Floor Statements

Mr. President, as I have said before, Republicans had two goals when it came to tax reform. First we wanted to put more money in the pockets of hard-working Americans right away. Second, we wanted to create the kind of economy that would give Americans access to economic security for the long term. To achieve the first goal, we cut tax rates across the board, nearly doubled the standard deduction, and doubled the child tax credit. Americans are already seeing this relief in their paychecks. To achieve the second goal, we reformed our Tax Code to make it easier for businesses to create jobs, increase wages, and expand opportunities for workers.

I am proud to report that less than 5 months since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed into law, we are already seeing an improved playing field for American workers. There are a lot of things that go into giving a worker a secure economic future: a good job, good wages, opportunities to grow, good retirement benefits, and opportunities to achieve the education necessary for that good job or that wage hike. Sometimes a degree or certification can make all the difference between an OK job and the kind of job that brings financial security for the long term, but getting that degree or certification isn't always easy. Sometimes it can be cost-prohibitive, and sometimes it can be difficult to fit the degree requirements around an existing job.

As I have said before, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is already improving the playing field for workers and creating the kind of economic environment that will give more Americans access to economic security for the long term. Businesses are creating new and better paying jobs. They are increasing and raising wages, and they are expanding opportunities. All of these are essential elements of giving workers access to the careers that will give them access to long-term financial security. But that is not all. Businesses are also increasing benefits, including, in several cases, education benefits.

Grocery store chain Kroger recently announced its Feed Your Future program, which will provide employees with up to $3,500 a year to put toward their education, whether the employee is working toward a GED or an advanced degree. Both full- and part-time employees will be eligible for the program, which will provide employees with up to $21,000 for their education. The company is even introducing an educational leave of absence, which will allow employees to take time off for approved studies without losing their place at the company.

It is not just Kroger. McDonald's is accelerating increased investment in its Archways to Opportunity education program, thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The program will now offer workers $2,500 a year toward their education costs, up from $700 a year previously. There is no lifetime cap on the amount an employee can receive for his or her education. Plus, employees can now work as few as 15 hours a week and still be eligible for the program, which will make it easier for employees to combine a job and an education.

Then there is Boeing, which is investing $100 million in training and education for its employees.

Express Scripts is investing in the workers of the future by creating an education fund for employees' children.

Disney is investing $50 million in an education program for employees, and there are more.

It is another way that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is giving American workers access to the resources they need for a secure and prosperous future.

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

Mr. President, I was reading a piece in the Wall Street Journal last week by Kevin Hassett, who was the Chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. His piece made an important point that doesn't often come out as clearly as it should, and that is that when American businesses benefit, American workers benefit. My friends on the other side of the aisle like to obfuscate that point.

Presumably they think they can gain political points by pitting businesses and workers against each other, as if benefits for businesses and benefits for workers were somehow diametrically opposed and as if, somehow, workers could thrive while businesses struggle.

As the piece I was reading pointed out, ``In a modern competitive economy, workers do well when their employers do.'' If you think about it, it really is just common sense. The vast majority of working Americans work for businesses, whether they are self-employed, an employee of a small business, or an employee of a large corporation. For those employees to thrive, the businesses they are working for have to thrive as well.

Struggling businesses do not invest in workers; they can't. They don't hire new employees. They don't raise wages. They don't improve benefits.

On the other hand, thriving businesses do invest in their workers, they do hire new employees, they do raise wages, and they do improve benefits. Leaving aside the fact that most business owners want to invest in their workers, successful business owners have to invest in their workers if they want their businesses to keep thriving.

For starters, successful businesses tend to need new workers, and the way to attract new workers is with good wages, good opportunities, and good benefits. Once a successful business has good employees, it tends to want to keep them so that the business can keep prospering and thriving. How do businesses keep employees? The same way they attract them in the first place--with good wages, good opportunities, and good benefits.

As Mr. Hassett notes in the Wall Street Journal:

Research by economists Alan Krueger and Lawrence Summers,

both of whom served in the Obama administration, shows that

more-profitable employers pay higher wages. Any company that

attempts to pay a worker less than he is worth will quickly

lose that worker to a competitor. Thus, firms that want to

thrive must invest in their plants and their workers.

Ask any business owner in the country, and he or she will tell you that it is a competitive labor market. Unemployment is at a 17-year low. In a tight, competitive labor market, employers have to work to keep their employees.

Our focus with last fall's tax reform was on making life better for ordinary Americans, so we set out to put more money in their pockets right away by cutting tax rates across the board, nearly doubling the standard deduction and doubling the child tax credit. As a result, for 2018, a family of four making $73,000 will see a tax cut of more than $2,000.

We knew the tax cuts, as helpful as they are, weren't enough. Americans also needed access to profitable careers, good jobs, good wages, and good

opportunities. We knew the only way to guarantee access to good jobs, good wages, and good opportunities was to make sure businesses were prosperous enough to create and maintain them. So when it came time for tax reform, we set out to improve the playing field for American workers by improving the playing field for businesses, as well, and it is working.

Companies are putting tax reform to work. They are investing in new equipment, expanding their facilities, and growing their lines of business, all of which mean more jobs and opportunities for Americans.

Most importantly, companies are passing along the benefits of tax reform. Company after company has announced pay raises, bonuses, 401(k) match increases, and other benefits for their workers. Others are passing tax savings on to their customers in the form of things like utility rate cuts.

The tax reform law has been in place only for 4 months. As businesses continue to see the benefits of tax reform, we can expect to see the playing field for workers continue to improve.

Ultimately, by helping American businesses thrive, tax reform will help give more Americans access to the kinds of jobs, wages, and opportunities that not only will benefit them right now but also will give them access to security and prosperity for the long term.

Mr. President, I rise today to voice my strong support for the nomination of Congressman James ``Jim'' Bridenstine to be the next NASA Administrator. On November 1, 2017, the Senate Commerce, Science, & Transportation Committee, which I chair, held a confirmation hearing for Congressman Bridenstine's nomination and reported his nomination favorably on November 8, 2017, and again on January 18, 2018.

So far, it has been 1 year and nearly 3 months since this important agency has had a Senate-confirmed Administrator. What is more, NASA's Acting Administrator, Robert Lightfoot, will retire at the end of this month. Congressman Bridenstine's vision, experience, and passion for NASA's vital mission are unquestionable, and I believe that his leadership will not only serve the agency well, but that his confirmation will give NASA the leadership it deserves.

Congressman Bridenstine has an extensive record of both military and public service. In 1998, he began his distinguished military career serving as an aviator in the U.S. Navy. As an Active Duty pilot in the Navy, he flew the E-2C Hawkeye off the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier and deployed for multiple combat missions in Iraq

and Afghanistan. While still on Active Duty, he transitioned to the F- 18 Hornet and flew as an ``aggressor'' at the Naval Strike and Air Warfare ``Top Gun'' Center.

After leaving Active Duty in 2007, Congressman Bridenstine returned to Tulsa, OK. He continued his military service in the Navy Reserve, flying counterdrug missions in Central and South America. He is currently a member of the 137th Special Operations Wing of the Oklahoma Air National Guard, where he serves at the rank of major.

In 2012, he was elected to the House of Representatives to represent Oklahoma's First Congressional District.

He currently serves on both the House Armed Services Committee and the Science, Space, and Technology Committee, where he has distinguished himself as a leader on space policy.

In spite of Congressman Bridenstine's exceptional military and public service, some of my colleagues have expressed concerns about his nomination.

With regard to these concerns, I would note that the Commerce, Science, & Transportation Committee has received significant bipartisan support from the space community for Congressman Bridenstine's nomination. In fact, over 50 space-related leaders and organizations have submitted letters of support, including Democratic Congressman Perlmutter, former NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe, and astronaut Buzz Aldrin.

Beyond the support of this diverse group of stakeholders in the space community, Congressman Bridenstine also enjoys the support of his colleagues in the House. On March 20, 2018, more than 60 Members of the House of Representatives, both Republicans and Democrats, signed a letter to Senate leadership requesting that Congressman Bridenstine's nomination move forward in the Senate.

The endorsement of so many stakeholders in the space community and the endorsement of Congressman Bridenstine's colleagues are reflective of the truly bipartisan nature of what Congressman Bridenstine would like to accomplish at NASA. Because of this, I am confident that Congressman Bridenstine's leadership would serve NASA well.

I urge my colleagues to support his nomination.

Madam President, the title that our colleagues are complaining about in this bill--the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act, or VIDA--has been introduced in the last five Congresses since 2008, several times being led by Democrats.

There have been numerous hearings, meetings, and protracted negotiations regarding VIDA, spanning days, weeks, months, and years. The bill has been passed out of the Commerce Committee two times this year and multiple times in the past always by voice vote.

There are 23 cosponsors, including many from the other side of the aisle--Senators Casey, Nelson, Schatz, McCaskill, Coons, and Shaheen this year. Other cosponsors of similar past VIDA bills include Senators Hirono, Markey, Pryor, Warren, Coons, Manchin, and Hagan. There have been negotiations with committee members and people off the committee. We have accommodated and accommodated and accommodated so much--I have bent over backward so many times that I can't hardly stand up straight--trying to accommodate concerns that people have on this.

Many of the folks speaking against VIDA have been in those negotiations, very honestly. Some of the friends across the aisle have extracted concession after concession, only to move the goalpost whenever we get close.

Here is a list of some of the changes we have agreed to: State incidental discharge standards remain in place until promulgation of a final Coast Guard rule, allowing at least 2 years during which all the current standards remain in place. Both ballast water and incidental discharge rules will be developed by the Coast Guard in concurrence with the EPA. We respect the EPA's good work in this area and fully anticipate that the Agency will be closely involved every step of the way. States will have the authority to enforce the Federal regulations regarding ballast water and incidental discharges. States will have the authority to require that vessel operators provide ballast water compliance information prior to arrival at a port. States will have the ability to charge existing and new fees for ballast water and incidental discharge inspections.

Madam President, this was a bipartisan bill when it was introduced, and since, we have made numerous changes to accommodate concerns. VIDA preserves environmental protections and allows commerce to move. It has gone through extraordinary debate, process, and input from both sides of the aisle. It is time to pass this bill now.

Mr. President, reserving the right to object, let me just make one correction for the record that my friend, the Democratic leader, brought up earlier and which has been alluded to by the Senator from Washington.

The issue was a matter under the jurisdiction of the Commerce Committee, and for the information of the Senate, this part of the bill has been introduced as a stand-alone bill. Senate bill 168 was referred to the Commerce Committee and not the EPW Committee, and the chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee agrees with that. So this argument that somehow this is not under the committee's jurisdiction is one I would raise as an objection to the request of Senator from Washington.

Secondly, as I think the Senator from Washington knows, we have worked tirelessly with every member of our committee on both sides of the aisle and Members off the committee. Furthermore, I think we have accommodated every request the Senator from Washington has made on this bill, and we have involved her in all these discussions. My understanding was that as a result of that consultation and those discussions on the bill, she was going to vote in favor of the bill.

Now what she wants to do is take out those pieces of a very carefully negotiated bill that she doesn't like and pass just the provisions that she likes. It would be great if, here in the U.S. Senate, we could all do that. But that doesn't happen around here.

We carefully negotiated this, with great input from the Senator from Washington, and it was my understanding that the Senator from Washington was going to vote for this package. I object to picking out the pieces

that we like and not working with the collaborative process that has involved both Republicans and Democrats, both on the committee and off the committee, to bring a bill to the floor that enjoyed 65 votes in support until this afternoon. Politics is being played here--pure and simple, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else.

I object to the Senator's request.

Mr. President, reserving the right to object, I would simply say this is peeling out pieces of the bill that one Senator in this Chamber likes and basically telling every other Senator on both sides of the aisle, Republicans and Democrats who negotiated this, to go pound sand: We don't like the provisions that have been negotiated on both sides, very carefully, over months.

I might add, this bill has been introduced and dealt with at the committee level during five different Congresses--five different Congresses. This year, it has passed not once, but twice, out of the Senate Commerce Committee by a voice vote.

It seems to me, at least, that even after it came out of the committee, the fact that we negotiated this with the Senator from Washington and multiple Senators on the other side of the aisle, both on and off the committee, to come up with a balanced package that enjoyed broad bipartisan support--65 votes--until this afternoon, suggests to me this is purely politics being played with this legislation.

This is an important bill. This is the Coast Guard. This is VIDA. VIDA was referred to the Commerce Committee by the Parliamentarian. We have worked with the Commerce Committee; we have worked with the EPW Committee; we have worked with the EPA. The EPA is supporting the solution. This is not the political-level EPA; these are the career folks at the EPA who support the solution we have come up with. Yet we run into these objections that are all of a sudden--all of a sudden-- coming up out of thin air.

So, Mr. President, I object.

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

Mr. President, today is tax day, not typically a day of celebration for anyone, with maybe the exception of the IRS. But this year there is--believe it or not--something to celebrate because tax day 2018 marks the end of the old tax system.

Next year, Americans will be filling out their taxes under the new tax system that was created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. That means that they will be paying less in taxes and keeping more of their hard- earned money.

If anything became clear during the last election cycle, it was that the economy was not working well for American families. In CNN exit polling, 62 percent of voters rated the economy as poor, and that wasn't surprising. The Obama administration was tough for American workers. Job creation was sluggish, wages were stagnant, and economic growth lagged far behind the pace of other recoveries. Opportunities for workers were few and far between. It is no wonder that so many hard-working Americans felt like they had been left behind.

Republicans were listening, and one of our top priorities in this Congress has been improving the economic outlook for the American people, which is why last fall we took up tax reform.

The Tax Code may not be the first thing people think of when they think of economic prosperity, but it actually plays a key role in determining the success of individual families and of our economy as a whole. The more money the Federal Government takes from you in taxes, the less money you have to pay bills or to buy a house or repair your car or save for retirement. The more money a business has to give to the Federal Government, the less money it has to grow the business and to invest in its workers.

So when it came time to draft a tax bill, Republicans had two goals. First, we wanted to put more money in the pockets of hard-working Americans right away. Second, we wanted to create the kind of economy that would give Americans access to economic security over the long term.

Now, I am proud to report that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has already achieved the first goal and is well on its way to achieving the second. To put more money in Americans' pockets, we lowered tax rates across the board and nearly doubled the standard deduction--the amount of Americans' income that is automatically free from taxation.

We also acted to provide relief for parents, who are doing the hard work of raising the next generation, by doubling the child tax credit and allowing more parents to claim the credit. We eliminated the individual mandate tax, which disproportionately hit low-income families. We also made sure to protect key retirement savings plans-- 401(k)s and individual retirement accounts--and we improved education savings accounts, allowing families to use their 529 plans to save for elementary and secondary as well as higher education.

Thanks to the IRS's new withholding tables and its new withholding calculator, Americans have already started seeing the new tax relief in their paychecks.

For a lot of Americans, that is not all they are seeing in their paychecks. A lot of Americans are also seeing pay increases or bonuses thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

That brings me to our second reform goal, which was creating the kind of economy that would give Americans access to economic security and prosperity for the long term. We knew that the only way to give Americans access to real long-term economic security was to ensure that they had access to good jobs, good wages, and real opportunities. We knew that the only way to guarantee access to good jobs, wages, and opportunities was to make sure that businesses had the ability to create and maintain them.

But before the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, our Tax Code wasn't helping businesses to create jobs or to increase opportunities for workers. In fact, it was doing the opposite, and that had real consequences for American workers.

A small business owner struggling to afford the hefty annual tax bill for her business was highly unlikely to be able to hire a new worker or to raise wages. A larger business struggling to stay competitive in the global marketplace while paying a substantially higher tax rate than its foreign competitors too often had limited funds to expand or increase investment here in the United States.

So when it came time for tax reform, we set out to improve the playing field for American workers by improving the playing field for businesses as well. To accomplish that, we lowered tax rates across the board for owners of small and medium-sized businesses and farms and ranches. We lowered our Nation's massive corporate tax rate which, up until January 1, was the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world. We expanded business owners' ability to recover investments they make in their businesses, which frees up cash they can reinvest in their operations and their workers.

We brought the U.S. international tax system into the 21st century by replacing our outdated worldwide system with a modernized territorial tax system so that American businesses are not operating at a disadvantage relative to their foreign competitors.

The goal in all of this was to free up businesses to increase investments in the U.S. economy, to hire new workers, and to increase wages and benefits, and that is exactly what they are doing.

In response to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, more than 500 companies across this country, and counting, have announced good news for American workers. Company after company has announced pay raises, bonuses, 401(k) match increases, and other benefits.

Others are expanding their businesses and investing in new equipment and facilities. Still others are passing tax savings on to their customers in the form of things like utility rate cuts. That means more money for Americans now and more money for Americans in the future.

Tax day may never be a fun day, but Americans can take heart because thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, next year's tax day is going to be a lot less painful.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I want to speak today to the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2017, of which I am a cosponsor. As chairman of the Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Coast Guard, I am proud that we were able to bring this important bipartisan legislation, which was originally introduced by Senator Sullivan, to the floor today for consideration. The bill that we are debating will increase our national security, protect our maritime industry, increase safety for the boating public, and provide consistency for those who depend on the water for their daily work.

As anyone impacted by the 2017 hurricane season will tell you, the Coast Guard plays a vitally important role in our Nation's first response efforts. Equally critical is the Coast Guard's role as a member of our U.S. military. Coast Guard women and men protect our waterways, defend our shores, interdict contraband, arrest human traffickers, guarantee the free movement of commerce, and ensure the stewardship of our national resources.

On any given day, the Coast Guard responds to an average of 45 search and rescue missions, seizes 1,500 pounds of drugs, interdicts 17 illegal migrants, conducts 16 security boardings, and facilitates the movement of $12.6 billion worth of goods. These professionals do their job without seeking recognition or acknowledgement. It often goes overlooked that our coastguardsmen are serving across every ocean and on every continent, including Antarctica. They serve across the Middle East, including in both Iraq and Afghanistan. They help protect our Navy's ships, defend against pirates, and ensure our strategic ports remain open.

This legislation provides the Coast Guard the authority to better carry out those missions, including defending our critical ballistic submarines when they are surfaced and at their most vulnerable. In one way or another, the Coast Guard affects every American, even in my home State of South Dakota. We may not have a coastline, but the work of the Coast Guard helps facilitate the export of agricultural products that drive our State's economy. The Coast Guard also provides boating safety classes and outreach to tens of thousands of my fellow South Dakotans. This outreach saves lives every single day.

This past year was the deadliest for boaters in the past 5 years, with a 12-percent increase in deaths. Many of those deaths could have been prevented, and this legislation seeks to make improvements to boater safety, such as requiring the use of an engine cutoff switch for certain recreational boats. Maybe you have seen the videos of boaters falling overboard and their boat continuing in circles and hitting them, often seriously injuring or even killing them. This change, supported by the recreational boating community, will prevent these types of incidents in the future.

This legislation also provides certainty to our mariners. It streamlines regulations, reduces burdens, and clarifies ambiguous rules that harm our commerce and our environment. We also reauthorize the hydrographic services at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which are necessary for shoreline mapping and accurate nautical charts, and we reauthorize the Federal Maritime Commission.

Finally, this bill fixes a broken patchwork of regulations that prevents efficiency in moving goods along our waterways. The Vessel Incidental Discharge Act, or VIDA, is important bipartisan legislation--sponsored by Senators Wicker, Casey, and more than 20 cosponsors from both sides of the aisle--that creates a uniform set of rules to protect the environment while providing consistent regulations for all ports and waterways.

You will hear from some of my colleagues that this act reduces environmental controls and is being jammed down their throats. This is simply not true. We have negotiated in good faith for hundreds of hours, over the past few Congresses, to make this a strong piece of bipartisan legislation. We need strict, science-based, and achievable environmental standards, and that is what this VIDA title will yield.

The new standards must be based on the best available technology that is

economically achievable and are designed to become more stringent over time as technology improves. Setting limits beyond what is achievable may make for a good sound bite, but it doesn't actually improve the environment. This bill will.

Like so much of the work we do at the Commerce Committee, Senator Nelson and I have worked hard to ensure the bipartisan Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2017 can garner strong support on both sides of the aisle. The measure meets the operational needs of the Coast Guard, allowing the service to continue to do the job that so many of our constituents rely on. It reauthorizes the FMC and NOAA's hydrographic services. Finally, it provides needed regulatory certainty for recreational and commercial vessel operators, while ensuring strong environmental protections for our Nation's waterways.

We are going to have an opportunity to vote on this tomorrow. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the men and women of the Coast Guard and to support this bipartisan legislation that has been negotiated for weeks, months, and years to bring us to where we are today--working to accommodate the concerns of individual Senators on both sides of the aisle but finding a balanced bill that should attract broad bipartisan support. I hope when that vote comes tomorrow, we will be able to see Members on both sides support this legislation and the men and women of the Coast Guard, who do so much important work for our country.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, as my colleague from Pennsylvania has pointed out, the recently passed tax bill is already having a profound impact on the economy, and, as the Congressional Budget Office report points out, over the course of the next decade, it will significantly increase economic growth in the economy and increase the number of jobs. It said that over 1 million jobs would be created as a result of the passage of the tax bill.

To his point, as well, they talk about deficits and debt projected out into the future, which clearly are major issues but, again, I would point out, are a result of the rate of growth in spending and not of the impact of the revenues generated by lowering taxes because when you get greater growth in the economy, it means that more people are taking realizations and more people are paying taxes. The Congressional Budget Office, as a rule of thumb, suggests that for each percentage--a 1- percent increase in growth of the economy--you get about $3 trillion in additional revenue over the course of a decade.

If we assume, and I believe we will--even the CBO, which I think is very conservative in terms of growth estimates, suggests that there is higher growth attributable largely to the changes we made in the Tax Code, reducing taxes on families in this country and reducing taxes on our small businesses, which incentivize them to expand and grow their operations and, therefore, create better paying jobs and higher wages, but also will generate more revenue coming in to the Federal coffers.

Clearly, the issue that we have in terms of the debt picture in the long term is not about revenue; it is about spending, which is growing dramatically over that next decade, particularly in what we refer to as mandatory spending or entitlement programs. This cries out, I would argue, for reforms in entitlement programs. But to say that somehow tax reform is contributing to that is a far cry from the truth, and I think the Congressional Budget Office numbers bear that out. Again, I would argue that in terms of what they suggest we are going to see in growth as a result of the changes we made in the Tax Code, I believe it is going to be dramatically understated.

When it came time to draft tax reform, Republicans really had two goals in mind. First, we wanted to put more money in the pockets of hard-working Americans, and we wanted to do that right away. Second, we wanted to create the kind of economy that would give Americans access to economic security for the long term.

Less than 4 months after we passed this bill, I am proud to report that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has already achieved the first goal and is well on its way to achieving the second.

To put more money in Americans' pockets, we lowered tax rates across the board for American families, nearly doubled the standard deduction, and

increased the child tax credit to $2,000, doubling the amount that families can deduct per child in terms of the child tax credit.

In February, that relief started to show up in Americans' paychecks. According to Treasury Department estimates, 90 percent of the American people are seeing bigger paychecks this year, thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. And thanks to the IRS's new withholding calculator, families with children can adjust their withholding to take into account the individual tax relief provided in the new tax law, in particular, the increased child tax credit. That means even more in the paychecks of hard-working Americans without their having to wait until they file their 2018 tax returns next year.

When it came to our second goal, we knew that the only way to give Americans access to real long-term economic security was to ensure they had access to good jobs, good wages, and real opportunities. We knew that the only way to guarantee access to good jobs, wages, and opportunities was to make sure businesses had the ability to create them.

Before the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, our Tax Code wasn't helping businesses to create jobs or to increase opportunities for workers. In fact, it was doing the exact opposite. Large and small businesses were weighed down by high tax rates and growth-killing tax provisions, and all the regulatory and compliance burdens that came along with them.

Our outdated international tax rules left America's global businesses at a competitive disadvantage in the global economy. That had real consequences for American workers. A small business owner struggling to afford the annual tax bill for their business was highly unlikely to be able to hire a new worker or to raise wages. A larger business struggling to stay competitive in the global marketplace while paying substantially higher tax rates than its foreign competitors too often had limited funds to expand or increase its investment here in the United States.

When it came time for tax reform, we set out to improve the playing field for American workers by improving the playing field for businesses as well. To accomplish that, we lowered tax rates across the board for owners of small and medium-sized businesses, farms, and ranches. We lowered our Nation's massive corporate tax rate, which until January 1, was the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world. We expanded business owners' ability to recover investments they make in their businesses, which will free up cash that they can reinvest in their operations and their workers. We brought the U.S. international tax system into the 21st century by replacing our outdated worldwide system with a modernized territorial tax system so that American businesses are not operating at a disadvantage next to their foreign competitors.

The goal in all of this was to free up businesses to increase investments in the U.S. economy, hire new workers, and increase wages and benefits. I am happy to report that this is exactly what they are doing. Since tax reform became the law of the land, we have seen a steady drumbeat of businesses announcing good news for American workers. So far, more than 500 companies, and counting, have announced pay raises, bonuses, 401(k) match increases and other benefits, business expansions, and utility rate cuts: Starbucks, McDonald's, Jergens, McCormac & Company, Apple, Best Buy, Walmart, Bank of America, ExxonMobil, Hormel Foods, UPS, and American Express. And the list goes on and on.

I don't need to tell anyone that Americans had a tough time during the last administration or that our economy had stagnated. But under Republican leadership, we are finally starting to see the economy turn around, and tax reform is playing a very big part. Unfortunately, Democrats seem unable to accept the fact that tax reform is benefiting middle-class Americans. In fact, Democrats recently introduced an infrastructure plan that they want to pay for by repealing features of the tax law that are producing so many new benefits for American workers.

Republicans wanted Democrats to join us in the process of drafting tax reform. After all, a lot of the provisions in the final bill were the result of years of work by Republicans and Democrats. I was a part of that process. We had working groups that spent a good amount of time looking at every element and feature of the Tax Code--bipartisan groups of Republicans and Democrats, working together, making recommendations about things that we could do to reform our Tax Code in a way that would incentivize greater growth and expansion and better jobs and higher wages.

Democrats had previously expressed their support for things that became key parts of the bill, like lowering our Nation's massive corporate tax rate. Unfortunately, instead of working with us, Democrats chose to play politics. Apparently, it was more important to them to attempt to score political points against Republicans than to work on a bill that they knew had the potential to help the American people. Almost 4 months after the bill's passage, they are still playing politics, despite the fact that in the face of the bill's success, their attempts to criticize it are sounding pretty desperate.

Take their attempt to portray the bill's benefits for workers as ``crumbs.'' Let me tell you that a worker whose salary just increased by $3 an hour does not see that additional $500 a month as crumbs, especially when you combine it with the rest of the tax relief in the new tax law. A worker who gets an increased match in her 401(k) account will see her retirement savings increase significantly as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and she will not see that benefit as crumbs.

It is too bad that Democrats can't accept the fact that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is working. At the very least, they should stop trying to undo the benefits that it is bringing to the American people. Over 500 companies across this country have announced increases in wages, increases in benefits, and bonuses--direct benefits to American workers, to the tune of over 5 million Americans who already have benefitted from this. That is the short-term impact that we have seen already.

The American people spent long enough in a stagnant economy. It is time to get this economy jump-started and to see those wages and those good-paying jobs come back into this economy so that American families can benefit, can experience, and can enjoy a better standard of living, a higher quality of life, an opportunity to do more for their children, to help them with their college education, to set aside a little bit for retirement, and to take care of those day-to-day bills.

Fifty percent of the American people, according to polls, say they are living paycheck to paycheck. One thing we can do to help them is to make that paycheck bigger and, hopefully, to put them in a position where they can put aside a little bit for retirement and where, maybe, they can help save up for their kids' college education, and maybe take a vacation with the family.

There are so many ways in which the benefits of this bill are delivered to the American people and to American families and can help them in their daily lives. We shouldn't try and go back. We ought to try to go forward and recognize that the near-term benefits of this bill are very real to American workers. The long-term benefits are going to be, I think, even more beneficial to American workers, to American businesses, and to American families because not only now will they benefit from the lower tax rates that are delivered to the entire tax table, but they are also benefiting from the doubling of the standard deduction, the doubling of the child tax credit, and all the other benefits that are included in this bill. American businesses, small and large, are also seeing those benefits on a daily basis, so much so that they have already made these commitments to over 5 million Americans. That is 500 companies that are paying out bonuses, higher pay, and bigger benefits for their workers. That is only going to increase over time as this economy starts to take off because they now have an incentive to expand and grow their operations through reduced rates, when it comes both to large and small businesses, through the ability to recover their costs more quickly and to free up that capital with which they can invest in and expand and grow this economy and create those better paying jobs.

This is a win-win for the American people. It is a win-win for our country.

I hope our colleagues on the other side of the aisle will quit referring to it as ``crumbs'' because I know the American people don't see it that way.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I, too, want to recognize and say to Senator Portman, who has been a leading voice in the Senate in the fight against human trafficking, what a great job he has done getting us to this point. This was a long, multimonth, as he said, 2-year effort. Senator Portman has been absolutely relentless in pushing and driving this process forward. I commend him for his important work, which will culminate today, I certainly hope, with a big bipartisan vote in support of the legislation in front of us.

I also commend the bipartisan group of Senators who worked hard to draft the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, which includes Senator Blumenthal, whom we will hear from in just a moment; Senators McCaskill, Cornyn, and Heitkamp; and as Senator Portman so very appropriately pointed out, Senator McCain, who has been a passionate advocate for addressing this issue for so many years too. We wish he could be here to participate and vote for passage of this legislation, but we know his work over the years has played an incredibly important role in getting us to where we are today.

This group also helped lead the effort to conduct important investigatory oversight that has helped us to get to the point where we are today.

Last year, as Senator Portman pointed out, I chaired a Commerce Committee hearing on his bill, where we heard testimony from experts on both sides of the issue. We listened carefully to what our witnesses had to say. After the hearing, we worked together to make some targeted changes to the legislation. The bill that ultimately advanced from our committee enjoyed, as Senator Portman pointed out, solid support from the internet industry. It passed the Senate Commerce Committee unanimously.

The bill is strongly supported by Members of both parties. It has racked up lots of bipartisan support: 68 out of 100 Senators are now cosponsors of this bill. The bill is supported by the White House, so we know that as soon as it leaves the Senate, it will land on the President's desk, where it will be signed into law.

It is supported by law enforcement organizations, organizations that fight sex trafficking, and by faith-based organizations.

At our Commerce Committee hearing, we also heard powerful testimony from Yvonne Ambrose, whose daughter Desiree Robinson was sexually trafficked repeatedly before being murdered. Desiree was just 16 years old, a bright and loving girl who dreamed of becoming a doctor in the Air Force. Instead, she was raped and murdered by a man twice her age who had sought her for sex after seeing her advertised on an internet site.

Ms. Ambrose's powerful testimony helped the members of our committee understand the terrible pain that victims of sex trafficking and their families are exposed to. I am very thankful to her for sharing Desiree's story.

This bill has already cleared the House of Representatives by an overwhelming margin.

I encourage my colleagues in the Senate to reject any attempts to slow this bill down with amendments. This has been very carefully and thoroughly vetted through the many processes that Senator Portman described. We need to get this bill over the finish line and on the President's desk and signed into law because there are thousands of children out there who are waiting for our help.

So, again, I commend Senator Portman and our colleagues in the Senate who have worked tirelessly on this legislation. I hope we have a big outcome today, and I hope we can do something really meaningful to address a scourge that this country needs to get rid of.

I know there are others here who have joined us who intend to participate in this discussion.

I yield to the Senator from Ohio.

Mr. President, we are quickly turning to the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act legislation, coupled with the legislation that has come over from the House of Representatives, and I hope we will get a big bipartisan vote in support of that legislation when it is voted on, probably tomorrow.

Let me just say that for more than two decades, the commercial internet has been an undeniable force for good. It has delivered economic opportunity to people who would not otherwise have had it. It has empowered marginalized citizens around the world to fight back against oppressors. It has expanded educational opportunities and made news and information more accessible, and more. But like any tool, the internet can be used for evil as well as good, and right now, certain corners of the internet are being exploited to facilitate sex trafficking, including the widespread trafficking of children.

Each year, thousands of children are sexually trafficked within the United States. That is right. Thousands of children are trafficked each year in the United States--not in some faraway country but right here at home in our communities. More and more every day, this trafficking is being facilitated via the internet. Three out of four children who have been sexually trafficked in this country have been trafficked online.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported an 846-percent increase in reports of suspected child sex trafficking from 2010 to 2015. The increase, the national center reports, is ``directly correlated to the increased use of the internet to sell children for sex.''

Obviously, dedicated prosecutors and law enforcement around the country are working every day to combat the proliferation of sex trafficking on the internet, but some of their efforts have been stymied by a provision of a 1996 law called the Communications Decency Act. The provision in question--section 230--was meant to protect websites from being held accountable for material people create and post on their sites. It is thanks in part to this provision that such popular sites as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have been able to flourish. But certain websites have used this provision to defend themselves in court cases dealing with criminal activity that they have knowingly allowed or participated in--specifically, sex trafficking.

Needless to say, Congress never intended this provision to be used to protect websites that knowingly and deliberately facilitate trafficking, but courts have generally held that this provision does not permit them to hold websites accountable for knowingly facilitating sex trafficking.

Courts have also made clear that if Congress wants to ensure that these trafficking accomplices can be prosecuted, it needs to provide some more clarity on this provision. That is what we are here to do today.

Senator Rob Portman of Ohio has been a leading voice in the Senate in the fight against human trafficking, and the legislation before us today includes his legislation, the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, which will prevent section 230 from being used as a defense by those who are knowingly cooperating with sex traffickers. Under this Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, State law enforcement officials will be able to prosecute websites that knowingly assist in or facilitate sex trafficking, and victims will be allowed to sue websites that violate the Federal sex trafficking statute. State attorneys general will now also be allowed to file civil suits against websites that knowingly facilitate trafficking.

The Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act is an outstanding bill and a great credit to Senator Portman and the others he worked with to get it considered here on the Senate floor. It addresses a hole in our laws that is allowing sex traffickers to exploit the internet to facilitate their trafficking, but it ensures that only bad actors are targeted, and it maintains the key freedoms that have allowed the internet to flourish. Under this legislation, websites can only be prosecuted if they knowingly facilitate or support trafficking.

This bill is strongly supported by Members of both parties. In fact, 67 out of the 100 U.S. Senators are cosponsors of this bill. This bill is supported by

the White House. It is supported by law enforcement organizations. It is supported by organizations that fight sex trafficking. It is supported by faith-based organizations. It is also supported by a number of major technology companies. I was proud to help facilitate conversations with a number of technology companies that resulted in solid support for this bill among members of the technology community.

The process of getting this bill to the Senate floor today has been characterized by a wonderful degree of bipartisanship. I am hoping that continues as we debate this bill over the next couple of days, and I encourage my colleagues to reject any attempts to slow this bill down with amendments. We have a remarkable degree of consensus on the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, both within and without Congress, and we should not disturb this momentum. We need to get this bill over the finish line. Every day that we wait for this bill to be enacted into law is another day in which websites in the dark corners of the internet can facilitate the heinous practice of sexually exploiting vulnerable human beings.

During the Commerce Committee hearing that I chaired on this bill, we heard testimony from Yvonne Ambrose, whose daughter, Desiree Robinson, was sexually trafficked repeatedly before being murdered. Desiree was just 16, a bright and loving girl who dreamed of becoming a doctor in the Air Force. Instead, she was raped and murdered by a man twice her age who had sought her for sex after seeing her advertised on an internet site.

Every day across this country, there is another Desiree being trafficked. Some of these children are not yet teenagers. They should be going to basketball games and birthday parties. Instead, they are being taken to homes and hotels and being violated by strangers. Some, like Desiree, will die there.

Fighting trafficking has to be a priority for all of us.

I am proud to have helped draft two bills that became law earlier this year to address human trafficking in commercial vehicles. But while we have passed some good legislation over the past few years, there is a lot more work that needs to be done. There are many more Desirees out there in danger, and we have an obligation to do everything we can to protected them.

The Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act will strike an important blow against this new wave of traffickers exploiting the internet to sell children, and the bill it is now part of, a bill that we are considering today--the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act--will further boost SESTA's impact by establishing new criminal penalties for facilitating sex trafficking.

I urge my colleagues to pass this bill and to get it to the President as soon as possible. There are a lot of children out there who are waiting for our help.

Mr. President, 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, I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 7 minutes.

Mr. President, the steady stream of good news for American workers continues. Just take a look at the headlines:

``Craft brewers putting tax savings toward expansions and new jobs.'' That is one headline.

``Grocery chain investing in employees and brand after tax reform.''

``Quad/Graphics to give $22 million in stock to employees.''

``Entergy Arkansas files plan to pass corporate tax cuts to customers.''

``Taco John's International Inc. Shares Tax Reform Benefits With Employees And Surrounding Communities.''

``Largest Health Insurer in New Jersey Says It Will Use Tax Refunds for Members.''

``Tax reform payday: Kid's clothing giant Carter's giving bonuses, boosting retirement funds.''

``Tax reform positive for farmers, ranchers.''

``Express scripts giving employee bonuses averaging $1,200 following impact from tax law.''

``Franklin Savings Bank to Give Employees $1,000 Bonus; Cites New Tax Reform.''

``Sprouts plans to invest tax reform savings in employee programs.''

``First Horizon announces minimum pay level increase.''

``NC Blue Cross: Tax cut will hold down rate increases, workers to get $1,000 bonuses.''

``Hormel to give employees stock shares, increase wages.''

I could keep reading. These are all headlines--headlines from the past 2 weeks that have come from news organizations around the country, highlighting the ways in which tax reform is benefiting American workers.

Businesses large and small are seeing the benefits of tax reform, and they are passing them on. More than 400 companies, and counting, have announced good news for American workers, from wage increases to increased retirement benefits. Utility companies in at least 39 States are passing tax savings on to consumers.

CNBC reports that small business confidence has hit a record high in 2018, driven by small business owners' optimism about the new tax law. In other words, tax reform is working exactly the way it was supposed to. It is putting more money into Americans' pockets and giving them access to new jobs, higher wages, and increased opportunity.

I don't need to tell anyone that Americans had a tough time during the last administration or that our economy had stagnated. All you have to do is look at the numbers. A chief priority of the Republican majority of this Congress has been turning things around for American families, and that is why we took up tax reform.

The Tax Code might not be the first thing people think of when they think of economic prosperity, but it actually plays a key role in determining the success of individual families and of our economy as a whole.

The more money the Federal Government takes from you in taxes, the less money you have to save or pay bills or buy a house or repair your car. The more money a business has to give to the Federal Government, the less money it has to grow the business and invest in its workers. If businesses are struggling to grow and succeed, that is a big problem for American workers.

In order for American workers to thrive, American businesses have to thrive. It is pretty hard for a small

business to hire a new worker or to raise wages if the owner can barely pay the tax bill.

It is unlikely that an American company is going to have a lot of spare cash for investing in its workforce if it is struggling to compete with foreign companies that are paying far less in taxes. And it is unlikely that America's global companies are going to focus on reinvesting in the United States if they face a tax penalty for bringing foreign earnings back home.

When it came time to draft a tax reform bill, Republicans knew that the bill had to do two things. First, it had to lower the tax burden on American families and put more money in Americans' pockets right away, and it had to create the kind of economy that would give American families access to security and prosperity for the long term.

To achieve the first goal, we lowered tax rates across the board for American families. We nearly doubled the standard deduction, and we doubled the child tax credit.

To meet the second goal, we lowered our Nation's massive corporate tax rate, which, until January 1, was the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world. We lowered tax rates across the board for owners of small and medium-sized businesses, farms, and ranches. We expanded the ability of business owners to recover investments they make in their businesses, which will free up cash so that they can reinvest in their operations and their workers. We brought the U.S. international tax system into the 21st century by replacing our outdated worldwide system with a modernized territorial tax system so that American businesses are not operating at a disadvantage next to their foreign counterparts. It is working.

In less than 3 months, we have seen lower tax burdens for American families, pay increases, bonuses, new jobs, increased investment in the American economy, better employee benefits, and other kinds of benefits, such as lower utility bills. All of that means more money in Americans' pockets. It means more money to put toward a child's education, more money to save for a house or a car, and more money to save for retirement.

Tax reform is accomplishing our goal of making life better for American families, and the benefits have just begun.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I have 6 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, March 6, 2018, at 9:30 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, March 6, 2018, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing on the nomination of James Reilly, of Colorado, to be Director of the United States Geological Survey, Department of the Interior.

Committee on Finance

The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 6, 2018, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing entitled ``Protecting E-Commerce Consumers and from Counterfeits.''

Committee on Veterans' Affairs

The Committee on Veterans' Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 6, 2018, at 2 p.m., to conduct a joint hearing.

Select Committee on Intelligence

The Select Committee on Intelligence is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 6, 2018, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a closed briefing.

Mr. President, I also want to join my colleague from Missouri, Senator Blunt, and others today to pay tribute to the life of Billy Graham.

Last week we lost a man of great faith. At the end of the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus gives his disciples the Great Commission, where he says: ``Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.''

If any one man may be said to have fulfilled that charge, it is Billy Graham. Over a ministry that spanned more than 60 years, Billy Graham truly made disciples of all nations, preaching the Gospel in the United States and around the world.

In the days since his death, many have remembered Billy Graham as a spiritual adviser to several Presidents, which he was, but neither his association with Presidents nor the famous of this world ever distracted him from his primary purpose, which was making sure that the Good News of Christ reached everyone. From China, to South Africa, to Russia, to Australia, to his home State of North Carolina and his countless appearances on television, video, and the internet, Billy Graham labored tirelessly for the Gospel. I think it is fair to say that no one in our lifetime has lived a life of greater impact for the cause of Christ.

I remember, as a young child growing up in my home State of South Dakota, when the crusades would come on--my parents and I we would turn them on--you would have Billy Graham, George Beverly Shea, Cliff Barrows, and the message of hope, grace, and redemption that came across so clearly. It impacted so many people, not only here in the United States but all around the world.

It was great to hear Michael W. Smith today singing that great song, ``Just As I Am,'' that was always sung at the end of every Billy Graham crusade as an invitation for people to come to know the Lord whom he knew.

My wife Kimberley and I am were privileged to sing in the choir for Billy Graham's 1986 crusade here in Washington, DC. It was an experience that neither of us will ever forget. He reminded everyone that ultimately, there is one thing that matters in life, and that is serving Christ.

In the days since his death, many people have repeated one of Billy Graham's quotes where he paraphrased the American evangelist Dwight L. Moody. I think it sums up Billy Graham's message pretty effectively. It said:

Someday you will read or hear that Billy Graham is dead.

Don't you believe a word of it. I shall be more alive than I

am now. I will just change my address. I will have gone into

the presence of God.

I remember in that 1986 crusade, there was a story that was written-- presumably in the Washington Post--in which he was interviewed. I am paraphrasing, but I remember that a question was asked about what he wanted to be remembered for, what he wanted his epitaph to be when he died, and he said ``that I preached the Gospel of Christ. That I had opportunities to do other things, but that I never deviated.'' Mr. President, he never deviated.

Billy Graham has departed this life, and we mourn him, but I am confident that right now he is rejoicing in the presence of the Lord.

In the Book of Acts, it talks about King David, and it says that he served God's purpose for his generation. I think it can be said that Billy Graham truly did serve God's purpose for his generation. Many generations of Americans and many generations of people all over the world have been so impacted by his life and his very consequential ministry.

I yield the floor.