 
represent South Dakotans in the Senate is one of the great privileges 
of my life. While it has been a contentious year with a divided 
Congress, I have still had the chance to continue to work on important 
issues affecting people in my State and around the country, like 
helping our Nation's farmers and ranchers in this tough agriculture 
economy.
  I am grateful for the privilege of living in this great country, and 
I am grateful for all the men and women who put their lives on the line 
every single day to preserve the freedoms we enjoy. Our military men 
and women represent the very best of America, and I am grateful every 
day for their service and for their sacrifice.
  In that 1863 proclamation of Thanksgiving Day that I mentioned, 
Abraham Lincoln, in his referring to the blessings America had 
experienced even in the midst of the horrors of the Civil War, said:

       No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand 
     worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of 
     the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for 
     our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed 
     to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently 
     and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice 
     by the whole American People.

  God has blessed us with very great gifts in this country, and it is, 
indeed, fit and proper that we should dedicate a day to reverently and 
gratefully acknowledge them.
  I yield the floor.


                   Recognition of the Minority Leader

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Democratic leader is recognized.


                              Thanksgiving

  Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, first, let me thank my friend from 
South Dakota for his wonderful words on Thanksgiving.
  I was going to conclude with Thanksgiving, but I will start with it. 
It is a great holiday. It is a great American holiday. I love it, and 
my family loves it. I was born on Thanksgiving Day. My new grandson was 
born on November 24, so he will have birthdays on Thanksgiving as well. 
This year, for the first time, the Schumers will celebrate with four 
generations, because my parents, who also served in the Army Air Force 
in World War II--my dad, 96, and my mom, 91--will be there with their 
little great-grandson, Noah. We are blessed.
  Thanksgiving is family and food. What could be better than that? They 
are two great parts of the holiday. I will not carve the turkey like 
Thune does because it would get all screwed up, but I can dole out the 
mashed potatoes--I am good at that--which is probably what they will 
have me do. It is a great holiday, and we do have a great deal to thank 
God and the country for.
  The wonderful thing about Thanksgiving is, from its origins during 
the Civil War--one of the worst, most horrible times in America, with 
so much death and mayhem and division--people were still grateful for 
America, and we are today. It is an amazing place. My father was an 
exterminator, and I am a U.S. Senator. What an amazing country this is, 
and we should never stop trying to make it better. I try to do that 
every day. I am thankful that I live in a country in which you can try 
to make it better.
  I am thankful for many, many things--family, with our new addition 
this year. Iris and I are so happy about that. We have great kids and a 
great daughter-in-law and son-in-law. There is just a lot to be 
thankful for, and it is nice to take a pause, amidst all the fighting 
and partisanship here, to be grateful.


                              Impeachment

  Madam President, now, on some more legislative, Senatorial, 
governmental subjects, the Ambassador to the European Union, Gordon 
Sondland, provided some of the most significant testimony yesterday in 
the House impeachment inquiry to date.
  Ambassador Sondland asserted a ``quid pro quo,'' linking the offer of 
a White House meeting--an official act--in exchange for Ukrainian 
officials' announcing an investigation into Burisma and the 2016 
elections. President Trump tried to rebut that quid pro quo by saying 
he told Sondland on the phone there was no quid pro quo. Donald Trump 
is not known for telling the truth, particularly when his own self-
interest is at stake. So it doesn't stand up very well compared to 
Sondland's words.
  Sondland went on to testify to his understanding that President 
Trump's suspension of military aid to Ukraine was also conditioned on 
the announcement of these same investigations. Those investigations, of 
course, had nothing to do with national security or any other interests 
of the United States. On the contrary, they were solely in President 
Trump's personal, political interests.
  Ambassador Sondland also testified that Secretary Pompeo, Secretary 
Perry, Chief of Staff Mulvaney, and other senior advisers to those 
individuals were well aware of these activities and the connection 
between White House policy and requests from the President to have 
Ukraine announce investigations that would be politically advantageous 
to President Trump.
  Let me repeat: Those individuals I just mentioned--Pompeo, Perry, 
Mulvaney, and a few of their senior advisers--were identified by 
Ambassador Sondland as having information and knowledge of the events 
that are central to this impeachment inquiry. All of them are currently 
refusing to testify, are defying subpoenas from the House of 
Representatives, and, in some cases, are challenging those subpoenas in 
court.
  This morning, I would strongly urge the courts that have jurisdiction 
over these cases to quickly resolve them. The individuals named in 
these subpoenas are fact witnesses in the pending House impeachment 
inquiry. In addition, these officials and others are withholding 
evidence in the form of documents that are, unquestionably, material to 
the impeachment inquiry. Ambassador Sondland's testimony demonstrated 
even more pointedly why it is so essential that the witnesses who have 
been summoned must comply and why the courts should promptly enforce 
House subpoenas in the pending cases.
  When I hear the courts say that in 5 weeks or in 6 weeks, they will 
have court hearings or decisions--I have never practiced in these 
Washington courts; I have a law degree, but I am not a practicing 
lawyer--I don't understand, and I think Americans don't understand why 
the courts take so long when there is such an important issue before 
them. All of the judges have a responsibility to make decisions quickly 
and soon so that if they agree that these people should be compelled to 
testify--and I don't know what the decisions will be--that their 
testimony would be received in a timely manner.
  We have two groups of people at the moment. One group is testifying 
under oath in the House inquiry that there was a ``quid pro quo'' and 
substantial wrongdoing. Another group is denying any wrongdoing but is 
refusing to comply with subpoenas or to testify under oath. If these 
individuals feel they have exculpatory evidence to provide or that the 
testimony provided to the House is incorrect, they should testify under 
oath. Otherwise, the American people will rightly wonder why they 
refuse to do so.
  Let me just repeat what I said in the last few days: If Donald Trump 
tweets away at how wrong these witnesses are, let him come before the 
committee, under oath, and testify to what he tweets. Speaker Pelosi 
has said she would welcome President Trump's coming and testifying. 
President Trump has not been silent on these issues. He has been 
tweeting away--ridiculing the witnesses and saying what they have said 
is wrong. Well, if he is right, has nothing to hide, and wants to 
convince the American people and the House of Representatives, let him 
come under oath and tell his side of the story. When he doesn't come 
under oath--and he can do it tomorrow or in the next few days--the 
American people will ask: Mr. President, what are you hiding? What are 
you not telling the truth about?

[[Page S6730]]

  



                             Appropriations

  Madam President, on appropriations, later today, the Senate is set to 
pass a continuing resolution to fund the government through December 
20, which will send it to the President's desk. I am optimistic that 
the passage of the continuing resolution today will be something from 
which Congress can build--a sign that appropriators from both sides of 
the aisle will be ready to work together to settle government funding 
by the end of the calendar year.
  With another month's time at our disposal, the appropriations process 
can now go down one of two paths. On the first path, President Trump 
stays out of our way and gives Congress the space to work together and 
find agreement. On the second path, President Trump stomps his feet, 
makes impossible demands, and prevents his party--the Republicans--from 
coming to a fair arrangement.
  The first path leads to a bipartisan deal on appropriations and 
guaranteed, long-term funding for both Republican and Democratic 
priorities. The second path leads, as we all know, to another Trump 
government shutdown. I hope the passage of the continuing resolution 
will be the first step down the bipartisan path that will lead to 
successful agreement by the end of the year.


                               Hong Kong

  Madam President, on Hong Kong, 2 days ago, the Senate passed 
legislation, by unanimous consent, committing the United States to 
stand with the brave citizens of Hong Kong, who are now engaged in a 
fierce struggle to defend their civil and human rights. Last night, the 
House of Representatives followed suit by a vote of 417 to 1. Only a 
short time ago, I took part in a bipartisan signing ceremony for the 
legislation. Now it will head straight to the President's desk. 
Congress has just sent an unmistakable message to the Chinese Communist 
Party that the United States stands with the people of Hong Kong.
  President Xi, the U.S. Government has spoken. This legislation 
represents what America really thinks about your policies toward Hong 
Kong, not what President Trump may whisper in your ear. This 
legislation shows what Americans think about the Chinese Communist 
Party's treatment of Hong Kong.
  I would say to President Xi and to the Chinese leadership, the 
Communist Party leadership: You cannot be a great nation when you 
oppose freedom, deny civil liberties, and brutally suppress your own 
people from one end of China to the other, as the Chinese Communist 
Party has done to the people of Hong Kong, to the Uighurs, and to the 
millions of citizens whose voices have been silenced and whose rights 
have been trampled on by the Chinese Government.
  To the people of China, we stand with you in freedom.
  To the students and young people in Hong Kong, we stand with you.
  To the Uighurs, who simply want to practice their religion, we stand 
with you.
  I believe that freedom will prevail and that the Chinese system will 
either change or it will fail. History is not kind to those who peddle 
in autocracy and suppression.
  I thank all of my colleagues. This was one of the rare, fine, 
bipartisan moments on the floor of the Senate. Our colleagues on both 
sides of the aisle--the Senators from Florida and Idaho, Messrs. Rubio 
and Risch; the Senators from Maryland and New Jersey, Messrs. Cardin 
and Menendez; as well as Senator Merkley and Senator Cornyn--all worked 
hard to put together a very strong bill, and we came together. This has 
been an important bipartisan moment. It goes to show how Congress is 
still capable of doing big things.
  As we enter the Thanksgiving break, we should think about the other 
issues we could debate, about the other bipartisan bills on which we 
could vote, those of lowering the cost of prescription drugs, of 
securing our elections, of helping our veterans, and more. Passing 
bipartisan legislation should be the rule, not the exception.
  It has been several weeks since we have had a real debate and a vote 
on any legislation in this Chamber. I hope that in the final weeks of 
this year, Leader McConnell will begin to listen to the pleas from both 
sides of the aisle to get the Senate working again.
  A happy Thanksgiving to one and all.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arkansas.


               Recognizing the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

  Mr. COTTON. Madam President, I come to the floor with the senior 
Senator from Arkansas, Mr. Boozman, to celebrate a great anniversary.
  Two hundred years ago this week, the very first newspaper in Arkansas 
was published. It was called the Arkansas Gazette. We know it today as 
the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. It is the oldest paper west of the 
Mississippi, an institution in our State, and a credit to the many 
outstanding journalists who have made it possible over two centuries.
  From its first issue, the Arkansas Gazette was a pioneering 
newspaper, published by a young man named William Woodruff who crossed 
the mighty Mississippi into brandnew territory, dragging behind him a 
wooden printing press and other tools of the trade.
  The Gazette was first published out of a log cabin in the territorial 
capital, Arkansas Post. It reflected the bold aspirations of American 
settlers moving West to fulfill our manifest destiny on the continent, 
and it reflected these landlocked settlers' keen awareness that events 
far beyond out little plot of soil could shape their lives in dramatic 
ways.
  The first story in the very first edition reported on a Navy 
expedition to open the Pacific Northwest for American traders. It 
speculated with excitement about the prosperity that would flow to our 
Nation as Americans followed Lewis and Clark west across the country. 
``The plan may appear visionary,'' the Gazette remarked, ``but that 
which is now speculation will . . . shortly become a fact, and this 
country will be enriched by the overflowings of its benefit.''
  As the Arkansas Territory grew, Arkansas's newspaper grew with it. 
Woodruff moved the paper from Arkansas Post to Little Rock in 1821, 
where it would continue to be published for the next 198 years with few 
exceptions, such as a devastating fire in the 1850s and military 
occupation during the Civil War.
  Just as Arkansas kept its rough-hewn, pioneer character, so too did 
Arkansas's newspaper, whose staff were involved in not one but two gun 
battles, including the last recorded duel in Arkansas history--between, 
I am compelled to report, the owners of the Gazette and its upstart 
competitor, the Democrat.
  If William Woodruff was the founding father of the Democrat-Gazette, 
John Netherland Heiskell was its Lincoln, bringing the paper 
triumphantly into maturity. Heiskell became editor in 1902 and served 
in that position for an incredible 70 years until his passing in 1972. 
The one interruption in Heiskell's remarkable tenure came in 1913, when 
the Governor selected him to serve as a U.S. Senator after the death of 
a sitting Senator. He only served in this body for 23 days before a 
successor was elected, and then he hurried back to Little Rock and to 
the Gazette because the news waits for no man.
  Over the next half-century, the Gazette established itself as a 
world-class newspaper. It was during this period that the Gazette took 
a bold stand for truth in the finest tradition of journalism by 
declaring its support for desegregation well ahead of the pack in 1957. 
The Gazette and its editorial writer, Harry Ashmore, covered the 
turmoil surrounding Little Rock's integration with decency and 
firmness, insisting that Arkansas fulfill its obligation to all our 
citizens on an equal basis, without regard to race. This editorial 
crusade lost more than a few subscriptions, but it won the Gazette two 
Pulitzer Prizes ``for demonstrating,'' in the words of the Pulitzer 
committee, ``the highest qualities of civic leadership, journalistic 
responsibility, and moral courage.'' And so the Arkansas Gazette 
entered the modern era as a famous and award-winning publication.
  In 1991, after years known as ``the newspaper wars,'' the Gazette's 
old rival, the Democrat, bought the paper and created what we now know 
as the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Fortunately, I hasten to add, no 
duels were needed this time around. Now, the Democrat-Gazette is again 
changing with the times through the capable

[[Page S6731]]

leadership of Walter Hussman, his family, and David Bailey, the 
managing editor. This time, the paper is transforming for the digital 
era, moving from paper to screen, and it is even giving away free iPads 
to subscribers to ease the transition. So if you are not already a 
subscriber, consider supporting our local journalism in Arkansas. It 
has a bright future ahead.
  Today, unfortunately, many venerable newspaper have fallen on hard 
times. Too many journalists can't be bothered to get the story right. 
Too many local communities are losing parts of their identity, which is 
all the more reason to celebrate newspapers like the Democrat-Gazette, 
which do get the story right and have preserved their distinctive 
character throughout the years.
  Some things may change. The Democrat-Gazette of the future may be 
heralded by the bright glow of the screen rather than the rustle of the 
news page. But other, more important things stay the same, such as 
integrity, impartiality, and credibility. The Democrat-Gazette holds 
its reporters to the highest standards of accuracy and ethics.
  Walter Hussman publishes these high standards that won the Gazette 
two Pulitzer Prizes every day on page 2 of the newspaper in its 
statement of core values. That statement reads:

       Credibility is the greatest asset of any news medium and 
     impartiality is the greatest source of credibility.

  The Democrat-Gazette practices what it preaches, and for that reason, 
it continues to succeed 200 years on.
  There is also its Arkansas focus. As ever, the Democrat-Gazette 
earnestly pursues stories in Arkansas for the benefit of Arkansans. It 
is this proud local focus which has made the Democrat-Gazette a beloved 
institution in Arkansas and which will sustain it in the years ahead. 
Finally, the pioneer spirit--from the Arkansas Territory to the 
frontiers of digital journalism, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette will 
travel confidently into the future.
  Today, I join Senator Boozman in congratulating the Hussman family, 
the Democrat-Gazette, and all of their many hard-working professionals 
and journalists.
  I yield the floor to my colleague, the senior Senator from Arkansas.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Madam President, it is a pleasure to be with my friend 
and colleague from Arkansas to talk about a tremendous State 
institution, something that is truly a true Arkansas institution, and 
we want to pay tribute to it and the men and women who made it great in 
the past and will continue to make it great into the future.
  Newspapers have played a vital role in our country's history of 
public discourse, increasing our knowledge and awareness about what 
takes place all around us. The stories they print keep us informed, 
while building a sense of community and regional identity. Newspapers 
drive political debates and set the agenda, helping us make sense of 
the issues impacting our world.
  As one of the oldest continuously published newspapers west of the 
Mississippi, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette has been a resource of 
information that has kept readers connected to community, the State, 
and our Nation for 200 years.
  In 1819, William E. Woodruff published the first edition of the 
Arkansas Gazette, the Arkansas Territory's first newspaper. There was 
no shortage of news to print in those days. During its early years, the 
publication encouraged settlement to the region, shared news of 
national importance, and promoted statehood.
  For generations, this publication has been a primary source of 
reliable and comprehensive news that has shaped the way Arkansans view 
the world. It has constantly challenged the status quo and examined the 
decisions of elected leaders, while pursuing transparency and 
accountability.
  The work the Gazette produced often resulted in positive change in 
the Natural State. In 1957, the newspaper opposed Governor Orval 
Faubus's decision to prevent integration of Little Rock Central High 
School. For its reporting on the struggles of integration, the Gazette 
earned two Pulitzer Prizes, one for meritorious public service and the 
other awarded to its executive editor, Harry Ashmore, for editorial 
writing, marking the first time a newspaper won two Pulitzer Prizes in 
the same year.
  The newspaper and its spirited competitor, the Arkansas Democrat, 
contended for readers and advertisers for decades. In 1991, the Gazette 
was sold to the owners of the Arkansas Democrat, who then launched the 
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, which is the only statewide newspaper 
Arkansans read today.
  The importance of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in today's media 
landscape cannot be overstated. In some cases, it is the sole source of 
news for many small towns in Arkansas, as local newspapers continue to 
cease operations, especially those serving rural areas.
  Under the leadership of Walter Hussman, Jr., the Democrat-Gazette is 
navigating the challenging industry landscape and creating 
opportunities to keep readers informed by keeping costs manageable. 
Hussman and his team are rethinking how and what news they deliver to 
readers, as well as how subscribers can and like to consume it.
  To cut printing and transportation costs and combat declining 
advertisement revenue, the paper is now using iPads to maintain 
subscribers and continue providing this valuable, not-easily-replaced 
service to the community.
  In an interview earlier this year about efforts at the Democrat-
Gazette, Hussman noted his view that the print model is not 
sustainable, but he voiced his commitment to finding a solution that 
will fill the void because, as he says, society and our democracy will 
be impeded if we don't have newspapers.
  It is a simple truth. Throughout periods of change, Hussman and the 
newspaper he owns continue to believe in the critical role that news 
gathering and reporting play in informing the public.
  Every day, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and the other publications 
owned by the Hussman family publish a statement of core values that 
include ``objectivity, impartiality, integrity and truth-seeking.'' 
This clear, sensible mantra consistently helps guide the work done by 
the reporters and editors in the paper's newsrooms.
  Journalism is a pillar of our democracy. Our Founders understood the 
importance of a free press and included protections in the First 
Amendment that safeguard and ensure the ability of reporters and the 
publications they write for to hold the powerful to account.
  Earlier this year, I was proud to support the World Press Freedom Day 
resolution and recognize the sacrifices journalists around the world 
make in their effort to report the truth.
  We must continue to promote a free and open press in the United 
States and around the globe. In today's climate, we all share 
responsibility for acknowledging the value and the necessity of press 
freedom while at the same time not shrinking away from appropriate 
scrutiny and fair criticism. The health and well-being of our society 
and civic life depends on striking the right balance in this regard.
  For 200 years, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette has kept individuals 
informed about moments and events of significance in Arkansas, our 
country, and the world. I congratulate the newspaper's leaders and 
staff for pursuing facts and accountability, as they have created and 
sustained the publication as a responsible and reliable source of 
information.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from West Virginia.


                     Bipartisan American Miners Act

  Mr. MANCHIN. Madam President, I want to first say thank you to my 
colleagues, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senators Capito, 
Portman, Jones, Kaine, Duckworth, Brown, Casey, Durbin, Warner, Sinema, 
Van Hollen, and Reed, who have cosponsored this legislation with me, 
for standing with me to protect coal miners' pensions and healthcare, 
and specifically Senator Capito, who will be joining me here on the 
floor today.
  Yesterday marked the 51st anniversary of the Farmington No. 9 
disaster, where 78 coal miners lost their lives in the Consolidation 
Coal Company's No. 9 mine in Farmington, WV, which is my hometown. I 
lost my uncle John Gouzd in that mine explosion, I lost my neighbor 
John Sopuch, and I lost several of my classmates in that tragedy that 
rocked my hometown. It seems like only yesterday.
  I have always said that one life lost while on the job is one too 
many. It

[[Page S6732]]

shouldn't happen. This tragedy shows the risk our coal miners take 
every day to provide our country with the energy we need, which is why 
I am here today.
  When coal companies go bankrupt, coal miners' benefits are at the 
bottom of the priority list, which is how we have ended up in this 
situation today, and that is unacceptable. It should be unacceptable to 
all of us.
  The person who earns the wage should be on the front end of the line 
when a bankruptcy happens, and whatever happens, they are taken care of 
first. Time is running out for our coal miners. We need it fixed now--
not in a few weeks, not in 2020, but now. Year after year, our coal 
miners risk their lives to bring America the energy needed to become 
the world leader that we are today. Our coal miners made a commitment 
to our country, and now, it is our turn to uphold the commitment we 
made to them in 1946 by securing their hard-earned pensions in 
healthcare.
  Let me tell you about the coal that we have in our country and has 
been mined by our hard-working coal miners since the beginning of the 
20th century. That coal basically has fueled every war that we have 
been in, helped us win every war, helped propel us to the industrial 
might that we are today, built our factories. It has done everything 
for us, and all we are doing now is trying to make sure that the people 
that sacrificed all these years are taken care of.
  We have 1,000 coal miners who will lose their healthcare coverage on 
December 31 of this year, a little over a month from now. We also have 
12,000 more coal miners who will lose their healthcare in March of next 
year, and that is only 4 months away. This is an issue that must be 
dealt with immediately, and time is running out. If you are one of 
those 1,000 coal miners and one of your family members is depending on 
their healthcare--probably life-supporting healthcare--and they are 
thinking they are going to lose it at the end of this month, it is 
unconscionable for us to walk out of here and not get this piece of 
legislation down. With it being so bipartisan--having the majority 
leader from Kentucky representing the coal miners of Kentucky--this is 
something that needs to be done immediately, and I know that we can.
  But if we don't pass this legislation to protect our miners, the UMWA 
pension fund will be insolvent by this time next year. With the largest 
privately owned coal company, Murray Energy, filing for bankruptcy 2 
weeks ago, the timeline for the UMWA pension fund moved up 2 years. It 
accelerated a basically exacerbating position that we were in to begin 
with. Murray Energy, to date, has contributed over 97 percent of the 
money going into the UMWA pension fund annually because of the size of 
their company, which is why its bankruptcy has accelerated the 
situation we are in today with the pension fund insolvency.
  Once the UMWA pension fund would become insolvent if we don't do 
something, this crisis will snowball and impact every other multi-
employer pension fund in America. They will all start tumbling, along 
with the PBGC, which is a federally funded pension guarantee. That is 
why it is essential that we protect our coal miners' pensions now--not 
next year or the year after that--which is why my colleagues and I 
introduced the Bipartisan American Miners Act.
  The Bipartisan American Miners Act would amend the current Surface 
Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to transfer funds in excess 
of the amounts needed to be meet existing obligations under the 
Abandoned Mine Land fund to the 1974 Pension Plan to prevent its 
looming insolvency. It also raises the cap on these funds from $490 
million to $750 million to ensure that there is sufficient funding for 
those pension funds.
  It also guarantees lifetime healthcare for the 13,000 individuals, 
including the 1,000 scheduled to lose their healthcare on December 31 
of this year, by amending the Coal Act to include 2018 and 2019 
bankruptcies in the miners' healthcare fix that passed in 2017. The 
funding for coal miners' pensions is already there. It just needs to be 
reallocated. These actions will secure the pensions of 92,000 coal 
miners and their families and protect healthcare benefits for 13,000 
miners. That is our goal, and I am proud to be here fighting for these 
miners today because they surely have fought for me and given me the 
great country that I live in today.
  These miners took home less pay every day from their paycheck with 
the expectations that they will be able to retire and provide for their 
families after working for decades for our country. They have paid what 
they are trying to receive. It is not something they are asking for, a 
handout. They are not asking for a Government handout or taxpayer 
handout. They are just wanting the money that they invested and paid 
into all of these years. It is money they did not take out.
  Workers expect the wages they have contributed to be there when they 
retire, as they were promised. If we pass the Bipartisan American 
Miners Act as an amendment to the continuing resolution, we will 
protect coal miners' pensions and healthcare now before it is too late. 
The Bipartisan American Miners Act is ready to be voted on and has the 
support from both sides of the aisles. I just read off a list of our 
sponsors.
  The Bipartisan American Miners Act is basically a piece of 
legislation that needs to be done immediately. If we don't pass it now, 
1,000 miners, as I said before, will lose their healthcare on December 
31. Healthcare benefits will be terminated, as we talked about, and 
then by early September 2020, the pension benefits of 82,000 current 
pensioners and 10,000 future pensioners could be drastically reduced 
because of the plan's insolvency.
  I want to remind you also that the average pension of a coal miner is 
less than $600 a month. Most of these are widows. Their husbands have 
passed on, and they are living on this as a subsistence basically for 
their income. It would be tremendously harmful for them not to be able 
to receive this.
  I believe that we can and will pass this legislation before it is too 
late for these miners as an amendment to the CR. That is all we are 
asking for. It must be done before and no later than December 20. I am 
trying to get this on now so that we can move forward.
  Can you imagine being one of the 1,000 coal miners, maybe having one 
of your loved ones--your wife or one of your children--who has a 
serious illness and needs attention and knowing they are not going to 
be able to get attention basically to any healthcare after December 31, 
so put yourself in their shoes.
  These are the families that deserve the peace of mind knowing that 
their pensions are going to be paid and their paycheck--that they did 
not take the money home--is going to be secure. We can give them peace 
of mind today. I look forward to passing this legislation with all of 
my colleagues. It is bipartisan. This is the first time we have had 
something of this magnitude being done in a bipartisan way. The good 
Lord knows we need more bipartisan efforts to work for the people.
  If we are going to stand for the working men and women that made 
America, what is our purpose of being here, and who do we stand for? So 
I am asking all of you, please, with the urgency that is needed, please 
take up this piece of legislation. Please take up this amendment to the 
CR, and let's take care of the people that helped make America as great 
as we are today, the coal miners of the United Mine Workers of America.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. MANCHIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Scott of Florida). The Senator from West 
Virginia.
  Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. President, I am really pleased to be here with my 
fellow West Virginia Senator, Mr. Manchin. We have joined each other on 
this topic before, but he has been a real champion for our miners, and 
I am really grateful to him and others who have participated, but I 
think we have got to talk about this every day and make sure that we 
underscore the urgent need to pass the Bipartisan American Miners Act. 
I appreciate Senator Manchin and certainly appreciate Leader McConnell 
who has been a

[[Page S6733]]

champion for our miners as well--Senator Portland as well--who have 
made this retirement security a top priority.
  Back in 2017, time was running out on the healthcare benefits for 
12,000 retired miners. I remember it well, particularly following the 
Patriot Coal bankruptcy. We came together as a bipartisan group to pass 
legislation with the House that protected healthcare for those men and 
women. While we are in a similar situation today, which we knew we were 
going to be here, the Senate needs to act soon to save the healthcare 
of 13,000 retired miners and protect the pension benefits of 92,000 
people.
  Time is of the essence here because roughly 1,000 retirees from 
Westmoreland and Mission Coal will lose their healthcare at the end of 
the year if we do not act; 12,000 more could lose their healthcare by 
next spring, and the pension benefits are at risk in 2020. This is a 
critical, critical issue for my State and many others.
  I am going to take a brief moment to explain how this legislation 
works, and it is a bit complicated. In 2006, when we passed the last 
reauthorization of the Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Program, we had 
a capped permanent direct appropriation that was created for transfer 
of payments. That permanent direct appropriation, along with the 
interest on the AML--the Abandoned Mine Land--trust fund has been used 
to fund AML payments to certified States and to provide healthcare for 
our miners. What do we do to certify States? The whole point of the AML 
is to do reclamation and repair of previously mined lands all 
throughout our country.
  That permanent direct appropriation has been used for the payments 
for the certified States and also to provide healthcare to our orphaned 
miners. Well, for those who are not from a coal company, what is an 
orphaned miner? An orphaned miner is someone who earned a vested right 
to retiree healthcare benefits through years of hard work but worked 
for a company that either no longer exists or is no longer financially 
solvent.
  The Bipartisan American Miners Act makes use of the same 
appropriation that was created in 2006 to cover the healthcare for 
retirees whose healthcare would be lost due to the bankruptcies in 
2018, 2019. The bill would provide resources to guarantee the long-term 
solvency of the mine workers' pension fund. This is critical. Previous 
versions of this bill that many of us supported were able to accomplish 
this goal of protecting those retirement beneficiaries without lifting 
the cap on the direct appropriation that was set in 2006.
  Because Congress has delayed action for so long, our current 
legislation must lift the cap in order to provide healthcare and 
pension benefits for our miners. Protecting these benefits is a top 
priority for me because it impacts so many mining families and 
communities in West Virginia. Just last weekend, I talked to three 
miners directly impacted, just kind of randomly ran into them in 
different areas of our State.
  But I think it is important to understand that this bill does not 
place other policy items in jeopardy. That is a misconception. Passing 
this bill does not disturb the principal balance of the AML trust fund. 
That means we are not jeopardizing funds that are used to clean up 
abandoned mine sites, and passing this bill will not cut funding for 
other transfer payments that are authorized by the law.
  What the bill will do is protect retirement benefits for tens of 
thousands of retired miners and their families--benefits that have been 
worked for, benefits that have been earned through the hard work in our 
mines; 25,451 West Virginians received benefits from the pension fund 
during 2018. They were joined by more than 11,000 Pennsylvanians, 8,500 
Kentuckians, and thousands more from Illinois, Virginia, Alabama, and 
Ohio. The pension benefits of all the men and women are at risk if 
Congress fails to act.
  The average benefit--listen to this--the average benefit for our 
miners is $590 a month, so these are not lavish benefits, but they are 
critical to our retirees. One retired miner from Logan, WV, who worked 
for 36 years in the mines, wrote me and said, ``Please keep fighting to 
save our pension. I receive $303.34 monthly. We need this badly to help 
us pay for our food, our medicine and other bills.''
  A miner from Richwood, WV, who mined coal for 17 years, wrote, ``My 
monthly check is $192. It is not a lot of money, but it means a lot to 
my ability to make ends meet.''
  I would add to both of these, these men, these gentlemen, they worked 
for these pensions. They paid into the pensions. They should receive 
them. Pension benefits from the mine workers plan went to individuals 
in all 55 West Virginian counties, so this is truly an issue that 
impacts my entire State. But in the areas that have the largest number 
of pensioners, which is Raleigh, Logan, Wyoming, Marion, and Boone 
Counties, cuts to the pension and healthcare benefits of our retired 
families would have significant impacts on our entire community.
  If these retirees face severe reductions in their pensions, it means 
less money spent at the local businesses, less money at a local 
restaurant, and it would cause further economic harm to the areas that 
cannot afford another blow.
  So I ask my colleagues to join me, Senator Manchin, Leader McConnell, 
Senator Portman, and many others, by supporting the Bipartisan American 
Miners Act.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kentucky.


                           Order of Business

  Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the cloture 
vote on the Brouillette nomination occur at 1:30 p.m. today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.


                           Amendment No. 1250

  Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, I rise to present an amendment to this bill. 
My amendment is simple, and it reflects the kind of commonsense 
budgeting we ought to be doing in Washington. Today I offer the penny 
plan for infrastructure. This plan cuts one penny, 1 percent of all 
spending, and puts that money in a fund for infrastructure.
  My amendment would put about $12 billion per year into a fund to fix 
our roads and bridges. Every agency would still get 99 percent of the 
spending they got the previous year. Sure, they would need to trim some 
fat, but they would still be fine. A lot of businesses and 
organizations will tell you they have to cut much greater than 1 
percent a year.
  I visited a business recently that in the downturn of 2008-2009 had 
to cut 30 percent of their expenditures. Business men and women in 
America are used to having to cut expenditures; government never does.
  Whether it is our highways or our bridges or our waterways, our 
infrastructure in America is falling behind. Everyone knows it, but 
like so many things, Washington can't figure out how to fix it, how to 
find the money to fix it.
  Politicians on both sides of the aisle talk about trillion-dollar 
infrastructure plans but offer no way to pay for it. My plan is much 
more modest, doesn't increase taxes, and doesn't increase our debt. The 
penny plan for infrastructure pays for it with money we have already 
allocated.
  To be clear, we do have the money. Washington just spends it in 
inappropriate ways. Washington spends, for example, $233 million on a 
single highway in Afghanistan. We have money to pave roads in 
Afghanistan, but they will not vote to spend the money here to pave 
roads.
  The people in Afghanistan got $233 million for a road, but they 
couldn't even maintain it, so we gave them another $22 million to 
maintain the road.
  We spent $326 million to pave 2,000 kilometers of dirt roads in 
Afghanistan. We have enough money to spend over $300 million to pave 
dirt roads in Afghanistan, but we can't come up with $1 billion to help 
our infrastructure here. They were supposed to pave 2,000 kilometers; 
it turned out they only paved 159 kilometers. They paved less than 10 
percent of what they actually promised to do with the money. What is 
that equal to--$2.7 million per mile.
  It is outrageous, and it goes on year after year after year. I think 
it is time we try a new way. Just in Afghanistan, we have spent more 
than the Marshall Plan did to rebuild Europe after the devastation of 
World War II, and we are still there, spending good money after bad. So 
when people come up here and

[[Page S6734]]

say that a 1-percent cut would somehow be a disaster, we need to remind 
them that the money is there. They just have to listen to the people 
and pull the plug on this kind of crazy spending overseas.

  My amendment would move 1 percent of current spending, and it would 
put that 1 percent of the current spending bill into infrastructure.
  Supposedly, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents all agree on 
infrastructure. Yet we don't allocate more money to it because we are 
too busy paving roads in Afghanistan. If we did this, it would be about 
$12 billion. It is not enough to fix everything in the country. It is a 
modest sum. This is actually a modest proposal to move over a few 
billion dollars.
  Do you know what it would do? Twelve billion dollars would pave up to 
6,200 miles of a new four-lane highway, resurface 20,000 miles of a 
four-lane highway, and 2,200 miles of a six-lane interstate. It would 
pay for multiple big-ticket infrastructure projects that are currently 
stuck without funding. In my State, they have been advocating money for 
the Brent Spence Bridge across the Ohio River since before I was 
elected--8 or 9 years of advocating for a bridge for which we can't 
find the money. We have the money. Quit paving roads in Afghanistan, 
and let's start building bridges and paving roads here.
  This amendment would improve our infrastructure, benefit our 
communities, eliminate government waste, and help our economy. By 
cutting 1 percent of the current spending, we will force all of 
government to do a better job.
  There is at least 1 percent waste. There is probably 10 percent waste 
in government. I am asking to cut 1 percent of waste. Take that money 
you cut by making government more efficient and put it into 
infrastructure.
  I encourage the Senate to consider this amendment. I think we have 
very few amendments come forward where people have a chance to vote for 
infrastructure.
  At this point, I move to concur on the House amendment to the Senate 
amendment--
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Will the Senator suspend?
  Mr. PAUL. At this point, I am about ready to do that.

                          ____________________