Patty Murray

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand in recess under the previous order.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it recess until 12 noon on Saturday, September 30; that following the prayer and pledge, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day and morning business be closed; that upon the conclusion of morning business, the Senate resume consideration of H.R. 3935.

Mrs. MURRAY

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to modify the previous order in relation to the veto messages on S.J. Res. 9 and S.J. Res. 24 so that, beginning at 2:20 p.m. today, there be up to 20 minutes for debate, concurrently and equally divided between the two leaders or their designees, prior to rollcall votes on the passage of S.J. Res. 9 and S.J. Res. 24 in the order listed, the objections of the President to the contrary notwithstanding.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, we all know we are down to the wire right now, so we need to keep moving with this CR so we can avoid a damaging and completely unnecessary shutdown. This is a straightforward, bipartisan CR that simply keeps the government funded so we can continue work on our full-year bills. It includes absolutely essential, time-sensitive reauthorizations for the FAA and others and extends urgently needed funding for disaster relief and our allies in Ukraine. I worked closely with the Senator from Maine and leadership in both parties to put together a truly straightforward bill that can pass the Senate, pass the House, and be signed into law. I am confident there is enough support for this to pass the Senate and the House just as soon as we put it up for a vote. The question is how quickly we can all work to get this done. I understand there are Senators who don't think there is enough in this bill, but this is not meant to be the end-all, be-all when it comes to legislating; it is meant to prevent a devastating shutdown. I think we all understand there is more work to do on many of these issues. Many of you want to do more on disaster relief--something we must do after we prevent a shutdown that cuts off relief to communities in the middle of a recovery. I want to address the childcare funding cliff head on, which we have got to do after we pass this so we can save parents and kids from a shutdown that would mean they would lose their access to Head Start. I know there are colleagues concerned about doing more on border security--something I am willing to continue to discuss--but time is of the absolute essence here, and a shutdown would mean the folks who are working at our southern border would be forced to work without paychecks. A shutdown is no solution to anything. We have got 12 bipartisan appropriations bills I have worked with many Members on both sides of the aisle to pull together, and I want to get them passed and address all of these critical issues, but we need to prevent a shutdown first. So let's not act like this CR is the last bill Congress is ever going to pass. Let's get this done so we can avoid a shutdown that hurts our families, hurts our economy, hurts our national security, and more. Then let's get back to work on the other issues that are important to everyone here and to the folks we work for back home. I urge all of our colleagues to vote yes now on the motion to proceed. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I urge that we go to the vote. Vote on Motion to Proceed

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, I share my colleague's concern about making sure our national parks stay open. In fact, I don't want any Federal facilities to close their doors, any Federal workers to miss a paycheck, or any programs families rely on be undermined by a completely unnecessary shutdown, which is why I am working around the clock to make sure we do pass this bipartisan CR package, which we released yesterday. So I hope the senior Senator from Utah will reconsider his recent vote against moving forward on that CR and start working with us to get this straightforward CR across the finish line so we can avoid this shutdown and get back to passing our 12 bipartisan appropriations bills because that is the only serious solution here. That is the best way to make sure families are able to keep enjoying our national parks and park rangers and all of our public servants can do the work the American people are counting on and get the paycheck they deserve. There are a lot of programs that we all care about that will be hurt by a shutdown, so we are not going to solve this problem one by one, carve-out by carve-out. As I said earlier, you don't stop a flood one drop at a time; you build a dam. We have a straightforward, bipartisan CR package to avoid a shutdown and keep our national parks open. Let's get our jobs done and get that passed. So I object.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, I share my colleague's concern about making sure our servicemembers don't miss a paycheck because of a potential government shutdown. In fact, I don't want any of our Federal workers to miss a paycheck or any of the programs families rely on to be undermined by a completely unnecessary shutdown, which is why I am working around the clock to make sure we pass the bipartisan CR package, which we released yesterday, because that is the only serious issue and solution here. That is the only way we make sure that everyone is able to keep doing the work the American people count on and get the paycheck they deserve. Let's be real. There are a lot of programs I care about, a lot of programs we all care about, that would be hurt by a shutdown. So we are not going to solve this problem one by one, bit by bit, carve-out by carve-out. You do not stop a flood one drop at a time; you build a dam. We do have a straightforward, bipartisan CR package to avoid a shutdown and keep our military paid. We should do our jobs, get that done, and get it passed. That is principle, Mr. President, not politics. Do our jobs and pass this bill so we don't have a shutdown. I object.

Mrs. MURRAY

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

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to complete my remarks before the vote is called at 5:30.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I have been working nonstop, reaching out to my colleagues, who have heard from me all hours of the day and night this past weekend, to put together a straightforward, bipartisan CR package that we can pass quickly to prevent a completely unnecessary government shutdown. I am pleased to say the senior Senator from Maine and I have put together a bill that keeps our government funded while we continue to work on full-year appropriations. It provides critical dollars for communities that are struck by disasters and Ukraine, which is at a pivotal moment in its defensive efforts against Putin's brutal, unprovoked war of aggression. These are important downpayments as we continue to work now on a full-year bill, but we have more to do. Importantly, this CR also ensures that wildland firefighters will not see a pay cut. It prevents critical laws from lapsing to make sure the FAA and community health centers can continue operating and more. I hope that all of our colleagues in the Senate and the House will work with us to get this signed into law as soon as possible so we can avoid a shutdown that would be nothing short of devastating for our economy and for families everywhere. This should not be hard. We have a simple, bipartisan CR, a truly reasonable bill. We have the support to get it signed into law if it is put up for a vote in both Chambers. We do not have a moment to waste. Let's get this done and get right back to work on passing the 12 bipartisan appropriations bills that are ready to come to the Senate floor. Mr. President, I am here tonight to urge a ``yes'' vote on the motion to invoke cloture.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, I share my colleagues' concern with making sure the men and women of the Coast Guard get the pay they deserve in a timely way. In fact, I don't want any of our Federal workers to miss a paycheck. But this bill, which essentially says the Coast Guard gets paid as long as other members of our armed services are being paid, won't actually stop anyone from missing a paycheck in a few weeks because the looming shutdown would also stop pay for the military. I appreciate that my colleagues want to talk about how Coast Guard pay is handled compared to other branches of our armed services, but, respectfully, the pressing issue right now is making sure everyone gets paid, and we prevent a completely unnecessary shutdown that would hurt our families across the country, which is why I am working around the clock to make sure we pass a bipartisan CR and supplemental package. And I would urge all of my colleagues to join me in that effort. And I object.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, last week, an overwhelming 91 Senators voted to begin debate on the bipartisan appropriations package--a package of bills that each passed the Appropriations Committee unanimously. But then a few Senators decided to object to a run-of-the- mill procedural request, threatening to derail our months of hard work, halt our return to regular order, and prevent the full Senate from having a chance to debate and offer amendments and vote on our appropriations bills. The senior Senator from Maine and I have been working hard to make sure we have a robust amendment process with amendments from Democrats and Republicans. And so many Senators have been working with us in good faith so we can debate their ideas for how to make these bills stronger. That is how this process should work. But in the wake of continued obstructions from a very small handful of Senators, we can't get started discussing those amendments without this vote on a motion to waive rule XVI. So I hope all of our colleagues who voted to move forward last week will join us for cloture and for this motion so we can avoid an omnibus and keep our bipartisan process on track, because that is really what this vote is. It is a vote to keep us on track, and that should be a really simple choice. Do you want to continue our return to regular order and move forward with the appropriations bills that we have all spent months putting together in an open, bipartisan way, or do you want to halt the Senate's appropriations bills and essentially set up another massive 12-bill omnibus at the end of the year? I have heard the complaints from a very small handful of Members who are trying to derail this process, but I have not heard any--any-- realistic alternatives from them for us to pass the Senate's funding priorities in a more open and bipartisan process than what the senior Senator from Maine and I have worked so hard to provide. We held nearly 50 hearings in the committee. We televised those markups for the first time ever so people back home can follow along-- complete with debate and amendments--and see what we are doing here. We were transparent. Our doors have been open the whole time--in fact, they still are--for Members who have ideas on how to make these bills stronger. The vice chair and I went through great pains to give every single Senator the chance to weigh in on them. And I am pleased to say a lot of our colleagues took that opportunity. You shared your thoughts, your ideas. You shared the needs, the concerns of your families back home-- all of which helped to make all these bills stronger. That is why, even though the Appropriations Committee has everyone, from strong liberals to staunch conservatives, all 12 of our funding bills passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. In fact, every bill in the package before us passed the committee unanimously. That is a very different process from where we ended up in the past few years and from what we will end up with again if we can't keep these bills moving forward. To everyone who wishes these bills came to the floor even sooner--and I think we all understand how it feels to wish things moved faster around here--I hope you will vote with us today to prevent any further delays that will derail this process and would lead us, then, of course, to an omnibus. After all, wishing the Senate was faster is no reason to slow us down now. And to those saying the bills spend too much money, these bills are written to the bipartisan deal that was struck by the President and Speaker McCarthy that we all voted on just a few months ago. These aren't the bills I would have written. They enact cuts across so many of the programs that I care deeply about. But that was the deal that the President and the Speaker shook hands on. If you don't like them, vote no on the bill. I have heard from so many colleagues, including in speeches given right here on the Senate floor, about how they hate getting jammed at the end of the year with a 12-bill omnibus, about how we have got to return to regular order. And I have worked really hard with the senior Senator from Maine, with all of our chairs and ranking members on the Appropriations Committee, all of our committee members on both sides of the aisle, and every Member of this body who has come to my door to get us moving in that direction, to keep up our return to regular order. I think we can get there. And I think moving forward with this package will show the American people we are serious about getting there. But it depends on this vote because if, after all the work we have done over the last months to make sure every Senator can have their voice heard, moving all 12 appropriations bills through our committee in an open, bipartisan way and having 91 Senators vote to move forward with this package--if after all of that--we let a handful of Senators toss out months of hard work to move us closer to regular order, abandon an overwhelming bipartisan effort to do something as basic as funding our government, and cause chaos that puts us all on a collision course for another omnibus, well, frankly, I think that sends a very bleak message for the future of this body and whether we will ever be able to truly break through the pattern of dysfunction and partnership that we all hate. We have got to get back to regular order. We have got to get back to bipartisanship. We have to get back to helping people in solving problems, just like we all came here to do. This vote is our chance to break that pattern, to avoid another omnibus, and to make sure the Senate and all of its Senators and all the people we represent have their voices heard and concerns addressed in our Nation's funding bills. So I urge my colleagues who joined me in putting this bill together, all of my colleagues who voted with me last week to get started with debate and amendments, to join me in pushing back against a small handful of Senators who are objecting to moving forward and who want to stop us dead in our tracks. I hope everyone votes for cloture, votes for the motion to suspend rule XVI, and keep us on track. I ask unanimous consent to begin the vote.

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

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I thank the majority leader. Let's be clear. The three bills in that package are not partisan bills. This was not some secretive process. We drafted these bills through an open, bipartisan process. We held hearings. We held markups for the first time in years. We kept our doors open to any Member with thoughts or concerns. So it is very frustrating to see that this bipartisan effort got derailed today despite all of that work and despite the overwhelming consensus last week that we wanted to all get started on this package. All of our colleagues and their staffs who spent long hours working on these bills in good faith deserve better. More importantly, all of our constituents who sent us here to advocate for them, to work together, and to solve problems deserve better. I will keep fighting to make sure we do right by our constituents and keep our regular appropriations process moving here in the Senate. As my colleagues know, I don't give up easily, and I am not going to give up here either. I am going to keep pushing with everything I have got to pass the spending bills that so many of us have spent so much time working on to get our communities the resources they need. Yet I do have to say today that I am deeply disappointed. I am not new to politics. I am not new to tough votes or setbacks. I know that this work is never easy, but it is really unfortunate that this overwhelming bipartisan process and this package of bills that passed unanimously has been stymied by the objections of just a few Senators. That is upsetting, and it is pretty hard to square with a lot of the talk that we hear all the time about wanting to work together, wanting to break the pattern of partisanship, wanting to help people, wanting to solve problems, to say nothing of how some of our loudest complainers who have been talking big about their commitment for us to return to regular order and who have been railing against these omnibus bills at the end of the year have led the effort to halt our best shot in years of actually getting closer to regular order and, instead, possibly setting us on a collision course for another massive omnibus. While this full package may not be moving forward right now through this process, I will not stop working to return this process back to regular order and keep things moving. I will keep talking to colleagues about how we get all 12 of our bipartisan spending bills across the finish line here in the Senate. I will keep working to see if we can get that consent agreement that will allow us to move forward on this package. As we get closer to September 30, I am working hard to make sure we chart a bipartisan course for a CR and supplemental funding package so that we can avoid a damaging and completely unnecessary shutdown and reject the devastating cuts from the House Republicans that would gut everything from heating assistance to FAA funding, to the Social Security Administration, and so much more, and that will provide critical resources for things like disaster relief and wildland firefighters and our allies in Ukraine. I came to Congress to help people and solve problems. That is what gets me up every day in the morning. It is what I am focused on at every meeting I have, in every bill I write, and in every vote I take. And while this vote a few minutes ago sent a disheartening message about the state of things, it will not be the last word, because I won't let it be, and I know many of my colleagues will not either. One thing I have seen over and over again in my time here is, if you want progress, you don't leave the table, and you keep working. So I am going to stay at the table. I will keep working. Right now, we have to get a bipartisan CR and a supplemental package done. That is a priority. But I hope and I believe, through the work that we do, that we will show the American people there are still Senators on both sides of this aisle determined to get our work done. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, having notified the Senate under rule V of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I move to suspend rule XVI for consideration of amendment No. 1092 to H.R. 4366. Cloture Motion Madam President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum call for the cloture motion filed today, Monday, September 18, be waived.

Mrs. MURRAY. For the information of all Senators, last week, an overwhelming 91 Senators voted to begin debate on the bipartisan appropriations package. This is a package of bills which--each one of them passed the Appropriations Committee unanimously. We have been working very hard in a bipartisan effort and in good faith to set up a very robust process for amendments and for debate. Unfortunately, a few Senators decided to object to us last week, and now we are moving forward. I would say a lot of Senators have come to me and others and spoken on the floor about how much they hate doing a gigantic omnibus at the end of the year. We have been working really hard on this package to make sure we don't get stuck doing that once again. So if everyone is serious about wanting to show that this place can actually work, well, now is the time to come together to make sure we can do that. We cannot let a few Senators toss out months of hard work to move us closer to regular order and abandon an overwhelmingly bipartisan effort to do something as basic as funding our government and then put us on a collision course for another huge omnibus. That is why we are filing for a necessary procedural vote today that we will vote on later this week that will keep this bipartisan process on track. Madam President, I would inform Senators that as we wait for this vote to ripen, we are continuing to work through a list of amendments and a package of amendments that we can approve as soon as we can get the necessary votes to get back on the bill. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I call up my amendment, No. 1205, and ask that it be reported by number.

Mrs. MURRAY. I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

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