John Thune

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m. on Friday, January 24; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; further, that the Senate resume consideration of Executive Calendar No. 3, and that all time during recess, adjournment, and leader remarks count postcloture.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. THUNE

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, later today, the Senate will proceed to a vote on whether to move to the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. It is a simple bill. It simply states that a baby born alive after an attempted abortion must be given the same protection and medical care that any other newborn baby would be given. That is it. A baby born alive after an attempted abortion must be given the same protection and medical care that any other newborn baby would be given. This shouldn't be a controversial bill. We should all be able to agree that a baby born alive after an attempted abortion must be protected. And yet I fully expect that, later today, my Democratic colleagues will vote no on this legislation. They will vote against protection for a living, breathing newborn baby simply because that child has been born alive after an attempted abortion. Now, why are they going to vote like that? After all, I think most Democrats would still claim to oppose infanticide, even if the moral line, at times, appears to be slipping. Yet Democrats are going to vote against legislation to provide appropriate medical care to living, breathing newborn children. I am sure they will offer some vague justifications for their opposition, like keeping the decision between a woman and her doctor, even when the decision we are talking about is denying a child appropriate medical care. But I think it is safe to say that what it all boils down to is this: Democrats will oppose legislation to provide appropriate medical care to newborn children who survive abortions because they are afraid. They are afraid if they recognize the humanity of a living, breathing born baby in an abortion clinic, they might end up pointing to the humanity of the unborn baby in the abortion clinic. That is what this boils down to. Democrats are afraid that by recognizing the humanity of the newly born child, they will inadvertently point to the humanity of the unborn child. I do understand where they are coming from. After all, once you recognize the humanity of the newly born baby, it gets a little harder to say that that child wasn't human just a few minutes ago simply because he or she wasn't yet born. So because there is nothing more important to Democrats than abortion, they will vote against legislation to provide appropriate medical care to babies born alive in an abortion clinic, just in case such a law ends up jeopardizing their cherished ``right'' to an abortion. I think this should make Democrats--frankly, it should make all of us--think. When the supposed right to kill unborn babies starts motivating you to vote against protections for born babies, perhaps you should start questioning the whole abortion project, because if there is one thing the controversy over this bill demonstrates, it is this: Once you start denying the humanity of some groups of human beings, once you start saying some human beings' lives aren't worth as much as other human beings' lives, you jeopardize respect for all human lives. And so we now find ourselves at a point where nearly 50 percent of the U.S. Senate is unable to clearly state the humanity and value of the born child, where nearly 50 percent of the U.S. Senate is going to vote against protection not just for unborn children but for born babies as well. I have to say, this is a disturbing place that we have gotten to, and I hope--I sincerely hope--it will lead us to reflect on what a lack of respect for unborn children's lives has cost us. Mr. President, we are better than this. We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. I pray for a day when we fully live up to that promise and when the right to life of every human being, born and unborn, is respected. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, it didn't take long. Democrats have already begun stalling President Trump's nominees, and it doesn't seem to matter who it is. Right now, the Senator from Connecticut is holding up a vote on John Ratcliffe, who was nominated for Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The Intelligence Committee favorably reported Mr. Ratcliffe's nomination on a bipartisan vote--14 to 3. In a joint statement with Chairman Cotton, the Democrat vice chair of the Intelligence Committee said this: Our world is far too dangerous for any delay in having a Senate-confirmed leader in charge of the CIA. We urge expeditious consideration of this important nomination. Now, that, again, is from the Democrat vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, urging ``expeditious consideration of this important nomination.'' This is the Director of the CIA, the Central Intelligence Agency--a key national security position. Mr. Ratcliffe is a qualified nominee. He was Director of National Intelligence in the first Trump administration--the quarterback for all 18 elements of the intelligence community. In the House of Representatives, he served on the Intelligence Committee, and he was chairman of the Cybersecurity Subcommittee on the Homeland Security Committee. He has been vetted by the Intelligence Committee, and he will likely receive bipartisan support on the floor, as he did in the committee. The Senator from Connecticut wants to unnecessarily delay this vote. He says Senators need time for a full, real debate. Well, where are they? Why are we not debating? Nothing has been stopping any of our Democrat colleagues from coming down to the floor to debate and make any concerns that they have known to the Senate and to the American people. At least one Senator has already taken advantage of that opportunity. The Senator from Connecticut also says that Senators need more time to review the nominee's record. Well, Mr. Ratcliffe's nomination was announced 2 months ago. Was that long enough? His hearing was a week ago. There has been plenty of time to review his record. It is time to vote. This is just an unnecessary delay that makes this country less safe. Democrats and Republicans agree that this is an important job. We agree that Mr. Ratcliffe is qualified. But a handful of Democrats wants to play politics with this nominee. I have to say I honestly don't know what that accomplishes for them, but I do know this: It makes this country less safe. It is time to vote.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 5.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to resume legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m. on Thursday, January 23; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 4.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, in his inaugural address yesterday, President Trump spoke of his confidence in America. He spoke of the country's future: prosperity, security, strength. And I share the President's confidence and his optimism about what we can accomplish in the coming years. President Trump has brought a new direction to Washington, and yesterday marked the beginning of a new era. Here in the Senate, we have begun the process of confirming the President's Cabinet. Within hours of President Trump taking office, we confirmed the first of his Cabinet nominees--Marco Rubio to be Secretary of State--in a unanimous vote. Secretary Rubio demonstrated his command of foreign policy last week at his confirmation hearing. He made it clear that under his leadership, the State Department will be focused on its core mission. In his own words, that mission is ``to promote peace abroad, and security and prosperity here at home.'' Gone are the days of a foreign policy exporting progressive ideologies, appeasing our adversaries, and demonstrating weakness on the world stage. The State Department is back in the business of advancing America's interests. This is a welcome change in direction to our foreign policy, and Secretary Rubio is ready to hit the ground running. During his time in the Senate, he was a leading voice, articulating America's role in the world, and he has a clear command of the issues facing the world today. As a Senator, he was vocal about the threat the Chinese Communist Party poses and the stakes of the competition between the United States and China. He recognizes the need for American leadership in Latin America to promote democracy and justice. And he is clear-eyed about the threats that America faces from other countries as well as from nonstate actors. I look forward to working with Secretary Rubio and the Trump administration to restore American strength abroad and promote peace and prosperity here at home. In the coming days, the Senate will hold additional votes on the President's national security team. We expect a vote on the nomination of John Ratcliffe to be Director of the CIA later today. Mr. Ratcliffe, like Secretary Rubio, earned bipartisan support after his confirmation hearing last week. He was reported out of the Intelligence Committee with a bipartisan vote yesterday, and he will bring valuable knowledge and experience to his new post, including from his time on the House Intelligence Committee and as Director of National Intelligence in the first Trump administration. Under the Biden administration, the intelligence community made some notable misses. In 2021, the intelligence community failed to anticipate the swift collapse of Afghanistan in response to President Biden's decision to go ahead with the withdrawal, a withdrawal that cost the lives of 13 American servicemembers. In 2022, the intelligence community warned that Ukraine would fall in days in the face of a Russian attack. Yet Kyiv is still firmly in Ukrainian hands almost 3 years later. And in 2023, Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel took place with little or no warning from the intelligence community. And unfortunately, the list goes on. We need a return to fundamentals. Last week, in his confirmation hearing, Mr. Ratcliffe promised to return to the CIA's core mission. That means recruiting spies to collect intelligence and providing objective intelligence analysis without bias. Mr. Ratcliffe brings the right experience and the right approach to the CIA, and I look forward to working with him in this position. Republican Senators-Elect Mr. President, before I close, I want to say a word about two new Senators who will take office later today. I am very pleased to welcome Ashley Moody of Florida and John Husted of Ohio to the U.S. Senate. Ashley Moody began her career as a lawyer in private practice, and in all the spare time that a young lawyer has, she volunteered to help domestic violence victims seeking protection in court. At the age of 31, after already practicing at a law firm and as a Federal prosecutor, she became the youngest judge in the State of Florida. During her time as a judge, she recruited volunteer attorneys to stand with children whose parents did not appear in court with them and developed a mentoring program for at-risk youth. In 2018, she was elected attorney general in Florida, a post from which she held the Biden administration accountable and defended Florida law. And now, she is bringing her energy and experience here to the U.S. Senate. Being sworn in alongside Ashley Moody today will be Jon Husted, Ohio's new Senator. ``Senator'' is just the latest title that Ohioans have called Jon Husted. He has been a State representative, speaker of the statehouse, a State senator, secretary of state for Ohio, Lieutenant Governor, and now U.S. Senator. No matter his title, Ohioans know that they can depend on Jon Husted to fight for a smaller and more efficient government that genuinely serves its citizens. And I am very pleased to welcome him here to the Senate. Both our new Senators bring valuable experience, expertise, and perspective to the Senate Republican majority. And the whole Senate will benefit from their joining our ranks. I look forward to working with them. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I was listening to the chair of the Intelligence Committee just a moment ago talking about this nominee, and I was curious. I ask the Senator from Arkansas, the chairman of the Intelligence Committee, what was the vote coming out of committee for Mr. Ratcliffe?

Mr. THUNE. OK. So 14 to 3 coming out of committee, and we have now wasted a whole day where we could have been acting on that nomination. So, really, I think the question before the Senate is, Do we want to vote on these folks on Tuesday or vote on them on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday? Because that is what we are going to do. This can be easy or this can be hard. This is a nominee that came out of the Intelligence Committee 14 to 3. It is a bipartisan nomination to the Central Intelligence Agency. This is about America's national security interests, and we are stalling. So that is not going to happen. We are going to file cloture on him. You can force us to hang around here, and we can vote on these things Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. But we are going to vote on him. This one shouldn't be hard, folks. I understand there are some that are going to draw some opposition from the other side of the aisle. But Democrats and Republicans, in a very big bipartisan fashion, agree that he is very qualified for this job that is an important job to America's national security interests. And, frankly, I believe, we ought to fill it as soon as we possibly can. So it is going to be a big vote here on the floor. Everything we are doing right now is just stalling. I don't know what that accomplishes for you, but we are going to be here voting on it.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 1.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 3.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to resume legislative session.