Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask that the Chair lay before the Senate the message to accompany S. 2181.

The Presiding Officer laid before the Senate the following message from the House of Representatives:

Resolved, That the bill from the Senate (S. 2181) entitled

``An Act to amend title 38, United States Code, to repeal the

sunset on entitlement to memorial headstones and markers for

commemoration of veterans and certain individuals and to

repeal the sunset on authority to bury remains of certain

spouses and children in national cemeteries, and for other

purposes.'', do pass with amendments.

Motion to Concur

I move to concur in the House amendment, and I ask unanimous consent that the motion be agreed to.

I move to concur in the House amendment to the title and ask unanimous consent the motion be agreed to.

I ask unanimous consent that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be discharged from further consideration of S. 3658 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I ask unanimous consent that the Cornyn 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.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 5649, which is at the desk.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 670, which was received from the House.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following bills en bloc: H.R. 4955, H.R. 8667, and H.R. 9124.

I ask unanimous consent that the bills 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 the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 4136 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Finance be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 9076 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 5103 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Finally, Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it convene for a pro forma session only, with no business conducted on the following dates and times: Monday, December 23, at 9:30 a.m.; Thursday, December 26 at 2:30 p.m.; Monday, December 30 at 12:30 p.m.; Thursday, January 2 at 12 noon; Friday, January 3 at 11:45 a.m.; that following the January 3 pro forma, the Senate stand adjourned sine die and next convene at 12 noon, pursuant to the Constitution; further, I ask that following the prayer and pledge and following the presentation of the certificates of election and the swearing in of elected Members and the required live quorum, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

For the information of the Senate, on January 3, the swearing in of our new and recently reelected Senators will be at noon, followed by a live quorum.

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

Madam President, this morning, thanks to Republicans, we are less than 48 hours away from a Christmas shutdown. Unfortunately, it seems Republicans are in shambles over in the House. But as they try to piece things together, they should remember one thing: The only way to get things done is through bipartisanship--the only way.

Let me repeat: The only way to get things done is through bipartisanship.

Tribute to Sergeant at Arms General Karen Gibson

Now, on the Sergeant at Arms, today, it fills me with immense gratitude to pay tribute and say thank you to the Senate Sergeant at Arms, General Karen Gibson, sitting right here.

None of us, no matter what we do, could get through the day without the individual responsible for maintaining order, enforcing security, and keeping everyone in the Senate safe. That is what the Sergeant at Arms does.

General Gibson took on this role in March of 2021, in the painful aftermath of the January 6 insurrection. By no means did she need to take this job. It was the Senate that needed her. We needed her three decades of leadership as an Army intelligence officer. We needed her steady hand and ability to change how organizations function. And, to this day, I thank God she answered my phone call.

General Gibson helped us get through those difficult months after January 6. She was a breath of fresh air, a boost in morale, a jolt of much needed confidence. She transformed how the Sergeant at Arms operates for the better.

Under General Gibson's watch, her team revitalized how the Senate approaches security and safety, from top to bottom. She increased how we share intelligence, communications, and planning with the rest of the Federal Government and State and local partners. She transformed the way the Senate handles moments of crisis. There is now a single Senate Operations Center that stands watch at all times and alerts us to potential threats or disruptions in realtime.

She was a godsend for other Senate staff across the Capitol Complex, introducing new emergency preparedness applications, new trainings, and new protocols staff could adopt to keep their offices safe and prepared.

Finally, she revolutionized how the Senate approaches cyber security, conducting the most comprehensive cyber security assessment ever. And every step of the way, she had a first-rate team by her side to help execute her vision.

And one other thing--a bit intangible--the morale of our Capitol Police Force has dramatically improved after the horrible day of January 6, and much of that goes to what General Gibson did. She made them feel needed and confident and loved and well-trained and prepared. And I can tell just from speaking to so many Capitol Police officers how much they appreciate her tenure and her candor.

So I am forever grateful to General Gibson for her four terms as our Sergeant at Arms. The Senate today is far more secure and far more prepared than the day she entered the role. My congratulations to her on a job well done, and the Senate thanks her--all of us, Democrat and Republican--for many years of service.

Tribute to Ann Berry

Madam President, on Ann Berry, I also want to say thank you to our wonderful Secretary of the Senate, Ann

Berry. Of the many talented and exceptional Senate officers I had the privilege of nominating as majority leader, Ann is one of the very best.

The job of Secretary of the Senate is one of the utmost important and indispensable jobs here in the Senate. In fact, just days after the Senate achieved its first quorum in 1789, one of its top priorities was to elect the very first Secretary of the Senate. Back then, the Senate's responsibilities were merely a fraction of what they are today. There is virtually nothing that happens in the Senate these days--legislatively, financially, administratively--that doesn't cross the Secretary's desk. So to hold such an extraordinary position that brings life to the Senate, you need an extraordinary human being who brings life to the job.

Where is she? She is probably just so busy doing her job; she is not here.

But, anyway, that is Ann Berry, to a tee.

From the moment Ann was sworn in, she has carried out her responsibilities as Secretary with unparalleled excellence and supreme professionalism. And she did it while making history as the first ever Black woman to serve as Secretary of the Senate.

Of course, Ann's success as Secretary came as little surprise to anyone who knows her background. She is a veteran of some of the most revered Senators to pass through this Chamber, the likes of Senators Leahy, Edwards, Carper, Jones, and my mentor Senator Moynihan.

For the last nearly 4 years, Ann has been one of the most invaluable members of the entire Senate operation. She made our days easier, our operations smoother, and made the Senate work better for the American people. And that is perhaps the highest testament to a public servant.

So, Ann, on behalf of a grateful Senate, a grateful Democratic caucus, and a grateful majority leader, we say congratulations. Thank you. Job well done.

Tribute to Dan Yoken

Madam President, now to Dan Yoken, whom I will so dearly miss.

Is he here somewhere? Where is Dan?

Dan Yoken.

Socrates said:

The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance.

If that is true--and I think Socrates was onto something--then this is going to be a particularly difficult good-bye for me to get through, because, today, it fills me with immense gratitude but also deep sadness to bid farewell and thank you to one of the most knowledgeable and trusted members of my team, Dan Yoken.

Officially, Dan has served as my Director of Rapid Response the entire time I have served in leadership, but in truth, he is far more than that. He is, in a word, the brain--the knowledge base--of our messaging and research operation. He is the truthkeeper, the facts sleuth, the go-to person when our team needs something figured out right away.

But what sets Dan apart is that he also sees the big picture. He is not just looking at the little details. Anyone who excels at these things, by necessity, must possess a love of details--and Dan certainly does--but what makes him so effective is how fluidly, how effortlessly, how naturally he connects the details to the main thrust of what our team tries to do every day and to the larger picture of where we are headed as a caucus and as a country.

Dan is also a craftsman. There is no speech, no press release, no tweet, no video that doesn't pass through his careful touch.

A native of Nevada, Dan came to the Senate and earned his stripes as a young press assistant for the former leader, Harry Reid, whom we miss every day. Every single day, it was Dan's job to wake up early, read all of the news, and then brief Senator Reid personally on what was going on that day. If Senator Reid had a question, it was Dan's job to answer. If it was a specific detail he wanted, it was Dan's job to remember it.

For most people right out of school, that would pretty much be a baptism by fire, but for Dan, it was early confirmation that he belonged here in the Senate. In no time, he became Leader Reid's deputy communications director and then joined my team as the research director of the DPCC. And when I became leader, there was never a moment of doubt that I wanted Dan to come with me.

Running our messaging operation is not easy. It is a round-the-clock, 7-day-a-week commitment. I call him at all hours to ask him about this or that. It is stressful, ever-changing, thankless--and on top of that, they have to deal with me. It is not so easy sometimes, but every day, my team succeeds, and I succeed because Dan has always been there as a steady and stabilizing force. His knowledge of the Senate--its history, its Members, its operation--gives our work shape and form. All of this is possible because, deep down, Dan loves this institution and loves this great democracy.

Of course, anyone who knows Dan understands he loves many other good things as well. Just ask him, for example, about the Las Vegas Golden Knights and that time they came to the White House to celebrate their championship or ask him about the last Roots concert he went to or ask him about poker night or about the next time he is planning to organize a ``Schumerland'' outing to Audi Field. Ask him, certainly, about his wonderful family--about his beautiful, redheaded 2-year-old; his wife and his partner for so many years as well; and then ask him about their dog Daisy, who is a regular here in the Senate every Friday.

Ask him about any of these things, and you will see Dan for who he is--someone who leads a rich life, someone who has a gifted mind, and someone who is loyal, kind, and thoughtful to all those he comes across. Having him on my team for so long has been a blessing to our office, to the Senate, to the country.

So, Dan, wherever you are--he is probably working as well--thank you, thank you, thank you. You know how much we will miss you. You know how much we love you. You know how much you will always be part of our Schumer family, and we can't wait to see what the future holds in store for you.

I yield the floor to the Republican leader.

Recognition of the Minority Leader

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 Christopher Warnagiris, trial is expected to commence on January 15, 2025, 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, use of the electoral ballots and other documents during the proceeding, 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, who has previously been authorized to testify in prior cases arising out of the events of January 6.

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.

Mr. President, so last night, I think as everyone knows by now, congressional leaders released the text of bipartisan legislation that will keep the government open, deliver critical disaster relief, extend vital healthcare programs, and protect our farmers.

With this agreement, we are now on our way to avoiding a government shutdown. The sooner Congress acts, the better. As always, bipartisan cooperation must lead the way.

We can't have last-minute delays or grandstanding or else the American people won't get the funding they deserve or else we could risk a shutdown.

Now, there are many good things in this bill that Democrats worked hard for and achieved. Democrats have insisted these agreements must not have cuts, and this bill has no cuts.

Democrats have warned we can't have poison pills, and this bill has no poison pills. And Democrats pushed hard to make sure this agreement included millions for childcare, workforce training, job training, funding to rebuild the Key Bridge, and more.

There are three things in particular that I pushed hard--very hard-- for and that I am glad to see in the bill. Policies to outcompete China, including outsourcing, policies on artificial intelligence, and policies to bring manufacturing back to America, including chip production.

The package includes new restrictions I pushed for to restrict the flow of U.S. investment to CCP development of technologies like AI and chips. I am also very pleased this agreement helps alleviate supply chain disruptions, alleviates price spikes, and increases chip investment in the United States.

I also pushed especially hard to get a strong disaster relief package into the bill, and I am really glad we got that done too. Federal disaster relief programs are about exhausted, and I have warned that doing nothing would come back to haunt us. Communities across the Southeast, across the Northeast, and, in fact, across America still need help rebuilding from the aftermath of hurricanes, flooding, wildfires, and other acts of Mother Nature that have grown far more powerful because of climate change. So it is very good news this disaster package got into the bill.

And there are other good things in the bill too. We permanently secured 9/11 responder and survivor health funding. We secured important provisions related to Haiti, extended protection for farmers, dealt with the nature of lithium ion batteries that might explode on bikes, and much, much more.

Now, clearly, this CR isn't perfect. It does not include everything Democrats

called for and includes some provisions we wouldn't have added. But this CR is a sound and bipartisan and necessary compromise that will keep the government open and deliver many, many good things for the American people.

So now time is of the essence. The sooner Congress acts the better. If we want to avoid an unnecessary government shutdown right before Christmas, Republicans must work with Democrats to pass this CR quickly.

I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, the cloture votes with respect to the Cheeks and Murillo nominations occur upon the disposition of the motion to proceed to H.R. 82.

In that order of importance, in my opinion.

Thank you.

Mr. President, first, let me commend Jack Reed for his great leadership as head of the Armed Services Committee. He is an amazing leader. He knows the military like no one, from his service there. He is a West Point graduate--great New York institution. Sorry they lost. I was on their side. He can explain things. He has just done an amazing job, and he is steadfast and intrepid and on the merits, and everyone respects him. That is why we have gotten--this was a difficult year to get this bill done. Some thought we wouldn't be able to with the polarization, the late hour, and everything else, but because of this man, we did, and he deserves all of our thanks.

I want to thank Senator Wicker as well. He is a big, strong fighter for the military and did a great job as well.

So I thank both of you. This is the kind of bipartisan way we should do this.

Now, today, for the 64th consecutive year, the Senate passes a bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act to protect the American people and strengthen our security--64th year. Pretty good. Pretty good.

The NDAA is not perfect, but it still makes several important advances Democrats fought for to secure America's national defense and take a strong stand against the Chinese Communist Party. I am particularly glad that the NDAA expands the Tech Hubs Program that I created in the bipartisan Chips and Science Act, along with Senators Young, Cantwell, and others, and I thank our leaders for understanding the importance of that issue. It will help make tech innovation more achievable in the Midwest, across the country, and--near and dear to me--in Upstate New York.

The NDAA will also strengthen America's leadership on AI by expanding our AI infrastructure within the Department of Defense--something that our bipartisan AI forums from last year stressed was critical, and now we are getting it passed into law.

The NDAA gives our troops a raise, authorizes funding for military families to pay for childcare, extends programs for military spouses to find good-paying jobs, and expands mental health services for parents.

Again, I thank the staffs as well. They are great, professional, and excellent. I thank Senator Reed. I thank Ranking Member Wicker and the members of the Armed Services Committee.

This is a good day for the strength of America.

Motion to Concur with Amendment No. 3317 Withdrawn

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the pending motion to concur with amendment No. 3317 be withdrawn.

Madam President, in a few moments, my friend Senator Peters will offer legislation that responds to the reports of unusual drone activity, and I thank him for his great work and leadership on this. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this bipartisan drone legislation, which the FBI, the DHS, the FAA, and the DOD--the Department of Defense--all support. The Senate should pass our bill without delay.

Our bill, among other things, explicitly authorizes State and local authorities to conduct drone detection and helps them better coordinate with Federal law enforcement Agencies to keep communities safe.

The people in New York and New Jersey have a lot of questions, and they are not getting good enough answers.

The utter confusion surrounding these drone sightings shows that the Feds can't respond all on their own; they need help detecting these drones from local officials who have neither the resources nor the explicit authority to act. The bill fixes that.

We all know drones are a relatively new phenomenon, and there are millions of them all over the United States. A lot of them are hobbyists. Some of them are companies doing legitimate work. But the Federal Government just doesn't have the ability or resources. If we were to say the Federal Government should look at this completely, they would be taken away from so many other important jobs. So the most logical thing to do is say: Let the localities have some authority. These are law enforcement authorities. These are people we know and we trust.

Now, for all we know, the recent drone incidents are entirely benign, but the people of New York and New Jersey understandably still have questions, and they deserve answers. The problem is, the widespread use of drones is relatively new in the eyes of Federal law, and therefore the authority to detect drone activity near sensitive infrastructure is totally within Federal jurisdiction. That should be fixed in an appropriate way. The Federal Government just doesn't have the ability to go in every corner of America and see whether the drones are safe or not safe.

Local law enforcement is appropriate, and they will work with the Feds in working on this. The bill is about giving local officials on the ground greater flexibility and proven technology to detect and track threats in their jurisdictions. It is about giving people answers they don't now have, heard directly from authorities on the ground. If this bill becomes law, we will have better clarity in the future.

So I yield to my friend from Michigan who has worked hard on this issue for a long period of time. It has broad bipartisan support. I hope the Senate can act.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, in just a few moments, the Senate will hold a vote to take up the Social Security Fairness Act, a bill that ensures no retiree or spouse is wrongly denied their well-earned benefits simply because they chose, at some point in their careers, to work in public service.

Time is short, but I am hopeful the Senate can take up and pass this bill and send it to the President's desk very quickly.

Passing this Social Security fix right before Christmas would be a great gift for our retired firefighters, police officers, postal workers, teachers, and others who, for years, contributed to Social Security but are now being penalized because of their time of public service. That is unfair. It is deeply unfair. It goes against the American ideal of working hard, chipping in, and enjoying a well-earned retirement.

Our bill will finally repeal the outdated and unfair WEP and GPO programs which have wreaked havoc on the hard-earned benefits of our public service retirees and their spouses. It has been going on too long. People have been working for decades to pass legislation to fix this issue. We now have that opportunity.

The House has already passed this bill by an overwhelming margin, with Democrats and Republicans, 327 to 75.

We Democrats are ready to stand with our public service retirees and finally fix this problem. The American people will see today which Senators are ready to deliver on these Social Security benefits and who will block this golden opportunity that could help millions.

I thank Senator Brown and others for their hard work.

I yield the floor.

Cloture Motion