Senate Record of June 23, 2020 — Congressional Record
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Page S3147 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for June 23, 2020, headed Senate Record of June 23, 2020, in interleaved columns, from debate on policing legislation. A speaker says both sides agree on ending choke holds and on passing anti-lynching legislation, and describes working with Senators Harris and Booker to get it passed, which is that speaker's account. The speaker says the video of George Floyd's death stirred the national conscience, with peaceful protests in all 50 States. The speaker criticizes shortcomings of the legislation Leader McConnell wants to bring to the floor.
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June 23, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S3147
training. Both sides agree on ending is not the way you bring together both lions and millions of Americans are de-
choke holds. Both sides agree on pass- sides to address big, important na- manding more, that business as usual
ing anti-lynching legislation. Oh, by tional challenges. is somehow acceptable.
the way, I and Senator GRASSLEY—the Let me take just a few minutes to That video of the murder of George
then-chairman of the Committee on talk about some of the specific short- Floyd at the hands of police stirred a
the Judiciary—worked with Senator comings of the legislation that Senator part of America’s national conscious-
HARRIS and Senator BOOKER to get it MCCONNELL wants to bring to the floor. ness. There have been peaceful protests
passed not once in this Chamber but For example, how can 100 Senators not in all 50 States over the last few weeks
twice. It stalled in the House before it agree that choke holds are wrong and calling for us to stamp out racial injus-
stalled over here. We got it done twice, ought to be banned? That is what my tice—people of all ethnicities, of all
and it is another area of agreement. Democratic colleagues and I have ages, all genders. It has been a rare dis-
Both sides agree on the importance of called for: a nationwide ban on choke play of common purpose and common
more minority hiring in law enforce- holds, period—full stop. engagement in America.
ment. Both sides agree that more body- The Republican bill does not take As Senators, we have an obligation
worn cameras are a good thing. We ac- that same strong, firm position. In my to respond to that call with something
tually go further and have penalties for view, you cannot equivocate when it significantly better than business as
not having the body cameras on, but comes to a reform as basic as banning usual. I know that Senator SCOTT
both sides agree. Both sides agree on the choke hold. Anything short of a wants to get there. I know that my
the creation of a National Criminal ban creates loopholes for the use of Democratic colleagues and I want to
Justice Commission, which, by the choke holds, and that is the wrong way get there.
to go for our country. I am proud to support Senator BOOK-
way, was the No. 1 recommendation of
Second, this bill doesn’t create any ER and Senator HARRIS, who have been
President Obama’s Task Force on 21st
real accountability for police mis- doing outstanding work on this issue,
Century Policing.
So why can’t both sides agree on a conduct. It doesn’t set up independent and I know that, regardless of the out-
investigations for prosecutions of po- come of tomorrow’s vote, we are going
motion to proceed? If there is that
lice abuses. It doesn’t create national to keep working.
much commonality in the underlying
As for this week, the Senate would be
legislation, if we are all watching the standards for law enforcement. It does
wrong to just rush this process and just
same pictures that we have all found not end qualified immunity.
check the box with a partisan process,
disgusting and unbelievable, why can’t Those issues are right at the center
a partisan approach, before shrugging
we agree on tackling the issues in a of the challenge of reforming policing
its shoulders and moving on to the
substantive way here on the floor of in America, and they are the issues the
task of dealing with more far-right
the world’s greatest deliberative body? American people want to see addressed
judges.
That is what we are supposed to do head-on. So I am going to vote against clo-
here. We debate the issues. I want the A lot of what the majority’s bill— ture. I urge my colleagues to do the
Nation to see; I want the public to see; Senator MCCONNELL’s bill—does with same.
I want the world to see; I want all of respect to police conduct is essentially I yield the floor.
America to see our debating this issue. collecting data. Nobody is protesting The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr.
I thank the Presiding Officer. collecting data. What people are pro- BOOZMAN). The Senator from Min-
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- testing on is they want to save lives. nesota.
ator from Oregon. The Senate ought to do better and VOTING
Mr. WYDEN. Madam President, make those real changes that improve Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I
across the country, there has been a public safety. rise today and thank my colleague
national outcry for justice and for real Third, the extreme militarization of from Oregon and also thank him for his
changes in law to address police bru- our police forces in recent years. It is work on the voting bill. We just had a
tality and reflect the undeniable truth actually an issue that goes back more discussion with Senator BLUNT about
that Black lives matter. than a few years, but the danger of a that, and while we didn’t agree on the
This week should be our opportunity military mindset in domestic law en- bill, there is a discussion that is ongo-
in the U.S. Senate to come together— forcement was never more clear than ing—as we head into another COVID
Republicans and Democrats—to begin when Trump officials started talking package, possibly, which we really be-
to fix our broken policing system, about ‘‘dominating the battle space.’’ lieve we need to—on working on some
which is what so many people in big Our communities are not war zones; funding issues for the States as we look
cities and small towns in Oregon and in our citizens are not enemy combatants; at more and more balloting from home
every State across America are de- and our police officers should not be and how important that is.
manding of us. Yet, instead of allowing occupying forces, so why has the I want to thank Senator WYDEN for
that kind of bipartisan discussion, United States undergone this years’ his leadership for so long on that issue.
Leader MCCONNELL is plowing ahead long military mobilization on its own I brought up his home State in a
with partisan business, as usual, on a streets, against its own people? speech about an hour or so ago and the
bill that falls very short of what the It is long past time for this to end work that Oregon has done with ballot-
Senate ought to accomplish. and for all our communities to insti- by-home and, I think, ballots from
I see my friend on the floor, Mr. tute 21st century community policing home.
SCOTT, the distinguished Senator from policies, but the Republican bill does I actually think I used the number of
South Carolina. I want to make it clear not do that either. percentage of fraud as 0.0000001, or
that I have great respect for Senator The truth is, Senator SCOTT’s bill something like that, to show that what
SCOTT. He is an important member of does take a few good steps, like estab- the President said is not true; that we
the Senate Committee on Finance, on lishing the duty to intervene and mak- have had, actually, in many States
which both of us serve. I appreciate ing lynching a Federal crime. Those across the country—including Utah, a
every opportunity to work with him. In are issues that I and other Democrats redder State—a big success with voting
fact, I think a fair number of people would like to work on with Senator from home.
around the country will note the work SCOTT on a comprehensive bill, but JUSTICE IN POLICING ACT
we have just done in the last few weeks that is not what Senator MCCONNELL Mr. President, I rise today on an-
on nonprofit organizations. So we will has put on offer this week. other matter, and that is to urge the
be working together, I know, in the My concern is that if the Senate Senate to consider meaningful, com-
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days ahead. takes up the McConnell bill, it is going prehensive legislation to make sys-
Unfortunately, the majority leader is to just be business as usual under the temic changes to our justice system
giving short shrift to this debate on Republican leader: a short debate cut that will save lives—save lives in the
ending systemic racism by putting for- off arbitrarily, not enough votes, and Black community and save lives in all
ward an inadequate bill and essentially not enough improvements to the actual communities of color that have experi-
daring the other side to oppose it. That bill. I just don’t believe that, when mil- enced injustice for far too long.
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S3148 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 23, 2020
I am deeply concerned that the bill Floyd pinned down—pinned to the temic change we need in our criminal
on the floor this week fails to meet ground. justice system.
this moment. It has been nearly 1 I have called on the Department of Critically, the Republican proposal
month since George Floyd was mur- Justice, with 26 other Senators, to con- does not include necessary changes to
dered in my State. We all watched as duct a full-scale investigation into the hold individual officers accountable for
his life evaporated before our eyes. It patterns and practices of the Min- misconduct, like making records of po-
was a horrible thing. neapolis Police Department, and any lice misconduct public. Real change
People who watched it, whether they bill that we consider should make sure comes with accountability and, as
were in law enforcement or whether the Civil Rights Division has the au- drafted, the Republican bill does not
they were just regular citizens who saw thority and the resources they need to provide it. That is why it is opposed by
this, it hit home to many of them for conduct a thorough investigation. civil rights and criminal justice
the first time—and many of them, By the way, our calls have still gone groups, and it is why the attorney for
sadly, in the African-American com- unheeded. During the Obama Justice George Floyd’s family—and I had the
munity for many, many times before Department time period, 25 of these honor of speaking with George Floyd’s
that—how truly unjust this is and how cases—pattern-and-practice investiga- family—has said that this bill is ‘‘in di-
immoral this is. tions—were brought. During the Trump rect contrast to the demands of the
His death was horrifying and inhu- Justice Department time period, just people.’’
mane, and it galvanized a nationwide one unit of the Springfield, MA, Police So where do we go from here? Well,
movement for justice. Department went through a pattern- we can start by calling up the bill that
As Members of the U.S. Senate, we and-practice investigation. will be coming over from the House. We
have a responsibility to respond to that I don’t know what more proof we can start by agreeing to work together.
call with action, and that means, when need than the fact of the video and the Let’s have a bipartisan process to de-
you have systemic racism, that you fact that there were other officers velop the consensus bill that we need
must address it with systemic change. standing nearby, the fact that we have based on the bill that is going to be
Some of that is happening in our called for this with 26 Senators but, coming over from the House.
State and local governments. That is a still, we await any final word from the As a member of the Judiciary Com-
good thing. But some of that must also Justice Department. mittee, I have seen what happens when
happen here. This is not just an issue They have informed us that they are we work together to get something
for one city or one State—my home still looking at this, but in the mean- done. That is how we passed the FIRST
State—nor is it an issue at just the time, our Department of Human Rights STEP Act, which passed the Senate
local level. There is a lot of work that in the State of Minnesota is stepping in with a vote of 87 to 12 by reaching
needs to be done at the local level, and to fill the void. I don’t think that is across the aisle and by actually doing
that has been acknowledged by mayors the ideal way to do it. You would like something—not just a bill full of plati-
and police chiefs across the country. a Justice Department that has experi- tudes or studies but actually doing
There is also really important work ence doing this in other jurisdictions, something, which is what the people
that we must do here. I was proud to but our State’s Department of Human are calling out for now.
join my colleagues in introducing the Rights is now stepping in and con- By the way, there are a lot of good
Justice in Policing Act, led by Sen- ducting its own pattern-and-practice police officers out there, including ones
ators BOOKER and HARRIS, which makes investigation. who work around us, and when you put
comprehensive changes to our justice The bill on the floor fails to help strong standards in place, they meet
system that are long overdue. States conduct their own investiga- those standards.
These reforms—including police offi- tions, as I just mentioned, to address To allow that conduct that we saw on
cers being held accountable for mis- systemic problems in culture, training, that video to go without national
conduct, reforming police practices, and accountability at police depart- changes to our policing would be just
and improving transparency—will be ments, like what the Minnesota De- to say, well, it is just this incident in
good for our Nation. The Justice in Po- partment of Human Rights is now con- Minnesota, which, of course, is being
licing Act will help to prevent more ducting. By the way, with the proper prosecuted by our attorney general,
tragedies like those we have seen—pre- resources and the experience they are Keith Ellison. That is how you could
vent murders. gleaning from former Justice Depart- resolve it if you thought it just hap-
It is widely supported by groups like ment officials and the like, this is one pened once and it just happened in one
the NAACP, the Leadership Conference way to handle some of this, in addition State, but we know that is not true,
on Civil and Human Rights, and the to the Justice Department. my colleagues. We know that is not
National Urban League. At a time when our Justice Depart- true. That is why it is so important to
The House is expected to pass the bill ment has failed to take up these inves- take action and pass the actual bill.
this Thursday. Then it comes over tigations, this provision that is in the We already started this process in
here. But instead of taking up that bill, Justice in Policing Act is even more the Senate Judiciary Committee. Last
the Justice in Policing Act, Leader critical. week, we held a hearing on these
MCCONNELL has brought a different bill We must also take action to put an issues. We heard testimony from local
to the Senate floor: the JUSTICE Act. end to practices that unnecessarily put leaders like St. Paul Mayor Melvin
My problem with it is, despite the people’s lives at risk. I worked with Carter and law enforcement officers
name and despite a lot of the words Senator GILLIBRAND and Senator SMITH from across the country.
that we are hearing on the other side, of my State on provisions in the Jus- I heard a lot of agreement among
it doesn’t get us to where we need to tice in Policing Act to ban Federal law many of those who testified—not all of
be. In this moment, as people are still enforcement officers from using choke them but many of them: support for
marching and demanding change, we holds and other neck restraints and to banning choke holds, establishing a na-
cannot confront these urgent issues prohibit States from receiving certain tional use-of-force policy—these are
with half measures or equivocation. Federal funding unless they have police chiefs—creating a public data-
I have serious concerns that this bill passed laws to ban these practices. base of public misconduct, and ensur-
does not respond to the nationwide call We have used this method in the ing independent investigations of po-
for justice. Unlike the Justice in Polic- past, and if there is significant funding lice-involved deaths, something I
ing Act that is going to pass the House, attached to it, States will react. pushed for in my former job.
the bill we are considering here in the The bill on the floor this week from You cannot have the police depart-
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Senate lacks critical reforms to our Republican counterparts only bans ment that the officer works for inves-
strengthen Federal pattern-and-prac- certain types of choke holds—those tigating this conduct. That is wrong,
tice investigations, a reform that is ur- that restrict airflow but not blood as I said publicly years ago.
gently needed after we all saw the flow—and only in certain situations. There are areas where we can find
video of the police officers standing This does not go to the point that we agreement, but we have to mean it.
right next to each other with George need it to go to get the kind of sys- Chairman GRAHAM said at the hearing
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June 23, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S3149
that he hopes the Judiciary Committee Just think about the big things we must be serious too. This is the mo-
could consider what has been proposed have been able to get done in the past ment. This is the moment for us to be
and ‘‘come up with something in com- decade or so. I am not trying to equate serious together and address this in a
mon.’’ this current moment and this serious- big, profound, systemic way.
Well, we start with the bill that is ness, but I know we know how to do Eric, Michael, Freddie, Breonna,
going to be coming over from the other big things. The Presiding Officer George, Rayshard, and all of those who
House, the bill that has been sponsored knows that too. We do things across are no longer with us, as well as all of
in the U.S. Senate by Senators BOOKER the aisle. We work across the aisle those marching, marching, marching
and HARRIS. when we want to get things done. and speaking out deserve nothing less
Instead, Leader MCCONNELL is asking I think about passing a farm bill, a 5- than our best at this moment. They de-
us to consider a bill that was drafted in year farm bill. A lot of people said we serve a serious bipartisan effort. That
their caucus, yes, but without the couldn’t get it done because of all the is what I support. That is what my
input of so many of us who have seen different interests—the interests of Democratic colleagues support.
firsthand the damage that has been families and food assistance, the inter- We know it takes sitting down and
done here. He is, then, moving that bill ests of farmers and ranchers and so on. listening to each other. It takes work-
directly to the floor instead of letting I had my doubts during those times, ing out differences. That is the only
the Judiciary Committee consider it. I but we kept on working in a bipartisan way change happens. We are willing to
think that fails to make the kind of way, and in the end we got a bipartisan put in whatever time and effort it
meaningful change we need in our sys- bill that was good for farmers and our takes to make this happen, and that is
tem. families, good for our environment, what we are going to continue to fight
This is a moment for urgent action, good for our economy. In fact, we for.
but it is also a moment for funda- passed it with an 87-to-13 vote, which is I yield the floor.
mental change. If we respond to all of the most votes we have ever had in the I suggest the absence of a quorum.
those people out there and the family Senate for a farm bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The
of George Floyd—whom I got to meet Police violence and the systemic rac- clerk will call the roll.
and sat across the pews from at that ism that is behind it deserves at least The senior assistant legislative clerk
memorial service—if we respond with the same bipartisan effort that we gave proceeded to call the roll.
silence, then we are complicit. If we re- the farm bill. In much the same way, Ms. DUCKWORTH. Mr. President, I
spond as the President has suggested, the Senate came together across the ask unanimous consent that the order
with dominance and by waving a Bible aisle and got comprehensive immigra- for the quorum call be rescinded.
in front of a church for a photo op, tion reform done. That only happened The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. CAS-
then we are monsters. because people sat down together with SIDY). Without objection, it is so or-
If we respond with action—meaning- different views—Republicans and dered.
ful action—colleagues, then we are law- Democrats—and worked through the Ms. DUCKWORTH. Mr. President, if
makers, and that is what the people of complicated issues that were standing you walk outside this building and
our State sent us to do. in our way, and we got it done in the take a few steps toward the White
I yield the floor. Senate. House, you can almost hear the cries
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- Police violence and the systemic rac- for justice still ringing out through the
ator from Michigan. ism behind it deserve at least that
Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I air; you can almost still smell the tear
same bipartisan effort. gas lingering over our Nation’s Capital.
want to thank the Senator from Min- More recently, there was the CARES
nesota for her ongoing leadership on so Listen closely and you might still be
Act. Democrats and Republicans
many issues and, certainly, this is one able to catch the echoes of the peaceful
worked day and night to come together
of them. We greatly appreciate and protesters chanting the name of
in agreement on the most effective way
need your voice. Breonna Taylor, who was killed in her
to meet the needs of Americans during
Mr. President, for over the past own home after police executed a no-
an unprecedented health and economic
month, Americans in all parts of our knock warrant; or the name of George
crisis—which, by the way, we need to
country and from all walks of life have do again because we are not done. Floyd, who was forced to beg for his
once again been marching for the cause Police violence and the systemic rac- life until he couldn’t beg any longer,
of justice. They are raising their voices ism behind it deserve at least that kind held down under the knee of a police
and raising the names of those killed of effort. This is a huge crisis that officer who swore an oath to protect
by police violence: Eric Garner, Mi- pulls at the very soul of America. This and serve; or Rayshard Brooks, who
chael Brown, Freddie Gray, Breonna issue certainly deserves the best of all was shot in the back just 11 days ago,
Taylor, George Floyd, and Rayshard of us right now, the best of what we even as this moment of national reck-
Brooks. can do. oning over police brutality was already
Americans aren’t marching because Systemic racism and related police under way.
of politics. They are not marching be- violence certainly deserve, at min- For nearly a month now, Americans
cause they want the Senate to pretend imum, the same kind of bipartisan ef- have been lying down, standing up,
to address this issue and hope it goes fort we have focused on other issues kneeling, marching, and mourning in
away. Americans aren’t marching be- that have not had the life-and-death the streets. They have been tugging at
cause they want more studies and re- consequences of this issue. and prodding our country, trying to
ports. No. Americans from all walks of The people who are marching and drag it forward until it lives up to the
life—young and old, people of all back- who are crying out for justice deserve a words of its Pledge of Allegiance that
grounds, religions, and nationalities— serious response at a serious moment. in this Republic, there is ‘‘liberty and
are marching because they are sick and Leader MCCONNELL needs to take this justice for all.’’
tired of learning about more names. issue seriously and support a bipar- So far, this Nation has failed to make
They want the people who represent tisan process, instead of just moving to the promise a reality for Black Ameri-
them here in this Chamber to finally a weak, flawed, Republican bill just to cans. It has failed the families of
confront this deadly serious issue with pretend that he tried to do something. Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and
the seriousness it deserves. The House of Representatives are se- Rayshard Brooks. It has failed every
It is time we meet their expectations rious. They are passing a bill this week Black child who knows that playing on
in this historic moment. This really is and sending it over to us. It is a serious a jungle gym could be a death sen-
a historic moment. It is a historic op- bill. I am proud to be a cosponsor of tence. It has failed every Black parent
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portunity for all of us to come to- the Senate version with our leaders who kisses the top of their child’s head
gether. It is past time to do something Senator BOOKER and Senator HARRIS. before school each morning as their
to stop the violence. It is time to come They are serious about passing the Jus- heart breaks with the knowledge that
together and to do something big and tice in Policing Act. this time could be the last.
consequential, and it is going to take Senate Democrats are serious. MITCH I know that I would never be able to
all of us to be able to do that. MCCONNELL and Senate Republicans fully comprehend the fear and trauma
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S3150 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 23, 2020
that Black Americans experience every try to pass legislation that would actu- people is less safe than another for no
day. But what I do know is that the ally address the issues in question and reason other than the color of their
burden of this pain can’t fall on them the crisis at hand. skin. We have to refuse to accept it,
alone. The responsibility, the work of Look, next week our country will cel- but that is the country in which we
bending the moral arc of the universe ebrate its Independence Day. What live.
toward justice can’t just be put on the does freedom for any one of us mean if We have to acknowledge, finally,
backs of those who have been feeling so many of our neighbors still are not what KAMALA HARRIS and CORY BOOKER
its weight this whole time. Rather, it free to walk down the street or sleep in and others have been telling us, which
is on all of us—Black, White, Asian, their own homes without fearing for is that our criminal justice system in
Latinx, you name it—to help those their lives? Until every Black Amer- this country is broken.
families and communities finally re- ican can breathe without a knee on Our long history of unequal treat-
ceive the justice they deserve. their neck, no American should feel as ment of poor and minority criminal of-
But I come to the floor today because if we are truly able to take a breath fenders—especially Black Americans—
my Republican colleagues are trying to ourselves. has evolved into a system of mass in-
force through a bill that barely even The Republican bill that we are ex- carceration unlike that of any other
pays lip service to the crisis at hand. In pected to vote on tomorrow isn’t just a developed democracy. A network of
some ways, it doesn’t even accomplish disappointment. It leaves Black Ameri- dystopian, privatized prison spreads
that. In spite of its name, the JUSTICE cans in unnecessary danger. And set- across the land to house people who, in
Act wouldn’t begin to bring any sem- tling for lip service when lives are at many cases, shouldn’t even be behind
blance of real justice to the victims stake isn’t just inadequate. It is cruel bars, who were convicted for infrac-
from Minneapolis to Atlanta to Louis- too. tions relating to things that are legal
ville and beyond. I yield the floor. in the State of Colorado today.
It should be obvious by now that the The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- According to Ta-Nehisi Coates’ defin-
ator from Colorado. itive article on the subject of the U.S.
epidemic of police brutality will not be
Mr. BENNET. Mr. President, I want mass incarceration, our country ac-
fixed by some bandaid bill. We need to
to thank my friends, KAMALA HARRIS counts for less than 5 percent of the
reckon with the real, deep, uncomfort-
from California and CORY BOOKER from world’s population but 25 percent of
able realities and systemic biases that
New Jersey, for leading us in this fight those who are incarcerated. Our closest
have marred our country for years. We
for so many years. competitor—and it is hard to find one—
need to bring systemic change to our
I remember well when I first went to is Russia, a virtual police state.
law enforcement agencies. We need to In our country, there is nothing
force a seismic shift in how we root out work for the city and county of Den-
equal about who is incarcerated. Black
and respond to police brutality, includ- ver. One of the first tragedies that we
males between the ages of 20 and 39 are
ing banning choke holds and no-knock had in the city at that time was the
incarcerated at a rate 10 times the rate
warrants in drug cases at the Federal shooting of a young man named Paul
of their White peers. Every one of these
level. My friend Senator BOOKER has Childs in Park Hill by police under cir-
issues needs to be reexamined and
introduced legislation that would do cumstances that should never have formed not by ideology but by prag-
just that; the Republican bill would happened. That was almost 20 years matism and, most important, the
not. ago, but these headlines haven’t moral commandments of a just society.
We need to hold accountable officers stopped. If anything, matters have got- That is what the patriotic Americans
who break the laws they were trusted ten worse. in our streets in downtowns demand.
to enforce, ensuring that independent As the country has grappled with the They are not calling for one more com-
prosecutors review police uses of force pandemic over the last few months, I mission. They are not calling for one
and prosecute officers who act irre- heard a lot of people talk about how it more study. They are calling for real
sponsibly, recognizing that local pros- has revealed a profound sense of in- reform. That is what people mean when
ecutors often have a conflict of interest equality in our country, how it has ex- they say: This moment calls for real
because they rely on the same police posed all this injustice in the United reform. That is what the people are
departments to win other cases. I have States of America. saying in the streets.
written legislation to do just that, We should not have needed a pan- With respect to my colleagues on the
which has been included in the Demo- demic to expose the injustice that ex- other side, the proposal Senator
cratic bill, but the Republican bill ists in the United Stated of America. It MCCONNELL has put forward doesn’t
would not do anything close. should not have taken a pandemic to come close to meeting that test. His
We need to amend Federal law on alert people to the injustice in our bill, his proposal, which is meant to
qualified immunity so that officers country. If you have been paying any paper this over and get through to an-
can’t just violate Americans’ constitu- attention, if you have listened at all to other chapter, not address the issue—
tional rights with mere impunity, and the Black voices in the United States his bill still allows the use of choke
we need to mandate anti-bias Federal of America, then you know these injus- holds, the same choke holds that suffo-
law enforcement training. Democrats tices have been with us for generations. cated the life from Eric Garner. It
have put forward policy that would do In the case of our law enforcement doesn’t ban no-knock warrants, the
all of that. The Republican bill refuses system, they have literally had life- same practice that led police to break
any such attempt at accountability and-death consequences for Black down Breonna Taylor’s door and shoot
and wouldn’t even ban racial profiling. Americans, and it just keeps hap- her eight times in her own apartment.
It comes down to this: Real justice, pening. One reason it keeps hap- It doesn’t make it easier for families
real accountability requires these re- pening—the one reason it happened to like the family of George Floyd to seek
forms. Yet the JUSTICE Act itself is Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, or justice when their loved ones have been
silent on so many of them. The so- George Floyd—is that what happened victimized by police brutality. It
called ‘‘reform’’ bill aims more at re- to them would never happen to my doesn’t even ban racial profiling. There
forming public opinion than actually three daughters; what happened to is virtually nothing in this bill to re-
reforming the policies that got us here. them would never happen to me. It has spond to the families calling for justice
The families grieving today deserve never occurred to me once, when I am or to save lives from police practices
better, as George Floyd’s family made walking around my neighborhood in that have no place in America in the
it clear when they themselves spoke Denver, that what happened to them year 2020.
out against the bill. They know that could happen to me or my children. This is not a time for half measures,
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those who had a loved one stolen from That is what is meant, in part, by for one more attempt to use talking
them deserve more than just lip serv- White privilege—a privilege that al- points and legislative tricks to make it
ice. They deserve for their Senators, most everybody in this Chamber en- seem like we are doing something when
for the officials elected to represent joys. we are not. The idea that the country
them in what is supposed to be the I think we can never accept that we isn’t ready for a comprehensive ap-
world’s greatest deliberative body to live in a country where one group of proach is not true.
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June 23, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S3151
I will yield to my colleague from borough, Trumbull, Windsor, Glaston- in drug cases so we can credibly tell
Connecticut in just a minute. bury; and then places like Torrington, the American people we hear you, and
Last week in Colorado—my State, a East Hartford, Danbury—all across the we will act.
Western State, a purple State—we be- State, proud to be with people from Communities of color must be able to
came the first State in America to pass Connecticut, led by our young people, trust that law enforcement will be held
a sweeping police accountability bill as are many great social movements accountable if they commit criminal
into law. It is almost exactly like the and revolutions of our time led by acts. The Republican JUSTICE Act
one we have proposed here. We passed young people who have the audacity completely lacks any mechanism to
that bill 52 to 13 in the State House and and hope to cast aside the normal and hold law enforcement officers account-
32 to 2 in the Senate—32 to 2. Only two say: There is no going back. There is able in court for their misconduct. It
Republicans in the Senate voted no rolling back to the old normal. makes no change to section 242 of title
against that bill. Every single Demo- What we need is action. XVIII, which makes it a Federal crime
crat voted for that bill. And that is That has been the common theme in to willfully deprive a person of con-
Colorado, out in the middle of the these cries for justice—the demands for stitutional rights.
country. It sets a standard for what we accountability, the pleas for an end to This criminal statute can be used to
need to do in Washington, which is to racism, generations of racial justice, hold officers accountable for the use of
pass the Justice in Policing Act that and racism with historic roots in so excessive force—something we all
Senator HARRIS and Senator BOOKER many of our institutions, including know led to the deaths of far too many
have put forward because we will never some of our law enforcement. But they Black and Brown people in this coun-
heal as a nation, as a country, unless are demanding more than just our lis- try. I believe that criminal liability is
we confront and dismantle the sys- tening and more than just our speak- a critical tool in the law enforcement
temic injustice and the systemic rac- ing. They are demanding action—real accountability toolbox but only if it is
ism that still plagues America, running action, real reform, real change with used.
as it does in a straight line from slav- real teeth and new laws. Right now, civil liability is available,
ery to Jim Crow, to the redlining of The time has come for us in this Con- albeit an inadequate remedy so long as
our housing and banking system, to the gress to heed those calls. We need leg- a qualified immunity is not reformed.
mass incarceration that we have, to islation that honors the memories and But very often, in 99 percent of the
the prisons that Ta-Nehisi Coates re- the lives of those who have lost their cases, any civil remedy involves indem-
fers to as ‘‘The Gray Wastes.’’ futures: Michael Brown, Philando Cas- nification by the municipal govern-
As I said on the floor the other day, tile, Sandra Bland, and countless oth- ment. Indemnification means the indi-
anyone who studied the history of our ers added to George Floyd, Breonna vidual officer feels no financial penalty
democracy knows how tough it is to Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and Rayshard and very often little other penalty.
make progress. The struggle has al- Brooks. Some are in the headlines. Criminal liability involving potentially
ways been a battle from the very begin- Some of their deaths have been caught prison concentrates the mind. It is a
ning of our founding, between our high- on video—but so many thousands never strong deterrent.
est ideals and our worst instincts as a on video, never publicized, and never As I said in a hearing that we con-
country. More often than not, the ful- known to the public. ducted in the Judiciary Committee, we
crum of that battle from the founding In their memory, but also for the need change to make it a real remedy
until today has been race. Progress on sake of our future, we should move for- and a real deterrent. When Officer
these lines has never been easy. It has ward with action. We are here today Chauvin held his knee on George
never come easy. because, simply and starkly, the Re- Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes 46 seconds,
Among us are still people whose poli- publican JUSTICE Act fails to meet he looked straight into those cameras
tics are aimed at stripping some citi- this moment. It fails that test. with impunity because he assumed he
zens of their rights and opportunity, I have been listening not only to the would never be prosecuted criminally.
who despise pluralism, who succumb to folks in the streets and our commu- He never imagined that justice would
fearful hatreds like racism or who care nities but also to my great colleagues find him, and justice still must find
nothing for anyone but themselves. CORY BOOKER and KAMALA HARRIS. him in a criminal court. He ignored the
Their presence means that the rest of Clearly, from what we have heard from pleas of bystanders telling him to stop.
us, most of us, who Martin Luther them and the work they have done, He ignored George Floyd, as he begged
King, Jr., called the great decent ma- along with many of us, to fashion the for his life.
jority, must share an even deeper un- Justice in Policing Act, the Republican These kinds of actions by an indi-
derstanding of our patriotic obligation proposal is a shadow of what it should vidual in a system that has shielded
to our fellow Americans and to our Re- be—unacceptably weak, nibbling people like them simply encourage
public. Right now, that obligation around the edges of this problem, with- more of them. Section 242’s change in
means doing everything in our power out any guarantee that Black Ameri- the standard of criminal intent will
to answer the call of Americans in our cans will not again ask us whether provide real criminal culpability for
streets and downtowns, from DC to their lives are worth $20. police who deserve it.
Denver, and beyond, who are calling for The JUSTICE Act fails completely to The Republican JUSTICE Act relies
an America where no one is denied pro- address the harmful policing practices mainly on data collection, which may
tection of the law or justice or their that we know have cost lives. The be used to inform policy proposal at
own life because of the color of their deaths of Breonna Taylor and Eric Gar- some later time. It pushes down the
skin. ner are not anomalies. Choke holds and road any real action.
I yield the floor. no-knock warrants are known to be We already have statistics. Since
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- costly. They have cost Black lives. The 2015, there have been 5,000 fatal shoot-
ator from Connecticut. JUSTICE Act ignores this truth. ings by on-duty police officers. In the
Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, I Americans are not marching in the past year, over 1,000 people have been
have been doing a lot of listening over streets so we might ‘‘study’’ these phe- shot and killed by police. Black Ameri-
these past months. Like Americans nomena. They are not begging us to de- cans account for less than 13 percent of
across this country, I have been doing sign programs ‘‘disincentivizing’’ prac- the country’s population, but they are
a lot of listening to the dedicated and tices that are literally killing Ameri- killed at more than twice the rate of
passionate people, our fellow Ameri- cans—Black Americans—Americans White Americans.
cans, who have marched in the streets who deserve justice. Data is important. In fact, I was the
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and our communities with passion, but The notion we could respond to this lead sponsor of the Death in Custody
peacefully, in their cries for justice. In moment with a commission or several Reporting Act, passed about 6 years
fact, I have marched with them in 15 or commissions and incentives to do bet- ago. Regrettably and inexcusably, that
more demonstrations in Connecticut— ter is insulting to all of us. We need measure has never been enforced so
big cities, Hartford, Stamford, New legislation that explicitly bans the use that it has never really been effective.
Haven; smaller cities, Lyme, Marl- of choke holds and no-knock warrants We must make it so. But it shows the
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S3152 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 23, 2020
limitation of any data collection sys- but these reforms are an important critical needs of communities such as
tem. The fact is, systematic racism law start to making policing in our coun- social services, mental health services,
enforcement has gone unchecked for try more just. and education.’’
too long. The time for accountability is The Justice in Policing Act would The Urban League says this Scott
now. It is long overdue. create real change in our justice sys- bill ‘‘dances around the edges in a show
Let me say, finally, for most of my tem, and communities across the coun- of political posturing.’’
professional career, I have helped to try can’t afford for us to not act on We refuse to engage in that political
enforce the laws. I have been a trial this meaningful legislation. What we posturing. We refuse to act like it is
lawyer, yes, but I also served as the cannot do is pass something just called just a box we check and then we can
chief Federal prosecutor—the U.S. at- police reform that does so little to ac- move on. We refuse to insult Black
torney—for Connecticut for 41⁄2 years tually reform policing and then turn Americans by pretending—pretending—
and then as attorney general of my around and tell Black mothers and fa- this is a serious effort. People have suf-
State for 20. I have seen some of the thers whose children who have been fered too long for that.
best in law enforcement and some of slain: See, we solved it. Our work here We have been here before. This isn’t
the worst. is done. the first wave of protests or the second.
We need a higher standard, not just I respect Senator SCOTT, and I appre- In 2014, after the murders of Tamir
in words or paper but in fact. We need ciate his coming to the table and tak- Rice in my city of Cleveland and Mi-
a standard that is worthy of the people ing on this issue. I know he is fighting chael Brown in Ferguson, MO, Presi-
who have marched and cried for justice an uphill battle with his own caucus. I dent Obama’s legislation laid impor-
throughout American history, who know that. So many on his side of the tant groundwork for reform. They
have tried to dream of a better system aisle don’t want to do anything, but studied what reforms would be most ef-
and a fairer country. There is so much they think they need to check the box. fective. They instituted consent de-
work for us to do. At this moment, we I want to work with Senator SCOTT crees with cities to hold departments
must seize the opportunity, a point of and with anyone of either party on real accountable, and they created a road-
consensus, to come together and act in solutions. All of us on our side do. But map we could follow. But President
a way that is worthy of this great Na- I am not willing to participate in a po- Trump undid much of the progress the
tion. We have proposed exactly that ac- litical charade to vote on something Obama administration made.
tion in the Justice in Policing Act. We that has no chance to lead to real The Urban League put out a plan for
should be moving forward on it now, change. It just checks a box and pro- reform around the time of the murder
not on a bill that is truly unacceptably vides politicians with a talking point. of Tamir Rice after Michael Brown’s
weak and inadequate and unworthy of It is an insult to Black families who murder in 2014. Since then, nearly 1,300
this historic moment. have been fed empty promise after Black men and women—think of that—
I yield the floor. empty promise, year after year, decade more than 1,300 Black men and women
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- after decade, generation after genera- have been fatally shot by the police
ator from Ohio. tion. since the deaths of Michael Brown and
THE JUSTICE ACT We need to listen to the communities Tamir Rice 6 years ago. This bill does
Mr. BROWN. Thank you, Mr. Presi- that suffer the most at the hands of po- nothing to stop the practices that
dent. Thousands of Americans are pro- lice violence. They all agree that the killed them.
testing in communities across our Senate Republican bill is simply not Black Americans know their lives are
country demanding that our country serious. It will not fix the problems. We put in danger by police every day. We
be better. The protests are an expres- will be right back here sooner rather must listen to them. People all around
sion of grief for Ms. Taylor and Mr. than later. Virtually every major civil the country—Black and White and
Floyd and Mr. Arbery and Mr. Brooks rights group opposes this bill: the Brown, in small towns and big cities,
and so many other Black Americans NAACP Legal Defense Fund; the Urban young and old—are listening, waking
murdered by the people who are sup- League; the Young Women’s Christian up, and joining the calls for change.
posed to protect them. They are an ex- Association, one of the most important The peaceful demonstrations and pro-
pression of frustration and anger. It is civil rights and women’s rights organi- tests all over my State in Black and
2020. It is the year 2020, a century and zations in the country. White neighborhoods and integrated
a half after the official end of slavery, It doesn’t ban no-knock warrants; communities and small towns and
five and a half decades after the pas- the Justice in Policing Act does. It rural Ohio, in big cities, in suburbs ev-
sage of the Civil Rights Act, and still doesn’t stop the militarization of po- erywhere—let’s follow their lead. Let’s
Black Americans are fighting the same lice departments; the Justice in Polic- actually hear the voices that have been
fight. They are also an expression of ing Act does. It doesn’t create a na- silenced for too long.
hope against racism. We demand that tional misconduct registry; the Justice I urge my colleagues to vote no and,
our country do better. Demanding that in Policing Act does. It doesn’t ban instead, to work with us on real, mean-
we live up to our founding ideals is one choke holds; the Justice in Policing ingful reform to transform our public
of the most patriotic things anyone Act does. These are all steps that civil safety system into one that actually
can do. rights groups have said are critical to keeps people safe.
We need to listen to the Black voices any reform effort. It is the bare min- I yield the floor.
leading these calls for justice and take imum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen-
real action. That is what Democrats All this bill offers is more studies of ator from New Jersey.
want to do, and my colleagues Senator questions we already know the answers Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I
HARRIS and Senator BOOKER and the to. We don’t need more studies. We rise today to address the nationwide
Congressional Black Caucus in the don’t need more task forces. We don’t call for reasonable, sensible police re-
House have led bicameral efforts and need, as Senator MCCONNELL special- forms. Last month, the American peo-
have a serious plan, the Justice in Po- izes in, more delaying tactics. We need ple watched in horror as a police officer
licing Act. Everybody knows it is a se- accountability. The JUSTICE Act even kneeled down on the neck of George
rious plan—everybody. It would imple- puts us in danger of moving in the op- Floyd for 8 minutes and 46 seconds,
ment real, meaningful reform. It would posite direction by providing more killing him.
actually hold police accountable. It funding for policing without adequate ‘‘I can’t breathe.’’ It was a slow exe-
makes clear: no more choke holds, no rules and regulations and without a cution caught on video, a metaphor for
more unchecked police misconduct, no similar investment in community sup- the systematic racism and injustices
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more militarization of police. port. Black and Brown communities endure
Of course, we know this isn’t the only The NAACP says this bill ‘‘ignores every day. But unlike other horrific
thing we need to do. Policing didn’t the public demands to reimagine public videos of police killings that have
create institutional racism; it is a safety by shrinking the purview of law sparked protests, this feels different.
product of it and often reinforces it. We enforcement and providing better fund- This is a moment when people of all
have a lot of work to do beyond this, ing to agencies equipped to address the races and walks of life have taken to
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