Congressional Record — Senate, S1537 (March 16, 2021)

Summary

Page S1537 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for March 16, 2021, in interleaved columns, under the heading Nomination of Isabella Casillas Guzman. Ms. Klobuchar supports Ms. Guzman to be Administrator of the Small Business Administration and says she will help get shuttered venues access to PPP loans and distribute over $16 billion in grants under the Save Our Stages program, which is Ms. Klobuchar's view. Another speaker criticizes Postal Service leadership, saying overtime hours were slashed and mail-sorting machines were removed, and suggests Mr. DeJoy step down, and a further speaker praises the work of Attorney General Becerra.

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“Congressional Record — Senate, S1537 (March 16, 2021).” Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2021-03-16-crec-2021-03-16-pt1-pgs1537-074d4b0b4a/, SHA-256 0bbf576b1b01b05d4a9ae716cc860a31345d09fef620848aee669471842fe101.

Full text

March 16, 2021 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S1537
into a lifeline for many, Mr. DeJoy un- The legislative clerk proceeded to the grant program immediately. We
veiled a radical plan to reorganize the call the roll. have been working with the staff there,
Postal Service, after only 1 month in Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I and we have given these venues that
the job and no experience in the De- ask unanimous consent that the order have been shuttered—the first to close
partment. He slashed overtime hours, for the quorum call be rescinded. and the last to reopen—the ability to
prohibited late and extra mail delivery The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without access PPP loans, which is really im-
trips, and set stricter delivery sched- objection, it is so ordered. portant right now. We also want to get
ules. NOMINATION OF ISABELLA CASILLAS GUZMAN the grant program out immediately—
In August, with no public expla- Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I get that money out—and distribute
nation, the Postal Service began re- rise in support of Isabella Guzman, cur- over $16 billion in grants. Our venues
moving mail-sorting machines from rently the director of California’s Of- can’t wait. They need that relief. Ms.
postal facilities around the country, re- fice of the Small Business Advocate— Guzman will be key to leading our way
ducing their ability to process mail. the Presiding Officer’s State—to be the out of this and helping Senator SCHU-
Amazingly, the Postal Service Inspec- Administrator of the U.S. Small Busi- MER with his theaters in New York to
tor General determined that the ness Administration. the Fargo Theatre in North Dakota.
changes were ordered with no analysis We all know the importance of small We need to get this done.
and no understanding of how they businesses and how they have been hit We just passed restaurant relief as
might affect timeliness of mail deliv- so hard during this pandemic. Small part of the American Rescue Plan—a
ery. A Federal lawsuit forced the Agen- businesses employ nearly half of all major, major bill—with the $28.6 billion
cy to put the changes on hold until private sector workers and make out- Restaurant Revitalization Fund, which
after the election. sized contributions to the innovation is going to be so key. I was at The
On February 6, Mr. DeJoy was quoted that makes America’s economy strong. Block Food & Drink restaurant in
in the Washington Post saying that his Yet the coronavirus has put millions of Saint Louis Park on Sunday and then
new plan for reorganizing the Postal people out of business, hundreds of headed up to Duluth, to the Boat Club,
Service would be ready for public re- thousands of these mom-and-pop, with the mayor and the owners of the
lease ‘‘as early as next week.’’ He said Boat Club. There were stories I heard
brick-and-mortar retail shops out of
that on February 6. We are still wait- of servers who had been laid off, then
business, and restaurants out of busi-
ing for it, waiting for the DeJoy plan came back, laid off, then came back,
ness.
to shape up the Postal Service. It is We are so pleased that there is, as we and there were stories I heard about
like waiting for a lost package. say in Minnesota, a lighthouse that we the owners of some of these res-
We know some of the biggest changes are looking to now. I was up in Duluth taurants in their taking out repeated
he intends to propose because he has on Sunday, and instead of the light at loans. They are hanging in there, and
confirmed them publicly. The DeJoy we need to have their backs.
the end of the tunnel, which so many of
plan for shaping up the post office is One out of six restaurants in this
us talk about with regard to the end of
expected to call for the following: more country has permanently closed down
this pandemic, the mayor there re- during the pandemic. As the leader of
service cuts, higher prices, and slower ferred to it as a lighthouse, for they
mail delivery. If that sounds like a the antitrust subcommittee in the Sen-
have a lot of lighthouses on Lake Supe- ate, we don’t want to just give all of
winning combination to you, I have rior. The end of this pandemic is our
some vintage computers to sell to your our food service and action in the res-
lighthouse. We see the blinking lights taurant area to the big guys. We are
business. In short, this is not a solu- from a distance, but we know we are
tion; this is sabotage of an essential pleased we have successful restaurant
not there yet. To get there, we not only chains in this country, but that can’t
public service, and we shouldn’t tol-
need to get this vaccine to every per- be the only thing we have. That is why
erate it.
son—and the President has said we will helping these smaller venues is so im-
Well, America has a new President
who understands that affordable, effi- have vaccines available by the end of portant.
cient postal service is essential to May for every adult in America—but Ms. Guzman gets that. She is a life-
America. Five days after taking office, we have to get it distributed, and our long proponent of small businesses and
President Biden replaced the Chair of pandemic bill certainly is going to be a is the daughter of a small business
the Postal Regulatory Commission. major step toward getting that done. owner. As a former entrepreneur, this
We also need to get our business makes her the right person for this job
Late last month, he filled three vacan-
cies of the Postal Service Board of Gov- economy back in order. We need to be at a pivotal time in the life of our
ernors, the body that hires the Post- able to not be so far down in the country. She has the backing of the
master General and oversees the Postal ground that we can’t climb out of U.S. Chamber of Commerce and numer-
Service. where we are. That is why having Ms. ous trade organizations. I know her
I encourage President Biden to make Guzman in place—someone with her leadership at the SBA will put our
all the changes necessary to rescue the record and her ability to lead and who struggling businesses in the best hands.
Postal Service. Mr. DeJoy has offered a served as the Deputy Chief of Staff and I ask my colleagues to support the
stream of excuses for the chaos that as the Senior Adviser at the Small nomination of Isabella Guzman to be
has fallen the Postal Service since he Business Administration during the Administrator of the Small Business
showed up. He says it is the pandemic, Obama administration—is so impor- Administration. The Presiding Officer
the Christmas holidays, bad weather, tant. must be proud to have someone who
an election that saw a record number She will oversee the Paycheck Pro- has done such good work in California
of Americans vote by mail. He has a tection Program, which we established in this job. We are excited about her
list as long as your arm. on a bipartisan basis in March of 2020 and what she can do.
I would remind him that in 1864, we as part of the CARES Act, as she un- NOMINATION OF XAVIER BECERRA
held a national election in the middle derstands the need for greater equity Mr. President, today, I rise to speak
of a Civil War, and 150,000 Union Army in loan distribution and has shown a in support of Xavier Becerra’s nomina-
troops voted absentee from the field. commitment to transparency and accu- tion to serve as Secretary of Health
The Postal Service is as old as America rate loan data. She has made clear that and Human Services (HHS).
itself. It has proven that it can adapt she will make the Paycheck Protection Attorney General Becerra will bring
to crises with the right leadership. If Program more accessible to businesses a fresh perspective to HHS at a critical
Mr. DeJoy cannot or will not provide that have traditionally not had access time during this pandemic. While there
that leadership, I respectfully suggest to the banking relationships needed to is light at the end of the tunnel with

ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with SENATE
he step down. secure loans and grants. the distribution of the coronavirus vac-
I yield the floor. Very significantly to me and to those cines, there is still work to do to end
Mr. LEAHY. I suggest the absence of of us who worked on the Save our this pandemic and put our country on a
a quorum. Stages bill, including Senator CORNYN road to recovery, and that is where At-
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The of Texas, who led the bill with me, she torney General Becerra’s leadership
clerk will call the roll. has made clear that she will move on will be crucial.

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