Floor Statements

Madam President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Madam President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 471.

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

Madam President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Madam President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 363.

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

I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum calls for the cloture motions filed today, October 25, be waived.

Madam 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.

Finally, Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m., Tuesday, October 26; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; that upon the conclusion of morning business, the Senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the Cobb nomination; further, that if cloture is invoked on the Cobb nomination, the Senate immediately vote on cloture on the Williams and Giles nominations, in the order listed; and that the Senate recess following the cloture vote on the Giles nomination until 2:15 p.m. to allow for the weekly caucus meetings; further, that at 2:30 p.m., the Senate vote on the motions to invoke cloture on the Nachmanoff and Nagala nominations, in the order listed; and that if cloture is invoked on any of the nominations during Tuesday's session, all postcloture time be considered expired and the confirmation votes be at a time to be determined by the majority leader in consultation with the Republican leader; finally, if any nominations are confirmed during Tuesday's session, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Madam President, on voting rights, yesterday, this Chamber had an opportunity to begin debate on protecting the voting rights of American citizens. That right, essential to any democracy, is under attack in ways we have not seen in generations.

Despite the obvious danger, Senate Republicans crushed any opportunity this Chamber had to even begin a debate on the Freedom to Vote Act. We didn't ask Republicans to sign their names to any policy. We simply asked them to come to the table so the Senate can work as intended, and they refused.

Let there be no mistake, Senate Republicans blocking debate yesterday was their implicit endorsement of the horrid new voter suppression and election subversion laws passed in conservative States across the country. When they wouldn't debate, they said these horrid new laws that suppress voters, that subvert our elections are OK.

It is ludicrous--ludicrous--for Republicans to pretend that the Federal Government has no role to play in defense of our liberties. Of course, it does. They should read the Constitution.

But despite Republican opposition, the fight to protect our democracy is far from over in the U.S. Senate. Voting rights are too precious, too fundamental to abandon because of obstruction from the minority.

As soon as next week, I am prepared to bring another proposal to the floor, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

The Voting Rights Act has historically been bipartisan, but following the gutting of the law by recent Supreme Court rulings, the Voting Rights Act needs to be restored, and the Senate ought to, at a minimum, be permitted to debate.

The reflexive obstruction from Senate Republicans is not--is not--how the Senate is supposed to work. Not long ago, this Chamber operated differently, in a way more befitting the world's greatest deliberative body: debate, compromise, amend, and legislate--all with the purpose of helping the American people, even when people's views of how to do that differed. There was a debate and amendment.

We need to restore that legacy. We need to work to restore the Senate as the world's greatest deliberative body so we can better serve the needs of our Nation. Republicans blocking one bill after another, even from consideration, is not that.

The fight to protect our fundamental liberties is as old as the country itself, and we can take note from the lessons of history. In the aftermath of the Civil War, the majorities in Congress passed transformative measures, like the 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution--and other civil rights bills--expanding liberty to tens of millions previously deprived of it.

These are some of the crowning achievements of this body, but if you were in Congress back then, that is hardly how they were viewed by some at the time. Back then, the minority party refused to provide even a single vote to pass these laws--not even one. The minority condemned them as partisan tools of the angry, vengeful north; a power grab.

The minority refused to come to the table, so the majority was willing to act alone--act alone--to pass civil rights legislation. It wasn't partisan; it was patriotic. Their actions made our democracy stronger, and they were willing to do what was necessary, including going it alone to defend our freedoms. Today, we feel the same way.

The question now before the Senate is how we will find a path forward on protecting our freedoms in the 21st century. The Members of this Chamber can take inspiration from the great patriots of the past who put country over party, or they can cross their arms and watch as our 240-year-old experiment in democracy falls prey to the specters of authoritarian control.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 339.

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

Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.