Congressional Record — Senate, S5488 (September 9, 2020)
Summary
Page S5488 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for September 9, 2020, with cloture motions and remarks in interleaved columns. The motions concern the nominations of Thomas T. Cullen to be a United States District Judge for the Western District of Virginia and a nominee for the Eastern District of New York, with lists of signing Senators. Under the heading Coronavirus, Mr. Lankford describes traveling across Oklahoma for weeks and says relief should be tailored and focused on needs rather than a big spending bill, which is his view. Another speaker recalls polio and Dr. Jonas Salk's vaccine as a lesson for today.
Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used
Cite this document
“Congressional Record — Senate, S5488 (September 9, 2020).”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2020-09-09-crec-2020-09-09-pt1-pgs5488-3-6ece52c255/
, SHA-256 cdda6746c065e72225e7a9dd2499e3bd6ec99a56da637a464e40d98d2e6921e2.Full text
S5488 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE September 9, 2020
Perdue, Kevin Cramer, John Cornyn, United States District Judge for the Eastern of New York, to be United States Dis-
Shelley Moore Capito, John Thune, District of New York. trict Judge for Eastern District of New
Cindy Hyde-Smith, Cory Gardner, Roy Mitch McConnell, Mike Crapo, Thom York.
Blunt, Martha McSally, John Barrasso, Tillis, Mike Rounds, John Hoeven, The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen-
John Boozman. Roger F. Wicker, Pat Roberts, John
Thune, Cindy Hyde-Smith, John Booz-
ator from Oklahoma.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unan- CORONAVIRUS
man, Tom Cotton, Chuck Grassley,
imous consent, the mandatory quorum Mr. LANKFORD. Madam President,
Kevin Cramer, Steve Daines, Todd
call has been waived. Young, John Cornyn, Roy Blunt. for the past several weeks I have had
The question is, Is it the sense of the the opportunity to be able to travel
Senate that debate on the nomination The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unan-
imous consent, the mandatory quorum around the great State of Oklahoma. I
of Thomas T. Cullen, of Virginia, to be have literally been from Guymon to
United States District Judge for the call has been waived.
The question is, Is it the sense of the Talihina, to Bartlesville, to Lawton to
Western District of Virginia, shall be cover as much space as I could and talk
brought to a close? Senate that debate on the nomination
of Diane Gujarati, of New York, to be to as many people as I could.
The yeas and nays are mandatory Obviously, we were in smaller groups,
under the rule. United States District Judge for the
Eastern District of New York, shall be with masks and social distancing and
The clerk will call the roll. doing all the things we could to take
The bill clerk called the roll. brought to a close?
The yeas and nays are mandatory care of each other, but taking the mo-
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the ment to meet with school superintend-
Senator from Wisconsin (Ms. BALDWIN), under the rule.
The clerk will call the roll. ents, parents, teachers, healthcare pro-
the Senator from California (Ms. HAR- viders and hospital administrators,
RIS), the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. The senior assistant legislative clerk
called the roll. small business owners and employees
KLOBUCHAR), the Senator from of large and small businesses, not-for-
Vermont (Mr. SANDERS), and the Sen- Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the
Senator from California (Ms. HARRIS), profits and their volunteers, law en-
ator from Michigan (Ms. STABENOW) forcement individuals, city managers,
are necessarily absent. the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. KLO-
BUCHAR), the Senator from Vermont mayors, city councilmen, State leader-
The yeas and nays resulted—yeas 77,
(Mr. SANDERS), and the Senator from ship.
nays 18, as follows: I wanted to hear what was happening
[Rollcall Vote No. 163 Ex.] Michigan (Ms. STABENOW) are nec-
essarily absent. on the ground in my State in order to
YEAS—77 know what needs to be addressed be-
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there
Alexander Feinstein Perdue
any other Senators in the Chamber de- cause there has been a lot of noise in
Barrasso Fischer Peters Washington, DC, about what needs to
Blackburn Gardner Portman siring to vote?
Blunt Graham Reed The yeas and nays resulted—yeas 94, be done on COVID.
Boozman Grassley Risch There are many people in the na-
nays 2, as follows:
Braun Hassan Roberts tional press who are struck by the fact
Brown Hawley [Rollcall Vote No. 164 Ex.]
Romney that $3 trillion has already been allo-
Burr Hoeven Rosen YEAS—94
Capito Hyde-Smith cated to deal with COVID–19 and a tre-
Rounds Alexander Fischer Peters
Cardin Inhofe Rubio mendous number of changes have al-
Carper Johnson Baldwin Gardner Portman
Sasse Barrasso Gillibrand
ready occurred. But in this town there
Casey Jones Reed
Cassidy Kaine
Scott (FL) Bennet Graham Risch are a significant number of people who
Scott (SC) Blackburn Grassley say: We just spent $3 trillion. That was
Collins Kennedy Roberts
Shaheen Blumenthal Hassan
Coons King
Shelby
Romney fun. Let’s do it all over again and see
Cornyn Lankford Blunt Hawley Rosen
Sinema Booker Heinrich how we can spend even more.
Cortez Masto Leahy Rounds
Cotton Lee Sullivan Boozman Hoeven My focus has been very simple: What
Rubio
Cramer Loeffler Tester Braun Hyde-Smith
Sasse is needed to be able to beat the virus?
Thune Brown Inhofe
Crapo Manchin
Burr Johnson Schatz What I heard all over Oklahoma wasn’t
Cruz McConnell Tillis
Daines McSally Toomey Cantwell Jones Schumer ‘‘Go do more; just spend more and cre-
Capito Kaine Scott (FL) ate new programs’’ but ‘‘How can we
Duckworth Moran Warner
Cardin Kennedy Scott (SC)
Durbin Murkowski Whitehouse
Shaheen
beat this virus back so that we can ac-
Enzi Murphy Wicker Carper King
Casey Lankford Shelby tually get to a moment where we can
Ernst Paul Young
Cassidy Leahy Sinema function again economically as a na-
NAYS— 18 Collins Lee Smith tion?’’
Bennet Hirono Schumer Coons Loeffler Sullivan People are returning to work, but
Blumenthal Markey Smith Cornyn Manchin Tester
Cortez Masto Markey Thune
they are asking very basic questions.
Booker Menendez Udall
Cantwell Merkley Van Hollen Cotton McConnell Tillis The first of those is ‘‘This is a health
Gillibrand Murray Warren Cramer McSally Toomey crisis. What do we do?’’
Heinrich Schatz Wyden Crapo Menendez Udall The bill that has just been released,
Cruz Merkley Warner
NOT VOTING—5 Daines Moran which we are voting on in the Senate
Warren
Baldwin Klobuchar Stabenow
Duckworth Murkowski
Whitehouse
tomorrow, has a whole series of issues
Durbin Murphy tailored to actually work on beating
Harris Sanders Wicker
Enzi Murray
Wyden the virus back and getting our econ-
The PRESIDING OFFICER. On this Ernst Paul
Feinstein Perdue Young omy going and helping to protect our
vote, the yeas are 77, the nays are 18.
The motion is agreed to. NAYS—2
families. That is the design of this. It
is not just doing something; it is trying
f Hirono Van Hollen
to do the right things to actually help
CLOTURE MOTION NOT VOTING—4 us get through this and get to the
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Pursuant Harris Sanders other side, starting with money for
Klobuchar Stabenow testing—not just additional testing but
to rule XXII, the Chair lays before the
Senate the pending cloture motion, The PRESIDING OFFICER. On this new types of testing to make sure that
which the clerk will state. vote, the yeas are 94, the nays are 2. we have even faster tests out there and
The senior assistant legislative clerk The motion is agreed to. that we have more testing that actu-
read as follows: f ally addresses the issue of how we can
ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with SENATE
CLOTURE MOTION do it on-site, get an accurate result,
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR and not wait weeks. While we literally
We, the undersigned Senators, in accord-
ance with the provisions of rule XXII of the The PRESIDING OFFICER. The have millions of tests that have been
Standing Rules of the Senate, do hereby clerk will report the nomination. done, we have some tests that take a
move to bring to a close debate on the nomi- The senior assistant legislative clerk long time to get back. In March, we
nation of Diane Gujarati, of New York, to be read the nomination of Diane Gujarati, were dealing with ‘‘Let’s get a test,’’
VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:32 Sep 10, 2020 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 4637 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G09SE6.021 S09SEPT1
September 9, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5489
and now we are dealing with ‘‘Let’s get across the country in education be- gave to the process, not only to waiv-
a faster test.’’ That is a lot of the focus cause we have said as a nation that we ers for child lunches through the
of the funding here: faster testing. need to be stronger in how we are edu- schools and flexibility there, but flexi-
On vaccines, there are six vaccines cating our kids and the end product of bility for businesses to be able to inno-
right now that are in human trials or that and how we are preparing them vate in a very difficult moment.
that are approaching human trials, for the workforce. This is that moment We will need another round—a small-
which is remarkable, thinking about we should pay attention to, as well, in er round, but another round—for the
the history of vaccines and how long it the education innovations that are ac- hardest hit businesses for the Pay-
has taken. But there was a significant tually going on in my State and in check Protection Program. Our not-
amount of money invested in this in many States around the country. for-profits told me over and over how
February and March in previous bills There is money in this, as well, for much work they are doing during this
to be able to fast-track the research, childcare. This has been an interesting time period. We need to make sure
and that has made a difference. Now it challenge. Childcare facilities have those not-for-profits not only survive it
is a matter of moving it from the re- fewer people who are actually allowed but thrive.
search phase to trials to actually im- to be there—the children who are able As I have said to this body before, we
plementing it nationwide. So there is to be there—but the profit margin have three safety nets in America: the
significant money for testing, for vac- doesn’t work for them to have all those family; churches, not-for-profits, and
cines, and for treatments. employees and fewer children. We want faith-based institutions; and then gov-
Secondly, how do we get our schools them to be able to be there and be suc- ernment is third. A lot of people look
open again? I heard over and over again cessful and survive this, so we added at our safety net as being all the gov-
from parents, administrators, and additional dollars for childcare. ernment programs, but that is the last
teachers: We want to get our schools We have additional dollars for ag be- in this cycle. If our families aren’t
open again—public, private, charter, cause in some areas of agriculture strong, then individuals struggle. If our
online, whatever it may be. Those par- across the country, they have done faith-based entities and our not-for-
ents who are taxpayers and individ- very well, but some have really strug- profits that take care of so much
uals—regardless of where they choose gled. If we all want to be able to eat at human need are not strong and thriv-
to send their child to school or if they the end of this, we better make sure ing and those volunteers aren’t en-
choose to keep their child at home for that ag survives and thrives through gaged, there is no way the government
school—want to know what is going to this. can keep up with the issues.
be done to help our kids get educated. I met with a lot of small business So just keeping not-for-profits open
While the vast majority of funding and leaders and heard a lot of different con- can’t be the goal for this. We have to
authority for education is in the versations. They were very appre- keep them thriving. Those not-for-prof-
States, there is a Federal connection ciative of the Paycheck Protection its around the country are taking care
here that we should be able to help, es- Program. In my State, 61,000 small of the homeless, the hungry, and the
pecially kids with special needs. They businesses and not-for-profits took ad- hurting, and we need to find ways to
have unique challenges during this vantage of the Paycheck Protection strengthen them. The best way to do
time of COVID–19, and we need to be Program, and many of them told me that is not to have some government
able to get those kids back in school that they would not be open today if it program to establish the best way to
and get them the additional care they weren’t for that. They are grateful this identify good not-for-profits. The best
need during this time period. body came together to deal with the way to do that is to allow the Amer-
What all parents are saying to me is Paycheck Protection Program because ican people to look at what is working
this: I want the best possible moment. it made a difference in my State and in their neighborhoods and their com-
I do not want my kid being written off many other States around the country. munities, because they will invest
for the future because someone didn’t The bill we are putting on the floor their own dollars to do that.
choose to invest in them now. on Thursday deals specifically with the In the CARES Act, I pushed for and
This bill has $105 billion toward edu- next round of paycheck protection, we got a $300 write-off on your taxes if
cation—public, private, charter, limiting it to the hardest hit small every American will give $300 to the
homeschool. It has tax credits built in businesses and nonprofits, those that not-for-profit of their choice. In this
to assist parents to be able to choose have had the largest amount of revenue proposal, that doubles for the individ-
where they want their kids to go. It loss and that are the smallest of busi- uals and quadruples for the family.
has the ability for more schools to go nesses. We need them to be able to sur- This is a $600 tax write-off for an indi-
online to help through this season. It vive through this. Nothing is going to vidual or a $1,200 tax write-off for a
has additional dollars to be used for make them whole, and the goal of this family if they will donate to a not-for-
transportation because many school shouldn’t be to make every business profit.
districts are doing multiple bus routes whole. We can’t financially sustain Why do we choose to do that? Be-
to keep down the number of people on that as a country, but we can try to get cause not-for-profits are way more effi-
individual buses. All of those things people through this and get to the cient at taking care of human need
are helpful. We want to help get our other side of it. than the government is and because
kids back in school and make sure that We are all going to have to innovate. they have a face. They are interacting
this is successful. Most of the small businesses that I with a family. They are interacting
During this moment, it has been in- talked to told me about the innova- with an individual directly. They are
teresting. As I talked to many super- tions they were doing and how they not dealing with someone on the phone
intendents and educators, they all said used to do business one way, and, with- or online. It is not a check that you re-
to me the same thing: We are working in 36 hours, they figured out a way to ceive or a form that you fill out. It is
hard to get our kids back to class and do it a different way. That is the Amer- a person that you meet with face to
to do the things they need to do. ican system. That is free market and face who says: How can I help you? And
Then they would pause and say: For capitalism at their best—that at the it is a volunteer that will walk through
years we have talked about innovation moment of struggle, you can go inno- life with you.
in education, but we have been stuck vate and do things different and be suc- Those faith-based ministries and
doing the same thing over and over cessful with that. That is what we have those secular and other not-for-profits
again and have been frustrated with to continue to protect—not too much out there are making an enormous dif-
the results. This pandemic has forced government oversight and control of ference, and the best thing that we can
ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with SENATE
us to innovate in education in ways everything that, in the days and mo- do to make sure they thrive in this mo-
that we only dreamed about years ago. ments where we have to innovate, peo- ment is to make sure that we
We need to be prepared during this sea- ple can’t innovate because they have so incentivize individuals that give to
son not only to continue to educate our much government mandates on them. them by saying: You can give this to
kids in the best way possible but to I was grateful to the Trump adminis- Uncle Sam or you can give this to a
take notes on the best innovations tration for how much flexibility they local charity of your choice. Either
VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:32 Sep 10, 2020 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 4637 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G09SE6.026 S09SEPT1
S5490 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE September 9, 2020
way, it is going to strengthen individ- number out and to say we have to go epidemics in history have come from.
uals. Go engage with that. big. We already have gone big earlier Diseases that caused those deaths for
That is in this bill, and it is impor- this year. the last 10,000 years, he says, have
tant that we continue to walk along- Now, it is not just ‘‘can we throw come mostly from animals that trans-
side them and all of those not-for-prof- money out the door from Washington, mit them to humans, and during most
its to make sure they thrive because DC,’’ but it is ‘‘what do we have to do of history, there were three ways to
we need them thriving, not just sur- to get to the other side of this for our deal with these epidemics.
viving in this moment. health, for our students, for the basic One was to isolate the infected, as in,
There is one other thing that I want operations of our economy and survival for example, leper colonies to deal with
to identify. There are a lot of things to be able to get on the other side of leprosy. One was, according to Mr. Dia-
that are in this bill. It is liability pro- this,’’ because on the other side of this mond, that over thousands of years,
tections. Businesses and universities in is a bill that has to be paid. there have been genetic changes in the
my State said: We desperately need the We, in this body, should pay atten- human population in response to the
Federal Government to clarify liability tion to that because, certainly, the infectious diseases that have gone
protections. people in Oklahoma are paying atten- through those populations, and they
Now, there have been individuals on tion to that and so should we. There have produced a resistance to the infec-
the other side of the aisle that have are things that need to be done, and I tious diseases, as in the case of small-
said: We don’t want to do that. We look forward to bringing this up to be pox. Of course, that didn’t do much to
want to just leave that up to the law- able to focus on the essential things help the Native Americans in this
yers in the days ahead who have law- that need to be done for our economy country when European settlers, who
suits. What is occurring is there are right now and be able to keep moving had some resistance to smallpox, ar-
many businesses in my State that are from there. rived here and gave blankets to the Na-
holding back and many schools in my I yield the floor. tive Americans that were infected with
State that are holding back trying to I suggest the absence of a quorum. smallpox or contained smallpox and
figure out what happens next for fear The PRESIDING OFFICER. The wiped out 90 percent of the tribes who
of what could be a series of lawsuits. clerk will call the roll. received them because they didn’t have
They just want clarity. They want to The senior assistant legislative clerk that resistance.
do business where they can protect proceeded to call the roll. There is a third way of dealing with
their employees, protect the customers Mr. ALEXANDER. Madam President, epidemics. Throughout most of history,
or individuals or students that are I ask unanimous consent that the order the most common way was to let the
there that are around them, but they for the quorum call be rescinded. epidemic run through the population
also want to be able to operate and The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without until everyone had been either killed
function again, and they don’t feel like objection, it is so ordered. or recovered and developed some resist-
they can do that without basic liability COVID–19 VACCINE ance to the disease. Diamond says that
protections and liability definitions. Mr. ALEXANDER. Madam President, the Black Death killed about one-third
This bill provides that. this morning, our Health, Education, of Europe’s population between 1347
Now, I have heard some in the media Labor, and Pensions Committee had a and 1351 as it ran through the popu-
and some even in this building who hearing, and one of the members came lation killing people.
have said this is a pared-down skinny up to me on the floor and said: That Now, what is new about dealing with
bill. Only in Washington, DC, is a $300 was the most civil hearing I have at- epidemics is modern medicine. Modern
billion piece of legislation considered tended in the Senate in a while. The medicine has given us ways to diagnose
skinny—only here. Over and over again truth is that most of our hearings in these diseases and to create treatments
at home, when I talk to people across the Health, Education, Labor, and Pen- to make it easier to recover from these
the State of Oklahoma and I would sions Committee are civil. We have diseases, but the true miracle of mod-
present what has already been done in Senators of widely different points of ern medicine is the vaccine—a vaccine
the previous acts—the $3 trillion that view. that can prevent humans from acquir-
have already been spent on COVID in I thank Senator MURRAY, the Sen- ing the disease at all. The Senator
the months before and the proposals ator from Washington State, who is the from Tennessee and I have actually
that we have now—they would quietly ranking member of our committee and worked together on that issue 2 or 3
pull me aside at the end of the meeting a member of the Democratic leader- years ago to encourage people, and, in
and they would say almost exactly the ship, for the way that she and the her words, talk to your doctor if you
same thing: Where is this money com- Democratic members of the committee have a concern about a vaccine. That is
ing from? worked with the Republican members what we want to talk about today.
People are worried about the virus, so that we can have the Surgeon Gen- Today, in all 50 States and the Dis-
but they are also worried about what is eral of the United States, Dr. Adams, trict of Columbia, school children are
coming next. People are used to taking and Dr. Francis Collins, the head of the required to take vaccinations for a se-
out a loan if there is a major storm or National Institutes of Health, who is ries of diseases—diphtheria, tetanus,
a major life event, knowing I have to one of our country’s most esteemed sci- whooping cough, measles, rubella, and
take this loan out to get through it, entists and the man who headed the chicken pox—before entering school.
but they also realize that for every human genome project, there for 3 That vaccination will protect the
loan they take out, they have to pay hours and we can ask questions. Vir- child from getting the disease, which in
that back. The people in my State are tually every Senator participated, and turn prevents the child from infecting
saying the same thing: Where is this we got some good answers. someone else—a pattern that eventu-
money coming from? How are we ever I would like to report to the other ally causes these diseases to disappear.
going to pay it back? And they are members of the Senate about that Americans of my generation remem-
shocked that the House of Representa- hearing. I began it by saying: I have ber how polio terrified our parents in
tives and many in this room are push- been rereading the book ‘‘Guns, Germs, the early 1940s and into the 1950s. Many
ing a bill that is $3.5 trillion in spend- and Steel,’’ a book by Jared Diamond, saw their children die of polio. When I
ing on top of the $3 trillion that was al- written in 1997, which is as relevant was very young, I can remember class-
ready spent earlier this year, and they today—maybe more relevant today— mates who were strapped into iron
just gasp when they think about an ad- than it was when he wrote it. lungs so they could breathe and were
ditional $6.5 trillion of deficit in a sin- Mr. Diamond, who won the Pulitzer destined to stay there for the rest of
ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with SENATE
gle year. They wonder what happens Prize and is a professor of geography in their lives. The lucky ones were like
with that, and I respond to them: So do California, said: There is nothing new Majority Leader MITCH MCCONNELL,
I. That is why we are trying to be as about mass epidemics that causes who was left only with a limp after
tailored and as focused as we can pos- deaths and social upheaval that we are having polio in the 1940s.
sibly be to meet the needs that need to witnessing today, and there is nothing The disease terrified Americans until
be done but to not just throw a big new about where most of those Dr. Jonas Salk discovered the polio
VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:32 Sep 10, 2020 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 4637 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G09SE6.027 S09SEPT1
File and source
- File
- CREC_crec-2020-09-09_crec-2020-09-09-pt1-pgs5488-3.pdf
- Size
- 227,209 bytes
- SHA-256
- cdda6746c065e72225e7a9dd2499e3bd6ec99a56da637a464e40d98d2e6921e2
- Original
- www.govinfo.gov