Congressional Record, Senate, July 29, 2021, No. 133

Summary

The opening of the Congressional Record, Senate, Vol. 167, No. 133, for Thursday, July 29, 2021. The Senate met at 10:30 a.m. and was called to order by Ms. Rosen, who assumed the Chair as Acting President pro tempore, and the Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, offered the prayer. Under Recognition of the Majority Leader, Mr. Schumer speaks under the heading Infrastructure, saying the Senate is moving forward with the bipartisan infrastructure bill and is on track to pass both elements of the two-track strategy before the August recess. He recalls the past two years of COVID and describes the vaccine's discovery. The remarks are his own.

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“Congressional Record, Senate, July 29, 2021, No. 133.” Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2021-07-29-crec-2021-07-29-pt1-pgs5147-7-5cb7017994/, SHA-256 5d724ca0e40e218d15077bd9b661813235ba480a4ff24d698a3e8ff63079659f.

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Congressional Record
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117 th CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION
United States
of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE

Vol. 167 WASHINGTON, THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2021 No. 133

Senate
The Senate met at 10:30 a.m. and was Ms. ROSEN thereupon assumed the is now moving forward with the bipar-
called to order by the Honorable JACKY Chair as Acting President pro tempore. tisan infrastructure bill, and we are on
ROSEN, a Senator from the State of Ne- f track to pass both elements of the two-
vada. track strategy before we adjourn for
RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME
f the August recess. It took some prod-
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- ding and a few deadlines, but it all has
PRAYER
pore. Under the previous order, the worked out for the better.
The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- leadership time is reserved. I want to take a step back and ex-
fered the following prayer: plain why these two bills are so impor-
f
Let us pray. tant at this moment. For the past 2
Precious Lord, You have been our RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY years at the end of the Trump Presi-
dwelling place in all generations, sus- LEADER dency, the country was angry, divided,
taining us with Your goodness and The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- plagued by COVID, and our economy
mercy. Today, surround our Senators
pore. The majority leader is recog- was stuck in the muck. The COVID
with the protection of Your divine
nized. washed over our country like a plague
favor, enabling them to obey Your
command to be productive. f and was met by staggering incom-
Lord, continue to strengthen them to petence from the Trump administra-
INFRASTRUCTURE tion. America was sick, dying, and our
follow Your precepts, fulfilling Your
purposes as they find joy in Your pres- Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, economy was in shambles.
ence. Keep them from the things that well, as we all know, last night, the The discovery of the vaccine played
bring regret. Increase their faith, pro- Senate voted by a substantial margin no small part in our country’s recov-
viding them with courage to live for to move forward with a debate on a bi- ery. We Democrats pushed early on,
Your glory. partisan infrastructure bill. I want to last February and March—not this past
We pray in Your strong Name. Amen. commend the group of Senators who one but a year ago—to increase funding
f worked with President Biden to reach a for BARDA. Even then, the Trump ad-
deal. The agreement will ultimately ministration was sort of being stingy
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE dedicate over a trillion dollars to about that money, but we got the
The Presiding Officer led the Pledge strengthening virtually every major money done. And the vaccine, as I said,
of Allegiance, as follows: category of our country’s fiscal infra- played no small part in our country’s
I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the structure. recovery.
United States of America, and to the Repub- The vote last night also means that But elections have consequences. I
lic for which it stands, one nation under God, the Senate is on track to reach the say that to the American people. Elec-
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
two-track goal I laid out for this tions have consequences. When we ran
f Chamber at the beginning of the as Senate Democrats, when President
APPOINTMENT OF ACTING month. The first track is the bipar- Biden ran, we promised we would get
PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE tisan bill focused on traditional, brick- the vaccines out; we would get the
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The and-mortar infrastructure projects. country’s economy moving again; we
clerk will please read a communication The second track is a budget reconcili- would give hope to the middle class and
to the Senate from the President pro ation bill where Democrats will make those struggling to get to the middle
tempore (Mr. LEAHY). historic investments in American jobs, class, where hope had been a distant
The senior assistant legislative clerk American families, and efforts to fight and hazy frame on their horizon pre-
read the following letter: climate change. viously.
U.S. SENATE, In order to start work on a reconcili- The Biden administration came in.
PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE, ation bill, the Senate must pass a We came in as a Senate majority. We
Washington, DC, July 29, 2021. budget resolution first, and we are on immediately set to work beating the
To the Senate: track for that as well. pandemic, with a relentless focus on
Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3, It has been my goal to pass both the getting the country vaccinated and
of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby
bipartisan infrastructure bill and a getting our country back to normal.
appoint the Honorable JACKY ROSEN, a Sen-
ator from the State of Nevada, to perform budget resolution during this work pe- Congressional Democrats swiftly
the duties of the Chair. riod. Some pundits have called that a passed the bold, strong American Res-
PATRICK J. LEAHY, tall order. I understand that. But be- cue Plan, one of the largest Federal
President pro tempore. cause of the vote last night, the Senate packages in American history, to keep

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∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor.

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S5148 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE July 29, 2021
families, businesses, and workers afloat beyond that to restore that bright, bers of the Georgia National Guard to
until the country could reopen. And we sunny optimism. We need to help the Capitol after January 6, his unit is
have done that. Six months into the American families keep up with the ex- facing ‘‘draconian’’ cuts if Congress
Biden administration and Democratic orbitant costs of childcare, healthcare, doesn’t replenish funding before this
majorities in the House and Senate, housing, college, and more. We need to weekend. We must not—we must not—
the country has stabilized. press on and fight to reverse climate let that happen under our watch.
This morning—this morning—it was change because, as bad as COVID was, The chairman of the Appropriations
reported that in the second quarter, if we do nothing about climate change, Committee, Senator LEAHY, has been
the U.S. economy grew at a rate of 6.5 a few years from now, each year will be working diligently to come up with a
percent, erasing all of the losses from worse than COVID, and each year after bipartisan agreement. Now, Senator
the COVID pandemic. It happened a lot that will get worse and worse and SHELBY has joined with him, and they
quicker and a lot sooner than many an- worse. If we do nothing, people several have crafted a $2.1 billion supplemental
ticipated. years from now—even people now will appropriations bill to fill the shortfalls
Let me repeat that because it is say: Why didn’t we do more? We Demo- of our Capitol Police, our National
great news. Under President Biden and crats want to do more on climate. We Guard, and a number of other vital de-
Democratic House and Senate majori- must. fense operations. It is not everything
ties, the economy recovered so fast this The numbers show that the American that we wanted. The House’s bill is big-
year that we have already erased the economy has gotten back to where it ger and broader. But it does fill the
losses in growth that we experienced as was prior to COVID. Now is the time to need, and we need to fill it quickly.
a result of the COVID pandemic. That go further and build back even better I want to thank Senator LEAHY par-
is very good news. than before. We Democrats, when we ticularly for his relentlessness in pur-
It certainly doesn’t mean every fam- can in a bipartisan way but on our own suing this.
ily is back on their feet yet. It cer- when our Republican colleagues are I want to thank Senator SHELBY for
tainly doesn’t mean our work is com- adamantly against us, we will move realizing how important this was in
plete. But the American economy is forward on both tracks—both tracks. prodding Members on his side of the
back. It is thriving and set for even I am proud of my Democratic caucus, aisle to move forward.
brighter days ahead. every one of them voting yesterday for I also want to thank Senators KLO-
Again, elections have consequences. this bill and all pledging to go forward BUCHAR and BLUNT, chairmen of the au-
There is such a difference between the on the second track as well. thorization committee, the Rules Com-
bumbling, nasty, divisive last 2 years f mittee, that deals with these issues.
of the Trump administration and a new Senator KLOBUCHAR in particular,
Democratic majority in the House and CAPITOL SECURITY whose hearings and continued focus on
the Senate and a Democratic Presi- Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, on Capitol security helped pave the way
dent. another matter, even during normal for the agreement, deserves our kudos.
Vaccines are out there, as we prom- times, protecting the U.S. Capitol is a Now is the time for the Senate to
ised to get them. There are still some difficult job. Millions of people visit take up and pass this bill on behalf of
people resisting taking a vaccine. They the U.S. Capitol every single year. Five the brave police officers and service-
should. We have had some resistance hundred and thirty-five elected offi- members who defended this very cita-
even from ideological rightwingers, cials and their staffs work here every del of democracy.
which is just awful. Vaccines are out single day. To keep the Capitol Com- All 50 Senate Democrats fully sup-
there. plex safe, to keep it secure, we are port this crucial police and security
Money has been pumped into the lucky to have the best of the best. funding. All 50 Democrats are ready to
economy through the ARP, and things Our Capitol Police, who stared down go. We are eager, insistent we meet our
are moving forward, but now is not the a violent mob on January 6, have been deadline.
time to rest on our laurels. Now is the nothing short of heroic—heroic. When Again, Democrats are prepared to
time to press forward to cement these the smoke cleared after the attack of vote on this bill as soon as possible.
gains and build on them. We must con- January 6, they came back to the Cap- With the cooperation of our Republican
tinue encouraging vaccinations. We itol and helped piece together what the colleagues, which we hope we will get—
must keep a very close eye on the rioters had torn apart. In the after- our needs are dire—we could pass this
Delta variant and take necessary pre- math of that dark day, the National bill today.
cautions. But we also must address the Guard helped keep watch day and The last 6 months have pushed those
underlying structural economic condi- night, 24–7. who protect the U.S. Capitol to the
tions that held back the middle class I walked the halls of this building limits. In the face of unprecedented ad-
and those trying to get there even be- early in the morning and saw our Na- versity, they responded heroically. We
fore the pandemic. tional Guard men and women, from must support them now as they so cou-
The American dream—that if you New York and so many other States, rageously supported us.
work hard, you will be doing better 10 camped out, helping us, wanting to I yield the floor.
years from now than you are doing make sure the Capitol was secure. We I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms.
today and your kids will be doing still owe the Capitol Police and we owe the
BALDWIN). The clerk will call the roll.
better than you—was fading for the National Guard our deepest gratitude, The senior assistant legislative clerk
last 20 years. If you look at the eco- but we owe them more than just that. proceeded to call the roll.
nomic statistics, they show that that We owe them the resources they need Mr. MCCONNELL. Madam President,
dimmer view the American people had to do a very difficult job and to do it I ask unanimous consent that the order
was accurate in terms of economic cir- well. for the quorum call be rescinded.
cumstances. Unfortunately, Congress is on the The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without
But now we need to get bright and precipice of failing. Due to unforeseen objection, it is so ordered.
sunny again. We need to return to the expenses during the pandemic and the
f
bright, sunny American optimism that toll incurred by the attack on January
has been so much a part of our char- 6, funding for our Capitol Police, secu- RECOGNITION OF THE MINORITY
acter for more than two centuries. And rity at the Capitol Complex, even our LEADER
how do we do it? We don’t just sit on National Guard, has come close to run- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Re-
our hands. We don’t just say: Let busi- ning very dry. publican leader is recognized.

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nesses take care of it. They won’t. Already, the Capitol Police has had f
They have a different mission. to delay vital trainings and the pur-
A massive investment in public infra- chase of new safety equipment. Soon, INFRASTRUCTURE
structure will create tens of thousands salaries, bonuses, and new hiring will Mr. MCCONNELL. Madam President,
of good-paying jobs. That is just what be on the chopping block. According to yesterday, I joined a number of my Re-
the doctor ordered. And we need to go MG Tom Carden, who sent 1,200 mem- publican and Democratic colleagues

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