Floor Statements

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 55, Terry Branstad to be Ambassador to the People's Republic of China.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum call with respect to the cloture motion be waived.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate resume consideration of the Rosen nomination.

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

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m., Tuesday, May 16; 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 to resume consideration of the Rosen nomination, with the time until 12:30 p.m. equally divided in the usual form; further, that the Senate recess from 12:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. to allow for the weekly conference meetings; finally, that all time during recess, adjournment, morning business, and leader remarks count postcloture on the Rosen nomination.

Madam President, if there is no further business to come

before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. President, today the Senate will take a cloture vote on the U.S. Trade Representative nominee, Robert Lighthizer. We know the task before Mr. Lighthizer is an important one. I appreciate his willingness to take on this challenge, and I look forward to working with the administration on pro-growth trade policies moving forward.

Mr. President, over the past 8 years, the American people struggled in an economy that too often failed to meet its potential. Many struggled to pay bills. Many struggled to make the mortgage. Too many couldn't find a job at all.

Yet, time after time, when Americans looked to the Obama administration, they got tired leftwing ideology instead of serious solutions. When Americans asked for policies that would allow the economy to grow again, the Obama administration gave them just the opposite: a highly aggressive regulatory rampage that sometimes veered outside congressional authority, that often hurt the economy and job creation even more, that nearly always empowered unaccountable Washington bureaucrats at the expense of the American people.

Of course, not all regulations are bad regulations. Many are necessary and even beneficial, but what the Obama administration seemed to forget in its fit of ideological pique is this key point: Regulations are not issued in a vacuum. They can harm the middle class. They can kill jobs. They can raise prices. They can depress wages. They can reduce opportunity.

No matter how well-intentioned, regulations can have undesirable, often unexpected, impacts--and in this regulatory avalanche of the last 8 years, we saw another example of the consequences of putting leftwing ideology over the lives of real people.

It is one reason why Americans decided to go in a pro-growth direction last November. They elected a new President who, as one of his first acts, ordered the elimination of at least two existing regulations for every new one issued. He called for a regulatory budget to cap regulatory costs. He and his administration took a number of actions that are already helping to turn the regulatory tide back in favor of growth and jobs.

The American people also reelected a Republican Congress that wasted no time in providing regulatory relief to Americans and restoring legislative power where it rightfully belongs, with the people through their elected representatives right here in Congress.

We have a tool that has proved incredibly helpful in this regard. It is called the Congressional Review Act. It is the brainchild of a bipartisan group of legislators, including former Democratic Leader Harry Reid, and what it allows Congress to do is overturn regulations issued over the last 60 days with a simple majority vote.

From its inception in 1996 until this February, it had only been used successfully one time. From February until today, it has been used successfully 13 times--with the 14th soon to be signed into law; namely, to overturn a number of Obama administration regulations rushed through at the last minute.

Getting this done hasn't always been easy, and we have met a lot of obstruction along the way. Although the Democrats once championed the CRA, a tool that is ``fair'' in the words of former Leader Reid, our current Democratic colleagues seem to take a very different view. They have fought against our efforts to deliver relief to the American people, just as they have blocked and punted and forced unnecessary procedural hurdles on the President's nominees for months, and that, remember, was mostly for the sake of unnecessarily taking up valuable floor time, knowing full well it would not change the end result. Regardless, despite those obstructionist tactics, we have continued our regulatory relief efforts because we knew it could make a positive difference for our country.

This congressional action we have taken already, in coordination with key administration actions, is estimated to result in more than $67 billion in regulatory cost savings. Let me say that again. The actions we have taken so far, coupled with key administrative actions they have taken on their own, result in more than $67 billion in regulatory cost- savings and about 56 million hours' worth of paperwork reductions.

The New York Times says the efforts we have undertaken represent ``a historic reversal of government rules in record time.'' A historic reversal of government rules in record time. The Washington Post proclaimed it ``the most ambitious regulatory rollback since Reagan.'' Politico calls it ``a once-in-a-generation opportunity,'' and that is exactly right.

In just a few short months, we have turned a significant corner from how things operated under the Obama administration. Instead of going around Congress to push through regulations, the President is working with us to ease the burden. Instead of adding even more redtape to the Federal Register, we are breaking through it. Instead of promoting policies that hinder growth, we are pursuing ones that actually encourage it.

The actions we have taken can benefit the American people in a number of meaningful ways: Like hard-working families saving for retirement-- we made sure Obama-era regulations wouldn't stand in their way. Like students who want to receive the best education they can--we made sure Obama-era regulations wouldn't hold them back either.

After 8 years of an administration which punished coal miners and their families for simply working hard to make a living, we are finally working hand-in-glove with an administration that wants to help mining families instead. Here is an example of what I mean.

In the Republican administration, President Trump used Executive action to order a review of Obama-era regulations that attempted to close existing coal plants and prevent future ones from ever, ever being built. In the Republican Congress, we used the CRA to overturn an Obama administration rule which would have put as many as one-third of coal mining jobs at risk.

Together, Congress and the Trump administration are taking decisive action to support jobs in domestic energy and coal communities. As we do so, we have seen encouraging news as well. According to one report, Kentucky saw a slight, slight increase in coal production last quarter, and Federal projections predict that national production will continue to increase over the next few years. I was pleased to see that news. It is a trend we would like to see continue. I will keep working with the administration and my colleagues in Congress to continue to protect Kentucky jobs and Kentucky families.

These examples, and others, offer yet another illustration of how we can make meaningful and positive impacts in the lives of the people we represent.

Look, we know there is a lot more to be done. We know the scale of the challenge. The growth of the regulatory state has taken a substantial toll on our economy, one that can't be remedied overnight. A recent Washington Post column cited studies saying that ``the costs of complying with federal rules and regulations totaled nearly $1.9 trillion in 2015, equal to about half the federal budget''--$1.9 trillion in 2015--and that regulations may have shrunk our annual growth rate by as much as 0.8 percent. These regulations may well have shrunk our growth rate by 0.8 percent. As the column pointed out, ``A main rap against the administrative state is that, through its aggressive growth, the executive branch has usurped power from other parts of the government, mainly Congress.''

With the action we have taken with the CRA, that is beginning to change. Indeed, one reason the Congressional Review Act is so important is because it helps Congress serve as a check and balance on the executive branch. As three former Senators, including former Leader Reid, put it, the Congressional Review Act can help ``redress the balance [between the executive and legislative branches], reclaiming for Congress some of its policymaking authority.''

While we can't simply turn back time or completely erase the negative impact that Obama regulations have had already, the CRA has allowed us to stop a number of them in their tracks while also preventing agencies from creating similarly harmful rules in the future.

A lot of time and a lot of effort has gone into seeing these resolutions across the finish line so I thank each of our colleagues who had a hand in that effort. Specifically, I recognize those who introduced these resolutions or the Senate companion of House CRA resolutions.

I thank: Senator Inhofe; Senator Grassley, chairman of the Judiciary Committee; Senator Johnson, chair of Homeland Security; Senator Murkowski, chair of Energy; Senator Sasse; Senator Alexander, chairman of the HELP Committee; Senator Cruz; Senator Sullivan; Senator Cassidy; Senator Flake; Senator Ernst; Senator Hatch, the Finance chairman; and Senator Barrasso.

I also thank Senator Tillis, who was an outstanding advocate for using the CRA process, as well as Senator Cornyn who worked tirelessly to bring these resolutions over the finish line.

This historic regulatory rollback would not have been possible without their leadership. Because of their efforts and key actions by the Trump administration, we have begun chipping away at policies that have hurt the middle class and prevented economic growth for far too long. Much work remains to be done, but we are going to keep working together to help our economy fully recover from 8 years of anti-growth regulatory overreach, 8 years of missed opportunities, 8 years of dreams deferred, and 8 years of government that left far too many behind.

Mr. President, 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 that the Senate be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs be discharged from further consideration of S. 1083 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. President, 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 when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 3 p.m., Monday, May 15; 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 Rosen nomination; further, that the time until 5:30 p.m. be equally divided in the usual form; finally, that notwithstanding the provisions of rule XXII, the pending cloture motions ripen at 5:30 p.m., Monday.

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.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to H.J. Res. 36.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Democratic leader and I be allowed to give our leader remarks at this time.

Mr. President, today it is my privilege to welcome a distinguished group of Kentuckians to our Nation's Capital. Because of the incredible work of the Honor Flight Program, over 80 World War II, Korea, and Vietnam veterans from across my home State will travel to Washington. Here they will see the memorials built to honor their service.

The Bluegrass Chapter Honor Flight has brought hundreds of veterans, most of them Kentuckians, to Washington for this purpose. Despite the significant logistical and financial planning that goes into these trips, Honor Flight works to make sure veterans have the opportunity to travel at no cost to themselves.

The program organizes travel and food for these veterans, many of whom would never be able to visit our Nation's Capital or see the memorials at all without Honor Flight.

The national monuments built on the Mall pay tribute to those who sacrificed for the cause of freedom. I wish to add my voice to those who welcome these veterans and thank them for their service to our country.

Healthcare Legislation

Mr. President, on another matter, I am glad to see many of our Democratic friends here with us today. Yesterday they sent me a letter indicating they want to participate as we work on legislation that can bring relief from ObamaCare. In that letter, they acknowledged the need to ``improve and reform the health care system.''

After 8 years of defending this failing law and its higher costs, reduced choices, and dropped coverage, I am glad to hear that Senate Democrats are finally willing to concede that the status quo is simply unsustainable. I appreciate their willingness to acknowledge that ObamaCare hasn't lived up to its promises.

That is certainly a reality that Senate Republicans entirely agree with. It is why we are working to keep our commitment to the American people to move beyond the failures of ObamaCare.

If our friends on the other side of the aisle want to join us in replacing ObamaCare with commonsense reforms, I welcome their input. It is disappointing that it has taken our Democratic colleagues this long to come around, but I look forward to hearing their ideas now, and I look forward to joining in a robust debate on the Senate floor as we pursue smarter healthcare solutions.

As we continue working to address this critical issue, it is important to remember why we need to act in the first place. Across the country, more and more Americans are feeling the pain of ObamaCare. Listen to these recent headlines.

Thousands of Obamacare Customers Left Without Options As

Insurers Bolt.

More Insurers Abandon Obamacare: Who Might Be Next?

Obamacare Choices Could Go From One to Zero in Some Areas.

ObamaCare is failing the American people, and it keeps getting worse. Families face skyrocketing premiums, fewer choices, and the risk of losing the doctors or plans they like. Just this week, we saw even more troubling news out of States like Maryland, where one major insurer proposed a premium increase of more than 50 percent, warning that the ObamaCare market is ``in the early stages of a death spiral.''

We saw similar stories out of Connecticut too. There, insurers have also requested double-digit increases, which could top out at 52 percent amid worries that the last two insurers on the exchanges ``may leave.''

These States aren't alone. I continue to hear from Kentuckians who are desperate for relief from ObamaCare. Take this Campbellsville woman who purchased insurance on the ObamaCare exchanges after researching the best policy to fit her needs. Only then did she find out how hard it would be for her to actually get care. Here is what she had to say.

Today I am making payments for a health care plan that does

not cover my doctors, [and] does not cover all my

prescriptions. It is almost totally useless.

I am only one person but I'm sure I speak for many people

who are finding themselves in this difficult situation.

ObamaCare is a failed law that continues to hurt Americans every single day. It is taking a bigger bite out of their budgets while, as too many have discovered, covering fewer services they actually need.

We have all received letters from our constituents like the one I just shared. These families are the ones shouldering the burdens of ObamaCare. They are the ones counting on us to act and move past the failures of ObamaCare. If we don't, this situation will only get worse.

That is why we continue to engage in productive conversations with each Member of our caucus on the way forward on providing relief from ObamaCare. I look forward to continuing these talks and welcoming our Democratic colleagues to the conversation if they are ready to join us. It certainly is an important step for the entire Democratic caucus to acknowledge that the status quo is failing the American people and that Congress cannot sit by while Americans suffer the consequences of this failed law.

Removal of James Comey

Mr. President, one final matter, whatever one thinks of the manner in which Director James Comey handled the investigation into Secretary Clinton's unauthorized use of a private server and her mishandling of classified information, it is clear what our Democratic colleagues thought of it--both at that time and consistently thereafter.

Last year, the current Democratic leader said it appeared to be an ``appalling act,'' one that he said ``goes against the tradition of prosecutors at every level of government,'' and the prior Democratic leader, when asked if James Comey should resign given his conduct of the investigation, replied ``[o]f course, yes.''

It is also clear what our Democratic colleagues think of the man who evaluated Mr. Comey's professional conduct and concluded that the Bureau needed a change in leadership. The Democratic leader just a few weeks ago praised Mr. Rosenstein for his independence and said he had developed a reputation for integrity.

What we have now is our Democratic colleagues complaining about the removal of an FBI Director whom they themselves repeatedly and sharply criticized; that removal being done by a man, Rod Rosenstein, whom they repeatedly and effusively praised--when Mr. Rosenstein recommended Mr. Comey's removal for many of the very reasons they consistently complained about.

Two investigations are currently ongoing: The Senate Intelligence Committee's review of Russian active measures and intelligence activities and the FBI investigation disclosed by Director Comey.

Today we will no doubt hear calls for a new investigation, which could only serve to impede the current work being done to not only discover what the Russians may have done but also to let this body and the national security community develop the countermeasures and warfighting doctrine to see that it doesn't occur again. Partisan calls should not delay the considerable work of Chairman Burr and Vice Chairman Warner. Too much is at stake.

Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein was just confirmed on a bipartisan vote, 94 to 6--94 to 6--and that sort of fair consideration should continue when the Senate receives an FBI Director nominee. As I said yesterday, once the Senate receives a nomination to fill this position, we will look forward to a full, fair, and timely confirmation process. This is a critical role that is particularly important as our country continues to face serious threats at home and abroad.

Recognition of the Minority Leader

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

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 52, Robert Lighthizer to be United States Trade Representative.