Mitch McConnell

Mr. McCONNELL

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

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

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.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. President, I ask unanimous consent that with respect to the nominations confirmed this week, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's actions.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Journal of proceedings be approved to date.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I move to proceed to Calendar No. 552, H.R. 8337.

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 now proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following Senate resolutions which were submitted earlier today: S. Res. 719, S. Res. 720, S. Res. 721, S. Res. 722, and S. Res. 723.

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

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the preambles, where applicable, be agreed to and that the motions 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 to then convene for pro forma session only, with no business being conducted on Monday, September 28, at 2:45 p.m. I further ask that when the Senate adjourns on Monday, September 28, it next convene at 3 p.m., Tuesday, September 29; 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 being closed; further, that upon the conclusion of morning business, the Senate resume consideration of H.R. 8337; further, that with respect to the cloture motion filed during today's session of the Senate, the filing deadline for all first-degree amendments be 4 p.m.; finally, that notwithstanding the provisions of rule XXII, the cloture motion filed during today's session ripen at 5:30 p.m.

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.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 6168 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

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 H.R. 1812, which was received from the House.

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 H.R. 2372, which was received from the House.

Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be 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. 492, S. 2693.

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I further ask that the Schatz substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I have spoken repeatedly in recent months about the tragic killing of Breonna Taylor in my hometown of Louisville, the need for justice, and the healing work ahead for our community. Kentucky's attorney general, Daniel Cameron, conducted exactly the kind of thorough and impartial investigation that justice demands. Yesterday, that chapter concluded, and the grand jury conducted the handoff to criminal prosecution. I have full confidence in the attorney general's painstaking pursuit of facts and justice. Many Kentuckians have channeled their continuing grief and anger in a peaceful exercise of their First Amendment rights. But in Louisville last night, we saw more of the lawlessness, riots, and violence that have plagued American cities too often this year. Citizens' businesses were vandalized, fires were set in the streets, and two officers of the Metro Police Department were shot and wounded while protecting public safety downtown. As of last night, one officer was still undergoing surgery, but both were in stable condition. We are praying that both will make full recoveries. One suspect is in custody. Peaceful protests honor the memory of Breonna Taylor. Peaceful protests move us toward justice. Smashing windows does not. Setting fires does not. Rioting in the streets does not. Trying to gun down law enforcement officers who were bravely serving their community is the kind of despicable cowardice that must be met with the full force of the law. I sincerely thank all the Kentucky peace officers who continue to put their lives on the line every single day. I hope and expect that our Governor and mayor will take every necessary step to secure the justice, peace, law, and order that every Kentuckian deserves.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, now on an entirely different matter, President Trump has stated he will announce his nominee to the Supreme Court the day after tomorrow. We do not yet know which legal all-star from his list he will nominate, but strangely enough, we already do know exactly what the far left will start shouting the instant--the instant--she or he is introduced. Isn't that a little curious, when you stop to think about it? A confirmation process is ostensibly about the qualifications and credentials of the nominee, so why is it that practically any citizen could sit down at their kitchen table right now, days--days--before the nomination, and write down in advance the list of ludicrous accusations the far left has guaranteed to be screaming by Saturday night? It is because year after year, decade after decade, the far left's playbook stays exactly the same. To them, a nominee makes no difference. Every time in 45 years--45 years-- that a Republican President has nominated someone to the Supreme Court, the exact same set of cliched horror stories are wheeled out of storage, dusted off, and paraded past the American people. In 1975, President Gerald Ford put forward a nominee whom the left blasted for his ``consistent opposition to women's rights'' and ``an extraordinary lack of sensitivity to the problems women face.'' Who was this far-right ideologue who was going to turn back the clock? Why, it was the late Justice John Paul Stevens, who went on to lead the Court's liberal wing for decades. In 1987, it was time for an encore performance. A nominee from President Reagan was absolutely savaged by liberal groups. The president of one leftwing group insisted he was a ``sexist'' and ``a disaster for women''--that would be Anthony Kennedy. Once again, the sky did not fall. In fact, when Justice Kennedy retired in 2018, the new head of the exact same liberal organization stated they were ``saddened and alarmed by his retirement.'' The exact same liberal outfit said the sky was falling in the 1980s because Justice Kennedy had been nominated and that the sky was falling in 2018 because he was retiring. In 1990, they got the band back together yet again. This time the sky was falling for sure. President Bush had picked someone whose record was ``very troubling,'' whose juris prudence would surely ``threaten to undo the advances made by women, minorities, dissenters, and other disadvantaged groups,'' whose confirmation would mean ``ending freedom for women in this country.'' Talk about wearing out the volume knob. Oh, that was future Justice David Souter, by the way. One slogan simply said--listen to this: ``Stop Souter or Women Will Die.'' ``Stop Souter or Women Will Die.'' He, too, would go on to become a favorite Justice of many of the very same groups. But it has still never occurred to them to get their crystal balls checked. The same unhinged attacks pour out every time, the same absurd scare tactics every single time. These people are the far-left version of that broadcaster who spent 20 years predicting different dates for the end of the world, raising money, and just inventing a new date every time he was wrong. Justice Scalia was unfit. Justice Thomas hated the rule of law. Justice Alito was ``hostile to the rights of women.'' It is all one big scam directed at the American people. In 2005, one leftwing outfit cut a television ad that tried to link our now-Chief Justice of the United States with a violent bombing of an abortion clinic. Just how despicable can you get? Before this disgusting ad was pulled off the air, it said a future Justice John Roberts would ``excuse violence against other Americans.'' Chief Justice Roberts. Every single time--no matter how upstanding, no matter how qualified, no matter their views, no matter their record--every nominee gets the same insane treatment, so long as the President who nominated them is not a Democrat--so long as the President who nominated them is not a Democrat. Oh, but when Democrats nominate people, none of this happens. When we confirmed Justices Ginsburg and Breyer, I don't recall any angry mobs stalking Senators. When we confirmed Justice Sotomayor, I don't recall weeks of character assassination. When we confirmed Justice Kagan, I don't recall the mainstream media declaring the death of democracy. For half a century we have seen this double standard. When a Democratic President makes a nomination, it is a nonevent by comparison. The coastal political class and their friends in the media allow our national life to go on like normal. But whenever a Republican dares to nominate someone, the same people declare it a state of emergency. So, sadly, we already know what reaction we will see on Saturday: fill-in-the-blank opposition. Remember, in 2017, we saw literal fill- in-the-blank opposition. Demonstrators wanted to assemble outside the Court before they even knew who President Trump would name, so they literally brought stacks of signs that said: ``Oppose (blank)!'' And they brought markers so they could scribble in the name during the President's remarks before the TV cameras got to them. In 2018, moments after the President announced now-Justice Kavanaugh, one leftwing group published a typically absurd statement declaring ``Trump's announcement today is a death sentence''--``a death sentence''--and ``white patriarchal supremacists now have free reign.'' The actual nominee was so irrelevant to their scam that they literally forgot to fill in the blank. The very first line of their press release condemned ``Donald Trump's nomination of XX to the Supreme Court.'' So it is safe to say the American people can start writing their bingo cards right now. We already know every outlandish claim and unhinged attack we are going to hear. In fact, former Vice President Biden has already cut to the front of the line. Just yesterday, he offered the following assessment prior to learning whom he was assessing: ``Women's rights as it relates to everything from medical health care is going to be gone.'' This is former Vice President Biden yesterday. Good luck deciphering what he is trying to say. It sounds like more of the same old junk. Perhaps the Nation will soon watch this man in his late seventies condescend to explain women's healthcare to one of the brilliant women whom President Trump indicates he is considering. Fortunately, the far-left scam artists do not get a vote. The special interest groups' fundraising appeals do not get a vote. The fate of this nomination will be determined by the U.S. Senators whom the American people elected to do this job: a fair hearing, a fair process, and a fair vote on the actual nominee. Forget about fill-in-the-blank.

Mr. McCONNELL

Mr. McCONNELL. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. McCONNELL

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