Floor Statements

Mr. President, I come to talk to my colleagues today about the deeply flawed EB-5 green card program.

Several weeks ago, we learned that the Office of Management and Budget at the White House had completed its review of the new rules to update and reform the EB-5 Program. I have been an advocate for reforming this program for a long, long period of time. Several times I have even talked to the White

House about moving these regulations along.

Now that they have been reviewed by OMB, for the rule to come into effect, it must now be published in the Federal Register. The rule was first proposed in January 2017. We have been waiting for it to be finished for 2\1/2\ years. I hope that President Trump now makes that happen as soon as possible.

The proposed rule would raise the minimum investment amounts required under the program. It also makes sure that investments are directed to rural areas and truly high-unemployment areas, as Congress intended when EB-5 was created in 1990.

Considering those points of where EB-5 ought to be concentrated and now looking at how they have been diverted from the original intent of Congress is the very best reason for these rules to be put in place--to get us back to square one, the original intent of the law.

Since the 1990s, rampant and abusive gerrymandering of the EB-5 Program's targeted employment areas has undermined that congressional intent, which was to direct it toward high-unemployment areas and rural areas. Instead of channeling investment to rural and high-unemployment areas, EB-5 has become a source of cheap foreign capital for big-city, big-moneyed interests. The targeted employment area reforms in the proposed rule would take a first step toward refocusing EB-5 investment in the way that Congress originally intended in that 1990s legislation.

In addition to channeling investment away from the areas of our country that need it the most, this is what has happened. The EB-5 Program has been plagued with other forms of fraud and abuse, and this has been going on for years and years. There are examples of EB-5 fraud from all over the country, and I am going to give just a few examples as a reminder to the President why these rules need to be put into the Federal Registry right away.

In Chicago, a businessman defrauded 290 investors of $150 million in funds that were supposed to be used for construction of a hotel and conference center near O'Hare Airport.

In Palm Beach, FL, a real estate developer and real estate attorney teamed up to defraud 60 Chinese and Iranian EB-5 investors of $50 million. Instead of that money being used to fund the construction of a proposed hotel, it was instead used to pay personal taxes and purchase a 151-foot yacht.

In Wisconsin, a businessman used over half of the $7.6 million in funds he had solicited from investors to pay for personal expenses, including Green Bay Packers tickets and the purchase of a Cadillac Escalade.

I could go on all day.

In May of 2017, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services conducted an internal fraud assessment and found 19 cases of national security concerns within the EB-5 Program. Those are national security concerns. The No. 1 responsibility of the Federal Government is to protect the American people, and that involves national security. These cases related to terrorism, espionage, and information and technology transfer.

Unfortunately, multiple bipartisan efforts in the Congress to modify the EB-5 Program have been consistently stymied by powerful special interest groups and big-moneyed interests. Because I have been in the middle of those battles--and they are bipartisan battles--over the years, I know exactly where these big-moneyed interests are coming from and the special interest groups that keep this program from being reformed.

Now we have an opportunity for one person--the President of the United States--through regulation, to reform this program in a way that would be very helpful. So that makes the publication of the EB-5 reform rules even more important. I applaud President Trump and the administration for getting the proposed rule to this point, but now it is time for the President and his team to finish the process and make sure the final rule goes into effect as soon as possible.

Iowans and all Americans who live in rural and high-unemployment areas deserve to have the investment that Congress intended when the EB-5 Program was created almost 30 years ago. President Trump and his administration now have a chance to finally address some of the very serious flaws in this program that have hurt rural America. We have been waiting for these reforms for over 2 years. It is time for this final rule to be published, and it needs to happen right now, if not sooner.

Mr. President, I rise today for the purpose of expressing my support for the passage of the resolutions of advice and consent that the Senate is considering this week with respect to the protocols to our tax treaties with Spain, Switzerland, Japan, and Luxembourg.

Tax treaties are a very integral part of the architecture of our tax system. For example, these treaties would help define the rules of the road for cross-border investment and trade for U.S. individuals and companies doing business in one of our treaty partner countries, like Spain, as an example, and for individuals and companies in those countries doing business in the United States.

The protocols before us today provide important updates to the tax treaties with these four countries. In general, several of them lower withholding taxes and include provisions to prevent double taxation. Several provide mechanisms for resolving disputes in a timely manner through mandatory binding arbitration. In addition, they provide important updates to the exchange of information provisions in the underlying treaties.

I am aware of the concerns that have been raised regarding the standard used to provide for such exchange of information. The standard provided for in these protocols is that relevant information shall be exchanged between the United States and its treaty partners. That relevant standard has been used throughout our treaty network for decades and is also the standard used in U.S. domestic tax laws.

This issue was raised last month in the Foreign Relations Committee, and an amendment was offered to the resolution regarding the protocol with Spain that would have required a narrower standard. That amendment was appropriately defeated. If the issue is raised again as an amendment here on the floor, I will urge my colleagues to vote no on the amendment.

These four protocols have been awaiting action by the Senate for many years. In some cases, it has been nearly a decade. It is important that the Senate fulfill its constitutional duty to provide its advice and consent on tax treaties and protocols. It is also important that our treaty partners know that the United States really values these agreements and negotiates these treaties and protocols in good faith, with the expectation that they will be implemented without lengthy delays.

Our actions on these protocols are also timely, given the international effort to address the effects of digitalization on the international tax system.

For the past several months, representatives from the Treasury Department have been actively engaged in negotiations at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. These talks are focused on finding a multilateral agreement to these issues and avoiding the regrettable unilateral approach that some countries have taken--most notably, France. Ultimately, if these negotiations are successful, there could be a need for the United States to update its bilateral income tax treaties.

It is important that the Senate take action on the pending protocols and send a strong signal to our treaty partners that the international tax agreements are a priority for our country.

In addition to moving forward on these four protocols, we have three new income tax treaties with Chile, Hungary, and Poland that are awaiting action by the Foreign Relations Committee. I urge Chairman Risch and Ranking Member Menendez to use the wave of momentum that is building this week to move forward on those three new treaties and send them to the floor of the Senate as soon as possible.

I thank the chairman and ranking member for moving these protocols to the floor. These treaties were reported favorably by the committee by voice vote without amendment, and their consideration is long overdue.

I thank Leader McConnell and Minority Leader Schumer for their efforts to bring these protocols up for consideration on the floor this week.

I urge all of my colleagues to vote yes on these resolutions of advice and consent.

I yield the floor.

First of all, I thank Senator Hoeven for leading this discussion. It is a very important discussion because American farmers, workers, and businesses stand to benefit greatly from the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

This successor agreement to NAFTA will allow for more market access for agriculture, new commitments in critical areas such as customs, digital trade, intellectual property, labor, environment, currency, and the lowering of nontariff barriers--all translating into higher wages, greater productivity, and more jobs.

As a family farmer, I can say without a doubt that trade with Canada and Mexico is critical to the prosperity of my State of Iowa, the Midwest, and, for that matter, all of rural America. In 2019, a Business Roundtable study found that trade with Mexico and Canada supported 12 million U.S. jobs. The same study found that 130,000 Iowa jobs were supported by trade with Canada and Mexico in 2017, and $6.6 billion in Iowa goods and services were exported to Canada and Mexico. According to the National Association of Manufacturers, Canada and Mexico purchase nearly half of Iowa's total global manufacturing exports.

President Trump and Ambassador Lighthizer delivered a solid deal to enhance this critical relationship with our good neighbors. Now, Congress must act to implement the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. As Ambassador Lighthizer said earlier this year, doing so will not only help the economy of the three countries, but it will enhance the credibility of America's global trade agenda. That is more important than ever, as talks between the United States and China are back on track.

I am looking forward to hearing concrete suggestions from House Democrats sometime soon. I am glad Speaker Pelosi has formed working groups to work with Ambassador Lighthizer to address Democrats' concerns and that these meetings are underway.

About a month ago, I met for a half hour with Speaker Pelosi, and I can assure you that she wants to get to ``yes,'' but she has a lot of new Members. The House of Representatives has the largest number of new Members in that body since 1974, and there is a lot that new Members have to learn. As Speaker of the House of Representatives, she has to make sure those new Members are comfortable with it. I am sure she wants to get there.

Any additions to the USMCA that might come as a result of these negotiations that can improve the outcome of American workers, I am happy to consider.

It is important to remember that USMCA is better than NAFTA by nearly every standard, including labor and environment. I hope discussions between House Democrats and Ambassador Lighthizer are an exercise in getting to the ``yes'' that I feel Speaker Pelosi wants to get to.

One particular area where everyone can agree is that enforcement across the board is a key compromise that must be hammered out. Factors outside of farmers' hands, such as an oversupply of grain in the global market, an unusually wet spring across the Midwest, and natural disasters, like flooding, have all contributed to increased uncertainty and less profitability for farmers, leading to anxiety among those same farmers. Passing the USMCA will help alleviate some of that uncertainty and anxiety for the years ahead by providing a stable export market for American corn, soybeans, pork, and dairy, to name just a few examples of the benefits not only to farming but the rest of the agenda for manufacturing and services.

I yield the floor.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, I have 9 requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority leaders.

Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate:

Committee on Armed Services

The Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on the nomination of Mark T. Esper, of Virginia, to be Secretary of Defense.

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Foreign Relations

The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing on the following nominations: Ann C. Fisher, of the District of Columbia, and Ashley Jay Elizabeth Poling, of North Carolina, both to be a Commissioner of the Postal Regulatory Commission, Catherine Bird, of Texas, to be General Counsel of the Federal Labor Relations Authority, and Rainey R. Brandt, and Shana Frost Matini, both to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on the Judiciary

The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing.

Select Committee on Intelligence

The Select Committee on Intellience is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 2 p.m., to conduct a closed hearing.

Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining

The Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, July 16, 2019, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 30 seconds as in morning business, please.

Mr. President, 24 years ago radical Serb forces committed the worst genocide on European soil since the Holocaust. In and around the hallowed grounds at Srebrenica, over 8,000 Bosnians were murdered out of ethnic and religious hatred.

Iowa, my State, is now home to many Bosnians who bore witnesses to those atrocities. I pray that they and their families find peace, as well as justice. Ethnic and religious hatred must never be tolerated, and we must not forget the victims of this crime.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, Iowans from the organization Iowa Safe Schools asked me to note that July 15 is the kickoff of their annual Pride Camp. They tell me that it is an opportunity to learn valuable life skills and network with other LGBTQ youth in a supportive and nurturing environment and that it is a week full of fun and learning for its attendees.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 1 minute as in morning business.

Mr. President, in honor of the Iowa Department of Agriculture's Sweet Corn Days yesterday, I would like to highlight the strong agricultural sector of my State of Iowa.

Many people don't know how you get from the seed to the corn on the cob you are used to seeing on your dinner table. That is one reason, particularly for city people, that I started the hashtag ``Corn Watch'' series on my Instagram.

Each week I post an update with the progress of how the crop is growing on my farm in New Hartford, IA. It is a small way to show nonfarmers how Iowa feeds and fuels the world.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 60 seconds as in morning business.

Madam President, we are all very much concerned about several mass instances of violence around the country. The Secret Service has a program of alerting people to some of those things and training people.

Understanding the common factors of the past acts of mass violence can help us prevent future tragedies. The Secret Service, through its National Threat Assessment Center, compiles and studies data on these risk factors.

Yesterday, the Secret Service released its report entitled ``Mass Attacks in Public Spaces,'' which confirms that there are often warning signs before targeted violence.

Following up on the expertise of the Secret Service, I introduced a bill that goes by the acronym EAGLES Act to expand the National Threat Assessment Center to conduct additional research and training to prevent targeted violence.

Congress should pass this law to help stop violence before it happens.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I want to update my colleagues and the American people about efforts to reduce the cost of prescription medicine.

Last week, our country and the American people celebrated Independence Day, marking 243 years of self-government. As elected representatives, it is our job to make the government work for the people, not the other way around.

For more than two centuries, our system of free enterprise has unleashed American innovation, investment, and ingenuity. Robust competition incubates advances in science and medicine. It leads to lifesaving cures and promising treatments for cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, and other debilitating diseases.

However, prescription medicine too often smacks consumers with sticker shock at the pharmacy counter. The soaring prices leave taxpayers with a big tab--particularly under the Medicare and Medicaid Programs--and they weigh heavily on the minds of moms and dads all across the country.

Last week, I held meetings with my constituents in 12 counties across Iowa. The cost of prescription drugs comes up at nearly every single Q- and-A county meeting that I hold. Iowans want to know why prices keep climbing higher and higher. They want to know why the price of insulin keeps going up and up and up--nearly 100 years after the lifesaving discovery was made. They want to know what can be done to make prescription drugs more affordable.

I am chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and in that position, I have been working with Ranking Member Wyden from Oregon on a comprehensive plan to do just that. We have held a series of hearings to examine the drug price supply chain. We are working on a path forward. We are taking care to follow the Hippocratic Oath: ``First, do no harm.'' In other words, let's be sure we don't try to fix what is not broken. Americans don't want to give up high-quality lifesaving medicine. That is why I support market-driven reforms to boost competition and transparency, because with transparency brings accountability and the marketplace working more free of secrecy.

Congress needs to get rid of perverse incentives and fix problems that undermine competition in the drug pricing system, including withholding samples by brand-name pharmaceutical companies, pay for delay, product-hopping, and rebate-bundling. There is too much secrecy in the pricing supply chain. Consumers can't make heads or tails of why they are charged what they pay for their medicine.

President Trump has made reducing drug prices a top priority of this administration, and they have taken several steps under various laws-- including even under ObamaCare--to do things that give more freedom to consumers of medicine and on other healthcare priorities.

In another instance, on Monday, the Federal court took a negative move, knocking down a rule that would require drug companies to disclose the price of their drugs in television ads. This is very, very disappointing. Senator Durbin and I worked on this in the last Congress, and I am going to continue to work with Senator Durbin to get this job done. Congress must correct what the Federal court said the administration didn't have the authority to do. I disagree with the court, but Congress can fix that. Big Pharma is already required to disclose side effects in their ads. Consumers ought to know what the advertised drug will cost. Today, I call upon my colleagues to climb aboard that effort Senator Durbin and I will be pursuing.

Let's pass the bipartisan healthcare bills thoughtfully crafted in various committees. The previous three speakers spoke to some of those issues. Let's get these various bills correcting some of these problems over the finish line. Working together, we can drive down the price of prescription drugs without derailing quality and without derailing innovation, all of which saves lives and improves the quality of life for the American people.

I yield the floor.

If you are going to have representative government, you have to have dialogue between constituents and those of us elected.

Last week, I continued my annual 99 county meetings with Q&A's in 12 of our 99 counties.

No matter the setting, Iowans set the agenda at my meetings. Holding face-to-face meetings is the best way to hear what is on Iowans' minds, but it is not the only way.

I encourage Iowans to write in or call my office to voice their opinions on any Federal issue. Iowans can also read my speeches and press releases on grassley.senate.gov; follow me on Facebook or on Twitter @chuckgrassley or @senatorchuckgrassley on Instagram.

I enjoyed my conversations with Iowans last week.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 90 seconds as in morning business.