Dan Sullivan

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, every week, I have been coming to the floor to talk about the wonderful people in my State. A lot of people have visited Alaska. If you haven't and you are watching on TV, we really, really want to welcome you to come. It will be the trip of a lifetime; I guarantee it. What we like to do when we talk about our Alaskan of the Week is talk about someone who has made a real impact, someone who doesn't get a lot of attention, someone who has made an impact on his community or country, and let people know we are thinking about them, let people know we are proud of them. Before recess, I want to do that for a couple of Alaskans today, and I would like to start by talking about a gentleman who has gotten a little press lately in Alaska, but I want the country to hear about it. It is really a remarkable story--Mr. Mark Braudis. Let me tell you a little bit about Mark. Mark came to my attention through a recent column by Charles Wohlforth in the Alaska Dispatch News. Mark is originally from Pennsylvania. When he was just 17 years old, he joined the Navy, like a lot of Alaskans. We have more vets per capita than any State in the country. He was deployed in 1972. Mark said: When I was in high school, everyone had long hair and were anti-government. That's not the way I was. I was for God and country. If my brothers were over there in Vietnam, I wanted to stand with them. So he went. When a lot of people were avoiding service, he went. When Mark got out, he couldn't find a job, so he began to hitchhike across the country into Canada and other places, and he wound up in the magical place we call Alaska. Mark arrived in 1976. After leaving once and coming back, he got a job as a taxi driver--a good job. He met and fell in love with one of his passengers, a beautiful woman named Helen. They went on to have seven children--Stephen, David, Kelly, Jared, Michael, and Jenny. Helen was a great mother. Then, unfortunately, as sometimes happens in families in certain circumstances, tragedy struck their family. In 2007, Helen was walking down a busy road and was hit and unfortunately killed by a car passing by. Faced with unspeakable grief, Mark knew he couldn't fall apart. He had seven kids between the ages of 6 and 16, and he had to take care of them. One of them was in third grade at the time and couldn't stop crying over the loss of his mom. The school called often, and Mark-- still a taxi driver--left work to pick him up. The hours of tending to his kids began to rack up. He couldn't pay the rent. His kids and he had to eventually live in a homeless shelter. A social worker wanted to put the kids up for adoption, but Mark refused. They had lost their mother, they had lost their home, and they weren't going to lose their dad. The family needed him, and they were a team. Eventually--and this is so great; it happens all across Alaska, all across America--with the help of the community, in this case, their local Catholic church, Saint Anthony's Parish, Mark was able to afford rent for a three-bedroom apartment with one bathroom where they still live today and to buy his own taxi license. In the face of adversity, he raised his kids to be strong, proud, caring, responsible, and to do the right thing. They stuck together. They ran together, sometimes as many as 6 miles a day--the Navy veteran out with his children. They studied together. They were good kids. They didn't miss school or the bus. They never got in trouble. They were a team. This is what is remarkable about this family: Six out of the seven Braudis children, whom I have been speaking about, have joined the Marines Corps. They have taken after their dad, serving their country-- six out of seven. How many families in America can say that? The seventh couldn't because of a medical issue, and he is nearly finished with a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Alaska in Anchorage and tutors students in math at the university. The youngest one, Jenny, a senior in high school, has already been sworn in to the Marines. She wants to drive tanks. The middle child, Jared, is the only one who joined the infantry. When they all get together, he kids them, telling them he is the tough one, but I am sure they are all tough. Jared said: When we were growing up, my dad just made things right. He still does. What did Mark learn from these challenges? He said: When you're married, you become one. And when my wife passed away, she brought me to God with her. And then I brought my children to God. I didn't understand it then, but I do now. It's been one miracle after another. Also, what I learned? I'm a dad above everything else. Well, Mark, thank you. Thanks to you, your children, and your family for this amazing example and for doing such a great job of raising your kids. You are a model for all of us. Thank you for being our Alaskan of the Week.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I wanted to weigh in on a debate that took place on the floor a couple of hours ago--actually, when I was presiding in the chair--between the majority leader and the minority leader on what we are going to be doing here in the next couple of days on the Senate floor. So right now we are having a healthcare debate. We are finally having a healthcare debate. Many Members on both sides of the aisle--I say to the Presiding Officer, I saw your speech a few hours ago--are talking about the importance of healthcare for our country, the importance of, from our perspective, repealing, replacing, repairing a healthcare system that is not working. It is certainly not working the way in which it was promised to Americans. I will not repeat all the promises made by the former President and many Senators, but we know those haven't come to pass. As a matter of fact, a number of us--I certainly believe in my State, the State of Alaska, the so-called Affordable Care Act has done a lot more damage than good. Here are just a few statistics in Alaska: Premiums in the individual market went up over 200 percent since the enactment of the Affordable Care Act--200 percent. Alaskans in that market--individual Alaskans, for one health insurance plan for one individual, pay almost $1,100 a month in premiums for healthcare. That is not affordable. So we are debating it. It is important. There is an open amendment process. We are probably going to be debating all night, and that is what we should be doing--the world's greatest deliberative body debating a very important topic, but healthcare is not the only issue the Senate is focused on.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I want to talk a little bit about what is going on here on the Senate floor. We were just considering the nomination of the Deputy Secretary of Defense, trying to move him along--a very important job--and it has taken some time. As a matter of fact, it has taken a long time, as the Presiding Officer knows, to get nominees from the White House confirmed by this body to run the government. Running the government is a very important job. We not only need Cabinet Secretaries--which, by the way, took months for this body to confirm. They slowed down the confirmation of the choices of the White House to run the Federal agencies--no real explanation why--and now, Under Secretaries, Deputy Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, Federal judges--delay, delay, delay, delay. We are supposed to be trying to put people in place to run the government, which is the job of the Senate, but it has taken a very long time to do it, and it shouldn't be this way. It shouldn't be this way. When we look at U.S. history, typically, enabling a President to fill the key positions of government has not been a partisan issue. An election happens. Yes, there could be some debate on Cabinet officials, but you typically want to fill the government and start running the government on behalf of the American people. It has not been a partisan issue in America. Well, unfortunately, it is becoming a partisan issue due to what by any measure is historic obstruction on the nominations coming from the White House to run the Federal Government--historic obstruction. The people did elect us, and they elected a new President, and implicit in the election was that they wanted us to get to work, to do things that, in my view, are very bipartisan. What are some of those things? Growing the economy. We haven't had 3 percent GDP growth in almost 15 years. That is a bipartisan issue--growing the economy. So are rebuilding our military, unleashing energy that we have in this great Nation in enormous abundance, investing in infrastructure, streamlining regulations that are strangling small businesses, and, yes, enacting policies to address the spiraling costs of health insurance and healthcare costs across the country. Throughout history, the party in the minority understood this after an election and would vote to confirm new members of an administration--not just Cabinet Secretaries but Under Secretaries, Deputy Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, and judges. In fact, the current minority leader said the following in 2013: ``Who in America doesn't think a President, Democrat or Republican, deserves his or her picks for who should run the agencies? Nobody.'' ``Nobody,'' he said. Those were wise words in 2013. I just wish he would remember them in 2017 because apparently he has forgotten those words. He has forgotten those words, because right now there is pure obstruction in terms of trying to seat the people to run the government. Sometimes it is important to try to explain to the American people what is going on here on the Senate floor because it can be confusing. I still get confused sometimes. There are arcane rules. Let's give an example of what just happened here right now. We had the Deputy Secretary of Defense, the No. 2 official at the Department of Defense. That is a pretty darn important job. After he came out of the Armed Services Committee, on which I sit, we voted to end debate on his nomination. The vote just happened, and I believe it was 88 to 6, so very bipartisan. By the way, we need people at the Department of Defense. Whether you are a Democrat or a Republican, regardless of whom you voted for in the November elections, most Americans want us to have good people running the Department of Defense right now. We have very few there--very few-- because of this obstruction. For the Deputy Secretary, the cloture vote just happened, 88 to 6. That is a very strong bipartisan vote. In previous times, in a Democratic or Republican administration, the Senate would normally say: Let's move him. He needs to get over there. Let's unanimously agree to moving that nomination more quickly so he can help run the Department of Defense--a pretty important job. Well, unfortunately, we are not in that era right now. So what our colleagues on the other side of the aisle have been doing for every single nomination for this administration is now we will have an additional 2-day waiting period, an additional 30 hours of debate. Those are Senate rules, but normally on someone this noncontroversial, those rules get waived. But we have a minority leader who wants to drag out every single official from being seated. He really hasn't explained why. I haven't heard an explanation why. But it is happening for every single official--three to four days on one official. Someone did an estimation that if they keep this up, if they do this for every single Senate-confirmed job, it will take 11 years. It will take 11 years to seat the officials in the Trump administration. How is that helping the American people? It is not. Yet, nobody comes to the floor to explain why they are doing it. The press doesn't report on it. Let me provide some other facts on this issue. Normally, when we waive these rules, we can have a voice vote. For a noncontroversial nomination like the Deputy Secretary of Defense, as we just had, normally that would be voice-voted. At this point in President Obama's Presidency--so the first 6 months of his Presidency--the Senate had allowed more than 90 percent of his nominees to be confirmed by simple voice vote. The Senate asked for procedural votes only eight times on eight nominees--that was it--in the first 6 months of President Obama's administration. That was actually normal. Democrats or Republicans would do something along those lines. For the Trump administration's first 6 months, the minority leader and his colleagues have demanded cloture votes for every single nominee, no matter what the position, no matter how noncontroversial, no matter how bipartisan. The courtesy extended to President Obama to get his team together so that he could run the country has not been extended here. That is just a fact. Let me give another fact. According to the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, at about this point in President Obama's first term, he had 183 of his nominations confirmed--183. Getting people in their positions in government to run the country--it doesn't matter what party you are in; this is to run the country. But while President Trump's administration at this point has made 178 nominations to the Senate, only 46 have been confirmed. So for President Obama at this point, 183 nominations were confirmed; for this President, 46. This is historic obstruction. No one comes here and says: Why? Why are you doing this? What is the point? What is the point? This isn't by accident. The head of a leading Democratic think tank told the press recently that they intended to hold up, delay, tie up floor time for every single nomination for Senate-confirmed positions. But what they don't do--they don't say: And here is why. Why do they want to do that? It is not going to help us grow the economy. It is not going to help us with infrastructure. It is not going to help us rebuild our military when we keep the Deputy Secretary from coming in to his position. Just last week, we had a judge who was nominated from the State of Idaho, a district court judge who was confirmed unanimously, and it took almost the entire week to get him confirmed on the Senate floor because the minority leader was delaying, delaying, delaying--even someone who got 100 percent of the Senators to vote for him. Again, it is not clear why they are doing this. Some of the other noncontroversial nominees that are being delayed are the Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs and two nominees to review pipelines and other projects at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Do you think we need that for our country to grow the economy? We do. These are important positions to do the work of the Federal Government. Yet they are all delayed, and nobody in the press even asks any questions. This is historic obstruction right now, and no one is even asking: Why are you doing it? It would be great to have the minority leader come to the Senate floor and tell us why. I want to know why. I want to grow the economy. We need these people in positions of authority to help us do the things--bipartisan things--that the American people sent us here to do, not delay, not obstruct. Something else is happening on the Senate floor right now. It is not just the historic obstruction of nominees. The other side, for whatever reason, is now deciding they are going to shut down any movement of anything on the Senate floor. Let me give one example, which is actually quite important. A lot of what we do here moves by what we call unanimous consent on the Senate floor. There are rules to move things. It can take a lot of time. But a lot of times the leadership of the Senate will get together and say: OK, we can have a unanimous consent agreement to move things faster. It is not just nominees. Sometimes it is actually legislation. As a matter of fact, a lot of things move on the Senate floor through unanimous consent, which is, essentially, a voice vote where everyone, all 100 Senators, say: We agree with that. It is a bill that is really important, very bipartisan. Let's move it. Let's move it fast. It came out of committee. It is not controversial, but maybe it is important, so let's move it. For whatever reason, it still doesn't explain to the American people why the minority leader would say that we are not going to move anything by unanimous consent right now either. Not only will we hold up every nominee as long as possible--even the noncontroversial ones-- nothing is going to move in the Senate by unanimous consent. Again, why? How does that help the American people? How does that help the American people when you are just blocking things?

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, as you know, for months now, I have been coming to the floor to recognize a special Alaskan, somebody who makes my great State a better place for all of us to live, someone we call the Alaskan of the Week, usually an unsung hero who has done great things but doesn't want anyone to tell you about it because they are humble people. Some of these people have been very well known throughout the State, and others, as I mentioned, are doing their jobs in different communities throughout the State, but they are all considered our Alaskans of the Week. Unsung, well known--they all share a love for Alaska for good reason: There is so much to love about our great State. I know most of the people in this room and watching on TV and in the Gallery think of Alaska as a majestic place, majestic landscape. It is true. It is majestic, but it is truly the people of Alaska who make it such a special place, kind and generous people, patriots and pioneers who pave the way for the rest of us and leave a very indelible and important mark on my State and, in many cases, our country. Today, I would like to recognize one of these very special Alaskans, a trailblazer, someone whose work has touched nearly every corner of the State, someone whom we recently lost, unfortunately, just this week, but his memory will last forever. I am talking about Gene Zerkel, who was a member of the ``greatest generation'' and an aviation legend in the great State of Alaska. I don't have to remind you, but many others throughout our country don't know just how important aviation is to Alaska. In my State, our skies are the highways and the roads. We have about 8,000 general aviation pilots in Alaska, which is more than any other State per capita by far, and with good reason: There are no roads and ferry services to over 100 communities in Alaska, including regional centers like Bethel, Nome, Barrow, and Kotzebue. That means everything from mail services to baby diapers has to be flown in by plane, and if someone gets sick and needs to go to a hospital, the only way they get to see a doctor is by a plane. Our pilots and our airline industry are essential to serving the people of Alaska, and Gene Zerkel has been a part of that service, a legendary part of Alaska aviation, for decades. Let me tell you a little bit about Gene. He lived life on his own terms and defined it through love of God, family, country, and aviation. The latter--his passion for aviation--took hold when he was just 3 years old, then living in Indiana when he took his first airplane ride with a barnstormer. He was so taken with it, when he grew up, he continued to do some of those kinds of flights, traveling in airshows. Like so many in the ``greatest generation'' in our Nation, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps during World War II and later joined the U.S. Air Force. He continued his passion for aviation after he left the military. Some of his favorite adventures were flying during the construction of the DEWLine throughout Alaska and Canada in the 1950s. In 1973, he fulfilled a lifelong dream so many people in America have, which was to come to Alaska and start a family. He started to fly in the great skies above Alaska. We are a better State and a safer State for it. In Alaska, he owned and operated Great Northern Airlines and became senior VP of operations and maintenance for the legendary MarkAir. He also started Alaska Aircraft Sales and Maintenance, which still operates to this day on Lake Hood in Anchorage, AK. He was an innovator. He transformed the de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver into what was known as the Alaska Magnum Beaver, and he was known for always putting safety first. In 2007, Gene was awarded the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award from the U.S. Department of Transportation and the FAA in recognition of his more than 50 years--half a century--of promoting aviation safety within the aviation industry, particularly in Alaska. Gene lived for 90 years. He saw so much and did so much for many of us. His name is written above the skies of Alaska. But most importantly, he was a devoted husband of 48 years to his wife Joyce and the faithful father of nine children. I had the good fortune of calling Gene a friend and was able to visit with him a few weeks ago. At 90 years old, he was still full of life and spark and energy and passion and optimism. I have also been in touch recently with one of his sons, a young Alaskan hero, Keenan, who has his father's passion for serving our country, with many deployments to Afghanistan as part of the 210th Rescue Squadron of the Alaska Air National Guard. He is literally a true hero in my State. Keenan carries on his father's passion for aviation, Alaska, and serving in the military. Gene's love of country, family, and aviation will always be with us. My wife Julie and I pray for his family and his friends during this time. Mr. President, I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. SULLIVAN

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

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, every week I have been coming down to the floor of the Senate to talk about a special Alaskan, someone in my State who, through their hard work and community service, whether to their neighbors or to their country, makes Alaska a better place for all of us. We call these people the Alaskans of the Week. Learning about these individuals and sharing their stories with my Senate colleagues, Alaskans, and Americans who watch what we do here or who are in the gallery, is probably one of the best parts of my week every week. Like most of my colleagues, I will soon be going home for the Fourth of July. We will celebrate this very special holiday with our families and our communities. Some of us will go to barbecues or march in parades or attend other community gatherings. Some of us will gather in spots across our State and watch fireworks. Personally, I will be with my family catching king salmon at my family's ancestral fish camp up on the Yukon River, one of my favorite places in the entire world. Regardless of where we are, all of us will certainly feel a swell of pride for our country. We will remember the hard-fought battles that brought us independence, and we will remember those who have served and sacrificed to keep our country the land of the free and the home of the brave. They are the heroes among us, and Alaska is chock-full of these heroes. Today I want to recognize one of them, a very special hero who is our Alaskan of the Week--Solomon Atkinson, who spent nearly his entire adult life serving our country with honor and dignity and now serves his community in Alaska tirelessly. Let me tell you a little bit about Sol and his illustrious career in the military. Sol was born in 1930 to Harris and Elizabeth Atkinson in Metlakatla, AK. Metlakatla is on Annette Island on the Inside Passage, where so many Americans take cruises to see the glaciers and the whales. It is home to the only federally recognized Indian reservation in our State. Sol could have continued to live in Metlakatla, where he was a commercial fisherman as a young man, but, like so many patriotic Alaskans, he chose to leave his home and join the military. Sol joined the U.S. Navy, and for 22 years--from 1951 to 1973--he had by anybody's standards a remarkable patriotic military career. In 1953, Sol volunteered for the Navy's legendary Underwater Demolition Team and was deployed to the Pacific, including Korea. Some history buffs will know and recall that the Underwater Demolition Team, the UDT, was the precursor to the present-day Navy SEALS--frogmen, as they liked to call themselves. In fact, Sol was on the very first Navy SEAL team created by President Kennedy in 1962, and I have a copy of the SEAL Team One plank owners certificate, commissioned on January 1, 1962, with Sol's name proudly displayed. So Sol became a Navy SEAL--the first Navy SEAL, literally. He became a SEAL team training instructor, training new Navy SEAL recruits. He was affectionately referred to as ``the Mean Machine'' by the Navy SEALs. He also had the honor of training 48 astronauts, including Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Jim Lovell, just to name a few, in underwater weightlessness simulations. His prized possession is a framed plaque bearing the signature of all those astronauts, all those American heroes whom he trained. Sol completed three combat tours in Vietnam. By the time he retired from the military, he had earned numerous awards and medals for personal valor, including the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. But what is truly remarkable about Sol is that after he retired from the Navy, he moved back home to Metlakatla and continued to serve his country and serve his community. He served on the Indian Community Council, on the school board, and as mayor of Metlakatla. He has also been very involved in veterans affairs and was the president of the first veterans organization on the island and was instrumental in starting that organization. He has spent years reaching out to his fellow veterans to make sure they receive the benefits, honor, and dignity they earned. Jeff Moran, the superintendent of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Metlakatla, said this about Sol: I could go on and on regarding the wonderful things that Sol has done for his community. We would not be here today without his leadership and knowledge [and commitment]. I, too, can go on about Sol. Many Alaskans can go on about Sol and all the things he has done. But I also want to mention, particularly on the eve of the Fourth of July, that he is part of a long tradition in my State of Alaskan Natives who have served in the military, who have served our country even during darker times in our history when many Alaskan Natives were discriminated against and denied basic rights. On the eve of the Fourth of July, we celebrate America's independence but also in particular those who have fought for that independence over the last 200 years. As I mentioned, one proud element of my great State is that we have more veterans per capita than any State in the country, and Alaska Native veterans serve at higher rates in the U.S. military than any other ethnic group in the country--something I like to refer to as a special kind of patriotism because they have been doing this for decades, like Sol--even at times, as I mentioned, when the country hasn't always treated that group of patriotic Americans with the respect and dignity they deserve. Sol personifies this special patriotism. The SEALs who served with him wrote this about him in a tribute: Sol's story will continue to be told by the men he trained, by the officers who relied on him, by the Frogmen who all respect him. An officer, a gentleman, an athlete, a friend, Sol Atkinson is all of these, but of all of these traits, he is first a Frogman. We can see the pride the Navy SEALs have for Sol, a plank owner for the entire organization. In conclusion, I will add that he is a patriotic Alaskan through and through, and I thank him for all he has done for Alaska, for our veterans, and for America. Sol, congratulations on being our Alaskan of the Week. Happy Fourth of July to you, to Alaska, and to all the men and women in our military and the citizens of our great Nation. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. SULLIVAN

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

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, for the last few months, I have been coming down to the floor to recognize someone in my State who, through acts both small and large, has made the State better for all of us. I call this person our Alaskan of the Week. What I am going to do is I am going to talk a little bit about baseball as part of the Alaskan of the Week. We saw how important baseball is with regard to a sport that can bring Americans together. Just last week, I think people all across the country--certainly in DC and certainly here in the Senate--saw how important that is. We had that great game--Democrats and Republicans last week coming together. I am a little biased here about the Republican team, with Senator Flake and Senator Paul. We didn't win, but it was a good game. I know we are all still praying for those injured last week, Congressman Scalise and others, but it is important to see how that great American pastime brings us together as a Nation. There are many great things about my wonderful State. But in Alaska, baseball also brings us together. So I would like to recognize today one of the many people throughout the State who keeps the special institution of baseball alive in Alaska. This gentleman's name is Lee Jordan. He is from Eagle River. Now, I would venture to guess that most people, when they think of Alaska, think about our spectacular mountains and glaciers. They might think about fishing, our delicious salmon, thousands of miles of State and Federal parks, and our vast wilderness. But baseball probably isn't the first thing that comes to many people's mind when they think about Alaska. Actually, those who follow baseball understand how important Alaska summers are to taking young college students with raw talent and growing them under the midnight Sun into seasoned, professional baseball players. This is the Alaska Baseball League, and it is one of the premier baseball leagues in the summer in the United States. Let me give you a few names of those who have come up through the Alaska Baseball League. It has produced some of the most important Major League stars, including Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, Tom Seaver, Dave Winfield, and Randy Johnson, just to name a few. I think those are all hall of famers. Alaska's six-team league includes two teams in Anchorage, one in Fairbanks, one in Palmer, one in Kenai, and--thanks to the unrelenting enthusiasm of Lee Jordan--one in Chugiak-Eagle River, AK, a picturesque area about 20 minutes from Anchorage, nestled in the Chugiak Mountains. It is part of Anchorage, but it is also very much its own place, with a sense of pride and people who live there like Lee. Let me tell you a little bit about Lee Jordan. He was originally from Alabama, where football, not baseball, was king. When he enlisted in the Army in 1947, his choice of overseas assignments was, according to him, ``anything but Alaska''--``anyplace but Alaska.'' But he got Alaska, and he stayed and he loved it, and he settled in Chugiak-Eagle River. Before long, he owned the local newspaper, the Alaska Star--now the Chugiak-Eagle River Star--and he was coaching his son's Little League baseball team. When they got too old for Little League, he began to form new leagues for them to play in, which his boys did. Eventually, his sons got too old for all the leagues, but Lee kept up the love of the game. Then he and former State Senator Bill Stoltze, a good friend of mine and another huge booster of baseball in Alaska, hatched a plan to get a team to their area as part of the Alaska Baseball League. So the first Chugiak-Eagle River-Chinook game was in 2011, and it is now called the Lee Jordan Field and the Loretta French Sports Complex, and they have been going strong ever since. This is such a beautiful place. Right now in Alaska every year, we have a midnight Sun baseball game in Fairbanks played on June 21, the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. That game begins at 10:30 p.m. and goes until the wee hours of the morning under a never-setting midnight Sun. But there are few more beautiful places in the world than Chugiak- Eagle River. Lee Jordan thinks the ballpark is the most beautiful ballpark anywhere, and I can't disagree. As I have mentioned many times on the floor, it is all about communities. It is all about communities coming together, and Lee has made that happen for Alaskans and baseball lovers, not only in our great State but throughout the country. For that reason, he is our Alaskan of the Week. I yield the floor.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, we are on the Senate floor today, yesterday, and tomorrow, and we will be continuing the debate on the Countering Iran's Destabilizing Activities Act of 2017. This is actually a very important bill, and I want to commend Senator Cardin, Senator Corker, the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, and many others on working hard to put this bill together in the Foreign Relations Committee. There is a lot of interest in this. I am a cosponsor of the bill, and I think it is an important bill. Let me just give a quick overview of what its core purpose is. There was a lot of discussion last year about the JCPOA--what it was going to do and what it wasn't going to do. I think a lot of us, even those who supported it--and I certainly did not support it. As a matter of fact, I thought it was a very misbegotten agreement that was going to undermine American interests and the interests of our allies in the region. But a number of us were concerned about what it didn't cover. The bill we are debating today does close some of those loopholes. For example, the core purpose of S. 722 is to impose sanctions on Iran for its ballistic missile program, which continues to violate U.N. Security Council resolutions, and its support of terrorism. It is still listed by our State Department as the No. 1 state sponsor of terrorism in the world. As to its transfer of illicit weapons, which it is not supposed to do under U.N. Security Council resolutions, it continues to do that, and, of course, there is its continuing and widespread abuse of human rights. That is all still happening with regard to this Iranian regime, which the previous administration spent so much time negotiating with to get this nuclear deal that, I think, undermines our interests. The bill we are focused on is very bipartisan. It sets to close some of these loopholes and impose sanctions for these kinds of violations. It does not violate the JCPOA. I think Senators Corker and Cardin worked hard to make sure that would not be the case in order to get bipartisan buy-in. I think it is an important bill, but it could have been stronger. Unfortunately, a number of us had provisions and amendments that were meant to strengthen it. Some of us don't sit on the Foreign Relations Committee, but we have a lot of interest and experience with these issues. What we could have done was to actually make this bill stronger by looking at some of the other amendments that Members of the Senate brought to the floor on this very bill. Let me give you one example. I had an amendment that was a very simple amendment. It essentially stated that Iranian banks and financial institutions would not be able to use the U.S. financial system--our banking system, which is critical to global commerce to conduct any business around the world--until Iran was taken off the list of countries that sponsor state terrorism--very simple: not using the American financial system until you are not a terrorist designated by our State Department. This is important. These kinds of sanctions are important because Iran and other rogue nations--you see it all the time--want access to our financial institutions and the dollar, the world's currency. Roughly 43 percent of international financial transactions and more than 60 percent of total allocated global floor exchange reserves are denominated in U.S. dollars. We have tremendous leverage over other countries, even if we are acting just as the United States, with regard to accessing the U.S. financial system. When you have these kinds of sanctions, when other countries are not allowed to access our financial system, it puts a real strong bite on their economy. We wanted to bring this down to the floor. Again, there is bipartisan support for this amendment. Unfortunately, not many but just a few of my colleagues wouldn't want to accept this. They didn't even want to vote on the amendment. They believed, incorrectly, that somehow this would undermine the JCPOA. Well, it wouldn't. As a matter of fact, former Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew stated that under the JCPOA, the Treasury Department was still going to prohibit Iranian banks from being able to use U.S. dollars through New York or to hold correspondent account relationships with U.S. financial institutions. He testified that the JCPOA would continue to bar Iranian financial institutions from using our financial system. So that is happening right now. What we wanted to do with this amendment was to say that we are going to make that legislation; we are going to make that a statutory prohibition, and the biggest sponsor of terrorism in the world shouldn't be able to use our financial system until they are no longer a sponsor of terrorism--very simple. But we couldn't get that through the Senate. If we voted on it, I believe there would be a strong bipartisan majority of Senators who would agree with us, but there are a few who don't. The JCPOA was sold in many ways as helping to ensure that Iran would moderate its behavior, that Iran would become part of the ``community of nations'' again. Well, of course, despite claims by the former President and the former Secretary of State that this is what the agreement would do, that hasn't happened. To the contrary, the opposite has happened. Iran has undertaken activities to undermine U.S. interests, the interests of Israel--our sacred ally in the Middle East--and the interests of our gulf Arab allies in the Middle East on almost a daily basis. Look at what has happened since that agreement was signed. Moderating behavior did not happen; much more aggressive behavior did. It is really important for people to remember that this isn't just the largest state sponsor of terrorism. This is a country whose activities have led to the deaths and wounding of thousands of American soldiers and marines. The Iranian regime was supplying very sophisticated IEDs to Iraqi Shia militias that were killing, maiming, and wounding our troops in Iraq. That is a fact. This is a regime with the blood of U.S. soldiers, marines, sailors, and airmen on its hands. This is not a regime we should trust. This is a regime about which we should do everything we have in our power to use our leverage to help undermine their nefarious activities around the world that they have been conducting for decades. So again, my congratulations and I am going to vote for the bill. My congratulations go to Senators Corker and Cardin for this important bill, but it could be stronger. We need to look at ways to make this stronger. This was a missed opportunity, simply bringing an amendment like this to the floor for a vote. Let's see where people stand. It would be strongly supported by the American people, strongly supported by our allies, strongly supported by Members of the Senate on both sides of the aisle. Unfortunately, there are a few in the Senate who seem more interested in protecting the legacy of the JCPOA than in really putting the screws to Iran and really limiting their ability to fund terrorism or their illicit businesses around the world. That is disappointing. These Senators will not say they are doing that, but that is what is going on here. The legacy of the JCPOA is not worth safeguarding if it means missing the opportunity to further leverage and undermine Iranian terrorist activities around the world. So that is a disappointment we have seen today. I am going to continue to keep pushing to do more to make sure we take every action, every bit of leverage that the United States of America has to push back against the nefarious activities of the biggest sponsor of terrorism in the world--the Iranian regime and its leadership. I know that most of my colleagues--Democrats and Republicans--are interested in doing so today. We made a good start with this bill that hopefully is going to pass the Senate floor, but we can do much more. We need to do much more. I am going to continue to press my colleagues to do so. I yield the floor. (Mr. DAINES assumed the Chair.)

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

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, every week for some months now, I have been coming to the Senate floor and I have been using the opportunity to talk about someone in my State, the great State of Alaska, who has made a difference. We call that person the Alaskan of the Week. These are individuals who are unsung in many ways and who are doing something for their community, for their State, and in many ways are inspiring everybody. I am a little biased, but I believe I live in the most beautiful State in the country, probably the most beautiful place in the world, full of wonderful people and beautiful landscapes, and we certainly encourage everybody here in the Senate or those who are watching on TV to come to Alaska and experience it themselves, and they will have the trip of a lifetime, guaranteed. We are also blessed to live in a land that provides so much for our physical and spiritual needs. It is a very spiritual place. Alaskans are hardy people; however, like anyplace in the country, people have tough times. Some people are more fortunate than others. But thankfully we have people all across our State--like we have people all across America--who give of themselves so that those in difficult situations can receive the care they need. Today I want to take you to Kotzebue, AK, or what we often just refer to as Kotz. Kotz is about 550 miles northwest of Anchorage, 26 miles north of the Arctic Circle in Alaska's Northwest Arctic Borough. About 3,000 people live in Kotzebue. It is one of our bigger villages, and it is a hub for dozens of smaller villages that dot this enormous, beautiful region. Like most of Alaska, it is cold in the winter, and it is beautiful now under a never-setting Sun. The midnight Sun in Kotz is high in the sky. There are wonderful people there. Like most places in Alaska, particularly in smaller villages in rural Alaska, community is everything. People take care of each other. People band together to help each other overcome challenges that can exist in the extreme environments we have in Alaska. Let me tell my colleagues today about Marty Shoryer, who is one of the very generous residents of Kotzebue and who is our Alaskan of the Week. Born in Kotzebue, Marty is the general manager of Kotzebue Electric Association, where he has worked for more than 24 years. He has been married to his wife Lucy since 1977. They have six children and seven grandchildren. In his free time, he fishes--very common-- plays hoops, and loves to cook for his family. He is also involved in the Boys and Girls Club and his Tribal government. But here is why I want to talk about Marty and why he has been such an inspiration not only in Kotzebue but throughout the State. On Thanksgiving 2015, Marty got sick, and over the next several weeks, he had to go to the hospital repeatedly. While he was there, he noticed a group of people who would gather around the free coffee that was served at the hospital. He approached one of them, a woman named Jo-Ann, and asked a very simple question: ``Why do you guys hang around here? What are you doing?'' She told him: ``Well, we don't really have another place to go right now.'' This disturbed Marty greatly. At that time of year in Kotzebue, it can get down to 20 and 30 below zero--a difficult place. ``You guys must be hungry,'' he said to Jo-Ann, and she said that they were. So the next day and the day after that--5 days a week--Marty and Lucy together used their own money and their own lunch hour during the workweek to make sandwiches--a simple act--30 to 40 sandwiches for that group at the hospital. Every day, every person who needs one gets a sandwich, sometimes turkey and cheese, sometimes caribou or sheefish spread. Marty is anxious for the salmon season to start so he can make salmon spread sandwiches. They also get a juice box and dessert. Simple but generous. Recently, another generous Kotzebue resident, Sophie Foster, began making sandwiches as well, and before you know it, we have a whole community that is doing this, taking this simple example and getting involved. So now some people drop off cinnamon roles or fruit. Others bring back bulk items when they travel to Anchorage. Dozens of people in Kotzebue, AK, are now helping in this effort because of Marty's simple act. People like Marty and his wife Lucy make my State truly unique and a wonderful place. His generosity--doing something seemingly so simple: making a sandwich for someone who is hungry--has now had a big impact not only in Kotzebue but in Alaska. Marty didn't know the impact he would have when he began making sandwiches. ``I was just trying to help a few people that day, make them happier.'' Marty's actions have initiated a growing conversation in Kotzebue about how best to take care of people who need help. It has drawn attention to homelessness and hunger--very important issues not only in Alaska but throughout the country. Marty spurred this important conversation in Kotzebue and in our State through his simple actions, and that has inspired all of us. Congratulations, Marty, for what you are doing, for your simple acts of inspiration, and for being our Alaskan of the Week. Madam President, I yield the floor.

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

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, as we approach Memorial Day, we remember the men and women who sacrificed their lives in devotion to the causes of liberty, freedom, and democracy. As such, I would like to take the opportunity to speak about one event in our Nation's history that had a profound impact on my great State of Alaska. June 3 marks the 75th anniversary of the Aleutian Islands Campaign of the Second World War. This ``Forgotten Battle'' began with the bombing of Dutch Harbor and subsequent invasions of Adak, Kiska, and Attu, AK by the navy of Imperial Japan. For the Allied forces, this campaign resulted in 1,481 casualties, 640 missing, and 3,416 wounded, but perhaps what is even less known, is the impact this conflict had on the Aleut--Unangan/ Unangas--peoples of Alaska. In the months of June and July of 1942, Aleut communities were damaged, homes and personal possessions rummaged through or destroyed by Allied forces, and more than 881 Aleut civilian residents of the Pribilof Islands and the Aleutian Islands west of Unimak Island were relocated to temporary camps in Southeast Alaska. Forty-two residents of Attu were taken to Japan in September 1943, where they spent the rest of the war as prisoners, and nearly half of them died, mainly of hunger and malnutrition. The campaign ultimately ended in an Allied victory with the Japanese withdrawal from the Aleutians in 1943, but the effects are still felt by those communities and peoples who were impacted. Today, before the Senate, I would like to take a moment to honor the sacrifices of our servicemembers, including the 25 Aleut who joined the Armed Forces and the three who participated in the U.S. invasion to recapture Attu and later received Bronze Stars for their valor. I want to also honor the civilians, the Aleut evacuees, and Attuan prisoners of war whose communities, culture, languages, and lives were forever affected. From June 2 to 4, 2017, a memorial ceremony will take place in Alaska to honor and acknowledge the evacuees, their descendants, and veterans of this ``Forgotten Battle,'' both living and deceased.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, every week I have been coming down to the Senate floor to honor an individual who is serving in my great State of Alaska, who is helping to make our State, his or her local community, or even our country a better place. We call these individuals our Alaskan of the Week. Alaska carries a mystique. We all know that. I am a little biased, but it does, rightfully so. It is a beautiful State. We all think it is the most beautiful State in the world. I encourage everybody who is watching from the Gallery or on TV to make sure they take at least one trip to Alaska sometime in their life. You will love it. It will be the trip of a lifetime. But Alaska is much more than just a beautiful State. It is actually a State that is critically important to America--critically important to our country. We have abundant natural resources: fish, metals, minerals, and oil and gas. They are resources that help feed our country, help build our country, and help power our country. Further, given today's threats, we are also the most strategically located State in the country. In fact, General Billy Mitchell, father of the Air Force, said in testimony to the Congress in the 1930s that Alaska was ``the most important strategic place in the world,'' which could control Asia, North America, and Europe. He said that whoever controls Alaska controls the world. In Alaska, we are the hub of combat airpower for the Asia-Pacific and the rest of the world. We are also a vital expeditionary platform, with some of the Army's best trained troops, who can deploy anywhere in the world on a moment's notice. Importantly, we are the cornerstone of our country's missile defense system. What makes this military triad truly exceptional is the Arctic-tough women and men in uniform supporting each of these pillars of America's military might in Alaska, who work day and night to ensure that our country is safe. Following Armed Forces Day a few days ago, where we honor all of those who currently serve in the military--and we are all going to be celebrating in a few days Memorial Day to honor those who gave their lives serving our country--I recognize a group of proud Alaskans who help protect our country. These individuals were recently awarded the 2017 Alaska Missile Defender of the Year award from the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance. Today, they are our Alaskans of the Week. These are National Guard servicemembers from the Alaska Army and Air National Guard who have demonstrated leadership, excellence, and selfless commitment in their operation of the U.S. Ground-based Midcourse Defense system, at Fort Greely, and the Early Warning Radar system at Clear Air Force Station in Alaska, over the past year. Essentially, these are the men and women who keep our country safe with America's most sophisticated missile defense system. So I would like to read their names on the Senate floor. Base defenders of the year from the 213th Space Warning Squadron at Clear Air Force Station: SSgt Jonathan Rivera-Calderon and SSgt Stanislav Barilov. Missile defenders of the year from the 213th Space Warning Squadron at Clear Air Force Station: Capt. Erik Haugen and TSgt Mark Lockwood. Base defenders of the year from Fort Greely: SGT Nathan Williams and SGT Travis Hall. Best crew winners from the 49th Missile Defense Battalion, Delta Crew: MAJ Michael Long, CPT Anthony Montoya, 1LT Rachel Simmons, SSG Caroline Domenech, and SGT Jose Aponte. These Alaskan missile defenders continue to stand ready and excel as they protect our country and our citizens from an increasingly diverse set of national security threats. They are just a few of the 300 men and women missile defenders in interior Alaska who, every day, protect the entire United States. They like to call themselves the ``300 protecting the 300 million.'' I think of them as modern-day Spartans, the 300 Spartans who fought alongside King Leonidas to protect Greece in 480 BC. That is who they are, modern-day Spartans. The mission of these men and women is to protect the entire country from a rogue missile threat--whether from North Korea, Iran, or another country--that could hit any city in America. This is what they do 365 days a year, 24/7. They are on call on Christmas, New Year's, and Super Bowl Sunday. They are tough, well-trained, and they are committed patriots of America. We face a dizzying array of threats across the globe. But the one that keeps not only me but many Members of the Senate and our military up at night right now is the threat from North Korea. There is no doubt that North Korea and the leader of that country are intent on obtaining and nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile that can range our entire country. Recent unclassified briefings on this issue have said it is no longer a matter of if but when North Korea is going to have this capability. To protect us from this impending threat, this advancing threat, a number of us introduced a bill this past week to enhance our missile defense system across the country. While Alaska's missile defenders currently keep us safe, like many in our military they need more training and better technology so these brave men and women can do their job and continue to keep America safe in the future. Leading up to Memorial Day, I want to make sure to thank all who have served and continue to serve our Nation in uniform. I especially honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice, and, of course, their families. I also want to make sure I recognize Alaska's missile defenders. While millions of Americans will be outside this weekend, having a barbecue and celebrating Memorial Day, every American in this country can rest assured that these brave missile defenders in Alaska, men and women like the Spartans of old, stand watch to defend our freedoms. They are doing it today and they will do it on Memorial Day, just like they do every day of the year. That is why all of them, in my view, merit the award of Alaskans of the Week.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I wish to recognize another Alaskan, one who happens to be right here in the Senate Chamber, Senate Page Wade Quigley. I think we should call him the Junior Alaskan of the Week. Wade is from Girdwood, AK. He is actually right here, getting a little red in the face. I think he is slightly embarrassed. Girdwood was originally called Glacier City, for the ice-capped mountains surrounding the town. About a 45-minute drive from Anchorage, it is a very, very special place. My wife Julie and I and our three daughters love Girdwood. We spend a lot of time there skiing and enjoying the outdoors. Wade is now 16 years old. When I was told that this morning, I was a little surprised. He is much more mature than 16. He will be entering his senior year at South Anchorage High School, the school that my daughter Laurel attends, next fall. Like a true Alaskan, Wade takes full advantage of our State's abundant natural resources, teaching skiing in the winter and commercial fishing for pink salmon during the summers in Kodiak, AK. In DC, Wade has been doing a great job serving in the U.S. Senate as a page. According to those who supervise him, as well as his fellow pages, Wade is eager to take any opportunity to talk or learn about his State. The esteemed Laura Dove herself has referred to Wade as ``Alaska's best ambassador.'' I thought that is what Senator Murkowski and I were supposed to be. It is a grand compliment. Others say he has a heart for public service, humor, and kindness. He is extremely well- liked throughout this building. In just 2 weeks, Wade and all the pages will complete their service as Senate pages. By the way, it is very, very hard work. They are up at 5 o'clock a.m., studying at 6 o'clock a.m., classes until 9 o'clock, and then working in the Senate until the wee hours. I thank Wade and all the Senate pages for their service to the Senate, to their States, to their country. Wade's energy and upbeat outlook will be missed in this body. Even though he is leaving us in the Senate, Wade hopes to continue his service to his country by attending the U.S. Air Force Academy. Whatever his final path is, I am sure he will bring to it the same work ethic and the same love for his country and for Alaska and, I believe now, after 6 months, for the U.S. Senate. Wade, to you and all the pages who have done such a great job, thank you, and, yes, thank you for being the Junior Alaskan of the Week. I yield the floor.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 1238 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. SULLIVAN. I ask unanimous consent that the Roberts amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to, the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the preamble to S. Res. 178 be agreed to.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I want to talk this evening about a very serious threat to the United States; that is, the threat from North Korea and what we in the Congress should be doing about it. Now, over the weekend we saw another piece of news about how the North Korean regime is again testing missiles, testing for intercontinental ballistic missiles, more missile launches, literally two in the last 2 weeks. I would say this is one of the most serious threats facing the United States of America right now because what has now become clear, it is no longer if Kim Jong Un and the North Korean regime will have the ability to range the United States of America with an intercontinental ballistic nuclear missile. It is no longer if. It is when. This has been stated time and time again in open hearings we have had on the Armed Services Committee with generals and some of the top experts in the United States. It used to be, hey, maybe he would have this capability sometime down the road. Maybe he will never get it. They are not saying that any longer. Think about that. Every American should be thinking about that. It is no longer if but when one of the craziest dictators in the world will have the capability to launch an intercontinental ballistic nuclear missile. It is not just ranging my State, the great State of Alaska, which unfortunately for me and my constituents is in the line of fire earlier than other States or Hawaii, which faces similar risks to Alaska, but we are talking about the continental United States. We are talking about Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles. It is not if but when. So yesterday in front of the Armed Services Committee, the Director of National Intelligence, our good friend, former Senator Dan Coats, when I asked him and General Stewart, the top military officer for our intelligence agencies, when they thought this was going to happen-- well, it is a classified number and it is a classified time. I actually think it should be unclassified, given their estimates, to let the American people know what is coming because it is probably a lot sooner, at least in the estimates, than most people think. So that is what we are facing right now, and people should be concerned about it. Let me give you a little bit more on the facts of this. Kim Jong Un, the leader of North Korea, the unstable dictator of North Korea, has publicly stated it is his goal to develop a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile that can strike the continental United States. Now, let's just be clear. This is a man who starves his own citizens, sentences them by the tens of thousands to inhumane labor camps, and just a month ago allegedly assassinated his half-brother in a Malaysian airport with poison to kill him. In fact, since assuming power just 5 years ago, as my next chart shows, Kim Jong Un has conducted more missile tests and twice as many nuclear tests as both his father and grandfather did in their 60 years of ruling over North Korea. Look at these numbers: That is the Kim Jong Un regime, Kim Jong Il, Kim Il Sung. So he is focused on this more than his father and grandfather were. As I mentioned, it seems almost daily there is another one of these missile tests or even nuclear tests. Now, one of the things you see in the press sometimes is, well, some of these missile tests are failing. There have been failures, and there have been notable successes, such as the country's first intermediate range ballistic missile, its first submarine launch ballistic missile, its first solid fuel launch missile, and its ability to put satellites in space. This is actual progress. This is significant progress. On the nuclear side, the country's fifth test--and Kim Jong Un's third--had an estimated yield in terms of its power of 15 to 20 kilotons, approximately the size of the nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima. While this yield was not as large as they were expecting, the test again on the nuclear side shows steady progress in their nuclear program and steady progress in their ballistic missile program. So what does all this mean? Why is Kim Jong Un testing so often? Even though he fails, he is still learning. That is exactly what the commander of U.S. Strategic Command said last month during a Senate Armed Services hearing. Gen. John Hyten stated: North Korea is going fast. Test, fail, test, fail, succeed. They are learning, and as you can see them learning, they are developing the capabilities for intercontinental ballistic missiles. That is how it works in the rocket business. That is happening right now. That is happening right now. That is in the news right now. Also in the news is what the United States has been doing to protect our allies from this and other threats. So let me give you an example. There has been a lot of news about the THAAD deployment, a missile defense system in South Korea deployed by the U.S. Army to protect our troops and South Korea's citizens, to protect our troops in Korea, protect our troops in Japan, and to protect our allies. Now, I am very supportive of this--very supportive of this. The President is on his Middle East trip. He is going to Europe now. He mentioned just a few days ago maybe having a THAAD system in Saudi Arabia, an American system to help protect the Saudis from the Iranian missile threat. Again, I am very supportive. As the Presiding Officer knows, in our last National Defense Authorization Act, we had significant authorization and funding to help Israel protect itself with a missile defense system, the Iron Dome system, where we have been working with the Israelis to help their citizens be protected against an Iranian missile threat. Again, I support all of these. I applaud these efforts, I have supported them, I voted for them, but it does beg the question that some of my constituents back home in Alaska are beginning to ask, and I am sure other Americans are asking in every State in the country: What about us? What about the United States? What about the U.S. homeland? Isn't that where Kim Jong Un said he wants to launch intercontinental ballistic nuclear missiles? It is. It is exactly where he said he wants to do it. The bottom line is, we need to do much more to protect ourselves. We need to do much more to protect the United States of America. Yes, we need to protect our allies, but we need to start focusing a little bit more on home, and we need to start focusing now. In fact, if we know this threat is coming, which we do--there has been testimony after testimony--I think it would be the height of irresponsibility to not start working on increasing America's homeland missile defense. That is what we should be doing. That is why I have introduced a very bipartisan bill called the Advancing America's Missile Defense Act of 2017. Again, Republicans and Democrats are already on the bill. I believe the Presiding Officer is now a cosponsor. I would like to paint a scenario that we all know will happen unfortunately sometime in the future--again, on why this bill is so important, why what we need to be doing on missile defense is so important. Just think through the headline. Let's assume a couple years down the road Kim Jong Un has this capability to launch an intercontinental nuclear ballistic missile to hit a lower 48 city. Well, we know that is going to start leaking out. The headlines will be front page, banner headlines: Dictator of North Korea can range Chicago, New York. It will be all over the news. It will be the only thing we talk about. There will be enormous pressure on the White House and others to do something about this. On that day when we see the banner headlines, a lot of Americans will be very nervous. The American people and the American media will look at the people in the Pentagon, will look at the people in Congress, will look at the leadership in the White House, and will ask three critical questions. Are we safe? Did we see this coming? Have we been doing anything about it and, if so, what? That is what they are going to ask. We know that day is coming. We are not sure when, but we know that day is coming--again, not if, but when. People are going to ask those questions. If we know that, and we do, we need to be able to say to all three of those questions--whether it is the Secretary of Defense, the President of the United States, or whether it is all of us here, the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate, we need to be able to answer the American people and say: Yes, we are safe; yes, we saw this coming; and yes, we have the world's most robust, technologically advanced, capable missile defense system that will with near certainty shoot down any North Korean missile launch at the United States and give our President and the Congress the strategic time and space to make potentially world-altering decisions. We know this is coming, and I think we should be doing everything we can in our power to focus on it, so we will be safe, and we will be able to say yes to all three of those questions if we begin to seriously focus on America's missile defense, which is what our legislation is all about. Unfortunately, our Nation has not always been focused on funding our missile defense system, and in many ways the funding has been erratic. As the Center for Strategic and International Studies put it recently, such funding for America's missile defense has been marked by high ambition, followed by increasing modesty. I think the time for modesty on an issue of this importance is over. From 2006 to 2016, homeland missile defense funding, adjusted for inflation, declined nearly 50 percent, and homeland missile defense testing declined more than 83 percent. The goal of our bill is to change that and change it significantly. Among its other elements, Advancing America's Missile Defense Act will grow our U.S. base missile interceptors from what we have now, which is about 44, to as many as 72 and will require our military to look at having up to 100 interceptors distributed across the United States. The bill will also authorize the more rapid deployment of new and better kill vehicles. These are the bullets, essentially, on top of the warheads. It will allow a layer of space-based sensors and radars to track missile threats from launch to intercept, a technological advancement that would improve all missile systems to make sure we have a layered missile defense, whether it is THAAD in Asia, Aegis Ashore and on ships, or our missile system here at home--all of it integrated. Right now we don't have that. The bill also will increase the pace of missile defense testing to allow U.S. forces to learn from actual launches of our defense systems and increase the confidence we have in our system and its effectiveness. This is very important. The Department of Defense needs to change the culture around missile defense, testing regularly and conducting more flight tests. Unfortunately, every test is not always going to be a success. It is OK to fail because we learn from failure. I don't like to admit on the floor of the U.S. Senate that we could learn something from the North Koreans, but that is the approach they are taking. That is why their missile and nuclear programs are advancing so rapidly. They are not afraid to fail. What we need to do is enhance our testing, enhance our missile defense, enhance our capabilities because, as I mentioned at the outset, it is no longer if, but when. That day is coming, and we need to be ready for it, and the United States Senate can lead in addressing this very significant challenge to America's national security. I am encouraged that our bill has already gotten strong bipartisan support from Democrats and Republicans because they know how important it is. I hope my colleagues on both sides of the aisle truly understand the significance and seriousness of this threat, and I hope they can continue to support our Advancing America's Missile Defense Act of 2017. There are very few foreign policy and national security issues that are more important than making sure we address this threat to America's security. I yield the floor.

Mr. SULLIVAN

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

Mr. SULLIVAN

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

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, every week I have been coming to the Senate floor to talk about someone in my great State of Alaska who makes Alaska a better place for all of us--for the community, for everybody living there. I call this person our Alaskan of the Week. To be honest, it is one of the most fulfilling things I get to do as a Senator, recognizing back home and across the country special people in my State. There is no doubt that many here in the Chamber and the people who are watching from home have seen pictures and television shows about Alaska. We are a little biased--I know one of our pages is an Alaskan-- that we have the most beautiful State, not only in the country but in the world. So we want to encourage everybody watching to come visit Alaska. It will be the trip of a lifetime, absolutely guaranteed. It is truly the people of Alaska who make our State so special, people with big hearts who band together to solve challenges. Like all places, we have challenges. This week I would like to recognize Michael Carson for his work to help people in Alaska who are struggling with addiction. We know this is a problem that is impacting every single State in our great Nation. Michael lives in Palmer, AK, a picturesque town about 45 miles from Anchorage in Alaska's vast Matanuska-Susitna Valley--what we just call the Valley or the Mat-Su. It is about the size of West Virginia, so don't get me going on the size of Alaska. It will embarrass most of my--actually all of my colleagues here, unfortunately for them. Palmer is flanked by the rolling Talkeetna Mountains to the north and the saw- toothed Chugach Mountains to the south. It is a close-knit community where most people know each other. Many people in Palmer and the Mat-Su across the State know Michael Carson's name. Like many Alaskans, Michael's story is one full of adventure. Originally from California, he received his undergraduate in early childhood development from the University of Texas. After hitchhiking through Africa and spending a summer in Mexico, he took a job teaching in Nome, AK, in 1974. A few years later, he moved to the Mat-Su to teach and taught our students for many years. He retired from teaching, but his yearning to help people, particularly our youth, did not leave him. He got a job at Covenant House in Anchorage, which is a homeless youth shelter. It is a wonderful place, by the way. I am a little biased on this one; my wife Julie happens to work at Covenant House. Michael's shift started at 8 p.m. and ended at 8 a.m. That is what he was doing at Covenant House. He spent those hours walking through the city, reaching out to kids on the streets, sharing his own story, and inspiring our youth because his story also involves recovery. It is a privilege to say here on the Senate floor that Mike has been sober for 29 years. Eventually realizing that kids in the Mat-Su Valley also needed a place to go when they were in trouble and needed help, Michael and another incredible constituent of mine, Michelle Overstreet, founded MYHouse in Palmer, a place that provides services like job assistance, access to healthcare, clothing, food, and showers for homeless youth. Michael still sits on the board, still remains a champion for all youth, particularly those in recovery and the homeless or disadvantaged. He leads recovery groups on-site weekly, as well as meetings with clients who are struggling. He has also volunteered to host recovery groups at the Mat-Su youth detention facility for the past 13 years. Michael has helped many young people get sober and stay sober. In Michelle Overstreet's words, it is not uncommon for youth to come into the drop-in center, homeless and just out of juvenile detention, and ask specifically for Michael, to come in and say that he helped them somewhere along their journey through life to sobriety, just to come in and say: Thank you, Michael. Most of us know that our country is in the midst of an opioid crisis, one that has become an epidemic in many places across the country. In 2015, more people in America died from overdoses--over 52,000, and most were linked to opioids and heroin--than car crashes or gun violence. On Wednesday morning, Alaskans awoke to a disturbing headline in the Alaska Dispatch News: ``Anchorage is seeing a dramatic surge in heroin overdoses.'' Anchorage is the largest city in Alaska. It is my hometown. The article said that since May 1, there have been more than 2 overdoses a day in Anchorage--34 overdoses in just a little more than 2 weeks. Like almost every State in this great Nation of ours, Alaska is being hit hard by the opioid crisis, and we are trying to focus as much attention as we can in a bipartisan fashion on addressing this crisis, whether in Alaska, Kentucky, New Hampshire, Indiana, or Vermont. We need people like Michael. Every State does. He started the only grassroots opioid task force in the State of Alaska and continues to chair that effort to this day. He knows too well how the abuse of opioids, other drugs, and alcohol robs our citizens--but particularly our youth--of their lives, promise, and future. He also understands how very important it is to have resources for those who need the support and recovery. Those resources come in many forms. We have been trying in the Congress in the last year, year and a half, to bring significant resources to our State and local communities. We are doing that. State support is also important across the country. Perhaps most important is the community support and having people like Michael on the frontlines who understand that addiction is not a moral failure and that people who are suffering need help. They need help, not moral judgments from us. Because of Michael's involvement and the involvement of so many others in Alaska and particularly in the Mat-Su, there are places for people who are suffering to call and get help. There are places to go and heal and places where our youth can have leaders who listen to them, like Michael. Michael says it is vital for his own recovery to continue to help people who are suffering from addiction. He calls it ``survivor obligation.'' I call it the work of angels. Michael, thanks for all you do, and congratulations on being our Alaskan of the week. I yield the floor.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, I am honored to recognize a remarkable coalition of veterans today. Every year on May 15, Alaskan Hmong American Vietnam veterans come together to celebrate Hmong American Veterans Memorial Day in remembrance of General Vang Pao's final flight out of Laos. From February 1961 to May 1975, Hmong fighters from the hill country in Laos risked their homes, their families, and their lives to join the United States and South Vietnam in the fight against communist oppression. They undoubtedly knew that, whether they won or lost the war, life would never be the same for them; yet they willingly chose to serve. For nearly three decades, their involvement was kept a secret, in what is now commonly referred to as ``the Secret War.'' Mr. Pasert Lee, a resident of the Mountain View neighborhood in Anchorage, AK, is one of those honorable Hmong American veterans. He served as a lieutenant in General Vang Pao's army and played a role in rescuing downed American pilots and returning them to American Forces in South Vietnam. He tells me that, under the leadership of the general, Hmong forces rescued nearly 50 pilots and were responsible for saving countless American lives. Many people do not realize that more than 40,000 Hmong were killed or wounded in support of freedom in Vietnam. May 15, 1975, marked the beginning of the exodus of the Hmong people from their homes in Laos. Mr. Lee, like most of our honorable Hmong American veterans, have never returned home--even to visit--in fear for their lives. Having lost tens of thousands of our Hmong allies in support of the United States in Vietnam, it is appropriate that we acknowledge and honor the sacrifices of those like Mr. Pasert Lee and all the Hmong veterans who worked tirelessly to protect, rescue, and defend American servicemembers and downed American pilots on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The efforts of the Hmong people have never properly been acknowledged and, like many of our Vietnam veterans, were never properly appreciated. Today, more than 40 years after the end of ``the Secret War,'' I would like to commend our Hmong Americans and wish them peace and bountiful blessings as they remember their fallen on May 15, 2017.

Mr. SULLIVAN

Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, every week I have been coming to the floor to recognize someone in my State who has made a difference, someone who has devoted time and energy to making my State a better place to live for others. We call these individuals our Alaskan of the Week. As I have said repeatedly, I believe my State is the most beautiful State in the country. We have visitors. We want to welcome more and more visitors. Come on up. I guarantee it will be the trip of a lifetime. When you go to Alaska, one town that nobody should miss is Homer, AK. It is surrounded by the glistening waters of Kachemak Bay, jagged mountains, glaciers, and snowcapped volcanoes. Some people call it the Halibut Fishing Capital of the World. Others call it the Cosmic Hamlet by the Sea. Some, like me, call it a slice of Heaven. I was there a few weeks ago holding a community meeting. I thanked them then, and I want to thank them all today for the very warm welcome I received. I also wish to thank Homer for the very warm welcome they gave to Navy destroyer USS Hopper, which spent a few days in Homer before participating in a joint naval exercise with the Army in the Gulf of Alaska. The 300-member crew of the USS Hopper was greeted by hundreds of cheering, flag-waving Homer residents. The commander of the Hopper, J.D. Gainey, wrote that in his 24 years of naval service, ``I have never seen as much patriotism as we enjoyed in Homer.'' Thank you, Homer, from all of us. Alaskans love Homer. They see it for the landscape but also for the people. It is a tight- knit community. They might not always agree with one another, particularly with regard to politics, but they look out for each other. Like any community with a heart, they look out for their animals. This week I want to recognize a special person as our Alaskan of the week, Sherry Bess, who spent nearly 30 years--three decades--taking care of Homer's animals as the manager of the Homer Animal Shelter. In 1989, when Sherry began to volunteer at the pet shelter in Homer, there was one building, no phone, and only four cages to hold cats. ``It was basically a shack,'' she said. The snow would come in through the dog door. The drains in the water bowls would freeze. Sherry's hands and feet were always cold, and it was infested with mice. There was no bathroom. Oftentimes, when the shelter was too busy and when the animals needed extra care, Sherry would take them to her home, where she would care for them. Sherry and a handful of residents cared for over 1,200 animals each year in that little shelter. Along the way, she gathered both happy stories and heartbreaking stories about the animals she found that were abused and the ones she found homes for. In fact, one of the members of my team in Alaska took a puppy that had been abandoned in a crate in the woods near Homer, took him home, fed him, and Mick Fleagle on my staff now has a dog. His dog Sookie, 8 years old, has the full reign of the house. He is loved. Thanks to Sherry, stories like that abound throughout Homer. For 26 years, she has worked night and day, 7 days a week, for the pets in that community. She recently stepped down from that job. She is taking care of her own pets, lots of them--her family she calls them--but she will always be known to so many people in Homer for what she has done for their pets and their animals. ``Over the years, those animals that came to me,'' she said, `` . . . unwanted and sad and depressed, and then you help them and you love them and they go to a home and they're loved. That's the most rewarding thing about what I did.'' Sherry said over the years she has noticed that the residents of Homer and throughout the country have been kinder to their pets. Part of that is the result of what Sherry and others like her across the country do to educate the public on taking care of animals through vaccinations, neutering. Some of it is more and more because people like Sherry are considering pets as their families. So I want to thank Sherry, as our Alaskan of the Week, for all she has done and for all she has done for pets in our great State. Great job. I yield the floor.

Mr. SULLIVAN

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