Mitch McConnell

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. I withdraw the motion to proceed.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. I have an amendment at the desk and ask the clerk to report.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask for the yeas and nays on my amendment.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I move to proceed to Calendar No. 140, H.R. 2740.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk for the motion to proceed. The cloture motion having been presented under rule XXII, the Chair directs the clerk to read the motion.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum call be waived.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.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 have 7 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 Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry The Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Armed'Services The Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 9 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs The Committee on Banking. Housing, and Urban Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Energy and Natural Resources The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 10:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on the Judiciary The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing on the following nominations: Halil Suleyman Ozerden, of Mississippi, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit, David B. Barlow, to be United States District Judge for the District of Utah, John Fitzgerald Kness, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois, R. Austin Huffaker, Jr., to be United States District Judge for the Middle District of Alabama, Lee Philip Rudofsky, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Arkansas, Justin Reed Walker, to be United States District Judge for the Western District of Kentucky, Eleni Maria Roumel, of Maryland, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims, Danielle J. Hunsaker, of Oregon, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit, Steven J. Menashi, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit, William Joseph Nardini, of Connecticut, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit, Jodi W. Dishman, to be, United States District Judge for the Western District of Oklahoma, Karen Spencer Marston, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Richard Earnest Myers II, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Sarah E. Pitlyk, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Missouri, Anuraag Singhal, to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of Florida, Daniel Mack Traynor, to be United States District Judge for the District of North Dakota, and David M. DeVillers, to be United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Department of Justice. Subcommittee on Security The Subcommittee on Security of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 10:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety The Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety of the Committee on Environment and Public Works is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 214, H.R. 1396.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that 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. 163, S. 2258.

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I understand there is a bill at the desk, and I ask for its first reading.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I now ask for a second reading, and in order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule XIV, I object to my own request.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 365, submitted earlier today.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I know of no further debate on the measure.

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 3 p.m., Monday, October 21; 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 Treaties Calendar No. 5, Treaty Document No. 116- 1; finally, that the cloture motions filed during today's session ripen at 5:30 p.m. on Monday.

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 ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 364, submitted earlier today.

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I mentioned yesterday the contrast between our work in the Senate and what is transpiring over in the House. On this side of the Capitol, we are focused on working for the American people. We are overcoming the Democrats' historic delay tactics and obstruction to confirm more of the President's impressive nominees for the executive branch as well as for the judiciary. Later today, we will confirm a new Secretary of the Air Force and will then turn to several impressive nominees to district court vacancies in order to continue our renewal of the Federal judiciary. We will also keep working on the appropriations process and on providing the funding our Armed Forces certainly need, and we are discussing ways to discourage the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the Middle East and ensure the United States continues to provide the essential global leadership that has cornered ISIS and other radical Islamic terrorists and has kept our Nation safe. So what is going on over in the House? Those in the House are doubling down on their 3-year-old obsession of finding ways to nullify the decision the American people made back in 2016. Speaker Pelosi's Democrats are blocking the USMCA, which is the landmark trade deal that would create 176,000 new jobs for American workers. They are dragging their heels on funding the government, which is keeping our military commanders in limbo. All of their energy is going into this all-consuming impeachment parade that has been rolling on for 3 years now--ever searching for a rationale. Remember, it was literally on Inauguration Day of January 2017 when the Washington Post ran this headline: ``The campaign to impeach President Trump has begun.'' Well, the Post got it right. Before President Trump even took office, one prominent House Democrat had already declared he would not be a legitimate President. Just a few months later, another was already promising she would not rest until she impeached him. From the very beginning of this Presidency, Washington Democrats have lived in a state of denial. They have seemed positive that some inside- the-Beltway maneuver would save them from the consequences of Secretary Clinton's defeat. They had hoped Special Counsel Mueller's report would have validated their theories about the conspiracy between the Trump campaign and the Russians. They used their minority powers in the Senate to effectively try to nullify his Presidency by obstructing even completely uncontroversial nominees to all kinds of government posts simply because this President was the one who nominated them. There have been 3 years of this. Now, finally, Speaker Pelosi's efforts to hold back her leftwing caucus have officially crumbled, and the House has thrown itself into impeachment. Given the lip service the House Democrats pay in defending the norms and institutions of American Government, you might think they would at least run this so-called impeachment inquiry by the book. You might think the people who are trying to overrule the American voters and, from Washington, cancel out an election would conduct their process by the very highest standards of fairness and due process. If you thought that, you would be wrong. Our Democratic colleagues have had their minds made up since long before this inquiry began. Remember, the chairwoman of one of the committees Speaker Pelosi put in charge of the process said in April of 2017: ``I'm going to fight every day until he's impeached.'' That was back in 2017. So this is not about seriously discharging constitutional responsibilities. It is about the end result they have had in mind since day one. Remember when the campaign to block Justice Kavanaugh began with protest signs with a big, empty blank for the name? It was a fill-in- the-blank protest before they even knew who the nominee was. Now we have the sequel with this fill-in-the-blank quest for impeachment. The Democrats' process already speaks for itself. For the first time ever, Speaker Pelosi has simply ordered the House to conduct an inquiry into impeaching a President without a full vote of the House. Just yesterday, the Speaker doubled down on this unprecedented and undemocratic process by once again refusing to hold a vote on an impeachment inquiry. Democrats have refused to give Republicans the same rights and fair treatment that Republicans afforded Democrats during the Clinton impeachment--things like equal subpoena power for the ranking members. Likewise, Democrats have refused to give President Trump's counsel the same opportunities that Republicans gave to President Clinton--rights such as attending all hearings, depositions, offering evidence, and cross-examining witnesses. We have already seen Chairman Schiff say in public that his committee had not been in touch with the whistleblower when they actually had been. We have seen Chairman Schiff bizarrely and brazenly fabricate what the President actually said to the President of Ukraine during an official hearing that he was chairing, only to claim that his fabrications were a parody--a parody--when Republicans called him out for it. The same Democrats who are running this circus turn around and claim with a straight face that they are solemnly following the facts and the Constitution wherever it leads. Give me a break. Give me a break. The entire country can see that that is not what is happening here. And here is what else the American people can see: The Democrats would rather fight with the White House than work with the Republicans and the administration to pass legislation. We need real solutions, like full-year funding for our Armed Forces so our men and women in uniform can receive their pay raise and our commanders can engage in long-term planning; real solutions like the USMCA, the major victory for American workers and American businesses that the Trump administration negotiated with Canada and Mexico but which Speaker Pelosi has blocked for months, with 176,000 new American jobs hanging in the balance. Opportunities are right before us. Senate Republicans have been ready and waiting for weeks and months to do our part and actually make law on these subjects for the benefit of American families. We just need our counterparts across the Capitol to get serious about this. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the remaining votes in the series be 10 minutes in length.

Mr. McCONNELL

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I have 8 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, October 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. 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, October 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Foreign Relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Foreign Relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 2 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Foreign Relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 3 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Indian Affairs The Committee on Indian Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on the Judiciary The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing on the following nominations: Barbara Lagoa and Robert J. Luck, both of Florida, both to be a United States Circuit Judge for the Eleventh Circuit, Sylvia Carreno-Coll, to be United States District Judge for the District of Puerto Rico, John M. Gallagher, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and Sherri A. Lydon, to be United States District Judge for the District of South Carolina. Special Committee on Aging The Special Committee on Aging is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a closed briefing.