Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following nominations: Executive Calendar Nos. 400, 401, and 402.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate vote on the nominations en bloc with no intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table en bloc; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; that no further motions be in order; and that any statements relating to the nominations be printed in the Record.

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

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 commerce, science, and transportation

The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 9:45 a.m., to conduct a hearing on the following nominations: Dana Baiocco, of Ohio, to be a Commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, James Bridenstine, of Oklahoma, to be Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Neil Jacobs, of North Carolina, and Nazakhtar Nikakhtar, of Maryland, both to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce, Bruce Landsberg, of South Carolina, to be a Member of the National Transportation Safety Board, Raymond Martinez, of New Jersey, to be Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and Diana Furchtgott-Roth, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary, both of the Department of Transportation, and Leon A. Westmoreland, of Georgia, to be a Director of the Amtrak Board of Directors; to be immediately followed by a hearing to examine protecting consumers in the era of major data breaches.

committee on commerce, science, and transportation

The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m., in room SD-106 to conduct a hearing entitled ``Protecting Consumers in the Era of Major Data Breaches.''

committee on environment and public works

The Committee on Environment and Public Works is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m., in room SD-406 to conduct a hearing on the following nominations: Kathleen Hartnett White, of Texas, to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality, and Andrew Wheeler, of Virginia, to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

committee on homeland security and governmental affairs

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m. to conduct a hearing on the nomination of Kirstjen Nielsen, of Virginia, to be Secretary of Homeland Security.

committee on the judiciary

The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m., in room SD-226 to conduct a hearing entitled ``The Impact of Lawsuits Abuse on American Small Businesses and Job Creators.''

committee on indian affairs

The Committee on Indian Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 2:30 p.m., in room SD-628 to conduct a hearing on S. 465, ``Independent Outside Audit of Indian Health Service Act of 2017'' and S. 1400. ``Safeguarding Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act of 2017''.

subcommittee on africa and global health policy

The Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health Policy of the Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 3 p.m. to conduct a closed hearing on Ambassador Haley's Recent Trip to Africa.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 324, submitted earlier today.

Mr. President, 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 the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 325, submitted earlier today.

Mr. President, 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 the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 3243, which was received from the House.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 250, H.R. 194.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, at 11 a.m. on Thursday, November 9, there be 30 minutes of postcloture time remaining on the Wehrum nomination, equally divided between the leaders or their designees, and that following the use or yielding back of that time, the Senate vote on the confirmation of the Wehrum nomination; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; further, that following disposition of the Wehrum nomination, the Senate stand in recess until 1:45 p.m., and that at 1:45 p.m., the Senate vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the Kan nomination with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m., Thursday, November 9; further, 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, and morning business be closed; further, that following leader remarks, the Senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the Wehrum nomination.

Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order, following the remarks of Senators Perdue and Merkley.

Mr. President, as we all know, the Senate has been quite busy. Legislatively, we have been hard at work on everything from budgets, to disaster relief, to consumer protections, to tax reform.

On the nominations front, we have taken strong action to strengthen the judiciary, including confirming a slate of very-well-qualified nominees in recent days. This week, we are continuing our work to staff up the rest of the government as well. This is one of the Senate's most important functions and one we take seriously.

We are currently considering men and women who have been nominated to serve in many different roles at many different agencies. The one thing they all share in common is this: They are ready to get to work, and the sooner we confirm them, the sooner they can get on the job for our country.

First, we will vote to confirm John Gibson as Deputy Chief Management Officer at the Department of Defense. He will be responsible for increasing efficiency throughout the Department's business operations.

Afterward, the Senate will continue its consideration of Steven Engel, who will, as I discussed yesterday, serve as the Deputy Attorney General in the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel.

The next nomination we will consider is that of Peter Robb to serve as the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board.

For most of its 80-year existence, the NLRB has had the important responsibility of supporting stable labor relations by acting as a fair and impartial umpire in the resolution of labor disputes. Unfortunately, that changed under the previous administration, which wielded its Board majority as an anti-worker political cudgel at the behest of special interests and union bosses. Instead of the Board's historic commitment to impartially applying the law, the NLRB's Obama- appointed Democratic majority put forward policies that diminished the rights of employees, hurt small businesses, and rewarded entrenched political elites at the expense of workers and the middle class.

Thankfully, this Senate recently confirmed a new majority to the NLRB that is already beginning to undo the damage of the past 8 years. Now we have the opportunity to build upon that good work with the nomination of Mr. Robb.

The NLRB's General Counsel is responsible for investigating cases of unfair labor practices and for advancing cases before the Board and its members. Mr. Robb will fulfill these duties under the aegis of a new Board majority that is returning the NLRB to its true mission once more.

Labor policy is not simply some theoretical abstraction for Mr. Robb; he knows what it means to work as a hospital orderly or a construction worker, welder, truckdriver, forklift operator, or highway sign maker because he himself has worked in all of those jobs before. After law school, Robb gained valuable experience in employment law. His previous leadership roles, including as an NLRB regional field attorney and chief counsel to a Board member, contribute to making Robb an ideal candidate to serve as the Board's General Counsel.

I look forward to voting to advance this nomination, and I urge my colleagues to join me in helping restore the NLRB to the neutral umpire of labor disputes it was meant to be.

Mr. President, on another matter, our complex Tax Code is in desperate need of reform, and we now have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to overhaul it. We all want an economy that reaches for its full potential again. We all want to support small businesses and the middle class. Tax reform represents the single most important action we can take today to advance goals such as these.

I have heard from many Kentuckians calling out for relief from our outdated and burdensome Tax Code. Listen to this small business owner from Murray, KY, who wrote to my office about his struggles under our current Tax Code. This is what he said:

I am writing to stress the importance of tax reform for

small businesses. As a small business owner, I have been

saddle[d] with tax burdens since I began my business over 8

years ago. Tax reform for small business and families need[s]

to be done immediately [so] we can have some economic hope

once again.

Small businesses just like this one are calling out for relief. So are families. So are middle-class workers all across our country. Instead of better opportunities, our Tax Code gives them a complicated web of schedules, deductions, and regulations, a byzantine system that is easy for the wealthy and well-connected to exploit and impossible for almost anyone else to understand. It is time for a system that actually helps the middle class succeed and actually encourages small businesses to grow, invest, and hire.

We want to help families plan for their future. We want to get the economy going again and growing again. Most of all, we want to take more money out of Washington's pockets and put more money in the pockets of the middle class. To accomplish these goals, both the House and the Senate are continuing to move forward to deliver tax reform. Yesterday, the House Ways and Means Committee completed its first day of discussing the House legislative proposal unveiled last week. That bill, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, builds upon the unified tax reform framework and reflects goals shared by President Trump, Republicans in the House, and our conference here in the Senate--priorities shared by Americans of both parties all across our country.

Later this morning, a group of Senators, administration officials, and tax reform advocates will highlight the benefits of relief for families, small businesses, and the American economy. They will share their constituents' calls for tax reform.

As they do, the Senate Finance Committee will continue its work on this important issue as well. Chairman Hatch will continue to lead the committee through an open process, giving members the opportunity to provide their input, offer amendments, and work together to take another big step forward.

I am grateful for the work of both Chairman Brady and Chairman Hatch to get us to this point. We still have a lot of work to do, but we are committed to passing tax reform to help our Nation's economy reach its full potential.

Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, at 4:30 p.m. today, Tuesday, November 7, there be 30 minutes of post-cloture time remaining on the Engel nomination, equally divided between the leaders or their designees; that following the use or yielding back of time, the Senate vote on the confirmation of the Engel nomination; and that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; further, that there be 2 minutes, equally divided, prior to the cloture vote on the Robb nomination.

Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order of November 2, which notwithstands rule XXII, be modified to have all executive session cloture motions ripen following the disposition of the Gibson nomination; further, that if cloture is invoked on the Engel nomination, the time postcloture be counted as if invoked at 5:30 p.m. on Monday.