Patty Murray

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I come to the floor this afternoon to urge all of my colleagues to join me in voting to confirm Joshua Jacobs to serve as Under Secretary for Benefits at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Mr. Jacobs is an exceptionally qualified pick to fill this role, who will work day in and day out to make sure our Nation lives up to its obligation to take care of its veterans. I should know because that is exactly what he did when he worked in my office. Joshua came to work every day focused on Washington State veterans and their families and helped to prepare the VA for an influx of veterans, to expand clinics and facilities, and to ensure veterans had the services they needed to transition to civilian life, especially when it comes to employment. That track record is why I was thrilled to have him return to work for me as deputy staff director on the Veterans Affairs Committee later, when I became chair, and why I was so excited to join my colleagues on the committee earlier this year to advance this nomination in a bipartisan way. When I was chair, Mr. Jacobs helped lead the efforts to get veterans more mental health services, expand and support services for women veterans, and ensure veterans had a seamless transition from the DOD to the VA, where too often our servicemembers and veterans faced too much redtape and the VA faced too little accountability. Given his drive back then, it is no surprise to me that the work he has done since shows his deep commitment to serving those who served our Nation and why he is such a strong fit and trusted choice for this role. When Mr. Jacobs was a Senior Advisor to the Office of the VA Secretary under President Obama, he was awarded the Secretary's Meritorious Service Award. When President Biden was elected, he was chosen to serve on the incoming administration's VA transition team. After Mr. Jacobs returned to the Department as a Senior Advisor in 2021, he improved its decision-making process by establishing and leading the new Evidence-based Policy Council and developing a new interagency policy development process to coordinate and implement more than 50 interagency policy efforts. As a Senior Advisor for Policy who carried out the responsibilities of the Under Secretary for Benefits, Mr. Jacobs has taken on the enormous task of coordinating a team of 25,000 people and 56 regional offices, processing centers, and headquarters as they worked to manage over $100 billion in benefits and to make good on our promise to millions of veterans and their families. He knows full well how important a smoothly functioning VA is to the Americans who are relying on the benefits our Nation promised them. I have no doubt he will go to work every day determined to make sure our Nation lives up to those promises. I know Mr. Jacobs, who is a Washington State native and graduate of the University of Washington, will do great work for America's veterans as Under Secretary for benefits. I am proud to support his nomination. I look forward to working with him once he is confirmed. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Thank you very much.

Mrs. MURRAY. Thank you.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, ever since Republicans succeeded in overturning Roe v. Wade and ripping abortion rights away from millions of women, they have been trying to hide how extreme their positions on abortion are and how devastating the fallout has been for families. Even as each new day brings another horror driven by Republican extremists, like the dystopian bill put forward in South Carolina which proposed the death penalty for women who get an abortion, one of my colleagues even recently said that as President, he would ``literally sign the most conservative pro-life legislation.'' Let's not forget the terrifying lawsuit in Texas that is hanging over the entire country, where Republican extremists want to overrule the FDA's experts, undermine its authority to review and approve all manner of drugs, from chemotherapy to insulin, and take the abortion pill mifepristone away from patients all across the country, even in States like mine where abortion is still legal and even though we have 20 years of data showing this drug is safe and effective. Yet, when the district judge issued a dangerous ruling that would rip this drug off the shelf, 69 congressional Republicans filed a brief calling for that ruling to go into effect and deny women in every single State access to this FDA-approved medication. The Supreme Court has stayed the decision for the time being, but this threat to women's ability to get this drug is as real as ever, and now 147 congressional Republicans--many Republicans who are in leadership, Republicans with oversight authority over the FDA--have filed a brief opposing our efforts to protect access to mifepristone and protect the FDA's authority. And this extreme lawsuit is far from the only dangerous anti-abortion policy some congressional Republicans are pushing, as is the bill we are about to vote on today. It has been incredibly infuriating for women to be told by Republicans that we are overreacting, fearmongering, even as we are being told by patients and providers about the nightmares they are now living in, about the impossible decisions they have had to make, and about the decisions--the deeply personal decisions--they have not been allowed to make that Republican politicians are, instead, now making for them. It strains belief that Republicans actually think victims of rape or incest are not being affected by their policies and that women whose health--whose very lives--are in danger are not facing any barriers or are being denied the care they need, especially when we see news stories reported every day showing that that is not the case--stories that show women are being put in horrific, unthinkable situations, forced to travel absurd distances for care after they are raped, forced to wait and bleed and get sicker and sicker before they can get the care they desperately need. But even if Republicans are ignoring the devastation State abortion bans are causing and are ignoring women who are speaking out every single day, what we are talking about today in this Senate is a bill congressional Republicans wrote themselves. It really puts an end, once and for all, to some Republicans' empty claims that they are being moderate in any way here. Victims of rape or women with medical complications are not being heard, because this bill, which Republicans wrote, which Republicans are coming to the floor advocating for, would cut veterans and their families off from care when their lives are in danger and would cut them off from care after rape or incest. Make no mistake, that is what this debate is about today. That is what they are voting for. In arguing for this bill, they are also showing they know full well how extreme State bans actually are. After all, they cannot pretend that, on the one hand, State abortion bans have meaningful exemptions for women with life-threatening complications and for people who have been raped, including children, while also arguing, on the other hand, that this proposal defies State laws to allow the VA to provide care in those heartbreaking situations. Those arguments contradict each other. More importantly, those claims contradict the real, heartbreaking stories we are already hearing from women and doctors about how these bans are putting lives at risk. Extreme abortion bans are causing healthcare crises all across the country, along with so many personal crises for families in facing incredibly difficult situations, which is why the VA care rule that President Biden put forward is so important and why the Democrats are standing so firm to keep it intact. Despite the rhetoric from my Republican colleagues, this rule that they are trying to overturn is a meaningful, modest step to protect our veterans. It simply allows the VA to provide abortion care to make sure that none of our veterans or their eligible dependents go without medical treatment when their lives are in danger or are forced to stay pregnant after rape or incest. That is it. That is what Republicans are so upset about. They are upset that this administration has taken action to make sure women who have served our country in uniform can get the basic reproductive care they need when their health is at risk or in cases of rape or incest. Those veterans fought to protect our rights, and now Republicans want to roll back theirs. These veterans put their lives on the line for us, and now Republicans who support this resolution want to tell them that when their lives are in danger, tough luck. Politics comes first. No one--no one--deserves that. So I urge all of my colleagues to stand with our veterans, to stand with their families, and vote against this unthinkably cruel bill that seeks to force women veterans to stay pregnant even when their lives are at risk, even after rape or incest. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senators Tuberville and Schumer be permitted to complete their remarks prior to the rollcall vote.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I rise today to recognize the life and legacy of disability rights activist, Judy Heumann. Today, I join so many touched by her advocacy in mourning her passing, remembering her life, and paying tribute to the contributions she made to the disability community. Judy's activism began early in life. As a young child who contracted polio and used a wheelchair, she was denied the right to attend school in New York. Later in life, Judy was denied a teaching license after failing her medical exam due to ``paralysis of both lower extremities.'' She sued the Board of Education and went on to be the first teacher in New York State to use a wheelchair. Judy served in various capacities throughout multiple Presidential administrations and was instrumental in the passage of groundbreaking legislation including the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Rehabilitation Act. She was the recipient of the Henry B. Betts Award, the Max Starkloff Lifetime Achievement Award, and was featured in numerous documentaries. I had the honor of working with Judy throughout my time as ranking member and chair of the HELP Committee and seeing firsthand how committed she was to making our world more welcoming and accessible to everyone. Her tenacity was an inspiration to me, and I am grateful that I had the chance to learn from her and work alongside her to make this country more inclusive for all. Her work has improved the lives of so many across our country. She will be remembered fondly.

Mrs. MURRAY

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

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, this past Sunday marked the 20-year anniversary of the war in Iraq. I could not be prouder of our servicemembers who bravely have served our Nation overseas. I am deeply grateful for their service and their sacrifice, and I am committed to making sure we live up to our obligations to each and every one of them. As I have said many times, this is a war I never thought we should have started, and it is one we clearly should have ended long ago. I come to the floor today to urge my colleagues to commemorate the anniversary of this war by officially ending this badly outdated war authorization at long last. I urge them to join me in taking the long- overdue step of reasserting Congress's authority in decisions about war and peace by voting to repeal the 1991 and 2002 authorizations for use of military force because when we send people to war, it should be a decision, not a status quo. The decision about whether or not to go to war and put the servicemembers' lives at risk is the most serious and most consequential issue we can debate here in the U.S. Senate. American lives, American security, and America's future are all at stake when our country decides questions of war and peace. When we first deliberated on whether to take action in Iraq, I wanted to know with absolute confidence we had done our due diligence before moving forward with the weighty decision to send our men and women into a dangerous conflict. That is why all those years ago I came to the floor to debate the very resolution that gave President Bush the authority he wanted to wage war in Iraq. I wanted to know what our goals were, what our plan was, what a victory and an exit strategy looked like, and what evidence we had that this was necessary. I will tell you, after hearing all the sides on whether to engage our military, one thing I still was not hearing was clear answers. I determined I could not support sending our men and women into harm's way on an ill-defined mission--a mission which ultimately cost us dearly in lives most importantly but also in dollars and in our standing around the world. Twenty years later, the mission in Iraq is over. Our troops have returned home, and Iraq's Government has evolved into a diplomatic partner. But those outdated legal authorizations remain on the books, leaving an open-ended basis for Presidents to misuse our military power for political gain. We have already seen how leaders can use them as a free pass to recklessly push for the misuse of military force. Just 3 years ago, without consulting Congress, former President Trump ordered missile strikes in Iraq against an Iranian military leader, which, among many things, jeopardized our relationships with key allies, risked the safety of U.S. servicemembers and civilians, and brought us perilously close to war. That is not how this should work. That is not how the Constitution says it should work. Our servicemembers deserve better than that. When and whether to engage in war is a choice that explicitly belongs to Congress and to the American people. If we don't assert that power, we risk leaving behind a dangerous precedent for the future. That is why I am voting to repeal these authorizations. Taking this step will make sure we are doing our part here in Congress to give questions of war the full consideration they deserve and make sure we are exhausting every diplomatic avenue before jumping into a full-blown war effort and putting servicemembers in harm's way. I saw the scars, physical and mental, that veterans like my dad took home from World War II, that veterans like my peers took home from Vietnam, and that veterans today have taken home from Iraq. This is one of the most important votes we can make, so let's act like it. Let's ensure every decision made to authorize the use of military force is responsible, is appropriate, and is constitutional. I hope that by repealing these outdated AUMFs, we will return to a place where Congress and, by extension, the American people can have a serious debate and ultimately decide whether or not we go to war. It is long past time for Congress to reassert its authority and oversight responsibility here. I urge my colleagues to join me and Senators Kaine and Young in getting this done. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 15 minutes as in morning business.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, there are so many challenges facing us as a nation today, as we all know, but there is one overriding concern that I have. If we want our country to thrive and grow and be strong and be a democracy far into the future so we can solve the problems and challenges we face, then we must protect our democracy. Democracy. It is the core principle of America, the idea that we are a country where we can debate and can have free speech and where our voices matter. Americans must be able to trust and believe that all of us here, no matter our opinions or our beliefs, have a shared view that our democracy is sacred, that we understand what that means, and that we have a responsibility as leaders to preserve it; a democracy where we make decisions, we use our voices, we debate, we vote, but we never use brute force to get what we want. If we allow brute force to win the day, that would be the end of our democracy. Look, we agree and we disagree. We use our words to debate policy. We are passionate about what we believe in. But we also understand that not everything is debatable, that there is a reality in our world that we must understand and acknowledge and learn from so we can move forward as a country and make sure we never repeat the mistakes of the past. And I am talking about what happened on January 6, 2021. On that day, an attempt was made to overthrow an election, to use brute force and violence to change the outcome. We must agree as a country that using brute force to overturn this democracy is something we can never allow. In fact, if we want to solve any of those challenges in front of us, we need to have a strong democracy--period. That is why I have to speak out today about what is happening with the release of the January 6 tapes and the total misuse by a FOX News personality to distort and change the truth of what happened that day. As my colleagues know, I was here during the worst of the January 6 insurrection, and when I say ``here,'' I mean here in the Capitol Building. I didn't happen to be on the floor when most Senators were evacuated; instead, I had to lock down in a room feet from here. I heard the crashes as those insurrectionists stormed this building. I heard their explicit calls for violence. I heard them banging on my door, trying to get in, trying to get me so they could do harm. I know firsthand that January 6 was a dark, violent chapter in our Nation's history. So imagine my shock and my anger to hear a prime time FOX News host trying to downplay this horrific event, trying to say this was just people on a sightseeing tour. I have taken constituents on a tour of the Capitol. I am sure the Presiding Officer has. I think we all know that you don't bring gas masks on a tour. You don't bring pepper spray on a tour. You do not bring bats or knives or tasers. They actually had zip-tie handcuffs in their possession. Tourists don't leave broken glass in the windows. They don't leave the blood of our Capitol Police officers on the floor. Tourists don't leave with stolen documents and laptops. They don't smear feces on the wall, and they don't put up gallows outside. For FOX News to let Tucker Carlson try and paper over this by showing a few minutes of footage--which, by the way, to be clear, even that footage is showing people who walked past gates, barricades, blaring alarms, and police lines, in total disregard of the law, to go somewhere it is abundantly clear that they should not. But to show that footage and pretend that it shows the full story, while ignoring the reality of the footage of offices being ransacked, equipment being stolen, windows broken, ignoring the footage of White supremacists parading these halls with Confederate flags and zip-tie handcuffs, ignoring the footage of Capitol Police being swarmed and beaten and battered--officers suffered cracked ribs and severe brain injuries. One officer lost an eye. Other officers took their lives in the aftermath. To try and paper over all of this as a ``sightseeing tour''--there just aren't words that do my anger justice, and the ones that get close are simply not suitable for this Senate floor. I am glad some Republican Senators have joined Democrats in calling out how dangerous and disingenuous this kind of coverage--or, perhaps more appropriately, coverup--is. But, honestly, there is a lot more that needs to be said about how we got here. New documents from the Dominion lawsuit made clear FOX News knowingly let hosts spread lies about the election and let them inflame the public with baseless conspiracies. I think my colleagues and reporters who cover me know I am not one to criticize the media lightly. I do not cry foul or bias or fake news at coverage that I don't like. We live in a country with free speech and free press--thank goodness. We have many different points of view, and that all informs a robust debate in our democracy so people can effect change with their voices and their votes, not violence. But there is a basic premise that debate rests on, a basic responsibility inherent in these important rights: honesty. For our democracy to work, for our great debates to guide it effectively, the people who inform our public--the free press that we so rightly cherish and protect--need honest brokers. Let me be clear. When I say ``honest,'' I am not saying reporters have to be utterly objective or neutral or impersonal. I am not even saying they have to be 100 percent right all the time. No one is. But they have to tell the truth. They have to at least try to tell the truth. They owe that to the people whom they cover and the viewers who trust them. That shouldn't be too much to ask. Truly, it is the barest of minimums. It is the lowest bar. Yet, as the Dominion lawsuit is showing, FOX News has been utterly failing to meet it. In fact, they have been actively pushing lies and disinformation in the most cynical way possible. The depositions and discovery have shown plain as day, FOX News personalities were spreading dangerous lies, promoting shameless liars, and what is more, FOX knew it. We aren't talking about a difference of an opinion or an honest mistake. We are talking about fraud in prime time. They repeatedly brought on Sidney Powell to spout baseless conspiracies about Dominion voting machines. All the while, Tucker Carlson told his producer that Powell was lying. He told his colleague Laura Ingraham that Powell was lying. Ingraham's producer texted a FOX executive that he had told her the Dominion conspiracy was ``BS.'' Ingraham herself said Powell was a ``complete nut.'' Senior Vice President Shah said Powell was ``clearly full of it.'' Lou Dobbs' producer told him it was ``complete BS,'' only for the show to have Powell on 3 days later. I mean, the list of people at FOX News who knew President Biden fairly won that election and knew these fraud claims were baseless goes on and on, and, in fact, it goes straight to the top. Rupert Murdoch, owner of FOX News, called Rudy Giuliani's lies about the election ``really crazy stuff.'' Yet, as he admitted under oath, FOX News hosts endorsed those conspiracies, and he let it happen, even though he could have done more to step in and stop it. Instead of putting the Big Lie under scrutiny, FOX put it in prime time. And when reporters with the network tried to be accurate, tried to tell the truth, tried to set straight the lies their own network was spreading, they were reprimanded. Carlson, who told his colleagues Powell is lying, called for a FOX reporter to be fired for fact-checking a tweet about the Dominion conspiracy. Shah, the senior vice president who said Powell was full of it, labeled an anchor a ``brand threat'' for cutting away from an accurate Trump White House press conference. Another reporter was scolded for fact-checking the Powell-Giuliani press conference, which leaders at FOX acknowledged was rife with dangerous conspiracies. Let's be clear. This was the No. 1 cable news outlet in America stifling the truth. This is so dangerous, and we cannot--we absolutely cannot--accept this. Let's not forget the nature of those lies. They weren't just small white lies or debatable points. These were wild, sprawling conspiracies which were repeatedly debunked, including by FOX's own fact checkers and which were actually designed to disrupt the peaceful transition of power, designed to undermine the cornerstone of our democracy, the public's faith in our free and fair elections. And they did. On January 6, a violent mob, spurred by the lies that FOX spread, stormed this Capitol. And, now, as I detailed earlier, FOX hosts are lying about that. FOX News is discoloring our past when we should be learning from it--when we should be learning from it. It is important to consider the scope of those lies as well. This wasn't one anchor saying something dubious and network executives looking the other way. FOX engaged in a top-down, deliberate, and coordinated effort to push out lies to its viewers. We cannot ignore that. Tucker Carlson can selectively edit as much footage as he wants, but I refuse to let him succeed in rewriting history and lying to the American people about the January 6 insurrection. America has already seen what Tucker Carlson failed to show: windows being smashed in, officers being pushed and beaten and battered and pepper-sprayed, the floor of the House and Senate overrun by White supremacists in tactical gear, a gallows on the Hill, a mob chanting ``Hang Mike Pence.'' I was here with one locked door between me and the violent mob shouting ``Kill the infidels.'' And when the dust settled, I walked with my colleagues through the halls, littered with broken glass, the offices that had been ransacked, and I stood here with my colleagues to cast a vote insurrectionists had stormed the building to stop. I will never forget that. Who could? And I will never forget, and I will never let our country forget it, either, despite what FOX News has done and is doing to try and rewrite this chapter of our Nation's history. This is not how legitimate news organizations behave. How are viewers supposed to trust them? How am I supposed to trust that they will represent my positions fairly? Now, I will say, there are reporters at FOX who are committed to the basic principles of objective journalism and the truth, and I respect them. And many reporters at local FOX affiliates are doing their best to report the honest truth to viewers in my home State of Washington and around the country. But do you know what? Even if I trust them to try and work in good faith, how do I trust they will not get overruled by the same executives who oversaw this election disinformation operation? I think it is important to say, and it is also worth noting, that the lies about the election and insurrection may be the most egregious and dangerous examples right now, but there are many other ways the dishonesty at FOX News is poisoning the debate for important conversations and debate. How are we supposed to debate climate change when half the conversation is fact-free denialism? How are we supposed to discuss public health when deadly vaccine misinformation is given one of the world's biggest megaphones? Here is the honest truth. Public figures and other media outlets need to grapple with this: Tucker Carlson is determined to make sure FOX News is not news at all. FOX is a political vehicle for Rupert Murdoch and his rightwing causes. It is a political entity that will gladly push disinformation and lies if it means profits and political gain. Let's just call it what it is. So until FOX does a complete 180 to fix this, until Tucker Carlson apologizes and issues a comprehensive correction, until Mr. Murdoch and his executives stop with the lies and election conspiracy theories-- and, by the way, they will have to give a real reason if they want us to believe them--until that happens, we should not pretend that Murdoch and Carlson are going to allow FOX News to be news at all. I certainly won't. And I don't say this lightly, but I encourage my colleagues to do the same. The essence of our democracy is at stake, because what I was reminded, on January 6, is that democracy doesn't happen just because we have it. Our democracy is only as strong as our commitment to it. We have to work for it. We have to make sure that it remains with us, and that is why I am on the floor speaking out today, because I will fight for our democracy. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I rise with my colleagues today to continue to fight for women in every part of our country to once again be able to make their own healthcare decisions because ever since Republicans succeeded in their decades-long effort to overturn Roe v. Wade and drag our country back a half a century and rip away the right to abortion for women across the country, we have heard one horror story after another: women left suffering, waiting for the care that they need; doctors worried that they could face jail time for doing what is best for their patients; abortion providers who are overwhelmed by patients who are having to wait weeks for limited appointments and travel hundreds of miles for care. Republicans have ushered in a crisis. It is a nightmare for women, for patients, and for doctors alike. And make no mistake, it is a choice extreme Republicans have made. They fought for decades to overturn Roe. They passed the dangerous abortion bans that are causing this pain for women and families, and they are choosing to continue their nonstop efforts to strip women of control over their own bodies. Every day, extreme Republican politicians come out with some new awful idea to make women's lives worse. Here in Congress, Senate Republicans introduced a national abortion ban last year. This Congress, one of the first bills the Republican House voted on was a Federal abortion ban. In just the few months since Roe was overturned, extreme abortion bans have gone into effect in 14 of our States, stripping over 20 million women of reproductive age of the ability to get abortion care in their own State. And, by the way, transgender and nonbinary patients who already face so many challenges getting the healthcare they need in this country are being harmed by these bans as well. We are talking about truly cruel bans that set bounties for information about anyone who gets an abortion or helps provide one and bans that even lack exceptions for rape or incest or the life and well-being of the mom. Republican bans have tripled the average travel time for patients to get the abortion care they need since Roe was overturned. And they have been especially challenging for communities that already face barriers for the care they need: patients with tight budgets who cannot afford to pay for travel and lodging hundreds of miles away from where they live; Black women who already suffer much higher maternal mortality rates; patients in rural and Tribal areas who aren't close to providers to begin with; and patients with disabilities, to just name a few. Now they are going further, seeking to pass new bans to try to get around State court rulings and laws to get around the fact that their own constituents backed the right to abortion in statewide votes just last year. When extreme Republicans can't convince the American people to get on board with their extreme agenda, they have shown that they will try to force it on women across the country with threats and intimidation and outrageous lawsuits. Extreme Republican attorneys general, for example, are suing the Biden administration because they told pharmacists they can't discriminate against pregnant patients and because they made it clear when a woman's life is at stake, doctors are required to provide lifesaving abortion care. And, of course, there is the extreme Republican lawsuit that seeks to take away an important abortion medication for patients nationwide--nationwide--effectively creating a nationwide ban on the most common way patients get an abortion. Twenty- two Republican attorneys general and, by the way, 67 Republicans right here in Congress have filed a brief supporting that lawsuit, supporting overriding experts at FDA to take a safe, effective abortion medication away from women nationwide, to take it away from my constituents in Washington State. People across the country have already made it crystal clear they will not stand for Republicans' extreme agenda. In fact, last November, abortion rights won in every single place they were on the ballot-- every single place they were on the ballot. Democrats won't stand for Republican attacks either. We are committed right here to being a firewall in the Senate against the House Republicans' extreme attacks on abortion. We refuse to accept a future where our daughters and granddaughters have fewer rights than we did. We refuse to accept that any patient's right to control their own body depends on a State that they live in or the money in their bank account. That is why today Democrats are reintroducing the Women's Health Protection Act because the Dobbs decision was not the beginning of this fight, and it was not the end--far from it. We have to restore Roe for women in every corner of our country, and that is exactly what this bill does. It follows the Constitution and nearly half a century of precedent and gives patients the right to get an abortion and doctors the right to provide that care no matter where they are in America. Some Republicans want us to just get used to women being forced to stay pregnant, no matter their circumstance, no matter what it means for their health or their family or their hope for the future. Some Republicans are hoping that this will all become normal. Well, I have got news for them. Never, never will that happen. We will not be quiet. We will not give up. We are going to keep coming back as many times as it takes to end this chaos and return control of women's bodies to women. I promise, every single time we have to come back to this floor to lay bare the horrors of these extreme abortion bans they are inflicting on women and patients in this country, we will get louder. So I urge all my Republican colleagues, start listening to the American people, start acknowledging the pain that these abortion bans are causing. Let's pass this critical bill to make things right. I can't say that I expect them to listen to us, but I can guarantee you, if they don't, we will be back. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

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

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I will be honest. Based on the arguments I have been hearing, I am not sure everyone who is opposing the Biden administration's ESG rule has actually read the policy. Some of the arguments for the resolution overturning this rule simply don't add up. In fact, they are a contradiction. ESG investing is simply the practice of taking into account the environmental, social, and governance practices of companies that you invest in. For instance, just as a hypothetical, if you are against investing in so-called ``woke'' causes, you are actually laying out your own ESG criteria. Here is the thing: The Biden administration rule would allow that. They would allow that because--and this is an important point, I think, folks are missing--the Biden rule is fundamentally neutral on how ESG factors are taken into consideration, so long as the investment fund is meeting its fiduciary obligations to its beneficiaries. I am not sure anyone gets that because the fact of the matter is that some of the same people who are railing against this rule and against ESG investing have advocated for positions that essentially are ESG investing. When Republicans push for legislation to protect local and State governments that divest from companies based on their policies toward Israel, that is a form of ESG investing. It is also worth noting, if you manage a retirement plan for a faith-based organization and you want to make sure you are investing in accordance with your client's faith, that, too, would be ESG investing. When we call for divesting from foreign adversaries due to human rights and national security concerns, again, we are actually talking about ESG investing. If anyone wants to argue that that is different, that it is a matter of national security, I will note there is no question that climate change is also a really serious national security issue, but that is, honesty, beside the point here. Let me say it again: The rule we are talking about is neutral-- neutral--on whether a fiduciary is considering these factors from a particular perspective. This rule is not about saying the left's or the right's taking on a given environmental, social, or governance issue is correct. It is about acknowledging that these factors are reasonable for asset managers to consider. It is about risk mitigation to safeguard retirement plan savers' nest eggs. It is about letting asset managers do their jobs without the government getting in the way. That shouldn't be controversial. It, actually, should be common sense. I mean, think about it. When it comes to environmental factors, shouldn't financial advisers have the freedom to consider environmental practices when climate disasters cost trillions of dollars a year? Shouldn't they have the freedom to take into account whether a company is adopting sustainable practices that reduce its costs and consumption or if it is moving to clean energy so that it makes it less reliant on foreign oil? When it comes to social factors, we live in a diverse nation. That is part of what makes our country so vibrant and so strong. Shouldn't financial advisers have the freedom to consider whether companies are doing the most to tap into that strength? Shouldn't they have the freedom to account for whether companies are well situated to serve and speak to the broadest range of people or to grow by reaching communities that are currently underrepresented in their customer base? When it comes to how companies are governed, we are facing workforce shortages today. Companies are having huge challenges in finding and retaining workers. So shouldn't financial advisers have the freedom to consider how well companies are paying their workers or how seriously they take safety and issues like workplace harassment or what sort of benefits they might provide to retain workers, like childcare, paid leave, or more? These are concrete factors that have huge implications for companies' bottom lines. So why wouldn't we give advisers the freedom to consider them? Why do Republicans want to tie their hands and meddle in the free market by reversing this balanced, neutral rule? Despite the misunderstandings and misrepresentations and despite how badly some of my colleagues seem to be missing the point, at the end of the day, this is actually pretty simple. Financial security is about planning for the future, and you can't plan for the future if you aren't allowed to consider the environmental or social or governance factors that are shaping it. So I urge my colleagues, today, to join me in voting against this resolution. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, consistent with Standing Rule XXVI, I ask unanimous consent that the rules of procedure of the Committee on Appropriations for the 118th Congress be printed in the Record.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be allowed to speak as in morning business and that Senator Bennet be allowed to conclude his remarks before the vote today.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to continue to raise the alarm about how Republicans' extreme, ongoing attacks on reproductive rights are putting women's lives at risk, are trampling the will of the American people, who supported the right to abortion, by the way, everywhere it was on the ballot last November, and are even undermining care for patients in States like mine, which have strong abortion protections. In fact, right now, a truly extreme lawsuit, which some far-right Republicans in Congress just filed a brief supporting, is seeking to overturn the FDA's longstanding approval of a safe and effective medication used in abortion care. This suit could cause chaos nationwide and rip abortion medication away from patients in every single State, potentially even from my constituents in Washington State. I have been clear that the overturning of Roe v. Wade last year was not the end of the fight to protect reproductive rights. Unfortunately, it was just the starting gun for even more extreme attacks from far- right Republicans. We have already seen 14 extreme State abortion bans go into effect--from bans that set bounties for information about anyone who gets an abortion or helps to provide one to bans that even lack exceptions for rape and incest and the life and well-being of moms. Some States are even passing new bans to try and get around State courts that block their first ones or laws to get around the fact that their own constituents backed the right to abortion in a statewide vote last year. Here in Congress, we saw Senate Republicans introduce a national abortion ban last year, and it was one of the first things the Republican House voted on this year. We are still seeing new, appalling proposals from extreme Republicans across the country. While Republicans here in Congress blocked our bill to make sure doctors cannot be jailed for providing an abortion, Republican State legislators have drafted bills to make sure women can be prosecuted for getting an abortion. While Republicans in Congress blocked our bill to protect the right to travel across State lines for an abortion, State lawmakers have bills to stop employers from helping employees travel for an abortion. Right next door to my home State, there is a bill in Idaho that could lead to parents and grandparents being charged with human trafficking for helping minors travel out of State so they can get an abortion. That is appalling. Republican politicians have investigated a doctor for providing care to a child who was raped. They have proposed funding to jail people for abortions. They have talked about using existing child endangerment laws to prosecute women who use abortion pills. They have made it harder for patients to get birth control and even the treatments they need for life-threatening illnesses, like cancer. There are Republican attorneys general suing, right now, because the Biden administration told pharmacists they can't discriminate against pregnant patients and because the administration reminded care providers that, when a woman's life is at stake, they are required by Federal law to provide the necessary care, and that includes abortion. Then there is the case I mentioned earlier, whereby a far-right group is trying, right now, to ban mifepristone, an important abortion medication, nationwide, and I mean all across the country, including in my home State of Washington and in every other State that has strong protections for abortion. There are 22 Republican attorneys general and 67 Republicans right here in Congress who have filed briefs in support of that outlandish lawsuit. Now, let's be clear about what is going on here. In this lawsuit, these far-right extremists are asking one district judge to overrule the FDA's experts and rulemaking authority in order to undermine healthcare for patients nationwide by declaring a drug that was approved over 20 years ago as unsafe. Let's set the record straight right now because there has been so much misinformation on this, including from Republican Members of Congress. Mifepristone is safe, and it is effective for ending a pregnancy during the first 10 weeks. The FDA determined that decades ago. The science is done. The results are in. They have been for over 20 years. Mifepristone is safe. This lawsuit is not about science; it is about ideology. It is not about protecting women; it is about controlling their bodies. The reality of what extreme Republicans have already caused with their abhorrent bans is a nightmare. Because of Republican bans, women facing miscarriages have already been unable to get the care they need for days on end. They have already been left bleeding, getting sicker and sicker, and pleading for help. Doctors are already being forced to compromise medical care, leave patients in pain, and even forgo providing lifesaving care because they fear far-right politicians will jail them for doing their job. Abortion providers in States like mine are already overworked, overbooked, and overwhelmed with patients who have had to wait weeks and travel hundreds of miles to get an abortion because of Republican bans. This lawsuit will make things much worse. Mifepristone is used in over half of the abortions. Taking that drug away would mean fewer options for women, longer waits for people who are seeking care, stress for patients and providers, and chaos for a healthcare system that Republicans have already put in crisis. It is cruel and utterly unnecessary. There is no reason for this. You don't have to take my word for this, by the way. Listen to doctors and patients, and listen to women, because that is exactly what I have been doing. I am not going to stop. I am going to continue to make sure their stories are being heard, especially when they are hard stories to hear, because we will not be quiet. I am going to continue to be their voice and vote here in the Senate, and I am going to keep putting a spotlight on their concerns and on the threats to their health, like these extreme abortion bans and ideology abortion lawsuits. I am going to be here, raising the alarm, fighting to pass commonsense legislation to protect our rights, being a firewall against extreme Republican attacks against abortion, and working, meanwhile, to build the support we need to restore Roe once and for all. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the memberships on the twelve subcommittees of the Committee on Appropriations for the 118th Congress be printed in the Record. I thank my vice chair on the committee, Senator Collins, for her leadership and cooperation with me in making these important assignments.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the Lieutenants Peggy Dente and Lyndsay Evans of Naval Air Station Whidbey Island for making history on February 12, 2023, as part of the first-ever all- women flyover at the Super Bowl pregame, commemorating 50 years of women serving in the U.S. Navy. Both of these extraordinary women represent the best of what Washington State--and our Nation--has to offer. Not only do the two share over a decade of friendship, they also bring with them a keen sense of duty and deep commitment to excellence in aviation. In 1973, eight women broke new ground by being selected for naval aviation training for the first time in our Nation's history. Five decades later, we are seeing more women and girls express interest in taking to the skies through service and leadership at every level of naval aviation. In performing their first ever flyover, Dente and Evans have quite literally proven that with women at the helm, the sky is the limit. I know breaking into a field dominated by men isn't easy, when I first got to the Senate, there wasn't even a women's bathroom off the Senate floor. But every day, women like Lieutenants Dente and Evans are setting an example for young girls that with hard work, they can follow their dreams and achieve their goals. I offer my sincere thanks to the lieutenants for their service to our country and my congratulations for proudly representing Washington State on the national stage. I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating this tremendous accomplishment.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, it was 30 years ago to this very day that I came here to give one of my first speeches on the Senate floor, and I talked about a friend of mine back in Washington State. She was a mom. She had just gotten heartbreaking news. Her son was dying of leukemia. And then another gut punch: Her employer told her she had to choose between being in the hospital with her son or being at her job, and if she wasn't there, she was going to lose it. To this day, that makes me so angry. No one should face such a cruel decision. No one should ever be forced to choose between taking care of themselves and their loved ones and being able to make ends meet. So at the time, 30 years ago, I was on the floor to urge my colleagues to pass the Family and Medical Leave Act, which provided job-protected, unpaid leave to workers across the country, because the bottom line was that every worker should know that if they have a family emergency, they can prioritize their family's health without jeopardizing their family's economic security. I was so thrilled when, just a few days later, we won, and that bill became law. But even back then, it was clear that bill was just a first step. It was clear we needed to keep fighting for the next one. And I am still here, and I am still fighting because we are way behind where we should be. We are way behind our peers in the world when it comes to giving working families the support they need, and it is holding us back. For one thing, there are still too many loopholes that leave people without the simple promise of unpaid leave. Too many workers today in this country are denied the basic protections of the Family and Medical Leave Act that we passed into law 30 years ago. I have been fighting to close those loopholes and expand protections for decades so workers are not left out in the cold during an emergency just because they work at a small business or they work part time or just because their family might look little different--for example, if they are a caregiver for a niece or a nephew or a grandchild. No one should be punished for that. So it is time that we pass legislation to guarantee that those workers get the same protections as everybody else. Let me be clear. Passing bills to do this, that is just updating our laws to guarantee unpaid leave for all. That is just making good on the promise we made to workers 30 years ago. In other words, that is just the next step, but it is far from the last one. Our families need a lot more. They deserve so much better. There is no excuse for our utter lack of a national paid leave program. It is bad for families, as any working mom or dad can tell you or anyone who cares for a family member with a serious health condition. They know this all too well. By the way, it is bad for our economy because the lack of paid leave means that employees lose their wages and businesses lose their workers. We are facing serious workforce shortages in key sectors of our economy today. Let me tell you, the lack of a national paid leave program is not helping; it is hurting. We are the only Nation among our peers that has not figured that out yet. We are the only one that hasn't gotten this done. The reality is, it makes our economy less competitive on the world stage. But you don't have to look at other countries to see how urgent this is; just listen to people right here. I shared my friend's story all those years ago, but today, across the country, there are still so many families facing unthinkable choices. There are still so many people--working moms in particular--sharing their own deeply personal stories about this, stories of the painful recovery after giving birth and the incredibly special but, let's face it, pretty tough first weeks of bonding with a newborn child; stories of the grief and the pain of caring for a seriously ill child; sitting at a hospital bedside of a seriously ill parent recovering from surgery or coping with a cancer diagnosis; with the added stress, at that hardest time of your life, about how you are going to make your next month's rent if you have to take unpaid time off of work. Anyone who has been in those situations knows it is hard. You have so much you are worried about. Here in Congress, we should be working to make that an easier time for families. We should be taking that worry off of parents' shoulders. We should be making sure that no worker has to choose between their family and their job, between their family and their paycheck. So as we mark the anniversary today of the Family and Medical Leave Act, I want to urge my colleagues, let's celebrate the legacy of that bill, of course, by building on it. Let it be this Congress that we finally, at long last, take the much-needed next steps that families have been waiting for, that they have been calling for. Let's ensure that the Family and Medical Leave Act protects all working families. Let's establish a national paid leave program. Let's tackle the childcare crisis with bold reforms. Let's build an economy that actually works for our families here. Now, I want to end today with the same words that I actually said 30 years ago right here on the Senate floor: If one mother is able to sit with her seriously ill son without fear of losing her life savings, if one son is able to hold the hand of his dying mother, if one of us--you or I--is able to care for someone we love when they need us the most, then the time and the energy spent on [these issues has been] worth it. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I rise today to celebrate Alfie Alvarado- Ramos, the Director of Washington State's Department of Veterans Affairs, who will retire on January 31, 2023, after serving Washington State and our veterans for over 29 years. Alfie's impressive career is marked by many well-earned accolades, but most of all by her dedication to serving Washington State and the Nation. Throughout her military service, Alfie's service has been recognized with awards and decorations, including the Legion of Merit, Order of Military Medical Merit, Expert Field Medical Badge, and Meritorious Service medal. After 22 years, she retired from Active Duty in August 1993 as the command sergeant major of Madigan Army Medical Center and Troop Command, Joint Base Lewis-McChord. She has also proven herself a distinguished and passionate leader in the management of medical services delivery and human resources management, especially for our veterans. Alfie is an alumna of the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government Executive Program, the University of Washington Executive Management Program, and holds a master's degree in healthcare administration, and a licensed nursing home administrator. As director of Washington State's Department of Veterans Affairs, Alfie was a member of Governor Jay Inslee's executive cabinet and chaired the Washington State Military Transition Council. In this capacity, she has helped the agency lead statewide efforts for the seamless transition of servicemembers and their families to Washington State's communities. As a leader in our State, she has been honored with many well-earned local, State, and national awards, including the Governor's Distinguished Management Leadership Award and the Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary's Leadership Award. Alfie's extraordinary commitment to servicemembers and veterans is unmatched. Anyone who has worked with Alfie, as I have been honored to do for many years, knows her tireless dedication and relentless drive to improve services for members of the military, veterans, and their families. From mental health to education and training, military spouse employment, to emergency funding for State veterans homes in the depths of the COVID pandemic, Alfie has been an incredible partner. Although there are so many stories I could share about the way Alfie has fought for veterans in Washington State, there is one in particular that I will never forget. Back in 2013, the State of Washington, thanks to Alfie's leadership, secured Federal funding for a veterans home in Walla Walla. Unfortunately, through a series of bureaucratic mishaps, our State was in danger of losing that funding--that is, until Alfie stepped in. She called to let my office know about the problem and was absolutely furious the Federal Government would pull the rug out from under those veterans who needed care the most. I couldn't have agreed more. It was unacceptable--so we didn't accept it. Together, we fought to keep the funding, and we won. There is now a beautiful veterans home in Walla Walla thanks to Alfie's tireless dedication to Washington State veterans. I will miss working with her in the years ahead, but it has been an honor to know Alfie throughout her career as dedicated mentor, teacher, and guide for the next generation of military and veteran leaders. I know Washington State and the Nation will be in good hands, thanks to her and her legacy will continue far beyond her own retirement. I offer my deepest appreciation for Alfie's dedicated service to the United States of America and Washington State. I ask that my colleagues join me in congratulating Alfie on her well-earned retirement and wishing her many years of enjoyment with her family.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize and honor the life of Robert ``Bobby'' Silverstein, a leader in the disability rights movement, who passed away on November 17 from complications from cancer. Bobby served in a number of roles in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, including as staff director and chief counsel for the Subcommittee on Disability Policy of the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources, now the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. He drafted, negotiated, and helped pass landmark bipartisan legislation, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and critical amendments to the Rehabilitation Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, improving the lives of millions of people with disabilities. Bobby was an effective leader known for building consensus and his dedication to critical analysis and the basic principle of fairness. Bobby received dozens of national awards honoring his contributions, including the Distinguished Services Award of the President of the United States in 1993. Bobby improved the lives of people with disabilities by enshrining in Federal law their fundamental rights to full participation, equal opportunity, independent living, economic self-sufficiency, education, and employment. He has immeasurably shaped the disability and civil rights movement for the better, and I join former chairs of the HELP Committee in recognizing all of his contributions. After leaving Congress, Bobby continued to dedicate himself to disability policy and advocacy. His work has and will continue to make life better for so many people with disabilities and families across the country. He will be remembered fondly.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, 6 months ago, the Supreme Court ripped away the right to abortion; and, since then, Republicans have enacted abortion bans in States across the country. The outcry against Republicans' cruelty has been loud and clear and overwhelming. In every single State where abortion was on the ballot, voters backed abortion rights. They made their voices clear: Women must be able to control their own bodies. They want us to protect abortion access. They want us to stand up against the wave of extreme bans and bills and partisan attacks on abortions and on doctors from Republicans. That is exactly what this bill is, another attack on abortion that will make it harder for women to get the care that they need. If my colleague really wants to talk about protecting healthcare providers, let's talk about the sharp rise in threats and violence against abortion clinics and what we are doing about that. Let's talk about the providers back home in my home State of Washington who tell me they are worried they could be punished for providing an abortion to patients from out of State. In my State, it is legal. Let's talk about how Republican State lawmakers have already discussed a bill to make it a crime to provide abortion care to a resident even in another State where it is legal. Yet, if you are one of the many, many doctors and nurses who believe they have a duty to provide abortion care, this bill does nothing to protect you for doing your job, not even if your patient's life is in danger. It is silent on the legal threats that these providers are facing from Republican States, not to mention the increasing physical threats that they face. That violence, that science speaks volumes about the real point of this bill. By the way, if you are a patient, well, then, the message from this bill is even more clear and even more outrageous. This bill says the ideology of your boss, of your health insurance company, of your pharmacist, or your doctor is more important than your personal decision, your medical needs, or your well-being. That is dangerous, it is wrong, and I will not stand for it. Therefore, I object.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I do know that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle support high-quality charter schools because they are an important part of many States' public school system, which is why I come to the floor today to urge my colleagues to vote against the resolution. I want to be clear: This resolution will cause unnecessary chaos, undermine simple accountability measures to ensure that our Federal funds are well spent and delay funding from supporting new, high- quality charter schools and the students that they would serve. Earlier this year, after responding to over 25,000 comments from charter schools, parent organizations, and others, the Biden administration issued their final rule laying out various criteria for Federal charter school grants. This is a common step in administrating the charter school program--one the previous administration took as well. And the latest rule included some commonsense ideas to increase community and parent involvement, to strengthen the fiscal transparency to make sure that taxpayer dollars are being used properly. The goal of the rule is simple: to help make sure our Federal dollars support high quality charter schools. Passing this resolution now would upend a balanced rule that is a result of months of careful work from the Department of Education. The Biden administration has already used this rule to issue 12 awards now, totaling $65 million across 11 States, and it is currently now in the middle of a grant competition, which charter school management organizations are now applying for. So let's not disrupt the plans of Mississippi and Tennessee and Georgia and the other States that have already received awards under the new rule and that were counting on that funding. That is not fair. It is not good for schools, teachers, parents, or students. So I hope no one here wants to see our schools disrupted, accountability weakened, or learning undermined, which is why I am here today to urge everyone to join me in voting against this resolution and to work with me and the Department of Education to continue to support high-quality charter schools, while improving oversight and transparency of our Federal funds. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

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

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I am here today because no one should have to choose between their job and a healthy pregnancy. It is outrageous that pregnant women in our country have been pushed out of their jobs by their employers because, as you just heard, they asked for an additional bathroom break or because their doctors say they need to avoid heavy lifting or because their employer can't be bothered to simply provide them a stool to sit down on. It is unconscionable that people who are looking forward to welcoming a new family member are having their lives upturned or losing the paychecks they depend on to make rent or buy groceries or pay for childcare, all because their employers refuse to provide basic, commonsense, low-cost and even no-cost accommodations. We have got to do better. That is why I am here with Senator Casey, who has been a relentless champion on this issue, to urge all of my colleagues to let us pass the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which is a bipartisan bill that will make sure that no one is forced to choose between a job and a healthy pregnancy and everyone can get the reasonable workplace accommodations they need when they are pregnant. Let me be clear: This is, fundamentally, a bipartisan bill that we have worked closely with our Republican colleagues on. Senator Cassidy coleads this bill. He has been an amazing partner. It passed out of the HELP Committee overwhelmingly. It is supported by my ranking member Senator Burr, and it passed overwhelmingly on a bipartisan House vote. There is no reason to stand in the way. We can send this to the President's desk right now. We are really not here asking for much. This is very simple. Give pregnant workers a break, give them a seat, and give them a hand. Give them the dignity, the respect, and basic workplace accommodations that they need. This is way overdue, and I can't think of a more commonsense, less controversial bill, and I hope that we can get it done today. I yield the floor.