Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I thank her and the ranking member for their leadership in bringing this legislation to the floor. It is legislation that makes an immediate and substantial difference to what is happening in Ukraine.

Mr. Speaker, 10 days ago, it was my solemn and extraordinary privilege to lead a congressional delegation to Kyiv, where we met with President Zelenskyy. In the heart of his war-torn nation, our delegation expressed our deep admiration for the courage of the Ukrainian people as they fought for their democracy against autocracy and our endless respect for his great, heroic leadership.

In return, really just from the start, President Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to the American people, which I conveyed to this Congress and, therefore, to the American people for the extraordinary support that we have so far supplied--and now, tonight, more to come.

He praised our President for being such a source of hope as well as support to the people of Ukraine--not only for our support but for the unifying force he has been in this fight.

Mr. Speaker, as Putin desperately accelerates his campaign of horror and brutality in Ukraine, time is of the essence. That is why we are so pleased to hear that we could proceed immediately with this bill today so that it goes to the Senate and to the President's desk so that the assistance can reach the people of Ukraine and Eastern Europe. We cannot afford to wait. Again, time is of the essence.

The aid package we will pass today will be pivotal, and others have addressed what is in there in terms of weaponry and security issues, in terms of government and their economy, in terms of humanitarian assistance.

I was very pleased for the delegation to be joined by Chairman Jim McGovern, chair of the Rules Committee, but the chair always of the food security initiatives in the Congress. He made very clear the link between what Putin is doing in Ukraine and the impact it will have on the rest of the world in terms of starvation because Ukraine has been the breadbasket of Europe and the world. All of the product--whether it is sunflower oil, whether it is wheat, corn, whatever--going to Africa and other places in the world is essential to their food security.

The brutality of Putin is not just what he is doing in Ukraine but the impact that it is having on food for the world. So when you are home thinking of what this is all about, just think: ``When I was hungry, you fed me,'' the Gospel of Matthew.

I also was so pleased that Mr. Meeks, the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, was with us because we talked about sanctions, which are a product of his committee. I mention that because he knows his subject very well, as did President Zelenskyy. But the fact is, what we want to see is an end to war. If we could end war by using economic sanctions, all the better, all the better to spare human life on both sides of it.

But President Putin has initiated hostilities into a sovereign country with a band leading it, thinking that he was going to be well- received with a band. What could he have been thinking?

Again, Mr. Meeks, in terms of negotiations, in terms of sanctions and the rest, led our visit very well.

Mr. Schiff, the chair of the Intelligence Committee, had a very clear conversation with President Zelenskyy, the speaker of their parliament, and the Foreign Minister about how respectful of what the Ukrainians are doing with their own security--and not to be misled into thinking that anything but their own security has led to some of the successes they have had.

Barbara Lee, who we just heard from, the chair of the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Subcommittee, just so remarkable in our visit to Poland to talk about how we have not only economic assistance or humanitarian assistance but accountability, as well as help for children who are suffering so much there.

Mr. Keating, a member of both the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Armed Services, was very much into the accountability piece. He is chair of the committee that is Europe, Eurasia, environment, global issues across borders and understood the need for us to have public support and accountability for what we give.

Jason Crow, a member of the Intelligence Committee and the Armed Services Committee, spoke with great authority about weapons systems and the rest with President Zelenskyy and his team, about what they need, what we can convey back, and what judgments are made in that regard.

What is interesting about Mr. Crow is that he was a member at another time, earlier in his life--which wasn't that long ago--he was a member of the 82nd Airborne. When we met with the 82nd Airborne in Poland, they were happy to welcome one of their former members. They spoke the same language, some hoots and hollers of some kind. I don't know. But nonetheless, his participation there was beneficial, especially when it came to comparing notes on weapons systems.

What I think is important for the American people to know is that what Putin has done is not only an act of brutality; it is an act of cowardice.

Who but a coward would pretend he is going to war and bomb a maternity hospital?

Who but a coward would have his soldiers resort to the cruelty of rape of children or their parents in front of them--boys and girls?

Who but a coward would pile these children in trains and take them to Russia?

All of this will be a matter of coming to justice at some point, but right now, we have to have it come to a conclusion that you don't do that. It is outside the circle of civilized human behavior.

Putin: Coward.

In any event, what we are doing here is very important. It is buying weaponry and security assistance, government and economic assistance, humanitarian assistance.

I thank Congresswoman Lee and Mr. McGovern for their focus on all of that, for the refugees, for the displaced within Ukraine, and for those who are trapped under fire without food or fresh water or anything because their civilian communities are being attacked by the coward Putin.

So, we are very proud of this effort today. We should all be very proud that we had the opportunity, when Putin decided whatever it is he decided, to be brutal and cruel and a coward, that we were there to help.

It is about democracy versus dictatorship. Democracy must prevail. Ukrainian people are fighting the fight for their democracy and, in doing so, for ours as well. We must help them win so that we can have bread for the world and feed the hungry, so we can stop the horrible behavior that they are doing in treating women and trafficking women and girls. This is unbelievable.

It is horrible, and the world needs to know why this is important. The world needs to know why we have decided to go forward with this as soon as possible.

This package builds upon the strong, ongoing support already delivered by the United States, thanks to the bipartisan, bicameral unity in the Congress and with the administration.

In our government funding legislation last March, we delivered $13.6 billion in humanitarian, security, and economic assistance. These resources are already reaching communities on the ground, helping the Ukrainians protect their people and repel Russian forces.

Just yesterday, President Biden proudly signed into law one of our consequential legislative initiatives, the revival of the historic lend-lease program. Lend-lease helped turn the tide in the fight against fascism in World War II, and it will be essential in our mission to rescue democracy from dictatorship today.

The House also passed one that I like to call seize and freeze: seize the Russian assets, freeze them, and then, to punish the Russian oligarchs funding this diabolical war, use the assets, when they thaw, to rebuild Ukraine.

At the same time, America has continued to move together with our allies to level a historic punishment against Putin for his senseless aggression, isolating Russia and devastating its economy.

I wish the people of Russia knew what he was doing to them, but he does not allow the truth to be heard by the Russian people.

I want to say one more thing about all of this, and that is, when we talk about our partners in NATO and the European Union, I want to sing their praises because they have seen that their dependence on Russian oil is a weapon of war for the Russians. They have seen that unless they diversify away from Russian oil, they will always be enslaved by needing that oil.

I am so pleased that they have made the decision that, in an appropriate timetable, they will be withdrawing from that, as we did in the House a number of weeks ago when we said--and the Senate did as well--we won't be purchasing any more Russian oil.

So again, for these and other reasons, it is just an honor to be associated with the courage of the people of Ukraine and the generosity of the people of Poland and other European countries that are receiving these refugees. They have opened their homes and their hearts to them, and we need to be helpful in every way that we can.

So, I salute our bipartisan leadership in bringing this to the floor.

I also thank Mr. Rogers. He was chair of the committee when I was on the committee, and I appreciated his remarks earlier.

Again, I thank Rosa DeLauro for the efficiency and directness with which she was ready to bring this to the floor the minute the President said we can proceed with it as a single measure.

I urge a strong bipartisan vote for this act of mercy.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1097, I call up the bill (H.R. 7691) making emergency supplemental appropriations for assistance for the situation in Ukraine for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2022, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, which provides $40.1 billion in much-needed emergency security, economic, and humanitarian aid to support the Ukrainian people and defend global democracy in the wake of Russia's unprovoked attack on Ukraine.

For nearly 3 months now, Putin's greed, growing aggression, and unyielding pursuit of power have led to grievous loss of life and humanitarian devastation. The cruelty against innocent civilians at the hands of Putin and his cronies is devastating. The images of the violence and terror coming from Ukraine should horrify us all.

Entire cities are being demolished. Ukraine's democracy is being undermined every single day. Women and girls are being sexually abused by cruel Russian soldiers. Hospitals and universities, which should be safe havens, are being intentionally attacked. War crimes are being carried out every single day as part of a deeply dangerous pattern of extensive shootings, torture, and other violent crimes. Thousands of innocent children and their families have been brutally murdered. As a result, nearly 6 million Ukrainians have been forced to flee their country, and another 6\1/2\ million have been displaced inside war-torn Ukraine.

Given the magnitude of the terror campaign being waged against the Ukrainian people and Ukrainian democracy, we are morally obligated to ensure the brave Ukrainian fighters and the Ukrainian people have the security and economic aid that they need. I am proud to be standing here today in support of a bill that does just that.

This legislation invests strongly to support Ukraine's dire efforts to defend itself by keeping weapons and ammunition flowing without interruption. With $6 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, we will provide the equipment, training, and weapons that the Ukrainian military and national security forces need to continue to protect the Ukrainian people. And at the same time, we are providing additional support for Ukraine and our allies and partners in the region as they continue to build and update their capabilities.

But we know very well that Russia's invasion is not only a threat to Ukraine's physical security, but also a threat to the very core of Ukrainian and global democracy. This bill will invest in critical economic assistance to help Ukraine protect its democracy by ensuring the continuity of its democratic government, by countering human trafficking, and by fighting dangerous Russian lies.

But the impact of this war does not end there. The prolonged invasion has taken an immense toll globally, where people the world over are suffering from a growing food insecurity and the rising costs of food. To address this devastating reality, we are providing more than $5 billion in emergency food assistance and support for agricultural development. As we support the fight against Russian aggression, those struggling to put food on the table, the most vulnerable people around our world deserve our support.

And none of the devastation caused would have been possible without help from Putin's cronies. For that reason, the funding in this bill will continue efforts to hold them accountable for the terror they have caused the people of Ukraine. With funds to seize, retain, and sell the forfeited property of Russia's criminal kleptocrats who enable Putin's regime war crimes, this bill ensures that we are one step closer to making them pay the full price for their actions. And in the process, we will be standing firmly with the Ukrainian people while combating the exploitation of Ukraine's vulnerable financial system.

For those Ukrainians who managed to find refuge at our borders, this bill provides funds to expand support services that will make sure they feel safe here as they search for peace and for freedom.

We are providing funds for trauma care, housing assistance, case management, English language classes, and for screenings, vaccinations, and ongoing public health surveillance.

The Ukrainian people are in desperate need of our support, and Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to threaten peace and democracy around

the globe. This bill will protect democracy, limit Russian aggression, and strengthen our own national security while, most importantly, supporting Ukraine. We have no room to fail and must act swiftly and decisively.

The Members of this body came together quickly in March to provide critical security and economic support for the people of Ukraine.

Mr. Speaker, while I am saddened and angry that we have to be here again today, Russia's continued aggression and this vicious invasion require us to act decisively in support of Ukraine, our allies in the region, and the millions of others suffering as a result of this war.

We need to protect global democracy, limiting Russian aggression in the longer term, and strengthening our own national security. Failure is not an option.

For those critical reasons, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the chairwoman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, who has been a leader leading the effort and the fight to make sure that we help to preserve democracy in Ukraine and to really be responsive to the Ukrainian people.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), the chairwoman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum), the chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Danny K. Davis).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Granger for her support for this effort. As the Speaker pointed out, this has been a bipartisan measure since we moved on March 8. I also thank Chairman Rogers for speaking here tonight as well.

The world must see that we are united in our support of Ukraine. I think the Ukrainian people--they need us. They are in desperate need of our support. Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to threaten peace and democracy around the globe, and Vladimir Putin must be held accountable.

Why is there an unprovoked attack on a sovereign Nation whose only desire is to be free, to be a democracy, to associate itself with the West? Why is that a provocation for being invaded, for the massive destruction that Ukraine is undergoing at the moment? Again, Vladimir Putin and his cronies must be held accountable.

This bill does that by protecting democracy, limiting Russian aggression, and strengthening our own national security. We must act swiftly and decisively tonight. We have not seen such a mobilization of support around the world for an ally since World War II. I am so proud that that mobilization has been led by a United States President, President Biden.

It is a moral obligation. It is a moral responsibility. We can't sit by and watch news day-in and day-out seeing the massive destruction that is being wrought on Ukraine and its citizens. President Zelenskyy said: Light will overcome darkness. And our job is to help to provide the light.

I think it was stirring when you had, in Moscow, victory day, and President Putin with his extraordinary display of power. Then watching President Zelenskyy walk down the street of Kyiv on his own by himself, an extraordinary leader who needs to know--and I think he does know-- that the United States and the world is there to support his efforts.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the majority leader.

Mr. Speaker, we were together, as I said earlier on March 8, in support of Ukraine. Let us be together tonight in support of Ukraine.

Let us tell Vladimir Putin that the United States is leading the world in support of Ukraine on behalf of the Ukrainian people. Let him understand that he is alone in this world and needs to pay a price for this outrageous invasion and unprovoked attack on a sovereign nation.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam President, there was some sobering data that came out from the CDC last week. It was a new set of preliminary data on overdose deaths. Last year, we lost almost 108,000 people to the ravages of drug abuse. Almost 4,000 of those 108,000 were Tennesseans. Those 2021 numbers are the worst that we have ever seen, and I am concerned because it seems that my Democratic colleagues and their friends in the White House are not seeing the big picture on this issue.

Now, the White House claims they have a plan to address the drug crisis in this country, but they have intentionally ignored a key vulnerability when they do this. It is as if they are turning a blind eye to a key component, to a key contributing factor, of this drug crisis, and they are refusing to talk about it. It is the reason that crime is on the rise in most of our American communities. It is also the reason it is easier for drug dealers to get their hands on fentanyl than on just about anything else, and it is the same reason that human traffickers now are pushing people--the sex trafficking gangs, the labor gangs--into communities all across this country. Indeed, every town is a border town and every State a border State because of this key vulnerability.

They don't want to talk about this because I don't think they want to admit that they have been so wrong. Of course, that vulnerability, whether you are talking about drugs, whether you are talking about crime in the streets, all comes down to talking about that wide-open southern border. Don't take my word for it. Go talk to sheriffs in Tennessee. They will tell you that, with the open border, they are seeing the results of that on their streets and in their counties.

Indeed, one of the sheriffs I visited with last week said 80 percent of the drug overdoses, 80 percent of the apprehended drugs in their county--fentanyl. Why is it there? The southern border being wide open.

This is an area in which Tennesseans are wanting to see something done, and they can't figure out why the Democrats won't make a priority of securing the southern border when they want to talk issues that stem from what is transpiring at the southern border. They feel that the Democrats are deliberately sabotaging our economic recovery, our recovery from the pandemic, and they are making bad situations worse because they won't talk about the root causes.

The Biden administration never was interested in securing the border. Indeed, he hasn't been to the border. In fact, their official policy from day one has been: Let's make that southern border more insecure. Isn't that amazing? You have an administration and you have a DHS Secretary who don't believe in a secure border.

The radical left didn't like the optics of border security, so Joe Biden stopped building the wall. Even though everything is purchased and it is there--the wall can be completed--he chose not to secure our border, and he stopped building the wall.

The radical left wanted to change the definition of ``asylum'' without bothering to change the law, so Joe Biden threw away the ``Remain in Mexico'' policy.

The radical left wanted their sanctuary cities back, so Joe Biden tied the

hands of immigration officials. Go talk to them. They will tell you what they are no longer able to do, which is abide by the rule of law-- the laws that are on the books.

With each Executive order that he signed, Joe Biden sabotaged Border Patrol and law enforcement, putting Americans in danger, and turned even more vulnerable women and children into victims of the sex trafficking trade.

You have to ask yourself whose side the Biden administration is actually on when it comes to the issues of crime, when it comes to the issue of protecting women and children, because I can't think of a single law-abiding American who is better off for all of this. But I do know that the cartels are happy because they are the ones who control the southern border on that Mexico side. You cannot cross that border into the United States unless you have gone through the cartel, so they are having to work out a way to pay their fee to the cartel, endangering their lives, seeing drugs pushed into this country.

Last year, Border Patrol intercepted thousands of pounds of deadly drugs and repeatedly interrupted equally deadly migrant trafficking operations, but we will never be able to account for the ``got-aways'' who escaped into the country with their drugs and their human cargo intact.

The level of self-sabotage has a purpose. The Biden administration has made it clear that they are willing to risk lives and livelihoods to prove their commitment to what they are calling ``compassion.''

Let me ask you this, Madam President: What is compassionate about women being pushed into the sex trade, little girls being sex trafficked, children being thrown into gangs? What is compassionate about that? That is what is happening because of this open southern border. This is insanity.

The cartels last year brought people from 160 different countries to our southern border. Those are stats from the Border Patrol. We know that, right now, they are anticipating bringing people in at the end of title 42. They are already working globally--globally--in order to hit these numbers. This is insanity.

According to the Biden administration, we can't secure the border and stop the flow of drugs, but the Federal Government can hand out fresh crack pipes to those with addiction. And as much as they tried to say, no, that was incorrect, we have all seen the photos.

According to the Biden administration, we can't allow shipments of perfectly safe, foreign-made baby formula into American communities. We can't process those waivers, they say. That could possibly be dangerous. We can't get a baby formula plant open in Michigan because the FDA is busy; they have other priorities. Meanwhile, parents are scrambling, trying to find formula for babies who have to have specific formulas. This is not compassion; this is a tragedy.

I saw a friend this weekend. She calls herself independent-minded, leans more moderate Democrat. She said: You know, we have always been a government of, by, and for the people, but right now, what do we see happening? We see this government using people to get power for themselves. That is what is going on. People realize this administration is void of priorities.

The saddest thing about all of this is that the Biden administration, I think, knows what needs to be done. Many of my colleagues and I have been talking about it, that there should be priorities to secure this Nation and our sovereignty. Priority No. 1 right now should be to keep title 42 in place until three things happen.

First, DHS needs to present a thorough and specific plan that would enable American officials to handle the anticipated 18,000 people per day who Border Patrol is saying will come to our border if those restrictions are lifted. Right now, it is about 6,000 people per day.

Now, 18,000--I looked it up. Illinois has 1,466 cities, and 1,324 of those cities have 18,000 or fewer citizens. That is their population. So that is the equivalence that we are talking about. Our friend from Colorado was just on the floor. There are 482 cities there, and 439 of them have 18,000 or fewer citizens. We have Alaska. We have 355 cities in Alaska, and 350 of them have 18,000 or fewer citizens. It is like a new city in Alaska or Colorado or Illinois or Tennessee every single day. So DHS needs to come through.

Second, Chairman Durbin must summon Secretary Mayorkas to a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee so that we can subject that plan that has been missing to scrutiny.

Third, they need to consult with Congress to give Border Patrol and law enforcement the manpower and resources they need to execute the plan.

Then and only then should we consider title 42.

Priority No. 2 is to stop playing politics and embrace President Trump's ``Remain in Mexico'' policy. We know for a fact that it helped control the influx of asylum seekers, which, in turn, took the pressure off our limited resources at the border.

Priority No. 3: The Biden administration must stop denying reality. Finish building the wall, which is what Border Patrol has been asking for for decades. Give them a physical barrier. Give them more officers and agents. Give them more technology so they can protect our Nation and our citizens. That is how we would get that border under control.

As I said, it affects crime in the streets. It affects drugs and fentanyl. This affects our citizens, our families, who are heartbroken--heartbroken--by loss of lives to drugs, to crime.

There is a starting point. There is a way to make a difference. But if this administration wants to do something about crime, if they want to do something about the drug crisis, they need to start it at the southern border.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, let me join the majority leader in best wishes to our colleague Chris Van Hollen.

It came as a surprise this morning, but we are heartened by the news that he is recovering, and we hope he will be back with us very, very soon. He is a wonderful Senator, who is representing his State effectively, and he is very close to Members on both sides of the aisle. So we wish him and his family all the strength and recovery as quickly as he can.

Gun Violence

Madam President, this was another weekend of bloodshed and loss in America.

In Chicago, five people were shot dead, including a 16-year-old boy-- killed near ``The Bean,'' which those of us in Chicago know automatically as that sight in Millennium Park where people race to gather and take photographs. It is one of the most popular attractions in our city, and just this last weekend, it was the scene of a murder, with one teenager killing another.

In California yesterday, a gunman walked into a church and opened fire, killing one person and critically wounding four others. That same afternoon, another gunman opened fire at a flea market in Houston, killing two and injuring three.

A weekend in America.

But both of these mass shootings happened less than 24 hours after a White supremacist massacred innocent shoppers at a grocery store in Buffalo, NY. The shooter was wearing tactical gear and carrying an AR- 15 assault rifle--a weapon designed to kill people. He shot 13 people, 11 of whom were Black, in an act of racist violence; 10 of the victims died. Each of these 10 people had left home Saturday, maybe to grab dinner or to buy groceries for the week, and they never returned. Now their families are facing the unimaginable trauma of loss. In an instant, they lost a grandparent, a child, a spouse.

To those families, I say: You do not grieve alone. America grieves with you.

One of the victims was Aaron Salter. He was a retired police officer who was working as a security guard at the grocery store when it was attacked. Officer Aaron Salter was a hero. When the gunman entered the store, Officer Salter didn't flinch; he leapt into action to save the lives of the shoppers and employees, but there was only so much he could do. He was armed with a handgun while the person who attacked the store was wearing a tactical vest and firing an assault rifle. Like so many of our police who risk their lives for us every day, Officer Salter was outgunned.

As we mourn Officer Salter's loss this week, our Nation's Capital is welcoming law enforcement from across the country for Police Week.

To every officer who protects our communities like Officer Salter did so valiantly, we give our thanks.

No officers should ever find themselves in a situation where they are outgunned by an assailant, but that is exactly what happened in Buffalo this weekend, and it happens far too often in cities like Chicago.

For decades, this Senate has failed to pass legislation that would close the gaping holes in our gun laws and reduce the shootings that tear apart law enforcement families and families of all kinds across the country. How many more lives will be lost before we act?

When will the Members of the Senate finally join together in recognizing the role that White supremacy and White nationalism have played in fueling these violent terrorist attacks?

Time and again, I have made my position on violent extremism as clear as I can: The use of violence to advance political goals is always-- always--unacceptable. No matter the ideology, right or left, it is wrong, but we need to be clear-eyed about the nature of the threat that we face. Senior law enforcement and intelligence officials have warned us on numerous occasions that the biggest terrorism threat in America today is homegrown. It stems from White supremacists and violent militia extremists.

I have been sounding this alarm for years. In 2012--2012--10 years ago--I first held a hearing on domestic terrorism after a White supremacist murdered seven Sikh worshippers in Oak Creek, WI. Today, a decade later, the threat is even worse.

FBI Director Wray testified at the Judiciary Committee that the threat of domestic terrorism is ``metastasizing across the country''; and last year, the FBI reported that our Nation experienced the highest level of hate crimes in over a decade. These attacks have targeted Black Americans, who have long been the target of the majority of race- based hate crimes in America, but they are not limited to just our Black American neighbors. They have also targeted Muslim Americans, Japanese Americans, members of the AAPI community, and members of other marginalized communities as well.

They don't happen in a vacuum, and it is clear that influential figures on the right have been fanning the flames of hate. The gunman who attacked the grocery store in Buffalo was an adherent of the great replacement theory--a conspiracy theory that fuels White supremacy and White nationalism. It is the same White supremacist conspiracy theory that inspired those neo-Nazis to march through Charlottesville, VA, chanting: ``Jews will not replace us.'' You will remember that group. President Trump said at the time that he wasn't sure that they were out of line. They have inspired multiple mass shootings, including the attack of Jewish Americans at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018, on Hispanic Americans at a Walmart in El Paso in 2019, and on Muslims at two New Zealand mosques in 2019 as well.

This once-fringe conspiracy theory--this so-called great replacement theory--has been dragged into the mainstream by media personalities like FOX TV's Tucker Carlson. According to The New York Times, more than 400 episodes--400 episodes--of Tucker Carlson's news program on FOX TV, which attracts more viewers than any other show in the history of cable news, have alluded to the great replacement theory. Tucker Carlson is a leading ideologue in the White supremacist movement. He has even introduced racist terminology into America's conversation, like the phrase ``legacy Americans,'' which refers to the idea that immigrants aren't real Americans. The phrase was first used on White supremacist forums and websites. Tucker Carlson is right at home with it.

But here is what is the most shocking to me: the number of elected officials who will jump at any chance to get featured on Carlson's show and echo his White supremacist blather--his dark gospel of fear and hate and racism. We don't have to look far to find those elected officials. The third-ranking House Republican claimed in a campaign ad that Democratic immigration policies ``will overthrow our current electorate.''

What will it finally take for the Republican Party to condemn this hate once and for all, and what will it take for Members of the Senate to join together in rooting out White supremacist violence?

As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I will soon hold a hearing on domestic terrorism, and the ideologies like the great replacement conspiracy theory that inspired the acts of hate will be expounded on at that hearing by experts.

We will also examine a piece of legislation that I introduced 5 years ago, the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, which would strengthen Federal efforts to prevent and address White supremacist violence and other forms of domestic terrorism. This legislation is an opportunity for the Members of the Senate to stand united against hate. By passing it, along with commonsense gun safety measures, we can finally address the scourge of hate and violence that has claimed far too many American lives.

Many Americans will be tuned in this week to Tucker Carlson's show to see if he has any reaction to what happened in Buffalo. Could it be that, for one shining moment, he will finally realize his complicity in what happened after 400 shows of spewing fear and hate and in subscribing to this great replacement theory, resulting in hatred across this country which is visited on communities every single day?

Ten people died in Buffalo. Will Tucker Carlson take 10 minutes to say he is sorry for any role he might have played in that outcome?

We will see.

I yield the floor.

I announce that the Senator from Delaware (Mr. Coons), the Senator from Nevada (Ms. Cortez Masto), the Senator from New Mexico (Mr. Heinrich), the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey), the Senator from New Hampshire (Mrs. Shaheen), and the Senator from Maryland (Mr. Van Hollen) are necessarily absent.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Madam President, before I begin, I want to mention the severe storms that hit eastern South Dakota last Thursday.

I visited Castlewood on Saturday, which is among the communities that was hardest hit, to get a look at the damage, and it is extensive. Homes and a school have been damaged, destroyed. Many of our farmers were hit hard and lost critical equipment and buildings.

I just want our thoughts and prayers to go out to those South Dakotans who were affected and, in particular, the family and friends of the two women who were killed in the storm.

My office will be doing everything possible to help those affected get the assistance that they need to recover.

National Police Week

Madam President, this week is National Police Week--a time set aside to honor the service of our Nation's law enforcement officers and pay tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.

While there are a number of tough jobs out there, being a law enforcement officer is in a different league. I can think of only one other career path where willingness to lay down your life for your fellow citizens is part of the job description.

Law enforcement officers don't know what they will face when they get up every day. They don't know what they face when they respond to a call, but they go out anyway. We call, and they come, day or night, no matter the danger.

In addition to the physical dangers that they face, police officers also bear a heavy mental burden. Most of us don't have to confront evil in our lives every day, thanks in large part to the sacrifices of our Nation's law enforcement officers. But police officers have to get up close and personal with evil on a daily basis. They get a front-row seat when it comes to seeing fallen humanity, and they pay a price.

Being a police officer has always been a tough job, but over the past couple of years, it has gotten even harder. The ``defund the police'' movement and the anti-law enforcement sentiment have taken a tremendous toll on police departments and police officers.

Morale has sunk, which has resulted in increased resignations and retirements. Police departments are understaffed, which has stretched officers to the limit and limited their ability to respond to crimes. And, unsurprisingly, police departments are struggling to recruit officers.

Being a police officer is a difficult enough job as it is. It is not surprising that people would be reluctant to go into this field, knowing that the reward for their sacrifice will be constant criticism and vilification.

``Defund the police'' rhetoric has also put officers in increased danger. I find it hard to believe that the 59-percent increase in murders of police officers in 2021 had nothing to do with the fanning of anti-police sentiment.

And ``defund the police'' rhetoric and soft-on-crime policies associated with it are taking a toll on public safety and contributing to the surge in violent crime that we have been seeing.

The ``defund the police'' movement is a movement that should have never gotten off the ground. It is based on a lie that America's law enforcement officers are evil and racist.

It is also based on the absurd premise that society can exist without the police or that police officers can be replaced by social workers and psychologists.

There may well be individuals who fall into a life of crime as a result of tough circumstances, but there are also a lot of criminals who choose evil deliberately, not because of a difficult past but simply for their own personal gain, whether that looks like money or power or revenge or violence.

And as long as we live in a world where people deliberately choose evil, we are going to need men and women who are willing to step up and confront that evil and do their best to ensure that the perpetrators face justice.

When the ``defund the police'' movement arose 2 years ago, the Democratic Party should have stepped up and denounced it. Instead, they equivocated, and some Democrats openly embraced ``defund the police'' rhetoric.

Now the President and other Democrats, perhaps motivated by poll numbers showing that Americans are seriously concerned about crime, are trying to distance themselves from anti-law enforcement rhetoric. But it is pretty difficult to take the President seriously on this when he has filled key administration posts with individuals who have spoken supportively about ``defund the police'' efforts.

Even the Vice President is on the record praising efforts to divert money from police departments.

``Defund the police'' rhetoric needs to disappear from our public discourse. We need to be making it clear as a society that policing is an essential job and that police officers perform an essential public service.

I am proud to support legislation like the Back the Blue Act, which would increase penalties for deliberately targeting a law enforcement officer and give officers new tools to protect themselves.

Police officers face the possibility of serious injury or death on a daily basis. The least we can do is to make sure that we are doing everything we can to discourage attacks on our law enforcement officers.

In addition to supporting legislation like the Back the Blue Act and the Protect and Serve Act, I will continue to urge the President to take action to secure the border.

Border security is not just something that affects border communities. Lax border security has consequences for the entire country. South Dakota law enforcement leaders and officials tell me that they are seizing drugs that they can trace directly back to the cartels that smuggle these drugs across the border.

We currently have a very serious fentanyl problem in this country. In fact, right now, fentanyl overdose is the leading cause of death for U.S. adults between the ages of 18 and 45.

And where is all this fentanyl coming from?

Mostly, it is being trafficked across our southern border. And there is no question that the worse the situation at the border gets, the easier it is for drug smugglers to evade detection and capture, which means more drugs flowing into our country and more of our law enforcement officers having to deal with the consequences.

In my job, I have the privilege of interacting with law enforcement regularly, whether it is members of the Capitol Police who protect Congress or local law enforcement in my home State of South Dakota. As a Senator, I have been in more than one situation where I have gotten to see up close what happens when danger threatens and law enforcement officers step into the breach to protect those in peril.

I am more grateful than I can say for all the men and women in South Dakota, in Washington, DC, and around the country who have made the choice to serve.

I am also tremendously grateful for their families. It is no small thing to say goodbye to a husband or wife or a mom or dad every morning knowing that there is a chance that he or she may not come home that night. No mention of the sacrifices made by our law enforcement officers would be complete without mentioning the sacrifices made by their families.

The mission statement of the police department in Rapid City, SD, is ``Community First, Service Above Self, Integrity-Driven. One Interaction at a Time.'' Well, that definitely describes our Rapid City officers, and it is a pretty good description, I might add, of law

enforcement officers across South Dakota and around the country-- community first, service above self. We are lucky to have men and women around the country who put their communities first and choose service above self, and I pray that we will always remember that.

Again, this Police Week and every week, I want to express my deep gratitude to the men and women of our Nation's law enforcement community.

Thank you. Thank you for putting your lives on the line every day to keep our homes, our families, and our communities safe. Thank you for your sacrifice, and may God bless you all.

I yield the floor.

If I might say, the Senator was absolutely right. He was central in putting that together.

Unfortunately, it passed here; would have passed the House. They had enough votes--enough votes, Republicans and Democrats. But the then- Speaker said he couldn't bring it up because it didn't have a majority of his party and it would violate the sacred Dennis Hastert rule. I don't think they follow that rule after former-Speaker Hastert went to jail.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that I be allowed to finish my statement prior to the vote.

Mr. President, the horrors we have witnessed in the weeks and months following Vladimir Putin's unprovoked attack on Ukraine are an abomination and an affront to all civilized people--entire communities wiped from the face of the earth; countless lives ruined; unarmed civilians summarily executed randomly in the street; millions of desperate people fleeing everything they have ever known because of one man's zeal to destroy whatever is necessary to realize his own twisted vision of the world--all of this while fueling a broader humanitarian crisis across the region, spiraling costs, and sparking a global hunger crisis.

The need is clear for this Congress to act decisively and to act now to reaffirm our unwavering support for the Ukrainian people in protecting their lives and their country and to stem this global crisis. The United States stands against the atrocities inflicted upon the free people of Ukraine, an independent country with a democratically elected government.

Last Tuesday, the House passed H.R. 7691, providing more than $40 billion in emergency funding, with overwhelming bipartisan support. The Senate should have done the same, sending this bill to the President so that he could immediately execute on it and get this much-needed aid into Ukrainian hands. Unfortunately, one Member has decided to slow this process down. One Member has caused needless delay. In a few moments, we will vote to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to H.R. 7691. Because of Senator Paul's objection, we must go through this step just to bring up the bill for debate. I urge everyone to vote yes. And I would urge the Senator from Kentucky to reconsider his objections and help us move quickly to get this bill to the President.

This emergency bill provides $40.1 billion--$7.1 billion more than the administration requested--in critical military and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine, to help defend democracy abroad and to address the rising, global hunger crisis that the world is facing in large part due to Russia's aggression.

This includes $8.5 billion in additional Presidential drawdown authority for critical weapons transfers and $6 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. This will allow us to continue to supply the Ukrainians with the tools they need to defend themselves, their country, and their freedom. The urgent need for these resources cannot be overstated. As we stand here today, the administration is raising the alarm that if we do not act, the resources we provided in March--which have been critical to Ukraine's success on the battlefield--will be exhausted in a matter of days.

It includes more than $8.5 billion for the economic support fund to respond to emerging needs in the country and ensure the continuing operation of the government. It provides needed resources for temporary housing, medical care, food, and other basic services for Ukrainian's displaced in their own country and refugees fleeing the violence and devastation Vladimir Putin has inflicted on them and their communities.

The humanitarian crisis instigated at the hands of Vladimir Putin is not limited to within Ukraine's borders or even within the borders of Eastern Europe. It has triggered a global hunger crisis. Last year, before Putin's war, Ukraine grew enough food to feed 400 million people. Today, Ukraine cannot even feed its own people. As David Beasley, the Executive Director of the UN World Food Programme--WFP-- testified before the Appropriations Committee last week, war has forced Ukraine from being a global bread basket to being on the bread lines.

Tens of millions of tons of wheat, barley, maize, vegetable oil, and other Ukrainian produce are currently locked in warehouses and languishing in ports occupied by Russian forces. If the ports are not opened, this food will either be stolen or go to waste, leading to skyrocketing prices and regional shortages. The WFP estimates that this will have a ripple effect, increasing the number facing acute hunger by 47 million. This would bring the estimated global total to 323 million people suffering from acute hunger in the 81 countries WFP operates in alone.

It is important to remember that hunger is not a moment in time; it has lasting consequences for families, communities, and whole societies. This is why we cannot wait to act on this crisis. As noted in one recent Washington Post editorial; preventing a looming, global famine is ``as urgent and morally necessary as sending tanks to Ukraine.''

This bill provides over $5 billion for global food aid. If those funds are programmed quickly, they will save millions of lives.

Vladimir Putin's war is exacerbating a global crisis of food insecurity already set in motion by the COVID pandemic and successive years of severe drought in Africa. I am extremely disappointed that this bill does not include new resources to address the ongoing COVID pandemic.

Last week, we passed the grim toll of 1 million recorded COVID deaths in our country and estimates as high as 20 million deaths worldwide. If we fail to prepare for anticipated surges in the fall and winter, as immunity from existing vaccines wanes and the virus continues to mutate, the death toll will rise, potentially exponentially.

For months--for months--the administration has warned that we do not have the necessary vaccines, therapeutics, tests, and other resources to stay ahead of this virus. We do not have enough funding to purchase new shots for everybody in the fall, and we already will be forced to ration the next generation of vaccines--more suited to variants like Omicron--to only those at the highest risk.

This is not a problem that can be solved by flipping a switch. We cannot just say that we will appropriate the money later in the fall if it is needed. In order to produce the tens of millions of doses of vaccine that will be necessary, biotech companies need to begin to purchase supplies and start production before July. This means we only have weeks to provide the funding to secure these shots in time.

The same can be said of our testing capacity. Unless we act, domestic manufacturing will continue to shut down, shifting production to countries like China. This will leave us flat-footed once again should another COVID variant wave crash over our country in the fall.

The virus traveled to this country from abroad, and that is where new variants have also originated. The U.S. Agency for International Development, which manages our global response to the COVID pandemic, has obligated 95 percent of the funds they have available. They are running on fumes, and they will have no choice but to start shutting down their vaccine delivery operations if additional funds are not forthcoming soon. That means more mutations, more variants, more infections, and more death.

It is extremely frustrating that, time and again, Members on the other side of the aisle have pushed this responsibility off. We are out of time. We cannot defeat this virus with complacency or by burying our heads in the sand. It remains a global health emergency. According to the experts, it is entirely possible that we have not seen the worst yet. As chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will continue to fight for these urgently needed resources in the coming weeks.

However, the people of Ukraine and the millions facing acute food insecurity require the funds in this bill today, and I strongly urge the Senate to pass it without further delay.

I yield the floor.

Cloture Motion

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Madam President, it has been a sorrowful, painful few days for the people of Buffalo, NY. Earlier today, I joined with President Biden, the First Lady, Governor Hochul, Senator Gillibrand, Buffalo's Mayor Brown, Attorney General Tish James, and other local officials to meet with families of those killed on Saturday, to visit the Tops supermarket where the shooting happened and to grieve with the community that has been ripped apart by unspeakable violence.

There is no single word to encapsulate what it was like to visit the Tops supermarket, to lay down flowers in honor of the dead, and to meet the families whose lives have been forever--forever--torn apart.

It was equal parts sorrow for the innocent victims we have lost. It was grief for the families who must carry on. Today, I met a young boy, only 3 years old, who lost his dad on Saturday because his dad was at the store buying his kid a birthday cake, just heartbreaking.

It was also with anger that somebody could act with such horrible evil. And yet, despite all that, it was hope. Hope that somehow, some way, this beloved community will find the will and the grace and the courage to cohere. I know, I know in my heart of hearts, that they will.

To the people in Buffalo I met today, I say this: All of New York and all of America stands with you in this hour of deep darkness. We love you; we hold you in our hearts; and we pray for each and every one of you. We will be with you in spirit at every prayer service and every march and in every moment of silence.

Today, we are all Buffalonians. I just don't know what could possess someone to bring violence to a place like the East Side. I just don't. But what we do know is that in each passing day, new and frightening details emerge about the lengths to which the shooter planned his attack. We know that the shooter chose Tops supermarket in order to target as many Black Americans as possible.

It is a supermarket I know well. I helped bring it to the East Side decades ago because they were a food desert and needed a supermarket, and I persuaded the owners of Tops to open one. And as the years grew, that supermarket became not just a supermarket but a community convening place. And when this awful man went to Tops to do his terrible shooting, it was like putting a dagger in the heart of the community because the supermarket had really been much more than a supermarket.

And we know through online posts that the terrorist--that is what he could be called--likely visited the Tops market months ago in a reconnaissance mission to map out the store, to observe the security guards, and even to find a parking spot. We know all that.

We know that had he gotten away, he intended to carry out more shootings at another store.

And one other thing we know, we know that his reprehensible views-- his racist, White supremacist views--belong to an extreme ideology of hate that is increasingly finding home in the American mainstream.

In Buffalo, the President was right to strongly condemn these views with the whole Nation watching. All elected officials--all elected officials--should do the same.

The ``great replacement'' or ``replacement theory'' used to be something that was found only in the darkest corners of deranged minds and in the deepest trenches of the internet. But today, sadly, indisputably, you don't need to go online anymore to find White ``replacement theory'' rhetoric. You can find it on cable TV from the comfort of your own couch.

And perhaps no network has had more impact in propagating and normalizing the rhetoric of ``replacement theory'' than FOX News.

To follow up from my remarks yesterday, this morning I sent a letter to Rupert Murdoch, to FOX News executives, and to Tucker Carlson, imploring the network and Mr. Carlson to cease their amplification of ``replacement theory'' on their network.

According to one study, Mr. Carlson has used rhetoric echoing ``replacement theory'' on at least 400 episodes of his show--400 episodes--which has an average nightly audience of 3 million people.

It is dangerous and un-American for one of the biggest news networks in the world to amplify conspiracy theories that are eerily similar to those cited by the Buffalo shooter.

And to those who think this is an exaggeration, to those who refuse to acknowledge that fringe White supremacist views are now increasingly out in the open, I would simply ask them: Where were you on the night that thousands of White supremacists marched openly on the streets of Charlottesville, bearing torches and chanting, ``You will not replace us''? That is what they said, ``You will not replace us.''

Where were you when thousands of insurrectionists stormed into the Halls of this Capitol, waving Confederate flags and donning sweatshirts about the Holocaust?

Where have you been during any Trump rally, where the Republican standard-bearer goes on and on about undocumented immigrants stealing the 2020 election--a message parroted by countless MAGA Republican candidates across the country.

And where were you when White supremacists shot up a Walmart in El Paso, a synagogue in Pittsburgh, spas in Atlanta and a Black church in Charleston--or at a grocery store in Buffalo, NY?

It would be the easiest thing in the world to denounce something as evil and vile and un-American as ``replacement theory.''

To its credit, this week, the Wall Street Journal editorial board acknowledged that ``politicians and media figures have an obligation to condemn . . . such conspiratorial notions as `white replacement theory.' ''

But while that is necessary, it is hardly sufficient, and too many MAGA Republicans refuse to do even just that.

And last night, Tucker Carlson did not do that either. He deflected and refused to acknowledge that a clear connection exists between the messages on his shows and some of the views championed by these mass shooters.

He dismissed the shooter's 180-page rant as the product of a ``diseased and disorganized mind,'' while omitting that the shooter's mind was diseased and warped precisely--precisely--by online conspiracy theories that are echoed regularly on his show.

The plain fact is that the shooter responsible for the violent murder of 10 innocent lives espoused the same false and racist conspiracy theories that Tucker Carlson has pushed to his audience 400 times and which far too many MAGA Republicans, including former President Trump, are happy to amplify.

Tucker Carlson and, indeed, all voices of influence in this country should come out and not just condemn racial violence, not just condemn racial theory but refuse to give these false and racist conspiracy theories a platform.

Let me say it again: Anchors like Tucker Carlson, and, in fact, all MAGA Republicans and all voices of influence across the political spectrum, should not just condemn racial violence, not just denounce White supremacist views like ``replacement theory'' but further refuse to give these false and racist conspiracy theories a platform whatsoever.

It is horrific to see that most on the hard right haven't done that to date.

Until we unite to stomp views like ``replacement theory'' out of existence, until we band together to call these vile conspiracy theories for what they are--White supremacist propaganda--we cannot find closure to the attacks like the one we saw this weekend in Buffalo, NY.

And communities across the country, especially communities of color, will continue to live in fear that at any moment they may be targeted by violence just because of who they are.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, soaring fuel prices are impacting every corner of the globe and hitting the pocketbooks of American families and businesses. Today, a gallon of gas costs $4.52--nearly $1.50 more than a year ago. From food to clothing to rent, growing transportation expenses are pushing already rising prices even higher.

Yet, while the American people are taking a hit, while the local mom- and-pop stores pay more for energy and goods, big oil companies are announcing giant profits. They have hit the jackpot.

Over the first 3 months of the year, ExxonMobil reported $5.5 billion in profits, Chevron recorded $6.3 billion, and Shell raked in $9.1 billion--its largest quarterly profit ever. In just 3 months, these three companies made nearly $21 billion in profits.

Now, robust profits are usually a signal for companies to invest in capital and labor and build the foundation for future growth, but Big Oil has different priorities. Rather than increasing business investment or production, these companies have almost uniformly pumped profits directly to their executives and wealthy shareholders.

In February, even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine sent gas prices skyrocketing, the Financial Times reported that seven of the largest oil companies--including Exxon, Chevron, BP, and Shell--were expected to return $38 billion to shareholders through buybacks this year, plus another $50 billion in dividends. Big Oil hasn't hidden its strategy: Hold back production, and rake in the profits.

In a March 2022 survey, the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas asked oil executives for the primary reason that publicly traded oil companies were restraining production despite high oil prices. The No. 1 answer they gave, reflecting the view of nearly 60 percent of those surveyed, was that it was ``investor pressure to maintain capital discipline.'' To put it another way, they were saying that they don't want to produce more oil because more production will hasten the end of high oil prices and exorbitant investor profits.

Some oil company executives have been even clearer. Just last month, Chevron's chief financial officer confirmed that the company's top priority is its dividends, not investing in its business, and BP's CFO made similar comments during his company's first quarter earnings call--so much for BP's advertising campaign that it is investing in green energy.

Instead of resuming the production they cut in 2020, oil companies have kept output constrained, turning a 50-percent increase in prices at the pump over the past year into record-setting profits.

Make no mistake, our domestic producers have the capacity to produce more. Indeed, domestic crude oil output is below 2019 levels--that is right, domestic crude oil output is below 2019 levels--and over 12 million acres of leased Federal lands remain untapped.

My Republican colleagues are quick to try to weakly blame President Biden and ``regulation'' for lagging production, but that is not what the oil executives say. Look back at that Dallas Fed survey I mentioned earlier. Only 6 percent of the oil executives surveyed said that ``government regulation'' was the reason they weren't producing more. Sixty percent said it was higher profits. Six percent said it was regulation.

Now, I understand private companies are going to pursue high profits. That is business, that is free enterprise, and that is a competitive market. But when Putin and OPEC have outsized influence on the market, can we really call it a competitive market?

Look, the major oil companies can't control what Putin or OPEC does, but there is no doubt that Putin's war is taking their profits into the stratosphere.

And oil companies clearly think this is a great time for more dividends and more buybacks, not more production, lower prices, and giving the American people a break. In fact, just last month, Exxon announced it would triple its stock buybacks this year and next to $30 billion. Thirty billion dollars is an astonishing number.

One of the things about buybacks is that they essentially raise the price of the company's stock. If you are an executive whose major compensation is stock options, you are giving yourself a huge raise, and that is part of this too. It is self-aggrandizement. It is something that does not square, I think, with the feelings of the American people and also the needs of the American people.

It is clear that the oil companies are not interested in helping Americans on their own, so the Federal Government needs to step in. We need responsible solutions that bring down prices and help families pay for the basics.

We must use every tool at our disposal. I fully support the President's pledge to release a million barrels of oil per day from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help stabilize volatile prices. One can imagine the price at the pump if the President was not doing this. It would be even further in excess of what is, I think, appropriate.

I have introduced the Food and Fuel Family Savings Act, which would provide most households with $600 per person, specifically to cover higher gas and grocery costs this year. My bill would be fully paid for, targeted to those families making under $80,000, and would also ease medium- and long-term inflation by crafting a fairer tax code. Instead of waiting for inflation to disappear, it would provide immediate and real help to Americans.

I have also joined my colleague Senator Whitehouse in introducing legislation to return some of those windfall profits that oil companies are handing out as dividends and buybacks back to consumers.

These are important short-term efforts that will help Americans struggling with higher costs. But to truly lower costs in the long term, we must make the transition to clean energy and break our reliance on Big Oil and hostile foreign actors. I am proud that in Rhode Island, we are leading the way on offshore wind, a good renewable resource that when deployed will lower costs for consumers.

The bipartisan infrastructure law is also making key investments to advance this transition, including over $60 billion primarily for new major clean energy demonstration and deployment programs.

The President has been calling for additional funding to enable this clean energy future. We need a package that includes tax credits and grants that would make clean energy, clean vehicles, and other clean technologies more affordable and competitive.

If we do these things, we will make ourselves less vulnerable to the whims of oil companies and cartels that depend on Americans paying more than they should. We will make our world cleaner, lower costs, and finally achieve the energy independence that we have wanted all along.

One of the many lessons of the past 2 years is that we cannot rely on oil for

plentiful, affordable energy. It is clear that allowing our energy needs to be held hostage by leaders like Vladimir Putin and organizations like OPEC is dangerous, but placing our faith in Big Oil is equally foolhardy given their preoccupation with profits over people.

As we battle inflation, it is the American people, not executives and wealthy shareholders, who should be the focal point of our energy and economic policy.

I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting policies that will help families now and in the future.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.