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11Senate Resolution 19: Honoring the Life and Legacy of President Jimmy Carter and Commending President Jimmy Carter for His Life-Long Career of Public Service, Humanitarian Leadership, Diplomacy...
Thirty-two bills and two resolutions were introduced, as follows: S. 38-69, and S. Res. 18-19.
Pages S78-80
Measures Passed
Honoring the Life of President Jimmy Carter: Senate agreed to S. Res. 19, honoring the life and legacy of President Jimmy Carter and commending President Jimmy Carter for his life-long career of public service, humanitarian leadership, diplomacy, and courageous advocacy.
Page S76
Measures Considered
Laken Riley Act--Agreement: Senate continued consideration of the motion to proceed to consideration of S. 5, to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to take into custody aliens who have been charged in the United States with theft.
Pages S69-76
During consideration of this measure today, Senate also took the following action
By 84 yeas to 9 nays (Vote No. 1), three-fifths of those Senators duly chosen and sworn, having voted in the affirmative, Senate agreed to the motion to close further debate on the motion to proceed to consideration of the bill.
Page S73
A unanimous-consent agreement was reached providing that at approximately 3 p.m., on Monday, January 13, 2025, Senate resume consideration of the motion to proceed to consideration of the bill, post-cloture; and that all post-cloture time expire at 5:30 p.m., and Senate vote on the motion to proceed to consideration of the bill. Resignation of Senator J.D.
Page S81
Vance
Senator J.D. Vance, of Ohio, submitted a letter of resignation from the United States Senate, effective January 9, 2025, in order to prepare for the duties as Vice President of the United States.
Page S76
Statements on Introduced Bills/Resolutions:
Pages S80-81
Record Votes
One record vote was taken today. (Total--1)
Page S73
Adjournment
Senate convened at 1 p.m. and adjourned at 5:02 p.m., until 3 p.m. on Monday, January 13, 2025. (For Senate's program, see the remarks of the Acting Majority Leader in today's Record on page S81.)
Every speech and line is the Congressional Record's own text, read from GovInfo. Speakers are matched to members by GPO's own metadata. Referandom places each turn on the Clerk's video by matching its words: 19 of 65 spoken turns were found. Turns without a time are still listed; they just can't seek.
Legislative Session
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to S. 5, which the clerk will report.
Mr. President, January 9 is National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day. Today, as well as every day, we should give our thanks to the Nation's men and women in blue.
I make this a practice. Whenever I see a police officer, I always try to stop and say two things: I am not for defunding the police, and I am proud to back the blue, or I say it another way: Thank you for maintaining the peace.
As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, you can be sure that I will continue my work to protect and support law enforcement in both Iowa and nationwide. The Judiciary Committee always accomplishes issues supporting police in a bipartisan series of bills, most often in the month of May.
To our law enforcement friends, all Senators say: Thank you for your selfless service. May God bless you, and may God protect you.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. President, on November 5, President Trump was elected to be the 47th President of the United States. By Thanksgiving, he had announced all of his Cabinet Secretaries and several other senior roles in his new administration.
All in all, it took President Trump just 18 days to name all of his Cabinet Secretaries, a pace unprecedented in recent history. New administrations typically take a few weeks to name their first nominees, but President Trump has shown he wants to get to work quickly in executing the mandate he has received from the American people, and he deserves to have his team in place in order to help him do that. That is going to require some work from the Senate, and we are ready to get to it.
The Senate will provide each of the President's nominees with a fair process. That process has been unfolding for the past several weeks as Senators have met with many of these nominees in private. Next week, Senate committees plan to begin holding public hearings with several nominees. Senators will have the chance to ask them questions on the record, and the American people will be able to hear directly from the men and women President Trump has chosen for his administration.
Committees have begun noticing hearings with several nominees for national security roles in the Trump administration.
The Armed Services Committee is preparing to hear from Pete Hegseth, the nominee for Secretary of Defense.
The Foreign Relations Committee has announced plans to hear from our colleague Senator Rubio, who has been nominated for Secretary of State.
The Intelligence Committee has scheduled a confirmation hearing for John Ratcliffe to be CIA Director.
And the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee plans to hold a hearing with Gov. Kristi Noem, nominated for Secretary of Homeland Security.
Other committees have also announced plans for confirmation hearings: the Veterans' Affairs Committee for Doug Collins, nominee for VA Secretary; the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee for Russell Vought, nominated to return as OMB Director; the Energy Committee for Gov. Doug Burgum to be Interior Secretary and Chris Wright to be Energy Secretary; the Judiciary Committee for Pam Bondi, nominated for Attorney General; and the Commerce Committee for Sean Duffy, nominee for Secretary of Transportation.
That is just the start. Our goal is to keep up a steady pace of progress in the coming weeks. In 2009, President Obama had 12 Cabinet Secretaries in place within 15 days of taking office. It took the Trump and Biden administrations roughly three times longer to get the same number confirmed. We need to get back to the Obama standard, and we are going to need Democrats to cooperate in order to do that.
Earlier this week, the Democrat leader said that his caucus's approach to the Trump nominees would be ``fair but thorough.'' I hope it will be fair, but we will be ready to proceed whether or not Democrats choose to cooperate.
President Trump has chosen his team. We have a job to do to ensure that each member of that team gets a fair process here in the U.S. Senate, and that is what we are going to do. I look forward to the committees getting to work.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. President, today, our prayers are with the people of Southern California who have been impacted by the wildfires that have spread over the past few days. The images of homes, schools, places of worship burning are terrifying and almost surreal.
I have been briefed on the latest efforts by Federal and State officials to contain these fires. Sadly, there is a lot of work left to do before this crisis is over. Right now, it is vital that our firefighters and medical workers and first responders have everything they need from the Federal Government to combat the flames and rescue people from danger.
The Senate just passed, fortunately, a sweeping disaster aid package precisely for these kinds of emergencies, but now we must ensure all necessary disaster aid goes out the door as quickly as possible and is given to the people who need it and need it the most.
Finally, the fact that the worst wildfire in Los Angeles's history should happen in the dead of winter is another warning of the dangers of climate change. Extreme weather events will continue to happen regularly and will get worse if we don't tackle the climate crisis head-on.
We pray for the people of Southern California, and we thank all of our brave first responders working without rest to keep people safe.
Mr. President, on today's vote, this afternoon, the Senate is going to hold its first procedural vote on the Laken Riley Act. I expect that this bill will have enough votes from both parties to proceed. If we get on the bill, Democrats want to have a robust debate where we can offer amendments and improve the bill.
On the first day of the 119th Congress, my good friend the Republican leader, Senator Thune, said he wants to make the Senate a place ``where all members should have a chance to make their voices . . . heard.'' Well, this bill will be a fine place to start.
We should allow debate and amendments on the bill. This is an important issue. We should have a debate and amendments, and that is why I am voting yes on the motion to proceed.
To remind my colleagues, this is not a vote on the bill itself. This is a motion to proceed, a vote that says we should have a debate and should have amendments.
Mr. President, now, on the GOP taxes and our Democratic agenda, each day it is becoming clearer that the new Trump administration will look a lot like the old one: chaos for Republicans, bad news for working Americans. That is what this new Trump administration already looks like, just like they did 4 years ago.
All week long, Republicans have tripped over themselves to try to figure out how they are going to hurt everyday Americans through their agenda. All this talk about ``one bill'' or ``two bills'' is irrelevant. That is just Washington-insider machinations.
Americans need to know the real story: Republicans are united on using their new majorities to cut taxes for the ultrawealthy at the expense of working people. It doesn't matter if it is one bill or two bills when they are doing so much to hurt working Americans and only helping those who probably need help the least--the very least, by and large.
All these promises we heard from Republicans about fighting for the working class didn't even make it to Inauguration Day. They are back to trying to cut taxes for the ultrawealthy and megacorporations.
Look, I have no problem against those who are fortunate enough to have a lot of money. God bless them. But they need to pay their fair share. Almost all Americans would agree with that. So it is truly stunning--it is revealing--that Republicans are already spending so much energy trying to figure out the best way to make taxes for the very wealthy even lower.
We are already seeing a glaring contrast between how Republicans use their time in power and what Democrats believe in. A little later this afternoon, Senate Democrats will convene on the Senate steps for our first major press conference, where we will outline our priorities and where they lie in the 119th Congress.
We need to lower costs for working and middle-class people, not reward the ultrarich and America's biggest corporations. If Republicans want to work with us on real policies that lower costs for real working Americans, we are glad to partner with them. But if Republicans try to sell out our children's future with multitrillion-dollar tax cuts that only help those at the very top, we will fiercely, fiercely oppose them.
Mr. President, now, on nominations, the American people have a right to know if President-elect Trump's Cabinet nominees are going to fight for them. Will they lower people's costs? Will they be loyal to the country and the Constitution? Or will they cater to their wealthy benefactors, like the first Trump administration? Will they try to undo the wellsprings of democracy?
We can answer these questions through a robust nomination process in the Senate. But when Republicans like the chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee try to rush nominees before Senators have even received basic information, such as background reports, Americans have to ask: What are Republicans trying to hide when they don't want their nominees to have background checks and don't want to have full information about them?
These nominees will have enormous power. Every American has to go through a background check and is asked questions when they are applying for a job. These jobs are so important. Of course, this should happen here. But so far, some of the Republican chairs of committees are resisting, and that doesn't speak well for the qualifications or the confidence they have in their nominees.
In the last 2 days, the chairman of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources has noticed hearings on not one but two of President Trump's nominees without minority consent:
The American people deserve to know if these Cabinet nominees will protect good-paying, clean energy jobs; or will they kill these jobs and put a lot of people out of work for some ideological thing they are chasing?
Yet Senate Democrats on the committee have yet to receive basic information about either of these nominees' backgrounds.
Republicans choosing to rush nominees is quickly becoming a pattern. It is hard not to wonder: What are the Republicans trying to hide about these nominees from the American people? What are they trying to hide? What are they afraid of?
Now, finally, I want to end on a more personal but also a bittersweet note.
Mr. President, I have had great staff through all my years in the Senate and in the House. I owe everything to them. They work so damn hard. They are so dedicated, and they are so smart and so creative and so caring. So to say that this is one of the best I have ever had is really high tribute. But Matt Fuentes, my top health policy adviser for 8 years, is one of the very, very, very best I have ever, ever, ever had--8 years, amazing.
Matt, I want to thank you for your amazing work. I am so proud of what you have accomplished for us, for New York, and for the country.
As I said before, I have the best staff in the world, and Matt was no exception. He joined my team and immediately got to work helping defend the ACA when Republicans tried to repeal it in 2017. He was instrumental in passing COVID relief, which saved thousands of lives. He led insulin reform policy. Now, people are getting insulin, and Medicare recipients, for $35. I don't think it would have happened without this guy sitting right here next to me. He figured out the ways to get it done. It is not easy.
And he helped us lower drug prices for millions of other Americans, because, as you know, as of January 1, there is a cap on how much any senior citizen can pay for all the drugs they use, as well as negotiations that would have been now allowed so that Medicare can negotiate with the drug companies, and 10 of the most popular drug prices are going way down.
Anyone who has worked with Matt would agree on one thing: He possesses a rare gift. It is true. It is amazing. He can translate the most complex policy into clear and direct essentials, while grasping the core, difficult political issues at play.
I can recall many times--probably more than either of us would want to admit--when I called Matt at 7 in the morning, at midnight: Matt, what about this? What about that?
He never got mad. He was always very factual and matter of fact and would answer and solve the problem.
So he is amazing. And despite all the stressful situations that the job put him in, Matt always radiated calmness and confidence. He never wavered under pressure. In fact, that is when he was at his best. When everyone else in the room was trying to prove they were right and others were wrong, he had the special ability to bring people together on both sides of the aisle. So much of what we did was bipartisan, and that is the reason right here. It was a sight to behold to watch Matt.
Again, I just have to say, with all the pressure and everything going on and having a new family--a new young family, a beautiful child; now there are two--he stayed cool as a cucumber. I don't know if they use that expression these days. My mother uses that one. It is probably out of date.
Have you heard it, Mr. President, from your mother, too--``cool as a cucumber''?
Matt was cool as a cucumber throughout all of it--thoughtful, kind, generous. He knows when to be serious but doesn't take himself seriously. He is always seeking to help but is never afraid to hold strong for what he believes is right.
You know, my wish for every Senator, regardless of our ideology, is that you have a Matt Fuentes--sometime, someplace--on your staff, working on some important issue.
I do want to say one thing. I hate seeing Matt leave. He is one of the best, as I said, I have ever had, but we have a new successor to Matt, who is his deputy, who I know will fill his large shoes.
So thank you very much.
Matt, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, thank you, thank you, not just for me but for everything you have done for America and Americans. Your legacy, no matter what else you do in life, is there. There are literally going to be huge numbers of people--tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, maybe millions--who are alive, who are healthier because of you. What an amazing legacy.
God bless you, Matt. Good luck. Good luck to your nice wife, to your great little kids. I know you will do other great things, but forever, forever, forever, you will be part of the Schumer family and one of the best members of it.
Mr. President, something unexpected is happening in the early days of this new Congress, right here in the Senate, and that is we are seeing some bipartisanship. Republicans and a number of Democrats have now agreed that violent criminals who have entered our country illegally and are a threat to the safety and the security of the American people shouldn't be here and we need to do doing about it.
A headline in POLITICO this week tells the story. The headline reads ``Democrats make a right turn on immigration.'' This is an encouraging start to our new Senate year, and now it is time for the Democrats to prove that they really do want to work with us.
The Senate is going to vote today on this bipartisan Laken Riley Act. Now, just to remind those who are unfamiliar with the situation, Laken Riley was a young woman. She was a student at Augusta University in Athens, GA. She was studying to be a nurse. Tomorrow would have been her 23rd birthday. She was murdered by an illegal immigrant. All she was doing was out taking a jog. That illegal immigrant was in America because of Joe Biden and the Democrats' open border policies.
The Laken Riley Act has been sponsored and is now cosponsored by every Republican in the Senate, and there are also several Democrats who have recently signed on to this legislation and now support it. I was happy to hear the Democratic leader saying that he was going to vote to get on the bill as well.
The Laken Riley Act presents the Senate a simple choice: Are we willing to allow illegal immigrants to roam free in our country or do we want to save American lives? Protecting Americans from the dangers of a broken border makes sense to, I believe, most, if not all, of our citizens.
Earlier this week, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was asked about the Laken Riley Act. This is what he said. He said: If you are here illegally and you are committing crimes, I don't know why anybody thinks that that is controversial.
Well, not too long ago, his party certainly thought this point of view was controversial. That is what we saw happen here in the Senate. Last Congress, Republicans tried to bring up the Laken Riley Act. The Democrats blocked us. They wouldn't even let us debate it.
So I am happy to hear that Democrats are now open to debating this important bill. It is nice to see that the results of the election in November have changed the thinking of some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle.
Debating the Laken Riley Act isn't enough; the Senate must go on to pass it. The House has already passed this exact version of the Laken Riley Act this past week, and that vote was overwhelmingly bipartisan. The Senate now has an opportunity to make a real difference--a difference to protect American citizens from illegal-immigrant criminals.
There are some Democratic Senators who say that they support the Laken Riley Act but they want to weaken it. Well, to be clear, Senate Republicans are not weakening this lifesaving legislation. We will not allow that to happen. We must ensure that what happened to Laken Riley does not ever happen again.
When the time comes to vote on the Laken Riley Act, I encourage all of my colleagues to vote yes. If Democrats join us, the Laken Riley Act will actually become the law of the land, but more importantly than that, it will meet an urgent need of the American people. That is what we are really trying to do here--solve a problem, come up with a solution.
This isn't comprehensive immigration reform. To be very clear, there is much more that needs to be done to fix our broken open border. Today, I reintroduced a bill called the Build the Wall Act. That will certainly go a long way. We know that border walls work. My proposal finishes the wall, and it pays for it with unspent COVID money--money that is available to be used and should be used for that productive purpose.
We have already built more than 450 miles of border wall between the United States and Mexico. We know that it worked. Under President Trump, illegal crossings were at a record low. But now, after more than 10 million illegal immigrants have poured into our country during the last 4 years, we need to finish the wall. The need to do it is greater today than it has ever been before. The moment has come for safety and for security and, now, for serious action.
Joe Biden and the Democrats broke the border, opened the border, allowed and actually invited into this country people who are part of criminal cartels, drug dealers, terror suspects. This action turned every State, including my home State of Wyoming, into a border State.
It is time for even more Democrats to join Republicans today in securing our border, saving our lives, and passing this important piece of legislation that is coming before us today.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
Mr. President, on January 10, 2002, Laken Riley was born into this world to her loving family. Tomorrow would have been her 23rd birthday. She should be celebrating with her family, blowing out candles on her birthday cake, and filling her loved one's lives with the joy she spread so effortlessly.
But instead of celebrating another year around the Sun with friends and family, instead of figuring out what her next steps in life would be--which had limitless potential--instead of achieving her dreams of becoming a nurse, tomorrow, we will mark the first day she isn't here with us on this side of Heaven.
Nobody knew Laken and the light she shined on all those around her like her family, so I would like to read a statement from Allyson and John Phillips, Laken's mother and stepfather:
A truly special person.
Laken Riley was, as we can hear in Allyson and John's heartfelt words, just incredible.
There was no reason--no reason at all--that she should no longer be with us. Her killer, who came to this country illegally, should have never been in the United States. And once he had been arrested for multiple crimes before committing this heinous, unimaginable crime, he should have been detained by ICE immediately. Had that been the case, Laken's family and Laken herself would have faced a very different reality. They would be celebrating a birthday, not approaching the 1- year anniversary of her murder.
The Laken Riley Act will help prevent other families from experiencing this unimaginable heartache.
I was proud to introduce this bill in the Senate with Senator Ted Budd of North Carolina, with his support and leadership, along with Majority Leader John Thune and the entire Senate Republican conference, along with support which came from across the aisle from Senators John Fetterman and Ruben Gallego.
I am grateful for the tremendous leadership of Georgia Congressman Mike Collins, who originally introduced and led this piece of legislation through bipartisan passage in the House--not once but twice--literally lapping the Senate. When you look at Representative Collins, that is a true servant leader. He saw an issue that occurred right there with his constituency. His heart broke alongside theirs. And then he didn't just talk about it; he did something about it. Representative Mike Collins put pen to paper. He said: We are going to create a solution. We are going to make sure that no family has to experience the heartbreak that Laken's family is enduring. That type of leadership is what every Member of this body should strive for.
As is already the case under current law for various types of criminal activities, our bill would require U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to detain illegal aliens who commit theft-related offenses and would mandate that these illegal aliens are detained until their removal from the United States before they get the opportunity to commit further, graver crimes.
I want to be very clear. The only individuals that would be subject to this bill are criminal illegal aliens. These individuals crossed our border illegally, and then they committed a crime after getting here. That is who we are talking about.
Our bill would also ensure that States have standing to bring civil action against Federal officials who refuse to enforce mandatory detention and enforcement provisions of our current immigration laws, as well as statutory limitations on grants of immigration parole, or officials who violate those laws.
I know and my colleagues know that our bill is as necessary as it is straightforward. The House, as I mentioned, has lapped us in the Senate by passing this twice, under the leadership of Representative Collins. Unfortunately, when we tried to move it here, Democrats repeatedly blocked our attempt. Senate Democrats actually didn't even give this a committee hearing or a markup. Let's learn from those mistakes.
To my Democratic colleagues, I implore you to see reason, to see Laken's face, and to think about the potential consequences if you choose to block this again.
I once again want to read the words of Laken's mother and stepfather, Allyson and John Phillips:
So to my colleagues, please listen to Allyson and John. Understand their pain. Hear their pleas for action. They need us to pass the Laken Riley Act. Every American family needs us to pass the Laken Riley Act. And they deserve it.
Today, on the eve of what should have been Laken Riley's 23rd birthday, let's honor her legacy and advance a bipartisan bill that will help us save American lives.
Mr. President, I am here to support the Laken Riley Act. This legislation comes within the jurisdiction of the Judiciary Committee, which committee I will chair this Congress.
We all know that the result of the last election was a mandate for the President to carry out his agenda. In that agenda was the deportation of people who illegally enter our country. Everybody knows you can't come to the United States without our permission. One of those things that President Trump prioritized was his pledge to detain and deport criminals who are in this country illegally.
Laken was a young woman who lost her life at the hands of a violent, illegal immigrant with a criminal history. Laken's killer robbed a business before he robbed Laken of her life. He should have either been in prison or deported immediately after committing his first crime of robbery. This bill would ensure that thieves are detained by our immigration authorities.
Sadly, we know from experience that some administrations willfully refuse to enforce our immigration laws. This bill protects our citizens against any future administrations that want to let criminals stay in the United States illegally. It allows States to sue the Federal Government if and when it refuses to detain an illegal immigrant who has harmed a person in that State.
Over the past 4 years, a countless number of criminals have crossed our borders and hurt Americans. No American should be harmed by those who shouldn't be here in the first place. The Laken Riley Act will empower the President and his administration to remove the dangerous criminals that currently roam our streets and threaten our citizens' safety.
I would like to thank my colleague Senator Britt for taking the lead on the Laken Riley Act. Thanks to her leadership, we have supporters and cosponsors from both sides of the aisle backing this legislation. I urge my colleagues to move to and support this bill.
The primary role of the Federal Government is to protect its citizens. We owe it to Laken Riley and others who have fallen victim to crimes by illegal migrants to ensure that the Federal Government never fails to protect other Americans like it failed to protect them.
I ask unanimous consent that we begin the rollcall vote immediately, the 3 o'clock rollcall.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Pursuant to rule XXII, the Chair lays before the Senate the pending cloture motion, which the clerk will state.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived.
The question is, Is it the sense of the Senate that debate on the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 1, S. 5, a bill to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to take into custody aliens who have been charged in the United States with theft, and for other purposes, shall be brought to a close?
The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule.
The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
I announce that the Senator from New Hampshire (Ms. Hassan), the Senator from Connecticut (Mr. Murphy), the Senator from Washington (Mrs. Murray), the Senator from California (Mr. Padilla), and the Senator from California (Mr. Schiff) are necessarily absent.
Mr. President, I rise today, along with my colleague from North Dakota, Senator Kevin Cramer, to honor the 2024 NCAA FCS national champions, the North Dakota State University Bison--and, yes, it is pronounced ``buy-zuhn.'' Anyone from Bison Nation, which is the ardent fan base that supports this great program, will tell you that.
On Monday night, the Bison finished another impressive football season by winning their 10th FCS national title--correct, their 10th. The Bison broke their own record for the most FCS titles of all time, including their wins in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, and now 2024. They have won, actually, 19. That is just 10 since 2011. They have actually one 19 NCAA football championships.
The game was on national television, with more than 3 million people watching as it neared its exciting conclusion. I had the opportunity last night to talk to President Trump about it, and right away, he said: You guys have a great team. Senator Cramer was there as well, and as a matter of fact, I think Senator Cramer texted him either during or right after the game. I am not sure. He will tell us. But, needless to say, I waited until Wednesday night to talk to the President. But he, right away, said: You have a great team, a great program, and of course we want them back at the White House.
We had them there, Kevin, I think it was 5 years ago.
To say it was a great visit would be an understatement. I mean, it was unbelievable. The President took time to talk to all of the football players, and he had them come to the Oval Office, and I think he had a great time. It was a great experience, and so we are very excited about going back and truly, truly appreciating President Trump's hospitality and willingness to have this great team back.
Also, you realize that President Trump is a real sports fan.
He really is. He knows about our Bison team and, of course, about everybody else's team too. He knows his sports.
It was a hard-fought game. I have to say it was a hard-fought game. We played a truly worthy opponent, the Montana State University Bobcats. The Bobcats actually had an unbeaten season going at that point and really had steamrolled a lot of very good teams, and they are to be commended as well.
As a point of interest there, their coach, Brent Vigen, is an outstanding coach and a class guy. You saw that in the way he handled the game. Obviously, it was very--you know, they played their hearts out. It was a tough
He has turned that Montana State program around. They are a tough, tough program and will continue to be. He is an outstanding coach.
So the championship capped off a great season for the Bison. They ended 14 and 2 and proved once again that they really are a dominant force when it comes to FCS football.
I just want to take a minute now to recognize and congratulate the players and the coaches who are so vital to this success.
Quarterback Cam Miller just had an incredible game. He had an incredible year, but he really showed his mettle in this final game. He led the team. He was, of course, named the most outstanding player. He rushed 18 times for 121 yards. So he rushed 18 times, 121 yards, and 2 touchdowns, and he completed 19 of 22 passes for almost 200 yards. Now, those are the kinds of stats that are just off the chart. But his leadership all year long and certainly in the playoffs was just unbelievable.
I also want to acknowledge Marty Brown. He is a freshman running back who won the Jerry Rice Award as the freshman of the year and obviously just had an incredible year. It is a very prestigious award. He rushed for more than 1,000 yards and scored 14 touchdowns during the year.
Also, I want to recognize wide receiver Bryce Lance, a tremendous young receiver. He tied the record on Monday for the most single-season touchdowns in Missouri Valley Conference history, which is the conference that the Bison play in, and he had a total of 17 touchdowns.
We honor the whole team, though. It takes a team of incredible players, incredible senior leadership, a number of whom are going to be drafted--no question about it. There will be high draft choices. It was well-coached by Tim Polasek, who is a first-year coach. He is a former Bison as well. He was a coach under Craig Bohl for the Bison. He came back, and this was his first year as head coach, so obviously it was exciting for him to win the title in his first year.
There are also some other coaches I want to mention. I specifically want to mention Coach Randy Hedberg, who is a longtime friend of mine. He is the quarterback's coach, and this guy is a quarterback whisperer. He coached quarterbacks who are in the NFL now--Carson Wentz, who is with the Chiefs; Easton Stick, who is with the Chargers; and Trey Lance, who is with the Dallas Cowboys.
This guy was actually a professional quarterback himself. Amongst other teams, he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In the first game the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won--John McKay was the coach--in the very first game they won as an expansion team, Randy Hedberg was the quarterback. He has the gift.
So we get these great players, and we have a string of players who go to the NFL, and no doubt Cam Miller will as well.
Coach Devin Klieman, who is the son of former Bison Head Coach Chris Klieman, who is now at Kansas State--you know, the legacy goes on, and Chris Klieman's son Devin is with us.
Carlton Littlejohn is a standout linebacker. I remember watching him play.
Then also there is Coach Grant Olson. He is a former player, and Amy, his wife, is a professional golfer. So this is an athletic family. Those kids are going to be something else, I will tell you that. He was selected to the 2025 class of the American Football Coaches Association's 35 Under 35 Coaches Leadership Institute. He did a tremendous job with the defense.
To all of them--to all of the coaches and, of course, most of all, to these incredible young student athletes--they were just awesome this year. They did an incredible job. So I want to congratulate all of them and congratulate Athletic Director Matt Larsen and another individual who is a good friend of both of ours, Dave Cook, the president of the university--a class act. Big kudos to him.
I have to conclude on Bison Nation. Oh, I forgot. Here are my posters. I will show them quickly.
Here they are celebrating after the big win in Frisco, TX. We kind of like to refer to Frisco, TX, as Fargo South.
One of the high schools in Fargo is called Fargo South. Maybe that is how it got started. But we love Frisco. We love Frisco, TX. Having won 10 championships there may have something to do with it, but it is a marvelous place. Here they are celebrating afterward, and then here is the coach. Here is Coach Tim Polasek holding up the trophy there. I think you can see Kevin Cramer in the back. Oh, I guess not. I guess we were here.
So we weren't there, but we would have loved to have been there.
Bison Nation really supports this team, and you can't do it without that kind of fan base, although I have to tell you that the Montana State Bobcats were there in force, because I talked to players or I talked to some of the folks who were there, some of the alumni and fans who had gone to the game, and they said that Montana State really supported their team well.
So with that, I am going to turn to my colleague Senator Cramer, who is going to offer some more remarks. Like I said, we are excited because our work is not done. We will continue working with the team and look forward to a White House visit.
Senator Cramer.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Dakota.
I won't bore you with a lot of the same information. But he did set up--I think, John, you set up a perfect opportunity to dig into the dynasty a little bit when you went through every year.
Remember, we have been in Congress every year that they won one of these FCS championships. Somebody reminded me of that yesterday. So we have given a lot of these speeches. I have made several in the House.
Webster says that a dynasty is ``a succession of rulers of the same line of descent''--``a succession of rulers of the same line of descent.'' So when Senator Hoeven went through the names of those coaches in these last 14 years, they are in the line of descent.
Craig Bohl, who went to Wyoming from NDSU, was the coach when NDSU became eligible for the FCS championship series.
Just to put a little bit more meat on that, NDSU was a Division II-- NCAA Division II powerhouse for years, winning several national championships. They switched over to Division I and then became eligible. They didn't become eligible to even be in the tournament until 2008. So just imagine that. They were, basically, the junior varsity until 2008, when they became eligible for the playoffs. And in 2010, they got to the quarter finals.
So we got these ten championships, but let's not forget, they--and one of the other times, one of the other 4 years that they didn't win the national championships, they were in the quarter finals. And 2 of the years of those 4, they were in the semifinals. And the other year, they were the runner-up. So what are they, then, 9 and 0 in Frisco. No wonder we like Fargo South.
I might also point to this little tidbit--and maybe the NCAA is doing this to us on purpose: Next year's game and the next couple of years are going to be in Nashville. So Marsha and Bill are going to have to host this. But, anyway, we will wait for that to happen.
So 10 championships since 2011. That is a dynasty. Everybody is using the word ``dynasty.'' ESPN is using the word ``dynasty.'' You can't help but use the word ``dynasty.''
Senator Hoeven, you are correct to compliment the Bobcats. My gosh, I mean, the two quarterbacks in this game, Tommy Mellott from Montana State and Cam Miller from NDSU, played each other in the same game when they were freshmen. Both of them started for their respective teams when they were freshmen, and NDSU prevailed in that game as well. But what a program and what a great group of guys that created.
One of the things that I wanted to throw out there is--by the way, this poster, this is what I texted to President Trump about 30 seconds after the game. NDSU posted this image on their X or their Twitter feed, so I forwarded it to President Trump and said: Does this mean we get to come to the White House? He said yes, with an exclamation mark. He loves the program. He loves the program.
But NDSU is a really good football program, the best football program, but there are a lot more. NDSU is a research institute. It is a land grant university. John and I and anybody in ag country knows how valuable, how important they are to our economy, to our farmers, the research that they do. They are an R-1 research university, one of the top 100 research universities in the United States, with about 12,000 students, about 100 majors, and, of course, graduate programs and doctoral programs--all kinds of opportunities for young men and women who are looking for an education and a fun place to get one.
So we are just so proud of North Dakota State University. We are proud of all of our universities, the private ones and the public ones. They stand out in so many ways. But this is NDSU's day.
We are just honored to be able to celebrate with them in this sort of special way.
And I look forward to going to Nashville about a year from now and watching another one, John.
John, he is a little more--you know, he doesn't like to set the bar too high and get disappointed. But we are almost never disappointed. So I am getting my tickets for Nashville.
Just a final comment, just so the folks can see our ties, because I really want to commend you on your outstanding choice of the green and yellow NDSU--North Dakota State University--tie.
I have the weak version of the tie, Mr. President. I know in Nebraska, you understand how important agriculture is.
So we are proud of our school for our football teams but also because it is one of the leading schools of agriculture in the country, and for so many other reasons as well.
Mr. President, I rise this afternoon to address my colleagues about a circumstance in Kansas and, really, in the country, the pressing need for reform at Haskell Indian Nations University following serious allegations and finding of wrongdoing by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Indian Education.
Haskell University is a university located in Lawrence, KS. Haskell is the sole Tribal Nations University in the country and was established by the Department of the Interior for the purpose of maintaining the Federal Government's trust responsibilities and treaty agreements to the Native Americans.
Haskell University serves as a custodian of Tribal culture, offering students the opportunity to receive tuition-free higher education in an environment that understands and prioritizes indigenous values.
Yet despite its critical importance, Haskell has faced significant challenges. Haskell's campus, which once served as a sanctuary for Native American art and history, has for years been neglected by the Bureau of Indian Education. Various buildings on campus, many which serve as U.S. National Historic Landmarks, are in disrepair or no longer in use.
Many of the residential buildings on campus are not equipped with heating, ventilation, or air-conditioning, and the campus is not--not-- compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
It is the responsibility of the Bureau of Indian Education, as described in the Indian Education Act of 1972, to ``insure continued and expanded educational opportunities for Indian students.''
Yet the BIE has failed to maintain Haskell's infrastructure or to provide a safe campus for students and employees.
Since 2017, I have been working to bring attention to the BIE's mismanagement of the university, and on multiple occasions, I have called on leadership at the Department to address the wide array of problems and challenges at Haskell.
In 2022, serious allegations were reported to my office regarding improper treatment of students and the wrongful termination of an employee at Haskell Indian Nations University.
In response, I contacted the Director of Indian Education, urging the BIE to address these issues. Although the BIE, of course, assured me in March of 2023 that changes would be made to alleviate my concerns, we continued to hear and continue to hear from students and staff reporting the problems and reporting that those problems that were reported back then were not being addressed adequately.
In October 2023, I was informed of a confidential, on-campus investigation into the issues at Haskell. In April of 2024, a report was released due to an investigation by a government watchdog Agency, which revealed serious problems, including failures to adequately establish and follow policies regarding sexual assault, wrongful termination of employees, and intimidation of faculty and students.
With these findings, I called for a systemic overhaul within BIE, but as has almost always been the case, the Department of the Interior chose to delegate the responsibilities to an Assistant Secretary and refused to directly address the issues at hand.
Since April 2024, I have made repeated requests to meet with Deb Haaland, the Secretary of the Interior, to discuss these issues. Every attempt for a discussion was rebuffed.
This ongoing neglect is unacceptable. It is past time for real change at Haskell.
To address these issues, last month I released a draft piece of legislation to provide a Federal charter for Haskell Indian Nations University and to remove the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Indian Education from direct oversight of the university.
The legislation will empower Haskell with self-governance, providing an organizational structure that reflects its mission, community, and needs of its students.
The marker bill calls for the establishment of a new governing body at Haskell, a board of regents composed of Native American leaders, educators, and community members who will be directly accountable to the students, staff, and to the Tribes that Haskell serves.
The board would manage the university's budget, make decisions regarding academic programming, faculty, and facilities, ensure that the institution is providing a high-quality educational experience for students that attend Haskell University--an educational experience that they deserve.
I appreciate the support from the Haskell Board of Regents, the president of the board, Brittany Hall, said this:
By moving Haskell outside the purview of BIE, we remove the bureaucratic ambivalence that has hindered the university's growth and damaged in significant ways its potential.
I would like to request that members of the Native American, Lawrence, KS, and higher education communities submit feedback to my office or to my colleague who is leading this effort in the House of Representatives, Congressman Tracey Mann, on the proposed legislation to ensure this bill effectively addresses key issues. We are looking for comment and input.
The history of the Federal Government's treatment of Native Americans is filled with broken promises. We should not allow Haskell, a cornerstone of Native higher education, to become another promise we fail to keep.
The students who walk through the doors of Haskell deserve better than the inefficiency and mismanagement and the neglect they have faced under the current governance system.
I look forward to working with all stakeholders to refine the draft legislation and request my colleagues join me
Honoring the Life and Legacy of President Jimmy Carter and Commending President Jimmy Carter for His Life-Long Career of Public Service, Humanitarian Leadership, Diplomacy, and Courageous Advocacy
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 19) was agreed to.
The preamble was agreed to.
(The resolution, with its preamble, is printed in today's Record under ``Submitted Resolutions.'')
Mr. President, I rise to mark the fact that Monday's joint session of Congress was the first time that Congress certified the results of a Presidential election with the much-needed and significant reforms in place to the Electoral Count Act that we enacted in 2022 with broad bipartisan support.
Senators from both parties came together to enact these critical updates to address ambiguities in the law that those trying to subvert the will of the American people tried to exploit 4 years ago--and to ensure that nothing like the chaos of January 6, 2021, ever happens again. Importantly these reforms ensure the electoral votes for President accurately reflect each State's election results, including raising the threshold to challenge a State's electoral votes from just one Member of the House and one Member of the Senate to one-fifth of each Chamber and preventing State legislatures from appointing electoral slates against the will of the voters. The updated law also sets deadlines for States when certifying their election results in an effort to ensure that the peaceful transfer of power is carried out in line with the requirements set forth in the Constitution.
Some have noted that while Kansas' electors met as required on December 17, 2024, and the certificate conveying Kansas' electoral votes was received by the Senate in line with the updated law, the State's certificate of ascertainment was inadvertently issued 1 day late on December 12 rather than December 11. Moving forward, it is important that States make all possible efforts to meet this deadline and the others set by the Electoral Count Reform Act to ensure the timely certification of Presidential election results and to support the administration of the peaceful transition of power that is the foundation of our democracy.
Mr. President, in the early 1800s, a band of pioneers settled in Kentucky's Jackson Purchase founding what would become McCracken County. At the confluence of the Tennessee and Ohio Rivers, this settlement grew over time into a bustling center for business, agriculture, and the arts. This year, on their bicentennial anniversary, the people of McCracken County will pay tribute to two centuries of rich history and cultural heritage, and today, I am proud to join them as they mark this impressive milestone.
The county was named in tribute to Captain Virgil McCracken, a brave Kentuckian who made the ultimate sacrifice in the Battle of the River Raisin during the War of 1812. Like much of the rest of the Purchase, McCracken County was blessed with fertile land and grew, thanks to its easy access to Kentucky's inland waterways. Dry dock facilities for steam and towboats soon cropped up, while Paducah, the county seat of McCracken County since 1832, became an important railway hub. By the turn of the 19th century, McCracken County formed an integral part of Kentucky's commerce, culture, and governance.
Around this time, the county produced one of our State's most prominent political figures, Alben Barkley. The story goes that Barkley bought a ``one-eyed horse named Dick'' to transport him all across McCracken County during his first campaign for county attorney. But the secret to Barkley's success was less his mode of transportation than his amiable and empathetic personality. Not one to waste time, Barkley quickly found his footing on the national political stage, rising from Congressman to Senator to Senate majority leader to our Nation's 35th Vice President under President Harry Truman. Barkley continues to cast a long shadow on Kentucky's political history, something I am reminded of daily. I mean this quite literally; this son of McCracken County continues to hold a prominent place in my office, his portrait hanging on the wall of my Capitol office, alongside that of Senator John Sherman Cooper.
Another important moment in McCracken's history came in the Cold War, when the community bolstered American security at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, which began production of enriched uranium in 1952. For many years, the plant remained the only operating uranium enrichment facility in the United States. While that work has since completed, the plant's employees remain dedicated to their jobs and the important work they perform each day to transition this facility into the future.
Today, McCracken County remains the heart of America's inland waterways and a center for creativity and folk art that serves as the gateway to west Kentucky's history and opportunity. Kentuckians from all across the Commonwealth travel to Paducah each year, the cherished home of the National Quilt Museum and other famed attractions like the Paducah Riverfront, the Paducah Railroad Museum, the Tilghman Civil War Museum, the Inland Waterways Museum, and the William Clark Market House Museum, the county's oldest museum. It is no surprise that, every year, more and more families decide to call McCracken County home. With the leadership of Judge Executive Craig Clymer, the Paducah Area Chamber of Commerce, and other dedicated Kentuckians, this vibrant community will continue to succeed in our Commonwealth. I ask my Senate colleagues to join me in honoring McCracken County and its 200 years of history and heritage.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 3 p.m., Monday, January 13; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; further, upon conclusion of morning business, the Senate resume consideration of the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 1, S. 5 postcloture; finally, that all postcloture time expire at 5:30 p.m. and the Senate vote on the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 1, S. 5.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
