Congressional Record — Senate, S6620 (November 9, 2020)
Summary
Page S6620 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for November 9, 2020, in interleaved columns. A speaker says Pew Research Center found Americans took part in the election at the highest rate in 120 years, with more than 144 million ballots cast. Another speaker describes live event workers such as independent contractors who set up stages and run sound and light displays and calls for targeted relief, including unemployment insurance, small business help, school funding, vaccine research, testing and liability protection, which is that speaker's view. A further passage urges access to security clearances and agencies for the transition.
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“Congressional Record — Senate, S6620 (November 9, 2020).”
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S6620 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE November 9, 2020
neighbors, friends, coworkers, and col- proprietors, the independent contrac- ployment insurance, more help for
leagues. tors. These are the people who set up small businesses, resources for schools
I will tell you, many of them remain and tear down stages. They put on and universities, vaccine research fund-
divided, but I think we have to say these amazing sound and light displays ing, testing funding, and liability pro-
they have been engaged. According to that people get so excited about seeing tection—targeted relief for millions of
the Pew Research Center, Americans and that really make music and enter- Americans who have said: This what
participated in this election cycle at tainment come to life. They produce we need in order to keep people em-
the highest rate in 120 years. Election the music that you walk around listen- ployed and to keep our businesses open.
officials still haven’t finished their ing to in your earbuds. The support The legislation is written. All that
counts, and already we know that more staff at the venues clean up your beer needs to happen is our friends across
than 144 million ballots were cast this cans and ticket stubs after you have the aisle need to say: We are ready to
cycle. enjoyed a show. I tell you, they also vote on this package. Let’s do another
I would venture to say that many of are the artists, the storytellers, and I round of PPP. Let’s do a plus-up in un-
those millions of individuals are really think our creative and cultural employment. Let’s do that money for
watching us. They want to see what we historians. vaccines and testing and resources for
are going to do next, how we are going This industry is absolutely dying. schools and universities. Let’s give
to conduct ourselves. They don’t really They are not the only ones. There are companies the liability protection they
care if it takes a little multitasking; so many other sectors of our economy need to open their doors. Let’s give
they are saying it is time for Congress that are at a standstill. They are suf- these entertainment venues the liabil-
to do its job. fering, and so many other people have ity protection they need in order to
You can look at all of the exit polling been suffering. They are tired of what again get on the road, have concerts,
on the favorability ratings of Congress. they see as posturing here in DC, using play that music Americans love to lis-
I will say it is discouragingly low—the the hurt and the suffering of people as ten to. It is there.
regard in which the American people just a political bargaining chip. Do you To my friends, let’s have no filibus-
hold their elected representatives col- know what? They have noticed. They ters, no more distractions, and no more
lective body. It is time for us to get have been watching over the past few extravagant wish lists of pet projects.
some things done. months. They know that very little has For goodness’ sake, put your politics
Judging by the footage of demonstra- been accomplished, and they think it is aside, and let’s put the people first.
tions in many of America’s major cit- time to stop putting politics over peo- Let’s provide the relief they are seek-
ies, you might not remember that we ple. It is time to stop saying ‘‘We want ing.
are still dealing with the effects of a the issue if it is good for us’’ because I yield the floor.
global pandemic. It seems that for a people are looking for solutions. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
few days, people forgot there is a pan- They were waiting for a mandate— The PRESIDING OFFICER. The
demic. our friends over on the left—a mandate clerk will call the roll.
Democrats in the House and the Sen- they were sure was going to come their The senior assistant legislative clerk
ate have wasted months of precious way on November 3, but the American proceeded to call the roll.
time obstructing the passage of tar- people refused to deliver them a man- Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask
geted COVID relief legislation that date. You see it in elections that took unanimous consent that the order for
Tennesseans and New Yorkers and place at the local and the State level. the quorum call be rescinded.
Californians and every other American You see it in the congressional elec- The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without
who owns a business or supports a fam- tions and certainly here in this Cham- objection, it is so ordered.
ily needs not tomorrow or today; they ber. REELECTION
needed it yesterday, last week, last So far, Speaker PELOSI has refused Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, be-
month. any offer to compromise. Every offer fore I make my remarks, I want to
I have spent the past several months and gesture that has been made by the take a moment on the floor of the Sen-
coming to this floor to tell the stories White House or this Chamber has been ate to formally and officially thank
of Tennesseans, Tennessee small busi- refused. She has clung to that $3 tril- the people of the State of Illinois for
ness people, Tennessee employers who lion parody of a relief bill that she has electing me to another term in the U.S.
are desperately in need of relief, trying stuffed to the brim with billions for lib- Senate.
to help my colleagues on the other side eral pet projects that have nothing to On election night, when the results
of the aisle understand that there is do with COVID recovery—nothing at were apparent, I went and stared into
fear and pain in certain sectors of our all. Isn’t it interesting that her pet an iPad to announce my victory
economy. It is really so inappropriate project is not the American people? speech. It was unlike anything I had
that those fears and that pain are Wouldn’t you think she would want to ever been through in a campaign, and I
something they have chosen to ignore. solve some of these problems? But no— said so. It was an extraordinary cam-
To be frank, it has been like talking to she would rather play politics. paign experience, made even more dif-
a brick wall. There has been no re- This absurd delay has come at great ficult and challenging because of the
sponse. cost. We have so many Tennesseans, in- pandemic crisis. I want to thank the
Just last week, I met with the board deed, across this country, millions of people of the State for standing by me
of the Academy of Country Music for a families and small businesses that will and giving me this chance to serve
very hard discussion about the future tell you they are in damage control again.
of their industry. Not one single venue mode because Democrats refuse to I am honored to serve my State in
or one studio musician or one sound allow them the dignity of hope that this body, especially during this time
engineer—their whole industry shut targeted relief would provide. ‘‘Dig- of transition in America and transition
down. This is an industry that has shut nity’’—that is a nice word. And we around the world. Together, with a
down. They did nothing wrong, mind have so many people who are grasping, trust in science with the Biden-Harris
you. They showed up for work. They trying to pay their bills, keep their administration, we will return to our
built businesses. They hired people. businesses alive. I will say that our national agenda. I am eager to con-
They used independent contractors. friends across the aisle twice—twice, tinue working to help the families,
They paid their bills. They paid their twice—have declined to vote for tar- small businesses, schools, hospitals,
taxes. They did nothing wrong. But the and constituents in my State and to
SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE
geted relief.
entertainment industry—live enter- It is not too late to step up on behalf help all of us in this country endure
tainment—is shut down. of those who have lost just about ev- this pandemic together.
This isn’t the huge record labels and erything and those who still have a CORONAVIRUS
big entertainment companies that shot at coming out on the other side of Madam President, COVID–19 did not
many people think are the music in- this pandemic with their livelihoods take a day off for the election. While
dustry. These are the mom-and-pops. intact. It is not too late to pass legisla- election week was brewing and all of us
These are the small businesses, the sole tion that would provide better unem- were glued to our television screens,
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November 9, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6621
most of the country was unaware of the real solutions for real problems that PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
fact that the COVID–19 pandemic was families face—then I call on Senator Madam President, there is another
worsening. Cases of the virus and hos- MCCONNELL to show up to the negoti- aspect of this that I would like to ad-
pitalizations in the United States have ating table and give up these rogue at- dress for just a moment.
been spiking for weeks now. On Satur- tempts to pass empty, halfhearted After each Presidential election,
day, we hit the highest daily total of measures. there is a transition period when a new
new cases—126,000 new cases on Satur- The Chairman of the Federal Reserve President is coming in and his team
day. In Illinois, we are approaching Board, Jerome Powell, a conservative takes a look at the government as it
half a million cases. The State has Republican economist, has repeatedly stands and prepares for the day of Jan-
tragically seen more than 10,000 of our warned of potentially dire economic uary 20, when that new President will
neighbors and friends die from this consequences if additional fiscal relief be sworn in. All of the networks and
COVID–19. The country is on pace to is delayed. As hiring begins to pick up major news sources have declared Joe
hit 1 million new cases every week by in a few sectors—thank goodness—too Biden to be the President-elect and
the end of this year. many populations, including African- KAMALA HARRIS, our colleague here
This is disastrous, and it demands ac- American workers, Hispanic men, and from the Senate, to be the Vice Presi-
tion. Thankfully, President-Elect women with children, are being left be- dent-elect. They are now bringing to-
Biden has announced an extraordinary hind. gether the people who are their experts
task force of respected public health We need to focus on helping the to prepare for a smooth, orderly transi-
and medical experts—truth tellers, real American people through this pan- tion.
leaders. Like the NIH’s Dr. Fauci, I demic. We need to do it now. This is
trust Dr. Kessler, David Kessler, whom Before that can take place, the Ad-
the so-called lameduck session between
I have known for decades; Dr. Morita, ministrator of the General Services Ad-
the results of an election and the
who served so admirably in the city of ministration must file something
swearing-in of a new Congress and
Chicago; Dr. Atul Gawande, one of my called an ascertainment that ascer-
President, but shame on us if we don’t
real heroes in medicine today—I have tains in fact there was an election and
use this time together in Washington
spent a lot of money on his books and someone won. In most cases, it is very
as an opportunity to do more than vote
have never regretted a penny of it; and routine. It is just done automatically
for a random Republican judge. Can’t
former Surgeon General Murthy—what based on the reports from the States
we roll up our sleeves on a bipartisan
an extraordinarily talented man he is that we already have as we sat busily
basis and realize what is really hap-
and the others who are part of the by the TV, day after day, doing our
pening across America as this pan-
team. emails and texting to friends and fami-
demic heats up and more Americans
Yet we need to continue to stay safe lies, waiting for the returns to come in.
die every day?
and remember that this virus is not The announcement was made on Satur-
We need at least $75 billion for addi-
anywhere near being gone. There are 10 day, and the reaction was all across the
tional testing and contact tracing to
million Americans who have now con- country.
slow the spread of COVID–19—far more
tracted the virus, and we have lost than the meager $16 billion that was of- You would think that the Adminis-
238,000 American lives. My heart goes fered in the Republican measure. trator of the GSA would have the as-
out to everyone who has lost someone certainment necessary to really pull
We also want to put $57 billion in for
in this pandemic and to those who are the trigger for a transition from the
hospitals, clinics, and health providers.
still suffering due to this virus. Trump administration to the incoming
In addition to the health and safety Just a couple of weeks ago, I was on
the phone with these administrators. Biden administration. These are rou-
of the American people, we have also tine things that have gone on in past
been struggling to deal with real eco- They are desperate. We are going to
lose hospitals across this country and, years without really much con-
nomic uncertainty, job losses, food in- troversy. Yet, lo and behold, this year,
security, stress, and childcare. It is a I fear, maybe even in our own State if
we don’t step forward and do some- there is controversy.
long list. Despite these urgent needs of For the past 60 years, since Congress
families, small businesses, workers, thing.
What is wrong with increasing, at passed the Presidential Transition Act
health providers, and unemployed to ensure a smooth and orderly trans-
Americans across the country, unfortu- least to some degree, the amount avail-
able for food stamps—the so-called fer of power, the GSA Administrator
nately, the leadership in this Chamber has usually ascertained the apparent
has dragged its feet and offered only a SNAP program—so that hundreds of
millions of Americans who go to food winner within 24 hours of the election.
few very weak measures that barely By passing the Presidential Transition
address the overwhelming needs of this banks to survive get a helping hand? Is
that too much to ask in the month of Act, Congress has acknowledged how
Nation. This is why Americans have critical this period is for the safety and
not received another round of economic Thanksgiving and in the month of
Christmas? well-being of the country. Once the
impact payments, rental assistance, or GSA makes this ascertainment, the ex-
enhanced unemployment assistance, We must also include more economic
support for households through a sec- ecutive branch can provide crucial
and it is why hospitals are not receiv- services to the transition team to
ing additional funding. ond round of economic impact pay-
ments and through reinstating en- make sure there is a smooth transfer.
Speaker PELOSI and House Democrats
passed the Heroes Act in May—a $3.4 hanced unemployment benefits. Remember when I mentioned earlier
trillion relief package. After negoti- I continue to hear about struggles that we are in the midst of a pandemic,
ating with the White House, they then from hospitals that are on the brink, with thousands of people dying? Why
passed the second version of that—a from workers who have lost their jobs, would we want to see a delay or some
$2.2 trillion package. Unfortunately, and from small business owners who bureaucratic indecision that might
the Senate majority leader, Senator are desperately trying to keep their jeopardize a person’s health or a per-
MCCONNELL, refused to consider either heads above water. Unfortunately, the son’s life in the midst of this pan-
of these proposals and even refused to Senate continues to waste time on pro- demic?
attend the negotiating sessions. The posals that place the needs of Big Busi- Once the GSA makes that ascertain-
last Senate Republican response was ness ahead of the needs of small fami- ment to provide services, it includes
lies. History will judge this body on access to classified information for in-
SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE
inadequate—$500 billion. It may seem
like a fortune until you look at a na- how we respond—not on the best coming national security officials;
tion in the midst of a pandemic and at speech given on the floor—or on how background investigations and security
an economy struggling to survive. we failed to respond to the worst pan- clearances for potential nominees;
If the Republicans are serious about demic in a century and the deepest re- State Department-facilitated foreign
negotiating a real package—if they cession in 75 years. leader calls; access to SCIFs and Fed-
want to demonstrate to the American The American people are looking for eral agencies for discussions on per-
people what leadership looks like, with leadership. We cannot let them down. sonnel, budget, and policy; and access
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