Floor Statements

Mr. President, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is charged with protecting workers and job applicants against discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information.

Janet Dhillon, the latest nominee to be a member of that board, has spent her career, unfortunately, doing the opposite. She has spent years advocating for corporations over workers and has a track record that puts her in direct opposition to the mission of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. For example, under Ms. Dhillon's leadership, the Retail Litigation Center filed briefs in support of policies making it more difficult for employers to be held liable for harassment.

I am also concerned that Ms. Dhillon has declined to answer whether she would uphold the EEOC's current position that the Civil Rights Act forbids employment discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation. The EEOC is considering issues that are critical to protecting workers, including ongoing court cases to protect LGBTQ workers from discrimination and improve pay data collection for women in the workforce. Women, on average, make 80 cents per every dollar earned by a man. The gap is even higher for women of color. We need Commissioners at the EEOC who will fight to close this gap.

No matter your age, race, occupation, religion, or sexuality, you should be treated with dignity, and for too long, with too many people, this has not been the case. Ms. Dhillon has not demonstrated that she will be a champion for these workers.

In the past, we have always tried to move EEOC nominations in a bipartisan way, with Democratic and Republican nominees confirmed at the same time, but for months, for reasons I cannot explain, my Republican colleagues have refused to hold a vote on a Democratic nominee to this Commission. This obstruction has forced the EEOC to operate without a quorum, preventing it from conducting crucial business, such as issuing new policies, guidance, and regulations.

This is another example of Republicans changing Senate norms and traditions when it comes to their quest for nominations. We are also seeing that this week with votes on two Second Circuit nominees from New York who are being pushed through over objections by both home State Senators. Before this year, we had never, never seen a judicial nominee receive a vote without a positive blue slip from either home State Senator.

``Blue slip'' is just a formal term; it is actually an approval by the Senator of a nomination.

By the end of this week, it will have happened four times--in the State of Washington, New Jersey, and now New York. This is a terrible precedent that could end up affecting each of our States.

Republicans appear determined to ignore traditions and common sense in their effort to confirm the highest possible volume of President Trump's extreme nominees. I continue to call on my colleagues to change course. I think it is a mistake.

I oppose Janet Dhillon's nomination as Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Mr. President, everyone knows that this Sunday is Mother's Day, a day when we honor our moms, step moms, our mothers-in- law, our grandmothers, our wives and all the women who chose to love, sacrifice, and care for a child. It is also a day when we celebrate new moms-to-be. I am happy to report to you that I am just a few days away from having a new granddaughter, which I am really excited about. There is a lot of excitement and happiness in our family, and it will be intensified coming this Sunday on Mother's Day.

My wife and I have three beautiful kids, and we have now five wonderful grandchildren, with a sixth one on the way. There is nothing more exciting than learning of a new addition to your family, and there is nothing more sobering than the state of maternal and infant healthcare in this great Nation. I can think of no better way to celebrate and honor Mother's Day than to immediately commit on a bipartisan basis to enact change that will improve the health outcomes for new moms and babies nationwide. Too often in our country, new moms and infants, especially women and babies of color, are dying from completely preventable health complications.

Listen to this. The United States is 1 of only 13 countries in the world where the maternal mortality rate is worse today than it was 25 years ago. Over the past 30 years, our maternal mortality rate has more than doubled. In the United States of America, with all of our hospitals and doctors and medical knowledge, nationwide more than 700 women die every year as a result of pregnancy. More than 70,000 experience severe, near-fatal complications. In my home State of Illinois, 73 women die every year due to pregnancy-related complications, and 70 percent of these deaths are preventable.

These deaths impact women of color at significantly higher rates. Black women in the United States are three to four times more likely than White women to die as a result of pregnancy. In Illinois, African- American women are six times more likely than White women to die of pregnancy-related complications.

I had a press conference at a University of Chicago hospital on this subject. One of the presenters had done even deeper research than we had in preparation, and she reported to me something that really opened my eyes. This racial distinction bears no relation to poverty or education. An African-American woman, well educated, from a family with resources, is still just as vulnerable as those in a lesser position economically when it comes to this racial disparity. Not only are we losing moms, we are losing babies. This is incredible.

Currently the United States ranks 32 out of 35 of the wealthiest nations when it comes to infant mortality. Every year more than 23,000 infants die in this country, largely due to factors that, in many cases, can be prevented--birth defects, low birth weight, and maternal complications. Again, the African-American community is impacted more severely. In the United States, babies of color are twice as likely to die as White babies. The racial disparity is greater than it was in the year 1850 in the United States. Something has to be done.

I joined with Congresswoman Robin Kelly of Illinois and my colleague Senator Tammy Duckworth, and we introduced the appropriately named MOMMA Act.

First and foremost, our bill would expand the length of time that a new mom can keep her Medicaid health coverage.

Currently, Medicaid has to cover women for only 2 months postpartum. Our bill expands it to a year. Given that 60 percent of maternal deaths occur in the weeks and months after delivery, it is imperative that new mothers be able to keep their health coverage longer.

Next, the MOMMA's Act would improve access to doulas. Too often, disparities in maternal and infant mortality are rooted in structural racism in healthcare, meaning African-American women often receive poorer quality care than White women simply because of the color of their skin. Black women are not often listened to or taken seriously by healthcare providers. Doulas can help provide education, advocacy, and support for women whose voices are being ignored.

To this point, our bill would also improve implicit bias and cultural competency training among healthcare providers.

Lastly, our bill would provide improved hospital coordination reporting on maternal health outcomes and ensure implementation of services to improve care.

My bill is not the only one on this subject. Senator Kamala Harris has introduced a bill to help train medical providers to avoid racial bias. Senator Elizabeth Warren suggests giving hospitals a financial bonus for successful health outcome improvements. Senator Cory has a bill to improve access to primary care providers and doulas. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has a bill to provide States and hospitals with needed funding to develop and implement maternal safety best practices. There is no shortage of legislative ideas that would help improve maternal and infant health outcomes. Yet, unfortunately, we are not considering them.

We even changed the rules in the Senate a few weeks ago, and the Republican leader came to the floor and said we need more time for legislation.

There has not been much legislation going on in this Senate in the last few weeks.

Would it not be nice if we had a good, bipartisan bill that addresses this issue of maternal and infant mortality in time for Mother's Day? There is still time tomorrow for the leader, Senator McConnell, to call this measure to the floor, and I hope he will.

We have to make sure as well--and I will close by saying this--that the Affordable Care Act continues to be a strong opportunity for people to have access to affordable, quality healthcare and to make certain that the lawsuit that emanated from the State of Texas and is now working its way through the Federal courts does not take protection away from Americans with preexisting conditions. That continues to be a threat we have to take seriously.

I yield the floor.

I announce that the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Bennet), the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker), the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. Klobuchar), and the Senator from Arizona (Ms. Sinema), are necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Bennet), the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker), the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. Klobuchar), and the Senator from Arizona (Ms. Sinema) are necessarily absent.

Mr. President, I want to thank my colleague from Massachusetts for her statement and for going into depth on the Mueller report and talking about the findings.

This morning, of course, we heard the Republican leader, Senator McConnell, come to the floor and say something quite different--to quote what he said, the work of the special counsel and the Attorney General ``and how we can finally end this `Groundhog Day' spectacle, stop endlessly relitigating a 2\1/2\-year-old election result, and move forward for the American people.''

It is pretty clear the Republican leader would like to say to the American people: Keep on moving, there is nothing to be seen here. But we know better.

If you take a look at the Mueller report: $26 million spent, 50 attorneys and agents, almost 2 years, scores of indictments that came down and some guilty pleas already and yet even more to follow. This isn't over, and it will not be over soon, nor should it be.

It is obvious my Republican colleagues want to move on as quickly as possible from talking about how Russia interfered in the 2016 election with the stated intent of helping to elect Donald Trump President. They definitely don't want to talk about the many links between the Russians and the Trump campaign or how, in the words of the Mueller report: ``The campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts.''

They certainly don't want to talk about the overwhelming evidence that Donald Trump obstructed justice.

Today I believe the count was up to 566 former prosecutors, including U.S. attorneys, who believe that, reading the Mueller report, there is ample evidence to go forward with the prosecution on obstruction.

We know Mueller himself has said in the report that it is an opinion by the Office of Legal Counsel precluding the indictment and prosecution of a President while in office that stopped him short of either charging or exonerating the President on this charge.

No, my Republican colleagues want to put the Russia investigation in the past, and as quickly as possible. And then in the next breath, of course, at the hearing where Attorney General Barr appeared, we see that they want to return to those thrilling days of yesteryear. They say we need to look at Hillary Clinton's emails all over again. That, to them, is a more compelling issue. I think they are wrong. The interference by a foreign power in the U.S. election is the most compelling issue before us, and it cannot and should not be ignored.

The work on the Russia investigation is not over. The Mueller report has 14 criminal investigations that have been referred by the special counsel to other Justice Department components. Twelve of those referred investigations are redacted so we don't know their nature.

There is also the counterintelligence side of the investigation. We need to fully understand what evidence Special Counsel Mueller uncovered about how the Russians were able to accomplish what they did.

A spokesman for the White House said several days ago that he couldn't understand all the furor behind this Russia interference. After all, they just bought a couple Facebook ads. Well, it turns out he was wrong. There was a lot more involvement, and the Mueller report pointed to it.

Here is my concern: Attorney General Barr's actions have compromised his credibility when it comes to overseeing the continuing investigations that were brought on by the Mueller inquiry. Barr's blatant mischaracterization of the Mueller report in his March 24 letter and April 18 press conference, his 19-page memo in 2018 that showed bias on the question of obstruction, his decision to make a prosecutorial judgment on obstruction despite Mueller's view that it was not appropriate for the Department to do so in light of that OLC opinion, and Barr's many stunning statements before Congress have undermined confidence in his independence and his judgment.

I have called on him publicly and renew that call that he recuse himself from those pending criminal investigations and prosecutions that emanate from the Mueller report. At a minimum, he should recuse himself from the 14 ongoing referred criminal investigations, and Special Counsel Mueller and Don McGahn should be called on to testify about unresolved questions.

Why in the world are they trying to cover up this investigation? Why wouldn't we bring Bob Mueller before the Senate Judiciary Committee, for example, and ask obvious questions?

Remember, there are two volumes in the Mueller report. The first volume relates to Russian interference in the election and our continuing concern that they are going to try it again in 2020. Shouldn't it be priority one of the Senate Judiciary Committee to have Bob Mueller before us, to have the evidence he accumulated carefully evaluated to protect the integrity of the election process in 2020? Is there any higher priority in a democracy than the integrity of an election?

Clearly, there is, and we have seen it and heard it from the chairman of the Judiciary Committee as well as from the Republican leader today. The highest priority for them is to move on; make certain that we don't spend any moment contemplating, considering, or even arguing about what we could do to make this a better and safer democracy in the next electoral cycle.

On the issue of obstruction of justice, I am afraid we are going to be debating that for some time, but I certainly would like to hear from Bob Mueller, directly, what he did find and why he did not reach a conclusion to exonerate the President on that charge. That is a critical element.

Let me say one last word about a recurring theme and message from the Republican leader about how the previous President, Barack Obama, did not take seriously the threats of Russian involvement in the 2016 election.

I think the record speaks for itself. Leading up to October 7, when the President came forward and publicly stated what he had been doing-- what his administration had been doing to investigate this Russian interference, he called for a bipartisan commitment of Republicans and Democrats to stop it in place.

There was one voice of resistance, and it came from Senator McConnell, the Republican leader. He didn't want to take this as seriously as President Obama did. So for him to blame President Obama for not doing enough is to ignore the obvious. Given the chance, as the Republican Senate leader, he did little or nothing to acknowledge the Russian threat or do anything about it.

Now we should do something to make sure 2020 turns out to be an election we can be proud of, regardless of the outcome. Let the American people have the last word, not Vladimir Putin.

I yield the floor.

I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker) is necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker) is necessarily absent.

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

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

I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker), the Senator from New York (Mrs. Gillibrand), the Senator from California (Ms. Harris), and the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. Klobuchar) are necessarily absent.

Mr. President, in 1958, recently married Genie Zavaleta went on assignment with the Migrant Ministry with her husband Hector. They traveled the country to support Mexican migrant workers. Genie was a child of the Great Depression, and she knew when people needed help. What was supposed to be a 1-year stint became a lifetime of helping people in need.

Last month, Genie passed away at the age of 92. She was known as the grandmother of the Dreamers. She was a longtime champion and mentor to undocumented youth in Arizona and a fierce advocate for the Dream Act. Genie also was my ally in defending the Dreamers.

In 1965, Genie and Hector moved to Arizona permanently with their two sons, Dan and David. Arizona was a transforming State, and the influx of migrant workers attracted Genie. She became the first director of education at Planned Parenthood of Phoenix, teaching classes on poverty and across the county. She taught classes at Phoenix College and Arizona State University too. She worked with the

Maricopa County Health Department for 15 years until her retirement in 1989.

Genie's retirement was not close to the end of her story. She moved into full-time advocacy for immigrants. For more than a decade, my staff and I worked with her on behalf of Dreamers. She saved countless Dreamers from being deported. Genie had my office on speed dial. She frequently alerted us to Dreamers at the risk of deportation. She shared stories of Dreamers that I told on the Senate floor.

In 2011, I organized the Dream Sabbath, a gathering of faith communities around the country to put a human face on the plight of undocumented students. An event about the Dream Act would never be complete without Genie's participation, so of course, she helped organize Arizona's Dream Sabbath.

Genie did not seek fanfare. She quietly became one of Arizona's most influential immigration activists. She did not want fame. It was about the Dreamers.

On the lawn of her home in Arizona, there once were signs covering the whole area for the causes she supported. Today, the house is quiet, and the lawn is empty except one sign, a stars-and-stripes one with ``In our America, all people are equal'' at the top. We will keep fighting on Genie's behalf until the Dream Act is the law of the land.

Genie Zavaleta is survived by her husband Hector, her sons Dan and David, and their wives Nori and Linda. On behalf of the hundreds of people she helped, Loretta and I send our sincere condolences.

(At the request of Mr. Thune, the following statement was ordered to be printed in the Record.)

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

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

I announce that the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Bennet) and the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker) are necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Bennet)

and the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker) are necessarily absent.