Floor Statements

Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum calls for the cloture motions filed today, June 22, be waived.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. President, I understand there is a bill at the desk, and I ask for its first reading.

I now ask for a second reading, and in order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule XIV, I object to my own request.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 247 and the Senate proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following Senate resolutions: S. Res. 247, S. Res. 277, S. Res. 278, and S. Res. 279.

Mr. President, in this criminal case pending in Federal district court in the District of Columbia and arising out of the events of January 6, 2021, the prosecution has requested testimony from a Senate witness.

In this case, brought against Alan Hostetter, trial is expected to commence on July 6, 2023, and the prosecution has requested testimony from Daniel Schwager, formerly counsel to the Secretary of the Senate, concerning his knowledge and observations of the process and constitutional and legal bases for Congress's counting of the Electoral College votes. Senate Secretary Berry would like to cooperate with this request by providing relevant testimony in this trial from Mr. Schwager.

In keeping with the rules and practices of the Senate, this resolution would authorize the production of relevant testimony from Mr. Schwager, with representation by the Senate legal counsel.

I know of no further debate on the resolutions en bloc.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the preambles be agreed to and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 1734, which was received from the House.

I further ask that the Cruz-Cantwell substitute amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to; that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following bills en bloc: Calendar No. 36, S. 264; Calendar No. 37, S. 829; Calendar No. 38, S. 349; Calendar No. 44, S. 206; Calendar No. 72, S. 111; and Calendar No. 94, S. 1549.

I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendments, where applicable, be considered and agreed to; that the bills, as amended, if amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the upcoming adjournment of the Senate, the President of the Senate, the President pro tempore, and the majority and minority leaders be authorized to make appointments to commissions, committees, boards, conferences, or interparliamentary conferences authorized by law, by concurrent action of the two Houses, or by order of the Senate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the junior Senator from Virginia and the junior Senator from Hawaii be authorized to sign duly enrolled bills or joint resolutions from June 22, 2023, through July 10, 2023.

Mr. President, finally, I ask unanimous consent that

when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn to then convene for pro forma sessions only, with no business being conducted, on the following dates and times, and that following each pro forma session, the Senate adjourn until the next pro forma session: Monday, June 26, at 2 p.m.; Thursday, June 29, at 10 a.m.; Monday, July 3, at 10 a.m.; and Thursday, July 6, at 10 a.m.; further, that when the Senate adjourns on Thursday, July 6, it stand adjourned until 3 p.m. on Monday, July 10; that on Monday, following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; that following the conclusion of morning business, the Senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the Small nomination; further, that the cloture motions filed during today's session ripen at 5:30 p.m.

Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 136.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to dispense with further reading of the amendment.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, now on nominations, later today, the Senate will vote on the confirmation of Julie Rikelman to serve as circuit court judge for the First Circuit.

For years, Ms. Rikelman has had a hand in some of the most important legal fights over women's rights and civil liberties. She was the attorney who defended the Mississippi clinic in the Dobbs case that ultimately overturned Roe.

Few lawyers have fought harder, smarter, and more effectively to protect women's rights in America than Ms. Rikelman. On the bench, I am confident she will serve with excellence to uphold the Constitution.

Appointments to the circuit court are essential. The lion's share of all Federal cases are decided at the circuit court level, so it is necessary these vacancies are swiftly filled with exceptional nominees like Ms. Rikelman.

This week, the Senate will also advance the nomination of Natasha Merle to be a district judge in the Eastern District of New York. With Ms. Merle's confirmation, the Senate will reach a major milestone: 100 district judges confirmed by Senate Democrats under President Biden.

Many of these 100 judges have knocked down longstanding barriers to the halls of justice: the first Muslim district judge, the first women of color to be district judges in Maryland and Oregon, the first openly LGBTQ judge in Puerto Rico. The list could go on and on.

District judges are an important reason why our Federal judiciary is far more balanced, far more diverse, and far more experienced than the one we just had a few years ago. So hitting this milestone of 100 district judges is very significant. Senate Democrats will continue moving forward on more judges in the weeks and months to come.

Madam President, first, on housekeeping, I ask unanimous consent that the filing deadline for first-degree amendments to treaty document No. 112-8 be at 5 p.m. today.

Madam President, a remarkable change is taking hold in our country and around the world due to artificial intelligence. The public is now more conscious of this technology than ever before. And thanks to recent advancements in machine learning and neural networks, AI's impact in the coming years will be world-altering.

Tomorrow morning, I will speak at the Center for Strategic and International Studies on how Congress can begin acting on AI in earnest. I will share my ideas about a comprehensive framework Congress can use to supercharge AI innovation in a safe and responsible way. Because AI is moving so fast, it is so complex, and so outside Congress's expertise, I will talk about some steps we must take to stay ahead of AI's rapid development.

Many of AI's impacts are truly exciting. It will reshape how we fight disease, tackle hunger, manage our lives, enrich our minds, and ensure peace. But we cannot ignore AI's many dangers: AI will dramatically disrupt our workforce, could lead to massive and sophisticated misinformation and weapons, could jaundice our elections and democratic system, and there is the danger that we may prove incapable of managing this technology at all.

Congress cannot behave like ostriches in the sand when it comes to AI. Some might think it is better to ignore this issue or hope someone else figures it out because it is so complex, but ignoring AI is untenable for Congress.

In the 21st century, elected representatives must treat AI with the same level of seriousness as national security, job creation, and our civil liberties, because AI will touch on these issues and many, many more.

I want to thank my colleagues from both sides of the aisle who are already putting AI front and center, including our little team of Senators Heinrich, Young, and Rounds, as well as Chairman Cantwell, Peters, Klobuchar, Warner, and Durbin, as well as their ranking Republican Members. I want to commend colleagues from both sides of the aisle who have spoken out on AI's challenges, including Senators Bennet, Thune, Blumenthal, and many others.

We must prepare for the age of AI together--both parties working with goodwill bipartisan cooperation. That is the only way our efforts will succeed in the ways it should.

Mr. President, first, a little housekeeping.

I understand there is a bill at the desk that is due for a second reading.

In order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule XIV, I would object to further proceeding.