Floor Statements

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, a week ago today, the American people stood to be counted. They lined up to make their voices heard, and the message they sent was resoundingly clear.

Four years ago, they watched Washington Democrats take an economy that was primed for recovery and douse it in reckless taxing and inflationary spending. Over 4 years, they watched consumer prices rise more than 20 percent. As they made tough choices at the grocery store and felt the pain at the gas pump, they watched Washington Democrats deflect blame for the worst inflation in four decades. And last Tuesday, they said enough was enough.

And 4 years ago, they watched Washington Democrats campaign on slashing ICE and halting construction of physical barriers along the southern border. Month by month, they watched as this unseriousness and willful neglect turned into the worst humanitarian and security crisis at the border on record. And last Tuesday, they said enough was enough.

Also 4 years ago, they watched Washington Democrats campaign on defunding the police and going soft on crime. In cities across America, their fears of unchecked violent crime were proven justified. And last Tuesday, they said enough was enough.

Last week, American voters were desperate for leaders who could deliver safe streets, secure borders, stable prices, and strength abroad. So they chose to hire Republicans. They maintained a Republican majority in the House; they created a decisive Republican majority in the Senate; and by a wide margin, they put the White House in Republican hands once again.

The Nation surveyed its problems and decided that Republicans were equipped to put the ship of state back on the right track. Thus far, I have been encouraged by the lack of baseless

speculation that Tuesday's decisive result was influenced in any way by foreign interference. Washington Democrats appear to recognize that they are on the losing side of a legitimate, crystal-clear mandate.

Here in the Senate, I hope they will work with the new Senate Republican majority as we begin to clean up the messes left over from the past 4 years. The first opportunities to work together are already upon us. The Senate has a great deal of outstanding business that we have to tackle in the coming weeks. We certainly need to pass the long overdue National Defense Authorization Act. Every year, the NDAA gives Congress an indispensable opportunity to set national security priorities. This year, it is a chance to show we appreciate the gravity of an especially dangerous moment. After months of needless dithering, I would urge the Democratic leader to get this must-pass legislation moving without further delay.

We also need to work swiftly to deliver urgent supplemental assistance to the States and communities hit hard by natural disasters in recent months. Kentucky knows the power and pain of severe storms and flooding. This year, communities across the southeast recovering from major hurricane and flood damage deserve the Senate's attention and support.

And before anyone gets home for the holidays, we will need to extend Federal government funding. As I have said before, there is never a political advantage to be gained from allowing core government functions to go dark. The 119th Congress and the 47th President must not inherit a Federal Government in the middle of a funding crisis. The work ahead of us will require all parties to operate quickly and in good faith. The American people deserve nothing less.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, ``I am prepared to get rid of the filibuster to pass a Green New Deal.''

``I think we should eliminate the filibuster for Roe.''

These are the words of the Vice President of the United States and the Democratic nominee for President.

Her willingness to shatter the institution of the Senate is not unique. Nearly every single one of our Democratic colleagues was willing to do it 2 years ago, and they would have succeeded had two Members of their own caucus not stood in breach.

Nor is this campaign to rip up precious safeguards for political minorities confined here to the Senate. From a sitting President all the way down to grassroots activists, Democrats have made smashing institutions a core pillar of their party's platform.

The Vice President's latest comments are not novel, but they are shocking, no less so than the votes our colleagues cast here on January 19, 2022. There is nothing normal or rational about blowing up the dam holding back simple majority rule, and the fact that a major political party has welcomed this shortsighted radicalism into the mainstream will be to their eternal shame.

To lean on today's ``fill in the blank'' justification is to miss entirely what is at stake. The Senate's protections against the vacillations of simple majority rule are bigger than Washington Democrats' policy preferences. They are bigger than my own. A Senate that can steamroll a legislative minority to codify Roe v. Wade or enshrine the lunacy of the Green New Deal into law is a Senate that will drive a stake through liberal hopes as soon as the political winds change.

To gamble the guardrails that make the Senate what it is--to short- circuit the process by which dissenting views are guaranteed a hearing--ought to be disqualifying by itself. Then again, so should the Vice President's record on these issues. In November, the Democratic nominee will own the worst border crisis in American history and the broken policies that invited it. She will own the worst inflation in 40 years and the reckless spending and tie-breaking votes that enabled it.

The American people may well worry, like I do, about the future of an

institution designed to be the world's greatest deliberative body, but, more than that, they worry about keeping their families safe and putting food on the table, and I expect they will vote accordingly.

Mr. President, for 2 weeks now, I have come to the floor to continue thanking my staff in the Republican leader office publicly for their outstanding and ongoing work.

Over the years, I have been very fortunate to have so many tremendously talented individuals helping me tend to the duties of the leader. But just as I am grateful that so many have decided to join our team, I am even more gratified by how few have decided to leave.

Since I became leader, my office here in the Capitol has been steered by just two chiefs of staff. We have had just two communication directors, two national security advisers, three legal counsels--just to name a few examples. It has been a bit like managing a baseball team with a franchise player in every single position--every one of them marked by loyalty, professionalism, and genuine expertise.

So, today, I would like to single out members of this all-star team of policy advisers. I will begin with my senior adviser on appropriations, Cindy Herrle.

My entire team misses Cindy around the office, but the wealth of institutional expertise she lent to our efforts more than earned her the right to close out a distinguished chapter on Capitol Hill. She retired earlier this year.

Cindy joined my team with about the most impressive resume in senior congressional leadership you could possibly have: House committee work, two Speakers of the House, and a Senate whip. Suffice it to say: She knows her stuff.

Cindy's experience gave her a sixth sense of spotting issues along the way or anticipating pitfalls and helping us all avoid them.

She knows the arcane mechanics of budgets and appropriations. She knows the people who write them, edit them, and pass them. And her understanding of both Chambers gives her and anyone fortunate to have her in their corner a macro view of the process of funding the government.

I know my team was especially grateful for Cindy's skills as a ``House whisperer,'' so to speak. She was our forecaster for legislative prospects across the Capitol, a trusted liaison with the lower Chamber, whenever it came time to get important bicameral efforts across the finish line.

And even in the most stressful moments, Cindy knew how to cut the tension, donning her trusty ``good luck'' sunglasses or inviting colleagues to enjoy her annual Dolly Parton Advent calendar.

Cindy can look back with pride both for delivering excellence in difficult circumstances and for making so many friends all along the way.

But I am confident that Cindy's dearest relationship on the Hill was the parallel service of her brother Patrick, who is in the Capitol Police.

I am grateful to each of them for their decades of devoted service. Thank you, Cindy.

Mr. President, I have found humor in what my good friend Lamar Alexander used to say about the job of being leader of the Senate. He said:

It is a little bit like being a groundskeeper at a

cemetery. Everyone is under you, but no one is listening.

Truth is, in a place like the Senate, we can only be effective by rowing in the same direction with folks who share our principles. And for 7 years, the senior adviser helping me build and maintain conservative coalitions has been the youngest son of a big Irish- Catholic family from Detroit.

Jim Neill's roots taught him what is worth standing for and how to get a noisy room to listen to him. In meetings of my staff, all Jim has to do to get our attention is simply stand up.

But his engagements further afield draw on Jim's other strengths: authenticity, candor, a political weather vane with a dead read on gathering changes, and a principled compass that points true north.

I can't begin to tell you how many times important Senate accomplishments have nearly died on the launch pad but for Jim's deft and diplomatic touch.

Like many of our fellow travelers, Jim credits President Reagan with an outsized role in forming both his interest in politics and his conservative principles.

But I suspect that fewer conservatives of Jim's generation would use the next breath to credit legendary Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards with forming his style and good taste.

Around the office, my team's resident rock and roll historian doles out wicked humor and curmudgeonly quips in equal measure. But Jim's colleagues know him most of all as a trusted friend, a big brother, whose advice and perspective ring true.

Of course, credit for Jim's ability to wrestle thorny issues on a daily basis goes to his wife Erin, who keeps him grounded, and to his kids Maggie and Patrick, who I know make him extraordinarily proud. So thank you, Jim, so much.

Tribute to Stephanie Parks

Mr. President, now, as one of so many lawyers in the Senate, I have always been quick to admit to colleagues I wouldn't go to me for a simple will. But I have been fortunate to have counsel on my team who can handle that and a whole lot more.

The first such person I need to thank might very well be a victim of fate. My senior advisor and counsel Steve Donaldson is a proud native Kentuckian, a sharp lawyer, and one of the few experts out there on the intricacies of campaign finance.

Frankly, it is nearly impossible to imagine a situation in which Steve didn't wind up working for me someday. I needed somebody who could keep up on this niche issue that I have been immersed in through my entire time in the Senate. In that regard, Steve was an obvious choice.

But over the years, I have come to rely on Steve as so much more than a trusted sounding board on our shared interest in the First Amendment. He is also our resident whiz on the nuances of employment law. It is an important issue to begin with, but it took on massive new importance with the onset of the pandemic a few years ago.

Steve became my team's trusted navigator through the serious public health concerns and rapidly evolving official guidance. At the most consequential time in the unemployment

policy since the Great Depression, Steve was instrumental in shaping the CARES Act, asking questions that others had not considered, and foreseeing challenges in time to tweak our legislative response.

On top of it all, he has carried the unenviable but essential responsibility of ensuring my entire office upholds the highest standards of professional ethics. The team looks forward with pained amusement to his annual impression of the Grinch who stole Christmas and with sincere appreciation for his patient counsel that keeps us all in the clear.

Steve is the consummate professional at everything--that is, except golf. Perhaps I can accept the blame for keeping him too busy at the office to play more often.

Steve's pride in Kentucky roots is, more than anything, a pride in his family. I know he makes his mother Kathy, his sister Annie, and his niece and nephew very, very proud. So, Steve, thank you so much.

Mr. President, next is my chief counsel Mike Fragoso. Like so many of the well-qualified jurists he has helped to put on the Federal courts over the years, Mike--or ``Frags'' is what we call him--came with an Ivy League pedigree and an impressive resume of legal brilliance.

But unlike his peers in black robes, he also carries a reputation as my office sartorial master.

Frags is another member of my staff with a challenging multifaceted mandate. From the judicial confirmation process to matters of criminal justice and border security, I call on Frags to wear many hats. And when the circumstances permit, he pairs them with three-piece suits.

Seriously, it is a job that draws on every bit of Frags's experience traveling the width of Republican politics from Jeff Flake to Chuck Grassley and plumbing the depth of conservative jurisprudence.

Frags is equally at home in the high-minded philosophical discourse of the legal community and the urgent pragmatism of Congressional dealmaking.

He is so exceptionally competent that he often produces from his desk the work that would normally require, literally, teams of outside counsel.

Frags stands on deeply held principles but maintains a firm grasp on the realm of the possible. He is willing to exhaust creative effort and sacrifice holidays to make headway against even the most intractable problems. He knows which screws to twist to hold misbehavior and miscarriage of justice to account.

Fighting the good fight can be draining, especially when the good guys come up emptyhanded. But much to his colleague's delight, Frags never misses an opportunity to elicit much-needed laughs and self- effacing humor with gag gifts he seemingly produces from thin air.

I am certain he showers his wife Ashley and their daughters Maria, Aurelia, and Helena with similar joy and even greater pride than he has for his noble work.

Frags, Frags, thanks for everything.

Mr. President, there is a certain irony in the fact that many years ago my team found a kid who would end up as my fiercest adviser in the cause of restoring American hard power working in the world of American soft power.

In those earliest days, my fellow Kentuckian Robert Karem frequently found himself driving me around town doing important events.

These day, however, as my national security adviser, I frequently send Robert to the ends of the Earth and to the seats of foreign governments as a trusted representative of the entire Senate.

Of course, there was a period in between when I had to exercise some strategic patience, and I am not referring to the moments when classified meetings make Robert difficult to reach. I mean that his talents couldn't be contained.

And over the years, they have landed him in the service of a veritable who is who of Republican foreign policy luminaries. I am certain that each of them found, as I did, a deep intellect and appetite for knowledge, a relentless focus on worthy causes, and a passion for advancing them that simmered just beneath the surface.

Certainly, this last bit represents a compromise between Robert's experiences in the boiling cauldron of the House and his appreciation for the cooling saucer of the Senate.

When Robert returned to my office 6 years ago, I handed him a portfolio full of tough problems with no easy solution. It demands that he juggle the urgent and the important; the big picture and the smallest detail; the security of the Senate in moments of unprecedented crisis; and the enduring credibility of America's commitments in the world.

Robert knows how to advance the ball in international settings with cosmopolitan tact, meet naivete and incompetence around Washington with righteous ire, and defuse office monotony with strikes of high yield, precision-guided humor.

I am grateful for all of it and for the loyalty and dedication that should make his family, his Commonwealth, and his Nation very, very proud. Thank you, Robert.

Mr. President, now, folks all around the Senate appreciate this body's cooling saucer of a reputation, but no one embodies it like my senior adviser on commerce and tax policy, John Chapuis.

To be sure, ``Chappy'' cut his teeth with our former colleague Tom Coburn, who prided himself on playing an active and assertive role out here on the floor. And his work in the Whip's office under Senator Cornyn dropped him straight into the middle of vote-counting chaos.

But that pedigree did nothing if not make Chappy a master of Senate rules and procedure; and with that mastery comes a calm, collected assurance, the composure of a recovering collegiate athlete, the competence of a Senate expert at the top of his game.

Chappy's path through the Senate has earned him a well-deserved reputation as a Swiss Army knife. He can cite Senate rule, chapter and verse, with the most seasoned cloakroom staff. He can carry the day on consequential nominations with deep-dive background research. And, of course, most recently, he can keep me sharp, parsing tariff disputes and employment reports with equal ease.

In the proudest tradition of an institution where Senators once relied on much smaller staffs, Chappy is the utility player every team wishes it had.

Of course, the team that can claim Chappy's proudest allegiance is the one he has built with his wife Suzanne, herself a distinguished member of the Senate family in the Chaplain's office. As I understand it, the wonderful story that now includes two young sons, Sullivan and Fielding, began with a proposal at the top of the Capitol dome. I am just grateful the Republican leader's office gets to be a part of it.

Chappy, thank you so much.

Mr. President, I can't help but wonder how many of the industries and constituencies seeking the ear of my office on any given day know that my senior adviser responsible for business coalitions is also a watercolor painter whose work adorns the invitations my colleagues receive to our annual Kentucky Derby lunch or whether Erica Suares's former colleagues at Coastal Living magazine have followed along as her reputation as consummate adviser has reached every corner of the uppermost echelons of Republican politics--Jim DeMint, to Mitt Romney, to me.

Erica's innate talents for diplomacy and coordination are undeniable. For more than a decade, I have trusted Erica to relay important guidance around the Republican conference and build consensus across business and advocacy groups. She is charismatic, perceptive, and highly intelligent. In the heat of battle, she has been known to forgo sleep for days.

But the depth of Erica's commitment and the breadth of her professional accomplishments are a testament to something else--a genuine, friendly warmth that is downright difficult to sustain in a town like Washington.

As much as she excels at tending relationships with stakeholders across the Senate and private sector, Erica tends relationships with her colleagues with the utmost care. She takes it upon herself to welcome new arrivals, to celebrate birthdays with requisite

cookie cakes, and to fulfill other duties that come along with being indisputably the heart and soul of the office.

I know my entire team is grateful to occupy a small part of Erica's heart. The rest rightly belongs to her family--her mother Suri and her late father Roger--whom she continues to make so very, very proud.

Erica, thank you.

Mr. President, Terry Van Doren has told me before about the awe he felt as a farm kid from downstate Illinois visiting the Harry Truman Presidential Library and seeing a replica of a bust that stands in the hall outside this Chamber here in the Capitol. The thought of seeing the real thing, let alone passing it by every day at work, was a thrill.

What says the most about Terry--or, as we call him, TVD--is that after 12 years on my team, I am certain he still feels the thrill of service here in the Capitol. That is not to say the Senate hasn't tried mightily to grind it out of him.

For more than a decade, Terry has juggled a uniquely challenging portfolio that encompasses agriculture, transportation, energy, and a laundry list of niche constituencies in between.

With massive implications for Federal spending and issues that matter deeply to Kentucky, Terry inevitably finds himself in the thick of every vote-arama, every government funding fight, and every last-dash legislative effort right before the holidays. With a steady hand, deep expertise, and unwavering loyalty to me and the folks I represent, Terry has been an extraordinarily effective workhorse--even if, in one instance, it meant becoming an expert on racehorses.

From spearheading the CRA process in defense against harmful overregulation to shepherding massive, bipartisan accomplishments on infrastructure and agriculture, he has exercised his talents with a mild manner, with self-effacing humility, and with undaunted optimism that this might be the year that the Senate's schedule doesn't spoil his hunting season travel plans.

So I am grateful to Terry's family--his wife Lisa and their kids Amelia and Bobby--for letting us lean on him literally at all hours.

Thanks again, Terry.

Madam President, I rise today to congratulate my friend Dr. Nancy Cox, dean of the University of Kentucky's College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment, on her upcoming retirement. As she prepares to step down from the helm, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing this distinguished Kentuckian and her 20-plus years of service to the Commonwealth.

A graduate of Furman University, the University of Georgia, and North Carolina State University, Nancy made her bones researching animal physiology. She launched her career at Mississippi State before joining the ranks of faculty leadership at UK's College of Agriculture as associate dean for research. To the great fortune of our flagship university, Nancy never left.

Serving as dean of the college of agriculture since 2014, Nancy led the school

through some of its most transformative years. She spearheaded groundbreaking programs, like the Racetrack Safety Program and the James B. Beam Institute for Kentucky Spirits, that help keep Kentucky's signature equine and bourbon industries at the forefront of the Nation. Early on, she understood the importance of research not only to the university and its students, but also to Kentucky's agricultural community, prioritizing investments for veterinary studies, equine health, and animal forage production research. As dean, she oversaw the renewal of UK's Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, and together, we worked to establish UK's first-ever animal forage production research lab in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Nancy's work to champion research on issues ranging from equine safety to the problems facing small family farms continues to help our Nation's producers and growers succeed.

Even after two decades of service to Kentucky, Nancy hasn't shied away from new opportunities to effect change on campus. In 2020, she stepped up to join President Capilouto's leadership team as the first- ever vice president for land-grant engagement. In this role, she has helped deepen UK's commitment to its land-grant mission, finding new ways to serve and connect with communities across the Commonwealth through research, instruction, and extension programs.

Anybody who has ever worked with Nancy can vouch for her dedication to serving her fellow Kentuckians. From forging new partnerships to deepening the university's ties with important stakeholders, like the Kentucky Farm Bureau, Nancy's leadership has tangibly made life better for families, businesses, and communities across our state. As she puts it, ``Every day, we try to do better than the day before.'' Nancy has certainly lived up to this ideal, and though we are all sorry to see her go, I am confident she will continue to make a difference in her community.

As she begins a well-deserved retirement, I have no doubt that she will be enjoying more time with her friends and family. Today, it's my privilege to join the chorus of faculty, students, and alumni praising Nancy's leadership and her work to lift up Kentucky's farmers and the next generation of agricultural leaders. I urge my Senate colleagues to join me in thanking Nancy for her remarkable service to the University of Kentucky and the Commonwealth.

Madam President, I rise today to congratulate Brigadier General (Retired) James ``Jim'' T. Iacocca as he prepares to retire from the Knox Regional Development Alliance in my home State of Kentucky. It is my privilege to pay special tribute to Jim for all his contributions to the Commonwealth and his 30-plus years of dedicated service to our Nation.

Jim entered the Army on a whim. Without speaking to his parents, he enlisted in the Army Reserve his freshman year at Lehigh University. His 29 years of Active-Duty service that followed included tours in airborne and special operations units at multiple Army installations, deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, and numerous military awards and decorations. He served as deputy commanding general of the Army Recruiting Command and Brigade Commander for the Army's 3rd Recruiting Brigade. In 2015, Jim became the 60th Adjutant General, one of the oldest leadership positions in the Army. In this role, he oversaw over 1 million Active-Duty, National Guard, and Reserve servicemembers, keeping soldiers combat-ready to serve and execute the Army's missions.

Jim retired from Active-Duty service in 2017, but his work on behalf of the Commonwealth and the Army was far from over. As one of two civilian aides to the Secretary of the Army for Kentucky, Jim helps bridge the gap between Army leadership and our State's military communities, providing crucial counsel to the Secretary on all matters Kentucky.

Many on my staff have had the privilege of interacting with Jim through his work as president and CEO of the Knox Regional Development Alliance. In this role, Jim serves as the critical link between my office and the military base. With an eye always toward the future, Jim is constantly working with partners inside and outside the gate to identify new missions and improve the experience and well-being of Kentucky's servicemembers. He has been instrumental in some of the biggest issues Fort Knox has tackled in recent years, driving billions of dollars into the regional economy and advocating for the priorities of Fort Knox and its more than 26,000 soldiers, civilians, and families.

In all his years serving Fort Knox, Jim has never lost sight of the people he represents; that includes not only the brave men and women who serve our country but also the greater Knox region. Jim will be the first to tell you that a strong community is an irreplaceable asset to any military installation and, indeed, Fort Knox. As the unifying voice for the base and the Knox community, Jim collaborates with a wide range of people, from servicemembers to the business community to local, State, and Federal leaders across the Commonwealth. In fact, Jim's contributions recently earned him the honor of Gold Neighbor for his dedication to Fort Knox, its soldiers, and their families. I count myself among the many grateful for Jim contributing his character, humble leadership, and deep knowledge to the Commonwealth.

Jim has worn many impressive hats while serving his country, but his proudest roles have been husband and father. As he prepares to step down from the Knox Regional Development Alliance this year, I know Jim will enjoy spending more time with his wife Sandy and their daughter-- and building out that impressive bourbon collection of his. Our men and women in uniform, in addition to the people of Kentucky, are losing a tireless advocate, and though we are saddened to say goodbye to Jim, his retirement is well-earned. I urge my Senate colleagues to join me in thanking this brave American, dedicated public servant, and proud Kentuckian for his decades of distinguished service to our country.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.