Vote Explanation, Morning Business and Coronavirus — Congressional Record, Senate, July 22, 2020
Summary
Page S4414 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for July 22, 2020, headed Vote Explanation, Morning Business and Coronavirus, in interleaved columns. Mr. Van Hollen explains his vote in support of S. Amdt. 1788, which would reduce defense spending, saying he would have preferred deeper targeted cuts. A speaker says the leader's side had at least 20 amendment opportunities on the JUSTICE Act. Another speaker argues there is no going back to the pre-pandemic economy, noting the lockdown accelerated online shopping and food delivery, and calls this a rare opportunity, which is that speaker's view.
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“Vote Explanation, Morning Business and Coronavirus — Congressional Record, Senate, July 22, 2020.”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2020-07-22-crec-2020-07-22-pt1-pgs4414-2-71d33c671f/
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S4414 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE July 22, 2020
I don’t know how we could have made place the ones that permanently close. More- tunity to break with the past and create a
it any easier or better. In fact, when we over, the failure rate is likely to be higher, better future. Congress should grab it.
took up the JUSTICE Act, he and his as many firms were on the wrong side of f
trends—such as the move to online shopping,
side were provided at least 20 amend- VOTE EXPLANATION
convenient food delivery or watching
ment opportunities. We could have had streaming content at home—that the pan- Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. President, I
the debate he seeks tonight at the ap- demic lockdown has accelerated. voted in support of S. Amdt. 1788,
propriate time on the appropriate bill, Another consideration: The protests
which would reduce defense spending
and I am sorry that we didn’t do that. stirred by the killing of George Floyd in
Minneapolis police custody have made clear by 10 percent and invest that money
Perhaps after tonight’s episode, he
how many Americans were left behind in the into healthcare, education, and poverty
and his colleagues will reconsider, and
pre-coronavirus economy; restoring the way reduction in communities with a pov-
perhaps before we are done this year,
things were before the virus hit won’t ad- erty rate of 25 percent or more. To gov-
Senator SCOTT’s JUSTICE Act could be dress these needs. ern is to choose, and as we face unprec-
brought to the floor and we could have Here are three ways Congress can help edented challenges at home, this de-
an adult discussion and debate on launch a new, more equitable era of entre- fense budget is out of step with the val-
amendments and on the bill and on all preneurship.
ues, priorities, and needs of the Amer-
kinds of great ideas right here in the First: Make it easier for the earliest-stage
start-ups to receive PPP dollars and for all ican people.
most august body in the United States. The unchecked growth in the defense
start-ups to access the Main Street Relief
I hope that can happen. Fund. PPP loans go to existing businesses to budget is unsustainable, and the
With that, I yield the floor and wish maintain jobs but not to new businesses that Trump administration has exacerbated
you a good night. want to create them. Main Street loans go these challenges. We have a duty to en-
f only to companies that are already profit- sure the readiness of our forces, and I
able; most start-ups are not. That approach have supported efforts to rebuild our
MORNING BUSINESS is backward: Studies show that nearly all Armed Forces after years of costly
Mr. CRAMER. Mr. President, I ask net new job creation comes from start-ups,
not established businesses.
overseas engagements. But massive
unanimous consent that the Senate be A PPP revision should allow start-ups to spending increases without clear stra-
in a period of morning business, with obtain loans based on their plans to create tegic direction do not make us safer.
Senators permitted to speak for up to jobs—with loan forgiveness granted only if We need to be thoughtful about our
10 minutes each. those jobs materialize. If they don’t, the spending choices, recognizing that
Mr. GARDNER. Without objection, it start-ups should be required to repay the every dollar spent on defense is a dollar
is so ordered. loans before any other obligations. And the not spent on healthcare, education,
barrier in the Main Street lending program workforce training, and other critical
f
that makes businesses ineligible for aid if
they were not profitable in 2019 should be re-
areas of need.
CORONAVIRUS The National Defense Authorization
moved.
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, the Con- Second, the government needs to be a Act as it is currently written would
gress, our States, and the administra- counterweight to private capital that exac- spend $740.5 billion on defense. This
tion talk about ways to handle the im- erbates geographic disparities in opportunity represents 53 percent of total Federal
mediate consequences of COVIV–19. We as the country responds to the crisis. The discretionary spending and exceeds the
must also talk about the aftermath, pandemic is a devastating tragedy, but ad- defense budgets of the next 11 nations
and Steve Case has written a provoca- versity tends to be met by the creation of combined, including our allies in Aus-
new industries and new businesses. This cri- tralia, South Korea, Germany, Japan,
tive op-ed about the future. sis will stir innovations in medicine, goods
Those of us in Congress should read and services delivered at home, remote work
France, and the United Kingdom. It is
and discuss it It has to be considered in and learning, and more. Where will these more than twice the combined defense
future planning. new firms grow? If the decision is left to the expenditures of China and Russia.
I ask unanimous consent that the private sector alone, almost all of them will Topline defense spending has risen by
text of this article be printed in the be in three states: New York, California and more than $100 billion since President
RECORD. Massachusetts, which attract 75 percent of Trump took office; after the $74 billion
There being no objection, the mate- all venture capital. cut proposed in this amendment, de-
Great ideas to respond to this crisis are fense spending would still be above the
rial was ordered to be printed in the spread widely across the country—but cap-
RECORD, as follows: ital is not. Business assistance programs cre-
fiscal year 2017 level.
[From the Washington Post, July 19, 2020] ated by Congress should have a special focus
Some of my colleagues have ex-
on getting startups off the ground in places pressed unease about the across-the-
THERE’S NO GOING BACK TO THE PRE-PAN-
DEMIC ECONOMY—CONGRESS SHOULD RE- that have lacked venture capital backing in board nature of these cuts, and I agree
SPOND ACCORDINGLY the past. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and that a targeted approach is preferable.
others have already proposed such legisla- But I have seen the consequences of de-
(By Steve Case)
tion; members of Congress from these ne- laying difficult decisions and believe
This week, Congress will likely take up the glected areas should insist it is part of any we can no longer wait to have difficult
next steps in the economic response to the Phase 4 bill.
covid–19 pandemic. If the package is like pre- conversations about our defense budg-
Finally, lawmakers should step in to ad-
vious efforts, it will focus on trying to turn dress unintended inequalities of opportunity
et. In addition, the National Defense
back the clock to February 2020: treating the for female and minority entrepreneurs Authorization Act is not an appropria-
economy as if it were Sleeping Beauty, mere- caused by the earlier relief bills. Because tions bill, and this amendment simply
ly needing to be awakened to be fully re- these programs fund only existing busi- reduces the total amount of money au-
stored. This strategy is a mistake: Congress nesses, they reinforce opportunity gaps. thorized to be spent on defense in the
needs to stop solely backing efforts to re- Communities with thriving businesses get upcoming fiscal year. The Appropria-
store the old economic reality and focus on more PPP and Main Street aid; those that tions Committee, on which I serve, will
how to develop a new one. have lacked capital to get businesses off the still have the task of making thought-
Most of the $1 trillion that Congress has ground in the past see little help now.
put into business support so far during the The solution would be for Congress to di-
ful, targeted reductions in areas of
pandemic has been directed to preserving ex- rect unused PPP funds to start-ups led by fe- lower priority, while preserving fund-
isting firms through the Paycheck Protec- male entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of ing for high-priority items. I encourage
tion Program and the Main Street Relief color, creating opportunities where they my colleagues to confront these chal-
Fund. Helping those businesses and their have not existed before. The Main Street lenges for the good of our country and
workers is vital, but that alone won’t fuel Lending program could be modified to ex-
SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE
make adjustments as needed during
the economic recovery the country needs. tend special debt options to community de- conference negotiations with the House
The problem is that many of the businesses velopment groups and minority-focused ac- while remaining under the cap set by
backed by PPP or Main Street are going to celerators to back a new wave of startups
wind up shutting down. Even when they founded by historically underrepresented en-
this amendment.
aren’t facing a global pandemic or economic trepreneurs.
I am glad that this amendment pro-
crisis, about 100,000 small and medium-size There’s no going back to the pre-pandemic tects salaries and healthcare from cuts,
businesses fail in the United States every U.S. economy. Too much has changed; too and would have preferred that it go fur-
year. New businesses will be needed to re- many new needs exist. This is a rare oppor- ther in making targeted cuts in order
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