Chuck Schumer

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Executive Calendar No. 1, Treaty Document 112-8.

Mr. SCHUMER. I ask that the treaty be considered as having advanced through the various parliamentary stages up to and including the presentation of the resolution of advice and consent to ratification.

Mr. SCHUMER. I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum calls for the cloture motions filed today, June 15, be waived.

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senator from Illinois be given 10 minutes to speak immediately and, following her, 5 minutes to the Senator from Massachusetts.

Mr. SCHUMER. I yield the floor.

Mr. SCHUMER

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

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. Just parenthetically, true to Trish's dedication to the job, she just sat down and whispered to me: We are not in a quorum call. That will probably be one of the very last of about 10,000--maybe 100,000--proper, right instructions she has given me over the years that she has been here--or given all of us. So I thought that was a moment to remember. Anyway, today, I want to take a moment to honor one of the--the--the most beloved members of the Senate team, and that is Trish Engle, who will be leaving the Democratic cloakroom after 26 years of service. That means you started about a year before me, 1998--1997. I came here in early 1999. Trish is the proud mom of two boys, William and Garrison. Wave to us, William. Who is older--William or Garrison? William. Very nice. Both are in their nice blue shirts. They are here with us today, and I am sure they are looking--are you looking forward to spending more time with your mom? You are saying you are. I am not quite sure, at your age, that is exactly the case. But I am sure it is good quality time, knowing Trish. Trish's mom, Melva Ongstad, is here in the Gallery. Hello, Melva. I am glad her family could be here, and I know how proud everyone is of Trish. We all are. We all know that Trish is one of the most familiar faces in the Senate, but even then, it is easy to miss just how important, just how critical she has been to making the Senate agenda come to life. There are so many--and Trish is at the top of the list--of these unsung heroes who make the place work. No one notices them, no one praises them, but without them, this place would collapse. Without Trish, the Democratic caucus wouldn't have accomplished a fraction--that is true--a fraction of all the amazing things we have gotten done over the years: drug reform, infrastructure, CARES Act, ACA--the list goes on and on. The list of bills she has had a hand in literally spans decades. Every Senator on our side of the aisle, every single one, and many of those who have retired, can think of some accomplishment we have been proud of at one point or another. You can bet that Trish was the one who helped make that accomplishment happen on the floor because it is Trish who comes up with these brilliant parliamentary maneuvers to achieve our mission. She is always writing the scripts that speed up the voting process. She is something truly unique, a legislative artist who knows the inner workings of this body like few others in the country. There are probably maybe fewer than 10 people who know as much about the Senate as Trish of the whole--how many?--8 billion people on Earth, approximately 8 billion people on Earth. That is pretty good. Over the years, she worked wonders serving--I met her when Daschle was leader. He loved her and depended on her. She worked her magic under Harry Reid. He loved her and depended on her. Today, I want to express how grateful I am for all the good work you have done during my time as leader. Like so many parents around here, Trish had to juggle a very demanding job where she is almost on call all the time while making sure her wonderful family got all they needed. If that wasn't challenging enough, during all this time, she is like Superwoman. She earned an M.B.A. and M.A. from Johns Hopkins while working on the Senate floor. And to do that from any college is amazing; to do it from Johns Hopkins--wow. No slouch are you, Trish. Doing it all. Doing it all. But these are only some of the wonderful reasons we will miss her. We will miss her because of her wonderful sense of humor. We will miss her because few people put up with Senators so regularly and never--I don't think I ever saw you get mad. Anybody? Oh, you got mad at Amy once. OK, I understand. We will miss her because she is a wonderful person to work with no matter the day, no matter the issue, no matter the outcome. She is the best. On behalf of the Senate, Trish, of all of us, the whole big Senate family, we thank you for everything you have done for this institution and derivatively for our country. We love you. We will miss you. And you will always have a home here in this Chamber. We wish you and your wonderful family the very best. I yield the floor.

Mr. SCHUMER

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

Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the vote begin.

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

Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, the veto message with respect to S.J. Res. 11 be considered at a time to be determined by the majority leader in concurrence with the Republican leader prior to June 23; that there be up to 2 hours for debate, equally divided between the two leaders or their designees; and that the Senate then vote on passage of the joint resolution, the objections of the President to the contrary notwithstanding.

Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the veto message on S.J. Res. 11 be considered as having been read and be printed in the Record and spread in full upon the Journal.

Mr. SCHUMER

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

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. Yesterday, Mr. President, I joined with many colleagues from both sides of the aisle for the first of a series of all-Senate briefings solely dedicated to the subject of AI. Yesterday's AI briefing was a huge success. We had a really strong turnout from both parties. It was an important moment for everyone to get into a room and build a foundation of knowledge on this pressing issue. If I had to describe our mindset leaving yesterday's briefing, it was a mix of urgency and humility: urgency because AI is developing so damn fast and humility because AI is stupendously complex. Congress has only a limited amount of time to stay proactive on artificial intelligence, and I think yesterday's briefing made that clear. The potential societal benefits from AI are astounding--from medical advances and innovative materials to fusion energy and so much more. But we also must recognize that AI poses monstrously complex challenges. Even top AI developers will admit they don't have a firm grip on how this technology works now and even less of a grip on how it will work in the future. One of the topics that has come up in my discussions with experts is ``explainability,'' or the challenge of making AI's ``black box'' inner workings understandable. Even this is no trivial matter. It is a cutting-edge technological research question, and it will require immense cooperation between legislators, developers, researchers, academics, and advocates to strike the right balance. I hope all of my colleagues join for the next two AI briefings the next work period. We will examine where this technology is headed in the near future and get briefed in the SCIF on national security threats that AI already poses. Again, thank you to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who are already getting to work on this issue both on their own and in committee. The range of proposals show the Senate is taking this matter seriously. Thank you, again, to Senators Rounds, Heinrich, and Young for making these briefings possible.

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, AI, artificial intelligence, is unlike any innovation that has previously come to the attention of Congress. In a few years, this technology will usher in dramatic changes to the workplace, the classroom, our living rooms--to virtually every corner of life--and it is already starting to happen. Maximizing AI's benefits and mitigating its potential and very real risks will require bipartisan cooperation, focus, and speed from the U.S. Congress. Today, the U.S. Senate is taking an important step in intensifying our focus on AI by holding the first all-Senators briefing solely dedicated to AI. More briefings will soon follow, and they will help lay a bipartisan foundation on which Congress can take appropriate action. These briefings are vital because elected representatives in 2023 cannot afford to be in the dark about how AI works and how it is going to reshape our world and is already reshaping our world for that matter. Today's briefing will focus on the state of AI as it stands today-- its capabilities, its applications, its limitations, its challenges. We will hear from Professor Antonio Torralba of MIT, an expert in machine learning and the head MIT faculty member on AI and decision making. He is the head of AI at MIT. So it is pretty good stuff that people should know. Next month, our second and third briefings will focus on where AI is headed in the very near future and AI's implications to our national security. I urge every single Senator to join these briefings. AI is a topic none of us can afford to ignore. It should be treated with the same urgency as national security, job creation, and civil liberties, because AI will impact all of these issues and many others. The possibilities of AI should excite every single one of us. If used correctly, AI could unlock remarkable breakthroughs in health care, scientific research, national security, and so many other fields. Much like we did in CHIPS and Science, Congress should look for ways to promote innovation in AI so that American companies can lead the way. But the top AI developers have also made clear that Congress must play a role in safeguarding against AI's many potential risks. They have said it to us directly through congressional testimony. We must therefore strike a balance to promote innovation and growth, on one hand, while mitigating AI's risks on the other. That will take a lot of bipartisan cooperation, and these briefings will help us move closer to that goal. Finally, I want to thank my colleagues for the good work they have already done on the issue. I want to especially thank Senators Rounds, Heinrich, and Young for helping to make all of these Senate briefings possible.

Mr. SCHUMER

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

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, last Friday, the Department of Justice announced Donald Trump had been indicted on 37 counts related to his mishandling of classified documents. One only has to listen to the statements from former Trump National Security Advisor John Bolton and Trump's former Attorney General to know just how serious this indictment is. As I have said before: No one is above the law--including Donald Trump. This case must be allowed to play out through the legal process without outside political or ideological interference. I encourage both supporters and critics of Donald Trump to maintain the peace and let the justice system do its work.

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 26.

Mr. SCHUMER

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

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 29.

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. SCHUMER

Mr. SCHUMER. I yield the floor.

Mr. SCHUMER

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