Mitch McConnell

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendments be agreed to, that the bill, as amended, 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 when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 3 p.m., Monday, May 20; 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 the Senate be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each; finally, notwithstanding the provisions of rule XXII, the cloture motions filed in today's session of the Senate ripen at 5:30 p.m., Monday, May 20.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 81, S. 998.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendment be agreed to, that the bill, as amended, 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, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under its previous order.

Mr. McCONNELL

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to use my leader time.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, this week we observe National Police Week, which is an annual gathering of tens of thousands of law enforcement personnel right here in our Nation's Capital. America will pay special tribute tomorrow to the service and sacrifice of our fallen officers as we mark Peace Officers Memorial Day. Officers from all around the country will join together to honor their brothers and sisters in uniform who have made the ultimate sacrifice, and the rest of the Nation will remember how blessed we are by the selfless sacrifices of this ``thin blue line'' that protects our families and keeps our communities safe. I extend a warm welcome to the many Kentuckians who have traveled here this week, and along with them, I am thinking especially of four of their comrades whose names will be added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial this year: Hickman police officer Rodney Smith, whose patrol car was washed into a field while he was checking on members of his community during a flood; Patrolman Scotty Hamilton, of the Parkville Police Department, who was murdered while he was investigating a suspicious vehicle for narcotics activity; Hopkinsville police officer Phillip Meacham, who was shot and killed while off duty as he assisted a fellow officer; and Louisville Metro Police Department detective Deidre Mengedoht, who was struck and killed while conducting a traffic stop on Christmas Eve. With more than three decades of combined service, these heroic Kentuckians left behind spouses, children, and an entire Commonwealth that mourns their tragic losses. It is my honor to have represented them in the Senate and to represent all those who wear the uniform. It was an honor to proudly cosponsor the resolution designating this as National Police Week. I also pause to recognize the U.S. Capitol Police, whose officers protect all of us in this building every day. Their professionalism and dedicated service make our democracy possible and allow millions of visitors to observe their government up close each year.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam 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. Madam President, I understand that there are two bills at the desk, and I ask for their first reading en bloc.

Mr. McCONNELL. I now ask for a second reading, and I object to my own request, all en bloc.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 209, submitted earlier today.

Mr. McCONNELL. 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. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 210, submitted earlier today.

Mr. McCONNELL. 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. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 82, S. 1231.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendments be agreed to; that the bill, as amended, 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. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m., Wednesday, May 15; 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, morning business be closed, and the Senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the Lee nomination.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. 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 our Democratic colleagues.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 230.

Mr. McCONNELL

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

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, this week the Senate will continue to promptly and reasonably consider a number of well-qualified nominees for important positions. Several weeks ago we put an end to 2 years of unprecedented, systematic partisan obstruction that had kept abundantly qualified nominees on the sidelines for no substantive reason. The Senate took a modest but important step to turn back toward the institutional traditions that had shaped our work in nominations throughout our history. We put in place a reform to speed up the postcloture floor time that we spend debating on lower level nominations--or, in many cases, I should say, supposedly debating them. Since then we have been able to fill several important posts in the executive branch, along with seats on the bench, at a more reasonable pace. In many cases, these unobjectionable candidates have received the overwhelming support they deserve--90 to 8, 90 to 8, 95 to 3. Over the next few days, four more will receive consideration on the floor. We will begin by processing the first of two more well-qualified nominees to our Nation's district courts, such as Michael J. Truncale, of Texas, to serve as U.S. district judge for the Eastern District of Texas. Mr. Truncale is a graduate of Lamar University, the University of North Texas, and the Southern Methodist University School of Law. Over more than three decades of private practice, he has amassed a distinguished record in both litigation and appellate law. In addition, Mr. Truncale has served on the board of regents for the Texas State University System and the Texas Prepaid Higher Education Tuition Board in the Texas Comptroller's Office. His nomination has earned a well-qualified rating from the ABA and has twice been favorably reported by our colleagues on the Judiciary Committee. So I hope each of our colleagues will join me and add Mr. Truncale's nomination to the growing list of uncontroversial nominees passed in an orderly, bipartisan fashion. Following consideration of the Truncale nomination, we will vote on Kenneth Lee's nomination to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and Wendy Vitter's nomination to serve as U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Then we will consider the nomination of Brian Bulatao, of Texas, to serve as Under Secretary of State for Management. This is, effectively, the COO job at the Department of State, responsible for such critical things as embassy security. His nomination was first submitted to the Senate in June of 2018, nearly a year ago. Following those four individuals, the Senate will also consider this week the nomination of Jeffrey Rosen to serve as our next Deputy Attorney General. Mr. Rosen is a graduate of Northwestern University and Harvard Law School. He built a strong record in private practice as a litigator before entering public service in 2003. Prior to his current position, he has served as the Deputy Secretary at the Department of Transportation and at the Office of Management and Budget and as an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center. The American people deserve that their Department of Justice be fully staffed, fully operational, and fully committed to upholding our Nation's laws. So I hope that each of my colleagues reviews this impressive nominee and then votes to confirm him this week.

Mr. McCONNELL

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