Coronavirus (Cong. Rec., Dec. 19, 2020)
Summary
Page S7832 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for December 19, 2020, in interleaved columns, under the heading Coronavirus. Speakers say 900,000 Americans were newly laid off in 1 week, that the Senate passed a bridge in the spring and Americans now need another bridge while vaccines flow, and that there is good faith from all four corners of congressional leadership to finalize an agreement soon, which are their views. One speaker says negotiators have until Sunday at midnight, and another notes the first Pfizer vaccines went to hospitals with the needed equipment, leaving rural hospitals behind. A roll call list closes the page.
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“Coronavirus (Cong. Rec., Dec. 19, 2020).”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2020-12-19-crec-2020-12-19-pt1-pgs7832-6-018df0c03c/
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S7832 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE December 19, 2020
900,000 newly laid-off Americans in 1 spirit that has characterized my talks until Sunday at midnight to secure a
week alone. with the Democratic leader, Speaker final agreement, draft the legislation,
Senators on both sides know what we PELOSI, Leader MCCARTHY, and Sec- and move it through both Chambers of
need to do. In the springtime, when the retary Mnuchin, but the American peo- Congress with alacrity. I agree with
country needed a bridge, we passed the ple cannot feed their families or pay the Republican leader on this: We need
largest rescue package in American their bills with Congress’s good-faith to deliver an outcome and deliver it
history on a unanimous, bipartisan discussions. They need us to act. We quickly.
basis. Now what Americans need is an- need to conclude our talks, draft legis- We continue to make progress. I be-
other bridge. Fortunately, this time we lation, and land this plane. lieve there is good faith from all four
do not need a bridge over an unknown f corners of congressional leadership to
and frightening future but a bridge finalize an agreement very soon. Even
through the next several months, while RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME though there are several issues that
the lifesaving vaccines can flow The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under haven’t been closed out yet, we con-
throughout our country. the previous order, the leadership time tinue to make good progress on all
Frontline healthcare workers are re- is reserved. issues but one.
ceiving the vaccine as we speak. Yes- f The No. 1 outstanding issue is a pro-
terday, Vice President PENCE, Speaker posal by the Republican Senator from
CONCLUSION OF MORNING
PELOSI, and I all received first doses of Pennsylvania. This proposal is a new
BUSINESS
vaccines pursuant to preexisting plans entrant. It hadn’t been an important
for the continuity of our government. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Morning feature of our negotiations over the
These vaccines are safe. They are ef- business is closed. past few weeks. Only in the past few
fective. They are our Nation’s path out f days have Senator TOOMEY and Senator
of this hellish chapter. So the first EXECUTIVE SESSION MCCONNELL introduced this specific
lines of the cavalry are already arriv- provision and made it clear they feel
ing. We just need to help American strongly about it.
families hold on while reinforcements EXECUTIVE CALENDAR Senator TOOMEY’s new proposal
continue to pour in: more paycheck The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under would potentially prohibit the Treas-
protection loans for the hardest hit the previous order, the Senate will pro- ury and the Fed from setting up new
businesses, more additional Federal ceed to executive session to resume emergency lending facilities moving
unemployment aid, more direct assist- consideration of the following nomina- forward, greatly reducing their ability
ance for families, a lot more funding tion, which the clerk shall report. to respond to economic crises. Again,
for K–12 schools to reopen safely and The legislative clerk read the nomi- this is something that materialized
get our kids’ educations back on track, nation of Thompson Michael Dietz, of only in the past few days and would
and, perhaps most important of all, a New Jersey, to be a Judge of the leave the Treasury and the Fed with
huge amount of funding for vaccine dis- United States Court of Federal Claims less authority than it had even prior to
tribution so that we aren’t just helping for a term of fifteen years. the pandemic.
Americans endure this battle, but we Quite simply, Senator TOOMEY’s pro-
Mr. MCCONNELL. I suggest the ab-
are helping them win the battle as fast posal would do more than just prevent
sence of a quorum.
as possible. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The the next Treasury Secretary and Fed
f clerk will call the roll. Chair from using the emergency lend-
The legislative clerk proceeded to ing programs that saved our economy
GOVERNMENT FUNDING and stabilized markets back in March
call the roll.
Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, last and April. It could potentially prevent
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask
night, we extended government funding them from setting up new facilities
unanimous consent that the order for
for 2 additional days. The Senate and that look, or even smell like, those
the quorum call be rescinded.
the House need to finalize another res- programs moving forward.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without
cue package containing all the policies Democrats do not agree with it.
objection, it is so ordered.
I just named and many more. We need Economists from across the political
RECOGNITION OF THE MINORITY LEADER
to finalize government funding legisla- spectrum warned that Senator
tion for next year, and we need to pass The Democratic leader is recognized. TOOMEY’s legislation would cripple our
these measures with a big, bipartisan CORONAVIRUS government’s ability to respond to a
vote and get them signed into law Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, ever deteriorating economy. The Chair of
without further delay. since a remarkable bipartisan rescue the Federal Reserve, Jay Powell, hard-
We need cooperation and focus from package in March, the CARES Act, and ly a flaming liberal, is likewise strong-
all sides. There is a kind of gravita- a subsequent bill to replenish those ly opposed to the Toomey provision.
tional pull here in Congress, where, un- programs, getting further aid to the Senator TOOMEY’s proposal goes way
less we are careful, any major negotia- American people has been a long and beyond what Leader MCCONNELL pro-
tion can easily slide into an unending arduous effort. It is no secret that for posed in his HEALS Act. The worry
catalogue of disagreements. Let’s much of the year, our Republican col- that this Toomey proposal is supposed
guard against that. leagues were opposed to spending any to address is the need to prevent the
The American people have already more money to help the American peo- Treasury and Fed from using their au-
waited for more assistance longer than ple during a once-in-a-century pan- thority willy-nilly to do whatever the
they could afford. In my judgment, demic. Thankfully, the Republican new President wanted. That worry is
they have waited far too long for a re- leadership recently accepted the bipar- unfounded. In order to create a new
lief package of the same general size tisan Gang of 8’s framework as the emergency facility under the present
and scope that Senate Republicans basis for negotiations for an emergency law, you would need the support of
have been proposing literally since last bill, which Speaker PELOSI and I have Chairman Powell, a conservative man,
summer. Every one of us in the Senate suggested, unlocking the current round and the five members of the Fed Board,
and the House represent American fam- of talks. a conservative body.
ilies who simply cannot wait any Even now, at the end of this pains- Under current law, an emergency
longer for Congress to conclude these taking process, there have been some lending facility could get approval only
discussions. Every day that we delay final hurdles. Crafting a $1 trillion re- in a true emergency. Senator TOOMEY’s
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
may very well cost more small busi- lief package over the matter of a few legislation creates barriers to emer-
nesses their survival, cost more Amer- days was always going to have its dif- gency lending that go far beyond cur-
ican workers their jobs, and, yes, cost ficulties, but we are running out of rent law and tries to solve a problem
more Americans their very lives. time. that doesn’t exist.
We have had productive discussions After passing yet another continuing Publicly, Senator TOOMEY—I read an
this week. I appreciate the good-faith resolution yesterday evening, we have article in POLITICO—has expressed his
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December 19, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S7833
concern only about winding down the Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I Tillis Warner Wicker
Toomey Whitehouse Young
emergency lending facilities estab- ask unanimous consent that the man-
lished in the CARES Act. If that is datory quorum call be waived. NAYS—37
what he is genuinely concerned about, The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without Baldwin Gillibrand Sanders
there is a path to compromise. But his objection, it is so ordered. Bennet Heinrich Schatz
Blumenthal Hirono Schumer
proposal goes much further and in- CLOTURE MOTION Brown Jones Shaheen
cludes prohibitions on the Treasury The PRESIDING OFFICER. Pursuant Cantwell Kaine Smith
and the Fed’s authority that would Cardin Klobuchar Stabenow
to rule XXII, the Chair lays before the Carper Leahy
handicap our recovery efforts moving Senate the pending cloture motion, Casey Markey
Tester
forward—not just during this crisis but Udall
which the clerk will state. Coons Merkley
Van Hollen
any future crisis. We cannot agree to The bill clerk read as follows: Cortez Masto Murphy
Warren
that, nor is it what the Senator from Duckworth Murray
CLOTURE MOTION Durbin Wyden
Peters
Pennsylvania says he cares about. Feinstein Reed
We, the undersigned Senators, in accord-
What he is proposing is not about ance with the provisions of rule XXII of the NOT VOTING—13
COVID or helping the American people; Standing Rules of the Senate, do hereby Blunt Fischer Portman
it is about tying the hands of the next move to bring to a close debate on the nomi- Burr Harris Risch
Treasury Secretary and the next Fed nation of Thompson Michael Dietz, of New Cruz Loeffler Rounds
Chairman in a true emergency. So I Jersey, to be a Judge of the United States Enzi Paul
hope our Republican friends can agree Court of Federal Claims for a term of fifteen Ernst Perdue
to compromise here. Senator TOOMEY’s years. The PRESIDING OFFICER. On this
legislation is the only significant hur- Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley, Mike vote, the yeas are 50, the nays are 37.
Crapo, Shelley Moore Capito, John Cor- The motion is agreed to.
dle to completing an agreement, and nyn, Cindy Hyde-Smith, Steve Daines,
Republicans need to make a decision. The Senator from Texas.
Mike Lee, Ron Johnson, Thom Tillis,
We are quickly approaching an all- Richard Burr, Pat Roberts, Cory Gard-
CORONAVIRUS
or-nothing situation. Everybody needs ner, Tom Cotton, John Boozman, John Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, as we
to make a decision about whether we Hoeven, Lindsey Graham. all know by now, yesterday brought
are going to pass this much needed re- The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unan- even more great news on the vaccine
lief or not and about eleventh hour de- imous consent, the mandatory quorum front. The FDA has now issued an
mands and whether they are worth call has been waived. emergency approval for a second
holding up the entire bill. The question is, Is it the sense of the COVID–19 Vaccine. This one will be de-
We made great strides and great Senate that debate on the nomination veloped by the American biotech com-
progress over a few days. You can use of Thompson Michael Dietz, of New pany Moderna and millions of doses
whatever football analogy you want— Jersey, to be a Judge of the United will be distributed across the country.
we are on the 5-yard line or the 1-yard States Court of Federal Claims for a I should say millions more doses will
line or whatever. The truth is simple: term of fifteen years, shall be brought be distributed across the country in
We are close to an agreement, but we to a close? the coming days.
need to finalize it. We need to finalize As we know, the first vaccine ap-
The yeas and nays are mandatory
it, and only the Toomey provision proved, which was created by Pfizer
under the rule.
stands in the way. and BioNTech, was approved just over
The clerk will call the roll.
We are ready to deliver a desperately a week ago, and already thousands of
The bill clerk called the roll.
needed extension to the historic unem- healthcare workers have been vac-
Mr. THUNE. The following Senators
ployment benefits the Democrats se- cinated. In my State, we expect a mil-
are necessarily absent: the Senator
cured in March; direct survival checks lion people—a million Texans—to be
from Missouri (Mr. BLUNT), the Senator
to millions of American families on the vaccinated by the end of this month,
from North Carolina (Mr. BURR), the
brink of financial collapse; crucial re- which is a remarkable achievement
Senator from Texas (Mr. CRUZ), the
lief to our schools, our small busi- and one we ought to celebrate.
Senator from Wyoming (Mr. ENZI), the Both of these vaccines will be ex-
nesses, and our healthcare system; and Senator from Iowa (Ms. ERNST), the
funding to support the production and traordinarily effective, estimated to be
Senator from Nebraska (Mrs. FISCHER), 95 percent effective. If you think about
distribution of a vaccine. the Senator from Georgia (Mrs. LOEF-
If we do our jobs, we will deliver the the seasonal flu vaccine, for example,
FLER), the Senator from Kentucky (Mr.
second largest Federal stimulus in our it is, generally speaking, no more than
PAUL), the Senator from Georgia (Mr. 60 percent effective and many times far
Nation’s history, second only to the
PERDUE), the Senator from Ohio (Mr. less. So 95 percent represents an amaz-
CARES Act earlier this year. It is still
PORTMAN), the Senator from Idaho (Mr. ing accomplishment. So the American
not as large or as comprehensive as the
RISCH), and the Senator from South people have every reason to be opti-
country needs or as our side wants, but
Dakota (Mr. ROUNDS). mistic about our ability to put this
it will be larger than even the Recov-
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the virus in the rearview mirror, once and
ery Act, called ARRA, in the wake of
Senator from California (Ms. HARRIS) is for all.
the last financial crisis.
necessarily absent. As we now know, the first round of
We have given ourselves already an
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there Pfizer vaccines were sent to major hos-
extension to finish our work. Let’s not
any other Senators in the Chamber de- pitals across the country, including
ask for another one. It is time for a
siring to vote? more than 100 in my State. Unfortu-
conclusion. We have 2 days to cross the
The yeas and nays resulted—yeas 50, nately, rural areas were almost en-
t’s, dot the i’s, and come to an agree-
nays 37, as follows: tirely excluded. This is largely because
ment. The country expects us to finish
our work and deliver a result for the [Rollcall Vote No. 275 Ex.] of the infrastructure required to use
American people. YEAS—50 the Pfizer vaccine, which must be kept
I yield the floor. Alexander Graham Menendez at a negative 94 degrees Fahrenheit,
I suggest the absence of a quorum. Barrasso Grassley Moran which is significantly colder than the
Blackburn Hassan Murkowski average freezer. While you are likely to
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Booker Hawley Roberts
clerk will call the roll. Boozman Hoeven Romney
find these ultra-low-temperature freez-
The legislative clerk proceeded to Braun Hyde-Smith Rosen ers in major hospitals and major re-
call the roll. Capito Inhofe Rubio search labs, they are far less likely to
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
Cassidy Johnson
Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I Collins Kelly
Sasse be found in smaller, rural hospitals. So
Scott (FL) when the first round of Pfizer vaccines
ask unanimous consent that the order Cornyn Kennedy
Scott (SC)
for the quorum call be rescinded. Cotton King
Shelby
went out the door, they were only sent
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Cramer Lankford to hospitals with the necessary equip-
Crapo Lee Sinema
JOHNSON). Without objection, it is so Daines Manchin Sullivan ment and a large number of workers
ordered. Gardner McConnell Thune who needed the vaccine. As a result,
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