Floor Statements

Mr. President, today I wish to honor a proud West Virginian, a dedicated public servant, a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and a dear friend to all who had the pleasure of knowing her. It is a privilege to recognize the life and legacy of Mayor Reba Joy Honaker for her many years of dedicated service to the city of Welch and to our home State.

A lifelong resident of McDowell County, growing up on Belcher Mountain, Mayor Honaker graduated from Welch High School and Concord College and was also a dedicated member of the Elkhorn Old Regular Baptist Church. Upon graduating from college, she taught home economics at Big Creek High School until the birth of her son. Later she began directing weddings and designing wedding cakes, a skill she taught to others. She was active with the American Association of University Women's McDowell Chapter, where she took the lead on the yearly arts and crafts festival with proceeds benefitting the advancement of women in higher education. In 1984,

Mayor Honaker opened Flowers by Reba, a small business she owned and operated until 2006. Her volunteerism spanned the community, from helping to start the very successful Coal Camp Creations Company, to volunteering with the McDowell County Chamber of Commerce at various festivals and events. Mayor Honaker truly wanted the very best for McDowell County, helping to recreate events that took place in other areas of the State. She assumed her role as mayor of Welch in 2011 and was able to put her vision for the community to even greater use. Whether working with the Welch Kiwanis Club or the American Legion Post 8 Ladies Auxiliary, she was able to make a tremendous impact on the lives of countless families in the area. Most recently, we celebrated the opening of the Jack Caffrey Arts Center, a project near and dear to Mayor Honaker's heart that serves as a hub for cultural programs in McDowell County.

Mayor Honaker represented the very best of West Virginia, which is saying quite a lot. In the Mountain State, if you are hungry, you will be fed. If you are lost, someone will not only give you directions but will offer to drive you to your destination. That is just who we are, and that is who Mayor Honaker was. We have lost a shining star in McDowell County, but her impact, vision, and her passion for this special community will last forever. It was an honor to have known her and to call her a friend.

What is most important is that she lived a full life, surrounded by dear friends and family. It is my hope that her family and friends are able to find peace, strength, and support in one another. I extend my condolences to Charles, her loving husband of 57 years; her children, Darren and Patty, and Joi and Jeremy; her grandchildren, Christopher, Erik, Mason, Wyatt, and Paige; and her numerous extended family members and dear friends with the city of Welch. Again, I extend to you my most sincere condolences for our loss of this wonderful person. The unwavering love she had for her family, friends, community, and our home State will live on forever in the hearts of all who knew her.

Mr. President, today I wish to honor the 75th anniversary of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park as a part of the National Park Service.

It is no secret that my home State of West Virginia is one of the most naturally beautiful States in the Nation. As a native West Virginian and an outdoor enthusiast, I know just how important our wild and wonderful outdoor heritage is to our great State. Our sparkling rivers, sweeping valleys, and majestic mountains make our small State a true gem and beckon sports and outdoor enthusiasts from all over the world. It is vital to the Mountain State that the natural beauty of our home State is protected and that we consistently strive to promote our endless tourism opportunities.

For more than a century, the National Park Service has played a major role in this success by engaging communities through recreation, conservation, and historic preservation programs. To name just one significant contribution, the National Park Service has been working with the Fish and Wildlife Service and other experts and volunteers to help protect peregrine falcons and reintroduce them to the area. The use of DDT as a pesticide had all but caused the extinction of the species. Since the ban of DDT in the 1970s, the population of peregrine falcons have recovered significantly to due extensive conservation efforts. I am so deeply proud of what our citizens have accomplished and what they will continue to accomplish to preserve our forests, rivers, wildlife, and historic sites in the days and years ahead.

Harpers Ferry, itself, has been a location that has greatly influenced our Nation's history. This community saw the arrival of the first successful American railroad, was the site of John Brown's raid on the Harpers Ferry Armory, saw the largest surrender of Federal troops during the Civil War, and was among the first locations to support the education of former slaves in one of the earliest integrated schools in the United States. It was of such significance that it changed hands seven times during the Civil War.

Visiting this historic community is like stepping into the past. Whether visiting the park, strolling through the picturesque streets, visiting museums and battlefields, or hiking the trails, it reflects the West Virginia heritage and principles you just can't find anywhere else in the world. All of Harpers Ferry's features collectively make it one of West Virginia's most treasured destinations. Of course, even more special than our national historical monuments are the people who take such pride in maintaining the knowledge of our history and traditions and preserving the locations and commonsense values we hold dear.

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park is treasured in the hearts of all West Virginians as a statewide community and beyond, and it is a privilege to recognize its 75th year in the National Park Service.

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

Madam President, I rise today to call for immediate action on the American Miners Act. We have an obligation to the coal miners across America who served our Nation by providing us with energy through our greatest advancements. They deserve to know that the pensions they rightfully worked for will be funded fully. They deserve to have acceptable healthcare, which was guaranteed to them, and they paid for it.

As the Senate fails to act, we continue to put our retired miners' healthcare and pension benefits in jeopardy yet again. I have been working with everyone from every angle in order to prevent our miners from losing their healthcare and retirement benefits, but, once again, they are facing a deadline that puts their whole livelihood at risk.

This has been a long fight, and it is far from over. Everyone--and I mean

everyone--who has joined me in this journey understands that they are fighting for the working people, and that is what we were sent here to do. These retired miners are walking the halls and fighting for what is rightfully theirs. I am doing this for them. I promised them that this body will not abandon them. I refuse to let them down.

The 1974 pension plan will be insolvent by 2022 if we do not act now. Miners who receive their healthcare through companies that went bankrupt in 2018 are at risk of losing their coverage in the coming months if we fail to act soon. Unlike many other public-private pension plans, the 1974 pension plan was well managed and 94 percent funded prior to the crash of 2008. However, the 2008 crash hit at a time when the plan had its highest payment obligations to the retirees. If the plan becomes insolvent, these beneficiaries will face benefit cuts and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation will assume billions of dollars in liabilities.

To address these issues, the American Miners Act would shore up the 1974 pension plan, which is headed for insolvency due to coal company bankruptcies and the 2008 financial crisis. It would ensure that the miners who are at risk due to the 2018 coal company bankruptcies will not lose their healthcare. It would extend the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund tax at $1.10 per ton of underground-mined coal and 55 cents per ton of surface-mined coal for 10 years.

West Virginia has more retired miners than any other State. More than 27,000 retirees live in West Virginia alone. Most of those who are receiving these pensions are widows. The pensions for these widows-- basically, it is a family affair when someone in the family mines--on average is less than $600 per month--less than $600. They have worked for it. Their husbands worked for it. They have been counting on it. Basically, it is a lifeline for them. Because of the bankruptcies that have allowed companies to walk away from the legacy costs and leave them with nothing after they negotiated to not take home the pay to take care of this themselves, they are left in a very vulnerable position, which we should never have let happen.

I have a letter from a retired coal miner to read to you today. I think it puts everything in perspective. This is Delbert from West Virginia, who was a miner for 35 years. He said:

To the members of the Senate and House: Months ago, I

walked the corridors of Washington, D.C., asking many members

of Congress for help. I spoke with Mitch McConnell and bled

my heart out to him, how this was not only the right thing to

do but it was also a matter of life and death to many

thousands of coal miners.

If this letter is read on the Senate and House floors, I

plead with each and every one of you to search your hearts

and souls today. Close your eyes and imagine giving your

youth and your entire working life to the coal industry, and

the only promise you were given was a small retirement check

and medical insurance. I know a favorable ruling for these

miners will cost the taxpayers nothing. It will not lead to

an increase in the deficit. I realize all we are asking

for is the interest earned off the unused reclamation

fund. Most coal companies are even on board with this.

These miners have black lung. Many have to use oxygen 24

hours a day. Many have to use wheelchairs, walkers, and

canes. Their bodies are broken. Please don't break their

hearts, spirits, and souls also. Please save their lives and

pass this bill today.

He is a proud veteran of the Vietnam War, a proud coal miner, and a proud American. Please don't say no to these deserving miners and spouses.

Let me give to you in a nutshell what they are asking for. In 1946, when Harry Truman was President, the Krug-Lewis Agreement was signed. That was John L. Lewis. The miners had to work for our industry and our economy to keep moving forward. Until that time they had no pension and no retirement. From that day forward it was promised to every miner that for every ton of coal that would be mined, there would be a certain set-aside on the price of coal that would go into their pension and retirement because it was an important industry and important commodity for the economy of our great country.

After World War II, when the economy fell, miners were on strike, and they couldn't take care of themselves. This is how we got this bill, a guarantee from the Federal Government that they would be taken care of. It was not that the Federal taxpayer and government were going to pay for it. It was basically funded through the product they were mining and the products being sold, which gave them the resources to take care of their retirement and pensions.

Somebody got this money when there was a bankruptcy, and it wasn't the people who worked for it. The bankruptcy laws in this country are so messed up that they don't give money to the human beings--they don't give it to the workers who basically worked for this and didn't take money home to their families because it was based in their retirement and pension plan, and then, all of a sudden, it is gone. All of the financial institutions line up first. It is not the working person at the front of the line. They are in the back of the line getting nothing. That is what we are trying to change here.

We are trying to make sure that the people who have given everything they have for this great country--they are patriotic, they fought in the war, and they mined the coal that basically built America. Now we are about ready to let it go down.

We had this bill fixed 3 years ago. I talked with Majority Leader McConnell about both the pension and the healthcare, but they separated it. We got the healthcare benefits for a certain portion of those people but not the pension plan. If there is one bankruptcy between now and 2022, this whole thing collapses immediately.

On the other hand, the guaranteed funding that the Federal Government does pay for will be hit hard, and it could break down. So we have a crisis looming. We can avoid it or we can allow this to happen, as we do so many things around here.

Why has this become a political fight? It shouldn't be. We have bipartisan support. We had almost every member on the Finance Committee from both parties--Democrats and Republicans--support it, but it never made it past the person who is responsible for putting it on the floor.

I hope that all my colleagues will consider the widows and their $600 pensions, which means the difference between having a life and basically worrying from day to day whether they are going to have food or medical care for whatever they need. These pensions are not extravagant. These pensions are a necessity and something that is needed. So I implore all of my colleagues to look at this very hard and try to get this on the NDAA. This is something we all should be fighting for and helping the people who fought for us, who gave us the quality of life we have and the great country we have.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. MANCHIN. Madam President, today I am incredibly honored to rise and recognize a group of 23 heroic military veterans who will travel from West Virginia this week to visit our Nation's Capital as part of the 10th Always Free Honor Flight. On the occasion of their visit, in which they will see for the first time the monuments built in their honor, I want to express my utmost gratitude to these special men and women for their extraordinary bravery and patriotism and for their noble sacrifice to help keep our country free.

I have said this time and time again: West Virginia is one of the most patriotic States in this great Nation. With one of our country's highest per capita rates of military servicemembers and veterans, West Virginia is undoubtedly one of our Nation's most patriotic States. According to the Department of Defense, West Virginia had the highest casualty rate in the Nation during the Vietnam war, and I am so proud that the Honor Flight will allow these West Virginia veterans to pay homage to their brethren at the Vietnam Wall. The 31 veterans participating in this week's Always Free Honor Flight truly embody the Mountain State's history and contributions to the safeguarding of our American freedoms.

Our special West Virginians visiting this week represent warriors from 23 to 93 years old and have traveled from all parts of our great State, from Beckley to Bluefield, Princeton to Cottageville, and many places in between. In addition to our Mountain State veterans, six veterans from Virginia and one veteran from Florida will be accompanying their West Virginia neighbors on the day-long adventure. Of the patriots attending, one served in World War II, two served in the Korean war, 10 served in the Vietnam war, one in Vietnam and Desert Storm, one served in the Cold war, one served in Desert Storm and the Gulf war, two served in the war in Afghanistan, and many others served between wars.

I would especially like to recognize our World War II veteran who will be on this honor flight--93-year-old Allen K. Walker who now lives in Beckley but is originally from the Mississippi Delta. He joined the Navy in Rosedale, MS, in 1944. He served as a seaman first class stationed in Pearl Harbor, HI. Allen is a member of our Nation's Greatest Generation, and their sacrifices and valor embody American patriotism. They fought in such a pivotal war, in an era that threatened our existence as a Nation. Unfortunately, as the years go by, we are losing so many of our World War II veterans, and we must show them our utmost gratitude each and every day.

As I mentioned, we will also be joined by veterans of the Korean, Vietnam, Cold, and Gulf wars. They engaged in combat all over the world. They were Humvee mechanics, military police officers, and radio operators.

Two of our proud veterans here today served in the Korean war. One is 86-year-old Corporal Paul Clifford Lathey from Cottageville, WV. He joined the Army in 1953 in Ripley, WV. During his time in Korea, he served in the 15th Infantry, 3rd Division Fox Company, where he treated wounded soldiers in MASH units. Our other Korean war veteran is 90- year-old Sergeant David Shirley Knapp, who was in the Army from 1948- 1954 and served as a combat engineer during the Korean war.

Another veteran is Charlie R. Lambert from Iaegar, WV, who served in a variety of roles during the Vietnam war. After he joined the Navy in 1970, he served in a ``boots on the ground'' role in Thailand, served on the flight deck of the USS Iwo Jima, and volunteered to be a member of the Brown Water Navy or the forces that patrol shallow inland waterways, seizing contraband and engaging with the enemy. Another brave West Virginian who served in Vietnam is Sergeant Robert Ortiz, from Premier, WV, who served as an infantryman in the 196th Light Infantry Brigade, 23rd Infantry Division Americal.

We also have two veterans who served in two wars, both from Virginia. Sergeant Jackie Thornton of Narrows, VA, who served in the Army during both the Vietnam and Desert Storm wars, as the chaplain's assistant, as well as, Sergeant Steven R. Mitchell of Bluefield, VA, who served in the Army in both Operation Desert Shield/Storm and the Gulf war.

I would like to also specifically honor the youngest veteran we have with us today, Sergeant Austin Patrick Coleman of Bluefield, WV. He joined the Marines in Houston, TX, and served his country in Helmand Province Afghanistan as an infantryman, assisting the Afghanistan National Army. Another veteran of the war in Afghanistan here today is Michael ``Doc'' Atwell of Princeton, WV. Doc served in the Navy at Camp Dwyer in the Helmand Province. He was attached to the 1st Tank Battalion RCT7 as a FMF corpsman.

Showing our appreciation to those who have served is something that we should do each and every day, but today is a special day to pay tribute and thank those who have volunteered to put their lives on the line for our freedoms. The memorials our honor flight participants will visit today serve as an important reminder to us all that our freedoms and liberties come at a steep cost. However, I know our veterans will find special meaning and potentially long-lost emotions when they tour such touching sites.

This week's honor flight and the continued support of our veterans would not be possible without the dedication of so many volunteers and caregivers. I would like to thank Theresa Riggs, the JROTC Cadet from Montcalm High

School, as well as the military spouses and other family members serving as the guardians on this year's honor flight. These guardians have selflessly given their time to travel alongside our veterans all the way from Princeton, WV, to Washington, DC, to share this very special journey with them.

I also commend those in the Always Free Honor Flight Network for their dedication to providing our veterans with such a unique and meaningful experience. Without the diligence and passion Dreama of Denver, president of Always Free Honor Flight Network and owner of Princeton, WV's, Little Buddy Radio, as well as Pam Coulbourne, the coordinator of these flights, many of our veterans would never have the opportunity to travel to Washington and pay homage to the men and women they fought beside. Dreama and Pam launched the Always Free Honor Flight in 2012, and every year, they continue to make this dream a reality for many of our West Virginia veterans.

I would also like to recognize Sergeant First Class Paul Dorsey, vice president of Always Free Honor Flight and official photographer Steve Coleman, who have done a tremendous job of ensuring that our veterans receive the recognition they deserve. Dreama, Pam, and Steve have also dedicated themselves to the Denver Foundation, serving as incredible examples of how individuals can give back to their communities.

I am filled with pride every time I meet the patriots who have served our country, and I am so pleased to welcome West Virginia's most courageous veterans, who are all heroes, to Washington, DC. I encourage all of my colleagues to join me in saluting them. They truly inspire us all as we are reminded of their selfless service. It is because of their bravery that all Americans enjoy the greatest liberties and freedoms in the world.

God bless all our servicemembers and veterans, God bless the great State of West Virginia, and God bless the United States of America.

Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

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

Madam President, I rise today to call for immediate action on the American Miners Act.

We have an obligation to the miners across America who served our Nation by providing us with the energy throughout our greatest advancements. They deserve to know that their pensions, which they rightfully worked for, will be funded fully, and they deserve to have accessible healthcare, which was guaranteed to them as well.

As the Senate fails to act, we continue to put our retired miners' healthcare and pension benefits in jeopardy yet again.

I have been working with everyone and from every angle in order to prevent our miners from losing their healthcare and retirement benefits, but, once again, they are facing a deadline that puts their whole livelihood at risk.

This has been a long fight, and it is far from over. Everyone who has joined me on this journey understands that

fighting for working people is what we were sent here to do.

These retired miners are walking the halls and fighting for what is rightfully theirs. I am doing this for them and their families. I promised them that this body would not abandon them, and I refuse to let them down.

The 1974 Pension Plan will be insolvent by 2022 if we do not act now. Miners who receive their healthcare through companies who went bankrupt in 2018 are at risk of losing coverage in the coming months if we fail to act soon. Unlike many other public and private pension plans, the 1974 Pension Plan was well managed and 94 percent funded prior to the crash of 2008. However, the 2008 financial crisis hit at a time when this plan had its highest payment obligations due to retirements.

If the plan becomes insolvent, these beneficiaries face benefit cuts, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation will assume billions of dollars in liabilities.

To address this, we have to shore up the 1974 Pension Plan, which is heading for insolvency due to the coal company bankruptcies and the 2008 financial crisis; ensure that the miners who are at risk due to 2018 coal company bankruptcies will not lose their healthcare; and extend the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund tax at $1.10 per ton of underground-mined coal and 55 cents per ton of surface-mined coal for 10 years.

West Virginia has more retired union miners than any other State. More than 27,000 retirees live in West Virginia alone.

I have two letters that I would like to read into the Record that explain what we are dealing with in all parts of our State.

This is Roy from West Virginia, and he says:

I am a 63 year old, 3rd generation coal miner. I started in

the mine 3 days prior to graduating from high school.

Unfortunately, I had to find other employment in 1999 after

27 years of mining because my mine shut down. Although the

job that I was hired at paid a lot less (75% less), I felt

that we would survive because of the promise of lifetime

healthcare.

When I went into mining, I felt that if I put in my time, I

would be taken care of in my older years. Now that I am

approaching that stage of my life and am faced with the fact

of healthcare concerns of people my age group, I am fearful

of losing the security that my pension and health benefits

will provide to me and my wife of 43 years.

Fourteen years ago, my wife was diagnosed with severe

rheumatoid arthritis. The cost of her medications alone would

total more than my pension income, making retirement an

impossibility. The idea of her not being able to receive the

proper treatment for her condition is not an option. If

necessary, I will continue to work to provide the medical

care that she needs and deserves.

Senator Manchin, for the concerns that have been mentioned

in this letter, I deeply appreciate the support that you have

lent to the passage of the Miner's Protection Act and hope

that your fellow legislators will consider the same.

This is Lisa from Fraziers Bottom, WV:

My husband was employed by a UMWA represented mine for the

34 years he worked in the mining industry. He worked a 6 day

workweek. He turned down some very promising job offers

because we were always led to believe that after 20 years of

UMWA service, we would have family insurance for life. A

large part of the reason he stayed loyal to the mining

industry was because of the retirement pension and family

health insurance we would have upon his retirement.

He was injured on the job in 2013 and was unable to return

to work. We had the comfort of knowing that he would be able

to receive his pension and that the two of us would have no

worries about health insurance.

In April 2015, I was diagnosed with breast cancer that

spread to my lymph nodes. I had chemotherapy from May 2015 to

November 2015, followed by radiation that lasted until

February 2016. I was hospitalized three times during

treatment, had to undergo a lot of diagnostic testing, and a

blood transfusion. Unfortunately, I was unable to finish my

treatment due to this rigorous and intense treatment damaging

my heart. I have to follow up with regular treatment by a

cardiologist and now have frequent testing to make sure the

cancer hasn't come back.

Another side effect I have from having had chemotherapy is

chemo-induced peripheral neuropathy that effects both my

hands and feet. My medications cost several hundred dollars a

month. I am 53 years old and unable to work due to all the

side effects from my having cancer. My medical bills and

medications have cost many thousands of dollars and I don't

have to worry about anything other than getting well, thanks

to the UMWA insurance we have.

Since my husband can no longer work and I too am unable to

work, our income has taken a downward turn. The security of

having this insurance means the world to us. We [are] neither

asking nor expecting nothing other than what we were

promised. Please, please pass this Senate Bill, not only for

the two of us, but for the many other UMWA retirees and

spouses that are also in the same situation.

We have countless letters that come in on a weekly basis, and it is basically stories. The thing I would want to make sure that all my colleagues know and all of America knows is that the miners provided the energy that built the industrial might that we have--an industrial revolution. They built the factories. They mined the coal and made the steel to build the factories, and they built the guns and ships that defended this country. They have given everything they have had, and this was a promise by the U.S. Government in 1946.

Because of the bankruptcy laws that erupted and basically evolved over the 1980s, they were left with nothing, and that is what they have. They didn't take home in the paycheck extra money. They didn't take home anything else except the promise and guarantee that they would have their healthcare and the benefits of a pension.

The average pension for a miner retired is less than $600, and most of those are for widows. This is something that we promised. This is something we worked for, we are fighting for, and I am not going to give up until this promise is fulfilled.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, today I am introducing the Prioritizing Our Workers Act, which will make changes to the current bankruptcy code, requiring companies going through bankruptcy proceedings to pay unpaid vested benefits, like workers' pensions, before they pay out other claims against them.

I firmly believe that no one should be denied their pension because their employer goes bankrupt. Hard-working men and women across the country go to work every day for years, paying into these pension plans each paycheck with the expectation that one day they can retire and provide for their families.

Companies offering pension plans made promises to their workers and need to live up to those promises, no matter what else happens to that company financially.

In West Virginia, we are far too familiar with coal and steel companies leaving their workers out to dry in this way. This is absolutely unacceptable. That is why I am introducing this bill, and I look forward to my fellow Senators joining me to support and protect pensions across this country.

Mr. President, today I am introducing the Prioritizing Our Workers Act, which will make changes to the current bankruptcy code, requiring companies going through bankruptcy proceedings to pay unpaid vested benefits, like workers' pensions, before they pay out other claims against them.

I firmly believe that no one should be denied their pension because their employer goes bankrupt. Hard-working men and women across the country go to work every day for years, paying into these pension plans each paycheck with the expectation that one day they can retire and provide for their families.

Companies offering pension plans made promises to their workers and need to live up to those promises, no matter what else happens to that company financially.

In West Virginia, we are far too familiar with coal and steel companies leaving their workers out to dry in this way. This is absolutely unacceptable. That is why I am introducing this bill, and I look forward to my fellow Senators joining me to support and protect pensions across this country.

Madam President, I rise today to call for immediate action on the American Miners Act. We have an obligation to the miners across America who have served our Nation by providing us with energy through our greatest advancements. They deserve to know that their pensions, which they rightfully worked for, will be funded fully, and they deserve to have accessible healthcare, which was guaranteed to them as well.

As the Senate fails to act, we continue to put our retired miners' healthcare and pension benefits in jeopardy yet again. I have been working with everyone from every angle in order to prevent our miners from losing their healthcare and benefits. But, once again, they are facing a deadline that puts their whole livelihood at risk.

This has been a long fight, and it is far from over. Everyone who has joined me in this journey understands that fighting for working people is what we were sent here to do. These retired miners are walking the halls and fighting for what is rightfully theirs. I am doing this for them. I promised them that this body will not abandon them, and I refuse to let them down.

To give you some background, the 1974 pension plan will be insolvent by 2022 if we do not act. We needed to act a year ago or so, and we haven't done it. It is a shame. Miners who receive their healthcare through companies that went bankrupt in 2018 are at risk of losing coverage in the coming months if we fail to act soon.

How did we get here? Unlike many other public and private pension plans, in 1974, the miners' pension plan was well managed and 94 percent funded prior to the crash of 2008. However, the financial crisis hit at a time when this plan had its highest payment obligations. If the plan becomes insolvent, these beneficiaries will face benefit cuts, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation will assume billions of dollars in liabilities.

To address these issues, the American Miners Act would shore up the 1974 pension plan, which is headed for insolvency due to coal company bankruptcies and the 2008 financial crisis. It would ensure that the miners who are at risk due to 2018 coal company bankruptcies will not lose their healthcare and extend the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund tax at $1.10 per ton of underground-mined coal and 55 cents per ton of surface-mined coal for 10 years.

West Virginia has more retired union coal miners than any other State. More than 27,000 retirees live in West Virginia alone.

I am going to read a letter to give you perspective on what we are dealing with. Richard from Morgantown, WV, said:

I am writing this letter with respect and concern to

preserve our pension. My name is Richard. I live in

Morgantown, West Virginia. My career as an underground coal

miner lasted 35 years. I am soon to be 68 years old. Working

underground all those years, the physical labor tends to take

a toll on a person's body. I receive a monthly pension of

$1,466 a month from the UMWA Pension Fund. This monthly

pension is used to pay utility bills, purchase groceries, and

everyday necessities. I am also helping to support my five

year old grandson and his mother, who doesn't earn enough for

them to live on their own. You see, my daughter became

addicted to prescription opioids after having serious medical

problems. She has been clean for five years and is trying to

rebuild her life, but we are supporting her and her son. My

pension is a major source of income for my family and it

would be devastating if I were to lose any of it. I can't

imagine how we would survive. Our county and surrounding

counties are heavily dependent on the coal miners' pension.

Should we lose our pension, the economy in this area would

plummet. I am also writing as a voice for those who are

unable to write to you. I am asking your committee to

carefully consider the bill to preserve our pensions.

I have another one from Gary from Southern West Virginia who wrote:

I have worked in the [United Mine Workers] since 1973 at

Cannelton Coal. I worked about 13\1/2\ years, then had a lay-

off in the early 80's, had to find work in another field, and

got a job driving a school bus for 25 years. I'm retired now,

but I still sub-drive for the county, was in [a] . . . bus

driver association, and also drive a bus for Ace Adventure

Resort. I am 74 now and still very active in the work force.

I thank God for my health. I am still married to a wonderful

woman, had 4 kids, 3 of them have passed away, one from

cancer, one [from] allergy, my daughter died from a drug

overdose. I am still paying on my daughter's funeral

expenses. This retirement check that I get every month is a

big help getting this bill paid, also had to pay on one of my

son's funeral expenses. Since 2011 it has been very hard

trying to keep your head above water. I only get $261 a month

but I am so thankful for what I get. It really helps out a

lot. Please find a way so we can keep our retirement check.

We will keep on praying for all you guys who are fighting for

us.

I just want to finish by saying that these are people who have gone to work every day. They didn't take the money home because they were letting that go into their retirement pension, and they thought that was being taken care of and managed properly. It wasn't their fault. They have already paid, and now because of bankruptcies and financial collapses, they can't get the money. It is wrong. It is not who we are as a country.

Through the bankruptcy laws that we have in America today, you can be in line if you are a financial institution--somebody that basically is in line before the person we are basically here to serve. The miners who get these pensions average $460 a month. That is the average pension they receive. That is not much. Most of these are widows, too, because the husbands have passed away.

So I am asking--this has been a bipartisan bill. I appreciate all of my colleagues on the Republican side, all of my Democratic colleagues, and everybody for working and really trying to take care of the people whom we made a promise to. This was a pension that was guaranteed by Harry S. Truman with John L. Lewis at the time. It is in stone. It is there for us, and it is basically one we cannot walk away from.

I thank the Presiding Officer.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I am very honored to offer my support today for Kimberly Reed to be President of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. I think the Presiding Officer is very proud, too. We are both proud that the first woman to lead the Ex-Im Bank will also be the first West Virginian.

As a former West Virginia small business owner, I know this is an engine for economic growth and long-term stability and prosperity. It is truly beneficial for those businesses to reach broader markets and new customers. Rural states like West Virginia have a lot of talent and a lot of great businesses, but we need to make sure these companies are hitting global markets and building in sales and supporting more jobs here at home.

The Ex-Im Bank creates jobs and helps businesses, both big and small, to sell their products overseas at no cost--I repeat, at no cost--to the Federal Government, in addition to providing loans and other forms of credit. The Bank can also help with market research and to identify potential buyers and distributors of products in foreign countries. It is like having your own reconnaissance team, PR team, and a sales force, everything wrapped up into one.

In 2014, I invited the former Ex-Im Bank Chairman, Fred Hochberg, to West Virginia. Since then the Bank has worked with 14 West Virginia businesses throughout the State, providing $11 million in loans to support $18 million in exports. The people in West Virginia had no idea of the opportunities that a small business person would have with the Ex-Im Bank. They had no idea how to get into foreign markets. They didn't have any idea about the collections process or the legal expertise in that arena. This helped them immensely.

I know Kimberly wants to do the same thing for our State and for small businesses across rural America.

I can state that Kim's West Virginia roots shaped her to be the leader she is today. Growing up in Buckhannon, WV, and graduating from West Virginia Wesleyan College and West Virginia University, Kim checks all of the boxes for the best and brightest our State can offer. Every West Virginian will know what it means when I say that she was a Golden Horseshoe awardee and a Governor's Honors Academy graduate.

She hasn't lost sight of those roots, either. She continues to serve on the Wesleyan board of trustees and has worked with West Virginians every step of her career, whether it was as the senior adviser to the Secretary of the Treasury or the head of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.

Kim exemplifies bedrock Appalachian values, and her deep commitment to serving her Nation through the House of Representatives and the Department of Treasury is a true testament to her character. I have always been proud to call her a West Virginian, and I know that I and the Presiding Officer will be proud to call her the President and Chairwoman of the Ex-Im Bank.

I urge my colleagues to support Kimberly Reed to lead the Export- Import Bank of the United States.

Thank you, Madam President.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, first of all, I want to thank MJ also, on behalf of Senator Durbin. His staff does a

great job, and we always enjoy working with them. MJ, enjoy your new endeavor in life.

Madam President, I thank my colleague. He has more institutional knowledge, has been here longer, and understands this process. I haven't been here as long, but I am trying to put a little common sense to it, and I am having a hard time.

I am not naive enough to stand up thinking that if I could have given my speech before we took that vote, it might have made any difference. I wish it would have. I wish I could have. But it didn't happen that way.

Words cannot express how disappointed I am--I truly am--to stand here as the only Member of the Senate who voted against the nuclear option in 2013 when it was a Democratic proposal and in 2017, the Republican proposal, and now what we did today. I have consistently voted against this because it is not who we are, and it is not about what we are about either.

For those who don't know, the nuclear option is strictly a gimmick that allows the majority party to truly steal the power of debate and the power of the filibuster from individual Senators. Why does it matter? Because so much of our influence as Senators comes from our power to filibuster. It is also the most powerful tool we have to force compromise and to stand up for the people we represent.

In spite of the importance of this power, everyone else in the body who has had the chance has voted to use the nuclear option to lower the votes required to end debate from 60 votes to a simple majority of 50 plus 1 on different types of nominees. That is a tragedy for our constituents. For this country, it is even more of a tragedy. For the institution of the Senate, it is a disaster.

This debate is not new, and I would not be honoring the legacy of the late Senator Robert C. Byrd, whose seat I sit in, if I did not take the opportunity to at least recite a little history here on the floor of the Senate.

The Founding Fathers always intended the Senate to be deliberate, and we are known as the most deliberate body in the world.

George Washington himself was said to have told Thomas Jefferson that the Senate should serve as a ``cooling saucer'' for legislation from the House. As you know, the House works on a simple majority; 218 Democrats or 218 Republicans can do anything they wish. The Senate is supposed to temper that down.

This body was created to protect the rights of individual States-- small States in particular. In the Federalist Papers, John Jay notes that ``in this spirit it may be remarked, that the equal vote allowed to each State, is at once a constitutional recognition of the portion of sovereignty remaining in the individual States, and an instrument for preserving that residuary sovereignty.''

The filibuster is essential to preserving that residual sovereignty, and diminishing that power should matter to anyone who comes from a small or rural State like my State of West Virginia. This power was also meant to empower individual Members, like me, who often find themselves in the minority of their own party.

That doesn't mean we can't make changes for efficiency. But today's rule

change and the two that came before it in 2013 and 2017 were not meant to make this place more efficient; they were meant to take power from each and every Senator. That means you and I have given up our power and our ability to represent our States.

Before 1917, there was no way to end a debate in the Senate whatsoever, from our beginning, so one Member could grind this place to a halt for however long they felt necessary. Then, at the urging of President Woodrow Wilson, the Senate adopted rule XXII that year, 1917, and first used it 2 years later to end a filibuster against the Treaty of Versailles.

For the next 80-plus years, some tweaks were made to the rule and its reach was expanded, but there was no real threat to the existence of the rule. In 2005, that all changed when then-Majority Leader Bill Frist made the first serious effort to change the rules of the Senate and reduce the power of every Member of this body by deploying the nuclear option. None other than John McCain and Robert C. Byrd, our dear departed friends, teamed up to form the Gang of 14 that cut a deal on a package of nominations that took the nuclear option off the table--but only for a little while.

In 2013, when Harry Reid and Democrats--my side of the aisle--voted to end the filibuster for Presidential nominees, I was one of only three Democrats to fight and vote against it. The other two, Mark Pryor and Carl Levin, are no longer serving in the Senate today, but we represented all wings of the Democratic Party--from the liberal end, to the conservative end, to the moderate centrist end. We stood together despite our differences because we knew that it would forever lessen the institution of the Senate and that it would come back to bite us when we weren't in the majority. That was the point we made at that time. That was the argument we made and pleaded with our colleagues.

For the past 5 years, we have seen the consequences of those actions. Today, our Republican friends are using the same excuse our Democrats used--historic obstruction. Democrats are using the same argument today that our Republican friends have used--unprecedented overreach. This is the hypocrisy that makes us understand why people think Washington sucks. It is on both sides. No one is innocent on this.

In 2013, the current majority leader, Mitch McConnell, was furious about what the Democrats were threatening to do. He called it breaking the rules to change the rules. And I agreed with him. He was right. I voted with him.

In 2013, I heard and listened to Leader McConnell when he said:

The American people decided not to give the Democrats the

House, or to restore the filibuster proof majority they had

in the Senate back in 2009, and our Democratic colleagues

don't like that one bit. They just don't like it. The

American people are getting in the way of what they'd like to

do. So they are trying to change the rules of the game to get

their way anyway.

This is precisely what the American people decided about Republicans in the 2018 election, and the Republicans have now gone down the same path Leader McConnell warned us against. You would think that at least we would understand the definition of ``insanity''--doing the same thing over and over, thinking we are going to get a different outcome. It doesn't work that way.

Leader McConnell went on to say: ``So look, I realize this sort of wishful thinking might appeal to the uninitiated newcomers in the Democratic conference who served exactly zero days in the minority, but the rest of you guys should know better.'' And he is absolutely correct. Everyone should know better. Those of you who have been in the minority before should know better because what goes around comes around.

His final warning, which I am disappointed my Republican friends didn't listen to, was this:

If you think this is in the best interest of the United

States Senate and the American people, to make advice and

consent mean effectively nothing, obviously you can break the

rules to change the rules to achieve that.

That is what we have done.

But some of us have been around here long enough to know

that the shoe is sometimes on the other foot.

While the majority leader and minority leader have flipped their positions and their perspective today, the lesson is clear: Breaking the Senate for political expedience will, over time, hurt all of us and, most importantly, our constituents and the American people.

I firmly believe the filibuster is a vital protection of minority views and exactly why the Framers of our Constitution made the Senate the cooling saucer. Lately, both parties have lit the saucer on fire and thrown it out the window. The Senate was set up by our Founding Fathers to force us to work together. Think about that. They knew that whatever we receive from the House would be hot as a firecracker. Someone had to put out the flame. Someone had to know to say: That is not who we are as a country, and it is not basically who we want to be as a country.

We are not the House of Representatives, and by golly, we are going there at a rapid pace--a rapid pace. It seems that when people come from the House, they bring that House mentality--scorched and burned earth. That is not what we were set up to be. This is a very different body. It is the most unique body in the world.

As the late great Robert C. Byrd himself said in the months before his death, ``While I welcome needed reform, we must always be mindful of our responsibilities to preserve this institution's special purpose.'' And we are better than this, he said.

I always tell people back home that I can't vote for something unless I can go home and explain it. I don't care if it is an idea that my friends on the Republican side have. It makes sense to me. My constituents understand it. I go home and vote and tell them why I voted with my Republican friends. If I vote with my Democratic friends and it makes sense, I tell them the same. If I vote against something of my Republican friends or Democrats, I explain to them. It has nothing to do with politics; it is policy. Does it make sense? Will it help the constituents of the State of West Virginia? Will it make my country stronger and better? That is really what I care about. That is the purpose of my being here.

For the life of me, I can't figure out how anyone who voted for this can explain it when they go back home, because we have given our power away. Every time you do this, you continue to erode the powers you have as a Senate by the Constitution of the United States of America and by the Founding Fathers who created this body. Now, how we can do it in such a willing way makes no sense. How do you look people in the eye and say: I gave up my individual power to represent you. How do I do that? I am not going to do it. I am not going to do it, and I haven't done it, nor will I ever do it.

You can say it was because of obstruction. Well, if there is an obstruction, there is a way around obstructions. You drive around obstructions. You have obstructions in your life every day. You learn to work around obstructions. It is basically by communicating. It is basically by sitting down and looking at the other side, the other point of view.

I have always said that I am not always right. I need help. But I am not always wrong either. I have, hopefully, some input, and I try to make that as a balance as I approach these things. And Republicans are--what they have done today is basically the same. We don't have obstructions we can't overcome if we respect each other. You can't blame everybody for everything. You can't blame somebody else for something you are unwilling to do. You can't blame somebody else if you don't have the patience to sit down and talk through your problems and try to understand better. You can't blame somebody else if you are not willing to give and take. That is what the whole process is about if you are going to be successful in life--anyone who has been successful. It is not ``my way or the highway''; it is ``our way going down the highway together.''

This move is a betrayal of the people we represent, and everyone in this body is complicit. It is a shame that we are going to go back and try to explain our positions with the votes that were made today. It is just a shame. It should never have come to this. For hundreds of years, we have managed to overcome obstructions and preserve our Founders' vision for the Senate, but for the last 6 years, Members on both sides of this aisle have decided that is no longer possible.

This abdication of our power and responsibility is nothing more than weakness in the face of partisanship. This is truly tribal. What tribe do you belong to? Do you belong to the Democratic tribe, or do you belong to the Republican tribe? I am sorry, I belong to the American tribe, and I am going to stay right in the tribe I belong to, and I am going to be loyal to the American tribe.

This abdication of our power and responsibility is truly, truly a weakness in the face of partisanship, and my colleagues need to stand up to the leaders. We have given too much power to the leadership here.

I remember the day when people used to talk about, oh, the committee chairman had so much power. They could run a bill and make sure it got on the floor and got voted on. Those days are gone. There is always a reason why something doesn't go to the floor, even if it goes through the committee process. Something comes out of the committee unanimously, and it still doesn't come to the floor. Try to explain that one.

To protect the powers of the Senators as representatives for their States and to protect the institution of the Senate, that is not that hard, and I know because I have done it. I have voted against my colleagues on my side of the aisle. I was up front, and I was honest. I said: I am sorry; I can't go home and explain that. It doesn't make sense at all, and I am not voting for it.

If they want to get my vote, they are going to have to sit down and say: What would it take to get your vote?

And I would explain to them: You have to adjust this or adjust this and make sense.

It is fair to the minority, and if we were in the majority, or vice versa, the majority should be fair to us. If you can work through that, you can make it. You can make it on this side. If not, it is going to be a miserable 6 years for every Senator who just got elected, if we don't come back to reality.

I know I keep calling it an individual right, but it really isn't. It is a trust passed down from the Senators who preceded us. They had the will and they had the determination to make this place work, and we have given up on that. This belongs to our constituents, the power we have here, and we have no power to protect them now.

The solution to obstruction isn't ruining the Senate. It is outreach. It is compromise. It is finding solutions that make a bunch of people on the far left and the far right very uncomfortable and mad sometimes. Until we are willing to do that, the hard work of this institution is going to get worse. So it is not that we are fractured, we are almost broken, and it was never intended. I have never seen anything broken that we couldn't fix. I hope we come to our senses. I hope we act as Americans. I hope we understand basically the whole thought process from our Founding Fathers, who had the great insight of having two bodies in a bicameral, not a unicameral, branch that was supposed to work to help each other and protect us from ourselves. Right now, we have become the worst enemy of ourselves. I hope we change.

Thank you.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

It is. I thank my colleagues for their support of this critical legislation and for participating in the discussion here today.

Madam President, my home State has truly lost a shining star. We have lost a devoted West Virginian, a noble Army Veteran, a gifted performer, and a dear friend to all. George Daugherty's enthusiasm for life was infectious to anybody who had the privilege of knowing him, and it is an honor to recognize his life and legacy.

You could often find George on Morgantown's High Street next to the bronze statue of Don Knotts singing a rousing chorus of ``Hail West Virginia.'' He would usually tack on a phrase at the end about beating Pitt that was met with rousing applause from those who stopped on the street to cheer him on. He was quite a character and best known as a musician, but he made a life for himself by practicing law.

Despite his musical comedy role in the Charleston jamboree, George's professionalism working on medical malpractice cases never faltered. He said he never had a bad relationship with a doctor he sued, and he generally ended up becoming friends with them. That was just who he was.

Another key component that made George the person he was, affecting his music and life, was his unwavering patriotism. His father was a World War I veteran and instilled in him the pride and, of course, the patriotic songs that George would perform on stage, dressed in American flag-themed attire. He instilled these values in his children and grandchildren, encouraging them to be grateful for our freedom and to always remember where they have come from, and our statewide community is better for it.

It was an honor to call George my friend, a man who proudly showcased our State through performances across the Nation as ``the Earl of Elkview'' or ``the Duke of Dunbar.'' He and my Uncle A. James were dear friends for many years, and I know he would have been so very proud to see all that George did to promote the State we love. Whether performing on the Capitol City Jamboree and the Mountain Stage, contributing over 50 years of excellence and professionalism practicing law, or giving back to his community, George represented the best of West Virginia, which is saying quite a lot. He was a proud representative of our beautiful State no matter where life took him.

What is most important is that he lived a full life, surrounded by dear friends and family. It is my hope that his loved ones are able to find peace, strength, and support in one another. I extend my condolences to Mary Jarvis Currence and their children, Dick, Nancy, Sallie, and Thomas, their grandchildren, Kiera, Devlin, Aidan, Jamie, and Beth, as well as to George's many dear friends and extended family. I know he is looking down on all of you with a smile. I am honored to join each of you in honoring George's memory, as well as the unwavering love he had for his family, our great Nation, and our home State.

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

Madam President, I don't come to the floor that often to ask about or to talk about any person who is being recommended by our President, whether I agree or disagree. This is one time I feel very compelled to do so.

I rise today to urge my colleagues not to confirm Chad Readler to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. I would say this: A vote for him, in my estimation, is a vote against every West Virginian and every American with a preexisting condition, and I will tell you why.

After 20 State attorneys general and Governors challenged the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act and its protections for people with preexisting conditions in Texas v. United States, as Acting Assistant Attorney General, Readler refused to defend the Affordable Care Act. That is his job. That is the law of the land. He refused, basically, to protect and defend it, which resulted in putting nearly 800,000 West Virginians with cancer, heart disease, asthma, or diabetes and women who care to have a baby at risk of financial jeopardy if they get sick.

Readler was not just a participant but the chief architect of the Department of Justice's decision to not defend the current law in the case. Let me make sure we all understand how devastating this could have been but also the intent. Coming from the Assistant Attorney General, he was not just a participant, but he was the chief architect of the Department of Justice's decision to not defend--to not do his job, to not defend--the current law in the case.

He wrote and filed a brief arguing that the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate is unconstitutional, and that if the mandate is stricken as unconstitutional, the Affordable Care Act's protections for the people with preexisting conditions should also be stricken.

He is taking the position as one person, not as an elected official, saying that it is unconstitutional when we voted in this body not to repeal it. We voted in this body, representing the people of the United States, not to repeal it. He made a decision as one person, not an elected official, saying it is unconstitutional.

This brief was so controversial and inhumane that several career lawyers with the Civil Division refused to sign their name to this brief, and one senior career Department of Justice official resigned because of his decision.

After the Department of Justice's announcement, I introduced a resolution to authorize the Senate legal counsel to intervene in this lawsuit on behalf of the Senate and defend all Americans' right to access affordable health insurance. Because of Readler and the Department of Justice's decision to abandon its responsibility, the court ruled against Americans with preexisting conditions in December.

This misguided and inhumane ruling will kick millions of Americans and tens of thousands of West Virginians off their health insurance. So 800,000 West Virginians with preexisting conditions will be at risk of losing their health insurance, and the thousands of West Virginians who gained health insurance through the Medicaid expansion will no longer qualify. This ruling is just plain wrong, and it is rightfully being appealed to a higher court.

While I continue to fight to pass my resolution to defend Americans and West Virginians with preexisting conditions, I must commend our colleagues in the House who passed a similar resolution earlier this year that allowed their legal counsel to intervene. I wish we had both legal counsel from the House and the Senate intervening together.

In this body, I am known for examining judicial nominees fairly, based on their qualifications, temperament, and judgment, which I take very seriously, but I cannot stand idly by and allow the Senate to confirm a person who singlehandedly tried to rip insurance away from West Virginians and Americans when he had no authority to do so. He was not an elected official, not speaking on behalf of the law, not defending the law but trying to represent his own beliefs or political agenda.

This vote today will show Americans and West Virginias with preexisting conditions who is really fighting for them and all of us who believe strongly in their right to be able to care for themselves. A vote for Mr. Readler is a vote against people with preexisting conditions, and I hope my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will join me in voting against his confirmation.

This is something I don't do often. I don't take it lightly. It is very serious. This gentleman has basically shown it is not about the law; it is not about the Constitution; it is about his politics and himself and not a man who should be sitting on a higher court.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.