Patrick J. Toomey

Madam President, I rise for the customary farewell address.

I would like to begin by thanking our colleague and our leader, Mitch McConnell, for his very, very kind words.

I appreciate that, Leader McConnell. I would also like to say that I appreciate the confidence you have repeatedly placed in me. Your recollections have brought back many memories.

One was the supercommittee. I served on the supercommittee, but what most of you probably don't know is that Leader McConnell had great reservations about putting me on the supercommittee. Oh, yes, he grilled me for what seemed like hours over several occasions.

Here is why: He grilled me because he wanted an outcome. And his concern was, will this firebrand from the Club for Growth be willing to compromise, be willing to reach an agreement that couldn't possibly be exactly what he wanted?

Mr. President, so I am going to reserve the right to object, and let me say I am doing this somewhat reluctantly because I fully acknowledge the Senator from Maryland is correct, that corruption is a scourge. There are many countries going the wrong direction. It is fully in the national interest of the United States to combat the corruption that we see, and he has proposed a completely good-faith, thoughtful approach to dealing with some aspects of the corruption that we find.

But I have concerns about the particular way in which he does this, and I would like to work with him and see if we can find common ground on this.

Let me explain my concern.

The bill would task the State Department with annually ranking every country in the world, including our partners and allies and friends and even, maybe, countries that aren't necessarily so friendly but, at the moment, are maybe working with us. It requires that this ranking of countries, based on how corrupt they are, be then made public. That is for good intentions, but I am concerned that in the process of naming and shaming countries that are deemed to be in the wrong place, it could complicate efforts that we are making, whether it is our Treasury or our State Department, with very legitimate objectives that we have that are unrelated to the corruption problem that the country faces.

For instance, depending on the country, maybe we want them to be more cooperative in the global coalition against Russia to defend Ukraine. Let's be honest. There are corruption problems in Ukraine also, but we are defending Ukraine, quite rightly. Maybe it is about joining the administration's Indo-Pacific economic framework, which is very important for a variety of reasons, but maybe there are corruption problems.

This seems like a bit of a blunt tool that requires this labeling and naming and shaming, and it doesn't provide the discretion for the administration to say: You know, maybe right now isn't the right time to rub their noses in one of their problems because we need them for something else.

So I guess what I would say is, look, fighting corruption is absolutely important, and the Senator from Maryland has been consistent and thoughtful on this, but it is not our only--and sometimes it is not our most important--objective with another country.

I would like to continue to work with the Senator from Maryland, and I would be very happy to devote the time and energy to try to make sure we are able to get to common ground here before the end of the year; but at this moment, I can't support this, so I object.

Mr. President, as a proud member of the American Sikh Congressional Caucus, I would like to join my Sikh friends in Pennsylvania's Sikh community and Sikhs around the world in recognizing the 38th anniversary of the November 1984 anti-Sikh violence in India.

For those of you who are not familiar, Sikhism traces its nearly 600- year history to the Punjab region of India. With nearly 30 million followers globally and 700,000 here in the U.S., Sikhism is one of the world's major religions.

Historically, Sikhs have showcased a commitment to serving individuals from all religious, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds-- demonstrating their generosity and deep sense of community. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Sikh communities across Pennsylvania and the United States came together to deliver groceries, masks, and other supplies to tens of thousands of families in need no matter their race, gender, religion, or creed. In my many years serving the Commonwealth, I have personally witnessed the spirit of Sikhs and have come to better understand the Sikh tradition that is founded on equality, respect, and peace. It is clear that the presence and contributions of Sikh communities have thoroughly enriched their neighborhoods across the country.

1984 marks one of the darkest years in modern Indian history. The world watched as several violent incidents broke out among ethnic groups in India, with several notably targeting the Sikh community. Today we are here to remember the tragedy that commenced on November 1, 1984, following decades of ethnic tension between Sikhs in the Punjab province and the central Indian Government. As so often in such cases, the official estimates likely do not tell the whole story, but it is estimated that over 30,000 Sikh men, women, and children were deliberately targeted, raped, slaughtered, and displaced by mobs across India.

To prevent future human rights abuses, we must recognize their past forms. We must remember the atrocities committed against Sikhs so that those responsible may be held accountable and that this type of tragedy is not repeated against the Sikh community or other communities across the globe.