Richard Durbin

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Florida (Mr. Nelson) and the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) are necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I will conclude by saying, from the birth of our Nation to this day, France has always been one of our closest allies. America stands arm in arm with the people of France. I yield the floor.

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, earlier in this session we observed a moment of silence to exhibit our solidarity with the people of France. I add my voice to others here today in sharing my deepest condolences and solidarity with the people of that great nation. As a result of barbaric violence that occurred over the weekend, we are finding this solidarity coming together from across the world, standing behind the people of France in their hour of need. These events that occurred in Paris were heartbreaking and infuriating. America knows well from the tragic events of September 11 that this kind of savagery is a challenge to the civilized world, one which we must collectively stand and defeat. As French President Hollande said to a joint session of the French Parliament, when France is attacked in such a manner, the whole world is attacked. I agree. The people of Russia are also victims of such violence in the recent downing of their airplane departing Egypt, another tragedy for which ISIS has claimed credit. The people of Lebanon and Turkey have suffered horrific bombings in their capitals in the last few weeks from these same terrorist groups, and the brave reformers in Tunisia--one of the few countries to emerge from the Arab spring with an inclusive and inspiring democracy--have faced similar violence against innocent people at their museums and tourist destinations. The perpetrator of all of these monstrous attacks is ISIS, which has filled the void created by the wars in Iraq, Syria, and the broader political chaos of the Arab spring. These murderous henchmen have conducted the most heinous of acts: beheadings, mass rape, torture, and the murder of innocents in a sick attempt to intimidate the civilized world and to feed their own warped ideology. I have supported President Obama's leadership in organizing a global coalition to defeat ISIS and will continue to do so. I applaud Secretary Kerry for his efforts to negotiate an end to the Syrian civil war, but we must do more. When France is attacked and President Hollande reaches out to his allies, he is reaching out to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO, of which the United States is a member. He should reach out as well--and we all should reach out--to Russia which, as I mentioned earlier, has been victimized by this terrorist group in the downing of that aircraft. Then reach out to the Saudis and Muslim leaders around the world. Join us in a coalition to destroy ISIS, first in their occupied territory in Syria and in Iraq, and then in their murderous web of recruitment and hate around the world. Several people in the United States have reacted to the tragedy in France by calling for us to suspend refugees coming to this country. Many of these people have not reflected on the refugee situation in our country. Each year, the United States of America accepts about 70,000 refugees from around the world. These refugees are each carefully investigated, reviewed and vetted. That process takes anywhere from 18 to 24 months before a refugee from any part of the world is allowed to enter the United States. We do everything humanly possible and take extraordinary efforts to make certain dangerous people do not arrive on our shores. That vetting process must continue and when it comes to suspicious circumstances, must be doubled in its intensity to make certain our Nation is safe, but for those who are focusing on that as the answer to what happened in Paris, they are very shortsighted. One out of four of the refugees coming to the United States in the last fiscal year came not from the Middle East but from Burma. In addition to that, we find many refugees coming to the United States from Iraq. It turns out that over 3,000 refugees came from Iran. In each and every instance, we should apply the standard of strict vetting and the highest standards of investigation. I certainly stand by that, but those who say we should turn away refugees coming to the United States have forgotten the lesson of history. It was May of 1939, a ship docked in Florida. The ship was named the SS St. Louis. On that ship were almost 1,000 Jews from Europe who were trying to escape persecution. Sadly, the United States turned them away and they had to return to Europe. They were afraid for their lives. The Nazis had engaged in Kristallnacht and violence against Jewish people, and these refugees were coming to our shores seeking refugee status. In May of 1939 we turned them away. They returned to Europe and over 200 of them died in the Holocaust. Since that time the United States has taken a different approach to refugees. We have been a country sensitive to the reality that in many parts of the world people are living in fear of death every day and can only find safety on our shores. Over the years we have accepted 750,000 refugees from Vietnam; we have accepted over 500,000 Cuban refugees, including the fathers of two U.S. Senators, one who is running for President; we accepted over 200,000 Soviet Jews who were escaping persecution in the former Soviet Union; we have accepted refugees from around the world--from Somalia, from Bosnia. The list is long. That is an indication of who we are and our values. Now, we need to be careful when any refugee comes to the United States. We should give them a thorough investigation, but for us to step back and say we are going to stop being a refuge for refugees from around the world is a retreat from America's values. Let us make sure the process for refugees, immigrants, and visitors is the very best. Let us carefully follow through on each one of them, but let us not turn our backs on many around the world who fear for their lives and are looking for the safety of the United States. That has been part of our heritage for over 60 years and it should continue. What can we do? We know we have an obligation to keep America safe, and we know ISIS and terrorists like them are trying to find ways into the United States. First, we must acknowledge the obvious. For more than 14 years, with the exception of the Boston Marathon, involving lone-wolf terrorists, we have kept America safe. It has been through the good work of our men and women in the intelligence community, the military, the FBI, and in so many different aspects of our government. So what can we do in the Senate to make sure they are able to do their job effectively? Why don't we do our job in the Senate. Why don't we pass the appropriations bills for these agencies. Imagine, here we are, over a month into this fiscal year, and the Senate has not passed the appropriations for the FBI, the appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security. What are we waiting for? Instead, we have vote after revote after revote over old issues that have been resolved on the floor of the Senate months ago. This week, if we want to fight terrorism and protect the United States, let us pass the appropriations bills for all of the agencies of our government. It is time to do it and to do it now. Secondly, we need to make sure our country has the tools to fight terrorism, the kind of terrorism we have seen in Paris, France. We know we need to change the approach when it comes to the encryption of data and communications so that we have access to the communications of terrorists. Technology is leaping ahead of our capacity. We are told by our agencies of government that to keep America safe we have to deal with encryption standards today. That is the reality of the challenge to the United States. Some would dwell on refugees. I think we ought to be careful on every single refugee that comes to this country, but there is more we can do. Pass the appropriations for the agencies that keep us safe, put in new standards so we can deal with the encryption where would-be terrorists are hiding their communications from our surveillance even under court order. Third, we need to come together--France, the NATO nations, Russia, those Muslim countries that abhor this extremism that is exhibited by ISIS--and wipe ISIS off the map in Iraq and Syria. We need to rely on local forces there who have been so effective, like the Kurds, who are willing to fight the ISIS troops on the ground and to defeat them. Eliminating them from Iraq and Syria is no guarantee they will not continue their efforts around the world, but let us have a common enemy in ISIS and come together in a large global coalition to fight them and stop their efforts. I come to the floor with some emotion today because my wife and I, for years, have visited France. We consider it to be a wonderful country with great people. We have had our differences on foreign policy from time to time, but any student of history knows the French stood with us when it came to our Revolution. The French have been by our side time and again, and we have been by their side in both World War I, World War II, and in so many other theaters.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, there is a desperate need for the Senate to address one of the greatest national security and public health risks we face as a country, something that has the ability to affect up to 3.4 percent, or $260 billion, of U.S. economic output annually. What is this threat? It is climate change. In its 2010 and 2014 Quadrennial Defense Reviews, the Department of Defense identified climate change as a risk that must be incorporated into the Nation's future defense planning. Last year, I held a hearing on this issue as chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. Pentagon experts explained the far-ranging effects of this threat . . . putting the U.S. at risk around the world . . . changing the landscape and vegetation of training areas . . . accelerating regional tensions and conflict. This summer, the Department issued a new report outlining in even greater detail the threats we face. It states, ``The Department of Defense sees climate change as a present security threat, not strictly a long-term risk.'' It goes on to say that climate change is introducing ``shocks and stressors'' in the Artic, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and South America. The report argues that global warming has had ``measurable impacts'' on vulnerable areas and regional conflicts, like Syria. Due to these impacts, military leaders are now forced to include ways to respond to the risks and challenges of climate change in their planning. So if our Nation's senior military leaders are doing their part to address climate change, isn't it about time that we did the same? Well, we can start by supporting the Environmental Protection Agency's efforts to limit carbon pollution from power plants--which account for over 40 percent of U.S. carbon pollution emissions. The rules would cut carbon pollution from power plants by over 30 percent and reduce emissions of the pollutants that cause soot and smog by 25 percent. That is equivalent to removing over 160 million cars from the road--or almost two-thirds of U.S. passenger vehicles. The rules will also drive new investment in clean energy generation and energy efficiency technologies while growing the economy, shrinking household electricity bills, and putting the U.S. on a pathway to lead the world in creating new clean energy jobs. In addition, EPA's rules would lead to climate and health benefits worth up to $54 billion annually, including avoiding 3,600 premature deaths; 90,000 asthma attacks in children; and up to 3,400 heart attacks and hospital visits. This is a win-win for America. The State of Illinois has already started taking steps to reduce its emissions by adopting laws that promote the use of renewable energy and energy efficiency. Our ``community choice aggregation'' law allows Illinoisans to choose their energy providers. Since the program was started, more than 90 communities have chosen to use 100 percent renewable electricity sources for their residential power. Illinois's Renewable Portfolio Standard requiring the State to use 25 percent renewable electricity resources by 2025 is one of the strongest in the country. And State law also requires utilities to reduce Illinois's energy demand by 2 percent each year through efficiency improvements. With the support of these laws, Illinois now employs approximately 100,000 people in the clean energy industry--and meeting EPA's new targets would put even more Illinoisans to work designing, manufacturing, and installing clean energy systems. Most importantly, EPA's rules will allow the U.S. to face the challenge of climate change head on instead of ignoring the problem until it is too late. Leading scientists warn that the world is running out of time to make the cuts in carbon emissions that are needed to prevent irreversible damage to the Earth's climate. According to the United Nations's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, at least half the world's energy supply needs to come from low-carbon sources such as wind, solar, and nuclear by 2050 if we are going to avoid catastrophic climate changes. That gives us just 35 years to save the planet for future generations. This may seem like a long time, but we have a lot to do. We need to start now, and EPA's rules are a great first step. But I know some of my colleagues are opposed to the EPA's plan and anything this administration does to acknowledge the existence of climate change. So they have introduced two resolutions of disapproval to prevent EPA from listening to over 97 percent of climate scientists and acting to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. If the resolutions were to become law, they would prohibit EPA from proposing any new regulations that are ``substantially the same'' as their current rules for new and existing power plants. But even supporters of these resolutions have to admit that we have a responsibility to be good stewards of our planet. So I have to ask, if you don't like what the President is doing, what is your plan to make sure we leave future generations with a brighter, cleaner future? How do you propose we address the threat of climate change? And what is your plan to make sure that America leads the world in creating the well-paying, green jobs of the future? Denying the harmful effects of greenhouse gas emissions, as these resolutions do, is shortsighted and declares war on science and on public health. So I hope my colleagues will vote ``no'' on the resolutions of disapproval from Senator McConnell and Senator Capito. The evidence is clear: we need to get serious about addressing the causes and effects of climate change. America has the resources and the inventiveness to create a new energy system that can protect our environment and economy and allow us to continue to choose our own destiny. But we can only do it by focusing on policies that address both the economic and environmental challenges facing the country by supporting critical, sustainable infrastructure. And we need to do it soon--our generation has a moral obligation to leave the world in as good of shape as what we inherited from our parents and grandparents.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, it was 1 year ago this week that President Obama announced he would use his Executive authority to reform our broken immigration system. The President said we should prioritize the deportation of those who have been convicted of serious crimes or those who pose any threat to America's security. The Department of Homeland Security only has funding to deport a small fraction of the undocumented immigrants in the country. So the President said: Let's make a priority. Let's focus our limited resources on deporting those who could do us harm. It seemed like common sense to most people. At the same time, the President said we should not waste our resources deporting young immigrant students who grew up in this country and would, in fact, if they were deported, tear their families apart. The President's policies focused on deporting felons, not families-- criminals, not children. In 2012 President Obama established the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, known as DACA. DACA provides temporary--let me underline the word ``temporary''--immigrant status to immigrant students who arrived in the United States as children. This program is based on the DREAM Act, a bill I introduced 14 years ago in the Senate. That bill was introduced to give undocumented students who grew up in America a chance to earn their path to citizenship. We call them DREAMers. It was known as the DREAM Act. They were brought to the United States as kids, some as infants. They grew up in our country pledging allegiance every day in the classroom to the only flag they have ever known--the U.S. stars and stripes. They are proud and patriotic Americans in every sense but one: They are undocumented. They only want a chance to work, to be part of America's future. We have already invested in these young people. We have put quite a bit of our resources into making them what they are today. It makes no sense to walk away from this investment, does it, if that child, grown up now, could be an asset to the future of America? So far, more than 700,000 of these young people have received the DACA protection, temporary status to stay in the United States. What have they done with this opportunity? They have decided to do more to help our country--to become engineers, teachers, small business owners. DACA, I am sorry to say, is not a popular program with many of my Republican colleagues. They have tried to shut it down. They want to deport these DREAMers--2\1/2\ million young people who were brought to the United States as infants and children, who have grown up in this country, have no serious criminal record, and who only want to be part of our future. Instead, the critics say, turn them away, deport them-- many times to countries they cannot even remember. A year ago this week, President Obama established a new program that built on DACA's success. It is called the Deferred Action for Parental Accountability, or DAPA. Under that program, undocumented immigrants who have lived in the United States for more than 5 years and have American children would be required to come forward, register with the government, pay a fee, submit themselves to a criminal and national security background check, and pay their fair share of taxes. This is potentially 11 million people. Are we safer as a nation if these 11 million--or a large part of them--come forward, register with the government, pay their taxes, and submit themselves to a criminal background check? If they have a serious problem, if they have committed a crime, out they go. I am not going to defend them. But let's give these people a chance to get temporary status in this country by paying their taxes, paying a fee, submitting to a background check, and registering with our government. If the government determines these parents haven't committed any serious crimes and don't pose any threat to us, the President's order, on a temporary basis, says they can work and will not be deported--temporary. President Obama also expanded this to cover all DREAMers who came to the United States as children and have lived here for at least 5 years. Why did he take these actions? Because for years Congress has failed to fix our broken immigration system. I remember the day--it was June 27, 2013, 2\1/2\ years ago--the Senate passed comprehensive legislation to fix our broken immigration system. The vote was 68 to 32. A substantial number of Republican Senators joined with Democrats in voting for this comprehensive reform. We had spent, eight of us--the group of 8, as we were called--months negotiating back and forth and back and forth on the toughest issues involving immigration. We reached a bipartisan agreement, brought the bill to the floor, and it passed. We were in the majority at that time on the Democratic side, but we reached across the aisle to make sure enough Republicans could support us so that we could have a bipartisan solution to our immigration challenge. Unfortunately, the Republican majority in the House of Representatives at that time would not even consider--wouldn't even consider--the immigration reform bill we passed. In the face of that, the President had no choice. He could allow our broken immigration system to continue or step forward and try to make America safer and more just. The Center for American Progress, incidentally, says the economic benefit of the President's Executive orders would have been significant. Both DACA for children and DAPA for their parents would increase my State's gross domestic product by almost $15 billion over 10 years and increase the earnings of all Illinois residents by almost $8 billion. Unfortunately, both DAPA and the expansion of the earlier DACA have been blocked by lawsuits that have been filed by Republicans who oppose the measure. These Republicans, who have the majority in the House and Senate, refuse to even consider any legislation to fix our broken immigration system. Well, last week, in a decision that was no surprise, a Republican- appointed judge--actually, a bank of judges on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals--sided with the Republicans who had filed a lawsuit and upheld an injunction that blocks DAPA and the expanded DACA Program. The Obama administration announced they will appeal to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has been clear in the past that Presidents have the authority to set Federal immigration policy. I believe the President's actions will ultimately be upheld. Over the years, I have come to the floor more than 60 times to tell stories about DREAMers. I used to give speeches about the general issue, and people didn't pay much attention. But then I started telling the stories of the actual people who would be affected by the DREAM Act and by DACA. Today, I want to tell you another one. This is Fernando Meza Gutierrez. Fernando's family came to the United States from Mexico when he was 9 years old. He grew up in Los Angeles, CA, and he was an outstanding student. In high school, he was an advanced placement scholar, and he received an international baccalaureate diploma and the Achievement Award in Foreign Language for French. He was a student athletic trainer, president of the French club, and tutored his fellow students in French, Spanish, and in math. Fernando was also active in his community. He volunteered at nursing homes, participated in canned food drives, beach cleanup, and Thanksgiving dinners for the homeless. Fernando continued his studies at Santa Clara University. Remember, as an undocumented student, he didn't qualify for a penny in Federal assistance--no loans, no Pell grants. But at Santa Clara University, Fernando graduated cum laude with a double major in biology and French. During his time at Santa Clara, Fernando won the award for the best presentation in molecular biology at the West Coast Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference. He worked at a research laboratory, where he studied how cells choose what kind of tissue they will become during their development. Unlike the other students, Fernando could not be paid for his work because he was an undocumented immigrant. Fernando also continued to be active in his community. He was a certified emergency medical technician, responding to on-campus medical emergencies. He participated in food drives, tutored high school students, worked with HIV patients in San Francisco, and volunteered for soup kitchens. Fernando is currently a third-year doctoral student at the University of California in San Francisco, studying biochemistry and molecular biology. He is working in a lab in the Hellen Diller Comprehensive Cancer Center. He focuses his research on how cancer cells get rid of proteins that are defective and potentially harmful or proteins that are no longer needed. His work could provide valuable insights into many diseases and disorders, including cancer and autism. Fernando also mentors high school students and undergraduate students pursuing careers in biomedical science. Fernando sent me a letter, and this is what he said: I'm thankful to this country for giving me the opportunity to grow up in a safe environment, for the education I receive, for the amazing people that have been a part of my life, and for the culture in which I grew up. All these factors have shaped my world view, my aspirations. . . . DACA will allow me to contribute to America's biomedical research work and potentially make discoveries that could improve the lives of Americans and people around the world. This country has given me an opportunity to pursue my passion for biomedical research. In the future, I want to use my expertise to contribute to this country and to make sure that the United States remains the world's leader in biomedical discoveries. Fernando and many DREAMers like him have a lot to contribute to America. I don't understand those who want to deport this young man, who say: We don't need you, we don't need your talents, we don't need your hard work, and we don't need your research. Of course we do. America will be a better country if Fernando becomes a part of its future. That is what the DREAM Act does. That is what DACA does. That is what we are trying to achieve. Instead of trying to deport young men and women like Fernando, I hope the other party will support meaningful immigration reform that is fair and comprehensive. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I wish to express reluctant support for the fiscal year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act. Many parts of the agreement represent bipartisan consensus between Chairman McCain, Chairman Thornberry, Ranking Member Reed, and Ranking Member Adam Smith. We all appreciate their hard work on those matters for our troops and their families. It provides well-deserved pay increases to our uniformed and defense civilian workforce. It modernizes the personnel benefit system to include a government matched savings plan. It authorizes $300 million in assistance to Ukraine, of which $50 million may be lethal assistance. It codifies the President's Executive order against torture and ensures that interrogations follow the Army Field Manual. I wish to thank Senator McCain and Senator Feinstein in particular for their leadership on this issue. In addition, it extends the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa program so that we may continue to keep faith with foreign translators who risked their lives working with our troops. It authorizes a number of military construction projects around the world, including $29 million in family housing units at Rock Island Arsenal, IL. It reauthorizes the DOD-VA pilot program at North Chicago, the Lovell Federal Health Care Center. For these and many other reasons, I voted for the agreement, but it is a compromise, and I must express my opposition to a few of its provisions. One of those points of disagreement is that the bill prevents the closure of the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The reality is that, every day that it remains open, Guantanamo prison weakens our alliances, inspires our enemies, and calls into question our commitment to human rights. Time and again, our most senior national security and military leaders have called for the closure of Guantanamo. In addition to the national security cost, every day that Guantanamo remains open, we are wasting taxpayer dollars. We are spending $3.3 million per year for each detainee held at Guantanamo Bay--compare that with the estimated $78,000 that it costs to hold a detainee in a Federal super maximum security prison. Yet the conference agreement makes it even harder to transfer detainees to foreign countries, prohibits transfers to the U.S., and prohibits construction or modification of facilities in the U.S. All of us are committed to preventing terrorist attacks. Terrorists deserve swift and sure justice and severe prison sentences. But holding detainees at Guantanamo does not administer justice effectively. It does not serve our national security interests, and it is inconsistent with the country's history as a champion of human rights. In order to conform to the budget agreement, the bill also includes $1.7 billion in reductions to headquarters management personnel. Everyone in the Senate wants to cut the fat from the Pentagon, but we must make sure that these cuts are targeted toward inefficiency and waste, as opposed to recklessly eliminating our valued DOD civilian workforce. The women and men who serve our Nation's defense outside of a uniform are our teammates in making our country secure. They process military pay; investigate fraud, waste, and abuse; oversee expensive weapons programs; and many more important functions. I am proud of each DOD civilian, especially those who work in Illinois, and I will work to make sure that the Congress supports their contributions to our country. This is a very good agreement, these reservations notwithstanding. It is full of provisions which help our troops, reforms the way the Pentagon does business, and provides for our military families. I thank Senator McCain and Senator Reed for their hard work and commend the bill's passage for the 54th year in a row.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Leahy) and the Senator from Virginia (Mr. Warner) are necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer), the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Leahy), and the Senator from Virginia (Mr. Warner) are necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. Klobuchar), the Senator from Missouri (Mrs. McCaskill), the Senator from Maryland (Ms. Mikulski), the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders), and the Senator from Michigan (Ms. Stabenow) are necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, on another topic, you can't serve in the Senate without some level of patience. It takes forever to get things done around here--that is, the big things. Fifteen years ago, I introduced a bill called the DREAM Act. That was 15 years ago, the year 2000. What were we going to do with these young people who came to the United States--brought here as babies, infants, toddlers, children--when they finished high school and were looking to the future? The DREAM Act said that if they have no serious criminal issues, if they have finished school, we will give them a chance--a chance to work their way toward legal status and citizenship. I introduced that bill 15 years ago. It has had its ups and downs. At times it has passed in the House; other times it has passed in the Senate. We have never been able to align those two bodies to pass the bill at the same time. It was June 27, 2013--almost 2\1/2\ years ago--when it last passed in the Senate. It was part of comprehensive immigration reform. Sixty- eight Senators voted for that bill--14 Republicans and 54 Democrats. It was a bipartisan bill, comprehensive immigration reform. We took the bill and sent it to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, and they refused to call the bill or even debate it on the floor of the House of Representatives. It was frustrating. A group of us had worked for months to put that bill together. The House would not even consider it, wouldn't even debate it, didn't offer an alternative. They were silent. Virtually all of them were silent but not every one of them. This was a historic meeting in the city of Chicago. These two gentlemen are my friends, one my colleague from Illinois, Congressman Luis Gutierrez, and the other the new Speaker of the House of Representatives, Congressman Paul Ryan from Janesville, WI. They appeared at a famous setting in Chicago, the City Club, and talked about immigration. Let me read what Congressman Paul Ryan said as a visitor joining Congressman Gutierrez in 2013: We all must acknowledge that we have an immigration system that's broken. It is not serving our interest as a nation. Our broken immigration system does not serve our national security interests. Our broken immigration system does not serve our economic security interests. Our broken immigration system does not serve our family interests. Congressman Ryan went on to say: And so, when Republicans and Democrats look at this situation and see something that's broken, we need to fix it. We have to offer people a path to earned legalization. We have to invite people to come out of the shadows. That was an extraordinary statement. It was heralded not just in Chicago but around the country as a statement that a leader would make trying to lead his party into a positive view toward immigration reform. It was a statement made by Congressman Paul Ryan in the year 2013. I applauded it, praised it. Many of us did. But now we have another statement by the new Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan. He has basically said that the Republicans are going to do nothing--nothing on immigration. He says he can't trust the President, and as long as he can't trust the President, he is going to do nothing as the new Republican leader of the House. So he is going to consider absolutely no legislation to fix our broken immigration system. Why did President Obama take the actions that he did, creating a program known as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA? It was the President's response to the failure of Republican leaders in the House to even consider the issue of immigration. What is DACA? DACA is a program created by Executive order that gives to these young people who qualified as DREAMers temporary status in the United States so they cannot be deported. They have to come forward, submit themselves for a criminal background check, pay a fee, and be monitored. If they should get in trouble, commit a crime, they are gone, they are deported. So far, 700,000 of these young people have come forward as part of the DACA Program. The House Republicans have tried to stop the program, eliminate the program. I assume that, like some candidates for President, they want to deport all these young people. That is unfortunate because many of these young people who now have at least temporary protection by DACA are doing some absolutely extraordinary things. I would like to talk about one of them this evening. This young lady's name is Maricela Aguilar. She is from Speaker Ryan's home State of Wisconsin. In 1995, when Maricela was 3 years old, her mother brought her to the United States to give her a better life. Maricela's family settled in Milwaukee, WI. She worked hard and excelled in school. During high school, Maricela was on the honor roll, was a member of the National Honor Society, and was captain of the cross-country team. At the same time, she was active in her community; she was a volunteer at a homeless shelter. When it came time to apply for colleges, she wanted to stay close to her family. She wanted to stay in Speaker Ryan's home State of Wisconsin. She applied to a lot of schools. She was offered a full tuition scholarship to Marquette University in Milwaukee. That is an extraordinary school. My son went there, so I am partial, but it is an extraordinary school because it gave her a chance. Keep in mind that this young lady, because she is undocumented, doesn't qualify for any government assistance--none. Sacrifices had to be made by her family and others to help her go to Marquette. She went there. She was on the dean's list, double major--political science and English literature. She worked part time as a waitress to make ends meet to pay for her college expenses. She became involved in advocating for immigration reform. In 2010 Maricela was here in the Senate Gallery along with hundreds of other DREAMers when the Senate failed to pass the DREAM Act due to a Republican filibuster. We got a majority of votes; we couldn't get 60. I met with Maricela in 2011 when she came to Washington to talk about her concerns about DREAMers just like herself who faced deportation. In 2012 Maricela graduated with honors, in the top 10 percent of her graduating class at Marquette in Milwaukee, WI. Later that year President Obama created the deferred action plan that gave her and hundreds of thousands of others a chance to stay and not be deported. She was able to apply and go to graduate school at Brandeis University in Boston. She continues to work on immigration reform and is a leader of the Student Immigration Movement of Massachusetts. She is going to return to Milwaukee when she graduates, she promises. She wants to become a public school teacher so she can use her education to help young people in the city where she grew up. She is a loyal Wisconsinite, a loyal member of the Milwaukee community. I would say to Speaker Ryan: She wants to be a part of your State for the rest of her life. Maricela and other DREAMers have so much to give America. Can we use more public school teachers with her talent? Of course we can. But Speaker Ryan and other Republican leaders in Congress have made their agenda clear: They want to shut down this program and tell Maricela she can't stay to continue her education. They want to deport her to her country, which she hasn't been to since she was 3 years old and has no memory of it. She would be deported to Mexico, a place she may have experienced as a toddler but can't even remember. Will America be a stronger country, will Wisconsin be a better State, will Milwaukee be a better city if Maricela is now told to leave after she has obtained her bachelor's degree and is working on her graduate degree? I think the answer is clear: If she stays, we will all be better for it and she will be better for it. Instead of deporting DREAMers like Maricela, Speaker Paul Ryan should support DACA and work with the Democrats to pass comprehensive immigration reform to fix our broken immigration system.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, first, let me thank my colleague from Connecticut, Senator Blumenthal. I join him in condemning the violence that is taking place in the streets of the Middle East and Jerusalem and other places. I also join him in calling for a two-state solution so that we can have both the Palestinian people and the people of Israel living safely and securely without fear of any kind of military action from one against the other. That should be our ultimate goal, and we should renew that goal regularly. I join him in what he had to say.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, this Wednesday, Americans all across the country will gather to honor all those who have fought for freedom and thank them for a debt we can never fully repay. Whenever freedom is threatened, our brave men and women of America have answered the call. In honor of Veterans Day on Wednesday, I will take a moment to recognize an amazing Illinois veteran, part of what we call the ``greatest generation.'' It was December 7, 1941--as FDR said just a few steps away from us in the House Chamber, a day which will live in infamy. The Imperial Japanese forces launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. That also happened to be the 22nd birthday of Tony Gargano, and it was the day he decided he would enlist in the U.S. Navy. Tony was assigned to a ship disguised as a merchant marine vessel. He and his shipmates didn't wear Navy uniforms or carry IDs, and their ship had no guns. In November of 1942, a German ship--also disguised as a merchant vessel--sank the ship Tony was on. Tony survived and was taken as a prisoner aboard the German ship. Then he was turned over to the Japanese, where he spent the next 3 years as a prisoner working in a coal mine. Every day he would come out of the mine covered head to toe with coal dust. In those 3 years, Tony never had a chance to take a shower, never could wash his hands--3 years. He worked more than 10 hours a day on less than 8 ounces of water and 6 ounces of spoiled rice. Here is how he described his experience: They torture you. They beat the hell out of us. You'd try to get up and they'd beat you back to the ground. You prayed to God they would kill you. By the time the war was over and the Red Cross arrived, Tony couldn't believe he was still alive. After he arrived in the United States, they quarantined him for weeks. He couldn't even call his family to tell them he was alive. But he made it, and he came home. Now fast-forward 70 years. Tony is 95 years old. He marvels at his good fortune. After the war, he came home and married Julia Elliot, the love of his life. They worked 6 days a week. He was maitre d' at Elliot's Pine Log Restaurant in Skokie, IL. He watched his son and daughter grow up and enjoyed the arrival of five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. What a life. Last month Tony Gargano came to Washington with the Honor Flight. He visited the White House and the World War II Memorial. He shared his story with the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress. They asked him: ``What do you think of when you look back on your life?'' Here is what Tony said: Everything turned out pretty good. I met a nice, young lady. We got married, and spent 60 beautiful years together. I have no complaints. Isn't that an amazing statement for a man who served 3 years as a prisoner of war and was nearly killed in the effort. The joys of Tony's life have outshined the horrors of that war. If you ask Tony if he is a hero, he says: There were others who had it much worse. The people we should honor are the ones where the white crosses are. Those are your heroes. Tony is right, but Tony is a hero too. Tony Gargano faced an unspeakable evil with grace, courage, and determination. He lived his life with love in his heart, and that makes him, even to this day, a true American hero. It is the service and sacrifice of people like Tony we will continue to honor not just on Veterans Day this Wednesday, but we should honor them every day. Too often servicemembers return home only to find themselves facing a myriad of challenges, from the physical and mental wounds of war to struggling to find work, an education or a home. We can't simply commemorate their service by waving our flags, marching in their parade, and then forgetting them. We have to ensure that veterans and their families have access to the best health care, education, jobs, and housing. I have been committed to this effort, and I have one program I am particularly proud to have been a part of. It is called the VA Caregivers Program. It provides the families of severely disabled Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans the support they need to keep the veterans home with their families. Thousands of veterans and their caregivers in Illinois and nationwide participate. It is a big, successful program. I recently introduced legislation to expand it so it covers all veterans. We know veterans face unnecessary delays and claims, processing and reimbursement, and I have worked hard to cut down on that backlog. I have also tried to make our VA hospitals and medical centers in Illinois and across the country the best. It is the new method of medical service being provided to our veterans, and it has to be the best. I have been proud to sponsor bills to strengthen post-traumatic stress disorder for veterans and their families as well as improve orthotics and prosthetics research and education. I have been proud to help veterans get homes and jobs. For example, just this year the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs awarded more than $674,000 in grants to assist homeless veterans in my State through a tenant-based voucher program. Let me say a word about a program I visited just this last week in Chicago, which is an extraordinary program. The program is called Rags of Honor. It was created by my friend Mark Doyle. He wanted to do something to create good-paying jobs for homeless veterans, and so he decided to print T-shirts and hired homeless veterans to do it. It is on its third year now, and my friend has basically underwritten it, but the fact is, it is a success. These men and women who were living in their cars or living on the streets now have good-paying jobs making T-shirts. These T-shirts are all made by veterans, some of whom were homeless. These are all American products, all American made, and they are selling them and people are buying them. Northwestern University decided they would turn to them and have them print T-shirts for some of their needs at the university. I have used Rags of Honor T-shirts in my campaign. It is an example of what can be done to help our veterans--just by one man who was willing to dedicate a big part of his life to do it, and there are so many more like him. I wish to thank all of those who have risked and given of themselves--even the families of those who have given their lives for this Nation--and for the wounds they suffered, the sacrifices they made, and the freedoms we enjoy which they secured. We remember and honor the service of every American veteran, not only at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month but every day of the year, because even though servicemembers and veterans like Tony Gargano may shy away from being labeled as heroes, they are truly of the most deserving of that honor. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, on Tuesday, November 11, Americans across the country will gather to honor those who have fought for our freedom and thank them for a debt we can never fully repay. This year marks the 97th anniversary of the end of World War I. Our victory in that ``war to end all wars'' showed us that we could not ignore the rest of the world. And as President Clinton said, ``while that war proved our strength, it did not prove our wisdom. . . . We turned our backs on the rest of the world. We ignored the signs of danger. Soon we had a Great Depression, and soon that depression led to aggression and then to another world war--one that would claim a half million American lives.'' Whenever freedom is threatened, our brave men and women have answered the call to serve. Today, I would like to highlight our debt to the heroes and survivors of World War II. Earlier this year, we commemorated International Holocaust Remembrance Day and paid tribute to the nearly 6 million Jews murdered by the Nazi regime. This year marks the 70th anniversary that Allied Forces entered concentration camps--like Auschwitz-Birkenau--and liberated thousands of prisoners. On the eve of this Veterans Day, nine American heroes and Holocaust survivors are being honored in my home State of Illinois. Today, I want to share their remarkable stories. As the memory of the Holocaust passes from those who were there to the generations that weren't we can't forget the importance of remembrance. GEN Dwight D. Eisenhower, the supreme commander of Allied Forces in Europe, understood this and documented what he saw. After visiting a liberated Nazi camp, he urged Washington to send congressional delegations to witness Nazi crimes firsthand so that in the future there could be no attempt to dismiss these allegations as ``propaganda.'' With the remaining eyewitnesses in their twilight years, the responsibility to ensure that future generations never forget these atrocities falls to us. I want to commend these men and women for their brave actions and quiet courage. Today, we honor their sacrifice by remembering the horrors they witnessed and proclaiming in one unified voice: ``Never again.'' I am privileged to honor them and remember their stories. They are true heroes. I would like to acknowledge Dr. George Brent, Edith Stern, Margie Oppenheimer, Hannah Messinger, Walter Reed, Joseph Dobryman, Lewis Pazoles, Harry Nichols, and Anthony Gargano. But behind every name is a story. I ask unanimous consent to have their stories printed in the Record. Our hearts break for these men and women who mourn their families. But while their stories agonize, they also inspire. Their lives are not just stories of survival; they are stories of triumph and grace in the face of unspeakable evil. I want to thank each of them for the courage to share their stories.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, at 11 o'clock the Senate is going to vote on the Defense appropriations bill. This is a bill I have worked on with Senator Cochran of Mississippi. He not only chairs the Appropriations Committee but the Subcommittee on Defense, which I serve as ranking member on as well. The effort in this bill is extraordinary because it comprises virtually 60 percent of the domestic discretionary spending of our government. It, of course, deals with the Department of Defense and intelligence agencies. I just want to say we have worked on this on a bipartisan basis from the start. It has been a real pleasure to work with Senator Cochran. I commend him for his leadership and his gentility and thank him for all of the good work he has put into this bill. It is going to be a procedural vote that we anticipate is not going to allow this bill to go forward. It is not a reflection on the substance of the bill at all. Though we may disagree with one or two provisions in the bill--and even as one of the authors I can say that-- the fact is that what we are trying to do now is position ourselves to complete the work of last week's budget agreement. I think there is an understanding, at least at this moment, of how we will move forward, but I say to my colleagues that we can stand behind the substance of this bill. Procedurally, we may be delaying it today, but ultimately it will pass and I look forward to supporting it at that time. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer) and the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) are necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer), the Senator from Oregon (Mr. Merkley), and the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) are necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr President, every 15 minutes in America, a baby is born with a congenital heart defect. Many of these congenital heart defects are simple and can be easily corrected. Others are complex; some can require a lifetime of specialized medical care. If you want to know what fear and powerlessness feels like, imagine being a young parent, listening to a doctor tell you that your new baby--who appears so perfect to you--has a threatening heart problem. Fortunately, congenital heart defects aren't as deadly as they once were. In the 1950s, only 20 percent of American babies with congenital heart defects survived infancy. Today, 90 percent survive. Many children born with serious heart defects grow up to be adults with active, productive lives. That progress didn't happen by accident. It happened because Americans made a decision in the 1960s to reduce these mortality numbers. We invested in research that led to better understanding and better treatments of the heart, from infancy to old age. That investment in research has paid off in many ways. Some heart conditions that used to kill adults quickly often are managed now with medications and life style changes. The number of Americans with congenital heart disease living full, healthy lives increases by about 5 percent every year. About 2 million Americans are living with congenital heart disease today. We have come a long way--but there is more that we can do. We know that the sooner a baby with a congenital heart defect is diagnosed and treated, the better the chances are to live a long and healthy life. But, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 30 percent of babies with critical congenital heart defects aren't diagnosed in the first few days, when treatment is most effective; 1 in 200 babies die from complications that might have been avoided if their heart disease had been detected. In 2009, I introduced the Congenital Heart Futures Act to study people of all ages with congenital heart disease and coordinate research. That bill expired this year. Today I am introducing the Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act of 2015. This bill will save lives by allowing us to build on the knowledge we have gained about congenital heart defects and the best ways to treat them. My bill directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study people of all ages with congenital heart disease. The CDC would make the results of its research available to congenital heart disease researchers and to Congress. We will enable some of the best scientific and medical minds in America to evaluate the best ways to diagnose and treat congenital heart disease. Many adults living with congenital heart disease are not aware they need specialized care throughout their lives. And fewer than 10 percent of adults with complex congenital heart disease receive the care they need. The Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act directs the CDC to create a public awareness campaign to educate both patients and doctors about congenital heart disease and the need for lifelong specialized care for those living with congenital heart defects. Finally, my bill directs the National Institutes of Health to conduct a review of ongoing research on congenital heart disease, identify areas of greatest need for research, and identify plans for future research. We are not powerless when it comes to congenital heart challenges. We have made tremendous progress in my lifetime. Millions of Americans with congenital heart defects are living happy, healthy lives today because of that progress. The Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act bill will help us better understand what congenital heart disease looks like in the United States and what we can do to help those living with this disease live longer. This bill will save lives and ultimately it will save taxpayers money--a lifetime of specialized heart care is expensive. I would like to thank Senator Casey for joining me in introducing this bill, and Representatives Bilirakis from Florida and Adam Schiff from California in the House for introducing the companion bill. I look forward to working with them on this issue that affects so many families. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr President, every 15 minutes in America, a baby is born with a congenital heart defect. Many of these congenital heart defects are simple and can be easily corrected. Others are complex; some can require a lifetime of specialized medical care. If you want to know what fear and powerlessness feels like, imagine being a young parent, listening to a doctor tell you that your new baby--who appears so perfect to you--has a threatening heart problem. Fortunately, congenital heart defects aren't as deadly as they once were. In the 1950s, only 20 percent of American babies with congenital heart defects survived infancy. Today, 90 percent survive. Many children born with serious heart defects grow up to be adults with active, productive lives. That progress didn't happen by accident. It happened because Americans made a decision in the 1960s to reduce these mortality numbers. We invested in research that led to better understanding and better treatments of the heart, from infancy to old age. That investment in research has paid off in many ways. Some heart conditions that used to kill adults quickly often are managed now with medications and life style changes. The number of Americans with congenital heart disease living full, healthy lives increases by about 5 percent every year. About 2 million Americans are living with congenital heart disease today. We have come a long way--but there is more that we can do. We know that the sooner a baby with a congenital heart defect is diagnosed and treated, the better the chances are to live a long and healthy life. But, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 30 percent of babies with critical congenital heart defects aren't diagnosed in the first few days, when treatment is most effective; 1 in 200 babies die from complications that might have been avoided if their heart disease had been detected. In 2009, I introduced the Congenital Heart Futures Act to study people of all ages with congenital heart disease and coordinate research. That bill expired this year. Today I am introducing the Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act of 2015. This bill will save lives by allowing us to build on the knowledge we have gained about congenital heart defects and the best ways to treat them. My bill directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study people of all ages with congenital heart disease. The CDC would make the results of its research available to congenital heart disease researchers and to Congress. We will enable some of the best scientific and medical minds in America to evaluate the best ways to diagnose and treat congenital heart disease. Many adults living with congenital heart disease are not aware they need specialized care throughout their lives. And fewer than 10 percent of adults with complex congenital heart disease receive the care they need. The Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act directs the CDC to create a public awareness campaign to educate both patients and doctors about congenital heart disease and the need for lifelong specialized care for those living with congenital heart defects. Finally, my bill directs the National Institutes of Health to conduct a review of ongoing research on congenital heart disease, identify areas of greatest need for research, and identify plans for future research. We are not powerless when it comes to congenital heart challenges. We have made tremendous progress in my lifetime. Millions of Americans with congenital heart defects are living happy, healthy lives today because of that progress. The Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act bill will help us better understand what congenital heart disease looks like in the United States and what we can do to help those living with this disease live longer. This bill will save lives and ultimately it will save taxpayers money--a lifetime of specialized heart care is expensive. I would like to thank Senator Casey for joining me in introducing this bill, and Representatives Bilirakis from Florida and Adam Schiff from California in the House for introducing the companion bill. I look forward to working with them on this issue that affects so many families. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.