June 3, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 103 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Pages S2659-S2660]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       BUSINESS BEFORE THE SENATE

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, our Nation is caught within a number 
of grave problems at the same time.
  This week, in cities all across America, the pain of racial injustice 
has been compounded by violent riots that have drowned out peaceful 
protests and hurt innocent people. Millions of working families 
continue to face the historic economic fallout from the coronavirus 
pandemic, including unemployment levels not seen in decades, and, lest 
we forget, the actual pandemic itself is still with us. The virus 
continues to claim hundreds of American lives every day, challenge 
healthcare professionals, and paralyze schools, universities, and 
employers that are eager to reopen. Of course, there is also the 
important business we would have needed to have addressed even before 
the pandemic.
  So, for all of these reasons and more, while the Democratic House of 
Representatives may be absent--with no plans to return for weeks and 
weeks--the U.S. Senate is here and working for the American people.
  This week, we are filling more critical vacancies throughout our 
government. Yesterday, we confirmed the Special Inspector General for 
Pandemic Response. This is a brandnew position born of immediate 
necessity and goals shared by Members of both parties. Yet, though our 
Democratic colleagues said for weeks that CARES Act oversight was a top 
priority, our colleagues chose to delay this nomination for as long as 
possible. When the rubber met the road, yet again, picking small fights 
with President Trump took precedence over urgent work for the common 
good.
  At the same time, we also hear from the very same Democratic 
colleagues that they wish the Senate would spend less time on 
nominations. Well, the good news is that the Senate Democrats can 
change that whenever they want, but as long as they continue to visit 
delays and obstruction on even these lower level executive branch 
appointments, just for the sake of irritating the White House, the 
Senate will continue to do our job the hard way.
  Of course, in the weeks ahead, we will also tackle significant 
legislation

[[Page S2660]]

for our country. We will turn to legislation to strengthen the 
implementation of the Paycheck Protection Program for the workers and 
small businesses that are struggling to weather this storm. We will 
consider a bipartisan bill from Senators Daines and Gardner to 
safeguard America's abundant public lands. For the 60th consecutive 
year, we will also take up the National Defense Authorization Act to 
help guide the strategic and operational priorities of our Nation's 
Armed Forces in the face of evolving threats

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