Mitch McConnell

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on one final matter, in addition to our important legislative priorities, the Senate is also working hard to confirm the President's excellent judicial nominees. Last night, I filed cloture on two nominees for U.S. district courts. Scott Palk has been nominated to serve as a district judge for the Western District of Oklahoma. He has served in multiple roles in the U.S. attorney's office in prosecuting organized crime and terrorism cases, and the Senate Judiciary Committee sent his nomination to the floor with an overwhelming bipartisan vote. Another nominee, Trevor McFadden, was voted out of the Judiciary Committee with no opposition at all. He has been tapped to serve as a district judge for the District of Columbia, and as a former police officer, Mr. McFadden will bring a wealth of law enforcement experience to the bench. The Senate will vote on both of these nominees this week, and then we will continue working to confirm President Trump's outstanding judicial nominees. I look forward to supporting these nominees, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting to confirm them. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on another matter, as we continue our work in the Senate, we look forward to hearing the President's perspectives on how to advance our shared agenda, particularly the upcoming debate on bringing tax relief, economic growth, and jobs to Americans through tax reform. Last week, the Senate passed a comprehensive, responsible budget that will help put the government on a path to balance and help put our economy on a road to robust growth. This week, the House plans to bring the budget to the floor for passage by Thursday. Once they pass it, we will have important legislative tools to help our economy grow through tax reform. As we all know, after years of an economy that failed to live up to its full potential, the time is now to pass tax reform so that we can get America going again and growing again. We want to make taxes lower, simpler, and fairer. We want to close loopholes that are exploited by the wealthy. We want to make it easier to create new jobs in America and keep them here. In short, we want to take more money out of Washington's pockets and put more in yours. These are the ideas that drive tax reform. They are shared by the President. They are shared by Americans in both political parties. They should be shared by Senators of both political parties, as well, and for many years, they actually were. The former chairman of the Finance Committee, Senator Wyden, called our current Tax Code an ``anticompetitive mess.'' The senior Senator from Michigan, Ms. Stabenow, expressed her concern for a tax code that incentivizes jobs to be shipped overseas, and our friend, the Democratic leader, wrote about our Tax Code's failure to help American workers compete. Many Democrats called for action to get tax reform done. I hope that our Democratic friends will work with us now in a serious way to actually do it. After all, it is not as if the need for tax reform has changed since our friends made these statements as recently as a few years ago. The only thing that has changed is the occupant of the White House. That is the only difference. So let's get this done. The American people are counting on us.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum calls for the cloture motions be waived.

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, last week, the Senate took an important step for the fiscal and economic future of our country with passage of the budget for fiscal year 2018. The comprehensive, responsible budget we passed marks out a clear vision for the future. It will put the Federal Government on a path to balance, and it sets out a new course after the long years of the Obama economy, when paychecks stagnated, steady work became harder to find, and retirement for many slipped further away. The budget we passed isn't just about getting our fiscal house in order--though it is certainly about that--it is also about getting our economy going again and growing again. Perhaps the most important way it does so is by authorizing legislative tools to advance tax reform, and passing tax reform is the most important thing we can do today to get our economy reaching for its true potential. Tax reform is all about helping the middle class succeed. It is about making it easier to create jobs in America and keep them right here. To summarize the effort in one phrase, it is this: Tax reform is about taking more money out of Washington's pocket and putting more in yours--more for workers, more for small businesses, and more for the middle class. After all, as the President wrote over the weekend, ``we are not talking about the government's money--we are talking about your money, your hard work.'' If you look back a few months, many doubted our ability to get a budget done or to advance tax reform. They didn't see the path forward. Those skeptics underestimated our resolve. The Senate has delivered on the budget, and we will soon have the tools to deliver on tax reform. We now look forward to our House colleagues' continued consideration and passage of the budget. Once they do so, we can move forward with tax reform for American families. For Americans who have suffered through years of uncertainty-- everything from a recession to outsourcing to unemployment--we are ready to deliver for you. For those who watched opportunity recede while the personal wealth of coastal elites grew beyond comprehension, help is on the way. We want to put more money in your pocket, we want to make retirement a reality for you, we want to get this economy moving the way it should, and tax reform is the key to helping us get there. I would like once again to thank Chairman Enzi and the members of the Budget Committee for their important work to get this budget resolution passed. I also would like to thank the cloakroom staff, the Parliamentarians, the clerks, the pages, and the officers of the U.S. Capitol Police who worked into the evening to make sure, as they always do, that the Senate runs smoothly. Thanks also to Chairman Hatch and the members of the Finance Committee. We now look forward to their continued good work on development of the kind of tax relief that will get our economy truly moving again. Mr. President, on another matter, the Senate remains committed to doing its part to support the ongoing hurricane relief efforts, and, to that end, today we will take a vote to advance the administration's most recent supplemental funding request. These resources will ensure that FEMA and the rest of the administration have the ability to continue their crucial support to help those impacted by devastating storms. Like many colleagues, I have been engaged on this issue from the very start. Through several meetings with leaders from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, I have had the opportunity to hear firsthand how the government can support their relief efforts. I met with Puerto Rico's Governor last week to get another update on the funding request and to hear about the continuing recovery. In addition, I have continued working with the administration as it responds to these storms. For instance, after the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, I met with the Department of Homeland Security's Acting Secretary to learn more about what would be needed. I also met with President Trump's eminently qualified nominee to lead that Department. The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a supplemental funding request with strong bipartisan support, and now it is our turn to act. As we all know, the administration will continue to actively review hurricane relief and recovery needs. As it does, we can expect the transmittal of additional supplemental requests for our consideration in the near future. The victims of these hurricanes continue to count on our support, and I look forward to the Senate continuing to do its part to help.

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, reserving the right to object, I would say to my good friend from Florida that I hope he knows that the Senate remains committed to doing its part to support the ongoing hurricane relief efforts. We all see this as a multistaged process in providing needed relief. There will be additional rounds, and we are all fully committed to meeting the needs that have arisen as a result of these devastating hurricanes. For the moment, I object.

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum call with respect to the cloture motion on the House message to accompany H.R. 2266 be waived.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate resume legislative session.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 117, Scott Palk.

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. 179, Trevor McFadden.

Mr. McCONNELL

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, the Senate is taking the next critical step in passing the comprehensive, fiscally responsible budget before us. It is pretty obvious that this is a good budget, and that is true whether you are looking at it from a fiscal perspective or an economic one. Take the fiscal side first. It reins in government spending. It protects Social Security. It complies fully with the previous spending caps, while also providing for an increase for defense resources if a bipartisan agreement can be reached. In short, it is a fiscally responsible budget that will help put the Federal Government on a path to balance. On the economic side, this budget can help our country realize better and more sustained economic growth, which is critical, given the last decade of missed opportunities for the middle class. One way this budget can help our economy is by providing legislative tools to advance tax reform. As I have said many times before, tax reform represents the most important thing we can do today to get our economy reaching for its true potential. Tax reform is all about getting America going again and growing again. It aims to take more money out of Washington's pockets and put more money in middle-class pockets, and it represents a once- in-a-generation opportunity to replace a failing tax bill that holds Americans back with one that works for them. Passing this budget is critical to getting tax reform done so we can strengthen our economy, after years of stagnation under the previous administration. I know Members are eager to continue proposing amendments to this budget. We already adopted some good ideas yesterday. For instance, the Senate adopted an amendment offered by Senator Heller to provide tax relief to American families with children so they can have more money to make ends meet. We also adopted an amendment from Senator Collins to provide relief to small businesses, which have been responsible for the creation of about two-thirds of the net jobs in recent years. That is according to statistics from the Small Business Administration. Both of these amendments reinforce the goals of the tax reform framework developed by the President, his team, and the tax-writing committees in Congress. Today we will consider more ideas from colleagues on both sides of the aisle. I want to thank, particularly, Chairman Enzi and the members of the Senate Budget Committee for their good work in getting us to this point. The budget they produced is important to our fiscal and our economic future. I look forward to passing it soon. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. McCONNELL. I move to refer the House message on H.R. 2266 to the Committee on Appropriations with instructions to report back forthwith with an amendment numbered 1570.

Mr. McCONNELL. I have a second-degree amendment at the desk.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. McCONNELL. I move to concur in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2266, with a further amendment.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I move to concur in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2266. Cloture Motion I send a cloture motion to the desk on the motion to concur.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask that the Chair lay before the Senate the message to accompany H.R. 2266. The Presiding Officer laid before the Senate the following message from the House of Representatives: Resolved, That the House agree to the amendment of the Senate to the bill (H.R. 2266) entitled ``An Act to amend title 28 of the United States Code to authorize the appointment of additional bankruptcy judges; and for other purposes.'', with an amendment. Motion to Concur

Mr. McCONNELL. I have a second-degree amendment at the desk.

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

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, tonight we completed the first step toward replacing our broken Tax Code by passing a comprehensive, fiscally responsible budget that will help put the Federal Government on a path to balance. The budget also gives us the tools we need to strengthen our economy after years of stagnation under the previous administration. We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to replace a failing tax code that holds Americans back with one that actually works for them. To middle-class families across America, we have a very simple message. We want to take more money out of Washington's pockets and put more in yours. With this budget, we are on a path to delivering much needed relief to American individuals and families who have borne the burdens of an unfair tax code for entirely too long. I want to particularly thank Chairman Mike Enzi and the members of the Budget Committee and the staff for their extraordinary work on this budget.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I say to colleagues, the consent agreement that was just entered allows us to see the light at the end of the tunnel. If Senators will stay in the Chamber, we will do these 10-minute rollcall votes and wrap it up.