Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination: Calendar No. 59, Deanne Bennett Criswell, of New York, to be Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland Security; that the cloture motion be withdrawn, the nomination be confirmed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate; that no further motions be in order to the nomination; and that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action and the Senate then resume legislative session.

Mr. President, as if in executive session, I ask unanimous consent that the cloture motions presented earlier be considered to have been presented in the following order: Miller, McCabe, and Kahl.

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 have 11 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 Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

The Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations.

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

The Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Armed Services

The Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Finance

The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations.

Committee on Finance

The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

The Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

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 Thursday, April 22, 2021, at 10: 15 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations.

Committee on Veterans' Affairs

The Committee on Veterans' Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 22, 2021, at to be determined, to conduct a hearing on nominations.

Committee on the Judiciary

The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, September 30, 2020, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 177, submitted earlier today.

Mr. President, I know of no further debate on the resolution.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the preamble be agreed to and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 178, submitted earlier today.

I ask unanimous consent 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 the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 179, introduced earlier today.

I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 3 p.m., Monday, April 26; 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; that upon the conclusion of morning business, the Senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the Miller nomination; finally, that the cloture motions filed during today's session ripen at 5:30 p.m. on 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 rise today to honor the life and legacy of Mr. Joseph Martin Rose, Sr., Moka'ang Giizis or ``Rising Sun'' in the Ojibwe language, a beloved elder and member of the Eagle Clan of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe. As a member of the Three Fires Midewiwin Grand Medicine Lodge, Joe was a teacher, culture keeper, pipe carrier, and treasure to his community. His life was one of far too many claimed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Joe was born on April 24, 1935, to Carl Rose, Sr., and Mary ``Dolly'' (Jackson) Rose in Oklahoma. When his father volunteered to repair naval ships in Alaska during World War II, his mother brought the family back home to Odanah to live with her parents on the Bad River Native American Reservation. Joe often told stories about growing up in Odanah, calling it a ``time of kerosene lamps, outhouses, and wood heat.'' He credited his grandfather, Dan Jackson, with instilling in him a strong connection to the natural world by teaching him about traditional plants, ceremonies, and medicines. He spent his youth netting fish in the spring, wild ricing in late summer, duck hunting in the fall, then ice skating and enjoying bonfires in the winter.

He attended DePadua High School in Ashland, where he played nose tackle on the football team, wrestled, and sang in the school choir. His athleticism earned him a scholarship to Northland College, where he majored in biology and secondary education, earning a certification to teach high school science and math. After graduation, he spent the next 10 years teaching in South Dakota and Wyoming, while coaching youth sports. With the help of his parents, he raised two children, taught full time, and earned a master's degree in guidance counseling before returning to Bad River in 1970.

Back in Wisconsin, he became the homeschool coordinator and guidance counselor at Ashland High School. As an advocate for Bad River children, he taught them Native American arts and crafts and offered courses about culture. In 1974, he was asked to develop the newly formed Native American Studies Program at Northland College, one of the first such programs in America. As its director, he created a culture- based curriculum that emphasized environmental stewardship and the connection Ojibwe people have with Lake Superior.

Joe's experiential learning courses were memorable for the visits to his home on Waverly Beach, birch bark canoes, ceremonial lodges, and a round house built by his students. He helped create the Traditional Ways Gathering, an annual event celebrating Ojibwe crafts such as beading, basket making, and flintknapping. He formed a relationship with the recently dedicated David R. Obey Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center in Ashland and curated its exhibits on Lake Superior tribal history and culture.

As a staunch defender of Native American treaty rights, Joe and his son, Joe Dan, were among Lake Superior Ojibwe who exercised their rights to spearfish lakes in the ceded territory. They did so in the face of sometimes violent demonstrations in opposition to those rights. He later served on the Voigt Intertribal Task Force, which facilitates the cooperative management of shared natural resources in ceded territory.

Joe retired as an associate professor in 2007, although he continued to teach and serve in leadership roles until the end of his life. Even after retirement, Joe continued his activism against environmental threats facing Lake Superior, including nuclear waste, oil exploration, garbageincineration, factory farming, and taconite mining in the Penokee Hills. His most recent fight was against the Enbridge Line 5 oil pipeline that crosses the Bad River reservation, one of his primary issues of concern as a member of the Ashland County Board. One way or another, Joe was a part of virtually every significant environmental and treaty-rights struggle in the region over the past half century.

While soft-spoken, Joe had a voice that proved powerful and deeply resonant. He believed that he had the responsibility to ``go out and share this knowledge and wisdom of how to live in harmony and balance with the natural world.'' With this ethos and an indomitable faith in grassroots organizing, he never turned down an opportunity fight the good fight and share his knowledge with others. The countless people who were fortunate enough to know and learn from Joe Rose, Sr., will keep his memory alive and continue his good work for generations to come.

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

I call for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, today I rise to recognize the distinguished life of Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, who died

on December 19, 2020, at the age of 87. Justice Abrahamson was a consummate public servant who was passionately driven by the principle of fairness when applying the law and serving the people of Wisconsin. Her unparalleled commitment to judicial independence and justice had an immeasurable impact on Wisconsin's judicial system and the countless women and men who have been inspired to work in public service by her leadership. She was the first woman to serve on the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the first woman to serve as chief justice, but her legacy is even richer than those exceptional accomplishments.

Justice Abrahamson's life had modest beginnings in New York City in 1933, as the child of Polish immigrants. Her passion for the law started at the tender age of 6, when she decided she wanted to become a lawyer. Those who knew her at all stages of life--from childhood to retirement--consistently commented on her thirst for learning. She was a voracious reader even at a very young age and a dedicated student, earning honors in high school and college.

Justice Abrahamson graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor's degree from New York University in 1953. She earned a law degree with high distinction from Indiana University in 1956 and a doctor of law in American Legal History from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1962. Justice Abrahamson began her career as a practicing attorney and distinguished professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School.

Justice Abrahamson's career is an inspiration to all women who are fighting forces that tell them they don't belong because of their gender. She faced significant discrimination when she entered the legal profession in the 1950s. From being denied employment at a law firm after graduating first in her class at Indiana University, to the denial of jobs, clients, and even social club memberships because of her gender, Justice Abrahamson remained undaunted by prejudice. She refused to back down from those who stood in the way of a woman's path to success in the legal profession. She carried that steadfast commitment to fairness and equality in her work on the court.

In 1976, Justice Abrahamson broke the glass ceiling in Wisconsin's judicial system by becoming the first female justice on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. She again changed the judicial landscape in 1996 when she became the first woman to serve as chief justice. For the chief, serving on the supreme court meant serving the people of Wisconsin as an independent, fair, and impartial justice because, after all, the court and our court system belong to the people, not powerful special interests. That is why she spent a lot of her time traveling the State, meeting with people. Whether it was meeting with local judges, riding along with local law enforcement, or meeting with advocates for victims of sexual assault and domestic violence, she always understood that you can't serve the people if you don't walk in their shoes. That is why the people of Wisconsin elected her to the supreme court four times and she served 43 years on the court--serving the people.

The late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said Justice Abrahamson was ``most courageous and sage, and ever mindful of the people--all the people--that the law exists or should exist to serve.''

Justice Abrahamson was cherished and respected as a mentor, teacher, advocate, wife, mother, grandmother and friend. She was known for her strong work ethic, often the last person working at night at the State capitol preparing for a case. Even as she faced pancreatic cancer at the end of her last term on the State supreme court, Justice Abrahamson fearlessly continued working, noting, ``On any day in this state, more than a quarter-million people are facing a cancer diagnosis.'' She tried to make the law more accessible and understandable to clients and the general public and brought a caring perspective to her professional and personal interactions. Her passion was also seen outside of the courtroom in her travels and treasured relationships with family and friends.

Justice Abrahamson was a true American hero. From her incomparable tenure on the Wisconsin Supreme Court to her efforts as a pioneer for gender equality, Justice Abrahamson lived a life devoted to service and justice for all. Her greatest legacy is the trail she blazed for countless young women, who can see themselves in a courtroom or on a judicial bench because of the barriers she fearlessly broke through. She will shine in Wisconsin's history as one of the most influential women who shaped not only our judicial institutions but the State as a whole.

Mr. President, today I rise to honor Neil Heinen, editorial director for WISC-TV and Madison Magazine, on his retirement. Throughout his remarkable career, Neil has been steadfast in his commitment to fair and honest reporting, clear-headed editorials and fascinating stories about the community he loves.

Born in Milwaukee, WI as the oldest of 11 children, Neil first attended St. Norbert College in Green Bay in 1969. He dropped out to spend 4 years working in a mental hospital, where he said he received his real education. He worked as a bartender and actor in Madison before deciding to study journalism at the University of Wisconsin- Madison. He began his career at WIBA radio station, spending 10 years on the air before joining the team at WISC-TV News as a news assignment editor.

It was there that Neil worked with longtime station manager Tom Bier to create an editorial director job just as most stations were eliminating their editorial departments. Neil delivered more than 7,400 on-air editorials since he first conveyed the station's views in April of 1992. He also hosted a Sunday morning public affairs program, ``For the Record,'' that ran 1,500 episodes over 30 years.

Perhaps Neil's greatest legacy is his leadership in guiding the growth and creativity of Madison Magazine, which won countless awards for providing its nearly 170,000 readers with interesting coverage of local people, entertainment, and issues. Neil's contributions included monthly columns on issues of importance to Madisonians and a monthly food column he coauthored with his wife, Nancy Christy. Madison readers particularly enjoyed his cover stories focused on leadership and visions for Madison's future.

Neil has been a familiar and trusted voice in many of Madison's most important events and controversial issues for the past 30 years. He is known for his support of major community projects such as the Monona Terrace Convention Center, the UW-Madison Kohl Center and Overture Center for the Arts. He helped launch We the People/Wisconsin, one of the most successful civic journalism projects in the country in the 1990s, and worked to start Schools of Hope, an initiative to help close the achievement gap in Madison schools.

While Neil's last day of work was this past September 15, I know he will remain active in the community for many years to come, lending his voice to complex community conversations and championing causes that bring us together. I will be forever grateful for Neil's commitment to the Madison community and for offering his wise perspective in critical times.

Mr. President, I rise today to mark the 50th anniversary of a critical milestone in our Nation's march toward equality--the Stonewall uprising of June 28, 1969.

The Stonewall Inn, which opened in 1967 on Christopher Street in Greenwich Village in New York City, was one of many establishments in cities across this country that served as sanctuaries for members of the LGBTQ community from persecution by police and by society at large.

In the late 1960s, every State in America, save one, criminalized same-sex relationships. Many State and local governments also had harsh laws that restricted the ability of transgender people to express their identities, and LGBTQ people were prohibited from gathering socially. As a result, LGBTQ individuals in places like Stonewall Inn, where they gathered, were targeted frequently by law enforcement, including the New York City Police Department. However, by the late 1960s, LGBTQ individuals had already begun to stand up to police harassment, including at places like Cooper Do-nuts in Los Angeles in 1959, Compton's Cafeteria in San Francisco in 1966, and the Black Cat Tavern in Los Angeles in 1967.

In the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, the NYPD raided the Stonewall Inn and arrested several people, just as it had done repeatedly over the days, weeks, and months prior. But this night was different. A few brave individuals--particularly transgender women of color, like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Riviera--stood up and

fought back against this injustice. That night, they sparked an uprising against the NYPD with confrontations and protests at the Stonewall Inn and the surrounding area that lasted over the course of 6 days, until July 3, 1969.

The Stonewall uprising empowered thousands of LGBTQ individuals to emerge from shadows and to come out publicly as they stood up for their community the night of June 28, 1969, and beyond, putting their lives and their safety at risk.

Along with public protests in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Washington, DC, and elsewhere, the Stonewall uprising became a catalyst for the LGBTQ civil rights movement to secure social and political equality and inspired the formation of many advocacy organizations.

A year later, members of the LGBTQ community commemorated the first anniversary of Stonewall and reaffirmed the solidarity of the community by organizing the first Pride marches and events in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

Now, we remember and celebrate the Stonewall uprising every year in June as Pride Month.

Three years ago, President Obama declared the Stonewall Inn and its surrounding area a national monument, becoming the first national monument to commemorate the LGBTQ civil rights movement.

Last month, New York City announced that it would dedicate a monument honoring pioneering transgender activists and key leaders in the Stonewall uprising, including Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Riviera. It would be the first public monument in the world honoring transgender women.

Just a few weeks ago, the NYPD Commissioner issued an official apology on behalf of the department stating: ``The actions taken by the NYPD were wrong--plain and simple.''

I was just a kid when the Stonewall uprising happened. I didn't hear about Stonewall on the news or even learn about it later in my history class. It wasn't until I was in college when, as a part of my own coming out process, I began to research the history of the gay rights movement and I learned more about the events at Stonewall, the people involved, and the movement that it created.

Five years after Stonewall, in 1974, Kathy Kozachenko became the first openly gay person elected to political office in the United States, winning a seat on the Ann Arbor City Council in Michigan. Three years later, in 1977, Harvey Milk was elected to the San Francisco City Council.

In 1986, I had the honor of winning election to the Dane County Board of Supervisors in Madison, WI. It was my first role in elected office, but I wasn't the first. In fact, I was the third openly gay person to serve on the Dane County Board. I was really fortunate to have role models who had come before me.

In 1998, I became the first openly gay person elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a nonincumbent, and, in 2012, I became the first out member of the LGBT community to be elected to the U.S. Senate in its history.

I remember my early years in public office when there were only about two dozen or so elected officials who were out across the country. We would meet on an annual basis to discuss how we could work together to exchange ideas about legislation that would advance equality, and we talked about how we would help to expand our numbers at the local, State, and national levels. I am proud to say that, today, there are more than 700 out LGBT people who are serving in elected office across the United States.

All of these public servants bring their unique life experiences to the job, and they give the LGBT community a seat at the table of our local, State, and Federal Governmental bodies. Perhaps just as importantly, each of these public servants is a role model for the next generation. This is important progress, but we are not there yet. We have more work to do, and we must keep fighting to move our country forward.

Members of the LGBT community continue to experience bias in policing and are still at significant risk of violence and discrimination. According to the annual hate crimes report, which is published by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, LGBT individuals and, particularly, LGBT individuals of color continue to be the target of bias-motivated violence, but efforts to address this violence may be hindered by a continued lack of trust in law enforcement. At least 100 transgender people, primarily women of color, have been murdered in the United States since the beginning of 2015.

No LGBT person in the United States should have to live in fear of being the target of violence. In a majority of States in this country, LGBT Americans can still be fired, evicted from their homes, or denied services because of who they are or whom they love. Because there is no explicit, uniform Federal law protecting LGBT people from discrimination in education, employment, housing, credit, and more, too many Americans are at the mercy of an inadequate patchwork of State and local laws.

The House took a historic step forward last month when it passed the Equality Act. It is time for the Senate to do the same so that all LGBT Americans, no matter where they live, can finally have the freedom of full equality.

This week, I introduced a Senate resolution to honor the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising. It is the first resolution in the U.S. Senate to recognize the story of Stonewall. This resolution commends the bravery, solidarity, and resiliency of the LGBT community in the face of violence and discrimination, both past and present. It also condemns violence and discrimination against members of the LGBT community and recommits to securing justice, equality, and well-being for LGBT people in our country. Stonewall is the story of those who came before us and let their voices be heard--of those who bravely stood up and spoke out so that others would not feel compelled to live in silence or invisibly or in secrecy.

When we look back at the Stonewall uprising and the activism that grew out of that moment, even the most basic progress seemed as if it would take a revolution to achieve--so we had one. We should be proud of the enormous progress that we have made over the last 50 years. Let us remain inspired by the courage of this story, the story of Stonewall.

I yield the floor.