Mitch McConnell

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 300, Joseph Otting.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I yield back all time on this side and reserve one minute for Senator Carper.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 240, S. 886.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 3243, which was received from the House.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 250, H.R. 194.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. McCONNELL

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to legislative session for a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 324, submitted earlier today.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, at 3:45 p.m. today there be 30 minutes of postcloture time remaining on the Robb nomination, equally divided between the leaders or their designees; that following the use or yielding back of that time, the Senate vote on the confirmation of the Robb nomination; and that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; finally, that there be 2 minutes of debate equally divided prior to the cloture vote on the Wehrum nomination.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following nominations: Executive Calendar Nos. 400, 401, and 402.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate vote on the nominations en bloc with no intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table en bloc; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; that no further motions be in order; and that any statements relating to the nominations be printed in the Record.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 325, submitted earlier today.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order, following the remarks of Senators Perdue and Merkley.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I have 6 requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority leaders. Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: committee on commerce, science, and transportation The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 9:45 a.m., to conduct a hearing on the following nominations: Dana Baiocco, of Ohio, to be a Commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, James Bridenstine, of Oklahoma, to be Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Neil Jacobs, of North Carolina, and Nazakhtar Nikakhtar, of Maryland, both to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce, Bruce Landsberg, of South Carolina, to be a Member of the National Transportation Safety Board, Raymond Martinez, of New Jersey, to be Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and Diana Furchtgott-Roth, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary, both of the Department of Transportation, and Leon A. Westmoreland, of Georgia, to be a Director of the Amtrak Board of Directors; to be immediately followed by a hearing to examine protecting consumers in the era of major data breaches. committee on commerce, science, and transportation The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m., in room SD-106 to conduct a hearing entitled ``Protecting Consumers in the Era of Major Data Breaches.'' committee on environment and public works The Committee on Environment and Public Works is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m., in room SD-406 to conduct a hearing on the following nominations: Kathleen Hartnett White, of Texas, to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality, and Andrew Wheeler, of Virginia, to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. committee on homeland security and governmental affairs The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m. to conduct a hearing on the nomination of Kirstjen Nielsen, of Virginia, to be Secretary of Homeland Security. committee on the judiciary The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 10 a.m., in room SD-226 to conduct a hearing entitled ``The Impact of Lawsuits Abuse on American Small Businesses and Job Creators.'' committee on indian affairs The Committee on Indian Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 2:30 p.m., in room SD-628 to conduct a hearing on S. 465, ``Independent Outside Audit of Indian Health Service Act of 2017'' and S. 1400. ``Safeguarding Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act of 2017''. subcommittee on africa and global health policy The Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health Policy of the Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, November 8, 2017, at 3 p.m. to conduct a closed hearing on Ambassador Haley's Recent Trip to Africa.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m., Thursday, November 9; further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; further, that following leader remarks, the Senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the Wehrum nomination.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, at 11 a.m. on Thursday, November 9, there be 30 minutes of postcloture time remaining on the Wehrum nomination, equally divided between the leaders or their designees, and that following the use or yielding back of that time, the Senate vote on the confirmation of the Wehrum nomination; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; further, that following disposition of the Wehrum nomination, the Senate stand in recess until 1:45 p.m., and that at 1:45 p.m., the Senate vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the Kan nomination with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, the Republican Senate is continuing its important work on behalf of the American people. We are moving forward on legislative priorities that will benefit hard-working families throughout the country. We are also continuing to confirm President Trump's nominees throughout the Federal Government. Last week, we continued our momentum with the confirmation of well- qualified and talented individuals to serve in the Federal judiciary. This week, the Senate is considering multiple nominations to important agencies. Yesterday, we confirmed officials to the Department of Defense and to the Department of Justice. Soon, they will get to work for the American people. Next, the Senate will vote to confirm Peter Robb as the general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board. As I said yesterday, Mr. Robb's experience in employment law will help return the NLRB to its role as an impartial arbiter of labor disputes instead of a political cudgel for union bosses and leftwing special interests, as it was under the Obama administration. We will then turn to another qualified individual who will help undo some of the damage of the Obama administration. William Wehrum, President Trump's nominee to be the Assistant Administrator for EPA's Office of Air and Radiation, will put his experience to good use for our Nation. The Office of Air and Radiation is one of the most important parts of the EPA. Unfortunately, under the previous administration, it was also one of the offices with the most significant overreach. This one office was responsible for 95 percent of the annual regulatory burdens that the EPA forced onto our economy, according to one report, reportedly costing the economy at least $41 billion--this one Agency. So this is an office in desperate need of new leadership from an individual who understands how to implement clean air policies in a balanced way rather than with extreme regulatory overreach. Mr. Wehrum is the right person for the job. With more than three decades of experience in environmental policy, he understands the issues before the EPA and how to address them. He even worked in this particular office before serving as Acting Administrator from 2005 to 2007. Mr. Wehrum has earned support from many different corners. His former boss at the EPA, Jeff Holmstead, said that ``there is no better person'' to fill this position. The EPA's Deputy Administrator from 2005 to 2009, Marcus Peacock, said that ``Wehrum's understanding of the Clean Air Act may be second to none.'' Even the Natural Resources Defense Council--not exactly a rightwing organization--had this to say about this nominee's previous experience at the EPA, noting that he ``achieve[d] important air pollution reductions.'' ``Wehrum, Holmstead, and the Bush EPA,'' the NRDC further wrote, ``deserve credit for these substantial public health and air quality achievements.'' Nominees like Mr. Wehrum will continue the work of this EPA to undo the damage of the Obama administration's overreach in a reasonable manner. For instance, Obama's Office of Air and Radiation was responsible for the administration's dubious energy regulatory scheme, which threatened to punish coal families and ship middle-class jobs overseas. When Administrator Scott Pruitt came to Kentucky last month, he announced the official withdrawal of that rule. Unlike the previous leadership of the EPA, Administrator Pruitt actually cared enough to come to my home State and hear directly from the men and women impacted by the Agency's regulations. He is someone who will work with us to protect our environment and save Kentucky families from harmful regulations. Mr. Wehrum will work with Administrator Pruitt to help continue this trend at the EPA. I look forward to the Senate advancing his nomination.