Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 266, which is at the desk.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 3 p.m. on Monday, June 9; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each; further, that at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, the Senate proceed to executive session and execute the order of June 4 with respect to the Shumate nomination; finally, notwithstanding rule XXII, the cloture motions filed on June 5 ripen following disposition of the Shumate nomination, and if any nominations are confirmed during Monday's session of the Senate, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, Senate Republicans are continuing to work on a reconciliation bill that makes America stronger and more prosperous. An important component of this bill is what it does on energy.

Republicans spent a lot of time last year talking about how the Biden administration's hostility to conventional energy production was putting America on a dangerous trajectory in the future, and we promised that we would work to unleash American energy dominance, if we were put in charge. We have been working to deliver on that promise since January, and that work continues with the reconciliation bill that we will take up this month.

Energy is essential. Without a reliable energy supply, our homes, schools, hospitals, businesses, factories--and our entire country-- literally, would grind to a halt. It is the critical resource, and we can't afford to get it wrong.

But the Biden administration took us down the wrong path. It restricted development of America's conventional energy resources. It imposed regulations that heaped new burdens and costs on conventional energy producers, and it implemented an electric vehicle mandate that would have put an enormous new strain on our already wobbly electric grid.

The United States is rapidly heading toward an energy crisis where we simply don't have the supply to meet the

demand. As the Washington Post noted last March, ``vast swaths of the United States are at risk of running short of power as electricity- hungry data centers and clean-technology factories proliferate around the country, leaving utilities and regulators grasping for credible plans to expand the nation's creaking power grid.''

Meanwhile, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation warned of ``mounting resource adequacy challenges'' in the next decade.

That is a pretty serious situation, but, fortunately, we can do something about it. We have an abundance of natural resources, from the Gulf of America to the North Slope of Alaska.

The Biden administration seemed to view those resources as a liability, but Republicans recognize these resources as the assets that they are, and our reconciliation bill will help unleash these resources to promote a stable, secure, and affordable energy supply.

It will open up leases on America's lands and waters for responsible conventional energy development. It will expand production opportunities for essential energy resources that the Biden administration tried to put on the sidelines.

As I indicated earlier, leveraging our natural resources through the reconciliation bill is just one part of the Republicans' energy agenda. For the last several months, we have been hard at work eliminating burdensome regulations that threatened to stifle energy development in our country.

We blocked implementation of the Biden natural gas tax, which would have driven up energy prices and destroyed jobs in the energy sector. And we intend to do away with this misguided tax in the reconciliation bill that we will be considering soon.

We have also repealed Biden-era energy regulations for household appliances and business equipment--regulations that would have driven up costs and reduced choice, with little environmental benefit.

And the House and Senate moved to prevent California from imposing a de facto electric vehicle mandate on the whole country.

The Biden administration sought to tie up American energy, but under the Trump administration and a Republican Congress, that era is over. Instead of a Green New Deal, we are giving a green light to energy producers. We are allowing Americans to benefit from our country's resources, and we are working to ensure a secure, reliable, and affordable energy supply for the long term.

Mr. President, our reconciliation bill will help put us on the path to that secure energy future. I look forward to taking it up later this month.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. President, I have five 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:

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 262, which is at the desk.

Mr. President, this resolution concerns a subpoena for deposition testimony and documents in a civil action pending in Federal district court in the District of Columbia. Plaintiffs in this case, former employees of the Architect of the Capitol, have sued the Architect of the Capitol alleging discrimination based on gender, age, and military status or service.

Plaintiffs have sent a subpoena to Nichole Kotschwar, deputy staff director of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, seeking deposition testimony and document production regarding matters in connection with the underlying employment dispute. The subpoena implicates the Committee's constitutional privilege and presents concerns regarding imposing an undue burden on a nonparty Senate committee employee. On advice of counsel, the Rules Committee seeks Senate authorization for Ms. Kotschwar, on behalf of the committee, to provide testimony and produce documents and communications with individuals outside of Congress relating to the requests of the subpoena.

This resolution would authorize the testimony and production of documents from Ms. Kotschwar except where a privilege or objection should be asserted. The resolution also authorizes the Senate legal counsel to represent Ms. Kotschwar in this matter.

I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m. on Thursday, June 5; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, morning business be closed, and the Senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of Executive Calendar No. 144, James O'Neill, under the previous order; further, that notwithstanding rule XXII, the cloture motions filed during Tuesday's session of the Senate ripen following disposition of the O'Neill nomination and if cloture is invoked on the Eisenberg nomination, the postcloture time expire at 1:45 p.m. tomorrow; finally, that if cloture is invoked on the Shumate nomination, all postcloture time be expired and the Senate vote on confirmation of the Shumate nomination at a time to be determined by the majority leader in consultation with the Democratic leader, on Monday, June 9.

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

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

Mr. President, we are entering the sixth month of Republican leadership in Washington. We have already delivered some significant wins for the American people, and there is so much more on the way. When this Congress began, we got right to work getting President Trump's Cabinet in place. We confirmed 21 Cabinet positions at a faster pace than any administration since George W. Bush.

The Republican Senate has confirmed 68 civilian nominees so far this year, the most since the Obama administration--Secretaries, Administrators, Deputies, Under Secretaries, 11 Ambassadors to postings around the globe--the most diplomats confirmed at this point since 2001.

And our committees continue to work hard to refer additional nominees to the floor.

The Senate has also passed a number of bills already this year. In the first few weeks of this year, we took up the Laken Riley Act, a bill to require that law enforcement detain an illegal immigrant caught shoplifting or stealing. We had an amendment process on the floor, a process that made the bill stronger. And the bill that the Senate ultimately passed and President Trump signed into law requires detention for illegal immigrants who assault law enforcement or seriously injure or kill a person, as well as for those caught stealing like the illegal immigrant who murdered Laken Riley last year.

We also passed the HALT Fentanyl Act to permanently schedule fentanyl-related substances as the most deadly type of drug and give law enforcement a critical tool to prosecute those who bring these deadly substances into our country and peddle them in our communities.

Last month, President Trump signed Senator Cruz's TAKE IT DOWN Act into law to combat nonconsensual explicit images made with AI and shared online.

And the Senate is continuing consideration of the GENIUS Act this week so that the United States can continue to be a leader in financial innovation and Americans can exercise financial freedom with confidence.

The Senate has also been working to repeal burdensome Biden-era regulations. We have now passed 18 Congressional Review Act resolutions targeting regulations that would raise costs, destroy jobs, and reduce choice for the American people. That includes resolutions to block President Biden's natural gas tax, eliminate burdensome new standards for appliances, and block the California electric vehicle mandate that would drive up prices and reduce consumer choice across the country.

I am grateful to my Republican colleagues for all the hard work they have put in over these past 5 months. We have made excellent progress, but needless to say, there is still a lot more to do starting with the reconciliation bill we have been working on now for months. This bill is critical to delivering on President Trump's priorities and the promises that we have made to the American people. It will prevent trillions in tax hikes for hard-working families and small businesses. It will invest in our border security to safeguard the progress the Trump administration has already made, and it will strengthen our military and unleash American energy for a stronger and safer America.

And as I said yesterday, the Senate will consider the bill on the floor this work period with the goal of getting it on the President's desk before July 4.

Appropriations season is also upon us, and we will be working to consider as many appropriations bills as possible under regular order. Work on the annual National Defense Authorization Act is also underway, and I hope Democrats will work with us to move the NDAA and appropriations bills through committee and consider them on the Senate floor.

When the American people elected President Trump and a Republican Congress last November, they expected us to deliver. We have worked hard to deliver on our mandate, and we are not taking our foot off the gas. There is too much to do.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. President, before I begin, I want to mention Sunday's attack in Boulder, CO. A man armed with incendiary devices and shouting anti-Israel slogans attacked a peaceful event held to draw attention to the plight of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Eight individuals were injured, at least two so severely that they had to be airlifted to a burn unit.

This attack would be horrifying in and of itself, but it is particularly disturbing given that it comes on the heels of the murder of two Israeli Embassy staffers here in DC just 2 weeks ago.

It goes without saying that there is no place for this kind of violence in our society, and we must forcefully condemn anti-Semitism and do everything we can to stand with and protect our Jewish neighbors.

My prayers are with all those injured, with their families, and with the Jewish community in Boulder and across the country.

Business Before the Senate

Mr. President, we are kicking off the June work period today. It is going be a busy month. We have a lot to get done.

First, we will continue to focus on confirming the President's nominees. The President needs to have his team in place so that he can do the job he was elected to do, and we are going to continue to deliver.

It is disappointing that the Democrats have chosen to slow down this process by gumming up the works on even noncontroversial nominations. But despite Democrats, we are still managing to confirm civilian nominees at a faster pace so far than either of the previous two administrations. We will continue to move expeditiously and build out the President's administration.

On the legislative side, our first order of business this week will be completing work on the GENIUS Act. This bipartisan legislation will finally create a clear regulatory framework for stablecoins--a framework that will protect consumers and our national security while helping to keep the United States at the forefront of financial innovation. I am hoping we can finish up this legislation in the very near future.

Another item high on our list to begin work on in June is a rescissions package the White House intends to send Congress this week. The administration has identified a number of wasteful uses of taxpayer dollars, and we will be taking up this package and eliminating this waste. We will make that a priority.

We also stand ready to provide President Trump with any tools he needs to get Russia to finally come to the table in a real way. President Trump has invested considerable time in working to end the bloodshed in Ukraine, but Vladimir Putin appears more interested in prolonging the war than pursuing peace.

Finally, of course, this work period, we will focus on taking up legislation to permanently extend tax relief for hard-working Americans and strengthen our border, energy, and national security.

The tax relief the Republicans passed in 2017--tax relief that put more money in the pockets of working Americans--is set to expire at the end of this year. If Congress doesn't act, Americans making less than $400,000 a year will see a $2.6 trillion tax hike in 2026. We are not going to let that happen. Our biggest focus this month will be completing this tax relief legislation, with the goal of getting the final bill to the President before the Fourth of July.

It is going to be a very busy month, Mr. President, and I am looking forward to the work ahead.

I yield the floor.

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

Madam President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 119.

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

Madam President, I move to proceed to legislative session.